600 - 800 budget gaming pc - New Build

Avanju

October 1, 2012 3:24:39 PM

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading (moving this to the top because it seems pertinent to the rest that follows):

Hey everyone, about 4 years ago before I owed student loans, I bought a pre-built gaming PC for $1700. It's a good solid build and came with a lifetime service agreement, but now it's time for an new one as the mobo slots don't accommodate upgrades and I'm having trouble running any game since 2011 on even mid-range settings. I could really use some advice as this is my first time building my own.

Approximate Purchase Date: This week, or wait for BF if it would be worth it (your thoughts?)

Budget Range: 600-800 total (obviously I want the most bang for my buck here. Would an 800 dollar machine be worth the cost in performance increase?)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, streaming netflix

Are you buying a monitor: No, I have dual 22" monitors

Parts to Upgrade: (e.g.: CPU, mobo, RAM): All except peripherals (mouse, keyboard); I'm trading out my old PC for $500, which is included in the budget.

Do you need to buy OS: No; Win7x64 Home

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg, Tigerdirect, Amazon (prime), though open to suggestions

Location: City, State/Region, Country - I'm located in Utah

Parts Preferences: by brand or type: I would prefer an Intel build as I've heard AMD processors have been failing in the market recently, and I've had only Intel builds in the past.

Overclocking: Maybe...I've never overclocked anything because i'm afraid of the damage it could do. I've had a few friends overclock their CPU's and they damaged them. Is it really worth the risk? How do I prevent damage?

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe, I've never ran more than one card at once, but if it fits in the budget, and would be worth the performance, I'd like to give it a shot.

Your Monitor Resolution: 1650x1080, 1920 x 1080 (yes, two different sizes, but beggars can't always be choosers!)

Additional Comments: I'm a gamer. With an $800 budget I realize i'm not going to be running the latest games on ultra settings, but I would like to play D3, GW2, Assassin's Creed, LoL etc. on mid-high without skipping frames or hanging up.

Include a list of any parts you have already selected with descriptively labeled links for parts. Please do not post only links.

I'm not really attached to anything here, but from looking around, these seemed like good options

NZXT Technologies TEMPEST 210 Massive Mesh Style Midtower Case with USB 3.0 - $54.99

This seemed like a good looking case for the price.

Crucial 64 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT064M4SSD2 $72.98

The SSD is small, but I figure the best value for my budget would be an SSD large enough to throw my OS on, and everything else can go on a 500gb mechanical. Any other suggestions as to what should go on the SSD?

Corsair Vengeance 8 GB ( 2 x 4 GB ) DDR3 1600 MHz (PC3 12800) 240-Pin DDR3 Memory Kit - $43.99

I'd like at least 8gb ram.

EVGA GeForce GTX 550 Ti FPB 1024 MB GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 2DVI/Mini-HDMI SLI Ready -$151.88

Given that i'm running on a 256 mb card right now, this seemed like a good upgrade for a decent price. I'm not married to it though. Your thoughts?

Antec EarthWatts EA-650 Green 650 Watt 80 PLUS BRONZE Power Supply --$69.99

Seemed like a good option, I've heard good things about 80 plus certified PSU's. Will 650 watt be enough power? Overkill?

More about : 600 800 budget gaming

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twystedfyre

October 1, 2012 5:17:56 PM

seems legit.

i'm new here but i just got an i5 3550 and it's killer, but if you want to think about overclocking (which can be pretty safe if you know what you're doing and have a good CPU cooler) just spring 30 bucks on the 3770k (230$ where i live)
i was also considering the 3470 only 20 bucks cheaper.

or maybe not ivy bridge at all, and go for second gen i5 those are cool too lol

mobo i saw some good ones for 150 but considering you have 340 listed above (if i didn't miss anything) and a cpu will run you 200-250, the mobo would take you up to 800, maybe a bit past with tax (i'm canadian, is there a big difference in tax?)

