Is this a good starter gaming build? If not, ideas?

Jordan Chen · Mar 16, 2014

Hello everyone. I'm looking for a good starting rig for my cousin and I. We're converting over to PC gaming and looking for a really good foundation for a rig that doesn't punch a hole in our wallets.

We play mostly Steam games but my cousin wants to start a Twitch Channel with me as well. The most intense games we'd probably play on this rig is Skyrim (with RealVision END on Ultra and maxed out), Splinter Cell Blacklist, League Of Legends and maybe in the future, we might pick up our own copies of Titanfall.

We're really looking for a rig that can do most of those things which is about 600-650. If we can go less than that, it'd be even better. I was hunting around on Newegg and I found this combo here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1189055

Is this a good base for a gaming rig and if it is, which GPU do you guys recommend? I wouldn't want to spend more than about 200 bucks on a GPU. I've heard good things about the R9 270 and seen a lot of videos reviewing it but I would still feel better if I got some professional opinions. I found the R9 270 on sale on Newegg for 180 bucks and I'm wondering if I got two of those, I could Crossfire it and it would then fit the bill for our needs?

I appreciate any and all help with this endeavor. If this build is crap, could you guys help me build a good rig that could do most of the games I said above without a lot of lag? Like I said, we're not looking to spend more than 650 bucks per rig.

Thanks!

EDIT: Link changed. I accidentally put in the wrong link. Sorry guys! New link has the 16 GB of memory. That's the one I'm looking at right now.

ewok93 · Mar 16, 2014

That's a pretty poor GPU, you're best off building a new rig on your own. You probably want an 8 core if you're streaming, so I would go for an 8320. A good motherboard would be an Asus M5A97 R2, that will also allow overclocking in the future. A GPU like a 7870 or 270x will be sufficient, and you'll want an 80+ bronze PSU that's about 600 watts. You want a 1tb HDD, too. http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3aHfV This will work well for you. You can get a 6300 and 270 or 7850 to save some money on that, as that build does not include Windows.

Gee Bee · Mar 16, 2014

I don't know much about your games you intend to play, but i know Skyrim with mods is really taxing the gpu here. The 270 as you suggest is the way to go and in CFX i don't see any potential problems. However, the only thing worth keeping in the linked setup is the CPU. [strike]The Biostar only has one pci-e slot, and is therefore useless. The rest of components are on the cheaper side also. [/strike]

Hell the link changed.lol

Jordan Chen · Mar 16, 2014

ewok93 :

Holy crap that was fast. I also wanted to ask. Is Crossfire really all it's cracked up to be? I don't really need a new Windows cause I have a copy of Windows 7 Ultimate right here at my home so I can just install it on both rigs.

I like the build because I was always kind of thinking about the 8320 as a CPU but I've seen so many videos and such telling me that Intel is better than it. Also, can the R9 270x really max out Skyrim with the RealVision ENB enabled? A lot of friends have told me that it takes an nVidia GTX 760 or 770 to do it without any FPS lag.

Just a little curious is all. I appreciate the really quick response.

Jordan Chen · Mar 16, 2014

Gee Bee :

Thanks for the speedy reply mate. Appreciate it. Do you have any suggestions? I mean I'm not too good with computer parts (still a novice in that department really). I just saw the huge hard drive and the ridiculous amount of memory and instantly thought it was a good build.

I'm totally open to an entirely new build if I can get much better for the money. 650 is probably our cap.

BnG · Mar 16, 2014

Hi Jordan,

You might want to look at a separate parts! This rig here isn't bad, but the GPU is not that powerful. The games you mentioned aren't that demanding (idk about splinter cell), but twitch can be quite demanding...
I'd say your package its GPU isn't powerful enough to stream demanding games + the case brand/psu brand are unknown to me. A trustworthy PSU is very important when it comes to building a PC (Look for XFX, seasonic, corsair).

