Best PC for under $700

[ex0dusk3]

Hello, so my question is a little bit different.

I am using SOME of the parts from my PC I have now that I built and am looking into getting newer better parts.

I am using my 730W PSU into my new build.

and I also have 1x 8GB 1866MHz and 1x 4GB 1866MHz DDR3 ram that am looking into maybe moving into the new build.

Now I have some parts picked out but am wondering if what I am going to get would be the best options or if I could get something better for the price of something I have now?

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD5 R5 ($143.50)

GPU: EVGA GTX 960 SSC 4GB ($214.99)

CPU: AMD FX-8320 ($143.30)

and PHANTEKS PH-TC14PE_BL CPU cooler ($79.99)

(Total $626.64 all together (after ARCTIC MX-4 Thermal Paste as well)

Now is there anything you could think of that would be a better option to what I have already?

I am trying to stick around the $650 range.

Thanks!

 

[Forever Oleg]

Pretty much an i7-4770 paired with a 390. That Xeon is a monster for cheap (although it is locked). The mobo is solid.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($242.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($83.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 390 8GB Nitro Video Card ($309.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $636.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-21 18:12 EST-0500

 

[ex0dusk3]

Well, I like to stick with AMD brand as it's the one i've always used but I changed some things up..

Motherboard: ASUS Crosshair V Formula-Z AM3+ AMD 990FX ($211.99)
CPU: AMD FX-8350 ($179.73) (Going to overclock it a little)
CPU Cooler: Corsair Hydro Series H105 Extreme Performance ($103.99)
GPU: EVGA GeForce 970 4GB FTW ($345.22)

and use Arctic MX-4 paste

 

[Gam3r01]

Go with the intel build listed above, it is an amazing price/performance system, regardless of your likes for AMD, the performance gap is far too large.

 

[Forever Oleg]

Do not go AMD for such a high budget. You are missing out on a ton of performance the Xeon has to offer.

 

[Tradesman1]

What all are you going to be doing with the rig? With your changes it's similar to my 8370/Crosshair rig (in sig) and you'd be much better off and happier going Intel. If just wanting for email and basic computing the AMD is fine but if you want/need performance then Intel 's the way to go

 

[ex0dusk3]

Okay, so I was looking around and what about this setup for Intel, I didn't go for the xenon as I wanted something I could overclock if needed. Also, I am wanting to do more higher end gaming than what I currently have now for my $300 setup as well as mess around in Photoshop too, multi-tasking browsing.

Motherboard: MSI Gaming Z97 GAMING 5 ($150)
CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K ($229.99)
GPU: EVGA GeForce 970 4GB FTW ($345.22)


Would that be just as good as the one you guys mentioned?

Also, I know the 970 and the R9 390 are suppose to be close to each other, but is the R9 actually better?

 

[Tradesman1]

That would be a very good rig, I'd go the Asus Z97 A or Pro Gamer for a mobo (not a fan of MSI due to their poor QC) 😉

 

[Forever Oleg]

Okay, so I was looking around and what about this setup for Intel, I didn't go for the xenon as I wanted something I could overclock if needed. Also, I am wanting to do more higher end gaming than what I currently have now for my $300 setup as well as mess around in Photoshop too, multi-tasking browsing.

Motherboard: MSI Gaming Z97 GAMING 5 ($150)
CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K ($229.99)
GPU: EVGA GeForce 970 4GB FTW ($345.22)


Would that be just as good as the one you guys mentioned?

Also, I know the 970 and the R9 390 are suppose to be close to each other, but is the R9 actually better?

That's a good rig. Just like the other guy said I would go with Z97-A.

R9 390 got more VRAM and outperforms 970 at higher resolutions. I would recommend it over the 970 since the new AMD drivers came out (still not as good as NVIDIA's) so I would go with the R9 390 Nitro - solid card.

 

[ex0dusk3]

Well, my wife decided to let me spend a little bit more than that (LOL) and this is my set up. (Yes, I know that MSI isn't the greatest but this board seems to fit me)

Mobo: MSI Gaming Z170A GAMING M3 ($140 after rebate)
CPU: i5-6600K ($259.99)
GPU: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4G ($309.99 after rebate)
RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) ($84.99)
Cooler: Corsair Hydro Series™ H100i GTX ($99.99 after rebate)
PSU: EVGA 1000W Gold (129.99 after rebate)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro ($99.99)

As well as the NZXT Hue kit for $31.99 and an 240GB SSD for $77.50

Total of $1,294.42

 

[Forever Oleg]

So you are spending $100 on an expensive aftermarket cooler when you can get an R9 390X or a GTX 980 instead?

Also, Z170-A is a better board.

 

[Outlander_04]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($149.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Scythe Ashura 97.2 CFM CPU Cooler ($51.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty 970 Performance ATX AM3+/AM3 Motherboard ($76.99 @ Micro Center)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 390 8GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($274.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $540.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-25 18:08 EST-0500

Or the latest intel , and overclockble on this board

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.98 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming K4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($118.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws 4 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2800 Memory ($42.30 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 390 8GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($274.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $661.13
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-25 18:10 EST-0500

One thing i definitely would not do is invest in Haswell . Its day is done

 

[Forever Oleg]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($149.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Scythe Ashura 97.2 CFM CPU Cooler ($51.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty 970 Performance ATX AM3+/AM3 Motherboard ($76.99 @ Micro Center)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 390 8GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($274.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $540.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-25 18:08 EST-0500

Or the latest intel , and overclockble on this board

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.98 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming K4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($118.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws 4 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2800 Memory ($42.30 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 390 8GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($274.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $661.13
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-25 18:10 EST-0500

One thing i definitely would not do is invest in Haswell . Its day is done

+1 to the second build.