Need Help with lowering the budget for gaming PC!!

[crowfm]

After doing months of research (First ever build), I have put together a build for my new pc.

I WONT BE OVERCLOCKING.

It will be used mainly for gaming, the rest random internet surfing & watching videos etc. But no streaming.

I really want to be able to play Starcraft 2, Guild Wars 2, Dota 2 and any relatively 'medium-ish' quality games.
I'm not really a hardcore High Resolution omg-u-can-see-every-detail type of gamer, but I really want to play with no 'lags' or any form of frame drops.

In other words, I would not mind playing SC2 on medium~high settings as long as there is no frame drops.

Also, I alt-tab a lot between a game and the internet.

I am on quite a low-ish? budget for the computer itself - the other peripherals/accessories will be paid for separately.

I was thinking of paying around $1100 NZD, Which is equivalent to around $800~900 USD.

Here is a build that I put together, as you can see it is over the preferred budget already...


CPU - Intel Core i5 3570 3.4GHz Socket 1155 Box - $289 OR Intel Core i5 3470 3.2GHz Socket 1155 Box - $265


- Which is the better choice? considering my budget I think the latter is better, or maybe both of these processors are not suited for a low-budget PC?

MOBO - Gigabyte GA-H77-D3H - $171


-For a non-overclocking build, I heard that H77 is the best choice. Also it was compatible with the CPU. Don't think I need to spend much here.


GPU - Gigabyte Radeon HD7850 OC HDMI Dual-DisplayPort 2GB - $351

-This is what I am not sure about; I heard the HD7850 is great, but is it an overkill for my gaming needs? I heard the GPU determines the smoothness of the games so I was willing to spend the most on it. But perhaps there is a lesser intense version of this with a more friendlier price?


RAM - G.Skill Ripjaws X DDR3 PC12800/1600MHz, CL9 8GB 2X4GB - $91

-Recommended by others


CASE - Antec Three Hundred Two (Black) - $91

-I like the case, and seems to be quite good?


HDD - Western Digital Caviar Blue 7200RPM 16MB 500GB - $90

-I'm not really sure which brand is the best; but these seem to be on a high rank at the site I'm using.


CD/DVD Drive - LG GH24NS90 - $30

-Cheap.


PSU - ?

-I have no idea how much Wattage I need for a build like mine. 500W? 520? 600? 650? I heard that either Corsair or Antec should be my choice of brand. I would prefer to be safe and get a decently high W, than get the minimum requirements and have the risk of failure to be honest.. not sure.

SDD- ?

-I heard this would make loading a lot lot faster... It would be great to be in the build, but not really essential right?

$1100+ Even without the PSU.

All from www.pricespy.co.nz
All prices in $ New Zealand Dollars


So... here I am.

I think I chose parts that are a bit out of my budget level. So I probably need to re-choose most of them.

Help me choose the all correct parts for my build!! preferably without changing the general 'picture' around too much... (Although it seems like it HAS to be changed around... )

 

[TheBigTroll]

holy crap stuff is expensive in NZ

1: id get a i5 3450 to save some money
2:for the power supply, id get this. this unit can really only supply 500w so yeah
http://www.pcforce.co.nz/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=77&products_id=1948&
3:the others are ok i guess. you could try and look for a 6870 and save a little money. it performs not as well but it should be cheaper. tell me the pricing and ill help decide for you

 

[crowfm]

Hmm overall the 6870 seems to be not significantly different in price to the 7850..

You don't think that saving money on other parts is a better choice in terms of performance?

 

[TheBigTroll]

well you could drop the CPU to a i3 2100. it should still perform about as good in games as the i5. just that you lose some speed in multi-tasking

 

[maui67]

well you could drop the CPU to a i3 2100. it should still perform about as good in games as the i5. just that you lose some speed in multi-tasking

^+1 Either an i3-2100 or i3-2120 if you can swing it. For gaming the i3 will do just as well as the i5. Don't skimp on the gpu.

 

[dudewitbow]

yeah i would definately recommend running the 3450 if its cheap enough.


ideally, I would recommend:

I5-3450
cheaper end h77 or b75 mobo
8 gb ram
500-550w psu
rest into gpu for the best balanced gaming budget.

I notice that yoru mobo is extremely expensive, and I dont think you will need all its features at that price.

for instance the Asrock b75 Pro 3 isnt bad for a single card build and is essentially much cheaper than the h77 board in question, which the budget then can be shifted to gpu or the missing psu



by looking at the psu prices to quality/performanceish levels the xfx core 550w is a pretty decent price/quality ratio

 

[crowfm]

Thanks for the replies!

yeah I was not sure about which motherboard was the best choice... or whether it is worth paying so much for a motherboard in a non-overclocking build.

