Budget Gaming/General Use Rig 5.1

[Fonnix]

Let me start out by saying I've never built a pc before, at least not from the ground up. I've changed the parts completely about 5 times hence the name but I think I've finally settled on what I think to be a good build. Now preferably I'd like the system to be as cheap as it can be, but I can work with around a $700 budget. If at all possible I'd like a system that can handle the system requirements for games coming out in the next 2 years. I would appreciate any advice or suggestions as to how to maximize my cost to performance ratio. All parts included on this build were found using NewEgg.

Here's what I have so far:

Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case $64.99
Antec NEO ECO 620W Continuous Power Supply $29.99
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 2 X 4 (8GB) @1600 $47.99
MSI Z77A-G41 $84.99
Intel Core i5-3470 $199.99
HIS IceQ H787Q2G2M Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB $199.99
Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM (HDD) $79.99

various other peripherals and OS ~$120.00
Total(Tax and shipping included): $967.12

 

[johnsonjohnson]

Hi. That build looks good. You can save money with an H77 motherboard. That PSU doesn't come with a power cord but you may already have one. I've compiled a modified build below but feel free to make changes as you'd like.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock H77M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($41.26 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1.5TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($77.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($199.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Antec Neo Eco 620W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $659.19
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-30 01:39 EST-0500)

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

 

[Outlander_04]

The antec Illusion is the original antec 300 with added front fans .

A better option is the 300 TWO which has much better cable management spaces behind the mb , and front USB 3 ports to connect to your motherboard .
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129180

If you like the blue fans then buy two and add them yourself . They are cheap enough

 

[Fonnix]

First of all thanks for the response. That price breakdown link is great, I'll definitely get some good use out of that. About the psu, I had no idea that it didn't come with a power cord but I think that its still a great unit for the price and the cord probably won't be much more. I do have a question about the mobo. I'm fairly interested in the idea of OC and from what I've read the h77 chipset doesn't really support it very well. Although at the same time I feel like I probably wouldn't see much of a performance increase gamewise since the processor is most likely already more powerful than is needed for the 7870. The case looks great for the money although I'm a little concerned about the dimensions. The 7870 that I plan on buying is enormous. I've read a number of reviews where people could not fit it into their cases. Aside from the fact that it performs as well or better than most of the other 7870 cards (info gotten off of benchmarks here on tom's) it is also $50 off at the moment which is why I wanted to get it in the first place.

So I guess my two questions are: Would my system benefit at all from OC the processor (in other words going with the z77 chipset), and do you think that the 7870 would still fit into the Corsair 200R ATX?

Again thanks for the help.

 

[johnsonjohnson]

The processor won't bottleneck your graphics card. Will your system benefit? Well I doubt overclocking will get you less performance let's just say. But how much (or little) more and whether it's worth the money over your budget is up to you. Also remember that you may need an aftermarket cooler if you are going to overclock. Which HD 7870 are you looking at? The Corsair 200R has "room for cards up to 430mm long (300mm with drive cage)" so I'm sure it should accommodate any card while the Antec Three Hundred Two supports graphics card length up to 12.5” (318mm). I suggest reading reviews to help you decide; here's one: http://techreport.com/review/23965/corsair-carbide-series-200r-vs-antec-three-hundred-two Another case around the same price point to consider: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233

 

[Avenged7x]

If your looking at overclocking - then you should be looking at the unlocked 3570k.

 

[Outlander_04]

The H77 can OC with unlocked processors . The have a model number ending with a K

The 200R seems to be a decent budget case

The Antec 300 two is a much classier item , but you do pay for the extra features


Antecs $50 case is the One gamer

 

[Fonnix]

I do think that I'll switch the case out for the 200R, seems like the best deal that I've seen so far. And with that I think that I ought to be set. Thanks for everyone's input I really appreciate it.

 

[johnsonjohnson]

You're welcome and good luck with the build.