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$400 Build Plan

634 views 23 replies 10 participants last post by  iinversion 
#1 ·
I'm building my sister a mid-range gaming PC with a few parts I have laying around. Her budget is $500. It will be for games like Skyrim and Battlefield.

I have a few parts, but the others can't total more than $400.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/KBRVyc

Case - Corsair 650D - $0
PSU - Corsair 750M - $0
Mobo - ASUS P8B75 - $0
Optical Drive - $0

Still need CPU, Ram, HDD, etc.

I know this isn't the best motherboard, but I don't know if it's worth keeping and getting a cpu for it or ditch it for a another cpu/mobo combo.
 
#2 ·
Is the budget $400 or $500? You state one and then the other. If you're anywhere near a Microcenter, I would grab a G3258 and a see if they have any open box deals on 1150 motherboards. At that budget, overclocking a G3258 to 4.5+ GHz is your best bet for performance. Anyway, this is what I picked out.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-3250 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor ($116.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (Purchased For $0.00)
Motherboard: Asus P8B75-V ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (Purchased For $0.00)
Memory: Mushkin Silverline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($52.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda ES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($46.89 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 270X 2GB PCS+ Video Card ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 650D ATX Mid Tower Case (Purchased For $0.00)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (Purchased For $0.00)
Total: $401.81
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-24 02:18 EDT-0400
 
#4 ·
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/PFn2nQ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/PFn2nQ/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3330 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($166.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (Purchased For $0.00)
Motherboard: Asus P8B75-V ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (Purchased For $0.00)
Memory: Team Elite 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($51.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.98 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 960 2GB Video Card ($199.98 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 650D ATX Mid Tower Case (Purchased For $0.00)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (Purchased For $0.00)
Total: $468.94
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-24 12:15 EDT-0400
 
#5 ·
I would definitely go with an i5 and GTX 960 if the budget is indeed $500.
 
#6 ·
Shilka should be here soon to tell you why not to buy a corsair cx series.

A good 450w would power that build
 
#8 ·
Or get a 8300/8310 + 970a-ud3p for $150-170 and a R290 and get better performance for cheaper than a i3/locked i5 + 960

AMD + better gpu vs Intel + cheaper gpu (AMD STILL COST LESS)






Both same gpu (i5 barely wins yet costs $100-150 more)


 
#9 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yuniver View Post

Shilka should be here soon to tell you why not to buy a corsair cx series.

A good 450w would power that build
Quote:
Originally Posted by iinversion View Post

Unfortunately he already bought it.
I would advise you to replace it as soon as you can.
thumb.gif
 
#10 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by CravinR1 View Post

Or get a 8300/8310 + 970a-ud3p for $150-170 and a R290 and get better performance for cheaper than a i3/locked i5 + 960

AMD + better gpu vs Intel + cheaper gpu (AMD STILL COST LESS)






Both same gpu (i5 barely wins yet costs $100-150 more)


Calling people fanboys and then you come into every thread and spam your gossip.

Did you read the OP? He already has a motherboard and several other parts that he is using.
 
#11 ·
Also the problem with the AMD+better gpu combo you listed; the R9 290 cost half of his budget which would mean skimping on other parts. I'd say for medium gaming, like Skyrim, 3Gb Vram is plenty unless you download all the extra texture packages.
 
#12 ·
Was just doing a comparison.

Any sub $900 budget I go AMD

A sub $100 fx8 (8300, 8310, 8320) + 970a-ud3p ($60-75) is cheaper than a i5 alone and the fx8 is cheaper than a i3 and performs just as well and allows for a better gpu (if you spend less on cpu + mb then a i5 alone)
 
#14 ·
The fact that he already has a proper board he can plop in a i5 in and the fact that Skyrim is involved means intel is the route to definitely go here. I'd take a pentium g3258 over any FX for it...

Case in point...

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2014/06/24/intel-pentium-g3258-review/5

A 4.8ghz FX isn't even getting the frames a stock clocked $70 pentium is on that game...

