Build help - $1,000 Budget Gaming PC designed for MMOs and Sandbox gaming

tanner775 · Oct 20, 2017

Budget: $1,000 +/- 200

Resolution: 1080p, 80hz - 120hz

Games / Settings Desired: Primarily open world games - ARK(high+), GTA:V(high+), WoW(ultra), ESO(ultra), BDO(high+), PUBG(Ultra). Skyrim(ultra) at 1080p or better with 60fps or better

Secondary games - BF4(ultra), BF1(high+), Forza 7(high+), OW(ultra) 1440p @ 120hz or better

Any other intensive software or special things you do (Frequent video encoding, 3D modeling, etc) No.

Country: United States

Parts that can be reused: Starting from scratch.

Do you need an OS? Yes (Windows 10)

Do you need peripherals (e.g. monitor, mouse, keyboard, speakers, etc)? I already have a mouse/keyboard/speakers I can use. I already have a 1080p 75hz Acer monitor but I wouldn't mind having a 2nd 1440p 120hz monitor if I can afford it (not a priority but keep this in mind when suggesting my GPU though).

aquielisunari · Oct 20, 2017

tanner775 :

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8600K 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($279.89 @ B&H)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG - H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI - Z370-A PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($111.78 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($148.55 @ Newegg Marketplace)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($98.94 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($45.69 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI - GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Video Card ($399.95 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair - 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 550W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus - DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.49 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($89.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1321.05
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-20 15:37 EDT-0400

Meets your prerequisites.

A new monitor can be purchased at a later time.

I understand that's over your $200 spread but it also will do exactly what you want. Thoughts?

If this was simple 1080p 60Hz the 8400 might suffice. It isn't. It's better than the Ryzen 1600. It's a better value than the 1700.

tanner775 · Oct 20, 2017

You know now that I think about it. I really want to experience gaming @ 1440p 120hz or better. I'm done with 1080 @ 60fps. I play older titles like WoW, ESO, Skyrim and GTA 5, ARK (on highish?). I would actually consider going up to a $1,500 budget if I knew I had something that could handle these games at max at the same time keeping it cool and quiet and remain somewhat future proof for newer titles.

I would need to add in a monitor though... so maybe I could use this build but add in a nice 1440p 120hz monitor?

feelinfroggy777 · Oct 20, 2017

It is gonna be hard to build a machine for under 1k that is gonna game on modern games at 1440p @ 120hz or higher because you will have to go with a 1080. Given the prices of GPUs due to mining, that is really not a bad thing because the 1080 prices have not been affected.

I also disagree with the above poster, a 8400 will be fine at 2k@120hz. When you move to higher resolutions, the bottleneck moves to the GPU. So an 8400 will be just fine at 2k with a 1080. The issue with the 8400 is the motherboards. Only Z boards are available, so you would pay more for a feature you cant use.

I would go with this, it is over your budget. But like I said, 2k@144hz for 1k is really not possible without going with a junk PSU, Case, and no SSD. I would not recommend doing any of that for a 1k build

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/myqBM8
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/myqBM8/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8400 2.8GHz 6-Core Processor ($199.89 @ B&H)
Motherboard: ASRock - Z370 Pro4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($111.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($98.94 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate - BarraCuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI - GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Video Card ($509.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair - Builder 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($89.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1250.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-20 16:15 EDT-0400

okcnaline · Oct 20, 2017

$300 over...?

Perhaps this including a monitor?
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1500X 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.38 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG - H7 Quad Lumi 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($59.85 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus - PRIME X370-A ATX AM4 Motherboard ($118.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair - Dominator Platinum 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($114.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial - MX300 275GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($92.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($45.69 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire - Radeon RX 580 8GB NITRO+ Video Card ($302.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design - Meshify C ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA - B3 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Monitor: AOC - G2460PF 24.0" 1920x1080 144Hz Monitor ($190.91 @ Amazon)
Total: $1245.16
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-20 16:23 EDT-0400

aquielisunari · Oct 20, 2017

tanner775 :

That's a good compromise. At 144Hz "max" you are within the 1080's territory. At 120Hz you are still within the 1070's play area. Now we have a $1300+ gaming rig and a new $1500 budget. That doesn't allow for your monitor. Something has to give. Preferred size for your monitor? Average size is 24" at the desktop. 27" will still be good for that. I've seen larger but FOV isn't that good.

feelinfroggy777 · Oct 20, 2017

tanner775 :

If you want a monitor, I would look at something like this:

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIACVB5ZJ9020

It is not the perfect monitor, but the perfect monitors get really expensive quick.

