Buying a pre-built PC for Gaming

[ptrickono]

Hi,

Recently I decided it is time to get my first gaming PC however I do not know much about building computers or really which PC is worth the price. I have found one PC (see attached link) and was wondering if this PC is worth the price or if I could build one with better specs for less? Or if you guys know of any other PC's that are out there please feel free to let me know, I do however have a budge of $1000!
Living in Canada.
Thank you!

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227578

 

[ptrickono]

The mobo will support Broadwell CPUs. K-series CPUs won't be able to be overclocked with a H97 motherboard though.

The mobo does not support SLI or Crossfire, but it will support single card upgrades.

Can you suggest a mobo that would allow for me to do these things? Or would that be breaking the budget?

 

[Vexillarius]

You would be breaking the budget, yes. It'd be something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($197.95 @ Vuugo)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($124.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($88.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.99 @ Canada Computers)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX Video Card ($369.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer ($18.79 @ DirectCanada)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($108.34 @ TigerDirect Canada)
Total: $1042.01
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-05 12:07 EDT-0400

 

[ptrickono]

This system has a life of about three years, where upon you will strip everything usable and start again.

The first major upgrade will be adding a SSD for OS, scratch, applications, and level-loading.

One question, how do you go about determining the life of the system? Is it based off of experience or?

 

[ptrickono]

You would be breaking the budget, yes. It'd be something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($197.95 @ Vuugo)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($124.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($88.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.99 @ Canada Computers)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX Video Card ($369.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer ($18.79 @ DirectCanada)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($108.34 @ TigerDirect Canada)
Total: $1042.01
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-05 12:07 EDT-0400

And do you think in the long run it would be worth it to break the budget a little bit for future upgrades?

 

[voyboyfan]

Yes it would be worth it

 

[Wolfshadw]

@Vexillarius - Just my personal opinion, but I think you're giving up too much in the motherboard and power supply just for the better graphics card. I ask myself this: With a $910 budget (as per the original link) or even a $1000 budget. Does the OP *REALLY* need a GTX 970? This is my first gaming system. Am I really going to miss what a $370 GTX 970 is going to give me over a $210 R9-270?

-Wolf sends

 

[Vexillarius]

You would be breaking the budget, yes. It'd be something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($197.95 @ Vuugo)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($124.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($88.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.99 @ Canada Computers)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX Video Card ($369.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer ($18.79 @ DirectCanada)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($108.34 @ TigerDirect Canada)
Total: $1042.01
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-05 12:07 EDT-0400

And do you think in the long run it would be worth it to break the budget a little bit for future upgrades?

It depends. If you don't plan on upgrading for 2-3 years it's not worth it because by that point the newest CPUs will be incompatible with this motherboard. If you plan on upgrading soon (a year from now for example) it's definitely worth it.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

The problem with your new approach is that you are planning to toss out/replace/sell off a $200 processor in the next year or two to replace it with something that can be overclocked.

At the current high rate of improvement in all areas and the likelihood that new processors will not fit in LGA1150 sockets, I would be (and am) looking at a more disposable plan. Buy what works now, with a little overhead, and be prepared for complete rebuilds every three years or so, saving what bits you can.

 

[Vexillarius]

@Vexillarius - Just my personal opinion, but I think you're giving up too much in the motherboard and power supply just for the better graphics card. I ask myself this: With a $910 budget (as per the original link) or even a $1000 budget. Does the OP *REALLY* need a GTX 970? This is my first gaming system. Am I really going to miss what a $370 GTX 970 is going to give me over a $210 R9-270?

-Wolf sends

It is pushing it, I'll give you that. I personally think it's still worth it, but I wouldn't blame anyone for going with a cheaper GPU to finance a better mobo and PSU.

EDIT: This would be more balanced:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($224.98 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($155.07 @ DirectCanada)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($88.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.99 @ Canada Computers)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 280 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($234.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($79.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer ($18.79 @ DirectCanada)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($108.34 @ TigerDirect Canada)
Total: $1004.11
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-05 12:22 EDT-0400

This way you'll also gain those upgrade options.

 

[ptrickono]

@Vexillarius - Just my personal opinion, but I think you're giving up too much in the motherboard and power supply just for the better graphics card. I ask myself this: With a $910 budget (as per the original link) or even a $1000 budget. Does the OP *REALLY* need a GTX 970? This is my first gaming system. Am I really going to miss what a $370 GTX 970 is going to give me over a $210 R9-270?

-Wolf sends

It is pushing it, I'll give you that. I personally think it's still worth it, but I wouldn't blame anyone for going with a cheaper GPU to finance a better mobo and PSU.

EDIT: This would be more balanced:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($224.98 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($155.07 @ DirectCanada)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($88.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.99 @ Canada Computers)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 280 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($234.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($79.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer ($18.79 @ DirectCanada)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($108.34 @ TigerDirect Canada)
Total: $1004.11
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-05 12:22 EDT-0400

This way you'll also gain those upgrade options.

I guess a next viable question would be if I plan on upgrading in the next 2-3 years would I actually be able to upgrade these parts or at that point would I probably need to do a full system upgrade?

 

[DonkeyOatie]

This system has a life of about three years, where upon you will strip everything usable and start again.

The first major upgrade will be adding a SSD for OS, scratch, applications, and level-loading.

One question, how do you go about determining the life of the system? Is it based off of experience or?

It's based on experience and simple realities. Go back and look at reviews/costs of computers CPU/GPUs from October 2011 and see how they handle modern games. Then compare that you with your needs and expectations.

I actually run a six year cycle, so my current machines are utterly obsolete and I have a queue of game I cannot run (except as slide shows 🙁 )

 

[Vexillarius]

@Vexillarius - Just my personal opinion, but I think you're giving up too much in the motherboard and power supply just for the better graphics card. I ask myself this: With a $910 budget (as per the original link) or even a $1000 budget. Does the OP *REALLY* need a GTX 970? This is my first gaming system. Am I really going to miss what a $370 GTX 970 is going to give me over a $210 R9-270?

-Wolf sends

It is pushing it, I'll give you that. I personally think it's still worth it, but I wouldn't blame anyone for going with a cheaper GPU to finance a better mobo and PSU.

EDIT: This would be more balanced:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($224.98 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($155.07 @ DirectCanada)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($88.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.99 @ Canada Computers)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 280 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($234.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($79.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer ($18.79 @ DirectCanada)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($108.34 @ TigerDirect Canada)
Total: $1004.11
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-05 12:22 EDT-0400

This way you'll also gain those upgrade options.

I guess a next viable question would be if I plan on upgrading in the next 2-3 years would I actually be able to upgrade these parts or at that point would I probably need to do a full system upgrade?

Well, Broadwell CPUs will be compatible (~Q2 2015, you can probably safely skip it, the 4690 is plenty) but CPUs after that will use a different socket so they won't fit in current motherboards.
At that point we'll probably switch to DDR4 too, so you'd have to upgrade to that too if you buy a new mobo.
GPUs will stay compatible for a long time and upgrading your PSU shouldn't be a problem either.
HDD and SSD upgrades will also be possible for a long time to come (even M.2 SSDs).

 

[DonkeyOatie]

So in two to three years, you will need/want to replace your CPU, motherboard, and memory. You can consider SLI for your GPU, but today it is usually recommended that you buty a 970 rather than SLI a 2011 GPU. I don't see 2017 being any different.

You HDD, SSD, monitor, and other bits can be kept.