The_Harv

Okay thanks for your help!

A 280, 280X or a 380 would play games at 720p for a fair while I'd hope at least a couple of years. While you might not be able to play every game on max settings you will definitely be able to play most.

The 970 can be overclocked quite far on most coolers, so personally I would go for that.
 
Out of the box, they arent very different performance wise (both very fast).

I'd go with the 970. 
And also, you don't need a Z97 motherboard for an i5-4460 unless you plan on upgrading to a k series CPU later down the road. 

The 970, because that price on sale is very good.
 
I also recommend getting a 144hz monitor, you could get the Acer XB270HU second hand/reburbished from shops for like 500$

i use sTRIX gtx 970, doing fine in 4k with max detail on BF4, Black Ops 2, NFS RUN. 

You shouldn't buy a z97 motherboard for a 4460. Get an h97 or b85.
 
As for the gpu, the answer is neither. Either get this r9 290, which is priced as it should be, or get an r9 390.

Max TDP of 290 is nearly 300w... A 550w PSU would be cutting it kinda close unless its maybe gold or platinum

A vaporX 290 would be absolutely sick, but yeah you'll want to upgrade your PSU to 650w before that. If thats not possible, either a GTX 770 or R9 280x

first a 550w psu should be fine, no need to kick yourself
secondly maybe you would want to get a 960 or a 370

No problem with going for a 550W PSU. At least it's good quality. 
 
You can go for a 390 for around $30 more and it will outperform the 290 by a fair bit 
 
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-video-card-r9390gaming8g
 
Or this one for $14 more than the 290 
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/powercolor-video-card-axr93908gbd5ppdhe

the ram is causing the error, go ahead and RMA it (send it back for a replacement)

Reply from a dev for someone with the same issue.

Delete this file:
[steamInstall]\steamapps\common\Call of Duty Black Ops II\players\hardware_mp.chp

it should reset your visual settings

Usually games have a .ini file stashed in the install folder where all config changes are saved. You could find that file and edit it.

Let me tweak it a bit:
The kingston V300 SSD is garbage, you should change it. The price difference is only 2$ anyway. If you are 15, then you go to school. Right...? Yeah, I figured so; in that case, buy the Windows Student for 70$. It's the very same thing. This CPU with this mobo. Same performance, much lower price. I hope that your case isn't windowed. Because the GPU will not look pretty! PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant   CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($173.95 @ SuperBiiz)  Motherboard: MSI H81M-E34 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($49.99 @ SuperBiiz)  Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($49.99 @ Newegg)  Storage: A-Data Premier Pro SP600 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($54.98 @ OutletPC)  Video Card: HIS Radeon R9 290 4GB IceQ X² Video Card  ($252.98 @ Newegg)  Power Supply: XFX XTR 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($81.98 @ Newegg)  Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($70.00)  Total: $733.87 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-20 19:09 EDT-0400

I've tweaked your list a bit. I've upped the CPU. Changed your RAM kit to a lower CAS Latency(CAS-7) set. Changed your SSD to a higher capacity, also pretty fast with a decent warranty. I swapped your GPU to a brand I love. Changed your PSU to one that is as good, but costs less. And kept it under $800.
 
For 40 bucks more than your original list: Better CPU. Lower Latency RAM. Higher Capacity(and Faster) SSD. And a better version of the 280.
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant   CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($187.99 @ SuperBiiz)  Motherboard: MSI H97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($84.99 @ Amazon)  Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($56.99 @ Newegg)  Storage: Mushkin ECO2 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($87.98 @ Newegg)  Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 280 3GB DUAL-X Video Card  ($192.98 @ Newegg)  Power Supply: Rosewill 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($64.00 @ Newegg)  Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($87.79 @ OutletPC)  Total: $762.72 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-20 19:26 EDT-0400

Good Idea about the bigger SSD, I might do that. I'll probably put all my Steam games on that and use my hard drive for everything else. Thanks!

EDIT: See my next post.

All the components are good quality but maybe get a better monitor, these days there not that expensive and are definitely worth it, there's no point of playing a game on ultra on a crappy tv.
 
No such thing as future proof, but at 720p a 280 will max anything.

Very nice build. Will do some justice for must games at up to 1080p.
 
I'd only go with the 290 if you intend to get a 1080p monitor. The 280 is good at 1080p, but the 290 or 290x are rock solid at up to 1440p.
 
You've clearly taken the time to do your research. Very nice build for the money.

First, that will max anything at 720p. Second, get a BenQ RL monitor . TV's suck for gaming

Hello, I'm in the market of building my first gaming pc, what every 15 year old boy wants right? My problem is, I don't know what parts are good and what isn't. I need help if this pre-build is good. 
 
Pc build: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Hn8j7P 
 
Just in case the link is broken: 
 
-CPU:  Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor
 
-Motherboard:  MSI H97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
 
-Memory:  G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
 
-Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
 
-Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card
 
-Power Supply: XFX XTR 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply
 
- Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)
 
*With a Corsair 200R case, 1 TB hard drive for storage, and a optical drive from my current computer* 
 
Reason why I chose a R9 280 instead of a 290 is because I use a Vizio 23 inch t.v. that I believe gets 720p, but I do want ultra high settings and full screen for the games I want to play. 
 
Obviously you need to know the games I play right? Here they are 
 
- spintires 
-BeamNg.drive 

-Black Ops 2 

-MW3 

-Battle Field 4

-America's Army: Proving Grounds

-Need For Speed: Most Wanted  
 
 
 
Do you think I should go with a R9 290? I know some people would call it overkill for the games/ T.V. I play on, but I think nothing is overkill, it;'s just future proof.
 
I was thinking of the PowerColor Radeon R9 290 4GB PCS+ Video Card if I ever decide to go with a 290. 
 
If you think you can change the parts to make it better, please do! My budget is $750, but if I need to I could go up to $800.  
 
If you have any questions, please ask!