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Budget ITX Recommendations

dbmeed
By dbmeed
in New Builds and Planning
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My friend is getting married in the spring, and the groomsmen are wanting to come up with a wedding present. He has mentioned wanting a gaming pc and getting into pc gaming sometime, but he does not have the funds available to get started yet. So, I thought it would be nice to build him an entry level gaming pc to introduce him to the glorious world of pc gaming.

He moves around a lot, so a small form factor is a must. I have come up with an idea for a build that is small and should provide high-max settings at 60fps for most games. He may be doing some light streaming, and some light audio editing-using an external audio interface that he already has. Other than that, the main workload will be just gaming and general use. 

Most of the parts will be purchased in Canada, so CAD is what I am using, but I live close to the border, so I can order parts from the US if there is a better deal-keep exchange rate in mind.

Budget is somewhere around the $800-1000 max, though if I can get it lower without sacrificing too much performance, that would be appreciated.

This is the list I have come up with so far:

http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/list/zsYWf8

Spoiler
CPU 658d653a249ceebe43a5968afb50ad77.256p.jpg $193.98   FREE   $193.98 DirectCanada   Buy
 
CPU Cooler 657e3311abd01fcb601a9f4b5bfd0de8.256p.jpg                
 
Motherboard 6175x42NLdL.jpg $119.99   Free two-day shipping with Amazon Prime   $119.99 Amazon Canada   Buy
 
Memory 66043d5ce0f0d31de7f0f1cf0b7446d1.256p.jpg $59.99       $59.99 Newegg Canada   Buy
 
     
Storage no-image.png $119.99       $119.99 Newegg Canada   Buy
 
     
Video Card 4a3f728a8cd8a410caa73711b45af447.256p.jpg $189.99       $189.99 Newegg Canada   Buy
 
Case e4d0360d60d23ed5f17a49faea049387.256p.jpg $102.34       $102.34 Amazon Canada   Buy
 
Power Supply 41wxNio%2BniL.jpg $106.33   FREE   $106.33 DirectCanada

The other question I had was the CPU-I just want to make sure that the CPU/GPU combo is a good match-trying to avoid bottlenecks wherever possible. I don't deal with budget hardware that often, So if someone could just verify that those would work well that would be great. One big question I currently have is the case-The Node 202 is a nice case, but Im considering looking at the Cougar QBX. With the QBX, I could save about $20 on the case, and another $20 or so on a PSU. The QBX would also allow more room for customization, such as AIO support, more storage options, and even an optical drive. However, in my opinion, the Node 202 looks much better-much more streamlined and sleek looking. Also, I am planning on doing a custom paintjob on the case, and the Node seems to have a much better area for painting. 

As for the other parts, I am aware that I could save some money by avoiding the M.2 SSD, but I would like to get something that gives him optimal boot/load times, and minimal clutter in the case, allowing for more room for additional storage in the case in the future. 

Also, I am aware that the stock cooler would likely be adequate for the CPU, but, I would like to give him the option to have more room for upgrades in the future-such as a K series CPU.

I havent included OS cost in this list, because I havent figured that out for sure yet-I think I have a couple copies of windows laying around that Im not using anymore, but I'll have to check, but for now, just dont worry about the OS

As far as peripherals/monitors, that is not a concern at this point.

If there is anything else I am missing, please let me know.

 

 

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I like everything on the list. Here are a few choices for budget cards depending on prices

 

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You're overpaying for a lot of stuff there.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($152.50 @ shopRBC)
CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Freezer 11 LP Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  ($19.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: MSI H110I PRO AC Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($119.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Memory: Kingston FURY 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($59.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: A-Data Premier SP550 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($81.98 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 470 4GB ARMOR OC Video Card  ($229.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Case: Fractal Design Node 202 HTPC Case w/450W Power Supply  ($159.99 @ NCIX)
Total: $824.43
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-11-08 10:43 EST-0500

 

The Fractal case has its own PSU that is fine, not amazing but decent, and a cheaper, higher capacity SSD is better, not to mention the one you had in there isn't compatible.

 

The RX 470 is 25% faster than the 1050 Ti, I would get that.

We have a NEW and GLORIOUSER-ER-ER PSU Tier List Now. (dammit @LukeSavenije stop coming up with new ones)

You can check out the old one that gave joy to so many across the land here

 

Computer having a hard time powering on? Troubleshoot it with this guide. (Currently looking for suggestions to update it into the context of <current year> and make it its own thread)

Computer Specs:

Spoiler

Mathresolvermajig: Intel Xeon E3 1240 (Sandy Bridge i7 equivalent)

Chillinmachine: Noctua NH-C14S
Framepainting-inator: EVGA GTX 1080 Ti SC2 Hybrid

Attachcorethingy: Gigabyte H61M-S2V-B3

Infoholdstick: Corsair 2x4GB DDR3 1333

Computerarmor: Silverstone RL06 "Lookalike"

Rememberdoogle: 1TB HDD + 120GB TR150 + 240 SSD Plus + 1TB MX500

AdditionalPylons: Phanteks AMP! 550W (based on Seasonic GX-550)

Letterpad: Rosewill Apollo 9100 (Cherry MX Red)

Buttonrodent: Razer Viper Mini + Huion H430P drawing Tablet

Auralnterface: Sennheiser HD 6xx

Liquidrectangles: LG 27UK850-W 4K HDR

 

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You're overpaying for a lot of stuff there.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($152.50 @ shopRBC)
CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Freezer 11 LP Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  ($19.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: MSI H110I PRO AC Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($119.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Memory: Kingston FURY 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($59.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: A-Data Premier SP550 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($81.98 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 470 4GB ARMOR OC Video Card  ($229.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Case: Fractal Design Node 202 HTPC Case w/450W Power Supply  ($159.99 @ NCIX)
Total: $824.43
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-11-08 10:43 EST-0500

 

The Fractal case has its own PSU that is fine, not amazing but decent, and a cheaper, higher capacity SSD is better, not to mention the one you had in there isn't compatible.

 

The RX 470 is 25% faster than the 1050 Ti, I would get that.

I admit that there are some things that are more costly than what I could be getting, but the goal was the keep the case as clean and clutter free as possible-hence why I thought it would be wise to forgo the included PSU in the Node 202, in favour of a modular system. Hence the M.2 SSD instead of 2.5" SATA. The 1050ti, while it might not have the performance of a 470, it should be more than adequate for 1080p gaming. Furthermore, it does not require additional power connectors, further reducing clutter in the case. Also, why do you recommend the lower CPU? Just curious as to if there would be any bottle-necking the GPU, especially if you use something more powerful like the 470. 

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