$1,000 Mainstream Gaming PC - Best PC Builds 2018

[train5566778]

"Papi"

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4GHz 6-Core Processor ($160.98 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI - X470 GAMING PLUS ATX AM4 Motherboard ($116.98 @ B&H)
Memory: G.Skill - Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Kingston - A400 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($43.84 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: *EVGA - GeForce GTX 1070 Ti 8GB GAMING Video Card ($409.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Deepcool - DUKASE WHV2 ATX Mid Tower Case ($36.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $993.75
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-15 13:51 EDT-0400

 

[mikevout]

Home Draft

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600X 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($215.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte - B450 AORUS PRO WIFI (rev. 1.0) ATX AM4 Motherboard ($113.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital - Blue 500GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate - BarraCuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte - Radeon RX 580 8GB Gaming 8G Video Card ($254.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair - 100R ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair - CX (2017) 750W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Base Total: $985.92
Mail-in Rebates: -$40.00
Shipping: $8.98
Total: $954.90
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-15 16:18 EDT-0400

 

[xnivx01]

"Smol Power"

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4GHz 6-Core Processor ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock - B450M PRO4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($69.71 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($116.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Kingston - A1000 240GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($56.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Turbo OC Video Card ($449.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($36.42 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair - TXM Gold 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($43.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $979.06
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-16 12:47 EDT-0400

 

[TechyInAZ]

No Compromises:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4GHz 6-Core Processor ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus - Prime X470-Pro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($158.64 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($86.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire - Radeon RX 580 8GB NITRO+ Video Card ($274.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT - H500 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Gold 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.90 @ Amazon)
Total: $990.67
Minus Shipping: $13.98
Base Total: $1004.65
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-18 11:53 EDT-0400

 

[p50b350]

Little Box

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1600X 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($179.73 @ Amazon)

CPU Cooler: Corsair - H60 (2018) 57.2 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($59.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte - GA-AB350M-DS3H Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot - Viper LED 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($176.50 @ B&H)
Storage: Intel - 545s 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($89.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PNY - GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB XLR8 Gaming OC Video Card ($299.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Thermaltake - Core V21 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($62.43 @ Walmart)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 550W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($38.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $977.40

Base Total: $1003.41
Shipping: $3.99
Total: $977.40

 

[suau]

The Peasant Punisher

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8400 2.8GHz 6-Core Processor ($197.49 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte - H310M S2H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($54.38 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($71.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: ADATA - XPG SX6000 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Hitachi - Ultrastar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($40.95 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce RTX 2070 8GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($499.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Rosewill - RANGER-M MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($19.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 550W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Wireless Network Adapter: Belkin - F9L1002 USB 2.0 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi Adapter ($6.99 @ Amazon)
Base Total: $991.77
Shipping: $4.98
Total: $996.75

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-21 05:07 EDT-0400

 

[dogzilla07]

Gaming Mk.2

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600X 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($209.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Deepcool - GAMMAXX 300 R 40.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($19.37 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte - B450M DS3H Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team - Dark 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($125.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Inland - 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($62.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Mini ITX Video Card ($439.98 @ Newegg)
Case: DIYPC - MA08-BK MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($26.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair - CX (2017) 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $995.28
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-21 18:31 EDT-0400

$995.28 - $5.98(shipping) +$10(motherboard sale) = $999.30

The memory used for this build is 3000MHz instead of 3200MHz, because that allows the incredible GAMMAXX 300R to be fitted into the budget which will bring a bigger boost in fps than the memory speed would.

The aftermarket CPU cooler will allow the 2600x to boost higher on stock than it would with its wraith spire cooler.
Although the VRM solution for the motherboard won't allow the 2600x to go to 4.2-4.25Ghz, it will boost in the 4.05-4.15GHz due to CPU cooler.

 

[tejayd]

Foresight

I was up in the air between an i5 8400/1080 or r5 2600/2070 for the best combo for this build. But I figured, if I was building it for myself Im taking the 2070 all day. It looks like the 2070 beats the 1080 fairly well in gaming benchmarks. As the i5 8400 does vs the 2600. Even if the combos are a close tie, I would take the insurance of the ray tracing incase I get into a game that takes advantage of it later on. Also at this budget I think an ssd and 16gb ddr4 is a must.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4GHz 6-Core Processor ($160.98 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI - B450M PRO-M2 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($64.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Kingston - A400 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 320GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($19.15 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce RTX 2070 8GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($499.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($47.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair - CX (2017) 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1008.06
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-21 21:20 EDT-0400


1008.06
-7.99 shipping on the case
-0.99 shipping on the (edit: *cpu)

Grand total 999.08

I could have done a little better. But wasn't sure how sales worked. So to be safe I just skipped them all. I didn't think they were ok to use for this. But I have noticed many people have been using them.

 

[feboi]

G-Cracker
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4GHz 6-Core Processor ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI - B450M BAZOOKA Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: ADATA - XPG SX8200 480GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital - AV-GP 2TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1070 Ti 8GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($359.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterBox Lite 3.1 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($30.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - EVO Edition 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($41.05 @ Newegg)
Total: $946.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-22 19:11 EDT-0400

Base Total $994.99

 

[sagematt]

Build name: 1780

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 7 1700 3GHz 8-Core Processor ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte - B450M DS3H Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Team - Dark 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($125.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial - BX500 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Hitachi - Ultrastar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($40.95 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Turbo OC Video Card ($449.99 @ Newegg)
Case: DIYPC - MA08-BK MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($26.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA - BQ 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $998.87
Minus shipping: -$0.99
Base total: $997.88
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-23 02:29 EDT-0400

Summary:
The goal: Build a capable 1440p/4K box leveraging the great prices on GTX 1080.
The surprise: How disgustingly discounted a Ryzen 7 1700 is going for.

Breakdown:
At higher resolutions the graphics card is more of a bottleneck than the CPU. This makes the absurdly cheap Ryzen 7 1700 perfectly serviceable for our goal. A speedy 256 GB gives enough space for the OS plus your most played games, and 1 extra TB as a spinning HDD will keep the rest of your gaming library. The case is also spacious and with great ventilation, and while it only fits a single 3.5" drive, has enough space to fit 2 SATA SSDs. Took me a while to get the price just right with list prices, but I was able to

 

[Herman Mcpootis]

"I can do everything"
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 7 1700 3GHz 8-Core Processor ($179.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master - Hyper 212X 82.9 CFM CPU Cooler ($24.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI - B450-A PRO ATX AM4 Motherboard ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill - Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: MyDigitalSSD - BP5e Slim 7 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Hitachi - Deskstar 7K2000 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Mini ITX Video Card ($439.98 @ Newegg)
Case: DIYPC - DIY-BG01 ATX Mid Tower Case ($35.96 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair - CX (2017) 450W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1010.87
Minus Shipping: $10.98
Base Total: $999.89
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-23 08:43 EDT-0400

 

[beavisbg]

"Monster 1000"

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i3-8350K 4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master - Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI - Z370-A PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($103.95 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Kingston - A400 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($40.99 @ Newegg Business)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($45.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1070 Ti 8GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($389.99 @ Newegg Business)
Case: Raidmax - Ninja II ATX Mid Tower Case ($25.98 @ Newegg Business)
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Base Total: $999.88
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-10-24 04:57 EDT-0400