Gaming Build Advice

[dsouza_alroy]

I would appreciate it if anyone had suggestions on gaming and somewhat productivity(Premiere Pro) build for under £650.This is excluding peripherals.

[ChalkChalkson]

since you used pounds I assume you live in the UK

Do you have a strong preference towards new parts, or a used ones ok? 

How about your periferals, do you have a freesync monitor, or consider going with adaptive refreshrate in the future?

How intense do you use Premiere Pro? Do you use (I think they are in Aftereffects) tools like camera tracking/stabilization?

Is your workflow highly CPU dependent, or are you using GPU accelerated codecs?

What games are you going to play? More on the AAA side (Assassin's Creed, GTA V, CoD etc) or more focused on strategy-style games with simpler visuals and intense calculations (Cities Skylines, EU4/HOI4..) or are you mostly playing E-Sports titles?

Are you recording/streaming/rendering while you are gaming?

 

I hope to hear from you, since this information is needed to give you the best advise possible

[dsouza_alroy]

Just now, ChalkChalkson said:

since you used pounds I assume you live in the UK

Do you have a strong preference towards new parts, or a used ones ok? 

How about your periferals, do you have a freesync monitor, or consider going with adaptive refreshrate in the future?

How intense do you use Premiere Pro? Do you use (I think they are in Aftereffects) tools like camera tracking/stabilization?

Is your workflow highly CPU dependent, or are you using GPU accelerated codecs?

What games are you going to play? More on the AAA side (Assassin's Creed, GTA V, CoD etc) or more focused on strategy-style games with simpler visuals and intense calculations (Cities Skylines, EU4/HOI4..) or are you mostly playing E-Sports titles?

Are you recording/streaming/rendering while you are gaming?

 

I hope to hear from you, since this information is needed to give you the best advise possible

New parts would be a preference as in my opinion it is still relatively hard to find used parts.I also will be using light editing.Maybe  light use of aftereffects wouldn't mind if the render times are longer on that as long as it is usable.Mostly AAA games.I am not to informed about the codecs .I am buying everything new(First Build...EXCITED!!!) So I will buy the monitor separately not in the budget.I will also be recording however  I am fine with tuning down game settings for recordings.Thanks for helping me as the budget is kinda of an issue to squeeze out as much performance as i possibly can with a low budget .

[ChalkChalkson]

So with this list you can go with pretty much no big compromises, semi modular PSU, case with room for cables, a 240GB SSD, a quadcore and a fairly decent videocard.

I know that this is slightly over budged but I would not recommend stepping down even further on any of the components.

If you need more storage right now and can't salvage a harddrive from an old PC, or wait until you can afford one, you can switch the SSD out for a cheap 1TB HDD from Seagate or WD no problem. Note however that this will slow your daily experience down significantly

[Mr.Meerkat]

What I'd recommend  

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  (£209.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock AB350M-HDV Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£65.79 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: Corsair ValueSelect 16GB (1 x 16GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  (£108.15 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£41.95 @ Amazon UK) 
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 480 8GB ARMOR 8G OC Video Card  (£199.98 @ Novatech) 
Case: Zalman ZM-T3 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  (£25.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: Corsair CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  (£49.97 @ Ebuyer) 
Total: £701.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-22 22:51 BST+0100

 

It's 50 overbudget but its worth it IMO  

Else get a 4GB rx480  

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  (£209.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock AB350M-HDV Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£65.79 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: Corsair ValueSelect 16GB (1 x 16GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  (£108.15 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£41.95 @ Amazon UK) 
Video Card: Asus Radeon RX 480 4GB Dual Video Card  (£177.23 @ BT Shop) 
Case: Zalman ZM-T3 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  (£25.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: Corsair CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  (£49.97 @ Ebuyer) 
Total: £679.07
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-22 22:59 BST+0100

[ChalkChalkson]

15 minutes ago, Mr.Meerkat said:

What I'd recommend  

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  (£209.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock AB350M-HDV Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£65.79 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: Corsair ValueSelect 16GB (1 x 16GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  (£108.15 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£41.95 @ Amazon UK) 
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 480 8GB ARMOR 8G OC Video Card  (£199.98 @ Novatech) 
Case: Zalman ZM-T3 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  (£25.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: Corsair CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  (£49.97 @ Ebuyer) 
Total: £701.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-22 22:51 BST+0100

 

It's 50 overbudget but its worth it IMO  

Else get a 4GB rx480  

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  (£209.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock AB350M-HDV Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£65.79 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: Corsair ValueSelect 16GB (1 x 16GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  (£108.15 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£41.95 @ Amazon UK) 
Video Card: Asus Radeon RX 480 4GB Dual Video Card  (£177.23 @ BT Shop) 
Case: Zalman ZM-T3 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  (£25.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: Corsair CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  (£49.97 @ Ebuyer) 
Total: £679.07
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-22 22:59 BST+0100

I am not sure if the 1600 is worth the extra 50 bucks compared to a simple i5

[Mr.Meerkat]

2 minutes ago, ChalkChalkson said:

I am not sure if the 1600 is worth the extra 50 bucks compared to a simple i5

Hmmmm...1.5x more cores and 3x more threads...I'm sure premiere will love it  

[ChalkChalkson]

1 minute ago, Mr.Meerkat said:

Hmmmm...1.5x more cores and 3x more threads...I'm sure premiere will love it  

Premier will probably like it, and it is sure as hell a better CPU, the question is, if OP can afford it and/or how much other cut offs will be need to afford it. I can't answer that. 