BF4 while also not ideal on a pentium is more then playable... so the fact that we are looking at atleast i3's and likely i5's here and the board is already purchased AMD is not a wise choice at this point
 
#15 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by SoloCamo View Post

The fact that he already has a proper board he can plop in a i5 in and the fact that Skyrim is involved means intel is the route to definitely go here. I'd take a pentium g3258 over any FX for it...

Case in point...

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2014/06/24/intel-pentium-g3258-review/5

A 4.8ghz FX isn't even getting the frames a stock clocked $70 pentium is on that game...

BF4 while also not ideal on a pentium is more then playable... so the fact that we are looking at atleast i3's and likely i5's here and the board is already purchased AMD is not a wise choice at this point
Exactly this, though I'd recommend an i5 (or even an i3) over the G3258, since there ARE games that absolutely NEED 4 cores to run properly.

Dragon Age Inquisition is a big one. It runs choppy as hell on a Phenom II x2, when we unlocked the chip to a x4 the choppiness went away, and even Bioware says it needs 4 cores minimum.

4 cores, (or 2 cores with HT) should be the absolute minimum nowadays.

Yes, the G3258 will play most games better than even an OCed FX, but if more games like DA come out, you're gonna practically NEED a quad core.

The G3258 is primarily supposed to be a workstation/web browser chip, right?
smile.gif
 
#16 ·
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3cwqgs

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V2 3.3GHz Quad-Core OEM/Tray Processor ($216.95 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus 76.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($25.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.98 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 280 3GB Dual-X Video Card ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $517.90
 
#17 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by ozlay View Post

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3cwqgs

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V2 3.3GHz Quad-Core OEM/Tray Processor ($216.95 @ SuperBiiz)

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus 76.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($25.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.98 @ NCIX US)

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 280 3GB Dual-X Video Card ($169.99 @ Newegg)

Total: $517.90
You're way over the $400 budget.
 
#18 ·
1. CPU- Used 3570k w/ stock heatsink: At most, $150

2. Memory- Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 @ Adorama: $56.99

3. Storage- Seagate ST1000DX001 1 TB/8 GB NAND Flash HHD @ Amazon: $79.00

4. GPU- SAPPHIRE DUAL-X 100365L Radeon R9 270 2GB (Open Box) @ NewEgg: $127.99
Note: Really, you should be getting a used high end R9 270 @ $100 (such as the MSI Gaming) and overclocking it to 270X levels, but included the above GPU for easy reference.

Grand Total, excluding taxes & shipping (if any): $413.98

This build has essentially no compromises in any area, includes one of the best gaming CPU's of the past 5 years, makes full use of all of the builder's existing parts, does not require any rebates, and allows for easy/inexpensive performance minded upgrades in the future.
 
#19 ·
A cursory glance at eBay showed no i5-3570K available for $150 or less, at least no buy it now listings. I guess if you can find someone on here selling it that would be your best bet. Microcenter has them for $170 if they're in stock.
 
#21 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by btupsx View Post

1. CPU- Used 3570k w/ stock heatsink: At most, $150

2. Memory- Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 @ Adorama: $56.99

3. Storage- Seagate ST1000DX001 1 TB/8 GB NAND Flash HHD @ Amazon: $79.00

4. GPU- SAPPHIRE DUAL-X 100365L Radeon R9 270 2GB (Open Box) @ NewEgg: $127.99
Note: Really, you should be getting a used high end R9 270 @ $100 (such as the MSI Gaming) and overclocking it to 270X levels, but included the above GPU for easy reference.

Grand Total, excluding taxes & shipping (if any): $413.98

This build has essentially no compromises in any area, includes one of the best gaming CPU's of the past 5 years, makes full use of all of the builder's existing parts, does not require any rebates, and allows for easy/inexpensive performance minded upgrades in the future.
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&ghostText=&_sacat=0&_nkw=3570k&LH_Complete=1&LH_Sold=1&rt=nc

Funny one or 2 at $160 most up to $200

Lets see a buy it now or a deal for under $150 "at most"
 
#22 ·
#23 ·
A good deal on an i5-3570K is the correct answer, just have to find one.
 
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