Rate my potential gaming PC build?

[jason1297]

CPU: AMD FX 8350 (not overclocking so stock cooler)
GPU: MSI geForce GTX980 4gb
RAM: 8gb (2x4gb) crucial ballistix 1600mhz CL9
PSU: Fortron raider 650W

I have a few questions:
1) Will this be good to play games like GTA 5 and Skyrim?
2) To what extent would this PC be future-proofed?
3) Can anyone recommend a motherboard for this build (and maybe a different PSU)?
4)" " case for this build?
5) How much do you think it will cost to buy these components for a build in June/July 2016 (buying from the UK)?
6) Would this be a hard build (first build), and where do I stand if any parts break during the build?

 

[jason1297]

I forgot the hard drive: WD caviar blue 1TB

 

[rohitbaran]

Err, why not an SSD? As for the rest, I would say bump the RAM to at least 12 GB.
Yeah, it should play the games you mentioned with max settings at 1080p.
GTX 980 is a powerful card for now, but if DirectX12 results are not favorable, then it will be a negative for this card. Could go with AMD Fury instead.
Not sure about motherboard.
Antec 300 is a decent case
Can't say how much it will cost
No, nothing hard in this build. If you want to have an easy buld, just stick with tower cases and don't go into mni itx.

 

[lodders]

12 years ago, Intel were producing processors which ran at maximum possible clock speed, 3Ghz at the time, and used lots of power, and produced lots of heat. AMD produced more efficient CPUs which could do the same job at only 2Ghz. If you knew this, you would always buy AMD because you would have less problems with cooling and far more chance to overclock.
8 years ago, Intel caught up with AMD
AMD's last big processor updates have been failures.
Now an Intel 2 core CPU has almost the power of an AMD 4 core. AMD are forced to run their 4 core processors at full speed and aim for the budget market.
Therefore Intel is the CPU to buy.
Unfortunately AMD have failed so hard in recent CPU development that Intel now have no real competition.
Therefore a new Intel i5 is only a bit more powerful than an 5 year old i5, and the price has stayed level. Everything else, eg memory, GPU, SSD etc have got much faster and a lot cheaper over the last 5 years. Imagine what CPU we would have if Intel and AMD were competing as equals....

 

[lodders]

As for the other questions:-
EVGA supernova power supply.
Computer building is not particularly hard, but I suggest you buy all your parts from the same supplier, e.g. Amazon, Ebuyer etc. This will make it easier if something goes wrong.

GTX980 is very powerful, but ridiculously expensive. 970 or 960 are much better value for money...

 

[jason1297]

Err, why not an SSD? As for the rest, I would say bump the RAM to at least 12 GB.
Yeah, it should play the games you mentioned with max settings at 1080p.
GTX 980 is a powerful card for now, but if DirectX12 results are not favorable, then it will be a negative for this card. Could go with AMD Fury instead.
Not sure about motherboard.
Antec 300 is a decent case
Can't say how much it will cost
No, nothing hard in this build. If you want to have an easy buld, just stick with tower cases and don't go into mni itx.

The price puts me off.
And do I just add another 4gb stick for 12gb? Or should I just go to 16 and run 2 4gb pairs in dual channel?

 

[rohitbaran]

Err, why not an SSD? As for the rest, I would say bump the RAM to at least 12 GB.
Yeah, it should play the games you mentioned with max settings at 1080p.
GTX 980 is a powerful card for now, but if DirectX12 results are not favorable, then it will be a negative for this card. Could go with AMD Fury instead.
Not sure about motherboard.
Antec 300 is a decent case
Can't say how much it will cost
No, nothing hard in this build. If you want to have an easy buld, just stick with tower cases and don't go into mni itx.

The price puts me off.
And do I just add another 4gb stick for 12gb? Or should I just go to 16 and run 2 4gb pairs in dual channel?

The price of SSD (you can get 480 GB for $120 or so, if you find a deal)? Or AMD fury? Fury is $499 at the moment, which is only $30 more than that of 980. Well, I said 12 GB since that was a close upgrade to 8GB. But 16 GB is what I will recommend. As for the memory configuration, it is a dual channel memory controller. So 2x8 is the way to go, rather than 4x4

 

[jason1297]

I really don't know that much about PC's
So which cpu, graphics card, motherboard and PSU are best?
Maximum budget is £750-£800

 

[jason1297]

What if I got:
I5 4690k (£175)
Msi gtx 970 (£265)
Msi z97 mobo (£110)
Evga supernova 650W g1 modular (£65)
Hyper X fury 2x8gb 1866mhz cl10 (£50)
Wd caviar blue 1tb (£40)

So I got £50-100 for an aftermarket cooler, case and a pci express wifi adapter.
Help? (I don't plan on overclocking, so I guess I can get a cheap cooler/wifi adapter, and a case for ~£50?)

 

[lodders]

What if I got:
I5 4690k (£175)
Msi gtx 970 (£265)
Msi z97 mobo (£110)
Evga supernova 650W g1 modular (£65)
Hyper X fury 2x8gb 1866mhz cl10 (£50)
Wd caviar blue 1tb (£40)

So I got £50-100 for an aftermarket cooler, case and a pci express wifi adapter.
Help? (I don't plan on overclocking, so I guess I can get a cheap cooler/wifi adapter, and a case for ~£50?)

Now you have a really good looking build....similar to my PC actually.
just add £30 for a case, £25 for a cooler, and not much for a wifi adapter
If you want to save money, Asus H81 gamer motherboard would probably suit you OK - go on their websites and check the specs...
A few quid extra gets you 2Tb HDD instead of 1Tb


One last suggestion for you to consider
New generation skylake processor
i5 6600k and z170 motherboard. DDR4 RAM.
Probably 10% faster than the 4690k build, and a bit more future proof, but it costs more money.....

 

[rohitbaran]

In your budget, the 970 is a good GPU option. I wouldn't mind going to R9 390 instead though, if you want future proofing. More and more games require excess VRAM and that 8GB is going to help I believe.

 

[jason1297]

Please can someone recommend a case/cooler/ wifi from experience?

Also, will the i5/GTX 970 have any problems with games like gta 5, skyrim etc? (And modding?)

 

[rohitbaran]

Like I said, GTX 970 will not have any problems at 1080p, for now. Can't say about the future. A good case is Antec 300, which I currently use. Another good one is CM 690 II, which I have also used. If you want to splurge more, Antec Nine hundred is a good case too.
As for cooler, do you want to go liquid cooling or air cooling? I have a Cooler Master Seidon 120v, which is cheap (for a liquid cooler) and keeps my i5 3450 cool enough.

 

[jason1297]

Like I said, GTX 970 will not have any problems at 1080p, for now. Can't say about the future. A good case is Antec 300, which I currently use. Another good one is CM 690 II, which I have also used. If you want to splurge more, Antec Nine hundred is a good case too.
As for cooler, do you want to go liquid cooling or air cooling? I have a Cooler Master Seidon 120v, which is cheap (for a liquid cooler) and keeps my i5 3450 cool enough.

Thanks, I'll look a those cases. And I'm thinking air cooler

 

[jason1297]

Any cheaper case options?

 

[rohitbaran]

Cheaper than that? Look for Rosewill Challenger:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153
Also, Corsair Carbide 200R
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139018

 

[lodders]

Please can someone recommend a case/cooler/ wifi from experience?

Also, will the i5/GTX 970 have any problems with games like gta 5, skyrim etc? (And modding?)

Aerocool QC 203 is a nice budget case - its on Amazon. Just check that the motherboard and GPU that you choose will fit OK

 

[rohitbaran]

Cooler: CRYORIG H7