Need help finding the "best bang for buck" gaming PC

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starkepatrik

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Jan 8, 2017
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Hello community!

I have been putting together (virtually mind you) many different kinds of builds (some with nvidia GPUs, some with AMD GPUs) to find out which one is going to be the best "bang for buck" build that fits in my budget. So before I decide on one of the both, I decided to ask you guys to send me some builds that:


  • Costs around 1000€ with Monitor. That would be around 920-950$ for you americans.
    Can run Battlefield 1 (the most taxing game I'm going to play) on High/Very High 1080p@60fps or Medium 1080p@144fps
    IF possible, I would like to fit a nice 144Hz 1080p monitor in there, because that's the part that I'm probably not going to upgrade soon. (Looking to upgrade CPU, GPU, RAM in the next 2-3 years)
    OPTIONALLY, the PC should also be quiet (max. 50 dB)

I also wanted to say, that for me a 500GB HDD would be good enough, because a friend of mine is going to give me his Samsung 750 EVO when he upgrades (in about 2 months) and then I can put more money in GPU,...

I know, getting spoonfed a build isn't cool, but I just want to know what all you people think would be the best build for me. (I don't think my builds are very good 😀)

Thanks!

P.S.: I don't need an OS, because I already have one ^^.
 
Solution
JackNaylorPE
1. I just don't see the cost saving as being worth not getting a K series. But yes, if you go that route, a 3rd party cooler for the 6500 is a completely wasted expense.

2.a The term "future proofing" is pretty much an oxymoron.

2.b Take the 1 stick idea and completely erase if from the realm of reasonable options. RAM is guaranteed to work ONLY with other RAM that comes in the same package.

3.a 6500 / H170 / No cooler
3.b 6600k / Z170 / No cooler

4. Techpower up said:

https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/RX_480_Gaming_X/

In my opinion, this is thus far the only RX 480 that looks like it can compete with the GTX 1060 and its custom designs ...

the [MSI 480 Gaming X] card is 4% faster than the RX 480...
Click to expand...
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Best "bang for buck" isn't likely to get you high/very high @ 1080p.......
An i3 + RX470 would be about the cheapest components that could run those games comfortably at playable settings, but won't be 60FPS High.

1000EUR including a monitor is pretty difficult.....especially 144hz, as that's ~250EUR of the budget.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7500 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (€215.44 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250M-D2V Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€74.00 @ Mindfactory)
Memory: Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory (€89.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€56.80 @ Mindfactory)
Video Card: XFX Radeon RX 480 8GB XXX OC Video Card (€254.64 @ Mindfactory)
Case: BitFenix Nova ATX Mid Tower Case (€38.92 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (€50.98 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Monitor: AOC G2460FQ 24.0" 1920x1080 144Hz Monitor (€253.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €1034.76
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-17 17:29 CET+0100

 
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1. Spoon feeding is fine.

2. The monitor would eat heavy into your build cost .

3. Knowing what country you are in would help

Three notes going forward:

A. The Z270 boards and CPUs being so new, we are still in the 1st "steppings" .... By the time mid April rolls around, CPUs will become more efficient and average POCs will climb a bit. MoBos will work out the kinks and bugs and have mature BIOSs. So at this time, I don't feel comfy just yet recommending the latest generation stuff. If you are more willing to live on the "bleeding edge", just swap out the MoBo / CPU for the Z270 version of the MoBo and 7600k CPU.

B. You could go cheaper on the MoBo / CPU but you really won't save all that much and you can eliminate that upgrade 2-3 years from now. Saving $50 just isn't worth it. Yes, you could cut just about anything in there down a notch or two to meet ya budget ... but every cut comes at significant drop in quality and / or performance.

C. Again, a decent 144 HZ monitor will run ya $250 and take you well outta budget range.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($234.69 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($27.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI Z170A SLI PLUS ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($123.88 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Avexir Core Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive ($72.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB GT OCV1 Video Card ($248.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro M ATX Mid Tower Case ($74.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ B&H)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1001.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-17 11:36 EST-0500
 
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2. The monitor would eat heavy into your build cost .
Click to expand...
Yeah I know, I mean I could opt for a 60Hz 21" Monitor that would cost me about 50€, because I could buy it from a friend. But everywhere (reddit, friends, forums) say that investing in a 144Hz monitor is worth it, cause it won't need upgrading.