For live streaming, the FX is a good choice. The 8320 will serve you well, and can be OCed quite heavily with a cheap aftermarket cooler.
For the rest of the build:
- Motherboard, I can't recommend one easily, you should ask a MB expert

.
- RAM: 8GB 1600Mhz. Corsair / Kingston are quite good.
- HDD: 1TB Western digital caviar blue or seagate barracuda.
(A SSD will help you out a lot if you ever have some spare money - reduced loading screens / more stable gameplay).
- Case: Most 60$ cases with USB 3.0 are fine (as long as the airflow is decent).
- PSU: One from XFX/Corsair/Seasonic - wattage depending on the GPU.

GPU: Look at how much money you have left. If you can, buy the GTX 760 (you probably won't although this one can even play BF4 on ultra). Otherwise, go with for example a GTX 750ti (also quite powerful).

Don't get me wrong, the combo deal looks quite nice, but you will pay for a GPU that will not really "help" when it comes to streaming + the I can't comment on the case / PSU (I don't know the brand at all). Other than that, you can always just give it a go and see how it works out / later upgrade the GPU and sell the old one!

EDIT: aaaaand the link changed ><. Well, 16GB + poor CPU isn't a good combi. Go for a better CPU and cut the RAM to 8GB. You will only need 1 TB (I have games like BF4 and Ghosts which use about 70GB's and those are very big games for modern standards). Apex sounds like quite a cheap brand, a no no for me

(the PSU is very very cheap)...

Jordan Chen · Mar 16, 2014

BnG :

Hi Jordan,

You might want to look at a separate parts! This rig here isn't bad, but the GPU is not that powerful. The games you mentioned aren't that demanding (idk about splinter cell), but twitch can be quite demanding...
I'd say your package its GPU isn't powerful enough to stream demanding games + the case brand/psu brand are unknown to me. A trustworthy PSU is very important when it comes to building a PC (Look for XFX, seasonic, corsair).

For live streaming, the FX is a good choice. The 8320 will serve you well, and can be OCed quite heavily with a cheap aftermarket cooler.
For the rest of the build:
- Motherboard, I can't recommend one easily, you should ask a MB expert

.
- RAM: 8GB 1600Mhz. Corsair / Kingston are quite good.
- HDD: 1TB Western digital caviar blue or seagate barracuda.
(A SSD will help you out a lot if you ever have some spare money - reduced loading screens / more stable gameplay).
- Case: Most 60$ cases with USB 3.0 are fine (as long as the airflow is decent).
- PSU: One from XFX/Corsair/Seasonic - wattage depending on the GPU.

GPU: Look at how much money you have left. If you can, buy the GTX 760 (you probably won't although this one can even play BF4 on ultra). Otherwise, go with for example a GTX 750ti (also quite powerful).

Don't get me wrong, the combo deal looks quite nice, but you will pay for a GPU that will not really "help" when it comes to streaming + the I can't comment on the case / PSU (I don't know the brand at all). Other than that, you can always just give it a go and see how it works out / later upgrade the GPU and sell the old one!

I really appreciate the speedy reply mate. I think you might've looked at the wrong link. This is the combo I meant to put in. I'm soo sorry if I confused you >.<

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1189055

BnG · Mar 16, 2014

Jordan Chen :

BnG :

I really appreciate the speedy reply mate. I think you might've looked at the wrong link. This is the combo I meant to put in. I'm soo sorry if I confused you >.<

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1189055

Ehe, I did

I put an edit at the end of the post when I noticed :$. The things I noted are do still count, as the same thing pretty much counts for the new link.
PS: Never cheap out on a PSU. If something goes wrong, it could destroy the whole system.

ewok93 · Mar 16, 2014

It's really pretty hard to find a good deal on a pre-assembled build. Crossfire and SLI are not too effective, and offer no boosts in some games. Also, considering they need to be the same cards, it's not like you can have an old card and upgrade to a new one, using both and getting a boost from your old one, unfortunately. An Asus M5A97 R2 is really the best motherboard you can get for your money, and is great for just about anything unless you want to do some really serious overclocking or Xfire/SLI. RAM, speed and all that stuff doesn't matter. Nobody on this planet without an APU can tell the difference between 1333mhz and 2133mhz RAM. Any case will work fine, but a good one with plenty of room for fans is ideal. As far as the GPU, a 760 or 7870 will work nicely.

