Want to build a powerhouse gaming PC on a budget

[wishbone346]

So I've been looking everywhere for help with this. I love PC gaming since I started with my current system, however, that current system is honestly a piece of trash. I bought it years ago at Best Buy and have since only done one upgrade to the graphic card which has allowed me to play games like Skyrim at pretty high settings. Of course it's still really old, and with the next gen consoles now coming into their own I need something new to keep up (besides she's probably about 5 years old or more by now and needs to be put to rest).

Anyway I'm not particularly PC savvy so overclocking is out of the question since I have no clue where to being. I mean I'm giving building the thing a shot for crying out loud, what more do you people want from me?!

My budget is about $1200 (I can be flexible on this a little, but the closer to this the better, and if I can come in under I'd be elated). I don't need a monitor as I'll be using my 1080p tv for that. However, I will need a mouse and keyboard. I also need an operating system. A recommended DVD drive would probably also be worth having both to install the operating system and because I'm one of those guys who's stuck in his childhood and still likes to watch DVDs and burn CDs.

My goal is a PC capable of surpassing the current gen consoles (Xbox One and PS4) or at least giving them a run for their money. I have no clue if that's possible on my budget, but a guy can dream can't he? Anyway any help would be much appreciated.

 

[helpstar]

you can put your current HDD into the new one as storage device, additional to the new SSD

something like this:
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/HDFWwP

 

[Archgaull]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($215.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 PRO3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($85.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card ($329.00 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT Phantom 530 (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($103.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (32/64-bit) ($102.02 @ Amazon)
Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($29.95 @ Amazon)
Total: $1189.89
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-24 07:04 EST-0500

 

[Dsquik]

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ZztxP6
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ZztxP6/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($163.95 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H80i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver 3.5g Thermal Paste ($6.75 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus M5A99X EVO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($92.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($127.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: A-Data Premier Pro SP600 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($87.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 4GB Dual-X Video Card ($177.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master Storm Enforcer ATX Mid Tower Case ($84.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Micro Center)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.79 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DGX 24-bit 96 KHz Sound Card ($27.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-N15 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($24.99 @ Micro Center)
Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 69.7 CFM 120mm Fan ($5.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 69.7 CFM 120mm Fan ($5.99 @ NCIX US)
Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($28.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $1160.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

This PC should be able to surpass the next gen consoles and game pretty well, all under your budget.

 

[helpstar]

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ZztxP6
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ZztxP6/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($163.95 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H80i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver 3.5g Thermal Paste ($6.75 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus M5A99X EVO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($92.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($127.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: A-Data Premier Pro SP600 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($87.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 4GB Dual-X Video Card ($177.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master Storm Enforcer ATX Mid Tower Case ($84.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Micro Center)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.79 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DGX 24-bit 96 KHz Sound Card ($27.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-N15 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($24.99 @ Micro Center)
Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 69.7 CFM 120mm Fan ($5.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 69.7 CFM 120mm Fan ($5.99 @ NCIX US)
Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($28.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $1160.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

This PC should be able to surpass the next gen consoles and game pretty well, all under your budget.

A R9 270X is not near the next gen performance level.

little review of SSDs recommended in this thread (850EVO is nearly identical with the 840EVO):
http://www.anandtech.com/show/8180/adata-sp610-ssd-256gb-512gb-review