Budget Gaming build advice

[Electric]

I had a GTX 550 TI for 2 years until recently.
Solid enough really.

An i5 would suite it just fine.
May want to look at an SSD to speed things up.

My main limitation was hdd speed.

 

[AfricanTech]

I had a GTX 550 TI for 2 years until recently.
Solid enough really.

An i5 would suite it just fine.
May want to look at an SSD to speed things up.

My main limitation was hdd speed.

I figured the GFX card should be ok.

Dont care too much about which RAM either as long it works in mobo (couple of years ago mobo's and RAM were very finicky).

So, any specific mobo / cpu / ram combo you'd recommend?

@ Chev, your recommendations look good except for the fact that it's AMD.

 

[Chevron]

I figured the GFX card should be ok.

Dont care too much about which RAM either as long it works in mobo (couple of years ago mobo's and RAM were very finicky).

So, any specific mobo / cpu / ram combo you'd recommend?

@ Chev, your recommendations look good except for the fact that it's AMD.

You do know all the consoles are AMD right? You do know most PC games are console ports right?

 

[Electric]

Let's not get into the AMD debate unless price is a concern.
AMD is known to be a better option if performance/price is an issue.

I'm an intel guy personally.

Regarding ram/mobo/cpu.
Lots of ppl are recommending the i5 3470 at the moment.
I have a 2500k and it performs very well.
8gb of Kingston ram 1333
MB I'm not sure of.

My GTX 550 ti was replaced on a warranty claim and upgraded to a GTX 660 2gb OC.
Loving it.

 

[jacodebeer]

I got about roughly the same setup and it works great:
case - Corsair 300R
Motherboard - Asrock H87 fatal1ty
cpu - Intel i3 4130 3.4ghz
RAM- 1x8GB corsair vengeance 1600
gpu - Powercolor HD9750
HDD - seagate 1TB
PSU - XFX Core Edition PRO650W
optical - LG BH16NS40, 16x Blu-Ray writer
monitor - LG 23EA53V, 23" LED
This was about R11k

 

[minerva]

minerva - that is one fugly case

Different Strokes I guess... I like the black and the white a lot and the small size is a huge bonus... Nice HTPC case.

 

[minerva]

Different Strokes I guess... I like the black and the white a lot and the small size is a huge bonus... Nice HTPC case.

In Black

 

[Electric]

Black and white isn't terrible.
That red is an eye sore though.
I've always been partial to a nice sleek black case.

 

[Electric]

The black looks nice.

 

[minerva]

I went with the i5 and the R9 270x. Building tonight, thanks for the comments!

 

[AfricanTech]

I went with the i5 and the R9 270x. Building tonight, thanks for the comments!

Where did you buy your i5 and which cooler did you opt for?

 

[AfricanTech]

So this is what my cart looks like right now:

Intel Core i5-4570, 3.2GHz, LGA1150, Quad Core (with 4 threads), 22nm, 6MB L3 caIntel Core i5-4570, 3.2GHz, LGA1150, Quad Core (with 4 threads), 22nm, 6MB L3
R2,422

be quiet! Shadow Rock TopFlow SR1, copper base + 53x aluminum fins with 4x heatpbe quiet! Shadow Rock TopFlow SR1, copper base + 53x aluminum fins with 4x
R425

Corsair CMZ8GX3M1A1600C10, 8GB, Vengeance with black heatsink, DDR3-1600, CL10,Corsair CMZ8GX3M1A1600C10, 8GB, Vengeance with black heatsink, DDR3-1600, CL10
R1,011

ASRock Z87 Extreme3, all-in-one LGA1150, Intel Z87, 4x dual channel DDR3 2933+,ASRock Z87 Extreme3, all-in-one LGA1150, Intel Z87, 4x dual channel DDR3 2933+,
R1,855

The RAM and motherboard I'm happy with.

1. CPU: Not sure - wondering if I can shave some cost off by going with an i3 (given what I currently have)
2. Heatsink - Not going to be overclocking, you guys think I could get away with one of the Zalman's? (1/2 the price)

Also, what power supply do you recommend?

 

[KalMaverick]

If you're not overclocking is a heatsink really necessary?

 

[AfricanTech]

If you're not overclocking is a heatsink really necessary?

Oh, never thought of that! I thought all modern CPUs required a heatsink.

Edit.

Question is, if I'm not going to OC do I need a high end aftermarket cooler - the stick intel ones also tend to be noisy as far as I can remember.

