Planning a CHEAP build

[CostcoSamples]

I want to plan a build as a Christmas present for my 8 year old son.  He loves to play Minecraft and Portal 2, as well as a few other games that are easy to run on any hardware.  

 

Budget:  $300 CAD or less

 

Parts already owned:

- HDD

- PSU

- Case

- Monitor (1920x1200)

- Speakers

- GPU (GTX 560 Ti)

 

NEED:

- CPU

- RAM

- Motherboard

- Keyboard + mouse

- Windows

 

I am fine with used parts, but local parts are hard to find and generally way over priced.  If I can find a good price on a used Sandy Bridge CPU+mobo, I'll likely jump on it.  Otherwise, I am debating one of two options:

1) Pentium G4400 + my old GTX 560 TI

OR

2) AMD A12 9800 APU (when released) with integrated GPU.  The A12 has 512 GPU SPs at 1108 Mhz.  It is likely slightly faster than my old GTX 560 Ti.

 

I'd like him to be able to grow with this PC.  I want him to learn to code, setup + maintain a minecraft server, learn to make mods, play games (low-medium settings are fine) etc.

[Guest]

I would get the pentium route. Will use good cpu and can get an upgrade to potential skylake or even kaby lake in the future. You won't need igpu on amd since you already have 560ti

[Energycore]

First off, You Don’t Need a Product Key to Install and Use Windows 10 . It will have a watermark on the bottom of the desktop, but it's free.

 

5 minutes ago, CostcoSamples said:

The A12 has 512 GPU SPs at 1108 Mhz.  It is likely slightly faster than my old GTX 560 Ti.

It is not. I can tell you as a 560 Ti owner. I would get this.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($144.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: MSI H110M Pro-VD Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($72.38 @ shopRBC)
Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($41.32 @ Amazon Canada)
Keyboard: Thermaltake Commander Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Laser Mouse  ($29.99 @ Memory Express)
Total: $288.68
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-09-25 23:56 EDT-0400

The keyboard and mouse are not great, but it's a case of gatting what you pay for, and an i3 is worth its price imo.

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, Energycore said:

First off, You Don’t Need a Product Key to Install and Use Windows 10 . It will have a watermark on the bottom of the desktop, but it's free.

 

It is not. I can tell you as a 560 Ti owner. I would get this.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($144.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: MSI H110M Pro-VD Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($72.38 @ shopRBC)
Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($41.32 @ Amazon Canada)
Keyboard: Thermaltake Commander Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Laser Mouse  ($29.99 @ Memory Express)
Total: $288.68
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-09-25 23:56 EDT-0400

The keyboard and mouse are not great, but it's a case of gatting what you pay for, and an i3 is worth its price imo.

Ok.

Then a 560ti will be a waste. Stick with this so you can reuse 560ti

[Energycore]

Edit: wrong thread

[CostcoSamples]

7 minutes ago, Energycore said:

First off, You Don’t Need a Product Key to Install and Use Windows 10 . It will have a watermark on the bottom of the desktop, but it's free.

 

It is not. I can tell you as a 560 Ti owner. I would get this.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($144.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: MSI H110M Pro-VD Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($72.38 @ shopRBC)
Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($41.32 @ Amazon Canada)
Keyboard: Thermaltake Commander Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Laser Mouse  ($29.99 @ Memory Express)
Total: $288.68
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-09-25 23:56 EDT-0400

The keyboard and mouse are not great, but it's a case of gatting what you pay for, and an i3 is worth its price imo.

It sounds like Intel is the way to go.  But do you think the i3 will provide a tangible benefit over the Pentium?  I'd rather save the money if the difference is not huge.

 

I was thinking of getting him the cheapest possible keyboard+mouse combo, but that one with the back lighting will be great!

[Energycore]

1 minute ago, CostcoSamples said:

do you think the i3 will provide a tangible benefit over the Pentium

Absolutely. CPUs that can't work on 4 threads will not operate at all in some games, not to mention tank performance in a lot of new ones. The alternative that gets you more keyboard budget is a cheap and capable Athlon X4.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 845 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($78.99 @ NCIX)
Motherboard: Asus A88XM-A Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($83.50 @ Vuugo)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($44.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Keyboard: SteelSeries Apex [RAW] Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($59.99 @ Memory Express)
Mouse: SteelSeries Rival 100 Wired Optical Mouse  ($44.00 @ Amazon Canada)
Total: $311.47
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-09-26 00:14 EDT-0400

[KitKatOW]

Try ro replace the harddrive to a SSD or just put the OS on the SSD (Windows 10 64bit is under 8GB) and you will se a major preformace boost.