3. Knowing what country you are in would help
Click to expand...
Austria, but just calculate the cost as if I were in Germany ('cause that's gonna be where I'm gonna buy my parts)

A. The Z270 boards and CPUs being so new, we are still in the 1st "steppings" .... By the time mid April rolls around, CPUs will become more efficient and average POCs will climb a bit. MoBos will work out the kinks and bugs and have mature BIOSs. So at this time, I don't feel comfy just yet recommending the latest generation stuff. If you are more willing to live on the "bleeding edge", just swap out the MoBo / CPU for the Z270 version of the MoBo and 7600k CPU.
Click to expand...
Yeah I know, and I would really like to get a i5-6600k and a Z170 or Z270 MOBO, but I also want to get a decent GPU ya know? I'm saving some money and am going to get quite some money soon (yay birthday! 😀) so I could upgrade in about 3-4 months.

All-in-all thanks a lot! Could the integrated graphics on an i5-6600K or whatever CPU you would recommend suffice for League of Legends? I could wait the 3-4 Months before getting a GPU I guess.

Also could you maybe put another build together, again for ~1000€, but without a GPU?

Thanks a ton man!

P.S.: Also I don't need an OS, because I already have a Windows Installation USB and am going to buy a code.
 
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The IGP, of a 6600k, would be enough for LoL. You are going to have to settle for a 60hz monitor still, though. Is LoL all you intend to play, as this system is severe overkill, for just LoL.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7600K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor (€264.94 @ Amazon Deutschland)
CPU Cooler: Phanteks PH-TC14PE_BK 78.1 CFM CPU Cooler (€74.83 @ Mindfactory)
Motherboard: ASRock Z270 Killer SLI ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€157.16 @ Mindfactory)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport LT 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory (€100.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€56.80 @ Mindfactory)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro M ATX Mid Tower Case (€84.83 @ Mindfactory)
Power Supply: XFX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (€100.13 @ Mindfactory)
Monitor: Asus VS248HR 24.0" 1920x1080 60Hz Monitor (€152.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €992.67
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-17 18:12 CET+0100

 
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1. Use the inexpensive one until budget allows an Asus VG248QE or the benQ equivalent (2411Z ?). Other than that, ya might as well just stick with ya friends monitor.

2. Germany build below

3. LoL should be OK on IGP

4. If ya gonna wait 3-4 months for monitor or DPU upgrade, might consider waiting till then to do rest and get 7600k / Z270 which has betetr OC ability .... prices will drop and product bugs / improvements will have been worked out by then

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (€249.94 @ Amazon Deutschland)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (€33.46 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Motherboard: MSI Z170 Krait Gaming ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€154.49 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport LT 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory (€100.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Seagate FireCuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive (€82.80 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro M ATX Mid Tower Case (€83.58 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (€72.53 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €777.79
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-17 19:24 CET+0100

By the way, the HD in that build has a small SSD built in ... in gaming it crushes:

Seagate SSHD = 9.76 MB/s
WD Black = 6.34 MB/s
WED Blue = 4.01 MB/sec






 
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K thanks! My only two questions would be:

  • Why not an i7 or even a i5-7600K?
    Why not the Cryorig H7 or a be quiet! cooler? I have recently read a lot of reddit posts (reddit.com/r/buildapc) where a lot of people said that the 212 EVO isn't the best bang for the buck cooler anymore.
    Would 1 stick of 8GB RAM be enough?
    And why not a 80+ Silver-Rated PSU? There is one that is from be quiet!, is 80+ Silver-Rated and costs 22€ less! https://www.alternate.at/be-quiet-/System-Power-7-500W-PC-Netzteil/html/product/1047434?

Last but not least a big thanks for helping a total stranger out!

Oh and I could fit the ASUS VG248QE into the build. Just a question. Why not go for this monitor? https://www.amazon.de/Asus-Monitor-DisplayPort-Reaktionszeit-schwarz/dp/B0097I5CNG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1484679798&sr=8-2&keywords=asus+VG248QE. It's bigger (27") and costs 40€ less. Is there something that I am missing?
 
