Bulding a Budget Gaming PC for the first time. Help needed!

[Moggaftw11]

Hey guys, I'm new to this forum and computer building but I know what do to do and what each part does. I am currently taking GCSE computing.

I need help deciding for parts for my first, budget gaming PC. This is my first build so this should be fun and it can't go over my limit of £200 - £450 as I myself, must save up for the parts and will be selling my laptop for some money towards it.

Okay, so the parts I have chosen are:

Processor: AMD Phenom II x4 965 Black Edition

RAM: Kingston 4GB DDR3 1333MHz

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3 Socket AM3+ 7.1 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard

Power Supply: Coolermaster 500W GX Lite

Case: CoolerMaster Elite 430

Hard Drive: Hitachi 500GB DESKSTAR 3.5" SATA-III - 7200RPM 16MB Cache

Now, I can't find a good graphics card that will fit the bill. :/

I was thinking something like a GTX 550 Ti or even a HD 4850.

The games I will be playing are GTA IV & EFLC, Sims 3 and COD MW2 and things alike.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

PS, all the parts are being ordered from ebuyer. Current cost is £271.55.

 

[lazergaze]

http://www.ebuyer.com/393554-intel-core-i3-3220-3-10ghz-skt1155-3mb-cache-boxed-bx80637i33220 You might want to pop in an intel cpu as they have been known to run faster and a bit cooler than AMD chips, the i3 will serve you good especiallywith these 3rd gen coming out http://www.ebuyer.com/363228-asus-p8z77-v-lx-socket-1155-vga-dvi-hdmi-8-channel-audio-atx-p8z77-v-lx motherboard would need to be changed due to different socket type, http://www.ebuyer.com/247674-corsair-8gb-ddr3-1333mhz-xms3-memory-cmx8gx3m2a1333c9 Ram might want to be upgraded as most games now-a-days would require at leats 2-3GB and having 8Gb you could also multitask better, and also the GTX550Ti is a faster card than the 4850

 

[verdenshersker]

Check this out:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/lwhs

 

[Moggaftw11]

http://www.ebuyer.com/393554-intel-core-i3-3220-3-10ghz-skt1155-3mb-cache-boxed-bx80637i33220 You might want to pop in an intel cpu as they have been known to run faster and a bit cooler than AMD chips, the i3 will serve you good especiallywith these 3rd gen coming out http://www.ebuyer.com/363228-asus-p8z77-v-lx-socket-1155-vga-dvi-hdmi-8-channel-audio-atx-p8z77-v-lx motherboard would need to be changed due to different socket type, http://www.ebuyer.com/247674-corsair-8gb-ddr3-1333mhz-xms3-memory-cmx8gx3m2a1333c9 Ram might want to be upgraded as most games now-a-days would require at leats 2-3GB and having 8Gb you could also multitask better, and also the GTX550Ti is a faster card than the 4850

Hi thanks for the suggestion, but I really won't need 8gb of ram. Also, the motherboard and processor you suggested would take me over my limit.

Anymore alternatives would be appreciated.

 

[Moggaftw11]

Check this out:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/lwhs

Hi, thanks for the reply. I live in the UK so that website and those parts are out of the picture. :/

Thanks anyways

 

[Sakkura]

Most importantly, pick a quality PSU instead of that Cooler Master GX Lite.

 

[Sakkura]

Hi, thanks for the reply. I live in the UK so that website and those parts are out of the picture. :/

Thanks anyways

Here's a £400 build from the UK section of that website.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor (£89.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Motherboard: ASRock B75 PRO3-M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£55.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£29.76 @ Scan.co.uk)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£52.98 @ Ebuyer)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card (£76.99 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case (£50.13 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£35.99 @ Novatech)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-222BB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer (£11.96 @ Scan.co.uk)
Total: £403.79
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

 

[Moggaftw11]

Here's a £400 build from the UK section of that website.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor (£89.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Motherboard: ASRock B75 PRO3-M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£55.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£29.76 @ Scan.co.uk)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£52.98 @ Ebuyer)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card (£76.99 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case (£50.13 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£35.99 @ Novatech)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-222BB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer (£11.96 @ Scan.co.uk)
Total: £403.79
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

Hi, thanos for the reply. I already have a DVD drive and the prices for the parts I picked are wayyy cheaper on ebuyer. :/

On ebuyer, I can get the parts I listed and a GTX 550 Ti for £362.

 

[Moggaftw11]

Most importantly, pick a quality PSU instead of that Cooler Master GX Lite.

What's wrong with the PSU I have chosen?


I don't want to go overkill considering I'm only playing Sims 3 and a bit of GTA IV...
Currently playing on a laptop with a Intel Core 2duo T6600, 4GB RAM and a nVidia G210M 512mb. I play GTA with low to medium settings and get about 15-30 fps.

