Build for Skyrim Ultra Plus Plenty of Mods

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YGAP

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Jul 1, 2014
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Hello everyone! I have a few questions regarding building my own PC. I realize this has definitely been asked before, so I apologize, but I'm asking for myself in case anything new (or better deals) has come out since. Basically, I am considering building my own PC, rather than buying a pre-built (I've heard frequently that I can save a lot of money and hassle by doing so). The last time I built a PC was probably five years ago when I was a kid, and it was very basic. Fortunately, I'll be following some great instructional videos before I touch any components. Still, keep in mind that at the moment, I know next to nothing about components/setup. So, down to the nitty gritty. Here's what I'm looking for;

-Gaming PC build capable of playing Skyrim at very high quality (Ultra would be fantastic, but if it kills my budget then I can reconsider) along with a good amount of mods (I intend to mod quite a bit while at college)
-Windows 7 OS
-Price range of around $1000, excluding monitor/keyboard/mouse
-I am in the New York area

Skyrim will certainly not be the only game I will be playing, I just figure it's a good point of reference due to being a computer intensive game. I plan on playing and modding many games, from Fallout and beyond. The computer will also be used for video editing and writing papers, but if it's powerful enough for gaming then there won't be an issue with crunching video footage.

Now, my other question regarding the build! Instead of buying a separate computer monitor, I was considering using a ~24" 1080p TV so that I could use it for both purposes (television and as a monitor) while saving a bit of money. Is this a good approach, or would I be far better off going with a traditional monitor?

Thank you for any and all help.
 
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Joseph DeGarmo

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Mar 12, 2014
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PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($304.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty H97 Killer ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($115.91 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($79.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($75.24 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 2GB ACX Video Card ($234.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Antec One ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: XFX TS 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($88.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1026.05
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
 
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Gorgonzer

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Jun 25, 2014
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It will run just fine on the system I put together. Skyrim isn't the only game hes playing. If he wants to spend the extra on Intel hardware thats his choice.
Looks like it was an old driver issue, which has been fixed.
 
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Mustangrock12

Mustangrock12

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Jun 30, 2014
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Ill be honest games dont like AMD cards period. Mine sux with newer games.

 
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YGAP

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Jul 1, 2014
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Is this able to handle Ultra, or would it be too low of a framerate? It sees to work well with what I'm looking for, and my budget. Also, any known compatibility issues?


So if the text being harder to read is the only issue, I would be alright with using a 1080p television as a monitor?
 
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Scremin34Egl

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Nov 13, 2013
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I'd go with this
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($304.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 PRO3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($83.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 280 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($219.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Zalman Z5 ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($88.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $935.88
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

This will run skyrim on ultra and edit videos quite easily
You can add in an ssd, bigger hdd or more ram if you like
 
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YGAP

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Jul 1, 2014
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What kind of difference in performance would this have from the build that Joseph Degarmo posted?

By the way guys, I don't mean to sound ungrateful or skip answers. It's just a lot of information to sort through when I'm a bit ignorant on the subject. I really appreciate all of the suggestions!
 
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tiny voices

tiny voices

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Sep 6, 2012
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The GPU in this build is better than the one in Joseph's build. I would go with this.
 
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Scremin34Egl

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Nov 13, 2013
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It's cheaper, has a faster gpu and a z97 mobo. Since you are editing videos I would maybe throw in some extra ram, maybe 2*8, if it fits your budget or throw in an ssd
 
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YGAP

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Jul 1, 2014
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Sounds lovely to me. One other concern, as I know my brother's build has had a lot of cooling issues, will this setup fare well with preventing overheating?
 
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YGAP

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Jul 1, 2014
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Perfect, then I'll just leave him alone with his own issues. Another question regarding the setup (sorry, I just have to do a lot of research!), in addition to handling the base game at Ultra graphics, would it be able to handle some of the more graphically intensive mods for Skyrim, such as ENBs? From the videos that I have seen, I hear they can be a lot more computer-stressing than the base game at any graphics.
 
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Scremin34Egl

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I don't no about the enb mod's but from the youtube videos it seems to run it pretty well averaging within 40 to 60 fps. All I know is that with the high res texture packs it averages above 90 fps shown here, http://

I don't think it would have a problem running those mods though
 
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Icaraeus

Icaraeus

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The GTX 760/R9 270X are powerful enough for graphics mods, but you'll need to watch VRAM usage. If you can, go with the R9 280 which at stock is as good as a mildly OC'd R9 270X but it has an extra GB of VRAM which means you can have more mods. The 760/R9 270X should be enough, though the R9 280 with its 3GB VRAM is another option.
 
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YGAP

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The build already has the Asus Radeon R9 280 3 gb video card, so you're saying I should leave it as is?
 
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Scremin34Egl

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The cheaper R9 270X is not much slower than an R9 280 and on an overclock can match an R9 280 but has less vram, 2gb. The R9 280, if overclocked can match an R9 280X stock performance which surpasses a 760. I would say the 760 and the R9 280 perform more or less the same and the 280 costs about $20 less with more vram though some would say the 760 is a bit faster. I don't play much skyrim, but I would say those mods are heavy on vram so an R9 280 should be okay and has good overclocking potential, though if you would like to save a bit more cash the 270X is also on the cards
 
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YGAP

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Jul 1, 2014
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I took some other advice into account, and downgraded the CPU a little bit in order to lower the price, so that I could put money into doubling the RAM and adding a SSD. Thoughts on these changes?

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/sV4K23
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/sV4K23/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($238.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 PRO3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($162.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Intel 530 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($94.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 280 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($209.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Zalman Z5 ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($16.98 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($84.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1063.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
 
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