Since he don't play very CPU heavy games you can just select any CPU that has over 3Ghz just make sure you're getting the right socket type.

[Guest]

3 hours ago, KitKatOW said:

Try ro replace the harddrive to a SSD or just put the OS on the SSD (Windows 10 64bit is under 8GB) and you will se a major preformace boost.

Since he don't play very CPU heavy games you can just select any CPU that has over 3Ghz just make sure you're getting the right socket type.

No. Windows 10 64 bit reach from 20 - 25 gb

[CostcoSamples]

10 hours ago, Energycore said:

Absolutely. CPUs that can't work on 4 threads will not operate at all in some games, not to mention tank performance in a lot of new ones. The alternative that gets you more keyboard budget is a cheap and capable Athlon X4.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 845 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($78.99 @ NCIX)
Motherboard: Asus A88XM-A Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($83.50 @ Vuugo)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($44.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Keyboard: SteelSeries Apex [RAW] Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($59.99 @ Memory Express)
Mouse: SteelSeries Rival 100 Wired Optical Mouse  ($44.00 @ Amazon Canada)
Total: $311.47
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-09-26 00:14 EDT-0400

Interesting.  So 4 cores is pretty much a requirement?  It's also probably a good idea if he's going to run a Minecraft server and play on the same system.

 

Thanks for the info.

[CostcoSamples]

4 hours ago, KitKatOW said:

Try ro replace the harddrive to a SSD or just put the OS on the SSD (Windows 10 64bit is under 8GB) and you will se a major preformace boost.

Since he don't play very CPU heavy games you can just select any CPU that has over 3Ghz just make sure you're getting the right socket type.

I might add an SSD later, but he can use the HDD for now.  He's 8 years old and can suffer with an HDD for now.  It's all I used until I was 25! 

[CostcoSamples]

10 hours ago, Energycore said:

Absolutely. CPUs that can't work on 4 threads will not operate at all in some games, not to mention tank performance in a lot of new ones. The alternative that gets you more keyboard budget is a cheap and capable Athlon X4.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 845 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($78.99 @ NCIX)
Motherboard: Asus A88XM-A Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($83.50 @ Vuugo)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($44.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Keyboard: SteelSeries Apex [RAW] Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($59.99 @ Memory Express)
Mouse: SteelSeries Rival 100 Wired Optical Mouse  ($44.00 @ Amazon Canada)
Total: $311.47
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-09-26 00:14 EDT-0400

There is one other option.  I have an old Q6600 and 4GB of DDR2 RAM.  If I could find a decent motherboard I could throw a cooler on it and OC to 3.2 GHz.  That would be a very cheap option.

[Quaker]

Personally, I'd go with the A12-9800 option just because it's new. I don't know if it would be "better" than any other option, but it should be good enough.

Or, possibly a bit better,l I'd go with the new Athlon X4 950 that's also soon to be released with the new APUs, and re-use the GTX-750 Ti. (Plus, of course, a basic AM4 motherboard and 8Gigs (2x4G) of DDR4 RAM)*

 

But that's mostly because I like building with new stuff. If I was to go with older stuff, I'd go the i3-6100 route, with a basic B150, H110, or H170 motherboard and 8Gigs of DDR4-whatever-is-cheapest. A basic keyboard and mouse bundle is good for starters.

 

I wouldn't go for the Athlon X4 845 with the 950 right around the corner.

 

* Hopefully, there will be lots of reviews and tests around the time the new AMD processors are released and we can get an idea of how well the A12-9800 (and others) compares to the X4 950 and/or i3-6100 with a GTX-750 Ti (or similar).

 

 

[Energycore]

6 hours ago, CostcoSamples said:

Interesting.  So 4 cores is pretty much a requirement?  It's also probably a good idea if he's going to run a Minecraft server and play on the same system.

 

Thanks for the info.

Yes, I would say so.

 

Another option is to wait for AM4, get the Athlon X4 released for that socket, and use it with a GTX 560 Ti. The athlon should cost around the same as the FM2 Athlon X4s, so no more than 100 CAD, and doing so will allow you to later on upgrade to a Zen processor.