 

[Sakkura]

Hi, thanos for the reply. I already have a DVD drive and the prices for the parts I picked are wayyy cheaper on ebuyer. :/

On ebuyer, I can get the parts I listed and a GTX 550 Ti for £362.

Yeah it's just that those parts are quite a bit worse. You said you could spend up to an absolute maximum of £450, so I put together a £400 build that would serve you really well. Even better when you subtract that tenner for the DVD drive.

What's wrong with the PSU I have chosen?


I don't want to go overkill considering I'm only playing Sims 3 and a bit of GTA IV...
Currently playing on a laptop with a Intel Core 2duo T6600, 4GB RAM and a nVidia G210M 512mb. I play GTA with low to medium settings and get about 15-30 fps.

Some Cooler Master PSUs, especially cheap ones like the GX Lites, are poor quality. They can potentially damage your components or cause them to misbehave. It's risky to skimp on the PSU.

 

[Moggaftw11]

Yeah it's just that those parts are quite a bit worse. You said you could spend up to an absolute maximum of £450, so I put together a £400 build that would serve you really well. Even better when you subtract that tenner for the DVD drive.


Some Cooler Master PSUs, especially cheap ones like the GX Lites, are poor quality. They can potentially damage your components or cause them to misbehave. It's risky to skimp on the PSU.

Yeah, my budget has been cut down to roughly the £380 mark.

Ah, well considering this is my first build I don't need anything über insane nor expensive. Just something that'll run GTA Iv and Sims 3 with decent settings and decent frame rate.

 

[Sakkura]

Alright. Well, I think you'd still get more bang for the buck with a modified version of my build. Ditching the DVD drive and going for a cheaper case gets it close, and then cutting the amount of RAM or hard drive capacity in half can do the rest.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor (£89.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Motherboard: ASRock B75 PRO3-M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£55.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£29.76 @ Scan.co.uk)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£41.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card (£76.99 @ Amazon UK)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (White) ATX Mid Tower Case (£35.05 @ Scan.co.uk)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£35.99 @ Novatech)
Total: £365.75
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

 

[Moggaftw11]

Alright. Well, I think you'd still get more bang for the buck with a modified version of my build. Ditching the DVD drive and going for a cheaper case gets it close, and then cutting the amount of RAM or hard drive capacity in half can do the rest.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor (£89.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Motherboard: ASRock B75 PRO3-M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£55.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£29.76 @ Scan.co.uk)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£41.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card (£76.99 @ Amazon UK)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (White) ATX Mid Tower Case (£35.05 @ Scan.co.uk)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£35.99 @ Novatech)
Total: £365.75
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

Hi please can you tell me what exactly is wrong with the parts I have chosen?

Also, I have changed the PSU to an OCZ 500W CoreXStream PSU. Is that any good?

 

[CustomPc]

i can get you a better pc for 450 that can probably run BF3 no AA on high 1080P
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks


CPU: Intel Pentium G860 3.0GHz Dual-Core Processor ($68.99 @ Mac Mall)
Motherboard: ASRock H61M-DGS Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($209.98 @ NCIX US)
Case: Rosewill REDBONE ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec 450W ATX12V Power Supply ($35.83 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $506.75
here are the specs

 

[Sakkura]

Hi please can you tell me what exactly is wrong with the parts I have chosen?

Also, I have changed the PSU to an OCZ 500W CoreXStream PSU. Is that any good?

Nothing's really wrong with the components, it's just that you could get better performance for your money. The CPU you've got is an older one in AMDs lineup, and graphics cards like the GTX 550 Ti are also from previous generations. I'd generally lean towards an Intel CPU and an AMD graphics card for a budget gaming system, it tends to get you the most performance for your money.

I did upgrade the case a little bit compared to the Cooler Master Elite 430, but that's not a necessity. A better case is nice to have but not essential.

As for the OCZ CoreXStream PSU, it's a new budget PSU from OCZ, who have a somewhat mixed record with cheaper PSUs. It may be good or it may not be good; I can't find any (reliable) reviews, so it's a bit of a gamble. Even if you stick to a particular retailer it should be possible to find something reliable - anything from Antec, Corsair, Seasonic, XFX with at least 450W should do.

 

[Moggaftw11]

i can get you a better pc for 450 that can probably run BF3 no AA on high 1080P
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks


CPU: Intel Pentium G860 3.0GHz Dual-Core Processor ($68.99 @ Mac Mall)
Motherboard: ASRock H61M-DGS Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($209.98 @ NCIX US)
Case: Rosewill REDBONE ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec 450W ATX12V Power Supply ($35.83 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $506.75
here are the specs

As nice as the rig sounds, it's over my budget which has been cut down to about £380. :/ Thanks anyways.

 

[Moggaftw11]

Nothing's really wrong with the components, it's just that you could get better performance for your money. The CPU you've got is an older one in AMDs lineup, and graphics cards like the GTX 550 Ti are also from previous generations. I'd generally lean towards an Intel CPU and an AMD graphics card for a budget gaming system, it tends to get you the most performance for your money.

