You have $1,200USD to build a pc

[Mooshi]

Purpose: Gaming, Blender/3D modeling, Photoshop, General computer use.

Must include: system + OS + keyboard with a standard layout(if mechanical, no MX blues)

Extra Criteria: No huge heatsinks as this system must safely be able to be shipped completed with little to no chance of something breaking Compact or AIO will work. Case can not have a side panel window or top mounted buttons because cat.

Bonus: Fav color is blue, not sure what you can do without a side panel window, buuuuut throwing it out there anyway.

 

* I may or may not be planning something for someone.

** Bonus points for builds utilizing something like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117316

*** This is not intended as an overclocking system hence the above Xeon that's essentially a non-K i7 for i5 money - stock overclocked graphics cards are fine, the CPU is to remain stock for max stability. 

 

 

I have Win7 laying around since this person does not like Win8, you can drop the OS from the list now.

[madscientist56]

does the keyboard have to be mechanical? if so what switches?

[madscientist56]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($247.98 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: SilenX EFZ-100HA2 58.0 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  ($12.99 @ Newegg) 

Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($70.38 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($72.00 @ Newegg) 

Storage: A-Data Premier Pro SP600 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($68.98 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Western Digital RE3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($52.99 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 780 3GB DirectCU II Video Card  ($418.00 @ Newegg) 

Case: Silverstone PS07B MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($69.99 @ Amazon) 

Power Supply: Rosewill 650W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($54.00 @ Newegg) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($86.99 @ NCIX US) 

Keyboard: Rosewill STRIKER RK-6000 Wired Standard Keyboard  ($49.98 @ OutletPC) 

Total: $1204.28

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-13 10:24 EDT-0400

[ComradeHX]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($247.98 @ SuperBiiz)

Motherboard: MSI Z97-GAMING 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($149.99 @ Newegg)

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($79.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($79.99 @ Newegg)

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 290 4GB Tri-X Video Card ($391.98 @ Newegg)

Case: Rosewill ARMOR-EVO ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg)

Power Supply: Rosewill 500W 80+ Platinum Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($106.00 @ Newegg)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.99 @ NCIX US)

Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm Devastator Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($28.34 @ NCIX US)

Total: $1197.25

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-13 10:29 EDT-0400

[Pugs501]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($247.98 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($28.65 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($88.98 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($76.50 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Sandisk Ultra Plus 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($59.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($54.99 @ Newegg) 

Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 780 3GB DirectCU II Video Card  ($398.00 @ Newegg) 

Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case  ($49.99 @ Micro Center) 

Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($59.98 @ SuperBiiz) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($86.99 @ NCIX US) 

Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Optical Mouse  ($28.34 @ NCIX US) 

Total: $1180.39

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-13 10:24 EDT-0400

 

This is really close to what my build is going to be.

[Megazero]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.97 @ Amazon)

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.65 @ OutletPC)

Motherboard: MSI Z97-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Micro Center)

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($89.98 @ OutletPC)

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($88.79 @ Amazon)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.98 @ OutletPC)

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 770 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card ($280.80 @ Newegg)

Case: Cooler Master Elite 431 Plus (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)

Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Micro Center)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.98 @ OutletPC)

Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm Quick Fire TK Wired Gaming Keyboard ($86.67 @ NCIX US)

Total: $1146.79

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-13 10:25 EDT-0400

[DarkEnergy]

Edit: Fixed

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($199.99 @ Micro Center) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master GeminII M4 58.4 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($29.80 @ Amazon) 

Motherboard: ASRock Z97E-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($114.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($76.50 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($88.79 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($56.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 770 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card  ($280.80 @ Newegg) 

Case: Corsair 380T Mini ITX Tower Case  ($149.99 @ NCIX US) 

Power Supply: Corsair RM 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($89.99 @ Newegg) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit)  ($90.27 @ B&H) 

Keyboard: Razer DeathStalker Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($54.99 @ Amazon) 

Total: $1233.09

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-13 11:05 EDT-0400

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($199.99 @ Micro Center) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master GeminII M4 58.4 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($29.80 @ Amazon) 

Motherboard: MSI Z87I GAMING AC Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($146.99 @ NCIX US) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($89.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($88.79 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($56.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 770 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card  ($280.80 @ Newegg) 

Case: BitFenix Prodigy (White) Mini ITX Tower Case  ($69.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Corsair RM 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($89.99 @ Newegg) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit)  ($90.27 @ B&H) 

Keyboard: Razer DeathStalker Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($54.99 @ Amazon) 

Total: $1198.58

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-13 11:04 EDT-0400

[Mooshi]

does the keyboard have to be mechanical? if so what switches?

