How is this build my little brother made?

[themlglaw]

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/33y2BP

The budget is $850 being max, only above is after taxes, shipping, etc.,. We live in California. I made a thread on reddit and someone suggested this build that he made over the one my brother made, https://pcpartpicker.com/list/fz7Qhq. Neither me nor my brother are computer smart, he did some research and made the build he did so some review/changes for the better would be nice. We plan to buy the parts within 2/3 days.

Also, I have amazon prime so would it matter if I purchased the parts on amazon over newegg if the prices are the same? I ask because newegg would probably take a week and up but with prime I'd get all the parts by friday.

 

[hdmark]

1- do you need windows in that budget? or are you buying that on top of the 850?
2 - what monitor will you be playing on?
3- what games will you be playing?

his build is better if youre only playing on a 1080p monitor or easier/lighter games. yours is better if youre playing some graphic intensive games at 1440p/4k. reason being, he gave you a SSD and a cheaper graphics card. If youre playing league of legends/dota/warcraft/overwatch at 1080p/1440p, the rx 480 is more than powerful enough and having a SSD would make the system feel much faster.
however, if youre playing games liek the witcher, ark, or intense games and have a higher resolution monitor, the 480 might not keep up as well and having a gtx 1070 would be beneficial
also, i do like his choice of PSU a bit better

if the prices are the same, id probably go with amazon so you ahve it faster

 

[weberdarren97]

For just gaming:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7500 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($198.69 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team Dark 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($69.99 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.33 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 480 8GB ARMOR 8G OC Video Card ($225.98 @ B&H)
Case: Deepcool TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $821.44
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-30 15:41 EST-0500

-------------------------

For gaming and streaming/recording and video editing:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($299.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($46.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Team Dark 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($69.99 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.33 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 480 4GB Video Card ($174.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Deepcool TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $844.76
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-30 15:43 EST-0500

 

[themlglaw]

1- do you need windows in that budget? or are you buying that on top of the 850?
2 - what monitor will you be playing on?
3- what games will you be playing?

his build is better if youre only playing on a 1080p monitor or easier/lighter games. yours is better if youre playing some graphic intensive games at 1440p/4k. reason being, he gave you a SSD and a cheaper graphics card. If youre playing league of legends/dota/warcraft/overwatch at 1080p/1440p, the rx 480 is more than powerful enough and having a SSD would make the system feel much faster.
however, if youre playing games liek the witcher, ark, or intense games and have a higher resolution monitor, the 480 might not keep up as well and having a gtx 1070 would be beneficial
also, i do like his choice of PSU a bit better

if the prices are the same, id probably go with amazon so you ahve it faster

1. He told me you can get windows 10 for free now? I'm not sure about if this is true or not.
2. He doesn't have a monitor yet, any suggestions? Anyway he will be playing on 1080.
3. He plays all types of games, from BF1 to League of Legends to ARMA. I basically want a build that can play any game you throw at it(except of course certain games) on high with atleast 60 FPS, if not medium with 60FPS.

I'm not sure whose build you're referring to when you say mine or his. My build is the $770, his is the $860. Why is the 500W PSU better than the 550W?

 

[themlglaw]

For just gaming:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7500 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($198.69 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team Dark 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($69.99 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.33 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 480 8GB ARMOR 8G OC Video Card ($225.98 @ B&H)
Case: Deepcool TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $821.44
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-30 15:41 EST-0500

-------------------------

For gaming and streaming/recording and video editing:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($299.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($46.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Team Dark 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($69.99 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.33 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 480 4GB Video Card ($174.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Deepcool TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $844.76
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-30 15:43 EST-0500

He doesn't stream/edit videos, but your first build goes over the budget after taxes. If we keep the 480 4GB, its at the right price after taxes.

 

[Corwin65]

No such thing as Windows for free.

 

[weberdarren97]

1- do you need windows in that budget? or are you buying that on top of the 850?
2 - what monitor will you be playing on?
3- what games will you be playing?

his build is better if youre only playing on a 1080p monitor or easier/lighter games. yours is better if youre playing some graphic intensive games at 1440p/4k. reason being, he gave you a SSD and a cheaper graphics card. If youre playing league of legends/dota/warcraft/overwatch at 1080p/1440p, the rx 480 is more than powerful enough and having a SSD would make the system feel much faster.
however, if youre playing games liek the witcher, ark, or intense games and have a higher resolution monitor, the 480 might not keep up as well and having a gtx 1070 would be beneficial
also, i do like his choice of PSU a bit better

if the prices are the same, id probably go with amazon so you ahve it faster

1. He told me you can get windows 10 for free now? I'm not sure about if this is true or not.
2. He doesn't have a monitor yet, any suggestions? Anyway he will be playing on 1080.
3. He plays all types of games, from BF1 to League of Legends to ARMA. I basically want a build that can play any game you throw at it(except of course certain games) on high with atleast 60 FPS, if not medium with 60FPS.