As for AMD vs Intel, AMD is your best choice for your budget, and tends to be better for streaming anyway. Get the 8320, overclock it a bit, etc. 1tb isn't a huge harddrive, actually, and you can find one for $50. Also, 8gb of RAM is all you need. With the cost of RAM these days, there is no point in 16gb when it's the difference between a good video card and a low end one.

ewok93 · Mar 16, 2014

Well, just saw the link you meant to post. No point in a 2tb HDD, or 16gb of RAM. Get rid of those, get a better PSU, CPU (8320), and a 760 or 7870 and it's good, but you might as well save a bit of money and get an Asus M5A97 R2 instead, save about $50. You save a ton of money building it yourself, too.

Definitely consider something like this: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3aHfV

Gee Bee · Mar 16, 2014

I really don't know enough about your intended gaming. However, a single GTX 760 is superior to 270 or x. Yes the intel is better, in spades on single thread performance, but just how much can you afford. $650 right.

Jordan Chen · Mar 16, 2014

ewok93 :

Oh man I'm really digging that build there. Do you think we can up the GPU a little with the 40 dollar difference between that and 650?

Gee Bee · Mar 16, 2014

Ypu got stay in budget and garner the best you for those dollars.

BnG · Mar 16, 2014

ewok93 :

You will, indeed, not notice a big difference between 1333 and 1600, but 1600 is in most cases as cheap, or maybe 2-3$ more. I have 1333mhz sticks (I got a used build) and I don't think I'm suffering from lower FPS because of it

.

Jordan Chen · Mar 16, 2014

Gee Bee :

Yeah. 650 is about all we can spend :/ I really wish we could go over that but work's been difficult lately :/

BnG · Mar 16, 2014

Jordan Chen :

The build looks good, you might want to put in an optical drive for like 15$ / try to squeeze in a 64 GB SSD (might be like 5$ over budget). I have a 64GB SSD and it really speeds up the booting process (it starts up in about 10 sec and I have an older SSD). Also, an SSD will reduce loading screens. I have BF4 in my HDD, 2 of my friends had it on their SSD and they got to play about 3x faster ><.

zachparr2442 · Mar 16, 2014

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NocfGP925j8 600$ build

ewok93 · Mar 16, 2014

I would get something like a CPU cooler, helps a lot. It will let you overclock, and improve your CPU a good bit.

In3rt1a · Mar 16, 2014

Just for a point of reference, I am running Skyrim maxed at 1080 with Realvision and more mods (around 20) and my 7970 doesn't break a sweat. The 3gb of vram it has very well may be helpful however.. Perhaps you should consider a 4gb gtx 760?

Jordan Chen · Mar 16, 2014

Ok guys. I used the pcpartpicker tool and I came up with this. Will this run what I said before?

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3aHNE

ewok93 · Mar 16, 2014

The 7870 is the same chip as the 270x, and the M5A97 LE R2 just has less heatsinks. Also, there is no reason to spend more on that RAM. So essentially, that's just a small downgrade that costs $30.

BnG · Mar 16, 2014

Jordan Chen :

Yes it certainly will =). Although, hitachi and diamond? Try changing your GPU brand to something more reliable, just search on Google for "best 7870 brand" / similar. Hitachi should work, but if you spend like 4 more bucks, you have a more well known brand like Western Digital (take the caviar blue version).

I have the exact same MB and I must say it is a very good one and I've never had problems with it so far!

ewok93 · Mar 16, 2014

Hitachi is a perfectly fine brand, and GPUs are all the complete exact same except for the cooling systems, and Diamond's are decent. Also, that motherboard is a downgrade.

zachparr2442 · Mar 16, 2014

A 660ti is a little cheaper can usually be found around 190-210 7% better performance and 25w less power im running around the same setup your wanting to build and i play alot of games maxed including Titanfall and nether

Gee Bee · Mar 16, 2014

i remain convinced you need a 760. I good probably 'dickie' this up and save a few more dollars but it's pretty much the best i can do.

http://pcpartpicker.com/user/gee%2Bbee/saved/44l3

Is this a good starter gaming build? If not, ideas?

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