is core i3 good for gaming ?

achrafox · Jan 29, 2016

am planing to buy a i3-6320 pc
and up grade it
am going to add ssd
and gtx 750 TI CS
and 8 GB G.SKILL RAM
will it run gta V in high ?

Aelos03 · Jan 29, 2016

I would advise against it. You should aim for i5 and if not go for FX. Why are you getting ssd and not putting that money into cpu or gpu. Also look to get 2x4 memory.

bignastyid · Jan 29, 2016

It's not bad and it gives you an upgrade path. Should run GTA V well on normal settings.

Aelos03 · Jan 29, 2016

Buying pre build is probably worst thing you can do

lodders · Jan 29, 2016

Most sensible value for money gaming PC is
the cheapest i5 CPU on a good quality H170 motherboard,
an ssd,
a decent PSU,
a cheap case
and a gtx 950.
In 2 years time, upgrade to a much better pascal GPU when you can afford it

Aelos03 · Jan 29, 2016

Why SSD if you are no tight budget you aim for best performance you can get and ssd doesn't do anything for gaming.

Aelos03 · Jan 29, 2016

I have SSD but performance in game > SSD any day. Build the PC then later on you can add SSD a lot easier then upgrading GPU. You want to use GPU as long as possible not replace it in 2 years.

Barty1884 · Jan 29, 2016

@Aelos03, tea urchin is right. If the OP has used an SSD for their OS previously, it's difficult to recommend they go back to doing without. I totally agree that the money would be better spent elsewhere, but I personally wouldn't drop an SSD from a build/buy under any circumstances.

OP - buying a pre-built isn't ideal, but if the price us cheap enough, an i3 should be sufficient to play GTA V on medium settings with a decent frame-rate.

What is the price on the pre-built? Considering you're talking upgrades:
1. GPU - $120ish
2. SSD - $60ish minimum
3. RAM - $50ish

So you're total investment will be whatever the pre-built cost + around $250

Consider the price of this build (to do it yourself) and compare the two options:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6400 2.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($183.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H170N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($117.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws 4 series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($41.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial BX200 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($63.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R7 370 2GB NITRO OC Video Card ($123.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 110 Mini ITX Tower Case ($38.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($53.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Total: $757.74
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-29 14:02 EST-0500

There's ways to reduce the price of this build (significantly). This one is mITX, ATX or even mATX will lower the cost - but using this an example.

The CPU is much better, the GPU is better, the PSU is substantially better than you'd get from a pre-built.

Unless the i3 pre-built is $400 or less (so $650 by the time you add upgrades), the i5 build for ~$750 would be the better option.

*EDIT* Going with the cheapest case (which actually looks pretty good to me), a cheaper, fullATX board, higher speed RAM (as the Z170 chipset will allow) and a better GPU & higher wattage, yet still quality PSU comes out right around the same pricepoint (yet substantially better components):

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6400 2.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($183.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI Z170-A PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill NT Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial BX200 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($63.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($153.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Azza Cosmas ATX Mid Tower Case ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Total: $734.75
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-29 14:13 EST-0500

Aelos03 · Jan 29, 2016

Well if you don't mind performance hit for gaming then yeah go for SSD that is sacrifice you have to make on budget builds.

Barty1884 · Jan 29, 2016

Aelos03 :

Very true, you do have to make sacrifices on budget builds. That being said, days of $200+ for a ~100GB SSD are gone. A respectable quality SSD at 240GB is around $60, or 120GB for around $40. It's not the huge expense it once was.

When you consider what that extra $60 (as an example) would get you over a $100-$120 750ti, it's not exactly mindblowing, and R7 370 is right around the same pricepoint, and an R9 280 is slightly more. Those are probably realistic jumps most people could make.

Aelos03 · Jan 29, 2016

Yeah glad those days are behind but if you look at build OP is proposing even 60$ would be huge. It can cost you good PSU or better GPU/CPU. It could mean getting that i5 that is essential for some games. For gaming machine that is really on tight budget I can't justify SSD because it is a luxury and not essential.

Barty1884 · Jan 29, 2016

Aelos03 :

Sorry Aelos, not disagreeing with the potential waste of money there, I was disagreeing with the gaming trade-off performance you mentioned earlier.

An i5 isn't essential for any game (as far as I know). The HT of an i3 really saves it. A strict dual-core, there are definitely games that will refuse to run.

Ultimately, our discussion is borderline pointless unless the OP returns to let us know their budget.

I'd be surprised if you could buy a pre-build i3 machine for less than $400 including an OS. New, from someone like Dell I mean. For example: http://www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-3647-small-desktop/pd (keeps defaulting to Canadian for me, but I believe that's $400).

I'm assuming the OP is budgeting somewhere in the $650-$700 range for their desktop + upgrades, so building one would be their best option....and can accommodate an SSD within that budget.

Aelos03 · Jan 29, 2016

Yeah but gaming trade off can be huge. Because quad core can be essential for some games because some games are CPU intensive and are designed to run
on that set up and HT doesn't help much. I don't think it is brand pre build or even pre build at all because he mentioned upgrade so I assumed budget it is very low going by that spec.

If I was building my PC in 700$ I don't think I would spare 60$ for SSD either unless I already have good case and psu. It is a lot easier to build around best components you want then add later on what is not essential. Where I live too many people build on budget so I got used to min maxing.

But yeah it is borderline pointless but killing time eh

lodders · Jan 29, 2016

I'm taking the long view.
Once you have an i5 CPU, motherboard and SSD, you have the core of a PC which will be good for 5 to 7 years before it needs upgrading again.
Fitting more memory or a better GPU is quick and easy, but replacing hard disk or motherboard involves reinstalling windows, drivers and all your games.
If you are on a budget, you may have to live with a gtx950 for a year or two while you save up for a kick ass pascal GPU, BUT that is still the better long term solution.

Aelos03 · Jan 29, 2016

Long run for gaming rig means getting best GPU you can get your hands on and building around that. Who is insane to keep stuff on partition where is system?Reinstalling windows is effortless now. I can reinstall Windows drivers and everything to previous condition in about 20mins. Adding SSD is just as easy.So if you are on budget and can afford better gpu then 950 and plan to upgrade next year or so, you are doing it wrong.

You should never wait for next set of new GPUs unless its like month or two away because they are making new so fast.

achrafox · Jan 30, 2016

Aelos03 :

thank you bro

achrafox · Jan 30, 2016

the only problem is that am putting around 250USD
gpu for 109$
ram for 50$
andt the pc is not a pre build is a new pc like if you buy one for your work and am taking it around 100$
am not going to get ssd any more and am going to get a core i5 and its over 200$ and am only spining 250$
waht shoud i do ??

Aelos03 · Jan 30, 2016

When I was tight on money I would prick parts and then buy what I can and save up then buy again in month or two. For me that paid off.
i5 is ideal and it will last you for longer but that is not only option. FX 6300 costs 100$ and with that gpu and ram it will get out to 260$.

What are your other components?

is core i3 good for gaming ?

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