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$700 Gaming/ Work PC

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  • Gaming
  • Monitors
Last response: in Systems
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July 17, 2014 11:13:13 AM

Hello, Tom's Hardware!

My girlfriend is in need of a new rig. She's a teacher and will mostly be using the computer for office work, Spotify, Netflix, and Hulu. However, on occasion she does like to play games like Dragon Age, Skyrim, Civ V, and BF4.

Approximate Purchase Date: Within the next three weeks
Budget Range: $700
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Office work, gaming
Purchase monitor?: No
Buy OS?: No

Preferred Website: Amazon, Newegg, or Tigerdirect in totality
Location: Sacramento, CA
Parts Preferences: Intel and Nvidia if possible.
Overclocking: Maybe
SLI/ CF: No
Monitor Resolution: 1080p x2

Notes: Would like to use either of the following cases:
SilverStone Aluminum Micro ATX, 120mm Fan x3, USB 3.0 x 2, 3.5-Inch x 3 and 2.5-Inch x1 Drive Bays Tower Computer Case FT03S

Silverstone Tek Aluminum Mini ITX 140mm FanX1 USB3.0x2 3.5-Inchx1 and 2.5-Inchx2 Drive Bays Tower Computer Case FT03S-MINI - Silver
The latter may need an all-in-one watercooler as our has does not have AC and it does get toasty on occasion and that SFF case may have cooling issues.

More about : 700 gaming work

July 17, 2014 11:27:19 AM

On your budget, it's hard to go with those cases without having some serious performance sacrifices:

The hyper 212 evo is very good. For added cooling, you could purchase some case fans. Other options are the CX430 in modular format (easier to put together by attaching the cables only that you need). Corsair 300R is a good case for airflow and noise.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.95 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($25.98 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z87X-HD3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($113.49 @ Newegg)
Memory: A-Data XPG V1.0 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($80.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Video Card ($138.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $689.37
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
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July 18, 2014 12:21:28 AM

Guys, thanks for your answers.

Gorgonzer - Would we need a SFF PSU to fit in the case or would a full-size PSU work?

Jmracerboy - Down the road we'd like to upgrade the GPU to something in the GTX *60/ *60 ti level. Would 430w bronze be able to handle it?

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July 18, 2014 9:07:43 AM

tommyknocker2121 said:
Guys, thanks for your answers.

Gorgonzer - Would we need a SFF PSU to fit in the case or would a full-size PSU work?

Jmracerboy - Down the road we'd like to upgrade the GPU to something in the GTX *60/ *60 ti level. Would 430w bronze be able to handle it?



A regular ATX PSU will fit. http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=291&area=...
I did notice on the spec sheet that it only allows for a slim CD/DVD rom drive.
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