First time gaming build

[UCM2015]

Hello everyone,

i am currently planning an $800 build as my first gaming rig. it is AMD based and i have everything picked out minus the motherboard, their are so many options and i just need one for a good price. I will not be adding more than video card, i will once i figure out how to, overclock a bit. My parts list includes

FX 6300
Cooler Master 212 evo
asus optical drive
seagate 500gb 7200
thor v2 white edition
7850 2gb
corsair vengence 8gb 1600
seasonic 620w psu


i will add more hard drives later on as my paychecks come in, i am perfectly fine booting games and windows from a mechanical hard drive. Any help would be great appreciated ive done about 4 months of research and it is almost time to purchase.

 

[johnsonjohnson]

Hi. Here's an AMD build with a modular cabling PSU and a better GPU. Feel free to make changes as you'd like.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($46.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($209.99 @ Microcenter)
Case: Rosewill THOR V2-W ATX Full Tower Case ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $764.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-21 18:51 EST-0500)

And an Intel build just in case.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($149.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock H77M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($46.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($209.99 @ Microcenter)
Case: Rosewill THOR V2-W ATX Full Tower Case ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $734.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-21 18:51 EST-0500)

Here's a building guide with videos: http://techreport.com/review/23624/how-to-build-a-pc-the-tech-report-guide

 

[UCM2015]

Wow! Thank you for the reply! i went with the 7850 initially because everyone says it is a pretty decent mid range card but never looked into the new 6xx series, what kind of performance difference is their between the two?

 

[johnsonjohnson]

The performance is better especially since the price difference between it and the HD 7850 2GB is small. If you prefer AMD, you can get the HD 7870 for the same price and similar performance to the GTX 660. What's your monitor resolution and games that you play?

 

[UCM2015]

well when i get a monitor for this build (already have one on the home pc) it will be 1080p. Games that i play are BF3, metro 2033, GTAV when it comes out, Euro Truck and Train Simulator(super fun games) and really anything else that looks good. i really have no preference between amd or nvidia it is all still overwhelming just the number of combinations out there lol

 

[johnsonjohnson]

You're better off with either the HD 7870 or GTX 660 or even higher at that resolution with those games.

 

[UCM2015]

oh sorry! 1920x1080

 

[UCM2015]

thank you guys both for your help, i think ill go with the 660 now.

 

[UCM2015]

Best answer selected by UCM2015.

 

[johnsonjohnson]

You're welcome. Feel free to look at other GTX 660 at Newegg to see if you prefer a different card brand or cooler design.

 

[cball1311]

Unless you are really stuck on that case, I would put the money to areas of much more concern. You are on an $800 budget and if you want to get the most out of your rig, the case isn't going to increase FPS. Here is what I would go with.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock 970DE3/U3S3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($35.57 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($353.48 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Xion XON-570 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $794.98
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-21 19:46 EST-0500)

The 670 is an even better GPU. About a 14 point increase in average FPS over the 660. Since the 660 (in Skyrim) averages about 61 FPS, you will see drops on high/ultra settings at 60Hz. The 670 has an average FPS of 75 which means that you will see less drops in FPS that fall below 60FPS, if any at 1080p. Then, with OC'ing, you could get an even better average FPS. I would seriously consider getting a mid tower case and utilizing the cash on more appropriate parts, but hey, just my thoughts here.

EDIT: Quick to pull the trigger I guess.

 

[UCM2015]

thanks for the reply cball! yeah the reason i went with a full tower was because i was concerned about having enough room, i looked at the HAF 912 as a mid tower choice and i believe it is 49.99 on newegg with rebates. you are correct that this case is a huge chunk of the budget. i am open to suggestions on basically anything for this build, is it pretty room in a mid tower after everything is in?

 

[johnsonjohnson]

I thought your mind was set on that case since it's a matter of personal preference. If you're open to suggestions then you can get a better build with that money.

 

[UCM2015]

the first time i saw that case and the price i thought it was a pretty good buy and it has a lot of good reviews so i figured hey if i get a full tower it will have plenty of room for these components now and for possible future upgrades. i apologize for not being as clear right off the bat lol total noob i am. i do like the 660 or 670 idea and have you all had any experiences with the ASrock mobo? i hear a lot of DOA's happen.

 

[cball1311]

You will have enough room even with a mid tower. I have an Antec 300 midtower with two 560 ti's, 2 HDD, 2 SSD, a Corsair H80 liquid cooling and have no problems with space or air flow. Have my 560's OC'd to 1000MHz and barely crack 60 degrees celcius under full load.

 

[cball1311]

AsRock is coming around as one of the best motherboards for the money. They do have DOA's but so is the same for any component that you get. You win most of the time and lose a few times, that is just how it goes with components. I have seen some really expensive boards come up blank on many occasions.

 

[UCM2015]

they do seem to have pretty good customer service for those rare occasions. It looks like a pretty solid board and its great that it can handle an overclocked Piledriver. you have quite set up inside your case and i think ill have more than enough room for my planned build. which then i can spend more on important components rather than looks like you guys have stated before.

 

[johnsonjohnson]

I have an ASRock motherboard but I can't confirm whether their customer service is good or not and I hope I won't have to.

 

[johnsonjohnson]

You can also go with that ASUS motherboard I listed above. Antec, Cooler Master, Corsair, Fractal Design and NZXT make good cases that you can check out.

 

[UCM2015]

You can also go with that ASUS motherboard I listed above. Antec, Cooler Master, Corsair, Fractal Design and NZXT make good cases that you can check out.

the HAF 912 and nzxt phantom 410 both look pretty slick. and asus is a high quality brand and i checked out the that mobo as well, very nice!