I'm not sure whose build you're referring to when you say mine or his. My build is the $770, his is the $860. Why is the 500W PSU better than the 550W?

1) How? If it involves piracy then I can't vouch for it personally and I'm sure moderators would not like the idea either.
2) What resolution are you aiming for? Any particular size in mind? Does this need to be included in the $850 budget?
3) Noted.
4) Power supply wattage is not the whole story, far from it. You need to take into account the quality of the unit and, if the power bill is a big deal for you, efficiency. Note that 80+ (same as 80 Plus) is an efficiency standard only and does not represent actual PSU quality in any way.

 

[weberdarren97]

As for the free Windows thing... Does he currently have an activated Windows 10 PC that he is signed into with a Microsoft Account? If he does and he doesn't plan on using it after he builds his new one, just wipe the old one (back it up first of course) and go on the new one. Go to Settings>Update and Security>Activation and hit Troubleshoot. Once in the troubleshooter, hit "I have changed hardware on this machine" and pick the old machine from the list so that the license transfers from the old machine to the new machine.

The above process only works if he already has an activated copy of Windows 10 on another machine and is logged into said other machine with a Microsoft Account. It will also result in the activation being removed from the old hardware. You can't use two machines that both use the same code unless you buy a volume license which isn't usually suitable for homes in terms of how much it costs, it's meant for large businesses.

 

[themlglaw]

1- do you need windows in that budget? or are you buying that on top of the 850?
2 - what monitor will you be playing on?
3- what games will you be playing?

his build is better if youre only playing on a 1080p monitor or easier/lighter games. yours is better if youre playing some graphic intensive games at 1440p/4k. reason being, he gave you a SSD and a cheaper graphics card. If youre playing league of legends/dota/warcraft/overwatch at 1080p/1440p, the rx 480 is more than powerful enough and having a SSD would make the system feel much faster.
however, if youre playing games liek the witcher, ark, or intense games and have a higher resolution monitor, the 480 might not keep up as well and having a gtx 1070 would be beneficial
also, i do like his choice of PSU a bit better

if the prices are the same, id probably go with amazon so you ahve it faster

1. He told me you can get windows 10 for free now? I'm not sure about if this is true or not.
2. He doesn't have a monitor yet, any suggestions? Anyway he will be playing on 1080.
3. He plays all types of games, from BF1 to League of Legends to ARMA. I basically want a build that can play any game you throw at it(except of course certain games) on high with atleast 60 FPS, if not medium with 60FPS.

I'm not sure whose build you're referring to when you say mine or his. My build is the $770, his is the $860. Why is the 500W PSU better than the 550W?

1) How? If it involves piracy then I can't vouch for it personally and I'm sure moderators would not like the idea either.
2) What resolution are you aiming for? Any particular size in mind? Does this need to be included in the $850 budget?
3) Noted.
4) Power supply wattage is not the whole story, far from it. You need to take into account the quality of the unit and, if the power bill is a big deal for you, efficiency. Note that 80+ (same as 80 Plus) is an efficiency standard only and does not represent actual PSU quality in any way.

1. I assumed he meant free legally, I'll let him know.
2. 1920x1080, and no the monitor can be separate but not above $110.

 

[weberdarren97]

1920x1080, and no the monitor can be separate but not above $110.

Compare my recommended monitors. The only major differences between these models would be the size and connectivity. Make sure to read through their specs to be sure it has the connectors you need. For example, two of them have 1 DVI and 1 VGA while one of them has 1 HDMI and 1 VGA. If you would need DVI or HDMI for any reason, that would be a large influence over which would be best for you.

 

[themlglaw]

1920x1080, and no the monitor can be separate but not above $110.

Compare my recommended monitors. The only major differences between these models would be the size and connectivity. Make sure to read through their specs to be sure it has the connectors you need. For example, two of them have 1 DVI and 1 VGA while one of them has 1 HDMI and 1 VGA. If you would need DVI or HDMI for any reason, that would be a large influence over which would be best for you.

Whats the differences between HDMI, VGA, and DVI in the most simplest way? Also, of the three which would you pick and why?

 

[weberdarren97]

1920x1080, and no the monitor can be separate but not above $110.

Compare my recommended monitors. The only major differences between these models would be the size and connectivity. Make sure to read through their specs to be sure it has the connectors you need. For example, two of them have 1 DVI and 1 VGA while one of them has 1 HDMI and 1 VGA. If you would need DVI or HDMI for any reason, that would be a large influence over which would be best for you.

