1,300 USD$ or less First Build

[PowerHungryBlaze]

HELP & TIPS ARE SUPER APPRECIATED!

 

$1,300 is the most I can spend, the lower the better; because it means I can buy more things with the money i didn't have to spend yay! I've made a list best I can already that I'll put at the bottom.

 

I'm learning java and I'm aware I barley need much to accomplish that; but I would be willing spend a lot of money on a premium keyboard with cherry mx red keys, plenty of macro keys, and a good quality wrist rest. Fairly convinced that the Corsair Gaming K95 white LED is best and I'm happy getting it; but I also enjoy gaming. I usually play low demanding games like csgo & Neverwinter but I really would like the option to play modern high demanding games and I'm totally fine running them at least on medium settings at 40fps. 

 

What's important for me is to buy the absolute cheapest I need, but ok with paying a little extra for reliable build quality so it can last a solid 3-5 years.

 

Peripherals/Extras I need include: A monitor, keyboard (I already like the Corsair K95 btw), and Windows 10. Also need a screwdriver and anti-static wrist strap; but do I also really need a surge protector? If so then I want that included in the build. Won't be able to connect with an ethernet cable so I need a reliable wifi solution.

 

WHAT I'VE MADE SO FAR:

 

ASRock Motherboard z270 Extreme4

 

EVGA GTX 1050 Ti SC

 

Corsair Vengeance 2x4GB DDR4 3000MHz 

 

 

Intel i5 6500 (or i3 6100 if I need to take off 80$ for something else)

 

EVGA SuperNOVA 550wCorsair Gaming k95

 

Windows 10

 

TP-Link AC1750 PCI-Express Adapter

 

Some random Asus DVD Optical Drive

 

WD Blue 1TB

 

Phanteks Eclipse P400 - Case

 

BenQ GW Series GW2265HM - Monitor

 

Plus things like a screw driver, surge protector, and anti-static strap.

 

Total: $1,245

 

 

[Aereldor]

This is pretty bad for $1300. Is this USD, CAD, AUD, or NZD?

Give us your location and your budget in your native currency.

 

Don't get a surge protector. Get a UPS.

[Damascus]

This one puts your system  in the dirt and then runs around screaming

"NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN NYAN"

 

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/CgN6d6

 

Other: AMD R5 1400 ($169.00)
Motherboard: ASRock AB350M-HDV Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($72.98 @ Newegg) 
Memory: ADATA XPG Z1 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2800 Memory  ($54.89 @ OutletPC) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($48.49 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: Asus Radeon RX 480 4GB Dual Video Card  ($188.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Case: Phanteks ECLIPSE P400S TEMPERED GLASS ATX Mid Tower Case  ($89.99 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($53.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Monitor: AOC G2260VWQ6 21.5" 1920x1080 75Hz Monitor  ($119.99 @ Best Buy) 
Keyboard: Corsair K95 Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($128.99 @ Amazon) 
Mouse: Corsair M65 PRO RGB FPS Wired Optical Mouse  ($39.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $967.30

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, Aereldor said:

This is pretty bad for $1300. Is this USD, CAD, AUD, or NZD?

Give us your location and your budget in your native currency.

 

Don't get a surge protector. Get a UPS.

It's USD in the title

[Aereldor]

Just now, deXxterlab97 said:

It's USD in the title

That was either added after the fact, or I'm an idiot.

Well, this build is really bad for $1300 USD. Reworking.

[COUPER MILLAR]

If you aren't getting a k skew cpu there really isn't a need to get a z270 chip set mobo. Save some money and go with a B or H series board. Also an Rx 470 is going to be the better bang for your buck, or even a 4gb Rx 480. Also as @Damascus showed a new Ryzen build would preform similarly at a lower price point. 

[Aereldor]

10% over budget, but you get an ultrawide 1440p monitor, Core i7 CPU, a GTX 1070, an MLC SSD, and a decent mechanical keyboard with a matching mouse (Amazon's bestselling Gaming mouse).

