Help me build a gaming pc under $900 :) *Canadian*

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
I

imthenewguy

Reputable
Nov 27, 2015
17
0
4,510
Looking to get the best possible gaming desktop for under $900! It's going to be a challenge but I know theres someone out there who can help me. I don't need a os or a monitor, I would like to the graphics up as high as possible with a good frame rate. I don't need them up on ultra but if you can make a pc that can run high with a good frame rate thats great. I would be playing alot of the newer games like bo3, fallout 4, dying light. Can anyone help me make the best possible pc for this money? Any help is appreciated, thanks.
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
timeconsumer

timeconsumer

Splendid
Nov 28, 2011
3,130
0
22,960
$906 before rebates, $847 after rebates. If rebates are okay with you then you have room to add a cheap SSD in here:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.24 @ Vuugo)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($63.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Canada Computers)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 290 4GB Video Card ($301.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($71.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($74.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $847.15
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-28 16:04 EST-0500

The GPU is a reference cooler R9 290, so it's going to run kind of hot and loud. But for this price it's the best GPU you'll find.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
I

imthenewguy

Reputable
Nov 27, 2015
17
0
4,510
How much will it improve if I added the SSD, would it be worth the extra money? Do you think I would be able to run newer games like bo3 on this build? Should i add a different fan to cool it down more? How much will it affect the computer other then it being loud? And if in the future I did want another fan would it be easy to install? Thanks for the help.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
timeconsumer

timeconsumer

Splendid
Nov 28, 2011
3,130
0
22,960
1) An SSD is always a nice option, and yes I believe they are worth the extra money. Right now a 250gb SSD like a Samsung 850 Evo or a Crucial BX100 will run you less than $80(USD), a great value.
2) Yes, it will easily handle new games. Black ops 3 for example a user averaged 80 FPS at maximum settings: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQiEJxyb8v4 (he had a slightly better i5, but it doesn't make too much difference)
3) The case comes with 2 fans, which is pretty good. You of course can add one or two more if you want some better airflow and temps, but I wouldn't say it is necessary. Because this GPU is a reference cooler they actually perform better when the case is under positive pressure (helps them to blow more air out the back) so another 120mm fan up front is always good, but I wouldn't expect anything extraordinary. Don't put fans on the side, in my experience they make temps worse.
4) Yes installing fans later on is usually fairly easy. Sometimes they can be in an awkward location and it can be annoying to work around the CPU cooler or hard drive bay, but it's nothing to write home about.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
okcnaline

okcnaline

Splendid
Nov 17, 2013
8,083
5
26,965
1) SSD doesn't add additional gaming performance...
2,3) The HAF 912... So old... xDDD Is it really even relevant these days?!

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($27.24 @ Vuugo)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H97-HD3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($114.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($52.99 @ Canada Computers)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.24 @ Vuugo)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 960 2GB Video Card ($229.98 @ NCIX)
Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.75 @ Vuugo)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ NCIX)
Total: $889.17
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-28 23:27 EST-0500
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
I

imthenewguy

Reputable
Nov 27, 2015
17
0
4,510
Ok so here I see the differences what will happen to the quality of my games with the drop of the graphics card? With any of these changes what will happen to the performance of the pc? Is all an SSD is speed up boot times of softwares?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
timeconsumer

timeconsumer

Splendid
Nov 28, 2011
3,130
0
22,960


Yes, SSDs will really only improve boot speeds and load times. But in my opinion it is worth the money if you can afford to increase the budget. Dropping the GPU from an R9 290 to a GTX 960 is a pretty big difference. The 290 is two tiers higher: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-7.html and if you look at a lot of individual game benchmarks it is closer to the GTX 970 in performance. This isn't to say the GTX 960 is a bad card, it's still very good. just to make sure you understand the difference between the two. Also, do not get the EVGA NEX power supply, it is a low quality offering by EVGA: http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
okcnaline

okcnaline

Splendid
Nov 17, 2013
8,083
5
26,965
Sigh... Really. Tier list.

2 Tiers above or 10 tiers below does not tell a difference. What matters is how many FPS the card can garner for the price and power efficiency. While the GTX 960 is much more cheap and power efficient, the R9 290 is faster by 10 FPS, and quite cheap. The power efficiency is subpar against Maxwell, but then you're still getting 10 more FPS, and that's one trade-off I'm sure is worth giving up for better performance in this case.

And the EVGA SuperNOVA NEX isn't a bad PSU if you know which model you're getting. In this case, the NEX750G is actually really good.
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=442
Pretty good unit. FSP makes some really good PSUs nowadays. Ripple's kinda bad for a EVGA unit, and Crossload's poor, but it's FSP and not Super Flower that made this PSU.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
timeconsumer

timeconsumer

Splendid
Nov 28, 2011
3,130
0
22,960
Yes, tier list. I try to keep it simple for people sometimes. The fact is the 290 outperforms the GTX 960 in every title except maybe Fallout 4 and is much closer to the GTX 970's performance. Unfortunately it's tough to show an apples-to-apples comparison but here's a good look: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/nvidia-geforce-gtx-960,4038-4.html as the GTX 960 gets handled by the 290's little brother the 280x. The 960 is a very efficient card. But personally I don't choose cards based upon power efficiency. With what I pay for electricity and how often I game a GTX 960 might save me $20 in a year. I base the choice upon which will give me the most bang for my buck in the games I want to play, and at this price point that 290 is the one to beat.

I still fail to see how that NEX750G is really good. Mr Guru himself said: "In general, I found this to be a somewhat lackluster unit when it comes to performance. It really doesn't do much to stand out from all the other random units on store shelves."

I don't see why you would want to choose this over a 550w XFX that is the exact same price. He has no need for 750w in this build.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
okcnaline

okcnaline

Splendid
Nov 17, 2013
8,083
5
26,965
I underlooked the R9 290 by accident because it was an old card and I forgot about it.

And as for the PSU, OP may not need 750W, but then this thing cost $48 for the duration of Black Friday Thanksgiving 2015. $45 for something solidly in the 80+ Gold range? And 10 year warranty? And full modularity? Come on, who doesn't want this for $48.
 
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