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When I click on that 27" monitor, I'm seeing it as coming up at USD$599.99, which I think is about $560
Click to expand...
nah its cheaper in germany 😀. By about 30€(35$). So should I get this monitor instead? http://imgur.com/a/kaTEh

Thanks!

What's your opinion on this build? Anything that will be bottlenecking, anything I could change to be cheaper with little to no performance loss?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G4560 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor
Motherboard: ASRock Z170M Pro4S Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€108.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2800 Memory (€68.70 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 320GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€44.74 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB Strix Video Card
Case: BitFenix Comrade ATX Mid Tower Case (€42.89 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: be quiet! PURE POWER 9 400W 80+ Silver Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (€62.89 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Monitor: AOC G2460PF 24.0" 1920x1080 144Hz Monitor (€256.94 @ Mindfactory)
Total: €585.15
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-17 20:49 CET+0100

EDIT: The Monitor isn't 144Hz, that's why it's cheaper. I'm taking the Monitor I chose in the build!
 
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Dang, you're not kidding - I clicked again, and it's showing up now as 231€ (hdmi + display port) or 225€ (hdmi only). The specs look nice, and I like bigger monitors. Still more than the 24 inch listed in logainofhades's suggestion, but less than that in Barty1884's list.

However, Barty's suggested monitor supports FreeSync and up to 144MHz refresh. The Asus monitors do not.

I generally run everything with Vsync on and at 60Hz, and I personally prefer larger screens, so I'd go for the big boy. However, it seems a lot of gamers prefer, even with LCD and LED monitors, higher refresh rates, and the FreeSync may be a deciding factor. I believe that's AMD's adaptive refresh system (if you use an Nvidia video card, you'll have to get a monitor with G-Sync).

I haven't really paid much attention to those technologies myself, because I've always been perfectly happy with the 60Hz refresh in LCD monitors. So, that's my view on it.

I would definitely bump up to at least an i3 processor. Maybe an i5 if you can get it. The i3 is dual-core, but has hyperthreading (effectively 4 threads), whereas the Pentium is dual-core WITHOUT hyper-threading.

Hmm, I thought the i3 had a significant edge over the Pentium, but these sites apparently disagree with me (one is in German, which I do not know)

https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/comments/5nq89r/the_pentium_g4560_really_is_an_i3killer/

https://www.computerbase.de/2017-01/intel-pentium-g4560-test-kaby-lake/3/#diagramm-gesamtrating-spiele-full-hd


The first of those two links is a conversation going back and forth, and there's some discussion of the merits of being able to have the extra threads in some games.... I'd still lean toward an i3 or i5 personally, if the budget allows.
 
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Ok, I'm probably going to go with an overclockable PC with a 144Hz monitor and no GPU and then just wait for Vega to come out before I buy a GPU (unless like a RX480 or a 1060 are on sale). Which CPU would you recommend? I again have about 750€ (without monitor) to get the best performance out of CPU, RAM,...

Thanks!
 
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I'd go with an i3 CPU - it's still within the same power envelope as the Pentium, but the hyperthreading (and, if you go with the 6300 or 6320) higher speed and slightly bigger L3 cache will give it a little bit of an edge).

I'd also suggest going with the 500W power supply you suggested instead of the 400W in your last list. 400 may be enough, but I like to have a little bit of an extra margin.
 
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Bigger is not better. The human eye (average person) will start to be able to "see" individual pixels below about 96 dpi. Windows was designed based upon 96 dpi.... if you can stay in the 90s, you're OK.

23" = 95.8
23.6" = 93.3
24" = 91.8

A 27" on the other hand is only 81.6 which tends to make images look grainy cause you can "see" the individual pixels. It's also a 60 Hz monitor

Looking at the two of them on newegg we can judge popularity and level of satisfaction

VG248QE has 1,194 user reviews from monitor owners, with 72% rating it 5 eggs and 5% rating it 1 egg
ASUS VS278Q-P has 169 user reviews from monitor owners, with just 56 rating it 5 eggs and 12% rating it 1 egg

The ASUS VS278Q-P is OK for what it is given it's low price, but a) it's not a gaming monitor and b) at 27", it's better suited for folks with less then 20/20 - 20/50vision.
 
