First time builder AMD Build

Lorenzinho14 · November 26, 2014

I am a first time builder and on this forum. I am a college student and I don't plan on buying all parts at once. My budget is comfortable 500 dollars. I wish to receive advice on this build. Thanks!!

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Ry8FHx

Lotus · November 26, 2014

I think you could afford an Intel build, which is what I would do if I were you. Also, always buy the parts all at once. Things change, and there's no point in buying only half of a PC. It's better for your wallet and end-result.

OriginalPromise · November 26, 2014

Would you be gaming, or do you need a lot of space?

Seeing that 500GB HDD, I'm not presuming so..

And yes, I did go with the MX this time because of the budget.

Not as sexy as the EVO but..

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/M232TW

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/M232TW/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i3-4150 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor ($94.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($39.99 @ Newegg)

Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($57.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($94.97 @ SuperBiiz)

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 280 3GB DUAL-X Video Card ($169.99 @ Newegg)

Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($25.99 @ Newegg)

Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($29.99 @ Newegg)

Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($13.99 @ Amazon)

Total: $527.90

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 20:56 EST-0500

the jolly roger · November 26, 2014

HI AND WELCOME TO THE FORUMS, hope you have fun

as for your build..

'

a 4gb r9 270 i pointless, games today are barely using full 2gb and it does not have a wide enough memory bandwith to use all dat memory at onece, stick with a 2gb model.

as for CPU cooler i would go with the Hyper T4, as it cools better than that one and mounts natively on AMD so you dont have to mount a different backplate.

if you got 4gb i assume you wanna thow in a second 4gb stick later, am i right?

as for the motherboard i would go with THIS ONE because it has a newer and better chipset, and should OC better.

very nice budget build, welcome to glorious PCMASTERRACE

Lotus · November 26, 2014

So far none of the AMD MoBos here have sufficient power delivery for demanding FX CPUs. You really want at least the GA-970A-UD3P. However, I still think going with an intel build would be better. For the price, I would do this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($168.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($27.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team Dark 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 270 2GB DirectCU II Video Card ($135.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Core 2300 ATX Full Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($43.54 @ SuperBiiz)
Other: Internal USB 3.0 to 2.0 ($2.45)
Total: $531.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-25 21:01 EST-0500

The R9 270 and 270x have the same architecture, the core clock is the only thing different and so at the same clock speeds, they'll perform identically. The regular 270 can also be overclocked as high as an R9 270x, so there's really no reason to get the X version. I only gave you a single stick of memory in case you want to add in a second stick, and you really don't ever need an optical drive. Heck, even for installing the OS you can use a USB flash drive. Overall I would much prefer this build. Again, there's no point in spreading out the purchases. Buy all at once or not at all.