Advice for a PC I'm putting together for a friend.

mordorrson

Reputable
Apr 8, 2014
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Title pretty much says it.

Link to the PCPartpicker page: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/XDZpmG

Any suggestions on the parts (especially the CPU cooler)? It's intended to be a fairly cheap starter that he has room to upgrade later. I tried to not limit him too much on the GPU (260X will give pretty good performance, especially when he gets another one), but I'm little bit unsure about the PSU, CPU, and CPU fan.

He said he didn't want to overclock it so I don't know if I should put an 8320 or an 6300/50 in the socket, especially with consideration for a second GPU and potential bottlenecks.

PSU just needs to be able to support the build plus another 150W for a second GPU and a little room to spare.

CPU fan just needs to be enough to cool that mini-supernova, but I'm inexperienced with that piece of tech, so I could definitely use help.

EDIT: budget of $450-$550
 
Solution
A Cooler Master 212 Evo would be plenty good enough. I changed a couple of things in order to upgrade to a 270x. You have a little left to get a better case and psu if you want.


PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/RnvXYJ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/RnvXYJ/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($74.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI Z97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($80.00 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($42.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI...

CTurbo

Pizza Monster
Moderator
You didn't give a budget, but this would be much better, and much more future proof.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/8s8GnQ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/8s8GnQ/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i3-4150 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($76.66 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport XT 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 270X 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cougar MX300 ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Mwave)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($34.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Masscool FD12038S1M3/4 107.5 CFM 120mm Fan ($8.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: Masscool FD12038S1M3/4 107.5 CFM 120mm Fan ($8.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $557.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
 

Vic 40

Titan
Ambassador
Something with 8gb's of ram and a gpu that does just a little bit worse than the r9 270X,

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4130 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor ($109.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI Z87-G41 PC Mate ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($67.67 @ Newegg)
Memory: GeIL EVO POTENZA 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($72.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.91 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 270 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card ($139.20 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair SPEC-01 RED ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-C2R-20AC-GP 69.0 CFM 120mm Fan ($5.91 @ NCIX US)
Total: $549.62
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

With this psu could he in time even go for crossfire.
 

mordorrson

Reputable
Apr 8, 2014
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Hmm, well, now I'm tempted to put a Pentium G3258 in it. I mean, if I use a Z87 then might as well, it would be a better option than an i3. He's not the most tech savvy, but I doubt he would have trouble messing around with the BIOS. That would save some money on the RAM as well
 

CTurbo

Pizza Monster
Moderator
Sure 8GB of RAM is better, but there is nothing wrong with starting out with 4GB. RAM is so easy to add at a later date. I'm always quick to start with just 4GB if it means getting stronger core components.


That little Pentium would be a lot of fun. I recommend the newer Z97.
 

CTurbo

Pizza Monster
Moderator
A Cooler Master 212 Evo would be plenty good enough. I changed a couple of things in order to upgrade to a 270x. You have a little left to get a better case and psu if you want.


PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/RnvXYJ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/RnvXYJ/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($74.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI Z97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($80.00 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($42.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 270X 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cougar MX300 ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Mwave)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($29.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-C2R-20AC-GP 69.0 CFM 120mm Fan ($5.91 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-C2R-20AC-GP 69.0 CFM 120mm Fan ($5.91 @ NCIX US)
Total: $524.73
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
 
Solution