ninjabubbles3
Active Member
Gaming Builds $300 through $1100
Hey guys, I decided to make a new guide out of this, as the old one is very old and outdated.
Please note that these builds are for gaming builds, and I would recommend different parts for workstation or general use builds.
I will leave the case and the OS out of the budget, as those can change according to user's preferences.
Also note that some components will be the same between systems, and that prices will have at most $20 of difference.
Let's get on with it then!
$300 dollar build:
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/HcRrWZ
CPU-AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor-$64.99
Motherboard-MSI AM1 Mini ITX AM1 Motherboard-$29.99
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.99
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$54.99
Power Supply-Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply-$59.99
Starting off our first build, we have the AMD Athlon 5350 APU. An APU, or Advanced Processing Unit, is a CPU with a built-in graphics card. Of course its not as good as a dedicated one, but its fine for budget builds. Luckily, it is a quad-core, as most games nowadays can utilize four or more cores. 8 GBs of speedy DDR3 2133 MHz allows the APU to run faster, as an APU uses system memory to run its graphics. WD Blue drives are great budget drives, with 1 TB of storage capacity. A Corsair CX430M covers the PSU.Corsair makes good, reliable PSUs , and the CX series is the standard go-to for most builds. Additionally, a miniITX motherboard allows for super small cases perfect for small, out of the way builds. This motherboard has the socket AM1.
$400 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/HVL8XL
CPU-AMD A10-6800K 4.1GHz Quad-Core Processor-$129.99
Motherboard-Gigabyte GA-G1.Sniper A88X ATX FM2+ Motherboard-$96.99
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.99
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$54.99
Power Supply-Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply-$49.99
This build also features an APU. However, this one is almoat twice as fast, with also better built-in graphics. We kept the speedy ram and a 1 TB drive as well. However, this CPU has a different socket than the previous one, the FM2/FM2+ socket. There is also a higher wattage PSU for the option of adding a dedicated graphics card,such as a GTX 750 TI or R9 270X
$500 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/yKRsP6
CPU-AMD Athlon X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor-$73.88
Motherboard-Gigabyte GA-F2A88XM-D3H Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard-$69.95
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.98
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$56.85
Video Card-Asus Radeon R7 260X 2GB DirectCU II Video Card-$118.66
Power Supply-Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply-$54.99
This build is still on the FM2+ socket, but the CPU is not an APU. It only contains a CPU. For this reason we add an R7 260X. This is a great budget graphics card, coming in under $150 as well. The CPU does have an unlocked multiplier, and with a nice cooler, you should be able to OC this CPU up to at least 4.3.
$500 build (alternate)
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2y7Y8d
CPU-Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor-$64.98
Motherboard-Gigabyte GA-Z97-D3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard-$114.99
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$78.98
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$56.85
Video Card-Asus Radeon R7 260X 2GB DirectCU II Video Card-$118.66
Power Supply-Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply-$54.99
This is the second build i would recommend. It is a dual core, so it is not as good as a quad core, but what makes this little CPU shine is that it is easily overclockable. Also, it is very easy to upgrade to a better CPU later on, such as an i5 or i7 on the LGA 1150 socket. The R9 260X is a great budget graphics card, able to play most games at medium settings. The same 1 TB drive and PSU round off the selections. I did add a Z97 chipset motherboard from Gigabyte for better overclocking results, but if you are not interested in that, but you want the upgradability, an H97 board is good too.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/pentium-g3258-overclocking-performance,3849.html
$600 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vzC7ZL
CPU-AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor-$109.99
Motherboard-Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard-$124.99
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.99
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$54.99
Video Card-MSI Radeon R9 270X 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card-$179.99
Power Supply-Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply-$59.99
Now we switch to the AM3+ socket. This CPU has 6 cores, clocked at 3.5 Ghz each, along with 990FX motherboard. Allows us to overclock pretty well. For the grsphics side of things , we add a R9 270X. All together, this build should be able to run most games at medium to high settings.
$700 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/QP6RMp
CPU-AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor-$169.99
Motherboard-ASRock 970 EXTREME4 ATX AM3+ Motherboard-$94.49
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.99
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$52.99
Video Card-Asus Radeon R9 280X 3GB DirectCU II Video Card-$249.99
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply-$74.99
Still using the AM3+ socket, we now move to the FX 8350. With 8 cores, clocked at 4 GHz each, this is quite a processor. It does have a 970 board, so it is not as good for overclocking as the previous build. For graphics, we have the R9 280X. This card should max out most any game, except for some like Battlefield. To accommodate a more powerful card, we also have to up the voltage on the PSU. We now use a Corsair CX600M.
$800 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/FC94GX
CPU-Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard-MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card-Asus Radeon R9 280X 3GB DirectCU II Video Card
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
Finally, an Intel build. AMD pretty much has the budget side of things locked up, but the truth is that the best AMD processors only compare to around an i5
$900 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/N77cmG
CPU-Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard-MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card-MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card Buy
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
Its a tight fit, but with another $100, we can add a GTX 970, an amazing card. It'll max out pretty much any game, including hardware intensive games like Metro: Last Light, or Arma 3
$1000 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vV8WP6
CPU-Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard-MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory
Storage-Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card-MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
Same as the above build, but allows us to add an 240 GB SSD. This should be enough storage for OS and games. No difference performance-wise, but you will notice a huge difference in startup times
$1100
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/NxvzWZ
CPU-Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard-MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory
Storage-Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card-MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
Yay, an i7! The advantage of this over an i5, is that it has hyper threading. This allows it to put two threads in one core, making it effectively an 8 core. Great for stuff like rendering, and editing too. Multitasking is a breeze.
Hey guys, I decided to make a new guide out of this, as the old one is very old and outdated.
Please note that these builds are for gaming builds, and I would recommend different parts for workstation or general use builds.
I will leave the case and the OS out of the budget, as those can change according to user's preferences.
Also note that some components will be the same between systems, and that prices will have at most $20 of difference.
Let's get on with it then!
$300 dollar build:
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/HcRrWZ
CPU-AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor-$64.99
Motherboard-MSI AM1 Mini ITX AM1 Motherboard-$29.99
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.99
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$54.99
Power Supply-Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply-$59.99
Starting off our first build, we have the AMD Athlon 5350 APU. An APU, or Advanced Processing Unit, is a CPU with a built-in graphics card. Of course its not as good as a dedicated one, but its fine for budget builds. Luckily, it is a quad-core, as most games nowadays can utilize four or more cores. 8 GBs of speedy DDR3 2133 MHz allows the APU to run faster, as an APU uses system memory to run its graphics. WD Blue drives are great budget drives, with 1 TB of storage capacity. A Corsair CX430M covers the PSU.Corsair makes good, reliable PSUs , and the CX series is the standard go-to for most builds. Additionally, a miniITX motherboard allows for super small cases perfect for small, out of the way builds. This motherboard has the socket AM1.
$400 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/HVL8XL
CPU-AMD A10-6800K 4.1GHz Quad-Core Processor-$129.99
Motherboard-Gigabyte GA-G1.Sniper A88X ATX FM2+ Motherboard-$96.99
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.99
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$54.99
Power Supply-Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply-$49.99
This build also features an APU. However, this one is almoat twice as fast, with also better built-in graphics. We kept the speedy ram and a 1 TB drive as well. However, this CPU has a different socket than the previous one, the FM2/FM2+ socket. There is also a higher wattage PSU for the option of adding a dedicated graphics card,such as a GTX 750 TI or R9 270X
$500 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/yKRsP6
CPU-AMD Athlon X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor-$73.88
Motherboard-Gigabyte GA-F2A88XM-D3H Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard-$69.95
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.98
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$56.85
Video Card-Asus Radeon R7 260X 2GB DirectCU II Video Card-$118.66
Power Supply-Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply-$54.99
This build is still on the FM2+ socket, but the CPU is not an APU. It only contains a CPU. For this reason we add an R7 260X. This is a great budget graphics card, coming in under $150 as well. The CPU does have an unlocked multiplier, and with a nice cooler, you should be able to OC this CPU up to at least 4.3.
$500 build (alternate)
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2y7Y8d
CPU-Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor-$64.98
Motherboard-Gigabyte GA-Z97-D3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard-$114.99
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$78.98
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$56.85
Video Card-Asus Radeon R7 260X 2GB DirectCU II Video Card-$118.66
Power Supply-Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply-$54.99
This is the second build i would recommend. It is a dual core, so it is not as good as a quad core, but what makes this little CPU shine is that it is easily overclockable. Also, it is very easy to upgrade to a better CPU later on, such as an i5 or i7 on the LGA 1150 socket. The R9 260X is a great budget graphics card, able to play most games at medium settings. The same 1 TB drive and PSU round off the selections. I did add a Z97 chipset motherboard from Gigabyte for better overclocking results, but if you are not interested in that, but you want the upgradability, an H97 board is good too.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/pentium-g3258-overclocking-performance,3849.html
$600 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vzC7ZL
CPU-AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor-$109.99
Motherboard-Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard-$124.99
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.99
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$54.99
Video Card-MSI Radeon R9 270X 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card-$179.99
Power Supply-Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply-$59.99
Now we switch to the AM3+ socket. This CPU has 6 cores, clocked at 3.5 Ghz each, along with 990FX motherboard. Allows us to overclock pretty well. For the grsphics side of things , we add a R9 270X. All together, this build should be able to run most games at medium to high settings.
$700 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/QP6RMp
CPU-AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor-$169.99
Motherboard-ASRock 970 EXTREME4 ATX AM3+ Motherboard-$94.49
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory-$79.99
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive-$52.99
Video Card-Asus Radeon R9 280X 3GB DirectCU II Video Card-$249.99
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply-$74.99
Still using the AM3+ socket, we now move to the FX 8350. With 8 cores, clocked at 4 GHz each, this is quite a processor. It does have a 970 board, so it is not as good for overclocking as the previous build. For graphics, we have the R9 280X. This card should max out most any game, except for some like Battlefield. To accommodate a more powerful card, we also have to up the voltage on the PSU. We now use a Corsair CX600M.
$800 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/FC94GX
CPU-Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard-MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card-Asus Radeon R9 280X 3GB DirectCU II Video Card
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
Finally, an Intel build. AMD pretty much has the budget side of things locked up, but the truth is that the best AMD processors only compare to around an i5
$900 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/N77cmG
CPU-Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard-MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card-MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card Buy
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
Its a tight fit, but with another $100, we can add a GTX 970, an amazing card. It'll max out pretty much any game, including hardware intensive games like Metro: Last Light, or Arma 3
$1000 build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vV8WP6
CPU-Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard-MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory
Storage-Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card-MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
Same as the above build, but allows us to add an 240 GB SSD. This should be enough storage for OS and games. No difference performance-wise, but you will notice a huge difference in startup times
$1100
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/NxvzWZ
CPU-Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard-MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory-G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory
Storage-Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage-Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card-MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card
Power Supply-Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
Yay, an i7! The advantage of this over an i5, is that it has hyper threading. This allows it to put two threads in one core, making it effectively an 8 core. Great for stuff like rendering, and editing too. Multitasking is a breeze.
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