Build-Off Week 41: Bang/Buck Refresh
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Solved by ilikemacandpc,
This week, my entry is for a $900 PC, at the top end of the given range.
CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($129.99 @ Micro Center)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: AMD Radeon R9 Gamer Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($71.14 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 290 4GB Video Card ($423.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 220 ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Cooler Master Silent Pro M2 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Performance Edition 63.5 CFM 120mm Fan ($13.85 @ NCIX US)
Total: $898.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-04-18 16:28 EDT-0400)
Justification:
CPU: The AMD FX 8320 is a great CPU for not only gaming, but also productivity, which this PC will handle with ease. Nothing can really stand up to it at its price point in terms of all around performance. Furhtermore, an unlocked multiplier will facilitate massive overclocking to make this PC a beast.
MB: Despite the Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P being a relatively cheap board, it actually has an 8+2 power phase design with decent VRM heatsinks, meaning that OCing is not out of the question. Its black and grey look will go with the red and black theme of the entire PC.
Storage: A single 1TB hard drive is all that could fit in at this price point. Fitting in an SSD would mean sacrificing gaming performance, and people can live with slightly slower load times. And considering the aggressive caching Windows 8.1 does, mechanical hard drives don't feel all that bad anyway.
RAM: This AMD Radeon R9 Gaming series RAM is an unbelieveable deal! It is an 8GB 2133MHz kit, and the extra speed will really help out. In the benchmarks section, I've included a graph about memory speed scaling on BF4 in a Haswell system. Considering that AMD CPUs are more memory speed dependent than their Intel counterparts, the fast ram will provide even more of a benefit. Furthermore, this memory kit looks gorgeous, and fits the rig perfectly.
RAM: This AMD Radeon R9 Gaming series RAM is an unbelieveable deal! It is an 8GB 2133MHz kit, and the extra speed will really help out. In the benchmarks section, I've included a graph about memory speed scaling on BF4 in a Haswell system. Considering that AMD CPUs are more memory speed dependent than their Intel counterparts, the fast ram will provide even more of a benefit. Furthermore, this memory kit looks gorgeous, and fits the rig perfectly.
GPU: To be completely honest, I couldn't believe that I fit an R9 290 in a $900 build. It eats nearly half of the budget! This particular MSI TwinFrozr unit overclocks well as you can see in the benchmark below, and it looks awesome with that red and black color scheme that matches the rest of the components.
PSU: I had to give this rig a lot of power to deal with that R9 290, and this CM unit not only has the power, but it also is a semi-modular unit, so this build will be aesthetically pleasing.
Case: This nine hundred dollar computer necessitates a case with high air flow, because it needs as much airflow as it can get, and the NZXT Source 220 fits the bill. With vents and mesh on the front, side, back, and top, and with fans in those locations, that R9 290 and FX 8320 can run relatively coolly.
Cooling: The Hyper 212 Evo will take this 8320 to 4GHz and beyond, hopefully to a relatively high clockspeed to reduce any CPU bottleneck on that R9 290. The Corsair AF120 will also cool the rig well while complimenting the color scheme beautifully. It will be a rear exhaust, while the 140mm stock fan will moved to the side of the case for fresh graphics card intake and the stock 120mm fan will be moved to the front for intake.
Value Proposition:
Initially, it might seem like my system is a bad value, but that couldn't be any falser. This exact same system with an MSI GTX 760 Gaming instead of an R9 290 Gaming would cost around $740. Looking at the performance numbers, an R9 290 provides nearly 40% more performance, while the overall rig with an R9 290 costs just over 20% more. The math doesn't lie; this nine hundred dollar rig provides an excellent value.
Final Words
Take a look at the pictures and the benchmarks. I think you'll find that this system is pretty awesome in the end.
Pics:
Benchmarks:
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