$600 to $700 Australian gaming pc

[Australian Gamer]

I'm building my first gaming pc very soon but im having trouble choosing my parts so i would like help for a $600 to $700 gaming pc with as much performance as possible.

 

[Icaraeus]

Do you need an OS, monitor, mouse or keyboard? Do you prefer Intel or AMD for CPUs? AMD or Nvidia for graphics cards? Do you intend to store a large amount of files on your computer? What resolution would you like to play games at (720p or 1080p)?

 

[plywrlw]

This is the best I can do at that budget. You could upgrade to an i5 or i7 in the future.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4130 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor ($109.00 @ Storm Computers)
Motherboard: ASRock H81M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($63.00 @ CPL Online)
Memory: GeIL EVO Veloce Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($99.00 @ PLE Computers)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($67.00 @ CPL Online)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 270X 2GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($219.00 @ CPL Online)
Case: BitFenix Comrade ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($75.00 @ CPL Online)
Total: $681.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-09 00:08 EST+1100

 

[Icaraeus]

^ That works if he has an OS, monitor, mouse/keyboard, otherwise it'd need to be changed. I would personally switch to G Skill Ares DDR3-1600mhz 8GB as it's the same price.

 

[robax91]

Wow. Prices down under sure are harsh. You have my condolences friend. Anyhow, here is what I came up with. Red theme (for astetics and AMD build) for no real reason. Other builds might swap CPU, mobo, and GPU, but the other parts are pretty well balanced.

http://au.pcpartpicker.com/p/swW2ZL

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($129.00 @ CPL Online)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($99.00 @ CPL Online)
Memory: Kingston Fury Red Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($99.00 @ Centre Com)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($67.00 @ CPL Online)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R7 265 2GB Video Card ($169.00 @ CPL Online)
Case: Silverstone RL01B-W-USB 3.0 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($53.00 @ CPL Online)
Power Supply: Silverstone Strider Essential 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($79.00 @ CPL Online)
Total: $695.00

 

[KalTorak]

If you need an OS and monitor + keyboard and mouse you need more money really. The graphics could drop down a bit, as could the HDD, but that really is a tough budget to build to.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($84.00 @ IJK)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Memory: G.Skill Value 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($89.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($67.00 @ CPL Online)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 270X 2GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($219.00 @ Scorptec)
Case: BitFenix Comrade ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($75.00 @ CPL Online)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($19.00 @ CPL Online)
Total: $701.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-09 00:24 EST+1100

 

[Icaraeus]

The first build is faster and has better upgradability. The Intel Core i3 is just as good or even better than an FX 6300. All the parts chosen in the first build are higher quality. Yeah, prices are quite harsh. My PC cost $1192 when I got it and I didn't pay for OS, 32 inch monitor, keyboard/mouse and RAM.

 

[plywrlw]

^ That works if he has an OS, monitor, mouse/keyboard, otherwise it'd need to be changed. I would personally switch to G Skill Ares DDR3-1600mhz 8GB as it's the same price.

It's slightly more expensive and as they're not overclocking, there's no point going for one RAM stick over another. I've had zero issues with GeIL RAM in the past and it's 1600Mhz, 1.5V CL9 which is the same as the G-Skill Ares

 

[Australian Gamer]

Thanks for all the answers guys but i heard recently that AMD is releasing their r9 300's series pretty soon so should i build right now or wait until the 300's come out?

 

[KalTorak]

The faster 300 series cards will likely be out of your budget, I would build now for what you can afford.

 

[Icaraeus]

The affordable R9 370X would cost between $200-250. The 380X would be between $350-450 and the 390X would be $650-800. The 370X would be on par with the 280X or maybe 290.

 

[Australian Gamer]

wouldn't the prices drop for the 200's series?

 

[plywrlw]

The GTX 960 is probably going to be more in your price range. It should be out soon and might be worth waiting for but in the world of PC's there's always something new just around the corner! The prices may or may not drop depending on whether there's a lot of stock to shift. AMD might not release all the 300 series at once so you might have a long wait for the bottom-end cards

 

[KalTorak]

The GTX 960 is probably going to be more in your price range. It should be out soon and might be worth waiting for but in the world of PC's there's always something new just around the corner!

Hmm, good point about the 960. It should be about right for this budget. Yes you could wait for it, but then you wouldnt have a PC now. Its a painful loop to get stuck in.

 

[Australian Gamer]

*sigh* why does it have to be such a pain in the ass to pick parts...

 

[Icaraeus]

I'd say buy now if you have to. The higher end cards get released sooner than the lower end one.

 

[Icaraeus]

Better parts are out every few months so it's best to buy as soon as possible and get the best you can.

 

[Australian Gamer]

(referring to the first build) would the i3 bottleneck the 270x?

 

[Australian Gamer]

This is the best I can do at that budget. You could upgrade to an i5 or i7 in the future.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4130 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor ($109.00 @ Storm Computers)
Motherboard: ASRock H81M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($63.00 @ CPL Online)
Memory: GeIL EVO Veloce Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($99.00 @ PLE Computers)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($67.00 @ CPL Online)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 270X 2GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($219.00 @ CPL Online)
Case: BitFenix Comrade ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($75.00 @ CPL Online)
Total: $681.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-09 00:08 EST+1100



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can the motherboard actaully fit the gpu along inside the case and ive heard reviews about this motherboard saying its not good for gaming.

 

[KalTorak]

(referring to the first build) would the i3 bottleneck the 270x?

Nope, its a balanced system.

And the motherboard and case will happily fit the graphics card. The only reason that motherboard would be a problem is the lack of overclocking, but your cpu wont overclock so it doesnt matter.

It also only supports 16Gb of ram, but that is more than enough, with most gaming rigs only having 8Gb.