g3258 smaller form factor budget gaming PC <$600

[tom_dobro]

Ok so I was going to build a super sick black and white build with the MSI Krait board, had all my parts picked out and stuff. I was going to start with the g3258 and learn how to OC. Never done it before and it's a kickin option from what I can see, especially at that price point. I can afford to melt it. I was then going to upgrade to a Broadwell (4690k equivalent) coz it could go in my awesome Krait mobo and hopefully take my still functioning g3258 and turn it into a little htpc/storage pc. THEN, I found out about the seriously silly lifespan of the Broadwell series. By the time I was ready to upgrade Skylake would've been knocking on the door, if not out, and a little while longer for the Cannonlakes which is what I want to upgrade to along with the the GTX 970 card of that time period. So now I need a new mobo that can take a g3258 being OC'd and like an r9 270x/280x being sorta OC'd maybe, but also be quite cheap. The cheaper the better. I just want something that can handle some tinkering and play games at xbox one/PS4 levels. Preferably also in a smaller form factor, mATX, even ITX; I know that would be more expensive but i'm willing to spend a little more to keep it small, so case help would be nice, too. Here's what I have in mind so far:


mobo: cheap and OC friendly, like a H81 or smth - <$75 (am I dreaming if i'm hoping for ITX at that price)

CPU: g3258 Anniversary - <$65

RAM: 8gb(2*4gb) 1600MHz Corsair Vengeance LP white 1.35v. Willing to go for something cheaper now as I don't need it to match my build. <$80

GPU: r9 270x/280x (depends what I can get a 280x over here in China for, they're quite cheap here. Is it worth the extra money to go from 270x to 280x? If it is noticeable then I'll do it as I'll be playing this for a year) r9 270x for about <$120 and the 280x for <$160

SDD: Crucial MX100 256gb <$100

PSU: I was going to get a larger capacity one but I figure now I should just go with a low capcity - open to suggestions - <$50

Case: Unassuming, smaller the better, <$50

Cooler: Stock for now, just while I'm learning.


Ok so I think I've covered most stuff... The plan is to after a while (when I can OC a bit) get a half decent liquid cooler that will move into the new skylake when I won't use this one for games anymore(plus I'll have been able to save some money, it's nice to be able to spread payment out) - that is if the current coolers will fit on the Skylakes? I'll also add in a couple TB HDD. So yeh, any suggestions on complete builds would be great. I'm really not to fussed about performance or aesthetics beyond a plain case on this. Bonus points if you can colour code it.

Thanks a bunch guys. I look forward to seeing what you got.

 

[geofelt]

If you wait for the next best thing, you will wait forever.
Buy what you need now...now.

I like your plan.
But, I think I would spend a bit more on a Z97 motherboard which will give you future cpu options.
Also, the R9 cards are power hungry, you are looking at a 600w psu for a R9-280X.
I do think a quality psu like Seasonic is a long term buy in the 620-750w range.
Today, I like the Maxwell nvidia cards better, the GTX750ti and GTX760 look good to me.

Love those small ITX gamers. I am using a lian li, Q08, perhaps they are cheap in china.
In the us, cm makes a compact itx case for not much.

 

[tom_dobro]

If you wait for the next best thing, you will wait forever.
Buy what you need now...now.

I like your plan.
But, I think I would spend a bit more on a Z97 motherboard which will give you future cpu options.
Also, the R9 cards are power hungry, you are looking at a 600w psu for a R9-280X.
I do think a quality psu like Seasonic is a long term buy in the 620-750w range.
Today, I like the Maxwell nvidia cards better, the GTX750ti and GTX760 look good to me.

Love those small ITX gamers. I am using a lian li, Q08, perhaps they are cheap in china.
In the us, cm makes a compact itx case for not much.

Wow, that is a big power draw for those cards. Damn, looking on Newegg now and they're recommending 750W! This machine does not need to be future proof. I don't want to shell out for Broadwell chips when Skylake is out, what with Skylake supposedly shaking things up in a big way. I'd rather just be a little more careful with my money over the next few months and set a little extra aside and go for a proper canonlake or whatevs so minimising costs on mobo right now. That case is cool but like $100 here. Where would you say the gtx's fit in comparison to the r9's performance wise? Also, what about the GTX 960, it's at the same price point as the 760? Nvidia cards seem to be about $50 more expensive here than in america and the AMDs like $50 cheaper so I'm gona be saving like >$100. I think I'm going to stick with AMD, plus I was reading up a little and apparently you can get away with a 500w PSU for those. Can pick up some decent super flower and NZXT modulars here for like $50-60. So yeah, my biggest concern is a mobo. I don't need z97 tho.

 

[geofelt]

actually, I mistyped, I meant I like the GTS960, not the 760.
In the US, you get fair value for your money with either nvidia or amd at any midrange price point.
If you play a specific game exclusively, look at benchmarks. Otherwise Take your pick. I think the amd cards are a bit behind and dated as evidenced by the high power draw which is necessary to overclock the cards to get good performance.
There are fans in both camps, but my sense is that most like the nvidia drivers better.