Budget Gaming PC

[xConVirus]

Hey guys, I need your advice on this one. Trying to make a decent lower end, budget PC for gaming. From my research, it seems like some modern games wont function well on less than 4 cores, so I was thinking quad-core CPU, and a super graphics card, with everything else just supporting those two components. Here are the builds I've considered so far, one is about $70 cheaper, but I'm less sure of the quality of some of the parts. I'm also partial to at least 80+ Bronze when it comes to Power Supplies. I would like to keep it under $300 for sure, but if you can convince me or get lower, that's great. Most of the games that would be played are probably free to play, I don't personally know the games that he plays but they aren't Triple A titles, and probably aren't more than 5GB each max. Thanks guys.

 

Cheap Build

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/7nftD3

 

CPU: AMD 3850 1.3GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($29.99 @ NCIX US) 

Motherboard: ECS KAM1-I(1.0) Mini ITX AM1 Motherboard  ($27.98 @ Newegg) 

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

Storage: Western Digital AV 160GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($21.00 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 750 1GB Video Card  ($64.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: Cooler Master Elite 120 Advanced (Black) Mini ITX Tower Case  ($29.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($29.99 @ Newegg) 

Total: $220.93

 

Ideal Build so far

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/zDLKt6

 

CPU: AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor  ($45.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-AM1M-S2H Micro ATX AM1 Motherboard  ($32.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($38.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 320GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 750 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card  ($74.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Case: Rosewill SRM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($27.00 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($29.99 @ Newegg) 

Total: $299.93

[,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,]

The modern games that don't run on dual core CPUs will not run on a system like this very well anyway. I'll give this a shot.

[JebKerman]

well, neither of those are actually that good for games (but this is $300 after all), and we're really close to APU territory. I'll give it a go though. (EDIT: man this is hard)

 

Edit: Well, this is what I came up with, using an APU. the CPU cooler will allow you to increase the performance substantially, but you can drop it if it has to be under $300:

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD A10-5800K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($84.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A88XM-D3H Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($56.89 @ OutletPC) 

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory  ($49.89 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 320GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.98 @ OutletPC) 

Case: Rosewill SRM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($27.00 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Antec 450W ATX Power Supply  ($24.99 @ NCIX US) 

Total: $318.63

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 01:24 EDT-0400

[FuriousGamer]

Yea the 1st one you wont be able to game at all maybe the 2nd one but maybe like web page games lol.

[xConVirus]

The modern games that don't run on dual core CPUs will not run on a system like this very well anyway. I'll give this a shot.

 

Valid point. I was just trying to proof if for what he may become interested in, for say the next 2-4 years. Thank you good sir!

 

well, neither of those are actually that good for games, we're really close to APU territory. I'll give it a go though.

 

Really? The GTX 750 honestly looks like it would handle itself quite well on some middle-tier games. I very much like AMD's APUs, I suppose I should have made a build for that too. Thank you sir!

[Goldensapling]

Oh boy, the smallest budget I've picked so far. You would be far better going for an APU, so let me cook something up real quick

[xConVirus]

Yea the 1st one you wont be able to game at all maybe the 2nd one but maybe like web page games lol.

What is your basis for that? If people can game on dual core CPUs certainly quad core would work as well wouldn't they? I'm probably out of my depth but the GTX750 is a decent budget card.

[Goldensapling]

This is the best build I could think of in the price range. I recommend getting a cooler as your first upgrade whenever possible, then getting another 4GB stick of RAM.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD A10-7850K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($119.99 @ NCIX US) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A78M-HD2 Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($41.24 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($22.98 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.99 @ NCIX US) 

Case: Enermax ECA3212-BL ATX Mid Tower Case  ($29.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  ($39.49 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $303.68

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 01:21 EDT-0400

 

EDIT : You could get the cheaper PSU you had in your builds, and also the cheaper RAM. I picked an APU because your $40 CPU won't be able to handle fuck all for games.

[FuriousGamer]

What is your basis for that? If people can game on dual core CPUs certainly quad core would work as well wouldn't they? I'm probably out of my depth but the GTX750 is a decent budget card.

