$1300 Gaming PC

Mansive · Oct 18, 2015

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($198.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.50 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus H170-PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($105.34 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($56.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: A-Data Premier Pro SP600 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.33 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($309.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 w/Window (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA GS 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-N53 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($17.89 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($249.99 @ Adorama)
Total: $1275.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-10-18 20:40 EDT-0400

My friend wanted a $1300 gaming pc with a monitor and network adapter. I suggested downgrading to an i5-4xxx or i5-5xxx to fit in a 980ti, but he preferred to stick with Skylake.
Any changes I could make to this build?

Tom Keenan · Oct 18, 2015

I would do 16 gb of ram. Honestly 8 gb is starting to be too little in my eyes for a nice gaming pc. Also I'd spring for an r9 390 over the 970, it has a slight edge for about the same price (though $309 might be hard to beat idk).

cleanshot911 · Oct 18, 2015

Mansive :

This build is just fine as is. It'd be nice if you could add another 8gb of ram at some point or another, but you don't have to do it right now, as 8gb is enough for gaming for now, it will be for at least a couple of years. I agree with Keenan though that you should go with an r9 390 instead. I have two gtx 970 Strix Editions, and they are fantastic, but the r9 390 doesn't have the VRAM problems that the gtx 970 does, so I'd go with an r9 390 instead. Other than that this build has well chosen parts. You don't need a gtx 980ti for 1080p gaming, though if you want to reach 144fps you won't be able to do that in all games with an r9 390 or a gtx 970. All of these parts are very high quality though, and it's better to go with a newer processor than a better gpu. The build will last longer. So I'd still go with a Skylake cpu if I were you. Great choice in parts though, really most of the time when people have questions they post builds that need a complete overhaul, you'd be happy with this as is honestly, but you'd be better off with an r9 390.

Mansive · Oct 19, 2015

cleanshot911 :

This build is just fine as is. It'd be nice if you could add another 8gb of ram at some point or another, but you don't have to do it right now, as 8gb is enough for gaming for now, it will be for at least a couple of years. I agree with Keenan though that you should go with an r9 390 instead. I have two gtx 970 Strix Editions, and they are fantastic, but the r9 390 doesn't have the VRAM problems that the gtx 970 does, so I'd go with an r9 390 instead. Other than that this build has well chosen parts. You don't need a gtx 980ti for 1080p gaming, though if you want to reach 144fps you won't be able to do that in all games with an r9 390 or a gtx 970. All of these parts are very high quality though, and it's better to go with a newer processor than a better gpu. The build will last longer. So I'd still go with a Skylake cpu if I were you. Great choice in parts though, really most of the time when people have questions they post builds that need a complete overhaul, you'd be happy with this as is honestly, but you'd be better off with an r9 390.

Told my friend about the r9 390, "Sure"
I heard that the r9 390 is pretty hot though. Which version of it is the coolest?

Tom Keenan · Oct 19, 2015

I don't know for sure but I feel like this one has to be pretty close to the coolest: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127874&cm_re=r9_390-_-14-127-874-_-Product

cleanshot911 · Oct 19, 2015

Mansive :

cleanshot911 :

Told my friend about the r9 390, "Sure"
I heard that the r9 390 is pretty hot though. Which version of it is the coolest?

MSI and Asus's models, like Tom Keenan's suggestion, are generally pretty good.

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