Help Me Choose a Gaming PC

Seth24 · Aug 13, 2015

Hello so I've been trying to get into gaming PC's and want a good cheap starter PC. I have found two I like and can't decide which one I like more. If anyone could help me out that'd be great.

1. Walmart CyberPowerPC - $429
AMD FX-4300 Vishera Quad-Core processor
3.80GHz (up to 4.0GHz via Turbo boost), 4MB L3 Cache
8GB DDR3 SDRAM system memory (expandable to 16GB)
Gives you the power to handle most power-hungry applications and tons of multimedia work in the GUA2800W CyberPowerPC Gamer Ultra Desktop
1TB SATA hard drive
Store 666,000 photos, 285,000 songs or 526 hours of HD video and more
24x SuperMulti DVD drive
Watch movies and read and write CDs and DVDs in multiple formats in this gaming desktop computer
10/100/1000Mbps Gigabit Ethernet
Connect to a broadband modem with wired Ethernet
AMD Radeon R5 230 Graphics
With up to 1GB graphics memory

Newegg CyberPower PC - $399
Type - Gaming & Entertainment
Usage - Consumer
Processor - AMD FX-4300 3.8 GHz
Processor Main Features - 64 bit Quad-Core Processor
Cache Per Processor - 4MB L3 Cache
Memory - 4 GB DDR3
Storage - 1 TB SATA III 7200 RPM
Optical Drive - 24x DVD+-R/+-RW DUAL LAYER DRIVE
Graphics - NVIDIA Geforce GT 720 1GB
Ethernet - Gigabit Ethernet
Power Supply - 350W
Case - Corsair SPEC 01 Gaming Case
Operating System - Windows 10 Home 64-bit

I'm not too worried about the crappt graphics cards as I will be buying my friends old gaming computer for $70 that has a new graphics card in it that I can replace the graphics card of whatever I'm buying's card.
Thanks to anyone who helps out.

alexandergc · Aug 13, 2015

with both options you've given, you will need to upgrade your power supply and RAM.
A minimum of 8GB RAM is considered the benchmark for gaming nowadays, so you'll want to get that...and according to personal experience, 4GB is just too sluggish, even when running older games.

As for the GPU department, since both systems have the same CPU, just get the one without a GPU so that you don't have to deal with getting rid of the underpowered one.

Also a good thing to look at is how the fans and vents are placed in the chassis.
As a general rule of thumb, you'd want to have a nice, clear flow from the front/bottom to the back/top of the case.

If you're looking for a more optimised solution, building a custom rig of your own would be the best way.
If you're out of ideas, you can use Tom's Hardware's very own System Builder Marathon Budget PC build as a guide and then tweak it to suit your budget.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/build-budget-gaming-pc,4065.html

nzrajput · Aug 16, 2015

@Seth24
Don't go for the pre-built machine. Build your own. It will give you an upgrade path.
Tell me your budget so I can suggest you one. Also stick with Intel. It will let you upgrade from Pentium CPU to 4th/5th Gen i7

Archgaull · Aug 16, 2015

This is a far better alternative.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4160 3.6GHz Dual-Core Processor ($112.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($42.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Kingston 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Video Card ($97.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Directron)
Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($12.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $415.71
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-16 19:55 EDT-0400

nzrajput · Aug 17, 2015

This is a much better alternative because:
1. 4170 is just $2 more than 4160.
2. Kingston HyperX RAM is better than just Kingston RAM
3. R9 270 is far better than GTX 750 Ti
4. MSI has significantly higher RMA rate than Asus and Gigabyte in terms of GPU.

Please note that you will need a BIOS update to use 4170/4160 on any H81 chipset motherboard.

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

CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($114.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Asus H81M-PLUS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($69.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($44.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 270 2GB DirectCU II Video Card ($154.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($43.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($12.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $515.32
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

alexandergc · Aug 18, 2015

nzrajput, that may be the better build, but you also spent almost USD$100 more than Archgaull.
I believe the point was to try and stick to what the OP has listed as his budget range, namely around USD $400.

nzrajput · Aug 18, 2015

alexandergc :

Spending $100 more now is better than upgrading everything later on.

alexandergc · Aug 19, 2015

nzrajput :

assuming OP ever comes back to reply, he/she might not have that extra $100 to spend.
considering that it's been almost a week since the OP responded...i'd say they've forgotten about this thread :/

nzrajput · Aug 19, 2015

alexandergc :

Unless he replies, we can't assume anything. he should have mentioned the budget.
We are here to help, and we did. Let's wait for him to reply.
Cheers.

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