Budget Gaming Computer

optoabhi · Jun 24, 2014

Hello Everyone, I have been saving money to build a decent custom gaming PC ($ 550 - $650) range. I have been reading through many forums and going through details and comparisons and reviews on various products. I dont mind spending a little bit extra if the performance is worth it/ dollar.

Games interested: CS-GO, Just cause etc. (Doesn't have to be in max settings, smooth flow is important with decent enough resolution)

I have compiled a few things and I would like your suggestions on my choices. Any effective suggestion will be greatly appreciated.

CASE

■ CM Storm Stryker - Full Tower Handle and External 2.5 Drive Dock - $139.99 @ newegg
■ CM Storm Scout 2 Advanced - Gaming Mid Tower - $95.00 @ newegg
■ Corsair Carbide Series 500R - $99.00 @ newegg
■ Please suggest any-other good case within 50-100 USD range.

CPU

■ AMD FX-8350 Black Edition Vishera 8-Core 4.0GHz (4.2GHz Turbo) - $169.99 @ microcenter
[FX-8350 looks like an amped up version of FX-8320]
■ FX 8320 Black Edition 3.5GHz AM3+ - $129.99 @ microcenter
■ Any other suggestions ?

Motherboard-[Bundle @ microcenter with AMD FX-8350]
[-$40.00 for AMD FX 8320]

■ MSI 970A-G46 AM3+ ATX AMD Motherboard - $209.00
■ ASUS M5A97 R2.0 Socket AM3+ ATX AMD Motherboard - $219.00
■ ASRock 970 Extreme3 R2.0 Socket AM3+ ATX AMD erboard - $209.00
■ ASRock 970 Extreme4 Socket AM3+ 970 ATX AMD erboard - $229.00
■ Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 Socket AM3+ 990FX ATX AMD erboard - $239.00
■ ASUS SABERTOOTH 990FX R2.0 AM3 - $184.99 (separate)
■ Please suggest any other MoBo which goes well with the stated CPUs.

GPU

■ EVGA NVIDIA GeForce GTX760 2GB Superclocked w/ ACX Cooling @ 239 @ newegg
■ MSI N760 TF 2GD5/OC NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 2048MB (clocked) @269.00 @ microcenter
■ Gigabyte GV-R927OC-2GD AMD Radeon R9 270 Overclocked 2048MB @ 174 @ microcenter
■ MSI AMD Radeon R9 270 2048MB @ $179.00 @microcenter
■ Sapphire 11220-00-20G AMD Radeon R9 270 2048MB @ $ 189.99 @ microcenter
■ any other suggestions ?

Performance factors I have lesser knowledge about:

PSU
I have no idea how we should estimate the average power/watts for a given configuration, please advise me on that.

Cooling
Which is better option for a given config : Fan cooler or Liquid ? Does that depend on the choice of CPU ?

Serial ATA rev 2 and 3
How do I know which motherboards has rev 2 and rev 3 in case I want to have a SSD in future.

Outlander_04 · Jun 24, 2014

Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 Socket AM3+ 990FX ATX AMD erboard - $239.00

Or the same board + an FX8320 which you can easily overclock

Graphics cards you can research yourself "GTX 760 benchmark"
www.google.com

iam2thecrowe · Jun 24, 2014

i would suggest looking at an intel i5, performs much better in gaming overall. Even an i3 can trade blows with an 8320 depending on the game. An fx6300 is another option. Any of the gtx760 cards would be great. Looks like you havn't budgeted in for RAM, 8gb ddr1600 or something would be fine. A good quality psu of 500w would be plenty, stick to reputable brands of Seasonic, xfx, Antec and corsair or if an unknown brand then find a review where they load test it to make sure it's of good quality. You dont need to worry about liquid cooling for now as there are more important places to spend your money to begin with. Any 1tb HDD 7200rpm HDD would do the trick while you save for an SSD, ssd's are compatable with most current motherboards, you can get either pcie or sata SSD's.

byza · Jun 24, 2014

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI 970A-G46 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($78.98 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Kingston Fury Black Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB DirectCU II Video Card ($229.99 @ Micro Center)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($47.98 @ OutletPC)
Power Supply: XFX TS 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($14.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $631.89
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

optoabhi · Jun 26, 2014

byza :

OptoAbhi:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Below are my parts which comes around $1000.00 which I can afford as I am not buying any monitor or keyboard.

Please tell me if this configuration is good or should I change anything OR will it cause a bottleneck ?