Whats the differences between HDMI, VGA, and DVI in the most simplest way? Also, of the three which would you pick and why?

Old: VGA, DVI (original, legacy), HDMI (original, used on older AMD cards)

Good: DVI (dual-link, currently used), HDMI (2.0 or newer, used on modern cards from both brands). These are the ones on the screens I picked and also on your graphics card.

Best: DP. This is also on your graphics card but I didn't find any good screens with it that are within your budget.

If I had to pick a screen, I think I'd go with the LG one because it has HDMI.

 

[themlglaw]

1920x1080, and no the monitor can be separate but not above $110.

Compare my recommended monitors. The only major differences between these models would be the size and connectivity. Make sure to read through their specs to be sure it has the connectors you need. For example, two of them have 1 DVI and 1 VGA while one of them has 1 HDMI and 1 VGA. If you would need DVI or HDMI for any reason, that would be a large influence over which would be best for you.

Whats the differences between HDMI, VGA, and DVI in the most simplest way? Also, of the three which would you pick and why?

My ranking of display connections in order of worst to best:
VGA, DVI (the first one, legacy), HDMI (the old one, still used on older AMD cards), DVI (dual-link, currently used), HDMI (2.0 or newer, currently used on modern cards and screens), DP.

If I had to pick a screen, I think I'd go with the LG one because it has HDMI.

Unrelated, but I do have a HDMI port along with a DVI port on my build. I currently use the DVI, would using the HDMI show any noticeable difference in quality?

 

[weberdarren97]

1920x1080, and no the monitor can be separate but not above $110.

Compare my recommended monitors. The only major differences between these models would be the size and connectivity. Make sure to read through their specs to be sure it has the connectors you need. For example, two of them have 1 DVI and 1 VGA while one of them has 1 HDMI and 1 VGA. If you would need DVI or HDMI for any reason, that would be a large influence over which would be best for you.

Whats the differences between HDMI, VGA, and DVI in the most simplest way? Also, of the three which would you pick and why?

Old: VGA, DVI (original, legacy), HDMI (original, used on older AMD cards)

Good: DVI (dual-link, currently used), HDMI (2.0 or newer, used on modern cards from both brands). These are the ones on the screens I picked and also on your graphics card.

Best: DP. This is also on your graphics card but I didn't find any good screens with it that are within your budget.

If I had to pick a screen, I think I'd go with the LG one because it has HDMI.

Unrelated, but I do have a HDMI port along with a DVI port on my build. I currently use the DVI, would using the HDMI show any noticeable difference in quality?

DVI to HDMI would not cause a noticeable difference at 1080p. Step up to 4K and they may both struggle a bit. DP is king at 4K.

The LG screen also has the best contrast ratio, so it'll be more true to its colors in different lighting than the others will. It won't matter if you put it in a small room with a little lamp or a big room with overheat fluorescent lights, it'll stay more true to its colors than the other two will. It's also the biggest so I suggest you make sure you have the space on your desk for a 23" monitor.

 

[themlglaw]

1920x1080, and no the monitor can be separate but not above $110.

Compare my recommended monitors. The only major differences between these models would be the size and connectivity. Make sure to read through their specs to be sure it has the connectors you need. For example, two of them have 1 DVI and 1 VGA while one of them has 1 HDMI and 1 VGA. If you would need DVI or HDMI for any reason, that would be a large influence over which would be best for you.

Whats the differences between HDMI, VGA, and DVI in the most simplest way? Also, of the three which would you pick and why?

Old: VGA, DVI (original, legacy), HDMI (original, used on older AMD cards)

Good: DVI (dual-link, currently used), HDMI (2.0 or newer, used on modern cards from both brands). These are the ones on the screens I picked and also on your graphics card.

Best: DP. This is also on your graphics card but I didn't find any good screens with it that are within your budget.

If I had to pick a screen, I think I'd go with the LG one because it has HDMI.

Unrelated, but I do have a HDMI port along with a DVI port on my build. I currently use the DVI, would using the HDMI show any noticeable difference in quality?

DVI to HDMI would not cause a noticeable difference at 1080p. Step up to 4K and they may both struggle a bit. DP is king at 4K.

The LG screen also has the best contrast ratio, so it'll be more true to its colors in different lighting than the others will. It won't matter if you put it in a small room with a little lamp or a big room with overheat fluorescent lights, it'll stay more true to its colors than the other two will. It's also the biggest so I suggest you make sure you have the space on your desk for a 23" monitor.

Back to main point, your build is practically like the one I had just 8GB card instead of 4GB. The price jump is big and goes over budget, would you just recommend stay with the same build with the 480 4gb?

 

[weberdarren97]

Your build is practically like the one I had just 8GB card instead of 4GB. The price jump is big and goes over budget, would you just recommend stay with the same build with the 480 4gb?

