CPU, MOBO, RAM combo for less than $350usd

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
B

Bernie Fresh

Reputable
Apr 1, 2014
46
0
4,540
Looking to upgrade my gaming system, but waiting for AMD to launch the 300 series to buy a GPU. I am in need of some advise on what route to take.
No preference AMD/Intel, no SLI, strictly gaming. work bench set up, so no spacing requirements. Price to performance is the main objective, since most games these days are GPU oriented.
 
Solution
JackNaylorPE
The difference between 1600 and 2400 RAM can range from a fraction of a percent (Metro 2033) to 11% (F1).

The other question is a bit harder as if the game isn't on the SSD, you get no benefit. OTOH, a SSHD kinda gives ya the best of both worlds. I have not bought a HD in 4 years. Most systems get either:

SSHD for budget limited builds
SSD + SSHD when budget if there

2 TB SSHD costs ya $90
120 GB SSD costs Ya $55 (add $30 for 240GB)

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/mushkin-internal-hard-drive-mknssdec120gb
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seagate-internal-hard-drive-st2000dx001

As to whether there is a difference between a 1st tier SSD and a 3rd tier .... I'd challenge anyone to tell the difference between them .... or even an SSD and...
Sort by date Sort by votes
damric

damric

Illustrious
Sep 17, 2010
8,017
72
37,990
Upvote 0 Downvote
TofuLion

TofuLion

Admirable
Oct 10, 2014
1,761
0
6,460
you'll want a nice cpu that has a high boost frequency for intensive games that will use it.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus H97-PLUS ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $329.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-05-15 19:22 EDT-0400

if you can stretch the budget (which i recommend in order to keep you a bit more 'future-proof') go with the 4690K

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($135.49 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $415.47
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-05-15 19:26 EDT-0400
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
TofuLion

TofuLion

Admirable
Oct 10, 2014
1,761
0
6,460


sorry, not trying to be rude, but that is a horrible recommendation! an AMD APU is probably the worst thing that OP could get, especially if they plan to buy a GPU in the future.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
damric

damric

Illustrious
Sep 17, 2010
8,017
72
37,990


You could build a superior 8 logical core Haswell Xeon build for that much!

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($241.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M PRO4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($71.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Stealth 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($52.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $366.92
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-05-15 19:29 EDT-0400
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
damric

damric

Illustrious
Sep 17, 2010
8,017
72
37,990


Your logic is invalid.

OC'd Kaveri comes very close to stock Haswell quad in gaming. Having a better IGPU does not hold you back. Having a weak IGPU might drive the OP nuts while he waits for his discreet card though.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
JackNaylorPE

JackNaylorPE

Titan
BANNED
Oct 30, 2004
32,255
14
99,960
To meet that limit, you'd have to go H97, non K processor and base speed RAM.... you are only $75 away from Z97, k series processor, fast RAM and plenty of future upgrade ability via overclocking and SLI / CF. Just built one for the wife...$413

MSI Gaming 5 - $125
4690k - $218
2 x 4GB 400 RAM $70

At 1600 RAM, you could chop $20 off that and be at $393 ... with SLI / CF and OC options available in the future. For $43, worth thinking about and prices will continue to drop in the coming weeks.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
TofuLion

TofuLion

Admirable
Oct 10, 2014
1,761
0
6,460


having a weak CPU is more detrimental than integrated graphics. if OP is patient enough to be waiting for AMD 300 then i would assume they have another GPU that they can use in the mean time. therefore, the iGPU is wasted technology anyway.

i do agree that the Xeon E3-1231v3 would be superior to the 4590.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
B

Bernie Fresh

Reputable
Apr 1, 2014
46
0
4,540
perfect, this was the thread i wanted to happen. All helpful responses, will agree with the tone that APU is good for price to performance. but buying a redundancy (igpu incase of emergencies) is not really necessary. OP is patient but not complacent, with enough older gpus to gta.

steering away from k series, future proof in theory, but it seems game optimization is moving quicker than brute force is necessary. (thanks consoles?)

honest question Is the difference in Mhz of RAM more or less noticeabe than the difference of a good hdd to good ssd. i.e does the snappiness of your system has more to do with IOPS than ddr3 2133 instead of 1866?



 
Upvote 0 Downvote
damric

damric

Illustrious
Sep 17, 2010
8,017
72
37,990


The FM2+ processors have a memory controller that is tuned for high bandwidth due to its need for the graphics side. H97 is limited to DDR3-1600. Personally I run my DDR3 at 2400CL9.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
B

Bernie Fresh

Reputable
Apr 1, 2014
46
0
4,540
to rephrase the last question. With two identical systems except for RAM and storage
system 1. ddr3-1600 and a 1st tier ssd
system 2. ddr3-2400 and a 1st tier hdd
what would provide the most substantial benefit in terms of overall responsiveness?

 
Upvote 0 Downvote
JackNaylorPE

JackNaylorPE

Titan
BANNED
Oct 30, 2004
32,255
14
99,960
The difference between 1600 and 2400 RAM can range from a fraction of a percent (Metro 2033) to 11% (F1).

The other question is a bit harder as if the game isn't on the SSD, you get no benefit. OTOH, a SSHD kinda gives ya the best of both worlds. I have not bought a HD in 4 years. Most systems get either:

SSHD for budget limited builds
SSD + SSHD when budget if there

2 TB SSHD costs ya $90
120 GB SSD costs Ya $55 (add $30 for 240GB)

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/mushkin-internal-hard-drive-mknssdec120gb
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seagate-internal-hard-drive-st2000dx001

As to whether there is a difference between a 1st tier SSD and a 3rd tier .... I'd challenge anyone to tell the difference between them .... or even an SSD and a SSHD. So far on our testbed no one has been able to tell the difference.

Boot Time on SSD = 15.6 seconds
Boot Time on SSHD = 16.5seconds

http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/5748/seagate-desktop-2tb-sshd-st2000dx001-review/index9.html
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Solution
B

Bernie Fresh

Reputable
Apr 1, 2014
46
0
4,540
Beautiful. I had a feeling that RAM speed was mostly negligible.

in my experience games dont really benefit from ssd, even talking loading times. but thats without any data.

as an owner of the seagate sshd you linked I will say they are neat. Without control over the algorithm, i dunno.. useful in laptops most definitely

ill happily take that challenge, but Im talking the difference of IOPS of lets say a samsung 850 pro and a corsair force.
boot times are not applicable as all the systems are setup for wake on LAN

thanks again for all the useful advise

settled on

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B85M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($80.16 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $320.14
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
JackNaylorPE

JackNaylorPE

Titan
BANNED
Oct 30, 2004
32,255
14
99,960


Depends on what you consider negligible .... If ya catch it right 2 x 4GB of 2400 CAS 10 is about $10 more than 1600 CAS 9. That 11% speed boost in F1 is more than you will get spending $230 to go from a 970 to a 980. :)

So far I have had 3 gamers plus myself test the SSD versus SSD RAID 0 versus SSHD versus HD and had several employees test the same using CAD .... test were subjective....switched things around w/o them knowing (re-labled drives). Of course w/ a stop watch I was able to tell the difference between 16.5 and 15.6 but w/o the watch i couldn't tell ya which was which.

 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom