~$1000 budget (give or take); shooting for solid, ugly performance. Help me maximize my dollars?
Hello to all the fine folks in r/buildapcforme! I'm hoping you can help me out here. I have built in the past but it has been a long time and I'm hoping to get the most bang for my budget here. I've been lurking here and on r/buildapc for a while and I'm finally in a position where I can actually pull a ~$1000(USD) trigger. I've made a stab at putting something together on PCPartPicker (listed after the questions) but I'm far from an expert and almost certainly am wasting money/losing performance somewhere. Also, I'd like to avoid the "Sweet! I've got $1000 worth of components here in front of me, time to assemble! Aaaaaand...I'm missing a $5 doohickey that will prevent me from even booting. :(" gotcha so if you could be very specific and thorough about everything I'll need (thermal paste? cables? $0.10 screws?) that would be greatly appreciated. Anyway, enough preamble, on to the questions!
What will you be doing with this PC? Be as specific as possible, and include specific games or programs you will be using.
Mostly gaming; Minecraft, Skyrim, Diablo 3, Civ5... I'm not really on the bleeding edge of gaming but I would like the option of being able to play some AAA titles at respectable settings if something catches my eye but "60fps on ultra ALL THE THINGS!" is not my goal (nor in my budget). Nothing else really taxing would be taking place on this build for the immediate future but I would like to have some room to grow/upgrade if possible, this thing will need to last me 2-3 years at least (barring lottery win, which I don't play, so...).
What is your maximum budget before rebates/shipping/taxes?
I've got a soft limit of $1000; I can go over that if compelling enough and capable, under-that builds would be considered. As much as I'm not looking for a BEAST, I'm not looking for an Extreme Budget Edition either.
When do you plan on building/buying the PC? Note: beyond a week or two from today means any build you receive will be out of date when you want to buy.
Within a week or so.
What, exactly, do you need included in the budget? (Tower/OS/monitor/keyboard/mouse/etc)
I need: tower, CPU, GPU, cooling (if necessary beyond stock), PSU, RAM, OS (Windows 8.1), bits-and-bobs.
Which country (and state/province) will you be purchasing the parts in? If you're in US, do you have access to a Microcenter location?
USA, Illinois to be slightly more specific. There is a Microcenter somewhat close to me but the savings/benefit would have to justify a ~200+ mile roundtrip and the loss of 5-6 hours of my non-abundant free time. However, my little sis and her husband live in the city where the Microcenter is so I could combine some family time and/or send her hubby to do the dirty work so it's definitely a possibility.
If reusing any parts (including monitor(s)/keyboard/mouse/etc), what parts will you be reusing? Brands and models are appreciated.
I have an SSD and several good HDs already, I have monitors (both DVI-capable and 1 HDMI-capable) and KB/mouse, I have several optical drives (that I probably won't use beyond OS install).
Will you be overclocking? If yes, are you interested in overclocking right away, or down the line? CPU and/or GPU?
I've thought about this quite a bit and am still on the fence. It would be a new thing to me (so potentially fun to learn while also being somewhat intimidating) but the cost of adding the additional cooling and whatnot has me leaning toward "No." If it's possible to leave the option open for the future without adding significant cost I would be interested.
Are there any specific features or items you want/need in the build? (ex: SSD, large amount of storage or a RAID setup, CUDA or OpenCL support, etc)
None that I can think of so far. I've got the SSD and a large amont of storage covered. :) I'm not a loyalist to either GPU type (yet!).
Do you have any specific case preferences (Size like ITX/microATX/mid-tower/full-tower, styles, colors, window or not, LED lighting, etc), or a particular color theme preference for the components?
I like lots of room so I'd prefer a mid- or full-tower case; at least some front-facing USB and audio ports would be nice; room for several 3.5" and at least 1 2.5" drives - if on nice "sleds" all the better but not absolutely required. Aesthetics are VERY low on my priority list except where form follows function (good cable management == better airflow, for instance). I don't care about windows or colors and I have absolutely no desire for purely-for-looks lighting or anything of that sort. I'm only slightly more concerned with noise levels, as long as it runs cool enough I don't really care if the fans are a bit on the loud side. Not to sound curmudgeonly, but the box will be mostly hidden and I feel the $$ could be put to better uses.
Do you need a copy of Windows 7 or 8.1 included in the budget? If you do need one included, do you have a preference for one or the other?
Yes, I'd like 8.1 and am open to suggestions about "Pro" vs. ... Not pro?