I would switch out the SSD for the Sandisk SSD Plus because I'm not too impressed with the reviews of the one you have in your build. Other than that, your RX 480 build doesn't look too bad for the price.

 

[themlglaw]

Your build is practically like the one I had just 8GB card instead of 4GB. The price jump is big and goes over budget, would you just recommend stay with the same build with the 480 4gb?

I would switch out the SSD for the Sandisk SSD Plus because I'm not too impressed with the reviews of the one you have in your build. Other than that, your RX 480 build doesn't look too bad for the price.

Hey, so I ordered the build and should have all the parts by next Monday. Last thing we need is a monitor. My brother mentioned something about making sure the monitor had freesync, care to clarify this if you can?

 

[weberdarren97]

Your build is practically like the one I had just 8GB card instead of 4GB. The price jump is big and goes over budget, would you just recommend stay with the same build with the 480 4gb?

I would switch out the SSD for the Sandisk SSD Plus because I'm not too impressed with the reviews of the one you have in your build. Other than that, your RX 480 build doesn't look too bad for the price.

Hey, so I ordered the build and should have all the parts by next Monday. Last thing we need is a monitor. My brother mentioned something about making sure the monitor had freesync, care to clarify this if you can?

Freesync is great to have, but it's not happening in your budget. If you want a Freesync chip in your monitor, you'd have to sacrifice something else to get it into your budget. Since no companies see Freesync as being more important than the monitor being clear to see, they don't offer Freesync monitors in your budget.

If the low budget forces companies to decide between a nice, clear panel and a Freesync chip, they're going to choose the panel every time. I'm sorry to say that you're not going to get Freesync into your budget.

 

[themlglaw]

Your build is practically like the one I had just 8GB card instead of 4GB. The price jump is big and goes over budget, would you just recommend stay with the same build with the 480 4gb?

I would switch out the SSD for the Sandisk SSD Plus because I'm not too impressed with the reviews of the one you have in your build. Other than that, your RX 480 build doesn't look too bad for the price.

Hey, so I ordered the build and should have all the parts by next Monday. Last thing we need is a monitor. My brother mentioned something about making sure the monitor had freesync, care to clarify this if you can?

Freesync is great to have, but it's not happening in your budget. If you want a Freesync chip in your monitor, you'd have to sacrifice something else to get it into your budget. Since no companies see Freesync as being more important than the monitor being clear to see, they don't offer Freesync monitors in your budget.

If the low budget forces companies to decide between a nice, clear panel and a Freesync chip, they're going to choose the panel every time. I'm sorry to say that you're not going to get Freesync into your budget.

Alright. Lastly, I'm debating between these two cards;

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01K1JTT8S/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JNUO6BG/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

In the end the 1060 is $20 more so I don't mind. Which would you get? Also, I see there are Gigabyte 1060s and PNY 1060s, what are the differences?

 

[weberdarren97]

Your build is practically like the one I had just 8GB card instead of 4GB. The price jump is big and goes over budget, would you just recommend stay with the same build with the 480 4gb?

I would switch out the SSD for the Sandisk SSD Plus because I'm not too impressed with the reviews of the one you have in your build. Other than that, your RX 480 build doesn't look too bad for the price.

Hey, so I ordered the build and should have all the parts by next Monday. Last thing we need is a monitor. My brother mentioned something about making sure the monitor had freesync, care to clarify this if you can?

Freesync is great to have, but it's not happening in your budget. If you want a Freesync chip in your monitor, you'd have to sacrifice something else to get it into your budget. Since no companies see Freesync as being more important than the monitor being clear to see, they don't offer Freesync monitors in your budget.

If the low budget forces companies to decide between a nice, clear panel and a Freesync chip, they're going to choose the panel every time. I'm sorry to say that you're not going to get Freesync into your budget.

Alright. Lastly, I'm debating between these two cards;

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01K1JTT8S/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JNUO6BG/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

In the end the 1060 is $20 more so I don't mind. Which would you get? Also, I see there are Gigabyte 1060s and PNY 1060s, what are the differences?

The RX 480 and GTX 1060 (6GB) trade blows on different games so I can't really say either one is better than the other, but the Nvidia drivers are definitely more friendly than the AMD ones. As for the different brands of 1060s, a 1060 is a 1060. I've not seen Nvidia cards made by reputable companies that were worse than reference so you're good to go as long as it calls itself a GTX 1060 6GB.

Do note that the GTX 1060 3GB is significantly less powerful than the 6GB variant. The missing 3GB of VRAM is not even half of the differences between the two. Nvidia's designs for the 3GB variant also cuts back on the amount of GPU horsepower available to you since it has less CUDA cores and runs at a lower clock speed.