{Ye Oulde} Console alternatives :D my edition [updated {more like outdated} - 19/03/2018]

[Guest]

Should include a monitor. Unless they want to plug it into a TV. 

[Guest]

There are no CPU coolers in these Lists!!!!!!

Well the CPU comes with them and with such a low-end chip and console gamers, there's not really any real benifit from switching from stock to aftermarket.

[GSTARR]

I would like to point out that while making build guides for those who complain about leaving out peripherals, you didn't add a monitor

 

Are you assuming they're to use a tv?

[Sauron]

Should include a monitor. Unless they want to plug it into a TV. 

 

I would like to point out that while making build guides for those who complain about leaving out peripherals, you didn't add a monitor

 

Are you assuming they're to use a tv?

 

Yes, of course I'm assuming they'll use the tv - just like with a console...

[GSTARR]

Yes, of course I'm assuming they'll use the tv - just like with a console...

rip their experience

[Sauron]

rip their experience

 

uhm they'll get the same experience they would on console... this thread isn't about making office computers or workstations, it's about matching or beating the console experience without some of the disadvantages

[kameshss]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($110.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($30.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($32.99 @ Adorama) 

Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 380 4GB PCS+ Video Card  ($183.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($29.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($55.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $444.82

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-07 16:49 EST-0500

[Sauron]

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($110.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($30.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($32.99 @ Adorama) 

Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 380 4GB PCS+ Video Card  ($183.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($29.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($55.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $444.82

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-07 16:49 EST-0500

 

 

No os, no peripherals, over budget  but to be fair mine are starting to get outdated again, I'll have to update this in a few days

[kameshss]

No os, no peripherals, over budget  but to be fair mine are starting to get outdated again, I'll have to update this in a few days

oops. Sorry. $400 budget right?

[Sauron]

oops. Sorry. $400 budget right?

 

yup

[kameshss]

yup

Ok. This. But $20 extra.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($110.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($30.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($32.99 @ Adorama) 

Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R7 370 4GB PCS+ Video Card  ($133.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($29.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($55.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Keyboard: Logitech MK120 Wired Slim Keyboard w/Optical Mouse  ($8.99 @ NCIX US) 

Other: Windows 10 ($20.00) G2A or Reddit

Total: $423.81

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-07 17:02 EST-0500

[Clear17Mud]

No HDD ?

no youll install windows on a spare flash drive.

[kameshss]

No HDD ?

holi sheet

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($110.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($44.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($32.99 @ Adorama) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R7 370 4GB PCS+ Video Card  ($133.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($29.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($55.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Keyboard: Logitech MK120 Wired Slim Keyboard w/Optical Mouse  ($8.99 @ NCIX US) 

Other: Windows 10 ($20.00)

Total: $487.79

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-08 02:59 EST-0500

 

That increases the budget sadly

[Trav_X]

It would probably be worth updating this thread after the release of new cards like the RX 460 and GTX 1050 and 1050Ti. A lot more can be done with your budget nowadays.

[Sauron]

7 hours ago, Trav_X said:

It would probably be worth updating this thread after the release of new cards like the RX 460 and GTX 1050 and 1050Ti. A lot more can be done with your budget nowadays.

I will update it as soon as I have the time , meanwhile if you came here looking for a suggestion you can chew on this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 845 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($66.20 @ Newegg Marketplace) 
Motherboard: MSI A68HM-E33 V2 Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($39.99 @ Newegg) 
Memory: Mushkin Silverline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory  ($38.99 @ Directron) 
Storage: A-Data Premier SP550 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($38.74 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB Mini Video Card  ($138.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Case: Rosewill FBM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($24.99 @ Newegg Marketplace) 
Power Supply: EVGA 450W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $386.89
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-11-10 18:36 EST-0500

[Sreno1]

CPU: Intel Pentium G4400 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($58.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H110M-A Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($53.33 @ OutletPC) 
Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($39.99 @ NCIX US) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($48.89 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB Video Card  ($139.99 @ B&H) 
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($24.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic 350W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $405.17
 

Optional upgrades:

i3-6100

RX 470

N200 Case

120GB Boot SSD

[AlanAlan]

On January 25, 2015 at 7:22 AM, Sauron said:

-edit-

It is worth noting that windows 10 is free to all windows insiders. Technically you don't need to buy windows - although of course you'll be missing out a little on stability and support.