This will be wired to the internet and, as such, I have no need for WiFi.
Ok, so, with that out of the way, here's what my amateur self came up with on PCPartPicker, I'd like to stick with i5 and at least 8GB RAM but everything is open to change.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
| Type | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i5-4690 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor | $214.99 @ NCIX US |
| Motherboard | MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard | $129.00 @ Amazon |
| Memory | Corsair 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory | $75.99 @ NCIX US |
| Video Card | MSI Radeon R9 280 3GB TWIN FROZR Video Card | $199.99 @ Newegg |
| Case | Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case | $79.99 @ Micro Center |
| Power Supply | Rosewill Capstone 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply | $94.98 @ OutletPC |
| Operating System | Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) | $89.98 @ OutletPC |
| Total | ||
| Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available | $884.92 | |
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-05 13:41 EDT-0400 |
Posted Aug 5, 2014, 5:49 PM UTC
Alright I think I did well enough to meet your requirements. Your build was not bad at all but could be much better by using your budget to the max.
Explanation:
CPU: Went with the 4690. I was going to go with the overclockable version but to save money I went with this one. Still a great CPU and will get the job done for what you need to do.
Motherboard: Great mobo from MSI that has the Z97 chipset, meaning if you decide to upgrade to a Devils Canyon (4690k, 4790k, etc.) or the 5th generation Intel processors that can overclock, you can. Also goes with the color scheme.
CPU Cooler: Very standard budget cooler from Cooler Master in case you want to overclock in the future. Will get the job done for a low price.
Memory: Dual channel will be slightly better for the performance and will cost just a little more. Also goes with the color scheme.
GPU: The R9 280X will be able to run most of those games on ultra 60 FPS+. Great GPU from ASUS that's quiet while still being powerful. If you want a more in-depth review here's a link to one by AnandTech. Also goes with the color scheme.
Case: Awsome case by NZXT. Has great airflow and goes AMAZING with the color scheme. Although it has no 5.25 bays for your optical drives you can install the OS by flash drive. If that's a problem I can find another case.
PSU: Great value PSU by Rosewill. Plenty of wattage to spare and has 80+ Bronze efficiency.
OS: Standard Windows 8.1 OS. Here's a chart showing the differences between Pro and no pro. From what I can tell it's just minor stuff that has to do with security. More business oriented by the looks of it.
I know you said looks doesn't matter but with $1000 it's still possible while still having great functionality. Feedback is appreciated!
Build:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
First off: Thank you for the time you took to help me out here, I really like this build! The H440 has been on my list of contenders but I was kind of under the impression it was more expensive and/or hard to find in stock; the lack of 5.25 bay is not at all a deal breaker. I'm not opposed to things looking spiffy it's just not my main priority but I think you've done a great job at performance and eye candy. Thanks again!
A couple things:
Is there anything--ANYTHING--else I'll need to get in order to get these parts up and running? Do CPUs generally come with thermal paste or will I need to get some? I have plenty of SATA cables and I assume the PSU will come with all the power cables I'll need (perhaps I shouldn't assume, though). I just want to make sure that once I have all this on my dining room table I don't have a "D'oh!" moment and have to wait another week for some $2 part I forgot to get... (I'm a bit nervous, haha!)
Thanks again for your time and help! :)
No problem! And to answer your questions:
Here's an excellent video by Techquicke explaining what sleave bearing is. Basically it has to do with the fan bearing and from what I can tell it won't be too difficult to install. So I looked at the reviews for that PSU and I now I'm suggesting that you go for this PSU just because it has much more positive reviews for $10 more. It'll put you over budget but I hope that's not too big of an issue :D.
Well the Hyper 212 EVO comes with thermal paste so you should be fine on that. If it doesn't hurt to go over the budget by $7 then I'd recommend this one because I checked and it will have all the necessary power cables needed. Since it's your first build you might want to invest in an anti-static wristband like this one. It's to make sure you don't fry your components and it's super cheap, starting at less than $5 on Amazon. Everything else I'd highly recommend looking into yourself because those are the only things I can think of right now. Also I just realized that you said you had a bunch of hard drives. The PSU comes with 6 SATA cables so if you have a ton then you might want to consider getting more. If you need anymore help send me a PM!
I am interested in buying the i5-4690, but can you recommend me a mATX board to go with this CPU instead of this size and around the $50-80 range?
I'd go forthis one. It's almost $2 your budget but I hope that isn't a huge issue.