$650 gaming computer

[Oddrick]

Hey guys, I've decided to finally build a gaming computer for myself. I don't have a very large budget, so I looked around and found suggestions for cheap builds that still work well. Here's what I've come up with so far. I'd love any advice on it - I don't want to start spending my money unless I know it's all going to work out well.


CPU - AMD FX-6300 FX-Series Six-Core Processor Edition
$139.99
http://www.amazon.com/AMD-FX-Series-Six-Core-Processor-FD6300WMHKBOX/dp/B009O7YORK


Motherboard - ASRock 970 EXTREME3 AM3+ AMD 970 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard
$69.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157280


Memory - Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3
$38.99
http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-240-Pin-Platforms-CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9/dp/B004CRSM4I


Graphics Card - HIS 7850 Fan 2 GB
$199.99 ($179.99 after rebate)
http://www.amazon.com/HIS-GDDR5-PCI-E-Graphics-H785F2G2M/dp/B007MJGN5I


Power Supply - ASRock 970 EXTREME3 AM3+ AMD 970 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard
$69.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157280&Tpk=asrock%20970%20extreme3


Hard Drive - Seagate Barracuda ST500DM002 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
$64.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148767


Case - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119196
$64.99 ($49.99 after rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119196


TOTAL = $648.93 ($613.93 after rebate)

 

[AssassinAzn]

I recommend using intel but thats just my preference. I would reccommend using the cpu 2500k or 3570k because you can OC. Also if you go intel you could use the mobo asrock z77 extreme 4... and use the cpu cooler: cooler master 212 evo

 

[Oddrick]

The problem I have with Intel is they're so expensive. I figure since I'm on such a low budget I should focus more on a graphics card than CPU, and not even bother trying to get overclocking functionality.

 

[Nkolodziej]

Very similarly performing build, at almost $100 less. I wouldn't recommend going AMD at any price point right now for your CPU. This build also includes an OS, not sure if you need one or not. The price on the kit for the RAM here is a steal, and you can double your hard drive for $15 less.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($109.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock H77M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: VisionTek Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Gamma Classic (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: NZXT HALE82-N 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $565.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-26 17:27 EST-0500)

Edit: Newegg actually has a great deal on the Rosewill Challenger right now, I'd recommend that instead.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153&Tpk=Rosewill%20challenger

 

[jmsellars1]

Games only tend to utilise 2-4 cores so the FX-6 isn't great for games. It would perform exactly the same as an FX-4 with the same clock speed. The 3.8Ghz FX-4 is $10 cheaper and would be ~10% faster in games. Better yet, the i3-3220 is $10 cheaper than the FX-6 as well and would have the edge over both AMD CPU's in games while consuming close to half the power.

Intel Core i3-3220
2x4GB Crucial Ballistix Sport 1600Mhz 1.5v
ASRock H77M
Sapphire HD 7870 2GB
Seagate Barracuda 500GB 7200RPM
SeaSonic S12II 430B 430W
Fractal Design Core 1000
Samsung DVD Burner

Total - $640 on Newegg

That gives you a better CPU and better GPU in a smaller package with a fantastic PSU. Case isn't exactly flashy but the performance would be great. You could drop the GPU to the HD 7850 if you would prefer a flashier case.

 

[Oddrick]

Thanks! I have a Windows 7 OS disc, so I wouldn't need that. I'm going to wait a little bit longer to see if anyone else can improve the build further.

 

[Nkolodziej]

Ahhh you've got an OS, eh? Well if $650 is the budget you can get a REALLY nice rig together at that price point especially with sales today. I'm gonna give you two options, the first one has no SSD and the second one does. Honestly, you'll probably notice a bigger difference with an SSD then going from an i3-3220 to the i5-3570 so I'd go with the second build. Be sure to order fast, before deals expire!

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($149.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB Video Card ($231.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill CHALLENGER ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: NZXT HALE82-N 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $627.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-26 18:39 EST-0500)



PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($109.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: OCZ Agility 3 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($74.99 @ Microcenter)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB Video Card ($231.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill CHALLENGER ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: NZXT HALE82-N 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $662.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-26 18:46 EST-0500)

If you want, you can opt for a 64 GB SSD but for only about $10-$15 more I'd just get a 120GB.

 

[jmsellars1]

Both of those builds are impressive for the price. I'd go for the first one, a quad core is nice and SSD's can always be added later assuming you don't mind re-installing Windows. The Sandforce based OCZ drives are pretty questionable in terms of reliability anyway.

Those prices are brilliant, I'd jump on those deals.

 

[Nkolodziej]

I'd imagine those prices went up now :/. OP can just go with the standard 7870 instead of the GHz edition for either build and probably get one below 200. There's other SSDs in that range too, I just have been using an Agility 4 for a few months with no hiccups.

 

[Nkolodziej]

I'd imagine those prices went up now :/. OP can just go with the standard 7870 instead of the GHz edition for either build and probably get one below 200. There's other SSDs in that range too, I just have been using an Agility 4 for a few months with no hiccups.

 

[jmsellars1]

Yeah the Agility 4 is Indilinx, not Sandforce. It might not suffer from the same reliability issues that some of the cheaper Sandforce drives did.

 

[steave_01]

Both of those builds are impressive for the price. I'd go for the first one, a quad core is nice and SSD's can always be added later assuming you don't mind re-installing Windows. The Sandforce based OCZ drives are pretty questionable in terms of reliability anyway.

Those prices are brilliant, I'd jump on those deals.

Most drives from OCZ have questionable QC - irrespective of the controller

 

[jmsellars1]

Yeah possibly, just saying that in addition to that, the cheaper Sandforce drives aren't exactly known for reliability.