After 10 years of an old desktop and a crap Dell laptop, I finally have my "Gaming" PC!

[Graham Dillon]

Pictures: http://imgur.com/a/w7Ahe

 

CPU: i3-4130

GPU: Integrated Intel HD 4400 (FOR NOW!)

Motherboard: ECS B85H3-M3 Micro ATX

RAM: Patriot Viper 3 4GB (1x4GB) DDR3-1600

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200RPM HDD

Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) Mid Tower Case

PSU: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified

Monitor: Acer TN Panel 21.5''

Keyboard and Mouse: V7 (Got it for less than $12 with tax and shipping; keyboard layout is weird/sucky but $12)

Wireless Adapter: Asus USB-N13

 

I know! I know! An i3 and no GPU... Do you think I'm made of money?! I'm a college student for Christ sake.

 

Anyways, I've been a massive fan of Linus since he was in NCIX and try never to miss his WAN shows. Of course, this comes at a price. After years and years of gaming off a 2003 build with an All-in-Wonder ATI card and upgrading to a GTS 250 only to realize the horrible CPU bottle neck, I had to do something. You know your computer sucks when your Dell laptop that has HD 3000 off an i5-2410M is nearly neck and neck with performance. And I consider myself a gamer...

 

Drooling over Linus's videos and spending hours and days dreaming up builds on PCPartspicker and build sites like Mythlogic and XoticPC, I always resisted. Except one day, I just picked up my debit card and just went crazy. I spent $503 in total and since I gave my desktop away, I had to start from scratch.

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I chose everything because of the price (I'm in college). The i3 actually performs well especially after Intel stepped up their integrated graphics game. On Minecraft with Optifine and everything set to the max/on/fancy, this computer pulls a steady 55FPS versus my laptop which pulls a steady 5FPS and is unplayable. It's a big step up which is why I'm pleased no matter the fact that there is no GTX 780 Ti.

 

However my first upgrade will be a graphics card. I'm looking at a GTX 750 Ti. My next would be a mechanical keyboard and a nice mouse since this $12 dollar keyboard feels like a $12 keyboard and Linus has turned me on to them. Eventually years down the road, everything I got should be replaced since I had to settle for the best prices and not performance or quality. I want an IPS monitor and a case that is much better than the one I got. I also want to build a sound system down the road; I have the computer hooked to a receiver so it can power my Audio Technica ATH-M30, best $40 spent EVER!

 

Anyways, thanks Linus and my poor self control for making me poor.

[Thebman712]

you may want to look at a r9 270 because its slightly more and performs a fair bit better but the psu may limit you there(i know my psu is)

[Wiflare]

have you tried the gts 250 in this machine?

[Graham Dillon]

I was also looking at an R7 260X. It's cheap and performs around where I want it too.

[Graham Dillon]

I'll try and ask my brother if I can take the GTS 250 back. Not sure if he will like that.

[SeanAngelo]

4 cores would've been better, but its ayt

 

 

if you're looking in for the 750 Ti, i'd go for a GTX 660

[tryphaa]

you may want to look at a r9 270 because its slightly more and performs a fair bit better but the psu may limit you there(i know my psu is)

This is a good option, although the r7 265 can be gotten for $150 if he can't stretch.

[consoleconvergence2pc]

should of went amd for cpu or even apu at you're price point 

[Thebman712]

4 cores would've been better, but its ayt

 

 

if you're looking in for the 750 Ti, i'd go for a GTX 660

he may be limited by the psu

[Altecice]

no point in the 260/265s go for a 270x. it will dominate all games out atm.

[Graham Dillon]

have you tried the gts 250 in this machine?

I just called him; I'll see if he can get the thing out since he knows little about computers and lives in a different city.

[Graham Dillon]

Installing the GTS was actually surprisingly difficult and felt like it was going to break. Something about the clip and not being able to fit my hand there. Don't know if it's possible.

[Thebman712]

should of went amd for cpu or even apu at you're price point 

yeah that may have been a good option somthing like a amd kaveri but then again his mobo may not support

[Thebman712]

no point in the 260/265s go for a 270x. it will dominate all games out atm.

270x has no point, go 270 overclock it and it will out perform the 270x  

[Graham Dillon]

should of went amd for cpu or even apu at you're price point 

I know... I was thinking about buying an APU but I bought this all so fast. I really didn't fully plan on all this. I'm still OK with the I3. CPU wise it's great but comparing the on board graphics with AMD, it falls a bit short. So yes, it may have been a better choice.

[Wiflare]

I know... I was thinking about buying an APU but I bought this all so fast. I really didn't fully plan on all this. I'm still OK with the I3. CPU wise it's great but comparing the on board graphics with AMD, it falls a bit short. So yes, it may have been a better choice.

a 750ti would be a great choice for now if you can't wait a month or two for the 800-series.

[Graham Dillon]

I'm not getting anything over $150 no matter what. No R9 270X or GTX 760. It must be $150 or less.

[Thebman712]

I know... I was thinking about buying an APU but I bought this all so fast. I really didn't fully plan on all this. I'm still OK with the I3. CPU wise it's great but comparing the on board graphics with AMD, it falls a bit short. So yes, it may have been a better choice.

dont worry about it man if you put the 250 in it will be better or if you put a new dedicated card in it will be just fine, my only question is why not go with the k series version so u can overclock, and why not go mini itx since you dont really need a full sized tower

[consoleconvergence2pc]

yeah that may have been a good option somthing like a amd kaveri but then again his mobo may not support

oh course it wont its a intel mobo that he has.

the integrated apu graphics on the new kaveri would have been better even cheaper and even amd mobos are cheaper than intels regardless 

[Graham Dillon]

I'm going into my basement to look to see if that ATI All-In-Wonder card is still there. It sucks terribly but just for giggles.

[consoleconvergence2pc]

dont worry about it man if you put the 250 in it will be better or if you put a new dedicated card in it will be just fine, my only question is why not go with the k series version so u can overclock, and why not go mini itx since you dont really need a full sized tower

There is no such thing as a 'k' version i3 cpu only i5 and i7 

[Graham Dillon]

dont worry about it man if you put the 250 in it will be better or if you put a new dedicated card in it will be just fine, my only question is why not go with the k series version so u can overclock, and why not go mini itx since you dont really need a full sized tower

I didn't get a full tower; it's a mid. Also, why wouldn't I get a K series? It's expensive and they only have i5 and i7s unlockable ones which are over $200. Everything I got was because it was dirt cheap and/or on sale.

[Graham Dillon]

a 750ti would be a great choice for now if you can't wait a month or two for the 800-series.

I feel like every time I look for a graphics card, they are coming out with a new series. What the hell?

[Graham Dillon]

Unless I stick a GTX 770 or greater, a 430W PSU is plenty.

[prolemur]

Good job putting the power supply's intake facing up because if it was down and on the carpet it could have died. *thumbs up*