I did upgrade the case a little bit compared to the Cooler Master Elite 430, but that's not a necessity. A better case is nice to have but not essential.

As for the OCZ CoreXStream PSU, it's a new budget PSU from OCZ, who have a somewhat mixed record with cheaper PSUs. It may be good or it may not be good; I can't find any (reliable) reviews, so it's a bit of a gamble. Even if you stick to a particular retailer it should be possible to find something reliable - anything from Antec, Corsair, Seasonic, XFX with at least 450W should do.

Yeah. :/

I chose the CPU because of the benchmarks with it for gaming. It's still one of the best AMD CPU's to date and I've been told they can overclock like hell! :L

I chose the GTX 550 Ti because I've seen videos of it running GTA IV on high settings paired with the AMD Phenom II x4 965 BE. Same with Sims.

I'll take a look at the PSU brands you've suggested mate.

 

[Moggaftw11]

Nothing's really wrong with the components, it's just that you could get better performance for your money. The CPU you've got is an older one in AMDs lineup, and graphics cards like the GTX 550 Ti are also from previous generations. I'd generally lean towards an Intel CPU and an AMD graphics card for a budget gaming system, it tends to get you the most performance for your money.

I did upgrade the case a little bit compared to the Cooler Master Elite 430, but that's not a necessity. A better case is nice to have but not essential.

As for the OCZ CoreXStream PSU, it's a new budget PSU from OCZ, who have a somewhat mixed record with cheaper PSUs. It may be good or it may not be good; I can't find any (reliable) reviews, so it's a bit of a gamble. Even if you stick to a particular retailer it should be possible to find something reliable - anything from Antec, Corsair, Seasonic, XFX with at least 450W should do.

Well, I've found these PSU's on ebuyer and I'd prefer to stick to that site if possible.

Antec VP450P 450W PSU
http://www.ebuyer.com/245675-antec-450w-psu-120mm-fan-vp450-4x-sata-1x-pci-e-0761345-06451-4

Corsair 430W V2 CX Series PSU
http://www.ebuyer.com/271798-corsair-430w-v2-cx-series-psu-cp-9020046-uk

Which one is the best and which one would you recommend for an AMD Phenom II x4 965 BE and GTX 550 Ti?

 

[Sakkura]

Those two PSUs are a very close match. The Antec is rated for slightly more power and slightly more amps on the 12V rail, while the Corsair has sleeved cabling and perhaps slightly better build quality. Either would be fine. Just be aware that there's little room for upgrading the graphics card later with those PSUs. Especially with a somewhat power-hungry overclocked CPU (relative to the Intel CPUs in that price range).

 

[Moggaftw11]

Those two PSUs are a very close match. The Antec is rated for slightly more power and slightly more amps on the 12V rail, while the Corsair has sleeved cabling and perhaps slightly better build quality. Either would be fine. Just be aware that there's little room for upgrading the graphics card later with those PSUs. Especially with a somewhat power-hungry overclocked CPU (relative to the Intel CPUs in that price range).

Thanks for the help. Much appreciated.

I'll be getting the Antec PSU with the AMD Phenom II X4 965 BE, 4 GB RAM, 500GB Hard Drive and GTX 550 Ti all going into a Coolermaster Elite 430.

With the Antec PSU, could I run a GTX 460, HD 6850 or even a HD 6870 with the 965 BE at stock clocks?

 

[Sakkura]

Not the GTX 460 or HD 6870, since they require two 6-pin PCIe power connectors. The 6850 should be alright, it only requires one 6-pin connector. (a few have been released with an extra power connector, so you'd have to watch out for that)

However, there are already more power-efficient options around than those three. The HD 7850 outperforms them all and uses about as much power as the 6850, relying on a single 6-pin power connector too. AMD will launch their next generation of cards soon, which should offer even more performance with the same power draw.

 

[Moggaftw11]

Not the GTX 460 or HD 6870, since they require two 6-pin PCIe power connectors. The 6850 should be alright, it only requires one 6-pin connector. (a few have been released with an extra power connector, so you'd have to watch out for that)

However, there are already more power-efficient options around than those three. The HD 7850 outperforms them all and uses about as much power as the 6850, relying on a single 6-pin power connector too. AMD will launch their next generation of cards soon, which should offer even more performance with the same power draw.

Yey! lol ^.^

So with a HD 7850, I will have a decent rig?

 

[Sakkura]

Definitely. The HD 7850 would run most games at high/ultra settings at 1080p with good framerates.

 

[Moggaftw11]

Definitely. The HD 7850 would run most games at high/ultra settings at 1080p with good framerates.

Great! ^.^ Thank you so much for the help Sakkura.

One last question; can the HD 7850 run on the 450W Antec PSU with the 95BE and 4GB ram?

 

[Sakkura]

Yeah that'll work. Technically there's some room for overclocking too, but you might want to go easy on the PSU instead.