 

[FuLL_MeT4L]

So this is what my cart looks like right now:

Intel Core i5-4570, 3.2GHz, LGA1150, Quad Core (with 4 threads), 22nm, 6MB L3 caIntel Core i5-4570, 3.2GHz, LGA1150, Quad Core (with 4 threads), 22nm, 6MB L3
R2,422

be quiet! Shadow Rock TopFlow SR1, copper base + 53x aluminum fins with 4x heatpbe quiet! Shadow Rock TopFlow SR1, copper base + 53x aluminum fins with 4x
R425

Corsair CMZ8GX3M1A1600C10, 8GB, Vengeance with black heatsink, DDR3-1600, CL10,Corsair CMZ8GX3M1A1600C10, 8GB, Vengeance with black heatsink, DDR3-1600, CL10
R1,011

ASRock Z87 Extreme3, all-in-one LGA1150, Intel Z87, 4x dual channel DDR3 2933+,ASRock Z87 Extreme3, all-in-one LGA1150, Intel Z87, 4x dual channel DDR3 2933+,
R1,855

The RAM and motherboard I'm happy with.

1. CPU: Not sure - wondering if I can shave some cost off by going with an i3 (given what I currently have)
2. Heatsink - Not going to be overclocking, you guys think I could get away with one of the Zalman's? (1/2 the price)

Also, what power supply do you recommend?

Okay so you've got an overclocking MOBO while you state that you won't be overclocking. There's no real advantage of taking a Z87 over and H87 board unless (a) overclocking, or (b) running multiple GPUs. Go for a ASROCK H87 PRO4 or equivalent and save R500 odd.

Your CPU and RAM choices are spot on IMO - both hit the sweet spot.

With regard to the CPU cooler, unless you're very concerned about noise I'd just stick with the stock intel cooler and save that cash. I have an i5-4570 myself and it runs flawlessly on stock cooling. (Just been fiddling with my fan controller and running the stock cooler at full tilt really doesn't bother me, but that's personal preference I realize)

PSU's are always worth investing in properly as they ensure a better life for your other components.
I don't know what your power requirements are exactly, but I'd probably pick a Corsair HX650 Gold - Modular 650W with a badass 12V single rail and a 7 year warranty; these go for R1366. Up that to R1594 if you want to make it a 750W instead.

 

[KalMaverick]

I meant an after market heatsink and fan yes.

I haven't really paid attention to the sound levels so can't really comment other than that I haven't thought a quieter one was necessary.

 

[AfricanTech]

Okay so you've got an overclocking MOBO while you state that you won't be overclocking. There's no real advantage of taking a Z87 over and H87 board unless (a) overclocking, or (b) running multiple GPUs. Go for a ASROCK H87 PRO4 or equivalent and save R500 odd.

Your CPU and RAM choices are spot on IMO - both hit the sweet spot.

With regard to the CPU cooler, unless you're very concerned about noise I'd just stick with the stock intel cooler and save that cash. I have an i5-4570 myself and it runs flawlessly on stock cooling. (Just been fiddling with my fan controller and running the stock cooler at full tilt really doesn't bother me, but that's personal preference I realize)

PSU's are always worth investing in properly as they ensure a better life for your other components.
I don't know what your power requirements are exactly, but I'd probably pick a Corsair HX650 Gold - Modular 650W with a badass 12V single rail and a 7 year warranty; these go for R1366. Up that to R1594 if you want to make it a 750W instead.

Thanks.

That's really useful advice on the motherboard.

I am worried about noise so will look at a fan that is rated quieter than stock - don't like loud fans.

That psu is badass but too much for my budget - looking at half of that.

 

[AfricanTech]

I meant an after market heatsink and fan yes.

I haven't really paid attention to the sound levels so can't really comment other than that I haven't thought a quieter one was necessary.

Thanks

 

[FuLL_MeT4L]

Thanks.

That's really useful advice on the motherboard.

I am worried about noise so will look at a fan that is rated quieter than stock - don't like loud fans.

That psu is badass but too much for my budget - looking at half of that.

I basically did this exact upgrade you're doing here about 2 months ago!

With regard to the cooler - you can always upgrade this afterwards if you find the stock cooling too loud. This was my plan, but I simply stuck with the intel cooler as I found I was happy with it.

Re the PSU: for a cheaper option I would probably buy a Cooler Master GX 550W @ R794. Still 'pricey' in your books I realize, but really you shouldn't be skimping on your PSU! PS: Despite all the nonsense about needing a 1200W PSU, for most people running a mid-range gaming rig a 550W is more than enough.

 

[AfricanTech]

I basically did this exact upgrade you're doing here about 2 months ago!

With regard to the cooler - you can always upgrade this afterwards if you find the stock cooling too loud. This was my plan, but I simply stuck with the intel cooler as I found I was happy with it.

Re the PSU: for a cheaper option I would probably buy a Cooler Master GX 550W @ R794. Still 'pricey' in your books I realize, but really you shouldn't be skimping on your PSU! PS: Despite all the nonsense about needing a 1200W PSU, for most people running a mid-range gaming rig a 550W is more than enough.

- been running with a dual core E5300 for a while now so upgrade is definitely called for.

Looking around on RT's site, I see SeaSonic M12II, 620w for R100 more than the Coolermaster - think I'm going to go with that