It is 1440p/144hz. But it's a TN panel and does not have gsync. A 27" IPS panel with gsycn will be $600-$700. They are great, but they are expensive.

tanner775 · Oct 20, 2017

feelinfroggy777 :

It is gonna be hard to build a machine for under 1k that is gonna game on modern games at 1440p @ 120hz or higher because you will have to go with a 1080. Given the prices of GPUs due to mining, that is really not a bad thing because the 1080 prices have not been affected.

I also disagree with the above poster, a 8400 will be fine at 2k@120hz. When you move to higher resolutions, the bottleneck moves to the GPU. So an 8400 will be just fine at 2k with a 1080. The issue with the 8400 is the motherboards. Only Z boards are available, so you would pay more for a feature you cant use.

I would go with this, it is over your budget. But like I said, 2k@144hz for 1k is really not possible without going with a junk PSU, Case, and no SSD. I would not recommend doing any of that for a 1k build

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/myqBM8
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/myqBM8/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8400 2.8GHz 6-Core Processor ($199.89 @ B&H)
Motherboard: ASRock - Z370 Pro4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($111.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($98.94 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate - BarraCuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI - GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Video Card ($509.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair - Builder 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($89.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1250.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-20 16:15 EDT-0400

Yea, I updated my budget because I realize that I need to cough up more if I want to experience 1440p 120hz gaming but is this processor able to handle MMOs and open world/sandbox games? I've always thought those types of games were more CPU intensive than GPU where as more fast paced, linear games likes FPS and racing take advantage of the GPU over the CPU

okcnaline · Oct 20, 2017

Go with a Ryzen; Vulkan games can utilize those cores. Specific case in point, BF1.

tanner775 · Oct 20, 2017

okcnaline :

I'm not familiar with AMD products. I'll have to look into it because I don't know if AMD supports games like ESO, WoW, GTA, etc...

aquielisunari · Oct 20, 2017

feelinfroggy777 :

tanner775 :

There is much more to gaming than the speed so 2.8GHz vs 3.6GHz isn't so clear cut. From what I've seen the 8600K can go toe to toe with the 7700K with gaming. It's also not done there. It's a K CPU which means ~3 years down the road you can potentially squeeze a little more out of it which can offer an additional year or three of the same level of gaming. The 2500K was an exception to the rule but it is still being used(OC'd) 6 years later. I'd rather have the 8600K's edge out of the gate. The 8400's user is stuck.

OC'ing is too hard. How do I go from 3.9 to 4.3GHz? I open up command center and change the 39 to a 43. I click apply. Oc'ing has gotten very simple. HEAVY Oc's do take some research and effort but for the light OC it's really simple.

tanner775 · Oct 20, 2017

aquielisunari :

feelinfroggy777 :

tanner775 :

There is much more to gaming than the speed so 2.8GHz vs 3.6GHz isn't so clear cut. From what I've seen the 8600K can go toe to toe with the 7700K with gaming. It's also not done there. It's a K CPU which means ~3 years down the road you can potentially squeeze a little more out of it which can offer an additional year or three of the same level of gaming. The 2500K was an exception to the rule but it is still being used(OC'd) 6 years later. I'd rather have the 8600K's edge out of the gate. The 8400's user is stuck.

OC'ing is too hard. How do I go from 3.9 to 4.3GHz? I open up command center and change the 39 to a 43. I click apply. Oc'ing has gotten very simple. HEAVY Oc's do take some research and effort but for the light OC it's really simple.

^^ Yea there is no way I'm not getting an overclockable CPU. That is a must for me. I like your build I think I will hang on to that and go from there. Thanks

okcnaline · Oct 20, 2017

tanner775 :

Wait... Secondary games are BF...? Okay, scratch my statement. My bad.

In this case get Intel stuff.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8600K 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($279.89 @ B&H)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG - H7 Quad Lumi 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($59.85 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus - Prime Z370-P ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($139.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($90.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial - MX300 275GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($92.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($45.69 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte - Radeon RX VEGA 56 8GB Video Card ($454.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design - Meshify C ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA - B3 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Monitor: AOC - G2460PF 24.0" 1920x1080 144Hz Monitor ($190.91 @ Amazon)
Total: $1505.06
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-20 16:52 EDT-0400

tanner775 · Oct 20, 2017

okcnaline :

tanner775 :

Wait... Secondary games are BF...? Okay, scratch my statement. My bad.