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($174.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H110 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($108.58 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock 990FX Extreme9 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($169.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (4 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($99.12 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB Superclocked ACX Video Card ($324.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT H440 (Green/Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-N15 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($27.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1075.63
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

byza · Jun 27, 2014

optoabhi :

Thats a nice looking rig although you've got to change that PSU. CX has a pretty bad rep and you don't want to blow your rig on a bad PSU. I'd get something like this as a budget option.

Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)

Personally i'd try get an i5 -k and a R9 290 or SSD, which might be achievable by getting a cheaper mobo and air cooling. Below is pretty much my set up and it runs well. I know it's $30 more than your build but thats on the PSU and it needs to be changed.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($71.74 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Extreme3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($74.70 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($79.99 @ Best Buy)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB Superclocked ACX Video Card ($324.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT H440 (Green/Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1101.38
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Alternatively, if you would rather a R9 290 instead of an SSD it'll total $1076.39

Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 290 4GB DirectCU II Video Card ($379.99 @ NCIX US)

And if you desperately needed to save $40 you could get a Cooler Master EVO instead of the Noctua CPU cooler. It won't cool the CPU as effectively, but in real world gaming performance you'd be looking at 1-3 frames difference after you OC.

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($71.74 @ OutletPC)

Or you can just get the rig you posted which is an awesome machine, and water cooling looks better. I just try to get maximum performance for my $. Also I noticed you didn't post an HDD, which I assumed was because you had one. If not go for something like the 1TB I posted in the earlier build.

RookieOfTheYear · Oct 19, 2014

byza :

optoabhi :

Thats a nice looking rig although you've got to change that PSU. CX has a pretty bad rep and you don't want to blow your rig on a bad PSU. I'd get something like this as a budget option.

Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)

Personally i'd try get an i5 -k and a R9 290 or SSD, which might be achievable by getting a cheaper mobo and air cooling. Below is pretty much my set up and it runs well. I know it's $30 more than your build but thats on the PSU and it needs to be changed.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($71.74 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Extreme3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($74.70 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($79.99 @ Best Buy)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB Superclocked ACX Video Card ($324.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT H440 (Green/Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1101.38
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Alternatively, if you would rather a R9 290 instead of an SSD it'll total $1076.39

Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 290 4GB DirectCU II Video Card ($379.99 @ NCIX US)

And if you desperately needed to save $40 you could get a Cooler Master EVO instead of the Noctua CPU cooler. It won't cool the CPU as effectively, but in real world gaming performance you'd be looking at 1-3 frames difference after you OC.

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($71.74 @ OutletPC)

Or you can just get the rig you posted which is an awesome machine, and water cooling looks better. I just try to get maximum performance for my $. Also I noticed you didn't post an HDD, which I assumed was because you had one. If not go for something like the 1TB I posted in the earlier build.

Wouldn't it make more sense to get the GTX 970 for the same price as the 770?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX 2.0 Video Card ($329.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $329.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-19 14:34 EDT-0400

byza · Oct 19, 2014

RookieOfTheYear :

byza :

optoabhi :

Thats a nice looking rig although you've got to change that PSU. CX has a pretty bad rep and you don't want to blow your rig on a bad PSU. I'd get something like this as a budget option.

Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)

Personally i'd try get an i5 -k and a R9 290 or SSD, which might be achievable by getting a cheaper mobo and air cooling. Below is pretty much my set up and it runs well. I know it's $30 more than your build but thats on the PSU and it needs to be changed.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($71.74 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Extreme3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($74.70 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($79.99 @ Best Buy)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB Superclocked ACX Video Card ($324.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT H440 (Green/Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1101.38
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Alternatively, if you would rather a R9 290 instead of an SSD it'll total $1076.39

Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 290 4GB DirectCU II Video Card ($379.99 @ NCIX US)

And if you desperately needed to save $40 you could get a Cooler Master EVO instead of the Noctua CPU cooler. It won't cool the CPU as effectively, but in real world gaming performance you'd be looking at 1-3 frames difference after you OC.

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($71.74 @ OutletPC)

Or you can just get the rig you posted which is an awesome machine, and water cooling looks better. I just try to get maximum performance for my $. Also I noticed you didn't post an HDD, which I assumed was because you had one. If not go for something like the 1TB I posted in the earlier build.

Wouldn't it make more sense to get the GTX 970 for the same price as the 770?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX 2.0 Video Card ($329.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $329.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-19 14:34 EDT-0400

It would now, this thread was from before the release of the GTX 900 series.

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