-edit-

 

Hey guys

 

I've seen a lot of "smash your console" builds on the forum, and I figured I'd do my very own version! However, I decided to call it "console alternatives". This is because in previous build guides people have pointed out that the builds didn't include the OS or any peripherals. I often called bs on that argument, because of two reasons: the vast majority of people already own a windows pc in their house from which they could clone the installation (if they don't own a separate copy) and upgrade for free to windows 10 even if they have 7, and peripherals that will do the job just fine are incredibly cheap. That said, I thought I'd do something even for those who really only have enough money to buy a console and a couple of games and for whatever reason don't already own a pc, so people won't complain anymore I also thought I'd make both intel and amd builds so everyone can choose what suits them best.

 

-BUILD 1: AMD w/ os & peripherals

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($73.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: MSI A68HM-E33 V2 Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($42.99 @ Amazon) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($40.90 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Video Card  ($99.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: Rosewill FBM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($27.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: SeaSonic 350W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($32.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (32/64-bit)  ($89.88 @ OutletPC) 

Keyboard: Microsoft Keyboard 200 Wired Standard Keyboard  ($6.99 @ NCIX US) 

Mouse: Rosewill RM-C2P Wired Optical Mouse  ($4.99 @ Amazon) 

Total: $454.59

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 11:13 EDT-0400

 

As pointed out above, this isn't quite exactly a "console KILLER" because it's just slightly better spec wise and comes at a slightly higher price. However, it comes with windows (the main reason why it wouldn't fit under the 400$ mark) and acceptable peripherals. Since this build is aimed at those who don't even own a family desktop, I would also point out that a pc offers a lot more functionality beyond just gaming, and if you don't have one you really should buy one asap. The excess 30$ can also be very well regained by purchasing games during steam sales (depending on the game you might actually spare 40+$ on the first purchase).

I tried not to cheap out too hardcore: the power supply is still very respectable. I also included a 1tb HDD because it was just 3$ more expensive than the 500gb alternatives. And I feel you shouldn't go with anything less than 8gb of ram, the prices aren't that high atm.

 

-BUILD 2: Intel w/ os & peripherals

 

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($64.88 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($42.89 @ OutletPC) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($40.90 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Video Card  ($99.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: Rosewill FBM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($27.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: SeaSonic 350W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($32.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (32/64-bit)  ($89.88 @ OutletPC) 

Keyboard: Microsoft Keyboard 200 Wired Standard Keyboard  ($6.99 @ NCIX US) 

Mouse: Rosewill RM-C2P Wired Optical Mouse  ($4.99 @ Amazon) 

Total: $445.48

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 11:15 EDT-0400

 

It's 9$ cheaper than the AMD build and offers exactly the same except for the motherboard and cpu. There can be reasons to choose this one over the athlon build; first of all the pentium draws significantly less power. It also offers dramatically better single core performance, and in games that don't use more than 2 cores it will perform much better than the athlon. Depending on which games you plan on playing, this may or may not be the better choice. It should be noted that the lga 1150 socket offers much higher end upgrades than the FM2+ one.

 

-BUILD 3: AMD without os & peripherals

 

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($73.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: MSI A68HM-E33 V2 Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($42.99 @ Amazon) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($40.90 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 950 2GB Video Card  ($149.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: Rosewill FBM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($27.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Antec EarthWatts Green 380W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $408.73

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 11:19 EDT-0400

 

Here is where the real "console killing" starts if you already have an OS and your peripherals. The gtx 950 will wreck a ps4. For this build I changed the power supply because the other one didn't have enough pcie power connectors (the 750ti can run purely off of the pcie slot).

 

-BUILD 4: intel without os and peripherals

 

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($64.88 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($42.89 @ OutletPC) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($40.90 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 950 2GB Video Card  ($149.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: Rosewill FBM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($27.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Antec EarthWatts Green 380W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $399.62

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 11:23 EDT-0400

 

As before, the only difference is the cpu and motherboard.

 

-BONUS BUILD: Core i3 for those who don't want to go yolo with it

 

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i3-4160 3.6GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($102.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($42.89 @ OutletPC) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($40.90 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 950 2GB Video Card  ($149.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: Rosewill FBM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($27.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Antec EarthWatts Green 380W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $437.73

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 11:24 EDT-0400

 

The pentium K and the athlon are both great for the money, however they remain low end cpus. The core i3 offers the best of both, meaning good per core performance and the ability to run 4 threads at the same time (effectively tricking games into thinking it's a quad core). It sacrifices overclocking and costs a little bit more, but is worth it if you plan on upgrading your gpu in a few years and in general if you plan on using it for more than just gaming.

So, to sum it up, this build is the one most suited for other things than gaming as well as the one that will accomodate future upgrades better.