In this case get Intel stuff.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8600K 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($279.89 @ B&H)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG - H7 Quad Lumi 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($59.85 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus - Prime Z370-P ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($139.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($90.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial - MX300 275GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($92.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($45.69 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte - Radeon RX VEGA 56 8GB Video Card ($454.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design - Meshify C ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA - B3 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Monitor: AOC - G2460PF 24.0" 1920x1080 144Hz Monitor ($190.91 @ Amazon)
Total: $1505.06
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-20 16:52 EDT-0400

I'd rather go with the GTX 1070 over the Radeon RX mostly because of the price and also if you compare the clock speeds, GTX wins.

okcnaline · Oct 20, 2017

The Vega 56 beats out the GTX 1070 in all areas except for power consumption, which for the Vega card, is... Embarrassing? I guess?
Normally I would've suggested a 550W, but the Vega cards are "special".

Also, the monitor has Freesync so I thought, why not RX Vega 56.

tanner775 · Oct 20, 2017

I guess you are right, except for the price.

http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-1070-vs-AMD-RX-Vega-56/3609vs3938

I swear I thought the GTX had higher clock speed but I guess I was wrong.

aquielisunari · Oct 20, 2017

okcnaline :

http://blog.logicalincrements.com/2017/08/rx-vega-56-vs-gtx-1070-gtx-1080/ some food for thought.

The 1070 should also run cooler with it's dual fan design from MSI.

I would wait for their aftermarket counterparts for better cooling, factory OC'ing and more reviews and comparisons if the 56 will possibly be your choice.

okcnaline · Oct 20, 2017

Another GPU to consider is the upcoming 1070 Ti. If that thing's out, don't buy the RX Vega 56. The Vega cards suck up way too much power.

feelinfroggy777 · Oct 20, 2017

okcnaline :

BF1 does not run on Vulcan. It is a dx 11 game that is also ported to run on dx 12. Doom is the only game that runs on Vulcan and all CPUs score about the same.

With that being said, Ryzen is a good CPU.

feelinfroggy777 · Oct 20, 2017

aquielisunari :

feelinfroggy777 :

tanner775 :

There is much more to gaming than the speed so 2.8GHz vs 3.6GHz isn't so clear cut. From what I've seen the 8600K can go toe to toe with the 7700K with gaming. It's also not done there. It's a K CPU which means ~3 years down the road you can potentially squeeze a little more out of it which can offer an additional year or three of the same level of gaming. The 2500K was an exception to the rule but it is still being used(OC'd) 6 years later. I'd rather have the 8600K's edge out of the gate. The 8400's user is stuck.

OC'ing is too hard. How do I go from 3.9 to 4.3GHz? I open up command center and change the 39 to a 43. I click apply. Oc'ing has gotten very simple. HEAVY Oc's do take some research and effort but for the light OC it's really simple.

Dont let the 2.8ghz fool you. That is base frequency with 6 cores. The 8400 CPU single core boost is 4ghz. Fast single core performance is what games like. The 8600k boost is 4.3ghz. So it is only 300mhz faster for single threaded applications. Considering the when you factor in the cost of a cooler, the 8600k is 50% more expensive ($100) than the 8400 when you factor in the cost of an aftermarket cooler. Considering $100 is the price difference between a 1070 and a 1080, the choice is clear. Go for the 8400 and get a 1080. You are guaranteed to get better fps in every game.

Here is a review from techpowerup.com for the 8400. The 8400 is within the margin of error on just about every game.

https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Intel/Core_i5_8400/

When you build a gaming rig, always, I mean always, pick your GPU first. Then build your system around it. You are building a $1500 system and getting a midrange GPU. The 1070 is a good GPU, but with the 1070ti and Vega 56, it has lost its luster unless you are a miner.

With all that being said, I'm not buying a CPU that cant overclock either, because for me, it is more than just gaming. I like to overclock. So I totally understand not wanting a locked CPU.

Build help - $1,000 Budget Gaming PC designed for MMOs and Sandbox gaming

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