Looking for a good budget gaming build

[Guest]

Hey guys, Gathering parts lists for possible new gaming machine builds. Basically just deciding on what CPU to build around. I plan on running CFX HD 7850's, re using the one in my current rig, and buying another to match it. I am not brand partial on anything except I prefer Asus mobos. But keep in mind this is going to be a budget build, and I'm not one to spend a ton to have the fastest thing out there. I would like it to be around $900 or so for the rig, including a copy of Win 7, minus the extra GPU. Max is $1000. I will probably run my single 7850 for awhile, and then buy the second one at a later date.

I have 3 CPU's in mind at the moment, the FX 8350, the FX 9370, and I5 3570K. The 9370 made it to my list only because it comes with a liquid cooler, and I would proably be buying one for the other 2 CPU's anyways as I plan to OC, so it seems to be around the same price range if the liquid coolers are added with the others. Have also thought of the FX 6300 or 8320 to save a bit more, but not sure about the 6300 for the CFX 7850's. As far as Intel goes, the I5 CPU's are pretty much max as far a price goes. Any input and opinions are appreciated! Please, no fan boy crap. Don't care about branding, just price for performance.

 

[Guest]

Well, I bit the bullet and bought an R9 280X. I got the Sapphire Vapor-X version for $440. I decided since I am highly unlikely to ever sell the GPU, that paying a higher price for something I want isn't too bad. And Nvidia is not an option for me in most cases as I have bad luck with them compared to AMD. The card even came with a free gift of an R7 240 DDR5. Not sure what I'll ever do with that thing, but I guess another back up card doesn't hurt

Extremely impressed with this Vapor-X card! Screaming fast and I have not even been able to get it past 70 degrees, even in a burn in test. Super quiet too, fans usually run at 45% or lower under gaming load. Sapphire has definitely done their homework on cooling these beasts. As it sits right now, my system scored a P95XX on 3Dmark without even touching the GPU power settings or clock speeds. Very happy with the build! It should last me quite awhile before I'm even going to think of upgrading anything. And the best part of the whole thing is no RMAs! About as good as one could expect a first ground up build to go

 

[lunyone]

Glad to hear the good news. Sorry your price for the 280x was >$350, but that is how the market is right now (unfortunately).