Help with my PC Build?

[omnipresent]

Heys,

I'm going to be building my first PC and have made this build: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/xnHCXL

I'm okay with the price I guesss...... but I would really like to get it down. However, I don't want to sacrifice power. So, could you guys give me some recommendations that will either:

a) lower the cost but keep the same performance/give better performance

or

b) increase the price just a little for better performance

The main concern I have is with the price of my PSU. I know it got a perfect score on JonnyGuru, but does that justify the cost? Anything comparable for less?

Thanks for any help!

 

[CTurbo]

It's a "good" build, but I don't feel like you're spending your money wisely.

 

[CTurbo]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($242.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($67.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial BX100 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($83.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($50.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card ($309.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair Air 240 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Antec Green 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($44.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $965.71
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-19 21:53 EDT-0400

 

[omnipresent]

It's a "good" build, but I don't feel like you're spending your money wisely.

So that's why I'm here... How DO I spend it more wisely? What are the faults that make it unwise? How could I spend my money better?

 

[CTurbo]

Compare my build to yours and see the changes I made. I felt like you were over spending in a few areas and it hurt your video card choices. I maximized costs AROUND a GTX970 and fit in in without sacrificing performance or reliability while also not spending anymore money.

 

[omnipresent]

Compare my build to yours and see the changes I made. I felt like you were over spending in a few areas and it hurt your video card choices. I maximized costs AROUND a GTX970 and fit in in without sacrificing performance or reliability while also not spending anymore money.

I see you changed the SSD and gave me a HDD. You don't think a 500gb SSD is good if I'm not planning to use any more space than that?

 

[CTurbo]

Eh it's just expensive. I got you 1.25 TB for cheaper, and you can still enjoy ssd speeds.

 

[omnipresent]

Eh it's just expensive. I got you 1.25 TB for cheaper, and you can still enjoy ssd speeds.

What do you think?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($242.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($83.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($78.89 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($159.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 390 8GB Video Card ($273.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair Air 240 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($44.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $974.71
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-20 02:32 EDT-0400

 

[CTurbo]

Everything is good but that psu. Switch it to the Antec 550w in my build above and you're good to go.

 

[omnipresent]

Everything is good but that psu. Switch it to the Antec 550w in my build above and you're good to go.

Could you give me some reason for the switch?

 

[CTurbo]

Sure. The EVGA you selected is low quality, and the Antec I selected is high quality. It's that simple.

 

[omnipresent]

Sure. The EVGA you selected is low quality, and the Antec I selected is high quality. It's that simple.

I understand you think that. But WHY do you think that? Please expand. I'm looking for this build to be a learning process in addition to a work necessity.

 

[CTurbo]

I think that the Antec is better because I know and trust the company that made it.
I think the EVGA is not good because I know the company that made it and do NOT trust it.

I know the Antec is good because I know it uses top quality capacitors, has top notch soldering, has all of the common protection features, and most importantly, performs well while also holding up over time.

I know the EVGA is NOT good because it uses 2nd and 3rd tier capacitors, has amateur soldering, does not have all of the common protection features, and does NOT hold up well over time.