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First of all, thanks sooo much for helping me, a total stranger!

I wanted to ask you a couple of things before I jump the gun and buy "your" build:

  • 1. Would a i5-6500 be enough or would you recommend the i5-6600K? If i5-6500, stick with the stock cooler or get an aftermarket cooler (Pure Rock Slim?)
    2. 16GB RAM is also more for future proofing than for current uses right? Also, I would prefer getting just 1x8 stick now, because I'm getting money soon (yay birthday) and would use that money to get another 1x8GB stick. (My parents are buying this build for me, I can upgrade later from my own money)
    3. If you recommend getting the i5-6500 now, should I get a H110/H170 or a B150/B250 motherboard?
    4. The "BIG" question: RX 480 or GTX 1060. And from which brand? I've got my eye on either the Sapphire Nitro+ OC 8GB 480 or the Gigabyte Windforce OC 6GB 1060.
    5. Would this case also work/Would there be sufficient space and air flow? (I really like the look of it and it is 40€ cheaper) https://www.alternate.at/Sharkoon/VG5-W-red-Tower-Gehäuse/html/product/1206910?
    6. Last but not least, could you maybe format the build again for me? <3

Thanks a lot man!
 
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Oh, yeah, Jack makes a good point regarding the monitor . . and I neglected to mention this . . I believe part of the reason I like bigger monitors is that my vision isn't all that great. Me, at 27 inches and 1080p, I don't see the pixels.

People with good eyesight, however, it's a different story.
 
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1. I just don't see the cost saving as being worth not getting a K series. But yes, if you go that route, a 3rd party cooler for the 6500 is a completely wasted expense.

2.a The term "future proofing" is pretty much an oxymoron.

2.b Take the 1 stick idea and completely erase if from the realm of reasonable options. RAM is guaranteed to work ONLY with other RAM that comes in the same package.

3.a 6500 / H170 / No cooler
3.b 6600k / Z170 / No cooler

4. Techpower up said:

https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/RX_480_Gaming_X/

In my opinion, this is thus far the only RX 480 that looks like it can compete with the GTX 1060 and its custom designs ...

the [MSI 480 Gaming X] card is 4% faster than the RX 480 reference and 6-7% slower than the GeForce GTX 980, GTX 1060 [reference card], and Radeon R9 Fury, which all have roughly the same performance at 1080p
Click to expand...

The MSI Gaming X 1060 is 3% faster than the 1060 reference so that puts the MSI 1060 at 10% faster then the MSI 480 at the time the two cards were reviewed. The MSI 1060 overclocks 15.1% and the MSI 480 8.6%. So that puts the MSI 1060 overclocked about 17% faster than the MSI 480 across thew 16 game TPU test suite.

https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_1060_Gaming_X/27.html
https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/RX_480_Gaming_X/26.html

It must be noted that the new drivers from AMD have narrowed that gap a bit with the latest drivers averaging about 2.1% improvement across 22 games. We don't have any info as yet as to what nVidia driver improvements may bring. However, AMDs driver improvements, even ignoring any nVidia driver improvements , aren't enough to erase that 17% deficit which is delivered when both cards are overclocked.

1920.jpg


Other secondary considerations you might have:

-MSI 480 uses about 75 watts more than MSI 1060; that will require a larger PSU
-Rule of thumb for quiet case fans is one fan for very 75 watts .... with the extra 80 watts, extra case fan recommended
-At 35 hours a week of gaming, the power cost (US average) is about $75 over 3 years
-The 480 is louder

Of course, secondary considerations won't matter if the card is not the faster on in games that matter to you ... and is ya look at those 16 - 21 games... AMD and nVidia both win some and lose some. So pick the card that performs best int he games you play.

5. The link is broken ... but that case is well known for being inexpensive but flimsy

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAAGV3YA5934

6. Not sure what you want or what purpose it would serve. Just go the link and edit as you see fit

https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/69gkbj
 
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