13 year old - 1st Gaming PC Build

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paulnvalerie

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Dec 10, 2015
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My 13 year old son wants the components to build his first gaming PC for Christmas. $800 - $1200. Aesthetics are important for a 13 year old.

Here is a build I put together that includes OS and monitor.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qNW3Lk

Questions - benefit of Intel v. AMD and with Intel, seems like the Core i5 is a good place to start but what are the benefits of say a 4460 vs a 6500 or 6600?

Appreciate the feedback

 
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Luminary

Luminary

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Nov 29, 2015
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Intel is the best choice at this point for gaming. The build is all over the place though, with a locked CPU you don't need a Z170 chipset motherboard and the PSU is overkill.

Revised Part List:

- Better CPU heatsink (though for a locked CPU this really isn't neccessary)
- Better pairing of motherboard
- Quality PSU that is better suited for the build
- Updated the case to the R5 model, slightly better, same price
- Provided a SSD drive to install the OS on and a 1TB HDD drive for extra storage. Trust me this is very much worth it.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.50 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus H170-PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($110.00 @ B&H)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($53.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($77.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card ($329.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 w/Window (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($118.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($94.99 @ Adorama)
Monitor: Asus VX238H 23.0" Monitor ($159.99 @ Micro Center)
Total: $1305.40
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-10 10:02 EST-0500
 
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Sinistercr0c

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You are right to go Intel i5 over AMD as the performance gain on Intel CPU's is significant.

I would shave some money off and go for the GTX960 as opposed to the GTX970 given all you are sacrificing is the number of 'in game' frames per second (FPS) and on a 23" monitor a 970 is overkill. Perhaps spend the money saved on an SSD to install the operating system on leaving your HDD for all other software. Other than that you've got a reasonable parts list there.
 
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paulnvalerie

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I was creating the parts list to share with relatives that want an idea to get him for Christmas. We already had the SSD so I left that off. I went with the 970 because I'm thinking he will want to continue to expand.
 
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Luminary

Luminary

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Yes, stick with the 970, it is a massive performance upgrade and a great gaming card. Didn't know you already had an SSD, so you can ignore the storage recommendations from my list above and stick with the original 2TB drive. :)
 
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paulnvalerie

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that was what I was thinking. Appreciate the other recommendations. At what point would the Z170 motherboard become beneficial?
 
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RobCrezz

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Z170 is only really worth while if you want to overclock (would require a K series i5 or i7), or if you want SLI (dual graphics cards), as I dont think there is any H170 that support SLI.
 
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Luminary

Luminary

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Yep, I'd only recommend a Z170 motherboard if you were planning on upgrading the CPU to a 'k' model in the next few years or looking to SLI the 970 with another down the road. Otherwise it isn't worth the investment.
 
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paulnvalerie

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So Micro Center has the Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz 1151 Boxed Processor on sale for $219 so I decided to go with that and keep the Z170 motherboard.

Here is where I am. I added the SSD in for reference. I was able to pick that up at Frys with a promo code a couple of weeks ago.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/62ygvK
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/62ygvK/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($273.98 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.50 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI Z170 Krait Gaming ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($147.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($53.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card ($328.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 w/Window (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($118.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($89.88 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Asus VX238H 23.0" Monitor ($139.99 @ Micro Center)
Total: $1508.27
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-10 12:22 EST-0500
 
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hang-the-9

hang-the-9

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honkuimushi

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I agree with krells and hang the 9 about the PSU and monitor. Luminary's EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W is an excellent choice and has plenty of Power for this build. If you plan to use SLI, the 750W is a good choice, If you want to stick with Corsair, the RMx series has better quality components, but it just seems like you can get better quality PSUs for the same price or lower.

As for the monitor, TN panels are losing popularity as IPS panels get faster and cheaper. You can get a solid 1080p IPS monitor for under $200. On the other hand, it may be worth spending a little more than that on a monitor and looking at models with QHD resolution, 120Hz+ refresh rates or G-Sync. The 970 should be able to play most games at over 60 FPS on 1080p screens and future cards should push the envelope even further. But monitors are a pretty personal decision, and it's often worth going to a physical store where you can try them out and see what factors are important to you(or your son.) Monitors are changing rapidly right now, so I realize it's hard to choose, but a good monitor with often last longer than the computer. My monitor is on its third computer. Both the PSU and monitors are parts that tend not to be replaced very often. It's usually worth taking the time to select a quality one that you're comfortable with.

A final word about the Z170 boards-- with the Z97 and H97 series, I would agree that the only real benefits of going with a Z series board were overclocking and SLI, but I disagree slightly with the Z170 boards. Overclocking and SLI are still the primary concerns, but some of the new connection technology and additional PCI-e lanes should not be overlooked. Skylake is the first chance for most people to get a hold of USB 3.1 and M.2 ports. And most of those have been restricted to Z170 boards(yes, there are some exceptions.) The Krait has an M.2, but no USB 3.1. If you're planning a build that will be kept and expanded for the next few years, I can see those options being at least as important as overclocking.

 
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