Where to Start with a Build - Need Advice

ElSmashico · Jan 21, 2017

Hi all! First post in these forums and looking for any help possible. I'm looking to build a gaming PC. Goals of the build are:
1) $1000-$1500 including peripheries (except Mouse and Mousepad)
2) Can play games - Indicative games would be XCOM2, Total War Series, Rainbow Six Siege, Witcher 3, and Dishonored 2
3) Reasonable future proofing if possible
4) Mobility is not a big consideration

I've been reading about builds and building example builds on sites where you can mix and match parts. Unfortunately I have no idea what I'm doing and I'm worried I will spend money on the wrong parts and build a sub-optimal machine and waste money on components that don't complement each other.

Can anyone advise on this? Apologies for the vagueness of the question.

I'm fairly new to this and don't know all the jargon yet - so technical comparisons might go over my head a little.

Thanks

CTurbo · Jan 21, 2017

Here is a quick example of what you're looking for. I don't know what country you're in, but this is US pricing.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7500 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($198.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX300 275GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($83.69 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.55 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon RX 480 8GB G1 Gaming Video Card ($234.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($41.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $931.75
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-21 07:34 EST-0500

You can click on the first link and go in and edit the partslist. That website will help you compatibility.

ElSmashico · Jan 22, 2017

CTurbo :

Hey CTurbo - thank you! This is really helpful! Would you also be able to give an explanation of why you've picked some of these components over higher end/lower end components? For example, you've picked an i5 over an i7 processor. I assume that an i7 is 'better' but I don't really understand what makes it better so I don't know how to make a value comparison of the two.

Similarly, I've heard some people on forums talk about having x2 GPUs - when would this be something you would consider?

Lastly - would you forsee any potential issues upgrading components in the future as they wear out or better options hit the market? How easy is this to do?

Thanks,

Will

CTurbo · Jan 22, 2017

The i7 is "better" but it's significantly more and usually not worth it for a gaming build. The i7 would come in handy of you plan on streaming or doing video editing, or something similar.

No I would not consider using two gpus at once. Always stick to the best single gpu you can afford.

Yes this system would be very easy to upgrade. The i5 would last years and years, and the video card is very quick and easy to upgrade.

I wouldn't spend anymore than that build above until you know exactly what you'll be doing with the PC and what monitor you plan on having. Then you can choose which parts would benefit from upgrading.

If this is just a gaming build, and won't be used for much else, jumping up to a GTX1070 makes the most sense. Note: this is overkill for a 60hz 1080p monitor. I recommend the 1070 for a 144hz 1080p monitor or 1440p.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7500 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($198.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($89.89 @ Newegg Marketplace)
Storage: Crucial MX300 275GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($85.59 @ B&H)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.55 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($376.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($41.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1075.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-22 11:47 EST-0500

For there, if you still want to spend more money, you could either drop an i7 in there or step up to overclocking possibilities.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($309.69 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($89.89 @ Newegg Marketplace)
Storage: Crucial MX300 275GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($85.59 @ B&H)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.55 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($376.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($41.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1186.25
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-22 11:49 EST-0500

or

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7600K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H5 Ultimate 76.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($56.69 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus PRIME Z270-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($166.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($92.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX300 275GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($85.59 @ B&H)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.55 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($376.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($62.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1290.35
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-22 11:51 EST-0500

Note: overclocking requires a better more expensive motherboard and a nice cpu cooler. I also upgraded to faster RAM and a bigger case.

From here, if you're going to be using a nice 1440p or 4k monitor you could upgrade to a GTX1080, or get a bigger ssd, or different more expensive case, etc...

ElSmashico · Jan 25, 2017

CTurbo :

The i7 is "better" but it's significantly more and usually not worth it for a gaming build. The i7 would come in handy of you plan on streaming or doing video editing, or something similar.

No I would not consider using two gpus at once. Always stick to the best single gpu you can afford.

Yes this system would be very easy to upgrade. The i5 would last years and years, and the video card is very quick and easy to upgrade.

I wouldn't spend anymore than that build above until you know exactly what you'll be doing with the PC and what monitor you plan on having. Then you can choose which parts would benefit from upgrading.

If this is just a gaming build, and won't be used for much else, jumping up to a GTX1070 makes the most sense. Note: this is overkill for a 60hz 1080p monitor. I recommend the 1070 for a 144hz 1080p monitor or 1440p.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7500 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($198.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($89.89 @ Newegg Marketplace)
Storage: Crucial MX300 275GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($85.59 @ B&H)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.55 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($376.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($41.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1075.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-22 11:47 EST-0500

For there, if you still want to spend more money, you could either drop an i7 in there or step up to overclocking possibilities.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($309.69 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($89.89 @ Newegg Marketplace)
Storage: Crucial MX300 275GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($85.59 @ B&H)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.55 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($376.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($41.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1186.25
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-22 11:49 EST-0500

or

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7600K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H5 Ultimate 76.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($56.69 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus PRIME Z270-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($166.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($92.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX300 275GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($85.59 @ B&H)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.55 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($376.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($62.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1290.35
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-22 11:51 EST-0500

Note: overclocking requires a better more expensive motherboard and a nice cpu cooler. I also upgraded to faster RAM and a bigger case.

From here, if you're going to be using a nice 1440p or 4k monitor you could upgrade to a GTX1080, or get a bigger ssd, or different more expensive case, etc...

Thanks! This is very clearly explained and exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for.

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Where to Start with a Build - Need Advice

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