Budget build to top budget builds!

[Tzari]

Hi guys!

I have a friend who has asked me to buy/build them a PC for their partners Birthday.
All in they are looking to spend 400 quid. That is for everything inc the monitor. And they want to "game" on it. So this is a challenge.

A few years ago I'd have probably been fine with doing this, but I've been out the loop lately.
For a possible head start, I have an oldish server PC in storage with the following specs

-Fractal Design Node 304 Mini ITX case
-Gigabyte GA-Z77N-WIFI Socket 1155 DVI Dual HDMI 7.1 Channel Audio Mini-ITX
-Intel Pentium G2020 2.90GHz Socket 1155 3MB L3 Cache
-Kingston 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz HyperX Genesis XMP Memory Kit CL9 1.65V XMP
-Corsair CXM 430W Semi Modular 80+ Bronze Power Supply

And this time next week I should have a spare GTX 550ti, and I think I have a hyper 212 evo cooler somewhere, if that fits is another question.

In theory this should all go together, the PSU is just enough for the 550, not ideal but it will work.
The next issue is the CPU. Would that be enough for any kind of gaming? Skyrim / Total war

I also understand that mini ITX cases arn't so great for gaming due to heat, but yeah.... 😀

What do you guys think?
Thanks in advance.

Tzari

 

[scuzzycard]

Skyrim and Total War should run fine on that system. Newer titles would have to be run on low to medium settings.

 

[NextGear]

The quid currency? Does that still exist?

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

I would at least get a decent PSU for it , Corsair CX450M.

 

[LilZpai]

I'd go with this
http://pcpartpicker.com/list/rR3bLD

You can go to Jayztwocent's channel and see the benchmarks, should run smoother than the build you picked out

 

[Jester Maroc]

Gaming with a G2020 is not great. I used a PC with a G2030 for about 2 weeks while I was away from home, and still tried to get my Dota2 gaming sessions in! It caused some serious lag during all team fights. I would recommend getting a used i3 or i5 as a upgrade.

It only had a gt240, so not a great GPU by any stretch of the imagination. The CPU was running at 90-100% all the time, with the GPU fluctuating between 60-90%. It was on a 1600x900 display.

 

[Tzari]

I would at least get a decent PSU for it , Corsair CX450M.

I'll look into that thanks.

I'd go with this
http://pcpartpicker.com/list/rR3bLD

You can go to Jayztwocent's channel and see the benchmarks, should run smoother than the build you picked out

Appreciate the reply, I'll take a look at UK prices and see how it fairs to what I have.

Gaming with a G2030 is not great. I used a PC with a G2030 for about 2 weeks while I was away from home, and still tried to get my Dota2 gaming sessions in! It caused some serious lag during all team fights. I would recommend getting a used i3 or i5 as a upgrade.

I figured it might be an issue. I'm not an Intel user, so would a i5-2440 (£60 on the bay) Processor be classed as a cost effective upgrade?

 

[Jester Maroc]

Yes, an i5-2440 would be a great CPU for your build.