Need a good gaming PC under $400

Lil’bertz · Nov 25, 2014

I am in a low budget, i need a good gaming PC under $400 (except peripherals)
*OS included
why am i asking this? because i want to upgrade our super old PC since 10 to 12 years ago... xD

Kohwali · Nov 25, 2014

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($63.79 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI B85-G41 PC Mate ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($54.98 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($42.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R7 260 1GB Video Card ($81.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Directron)
Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 750W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.43 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $453.63
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 09:26 EST-0500

Although I'd highly suggest this build
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($63.79 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI B85-G41 PC Mate ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($54.98 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 270 2GB TurboDuo Video Card ($111.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Directron)
Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 750W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.43 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $500.64
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 09:27 EST-0500

Gracodana · Nov 25, 2014

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

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($27.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team Elite Plus 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GT 740 1GB Superclocked Video Card ($76.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($32.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.43 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $423.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 09:27 EST-0500

Is actually a pretty decent pc low to medium in most big AAA games and older or less demanding games high to ultra.

Gracodana · Nov 25, 2014

Kohwali :

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($63.79 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI B85-G41 PC Mate ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($54.98 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($42.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R7 260 1GB Video Card ($81.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Directron)
Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 750W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.43 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $453.63
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 09:26 EST-0500

Why get a 750w psu?

Kohwali · Nov 25, 2014

Gracodana :

because this: http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=266

It's a steal for $40 and you won't find any decent 500/550W PSUs at this price.

iron8orn · Nov 25, 2014

I think you could swing a i5 on z97 with some high speed ram then when you got some more cash you can get a gpu.

Gracodana · Nov 25, 2014

Kohwali :

fair enough that is ridiculious value.

Gracodana · Nov 25, 2014

iron8orn :

Better to buy it all at once. And you really can actually get something pretty good at this budget.

Kohwali · Nov 25, 2014

Gracodana :

Sure OP won't come anywhere near to 750W, but it's $40! I'd add this PSU at this price to any build under $1400.

Gracodana · Nov 25, 2014

Kohwali :

yeah change the psu in my build to that one you wont need to worry about getting a new psu for ages!

bootcher · Nov 25, 2014

For that price you can something like this:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G3250 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($46.25 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($27.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team Vulcan 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($56.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R7 260X 1GB TurboDuo Video Card ($77.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($21.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($84.15 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $388.83
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 09:36 EST-0500

iron8orn · Nov 25, 2014

Gracodana :

maybe you guys could make something with one of the new athlons or a kaveri apu can do pretty well on older titles.

Gracodana · Nov 25, 2014

iron8orn :

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

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus A88XM-E Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard ($52.94 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($67.50 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GT 740 1GB Superclocked Video Card ($76.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($21.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.43 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $469.32
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 09:50 EST-0500

This goes over and for not really any extra performence the only advantage is that you can play far cry 4 only game i've seen not run on a duel core.

rockie_ · Nov 25, 2014

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital WD Blue 500GB 2.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($41.38 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GT 730 1GB Video Card ($61.24 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($84.15 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $389.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 09:55 EST-0500

Gracodana · Nov 25, 2014

rockie_ :

msi p33 mobo is sooooo much better for the money, bit of a pricy case and those differences add up at this budget, why 500gb HDD it's actually more expensive then the 1tb version. 4gb ram most other builds here have 8 and the only one which doesn't at least got a 260x in there which leads on to the gpu which can be a fair bit better even at this budget.

rockie_ · Nov 25, 2014

@Gracodana
the other builds have a lot of MIRs . Mine will cost $400 and a lot of the parts could be re-used in the future .

Btw , the card i have picked has 384 CUDA cores

Gracodana · Nov 25, 2014

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/86HvNG
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/86HvNG/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Pentium G3220 3.0GHz Dual-Core Processor ($51.72 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($27.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($60.35 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GT 740 2GB Video Card ($76.54 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($43.54 @ SuperBiiz)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.43 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $426.05
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 10:18 EST-0500

No MIR in this included but if you turn it on it just gets a little cheaper.

iron8orn · Nov 25, 2014

Kohwali's suggested build has the most bang witch is no surprise since it is $100 over budget. Gaming pc builds are nothing cheap.. if you try go into it with less than $600 for parts you can be looking at less than desirable performance.

rockie_ · Nov 25, 2014

Mine has a faster CPU . i am not a fan of small tower cases but well , if it will reduce the price , agree . Strange , $27 motherboard .

Edit:
Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 has pre-installed only one fan in front so needs an extra fan /cost

Kohwali · Nov 25, 2014

iron8orn :

Yeah, there's a big step if you can spend another $100.

Gracodana · Nov 25, 2014

rockie_ :

mobo is an amazing deal at the moment.

bootcher · Nov 25, 2014

Gaming is all about the videocard. A better cpu than the other means nothing if you are running a gt730. Whichever build you choose, get a decent videocard. I would really recommend putting in a bit more cash and get a build with the R9 270, which is the best bang for buck videocard at the moment.

Lil’bertz · Dec 6, 2014

wow so many pentiums! i cant pick one of these build and i haven't use my computer for months! btw im use a a laptop temporarily to ask questions, so back to the topic so you are suggesting a Intel Pentium G3258? well im not gonna pick it because in the future i may buy modern games like crysis 3, bf4, maybe the new far cry 4 and etc so im gonna pick at least a quad core processor for game recording and for vid editing and for modern games so im onna go for athlon one (maybe)

Lil’bertz · Dec 6, 2014

wow so many pentiums! i cant pick one of these build and i haven't use my computer for months! btw im use a a laptop temporarily to ask questions, so back to the topic so you are suggesting a Intel Pentium G3258? well im not gonna pick it because in the future i may buy modern games like crysis 3, bf4, maybe the new far cry 4 and etc so im gonna pick at least a quad core processor for game recording and for vid editing and for modern games so im gonna go for athlon one (maybe) and sorry if miss spelled some words cus the keyboard is sometimes not responsive sorry about that...

rockie_ · Dec 7, 2014

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4150 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor ($97.27 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Asus H81M-A Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($58.93 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($35.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Toshiba Product Series DT01ACA 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($41.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GT 730 1GB Video Card ($67.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($32.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($90.26 @ OutletPC)
Total: $450.40
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-07 05:58 EST-0500

Need a good gaming PC under $400

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