First time PC build (<$1000 CAD). Need guidance.

wonderpig

Distinguished
Jul 24, 2010
5
0
18,510
Hello! I want to gift myself a gaming PC this year. My laptop is doing fine running the older games I'm currently playing. But it doesn't have enough juice to run the newer games.

I mostly just want to play Dragon Age: Inquisition and Sims 4 (at the moment anyway) in addition to my library of older games. My monitor's max resolution is 1920x1080. I already have a mouse, keyboard and OS. Just need a tower.

I'm hoping the community would be able to suggest a parts list since my knowledge on PC components is not up-to-date. I also haven't actually built a PC before. Please help out? :)

Preferences:
$1000 CAD or (preferably) less
mATX or smaller
at least 250GB SSD (preferably 500GB but I understand this might not be doable)
as reasonably quiet as possible
with wifi capability
with a CD/DVD drive (I have a Windows DVD)

I'm still debating whether I should go ahead and try to build it myself (I can wait for sales) or just shell out $50 and have NCIX build it for me (may not have sales, but I won't have to be afraid of messing anything up)...

Thanks in advance!
 

logainofhades

Titan
Moderator
Mini-ITX build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($192.98 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M-ITX/AC Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($128.00 @ Vuugo)
Memory: Mushkin Stealth 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($82.98 @ NCIX)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($115.98 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 290 4GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($319.99 @ NCIX)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case ($56.97 @ Amazon Canada)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($87.99 @ Canada Computers)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($17.87 @ DirectCanada)
Total: $1002.76
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-20 19:44 EST-0500

M-ATX build
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($192.98 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M PRO4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: Mushkin Stealth 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($82.98 @ NCIX)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($115.98 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 290 4GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($319.99 @ NCIX)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($47.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($87.99 @ Canada Computers)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($17.87 @ DirectCanada)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN3800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($33.78 @ DirectCanada)
Total: $999.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-20 19:48 EST-0500
 
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