$1000 PC Build for Gaming/Game Design/Video Editing

Solution


Not a bad cut-back at all. I hope you enjoy your build! :]
How about this one:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V3 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($249.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus B85-PLUS ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($98.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Team Vulcan 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 280X 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($299.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($67.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.00 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1001.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-28 15:13 EDT-0400)
 

Jonathan Tyer

Honorable
May 16, 2013
435
0
10,810


Do the Xeon have hyperthreading?
 
@Jonathan Tyer: Yes, that processor is practically an i7-4770, but it's marketed as a 'server processor'. There are a few differences:

1. The Xeon supports ECC memory (this is a plus, albeit an unnecessary one).
2. It has no integrated graphics (doesn't matter since you're going to be using a dedicated GPU).
3. It has a 0.1GHz slower clock speed (~3% difference in performance).
4. It's about $50 cheaper.
 

M0j0jojo

Honorable
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z87X-HD3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($106.49 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.43 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PNY GeForce GTX 770 4GB Video Card ($309.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($47.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1005.84
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-28 15:24 EDT-0400)
 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($134.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.94 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus M5A99FX PRO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: PNY XLR8 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($124.95 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 280X 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($299.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($67.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.00 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $997.81
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-28 16:00 EDT-0400)
 


TX, HX and AX = great.
The rest, not so much.

The CX PSUs use bad capacitors that tend to cause heat issues, making the PSUs have a relatively high failure rate.
 

Jonathan Tyer

Honorable
May 16, 2013
435
0
10,810


How about this one? SeaSonic G-750 750W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
 


Yeah, that is a really great one; I highly recommend it.
 
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From Anand

 

EpiclyDelicious

Reputable
May 28, 2014
61
0
4,660
1) What games do you want to play?
2) What kind of Game Design are you doing?
3) Will you be recording your games?
4) How much video editing will you be doing?

I'd like to know these things before I put together a build. :]
 

EpiclyDelicious

Reputable
May 28, 2014
61
0
4,660


I would be giving you an i5 for your build, but an i7 is amazing when it comes to recording, editing, and anything to do with game design.

I see people bringing up Xeon, but here's why I say do not go that path:

1) It's a server processor. Meant for servers. Yes, it's the same architecture, but use it as intended for. That's my rule of thumb. The benefits other than price do not benefit you for what you do, really.

2) You can overclock the i7 a lot more than the Xeon if need be. Even if you don't plan on it, it's good to have that option in case performance runs low. ;]

3) [MAIN PROBLEM] Xeon has no iGPU. Here's the thing. What if you receive a bad video card? What if your video card dies? What if it has a problem that you need to address? You have no other type of GPU to fall back on. (Unless you have another card, but restarting and changing a BIOS setting is easier than installing an entirely different video card.)

Now the Xeon can game and do what the i7 can, but the i7 has just more speed and headroom for more performance. It's overall the better processor and not worth giving up ~$50.

Unfortunately, PCPartPicker is down for me and a lot of other people at the moment, so I will form my recommended build in at a later time.

Hope my advice helped you and sorry for the inconvenience! :]