 

No preferences, though this person finds stuff like cherry mx blues to be way too loud to their liking. I'm gonna go over the rest of the builds, yours was pretty solid.

 

Note: Thanks for the build suggestions so I have plenty of options to choose from.

[SnowGhost1212]

EDIT: @moshi I have thought about it more and here is my complete redo:

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($209.97 @ Amazon) 

Motherboard: MSI H97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($88.99 @ Mac Mall) 

Memory: Kingston Fury Black Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($89.99 @ NCIX US) 

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($88.79 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($56.99 @ Micro Center) 

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB ACX Video Card  ($324.85 @ B&H) 

Case: Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case  ($79.99 @ NCIX US) 

Power Supply: Corsair Builder 750W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($69.99 @ Amazon) SEE REASONING.

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit)  ($90.27 @ B&H) 

Keyboard: Cooler Master QuickFire Rapid-i Wired Standard Keyboard  ($108.32 @ NCIX US) 

 

Total: $1208.15

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-13 11:17 EDT-0400

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Reasoning: CPU Is a great value for money, best gaming CPU on the market with a good amount of juice for rendering, etc. Motherboard is nothing special but has the features you want, since you don't need to overclock I chose this as a place to save cash. 8GB should be enough for most things these days and your budget doesn;t allow for 16GB to be a sensible decision. Storage solution is fine going with a standard 128GB SSD and a 1TB drive thats a little slower but good quality and fine speeds for an HDD. The GPU is great and will do you fine for 1080p gaming, maxing out the vast majority of modern games (above 60fps), also this GPU is expected to have a price drop very soon to compete with the 285 from AMD at which point it will be a great buy. Not my favorite case in the price range yet it was hands down the best without buttons on the top, it's still a great case. PSU, since you don't have a window I didn't bother putting in the extra money for a semi-modular psu, instead I went for the most wattage while keeping alright build quality, i did this for expandibility reasons however it might be a better idea to save the money and put it somewhere else and go for a 600W PSU. The OS is your choice I just chucked 8.1 in there because that's what I use (though I use Pro). Keyboard is a great little thing though feel free to switch it out with whatever you're comfortable with, though I recommend mechanical.

[Manny Calavera]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($247.98 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Nexus LOW-7000 R2 CPU Cooler  ($21.95 @ Amazon) 

Motherboard: MSI Z97-G55 SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($118.98 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($139.99 @ NCIX US) 

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($53.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 770 4GB DirectCU II Video Card  ($345.91 @ Newegg) 

Case: Corsair 330R ATX Mid Tower Case  ($89.98 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($59.99 @ Newegg) 

Case Fan: BitFenix BFF-SPRO-12025KK-RP 56.2 CFM 120mm  Fan  ($9.61 @ NCIX US) 

Case Fan: BitFenix BFF-SPRO-12025KK-RP 56.2 CFM 120mm  Fan  ($9.61 @ NCIX US) 

Case Fan: BitFenix BFF-SPRO-12025KK-RP 56.2 CFM 120mm  Fan  ($9.61 @ NCIX US) 

Keyboard: Cooler Master Storm QuickFire Rapid Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($86.00 @ Mechanical Keyboards) 

Total: $1193.59

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-13 11:38 EDT-0400

 

gpu has backplate so it wont sag as much and it has extra vram

low profule cooler with heatpipes, enough for xeon and not loud

very quiet fans in sturdy sleek case 

brown quiet mech switches

moar ram for productivity

able to sli later 

[Mooshi]

I'm giving likes to those who put posted a build since you put in effort. Do note though, this system will not be overclocked, this is why I linked the Xeon which is basically a locked i7 for the price of an i5. K-series chips and high chip sets are not mandatory for this build. Also keep in mind even a single high end GPU will run perfectly fine on a 500-550w unit.

[Manny Calavera]

I'm giving likes to those who put posted a build since you put in effort. Do note though, this system will not be overclocked, this is why I linked the Xeon which is basically a locked i7 for the price of an i5. K-series chips and high chip sets are not mandatory for this build. Also keep in mind even a single high end GPU will run perfectly fine on a 500-550w unit.

true, i only added another 150w because the gpu is meant to sli and because its quality one 

also, does he want cherry mx brown? they are quiet. i will try to fit in the build

[Mooshi]

true, i only added another 150w because the gpu is meant to sli and because its quality one 

also, does he want cherry mx brown? they are quiet. i will try to fit in the build

 

She and that's fine. I've edited the OP a bit so the OS can be dropped since I have Win7 laying around and she doesn't care for Win8. I'll help her get Win9 whenever that comes out later on.