Yes but don't always look at the cores the ghz matter too. 1.3ghz just wont cut it for even webpage gaming. The GTX 750 is fine but if you can save like an extra $50 you can get a way better cpu that can handle what you wanna do.

[FuriousGamer]

 

This is the best build I could think of in the price range. I recommend getting a cooler as your first upgrade whenever possible, then getting another 4GB stick of RAM.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD A10-7850K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($119.99 @ NCIX US) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A78M-HD2 Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($41.24 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($22.98 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.99 @ NCIX US) 

Case: Enermax ECA3212-BL ATX Mid Tower Case  ($29.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  ($39.49 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $303.68

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 01:21 EDT-0400

 

EDIT : You could get the cheaper PSU you had in your builds, and also the cheaper RAM. I picked an APU because your $40 CPU won't be able to handle fuck all for games.

 

Wheres the GPU?

[JebKerman]

Wheres the GPU?

it's in the CPU, quite literally.

[Goldensapling]

Wheres the GPU?

That's what an APU is. It's a CPU + iGPU built into one. With this price range, you have zero hope of getting a decent CPU and a descrete GPU, it's just not happening. The 7850k is a capable gaming APU, as JayzTwoCents shows here. I would also recommend upgrading the RAM speed to 1866 if possible, it will help FPS by a lot.

 

[JebKerman]

That's what an APU is. It's a CPU + iGPU built into one. With this price range, you have zero hope of getting a decent CPU and a descrete GPU, it's just not happening. The 7850k is a capable gaming APU, as JayzTwoCents shows here. I would also recommend upgrading the RAM speed to 1866 if possible, it will help FPS by a lot.

which APU/RAM setup would you think would be better? An A10-5800K with 2400MHz or A10-7850K with 1600MHz? (kinda comparing my build with yours)

[Goldensapling]

which APU/RAM setup would you think would be better? An A10-5800K with 2400MHz or A10-7850K with 1600MHz (kinda comparing my build with yours)

It's always better to buy a better CPU and worse RAM, because a RAM upgrade is half the price of a CPU upgrade.

[jimakos234]

This is a bit overbudget, but i will leave it here

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD A10-7850K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($119.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A88M PRO3+ Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($50.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory  ($52.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($46.89 @ OutletPC)
Case: Deepcool TESSERACT BF ATX Mid Tower Case  ($31.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX TS 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($44.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $347.73
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 05:24 EDT-0400

[xConVirus]

 

well, neither of those are actually that good for games (but this is $300 after all), and we're really close to APU territory. I'll give it a go though. (EDIT: man this is hard)

 

Edit: Well, this is what I came up with, using an APU. the CPU cooler will allow you to increase the performance substantially, but you can drop it if it has to be under $300:

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD A10-5800K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($84.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A88XM-D3H Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($56.89 @ OutletPC) 

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory  ($49.89 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 320GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.98 @ OutletPC) 

Case: Rosewill SRM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($27.00 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Antec 450W ATX Power Supply  ($24.99 @ NCIX US) 

Total: $318.63

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 01:24 EDT-0400

 

 

 

 

This is the best build I could think of in the price range. I recommend getting a cooler as your first upgrade whenever possible, then getting another 4GB stick of RAM.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD A10-7850K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($119.99 @ NCIX US) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A78M-HD2 Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($41.24 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($22.98 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.99 @ NCIX US) 

Case: Enermax ECA3212-BL ATX Mid Tower Case  ($29.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  ($39.49 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $303.68

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 01:21 EDT-0400

 

EDIT : You could get the cheaper PSU you had in your builds, and also the cheaper RAM. I picked an APU because your $40 CPU won't be able to handle fuck all for games.

 

 

This is a bit overbudget, but i will leave it here

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD A10-7850K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($119.99 @ NCIX US)

Motherboard: ASRock FM2A88M PRO3+ Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($50.98 @ Newegg)

Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory  ($52.89 @ OutletPC)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($46.89 @ OutletPC)

Case: Deepcool TESSERACT BF ATX Mid Tower Case  ($31.99 @ Newegg)

Power Supply: XFX TS 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($44.99 @ NCIX US)

Total: $347.73

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-23 05:24 EDT-0400

 

 

Thank you all for your suggestions! I have taken bits and pieces from all of your ideas. I appreciate your insight!