If OP can afford it without huge problems he should go with it. But if this is a strict budged that can't be stretched too much, an i5 is still a good option, since it is the cheapest quadcore atm

[Mr.Meerkat]

4 minutes ago, ChalkChalkson said:

Premier will probably like it, and it is sure as hell a better CPU, the question is, if OP can afford it and/or how much other cut offs will be need to afford it. I can't answer that. 

If OP can afford it without huge problems he should go with it. But if this is a strict budged that can't be stretched too much, an i5 is still a good option, since it is the cheapest quadcore atm

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  (£209.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock AB350M-HDV Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£65.79 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  (£83.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£41.95 @ Amazon UK) 
Video Card: Asus Radeon RX 480 4GB Dual Video Card  (£177.23 @ BT Shop) 
Case: Zalman ZM-T3 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  (£25.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: XFX TS 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  (£38.74 @ More Computers) 
Total: £643.68
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-22 23:26 BST+0100

 

Izi pizi  

 

edit: Here the same build but with a nicer case...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  (£209.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock AB350M-HDV Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£65.79 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  (£83.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£41.95 @ Amazon UK) 
Video Card: Asus Radeon RX 480 4GB Dual Video Card  (£177.23 @ BT Shop) 
Case: Thermaltake Versa H15 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  (£34.98 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: XFX TS 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  (£38.74 @ More Computers) 
Total: £652.67
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-22 23:28 BST+0100

[ChalkChalkson]

This is a weird one to select as "best answer"  

[ChalkChalkson]

Just now, Mr.Meerkat said:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  (£209.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock AB350M-HDV Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£65.79 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  (£83.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£41.95 @ Amazon UK) 
Video Card: Asus Radeon RX 480 4GB Dual Video Card  (£177.23 @ BT Shop) 
Case: Zalman ZM-T3 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  (£25.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: XFX TS 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  (£38.74 @ More Computers) 
Total: £643.68
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-22 23:26 BST+0100

 

Izi pizi  

 

edit: Here the same build but with a nicer case...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  (£209.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock AB350M-HDV Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£65.79 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  (£83.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£41.95 @ Amazon UK) 
Video Card: Asus Radeon RX 480 4GB Dual Video Card  (£177.23 @ BT Shop) 
Case: Thermaltake Versa H15 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  (£34.98 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: XFX TS 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  (£38.74 @ More Computers) 
Total: £652.67
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-04-22 23:28 BST+0100

I have no experience with the XFX PSU, I know that their GPUs are decent, but if the PSU is scetchy in any way I would stay away from it, since a poorly made PSU is actually physically hazardous.

I would also go the extra mile and get an SSD in there if at all possible

[Mr.Meerkat]

11 hours ago, ChalkChalkson said:

I have no experience with the XFX PSU, I know that their GPUs are decent, but if the PSU is scetchy in any way I would stay away from it, since a poorly made PSU is actually physically hazardous.

Hmmmm...well there's this saying in the PSU world "Any XFX bar the XT line" which basically means as all XFX PSUs are made by Seasonic (the XT line is designed by SS but outsourced so is kinda crap), you can bet its made with decent quality components and performs well enough. 

 

I mean seasonic after all is known to be safesonic as all units made by em are rather good...even the ones you find in prebuilts...

 

11 hours ago, ChalkChalkson said:

I would also go the extra mile and get an SSD in there if at all possible

Well 240GB is not enough for some people ya know...also, have you ever tried using a 7200RPM desktop hard drive as the OS drive with a fresh install? 

My friend who only uses his PC for gaming only has a 500GB WD blue with zero bloatware/crap on startup and can boot into windows 7 2 seconds slower than my MX100 and my ol' 850 EVO (or faster if you include posting) so...hard drives aren't that bad...assuming there's no shitty bloatware installed  

[ChalkChalkson]

On 23.4.2017 at 11:56 AM, Mr.Meerkat said:

Hmmmm...well there's this saying in the PSU world "Any XFX bar the XT line" which basically means as all XFX PSUs are made by Seasonic (the XT line is designed by SS but outsourced so is kinda crap), you can bet its made with decent quality components and performs well enough. 

 

I mean seasonic after all is known to be safesonic as all units made by em are rather good...even the ones you find in prebuilts...

 

Well 240GB is not enough for some people ya know...also, have you ever tried using a 7200RPM desktop hard drive as the OS drive with a fresh install? 

My friend who only uses his PC for gaming only has a 500GB WD blue with zero bloatware/crap on startup and can boot into windows 7 2 seconds slower than my MX100 and my ol' 850 EVO (or faster if you include posting) so...hard drives aren't that bad...assuming there's no shitty bloatware installed  

As I said, no experience with XFX, so I do not have any opinion.

As of the SSD vs HDD, yeah, boottimes are kinda ok, especially with hybrid drives, but in daily work you feel it. Believe me, I tried.

[Mr.Meerkat]

4 hours ago, ChalkChalkson said:

As of the SSD vs HDD, yeah, boottimes are kinda ok, especially with hybrid drives, but in daily work you feel it. Believe me, I tried.

I think everyone has experienced HDDs...

 

I mean my old laptop had a 90/90MBps seq read/write 2.5" 5400RPM and I got on with it fine...just