Advice Please: PC Gaming Build $600-$800 compared to my current $1000 range build

[Pure Michigan]

Hey everyone. I currently have what I would personally consider a "higher end/budget" build for about $1000: http://pcpartpicker.com/user/WiggyWigster/saved/D68zK8. This build is above $1000 due to the monitor+keyboard etc but just check out the PC parts.

I was interested to find out whether there were any builds people could think of around $600-$800 that would play AAA games like Dragon Age Inquisition, Call of Duty, Fary Cry 4 and the upcoming Witcher 3 at 1080p and 60FPS+. I do not want to overclock or SLI GPUs

Please let me know any thoughts you have or if I am best suited to stick with this current build!

 

[Jeff Baffalo]

http://pcpartpicker.com/user/ll36oNoSkOpEll/saved/6qmQzy

 

[logainofhades]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($168.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B85M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($55.98 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Hitachi Ultrastar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.00 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX 2.0 Video Card ($334.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Enermax ECA3253-BW ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Directron)
Power Supply: EVGA 600B 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($14.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $767.90
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-09 18:18 EST-0500

 

[Pure Michigan]

Thanks Jeff and Logain, quick question for you two, any reason why Jeff's build has a CPU cooler and Logain's does not? In the current build I have (http://pcpartpicker.com/user/WiggyWigster/saved/D68zK8) my set up seems similar to the CPU and GPU but I don't think I need extra fans because of the case. Is this why you included the cooler Jeff? Just curious, thank you!

 

[Jeff Baffalo]

I added a cooler because I wanted the cpu to be cool and quiet, unlike the stock cooler. You can run the stock cooler but I would just spend the extra $15 bucks.

 

[logainofhades]

For a locked i5, the stock cooler is sufficient. Nothing wrong with adding a better cooling solution to it though.

 

[Jellypickaxe]

If you want to make it cost less just remove the ssd and go for a cheaper graphics card, like an MSI GTX 760 4gb or an R9 280 or 280x. But just remember for 1 monitor at 1080p 4gb vram is unneeded.