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twystedfyre

October 1, 2012 5:22:18 PM

msi z77a-g45 worked well for me, only 130. also thought about the asus p8z77-v lx (140) but like i said, i'm new here and i've only built one computer before my current build... these are just my thoughts i had a week ago as i had a similar budget and identical needs

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peep1988

October 2, 2012 6:34:22 AM

2757227,1,1420813 said:

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading (moving this to the top because it seems pertinent to the rest that follows):

Hey everyone, about 4 years ago before I owed student loans, I bought a pre-built gaming PC for $1700. It's a good solid build and came with a lifetime service agreement, but now it's time for an new one as the mobo slots don't accommodate upgrades and I'm having trouble running any game since 2011 on even mid-range settings. I could really use some advice as this is my first time building my own.

Approximate Purchase Date: This week, or wait for BF if it would be worth it (your thoughts?)

Budget Range: 600-800 total (obviously I want the most bang for my buck here. Would an 800 dollar machine be worth the cost in performance increase?)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, streaming netflix

Are you buying a monitor: No, I have dual 22" monitors

Parts to Upgrade: (e.g.: CPU, mobo, RAM): All except peripherals (mouse, keyboard); I'm trading out my old PC for $500, which is included in the budget.

Do you need to buy OS: No; Win7x64 Home

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg, Tigerdirect, Amazon (prime), though open to suggestions

Location: City, State/Region, Country - I'm located in Utah

Parts Preferences: by brand or type: I would prefer an Intel build as I've heard AMD processors have been failing in the market recently, and I've had only Intel builds in the past.

Overclocking: Maybe...I've never overclocked anything because i'm afraid of the damage it could do. I've had a few friends overclock their CPU's and they damaged them. Is it really worth the risk? How do I prevent damage?

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe, I've never ran more than one card at once, but if it fits in the budget, and would be worth the performance, I'd like to give it a shot.

Your Monitor Resolution: 1650x1080, 1920 x 1080 (yes, two different sizes, but beggars can't always be choosers!)

Additional Comments: I'm a gamer. With an $800 budget I realize i'm not going to be running the latest games on ultra settings, but I would like to play D3, GW2, Assassin's Creed, LoL etc. on mid-high without skipping frames or hanging up.

Include a list of any parts you have already selected with descriptively labeled links for parts. Please do not post only links.

I'm not really attached to anything here, but from looking around, these seemed like good options

NZXT Technologies TEMPEST 210 Massive Mesh Style Midtower Case with USB 3.0 - $54.99

This seemed like a good looking case for the price.

Crucial 64 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT064M4SSD2 $72.98

The SSD is small, but I figure the best value for my budget would be an SSD large enough to throw my OS on, and everything else can go on a 500gb mechanical. Any other suggestions as to what should go on the SSD?

Corsair Vengeance 8 GB ( 2 x 4 GB ) DDR3 1600 MHz (PC3 12800) 240-Pin DDR3 Memory Kit - $43.99

I'd like at least 8gb ram.

EVGA GeForce GTX 550 Ti FPB 1024 MB GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 2DVI/Mini-HDMI SLI Ready -$151.88

Given that i'm running on a 256 mb card right now, this seemed like a good upgrade for a decent price. I'm not married to it though. Your thoughts?

Antec EarthWatts EA-650 Green 650 Watt 80 PLUS BRONZE Power Supply --$69.99

Seemed like a good option, I've heard good things about 80 plus certified PSU's. Will 650 watt be enough power? Overkill?[/quotemsg

No on the gtx 550ti newegg is selling a AMD 7850 for about 180 bucks or the AMD 7870 for 235 n good quality 550watt PSU is good on the SSD its overpriced don't pay more than a dollar a gig newegg has done great deals last week there was a 128gb SSD for 69.99 after Mir for a CPU I would get a I5 3570k ifyou want to oc if not a i3 will be fine

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Avanju

October 2, 2012 6:06:23 PM

Thanks for the input. What do you all think about waiting until Black Friday/Cyber Monday for better deals? Will parts actually be that much cheaper?