 

 

CONCLUSION:

 

As a supporter of the glorious pc gaming master race ( ) I always advise to buy a budget gaming pc rather than a console as they offer more power, the ability to do more than just gaming, more and cheaper games and the possibility to upgrade. However, what I really feel puts the nail in the coffin of something like a ps4 (which otherwise I would consider to be pretty good value) is the sub fee to play online. It simply removes the "low cost, full features" part out of the equation. Therefore, in most cases I would recommend getting one of the above builds with your money instead. Even the ones that include OS and peripherals in the end turn out to be cheaper, and are 100% ready to go once you put them together, you could very well not spend a cent on them anymore and still get the full experience out of all your games. The bonus build I feel is especially great for those who play competitive games like cs:go, mobas, RTS games and TF2, many of which can also be played on linux which is 100% free.

What I can concede to consoles is split screen multiplayer; although for a decent amount of games it can be done on a pc as well, consoles definitely support it better across the board (honestly that's a fault of the developers though).

 

Let me know what you think of these which one would you get if any? would you still buy a console? Why?

 

-UPDATE- [now updated again]

 

Just thought I'd add this to the original post so even the xbone has a proper answer

 

-XBONE ALTERNATIVE

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($73.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: MSI A68HM-E33 V2 Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($42.99 @ Amazon) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Team Elite 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($16.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($40.90 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Video Card  ($99.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: Rosewill FBM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($27.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: SeaSonic 350W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($32.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $352.73

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 11:29 EDT-0400

 

Admittedly this has no os. That's because it would chip away almost a third of the price by itself. Ubuntu with wine I suppose, most games work well enough and even though higher detail settings may not be available due to wine's DX limitations you weren't going to run ultra with this anyway (steam for linux HYPE!)

So, this is a very nice alternative if you have the os, if you don't, it's a little half-assed but if you are content with what can be run on linux (you'd be surprised, there certainly is a greater game library that can be played on it than there is on a ps4 or xbone for now) then you're golden.

Hey bro, nice list.

 

You said that windows 10 is free to windows insiders. How can i become a member of that?

[Sauron]

1 hour ago, AlanAlan said:

Hey bro, nice list.

 

You said that windows 10 is free to windows insiders. How can i become a member of that?

You can find all the info here https://insider.windows.com/

[AlanAlan]

On November 13, 2016 at 7:01 AM, Sauron said:

You can find all the info here https://insider.windows.com/

Is it free to register?

[AlanAlan]

On November 13, 2016 at 7:01 AM, Sauron said:

You can find all the info here https://insider.windows.com/

Hey Sauron, is it free to register and sign up? 

[Sauron]

On 11/15/2016 at 3:36 PM, AlanAlan said:

Is it free to register?

Yes

 

-I thought I posted this answer 2 days ago but it seems the forum derped out

[Sauron]

Changelog [UPDATED 21/01/2017]

 

21/01/2017

 

 

Added spoilers for readability.

Added changelog at the bottom of the page.

Colour coded build titles to make them easier to spot straight away.

Updated all builds with new parts and pricings.

Removed builds that were no longer relevant.

Target price is now PS4 PRO market price (on amazon.com).

All descriptions updated where relevant.

 

[TheRandomness]

I'm confused about the budget. $400 or $450?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G4560 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($75.00 @ B&H) 
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($46.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: Team Elite Plus 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($48.98 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Seagate Barracuda ES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($44.76 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Asus Radeon RX 470 4GB STRIX Video Card  ($169.99 @ Jet) 
Case: Xion XON-310_BK MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($28.98 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: Antec EarthWatts Green 380W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($42.89 @ OutletPC) 
Total: $457.59
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-21 19:17 EST-0500

 

I mean, I'd happily take this for $450

[Sauron]

12 hours ago, TheRandomness said:

I'm confused about the budget. $400 or $450?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G4560 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($75.00 @ B&H) 
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($46.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: Team Elite Plus 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($48.98 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Seagate Barracuda ES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($44.76 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Asus Radeon RX 470 4GB STRIX Video Card  ($169.99 @ Jet) 
Case: Xion XON-310_BK MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($28.98 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: Antec EarthWatts Green 380W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($42.89 @ OutletPC) 
Total: $457.59
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-21 19:17 EST-0500

 

I mean, I'd happily take this for $450

I try to stay around 400, however when including the OS it can't be done without sacrificing more than I think is worth it. Hence why they are console alternatives and not necessarily killers.

[AlTech]

I'd like to suggest a way to fit an RX 470 into a Console Killer budget at a similar price to PS4 Pro.