Budget Gaming build ($800)

[meta310]

Hey everyone.

I am planning on putting together a gaming rig capable of maxing out guild wars 2, battlefield 3, and Diablo 3 among other games in the near future. Now I may not be able to max out Battlefield 3 on an $800 budget but i am hoping to build a solid and upgradeable machine. I am not very informed as to the quality and compatability of the components that go into a pc but based on my limited understanding of the hardware, I have gathered a few things as a starting point here http://secure.newegg.com/Shopping/ShoppingCart.aspx?Submit=view . Any help from someone more experienced and informed than myself is very appreciated. Thanks in advance guys!

 

[Kamen_BG]

Hi.I made two builds for you.
The first one is a bit overbudget but it's pretty powerfull.
The second one is a bit less powerfull but still no slouch.It also has an OS included.
Both of the builds will allow you to play those games at their maximum settings.

This is the first one

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper Xtreme Series, Division 2 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($77.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Galaxy GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card ($295.98 @ NCIX US)
Case: Xigmatek ASGARD PRO (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: OCZ 800W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($24.98 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $813.89
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-04 12:52 EDT-0400)

And this is the second one

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper Xtreme Series, Division 2 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($77.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 480 1.5GB Video Card ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Xigmatek ASGARD PRO (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: OCZ 800W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($24.98 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $797.88
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-04 12:57 EDT-0400)

 

[olin9]

CPU i5-3570K

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1030028

Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K

$388.98

99.99

Corsair Carbide Series 400R Graphite grey and black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Gaming Case

84.89


G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL10D-16GBXL

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139008

$134.00

EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR GeForce GTX 550 Ti (Fermi) FPB 1GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130625


Pick a PSU and a DVD. If you add the cooler below you can OC CPU to 4.9GHZ


$109.99

CORSAIR H100 (CWCH100) Extreme Performance Liquid CPU Cooler

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231489

 

[meta310]

I really like the first build you made Kamen. Is that gpu powerful enough to last me about 2 years and still perform very well though?

 

[voiidwulf]

I really like the first build you made Kamen. Is that gpu powerful enough to last me about 2 years and still perform very well though?

I think that would last you 2 years. The GTX 660Ti is a very new card, and should be capable of decent quality settings for a few years. Maybe not Ultra, but I think high is a definite possibility.

 

[Paul-L]

Processor : Intel i5-2500k (Don't bother with the new 3570k. Those who recommend Ivy Bridge just have no idea about heating issue with the cheapo TIM Intel uses in the new chip. The major improvement is just accounted for the integrated graphic chipset, you don't get that much performance gain over Sandy Bridge. A 2500k clocked at 4.8GHz runs around 60-70C on full load with a liquid cooler while 3570K hits 80C at the same speed.)

Motherboard : Asus z77 V-Series (If you live by a Microcenter store, go for the mobo deal that drops $50 off the base price. If it is only available with 3570k go for it. I know I'm contradicting myself but heck, you just have to pick the best bang for the bucks, right?). Even though z68 is good enough, but since Z77 in some case might be cheaper and better due to the fact that it supports faster ram speed and has native SATA III 6.0gbps ports instead of all 3rd party controllers which adds up the cost.

Memory : Kingston and Crucial are having the 8GB kit 1600 Mhz on sales. Look them up.
Storage : Go with SSD first, expand capacity later on with a mechanical drive. This article points out many good SSDs from 7 brands. You should be able to pick your perfect choice.

Chassis : This thermaltake Snow looks pretty good. And it is inexpensive.

PSU : The OCZ ModxStream is ok. Corsair TX650M is recommended. But PC Power and Cooling 750W is the most reliable but it is not modular.

Optional : you may need an optical drive for OS installation.

Graphics Card : Radeon HD 7850. or 560 Ti. If you want to keep up with all the hype you could go with the 660 Ti, but honestly the difference of 4-7 frames is not worth for the higher cost. Building a custom pc is aiming for cost-efficient.

Here is a sample configuration if you want a little more details.