500 dollars gaming pc. Need help

[sitbar]

So, my friend needs a 500 dollars pc. this is what I came up with http://pcpartpicker.com/p/mbPn
Can someone tell me if this is a good build or if there is anything else I can do to get more performance but no going alot over 500?

 

[ckholt83]

Let me see what I can do here:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H77M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($33.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 650 Ti 1GB Video Card ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Rosewill CHALLENGER ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $512.92
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

Improvements pretty much across the board, and $0.23 cheaper to boot.

 

[sitbar]

Oh wow! 2 questions, what is the difference with the asus 650 and the evga one? And this guy told me that using the fx8 core CPU from amd would be better than the dual core one that I choose. Oh, and one more question. Could you give me some rough estimate about how well I'll be able to play bf3 and y what settings. Thanks!

 

[ckholt83]

The difference is the EVGA I picked out is a 650 Ti and the ASUS you have there is a vanilla 650. The Ti performs significantly better, it's a completely different chip.

An AMD FX CPU would be better for productivity and multithread applications, and the i3 is better for gaming at that price point. It all depends on the workload, what is your friend going to be using his machine for primarily? I assume gaming since you are asking about BF3 benchmarks.

And to answer that question, take a look at the 650 Ti review BF3 benchmarks here: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-650-ti-benchmark-gk106,3318-6.html

If your friend is willing to spend another $50, this 7870 is a killer deal at $185 and would give a hefty performance bump over the 650 Ti: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102983&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

 

[sitbar]

The heaviest game he's gonna be playing is bf3. So yea, he should be happy XD The tests were on a 1080p screen. But my friend is gonna be playing on a 720p one. So based on the results, would he be able to play it on ultra on 720p?

 

[ckholt83]

Playing at a lower resolution would allow you to crank up some of the detail settings, but I'm not sure if it would be enough for Ultra. You could go looking for some more benchmarks at that particular resolution, I'm sure they're out there somewhere.