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($292.49 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: Asus H110M-E/M.2 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($46.98 @ Newegg) 
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($52.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($48.98 @ NCIX US) 
Storage: Western Digital RE3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($43.96 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Mini Video Card  ($334.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: Xion XON-310_BK MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($22.99 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($48.89 @ Newegg) 
Monitor: AOC U3477PQU 34.0" 3440x1440 60Hz Monitor  ($499.98 @ Amazon) 
Keyboard: Redragon K552 Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($34.99 @ Amazon) 
Mouse: Redragon Centrophorus M601 Wired Optical Mouse  ($13.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $1441.23
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-09 17:55 EDT-0400

[Aereldor]

3 minutes ago, COUPER MILLAR said:

If you aren't getting a k skew cpu there really isn't a need to get a z270 chip set mobo. Save some money and go with a B or H series board. Also an Rx 470 is going to be the better bang for your buck, or even a 4gb Rx 480. Also as @Damascus showed a new Ryzen build would preform similarly at a lower price point. 

SKU- not 'Skew'. 'Skew' a sland or an angle, or a crooked take on something. 'SKU' stands for 'Stock Keeping Unit', or model number.

 

RX 470 my foot. He could get a GTX 1070 on his budget.

[Damascus]

1 minute ago, Aereldor said:

10% over budget, but you get an ultrawide 1440p monitor, Core i7 CPU, a GTX 1070, an MLC SSD, and a decent mechanical keyboard with a matching mouse (Amazon's bestselling Gaming mouse).

I'd drop to 1080p ultrawide, a 1070 will struggle on 1440

[Aereldor]

3 minutes ago, Damascus said:

I'd drop to 1080p ultrawide, a 1070 will struggle on 1440

 

 

 

I think it'll do fine.

[Damascus]

Just now, Aereldor said:

I think it'll do fine.

HOLY $H!T 

Thanks for showing me this, I've been told (and seen some benches) that said it took a GTX 1080 min.  This actually really affects my planned platform change

[Aereldor]

@Damascus- More 1070 ultrawide benchmarks.

 

 

[Aereldor]

Just now, Damascus said:

HOLY $H!T 

Thanks for showing me this, I've been told (and seen some benches) that said it took a GTX 1080 min.  This actually really affects my planned platform change

Eh. A GTX 1070 beats a 980 Ti and a Maxwell Titan X. I don't think games are THAT much more demanding. 

[Damascus]

Just now, Aereldor said:

Eh. A GTX 1070 beats a 980 Ti and a Maxwell Titan X. I don't think games are THAT much more demanding. 

Guess I shouldn't have looked at Deus X when I was checking, just started considering a 1440p ultrawide a couple days ago so I haven't done too much research on it.  Thanks again for the info.

[PowerHungryBlaze]

Thanks for the help everyone. I knew I didn't know everything but dang was there a lot of room for improvement; thanks for opening my eyes

[PowerHungryBlaze]

2 hours ago, Aereldor said:

10% over budget, but you get an ultrawide 1440p monitor, Core i7 CPU, a GTX 1070, an MLC SSD, and a decent mechanical keyboard with a matching mouse (Amazon's bestselling Gaming mouse).

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($292.49 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: Asus H110M-E/M.2 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($46.98 @ Newegg) 
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($52.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($48.98 @ NCIX US) 
Storage: Western Digital RE3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($43.96 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Mini Video Card  ($334.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: Xion XON-310_BK MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($22.99 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($48.89 @ Newegg) 
Monitor: AOC U3477PQU 34.0" 3440x1440 60Hz Monitor  ($499.98 @ Amazon) 
Keyboard: Redragon K552 Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($34.99 @ Amazon) 
Mouse: Redragon Centrophorus M601 Wired Optical Mouse  ($13.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $1441.23
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-09 17:55 EDT-0400

 

Updated my build following this list and downgraded a few things I felt I didn't really need.

