Advice on PC Build + PSU choice

Nice build . The only thing I don't like is the Intel i3 6100. I do believe its skylake . Umm. It will leave you to upgrade later on , if that's yo plan . Otherwise , you could future proof by getting a amd fx 6300 or an I5 and drop the ssd. The i3 won't be sufficient for you needs . It's a dual core cpu which will stutter for gaming . It also won't multitask that well . The fx processor6300 or I5 will be great for that .

I can see you are Greek. That is a bad thing when it comes to buying components, since you can get the parts cheaper if you order them from abroad.

So before I suggest other options I would like to ask you if you are willing to order the parts online and from other country? That way I can give you the full suggestions based on the price/budget you mentioned.

Btw, I'm from Portugal, and I made my build this summer, with the parts coming from all around Europe

The build is decent. The i3-6100 is Skylake as far as I know? The i3-6320 would be the best of the i3's though, and sufficient for gaming. http://techreport.com/news/28957/the-skylake-core-i3-6320-is-the-gamer-new-best-friend

An i5 would be perfect for you....the i5-6400 (2.7Ghz) is 80EUR more, whereas the i5-6500 (3.2Ghz) is 100EUR more. That would be the sweet spot in my opinion. You'll need to upgrade from the i3 in future, so grabbing the i5 now makes the most sense financially.

The i3 should be fine for gaming, it's dual core with hyperthreading - but depending on the number of takss you want to be running at the same time, that may falter slightly.

As far as the PSU goes, efficiency isn't really anything to worry about as the price difference between bronze & platinum takes a long time to pay itself off in energy savings.
Tier 2 or better is perfect for your rig, so any of the options you selected will serve you just fine. Pick the one that's cheapest....and prefer modular vs non or semi modular.

Not sure if this will post properly but:
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For power, a rough estimation for your rig would be 65W for CPU, 190W for each GPU (so 380W for CrossFire) + around 100W for the balance of your rig.

That puts you at 545W at absolute max load (which you'll rarely do), with no OC potential in your rig. so a 650W or 750W PSU would be fine (provided it's a quality unit, which all 3 you picked are).

For a single GPU even a 500W PSU would be fine.

An i5 would perform better overall. On some games the i3 would likely perform just as well as the i5, but it'll never perform better. And certain games it'll perform worse.

I've posted a build from your preferred website above as an idea. It does go over you budget, but would last you a lot longer.

sory for the delay.

For 850€ you can EASILY get a better rig than that. Problem is, like i said before, you need to order from abroad (you can even order from Amazon). Specially if you don't need monitor and HDD.

Regarding specific components:
CPU: getting an i3 for the build you are planning is a mistake. You will want (and maybe even NEED) to upgrade to the i5, and by upgrading, you will be losing money. So the best and smart option, is to get an i5 from the start. It may be more expensive now, but with the i3 you will be losing money in the long run (even more, since the i3 will lose its value way faster).
GPU: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/answers/id-2838758/390-crossfire-380.html
I wouldn't go with the crossfire. Better option would be to get the 390 instead of future Crossfire.
PSU: With the single card, you won't need so much power. More options for better prices. Also, since you are not overclocking nor tweaking, and as long you get a PSU with enough juice, the PSU can be tier 2b, or even tier 3. There will be no harm in that. You want higher quality when you are overclocking your components, or when you are pulling a very high percentage of the PSU's advertised wattage (using it near the limit, not recommended lol). As long as the PSU's parts are of reliable production (tier 3 and up) there will be no prob.
RAM: If you are planning on getting 8GB and +8GB later, I recommend getting only 1x8GB stick now, and later, get an exact same model of the one you get now, instead of the 2x4GB now. Less load on the CPU that way.
Storage:Don't get the M.2. No need for that with the use you are planning on doing.

Now for the components list, I will post first the list with the prices from your store (http://www.e-shop.gr), and then the same list with prices from stores around the web, so you can see the difference:

GREEK STORE:
PCPartPicker part list

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (€230.00)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (€40.00)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170-HD3P ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€145.00)
Memory: Corsair 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory (€56.00)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€87.00)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 390 8GB Video Card (€445.00)
Case: BitFenix Comrade ATX Mid Tower Case (€40.00)
Power Supply: SeaSonic M12II 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (€90.00)
Total: €1133.00


http://www.pccomponentes.com - SPANISH WEBSITE (im at work, so i just searched here. Reliable site since i ordered some parts here. You can search around the web for other Europe stores, like Germany, UK, etc):
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (€210.00)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (€30.00)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170-HD3P ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€124.00)
Memory: Corsair 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory (€56.00)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€80.00)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 390 8GB Video Card (€380.00)
Case: BitFenix Comrade ATX Mid Tower Case (€34.00)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (€80.00)
Total: €994.00



so as you can see, just going to 1 single different store, I managed to put a much superior GPU and CPU in the build, with the price going only 150€ above your budget. You can still cut down on RAM, SSD, case and Amazon has much cheaper PSUs around for the same quality.

My point is that, with 850€, and doing the right research, you can get a much better build that you were thinking of. Also, I repeat the fact that you should go for the single GPU from the start, instead of planning for a future crossfire. The same goes for the CPU. You should go for the i5 from the start. If you still dont have €€, then i advise you wait and save a bit more (maybe 2 months will be enough?), and then get these components. If you are aiming for this level of computer, you should get components that won't lose their value on the long run, while at the same time will last for years to come while being used.

That way, if you ever feel the need or think you want to get better stuff, their value remains. But if you want to stick with them, they won't let you down no matter what you throw at them.


Finally, if you REALLY are on budget, then my recommendation will be to go with Haswell, since it is still pretty much alive, and will be for the next ~4 (my guess) years.

I agree with some/most of what blasc has said (or did he agree with me? I don't know) but anyway.....if you can order from abroad cheaply, then do so. But between shipping & VAT (I've heard Greece has some pretty crazy import/customs laws and it's like 30% VAT if imported from EU countries on items greater than 45EUR? I don't know that for sure) that could totally kill a budget.


Blasc's given you pretty much the same build I did, with a change in board & GPU. I think the boards are fairly equal, so either/or would work. The GPU though, I agree in principal with buying the better card rather than planning to CF in future......but you said you might CF. The 380 will be more than sufficient for you.....and if you choose to CF, then do so.

The PSU....ah, the PSU. Personally I suggest you stick with Tier 1 or 2. This sounds like a sizeable purchase for you, so don't risk it by putting a lesser quality PSU in. 750W it overkill, but will allow you to CF in future if you decide to.
If you go with a lower capacity PSU now, that'll just mean a PSU upgrade along with a new GPU should you decide to.
For around 25EUR more, I think it's totally worth it. It won't cost you any more in utilities (as the PSU will only 'pull' what it needs), so I think that's your best option.

As far as RAM goes......2x4GB would be your best bet over 1x8GB. Both boards have 4 DIMM slots, so it's not like you have to save your space. 4x4GB in future will put you at 16GB, and nothing is going to need more than that in the lifespan of this PC. As far as putting less stress on the CPU............I've never heard that claim for anything with a remotely decent CPU. If you go with the i5, 2x4GB running in dual-channel will perform better than 1x8GB single channel.