I will probably not OC because of lack of know-how and don't want to have to worry about the damage. In that case, why would I get an I5 for oc but I3 if not? I'm confused here. Wouldn't it be the other way around?

I'd like to put my OS on an SSD for faster boot times and what-not so I will probably get a 64gb ssd. I've heard though, that if you fill up an SSD over half it slows down dramatically. Is this true?

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peep1988

October 2, 2012 6:18:06 PM

Avanju said:

Thanks for the input. What do you all think about waiting until Black Friday/Cyber Monday for better deals? Will parts actually be that much cheaper?

I will probably not OC because of lack of know-how and don't want to have to worry about the damage. In that case, why would I get an I5 for oc but I3 if not? I'm confused here. Wouldn't it be the other way around?

I'd like to put my OS on an SSD for faster boot times and what-not so I will probably get a 64gb ssd. I've heard though, that if you fill up an SSD over half it slows down dramatically. Is this true?

If you can wait till black Friday I would about the SSD it won't slow down if you have half of it full I got 5gb left on a 64gb SSD and itacts the same. I woul get the i5 3570k it will smash a i3 overclocking will make a i5 even more amazing very easy YouTube has 100s of tutorials if you do get the i5 3570k you should get the hyper 212 evo fan its like 25 bucks and performs well

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peep1988

October 2, 2012 6:23:42 PM

Forget to mention you could get the i5 3540 like guy says above its well worth it you just can't oc I would also wait for black Friday they will probably have done awesome deals on HDD and SSD by the way get at keast a 120gb SSD you might think 60 is a lot but it will be filled up quickly I learned thi the hard way now Im buying a larger SSD and have to clone the drive save yourself the trouble

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peep1988

October 2, 2012 6:24:46 PM

Forget to mention you could get the i5 3540 like guy says above its well worth it you just can't oc I would also wait for black Friday they will probably have done awesome deals on HDD and SSD by the way get at keast a 120gb SSD you might think 60 is a lot but it will be filled up quickly I learned thi the hard way now Im buying a larger SSD and have to clone the drive save yourself the trouble

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Avanju

October 3, 2012 3:48:46 AM

Best answer selected by Avanju.

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lighter17

October 3, 2012 4:51:47 AM

Avanju said:

What do you all think about waiting until Black Friday/Cyber Monday for better deals? Will parts actually be that much cheaper?

BF/CM is almost 2 months away. Prices usually drop over time, so if you can wait you'll probably get a somewhat cheaper price. There are no major hardware launches expected over the next couple of months, so I wouldbe surprised if there are any major price drops. There may be some killer deals on BF/CM, but maybe not, or maybe they'll be sold out before you can get it on them.

The question I would ask is do you want to wait 2 months with your current slow system to try to save a little money?

I forgot to mention earlier that I left an SSD out of the build since I think they're a luxury at this price point and the money is better spent on improving CPU/GPU. You could try to pick up a cheap SSD on BF/CM. SSD prices have been falling pretty quickly lately so there will almost certainly be some good deals.

Avanju said:

I will probably not OC because of lack of know-how and don't want to have to worry about the damage. In that case, why would I get an I5 for oc but I3 if not? I'm confused here. Wouldn't it be the other way around?

All i3 processors are locked and can not be overclocked. Most i5s are also locked. Only the i5 processors ending in k can be overclocked. All desktop i5s (locked or unlocked) are quad cores which makes them a bit more future proof than i3s, so you won't end up with a slow system in a couple of years.

Avanju said:

I'd like to put my OS on an SSD for faster boot times and what-not so I will probably get a 64gb ssd.

That'll work, but just in case you didn't know larger capacity SSDs are faster than smaller SSDs. Given where prices are now I wouldn't recommend less than a 128 GB SSD. The extra capacity is all available to hold games. It won't give you better frame rates, but at least you won't have to wait so long for the games to start up.

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