Video Card: Changed to a EVGA GTX 1060 3GB SC

CPU: Changed to an i5 6500

Monitor: Might upgrade to something nicer later but I'll stick with a normal 110$ BenQ monitor for now

Keyboard: Corsair k95. Can't change my mind on this one, I plan on typing a lot and can't live without cherry mx red switches and all those macro keys

 

Also, can you tell me why I should get ups instead of a surge protector? I never owned a desktop so I'm not familiar with this

 

[Herman Mcpootis]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($294.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: Asus H110M-E/M.2 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($46.98 @ Newegg) 
Memory: Patriot Viper Elite 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory  ($97.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: SK hynix SL308 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($78.88 @ OutletPC) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($48.49 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Mini Video Card  ($334.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: DIYPC DIY-J21-W ATX Mid Tower Case  ($44.97 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($48.89 @ Newegg) 
Wireless Network Adapter: Gigabyte GC-WB867D-I REV 4.2 PCI-Express x1 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi Adapter  ($29.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Monitor: Acer GN246HL 24.0" 1920x1080 144Hz Monitor  ($182.99 @ Best Buy) 
Keyboard: EagleTec KG010 Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($40.99 @ Amazon) 
Mouse: Thermaltake TALON Wired Optical Mouse  ($18.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $1269.14
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-09 20:59 EDT-0400

[Aereldor]

10 hours ago, herman mcpootis said:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($294.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: Asus H110M-E/M.2 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($46.98 @ Newegg) 
Memory: Patriot Viper Elite 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory  ($97.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: SK hynix SL308 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($78.88 @ OutletPC) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($48.49 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Mini Video Card  ($334.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: DIYPC DIY-J21-W ATX Mid Tower Case  ($44.97 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($48.89 @ Newegg) 
Wireless Network Adapter: Gigabyte GC-WB867D-I REV 4.2 PCI-Express x1 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi Adapter  ($29.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Monitor: Acer GN246HL 24.0" 1920x1080 144Hz Monitor  ($182.99 @ Best Buy) 
Keyboard: EagleTec KG010 Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($40.99 @ Amazon) 
Mouse: Thermaltake TALON Wired Optical Mouse  ($18.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $1269.14
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-09 20:59 EDT-0400

No use, OP is discarding the high-end CPUs, GPUs, and monitors from the build.

[Aereldor]

11 hours ago, PowerHungryBlaze said:

 

Updated my build following this list and downgraded a few things I felt I didn't really need.

Video Card: Changed to a EVGA GTX 1060 3GB SC

CPU: Changed to an i5 6500

Monitor: Might upgrade to something nicer later but I'll stick with a normal 110$ BenQ monitor for now

Keyboard: Corsair k95. Can't change my mind on this one, I plan on typing a lot and can't live without cherry mx red switches and all those macro keys

 

Also, can you tell me why I should get ups instead of a surge protector? I never owned a desktop so I'm not familiar with this

 

UPS= uninterupptible power supply. It's like a laptop battery, but for a desktop. If the power goes out, the UPS switches to its battery without being interrupted, and your computer isn't shut down. Most UPSes can detect abnormalities in the power off the wall, so if there's an abnormality (a surge), they cut it off. Unless your whole house is on some kind of completely uninterruptible backup power, then a UPS is essential, or you're basically pulling out the plug every time the power goes out.

 

If you can afford better, why not get better? My build is only 10% over your budget, so if you save up a little more, you won't have any problem affording it. You could also switch to Ryzen 5 and some 3200MHz memory, I suppose.

 

The 1060 3GB isn't a good card, and is an enormous downgrade from my build. The ultrawide monitor does make for a far more immersive gaming experience, and provides an advantage in MOBAs and RTS games with increased screen coverage. I think you'd be remiss to ignore the benefits.