I think I will go with the PSU and the Mobo you suggested

-ASRock B75 Pro3 for $102.59

-XFX Core Edition P1-550S-XXB9 550W $110.85

Decent choice?

So what you guys are saying is that an i3 vs i5 is not much difference when it comes to gaming? Not sure what to go with... to what extent am I going to lose performance/multitasking speed if i go with i3 instead of i5?

 

[dudewitbow]

Thanks for the replies!

yeah I was not sure about which motherboard was the best choice... or whether it is worth paying so much for a motherboard in a non-overclocking build.

I think I will go with the PSU and the Mobo you suggested

-ASRock B75 Pro3 for $102.59

-XFX Core Edition P1-550S-XXB9 550W $110.85

Decent choice?

So what you guys are saying is that an i3 vs i5 is not much difference when it comes to gaming? Not sure what to go with... to what extent am I going to lose performance/multitasking speed if i go with i3 instead of i5?

the i3 in general will play about 98-99% of games. the other 1-2% are games that are heavily cpu relavent(BF3, Skyrim etc). Ideally its nice to have that entry quad core in teh long run, but if budget calls for it, the i3 isnt the worst choice. especially if you arent picky with graphics settings.

 

[crowfm]

Also for the Motherboards,
The relatively 'cheaper' H77 boards are for Micro-ATX.

The case that I am going with (ANTEC 302) says it is compatible with Micro-ATX.

Does having a smaller Motherboard mean anything in terms of performance/ingame stuff? or is it just having more features/ports etc..

 

[dudewitbow]

micro atx at the essence is a shortened MOBO, which usually takes away a pci slot or 2 as some users never use all of their pci slots.

 

[crowfm]

Sorry for so many questions.... Guess there no such thing as doing enough research-_-

Okay, so if I go with the i3 (Which I think I am turning towards to), I can keep the 7850. Which is a good thing for me right?

And since my preference was playing on mid-resolution with no lags or frame drops, having a better GPU is a better choice for me also?

 

[crowfm]

micro atx at the essence is a shortened MOBO, which usually takes away a pci slot or 2 as some users never use all of their pci slots.

Just from looking at my build overall + what I am using it for. In your opinion, do you think getting a micro ATX (Lower cost) is the better choice for me?

I don't think I will be upgrading it in a while if I am happy with being able to play the games I mentioned.

 

[dudewitbow]

if you dont plan on buying a second 7850 or adding alot of pci attachments(i.e certain pci-e ssd's, wifi go into this category sometimes) go for it. its usually cheaper to go M.Atx(i just think its personally better to go i5+micro atx mobo so you wont have a need to change gpu if you ever want to say change the gpu for heavy gaming purposes. single card build wise that is.

 

[crowfm]

Great thanks for the reply. I will consider getting a Micro-ATX.

Just to clarify (Again and again), an i3 over i5 will not affect my gaming experience since I am not too concerned about the graphics quality of the games too much?

It will have no effect on the smoothness of the games I play?

So if I change these around, do you think the overall build is all right?

 

[dudewitbow]

on single or dual core operated programs, they will perform exactly the same. on 3 or more core programs, the i3 will take hits. this is relevant in games with large field of vision or is very expansive.

and if you want the minor stuff, you will also get the 1 fps advantage of PCI-3.0 as well

 

[crowfm]

One Final thing...

Gigabyte GA-H77M-D3H- Micro-ATX - $126

or

ASRock B75 Pro3 - $102.59

Which Mobo to go with?

The reasons?

 

[Chubbs]

You don't have to do this but if your goal is to play on mid settings you can cut that 7850 down and save some cash?

Also, i was debating between the i3 and the i5 2310. It was a close race but I picked the i5 because i wanted the 4 cores for photo editing. From what I've read and what has been stated above, the i3 will rock anything with a balanced GPU.

 

[crowfm]

You don't have to do this but if your goal is to play on mid settings you can cut that 7850 down and save some cash?

Also, i was debating between the i3 and the i5 2310. It was a close race but I picked the i5 because i wanted the 4 cores for photo editing. From what I've read and what has been stated above, the i3 will rock anything with a balanced GPU.

Yes that is an option i guess..

I was actually considering choosing the CPU and the Mobo I want, then choose the best possible GPU, then fit everything else I need into the budget :<. Maybe that is why I'm having trouble keeping to the budget..

So the i3 combined with the 7850 should be enough (More than?) to play the games I want smoothly on not-max settings?

 

[crowfm]

Best answer selected by crowfm.