First DIY Budget Gaming PC: Any good?

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Flubbadubbah

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Jan 3, 2014
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Hey everyone! I was just wondering if this PC I want to order and assemble is any good? It would be for gaming and some light video editing use. Thanks for the feedback!

CPU: Intel Core i5-4570 ~$214

GPU: Asus R9270X-DC2T-2GD5 Radeon R9 270X Graphic Card - 1120 MHz Core - 2 GB GDDR5 SDRAM - PCI Express 3.0 ~$220

MB: Asus Z87-A Motherboard - ATX, LGA1150, Intel Z87 Express Chipset, 2800 MHz DDR3 (O.C.), SATA III (6Gb/s), 8-CH Audio, Gigabit LAN, Quad-GPU CrossFireX Ready - Z87-A ~$140

RAM: Patriot Viper Xtreme 8GB Desktop Module Kit - DDR3, 2 x 4GB, 1600MHz, PC3-12800, CL 10, 1.5V - PXD38G1600C10K ~$50

PSU: Ultra LSP650 650-Watt Power Supply - ATX, SATA-Ready, SLI-Ready, 135mm Fan, Sleeved Cables, Matte Finish, 3-Year Warranty ~$60

Case: Rosewill Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case CHALLENGER-U3 Black ~$60

HD: Seagate Barracuda 1 TB HDD SATA 6 Gb/s NCQ 64MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Bare Drive ST1000DM003 ~$60

The total which comes out to be around ~$800.

Any feedback or constructive criticism would be most helpful! Thank you!!!
 
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KillerGamer

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Dec 4, 2013
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Get a 1x8GB RAM stick as it may limit your upgrading ability in the future. Also, why not get an i5 3570k? It's unlocked, OC ready, and is for about $200. You will have to get an LGA1155 motherboard.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V PRO ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($144.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair XMS 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 2GB Video Card ($205.66 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 750W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $714.60
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-01-03 13:45 EST-0500)

You need the extra Wattage if you want to OC and run CrossFire/SLI.
 
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coozie7

coozie7

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Jun 2, 2007
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If you're getting a 'Z' motherboard, a 'K' unlocked CPU would be a better choice, if you want to stay with an locked CPU, get a 'H' series motherboard.
That power supply is not a great one, look for something of similar wattage from: Antec, Silverstone, Seasonic, XFX, Pc Pwer and Cooling, EVGA or Corsair.
Your memory configuration is correct, dual channel only adds a little to overall performance but if you can have it, why waste it?
The 'X' version of the R9 270 is, basically an overclocked version of the stock card, if you're feeling brave you could shave some cash off the build and get a stock card and overclock it.
 
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Flubbadubbah

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Jan 3, 2014
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Wow! Thanks guys for your quick responses. Tomshardware really is a great place to learn new things and get great advice.

Hmm.. @pit_1209 I really wanted to stick with the intel series, but the way that you mentioned would definitely be one way to shave down the price a bit.

@KillerGamer I checked some of the prices for the items you posted in your "mock" pc build and unfortunately some of the prices went up significantly already haha. Otherwise that would have been a great build for me.

@coozie7 Thanks for giving me that insight. I'm definitely going to change my PSU, and motherboards always confused me so thanks for clearing that up a bit haha.

For everyone: So if I were to cut down on the price by cutting a certain component in the computer without sacrificing too much gaming power as well as CPU processing power, what could I do? I don't really want to go over $800 too much, and also unfortunately I live in NJ so Newegg charges an arm and a leg for taxes so I try to avoid it. Was hoping on finding a reliable motherboard for <$100 if possible since it's hard to cut down anything regarding the CPU and GPU. Also keep in mind I was going to add a ~$60 case to the mix so there's more money coming in there as well.

Once again thanks guys for all the help so far!!
 
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pit_1209

pit_1209

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Jan 9, 2012
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The last build that killergamer posted is within your budget if you want o lower price mobo the it will be better for you to go with a non k i5 and forget oc.
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2vlir
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2vlir/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2vlir/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.29 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H77-DS3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($95.97 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair XMS 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 2GB Video Card ($205.66 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($58.86 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $764.74
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-01-04 01:29 EST-0500)
 
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pit_1209

pit_1209

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Jan 9, 2012
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Same cost, more cpu power and overclockability.
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2vlsJ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2vlsJ/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2vlsJ/benchmarks/

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($149.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair XMS 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 2GB Video Card ($205.66 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($58.86 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $784.44
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-01-04 01:36 EST-0500)
 
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KillerGamer

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Dec 4, 2013
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@KillerGamer I checked some of the prices for the items you posted in your "mock" pc build and unfortunately some of the prices went up significantly already haha. Otherwise that would have been a great build for me.
Click to expand...

Haha... That sucks man. Which build are you thinking about now? Also, are you in America or in any other country?
 
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Flubbadubbah

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Jan 3, 2014
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@pit_1209 I'll have to check out that configuration and mix and match some things. Thanks for the suggestion! Not sure if I want to go with an AMD CPU though but i'll have to see.

@KillerGamer I'm still tentative about buying parts at the moment because the prices only seem to be going up. I'm thinking I should wait for another sale or something. I live in America (USA).
 
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KillerGamer

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If you live in USA then an AMD won't be a problem unless you're in a hot state. I'm building you both Intel and AMD builds for comparison assuming your budget is $800.

Intel Build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.95 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver Ceramique 2 Tri-Linear 2.7g Thermal Paste ($3.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ECS Z77H2-A4 v1.1 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($69.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($63.75 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($169.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Gigabyte GZ-P5HB5C (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($23.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ Microcenter)
Monitor: Planar PLL2210W 22.0" Monitor ($119.99 @ Mac Mall)
Total: $826.58
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-01-09 04:43 EST-0500)

AMD Build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver Ceramique 2 Tri-Linear 2.7g Thermal Paste ($3.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus M5A78L-M/USB3 Micro ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($54.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($63.75 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($169.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Rosewill Galaxy-01 ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ Microcenter)
Monitor: Planar PLL2210W 22.0" Monitor ($119.99 @ Mac Mall)
Total: $787.63
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-01-09 04:50 EST-0500)

You can take an R9 270X if you want an AMD graphics card. An aftermarket cooler is required for overclocking and it will need thermal paste. Also, the PSU might seem like an overkill but it was pretty cheap and good so I included that.
 
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Flubbadubbah

Honorable
Jan 3, 2014
5
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@KillerGamer

This is what I modified your build to be. Not too sure if it's great or not? I tried to avoid Newegg cause I'm from NJ and the tax is ridiculous for it. I already have a monitor so I took that out. I basically only changed the Video Card, the motherboard and the case. Was wondering if this is an okay build?

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2yNga
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2yNga/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2yNga/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.96 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($98.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($63.75 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 270X 2GB Video Card ($223.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 431 Plus (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($84.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $806.64
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-01-10 00:56 EST-0500)
 
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KillerGamer

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Dec 4, 2013
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Look at a Full Tower case if you have the space to house it. You need extra space if you want to overclock and do other crazy stuff in the future. The case which you're looking at is decent. However, I'm not into understated looking cases so I will leave the case as your decision. Make sure it can easily house your ATX motherboard and HDDs and you're good to go :) If you want to have water cooling then the case may not work so you should check that out.
 
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