Pls Help: Build from Scratch, 900$ Budget (GPU, CPU, Board, SSD, RAM, PSU, Housing)

[sublimeXS]

Approximate Purchase Date: 23.04.15

Budget Range: 900$ (1000$ only if huge upgrades become available)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Surfing, Movies, occasional Photo/Video editing via Photoshop/Premiere, Music production via Ableton / Cubase / FLStudio

Are you buying a monitor: No, I'm using 2x 23,6" monitors and a Full HD TV. Would be great to run all 3 devices at the same time

Parts to Upgrade: none, built from scratch, except mouse, keyboard, monitors

Do you need to buy OS: No. I have a new version of Windows 8.1 OEM for this build right here.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: geizhals.de/skinflint.co.uk (preferably geizhals.de)

Location: Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany

Parts Preferences: Intel CPU, GPU should be able to run 3 monitors at the same time. GPU brand doesn't matter.

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: No/Maybe (I don't think my budget allows it)

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

Additional Comments: A Quiet PC without water cooling would be nice. Decided to buy a new system since GTA V isn't running smooth. Current system is ~ 7 years old now, mainboard already equipped with best CPU for my socket (AMD Phenom 9550 Quad Core, 2,2GHz). New CPU means I have to buy a new mainboard, which means I'll have to get new RAM. Housing: Bling not required. In fact, a discreet black housing is what I'm looking for.

Haven't decided on any specific parts yet. As you might have read from my additional comments, my last system is 7 years old and I am absolutely outdated in regards to current computer hardware.

Personal note: Thanks guys. Since it's my first time posting a thread like this, I just wanted to say: I tried my best not to violate any forum rules, post this thread the wrong way or forget anything of importance. However: If I did - I'm sorry! (I know I haven't picked any parts yet. Not because I'm lazy but rather to be more open to suggestions. If doing this is required, I will.)

 

[bootcher]

Slightly over your budget but a solid performer:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (€254.61 @ Amazon Deutschland)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (€33.20 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (€92.72 @ Home of Hardware DE)
Memory: GeIL EVO Leggara Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (€128.52 @ Home of Hardware DE)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€58.38 @ Pixmania DE)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€58.89 @ Pixmania DE)
Video Card: Club 3D Radeon R9 280X 3GB royalQueen Video Card (€247.60 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Case: LC-Power PRO-923B ATX Mid Tower Case (€37.62 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (€66.89 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €978.43
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-18 02:31 CEST+0200

- I5 4690K for overclocking, EVO aftermarket cooler best price/performance, Z97 motherboard for ovrclocking and future upgrades
- 16 gb ram for editing porpuses
- R9 280x for good gaming performance, will let you max out anything at 1080p
- excellent psu

 

[sublimeXS]

Slightly over your budget but a solid performer:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (€254.61 @ Amazon Deutschland)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (€33.20 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (€92.72 @ Home of Hardware DE)
Memory: GeIL EVO Leggara Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (€128.52 @ Home of Hardware DE)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€58.38 @ Pixmania DE)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€58.89 @ Pixmania DE)
Video Card: Club 3D Radeon R9 280X 3GB royalQueen Video Card (€247.60 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Case: LC-Power PRO-923B ATX Mid Tower Case (€37.62 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (€66.89 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €978.43
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-18 02:31 CEST+0200

- I5 4690K for overclocking, EVO aftermarket cooler best price/performance, Z97 motherboard for ovrclocking and future upgrades
- 16 gb ram for editing porpuses
- R9 280x for good gaming performance, will let you max out anything at 1080p
- excellent psu

Looks solid from what I can tell. I forgot to mention I have just gotten a new 2TB HDD, so I can scratch your suggested Seagate HDD off of the list and we are coming really close to my budget.

Thanks mate. Good Stuff. Will definitely keep an eye on that one!

 

[bootcher]

You can opt for a cheaper I5 4460/H97 motherboard combo. It would be cheaper but you can't overclock it.

 

[sublimeXS]

You can opt for a cheaper I5 4460/H97 motherboard combo. It would be cheaper but you can't overclock it.

Is there a recognizable difference in performance?
OC'ing isn't really a necessity for me. My current combo can't be OCed, too. I haven't got to much experience with OCing anyways...

 

[RedJaron]

Is there a recognizable difference in performance?

Depends on the application. In gaming, no, not really. In professional apps that can saturate every CPU thread, yes OCing can make a big difference.

Here's what I'm thinking. Forgive me if these prices aren't accurate for your preferred vendors. If the prices aren't right, use this as a part guide alone.

PCPartPicker part list

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (€189.34 @ Home of Hardware DE)
Motherboard: MSI H87-G43 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (€85.41 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (€131.68 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Crucial BX100 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€96.74 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280X 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card (€249.90 @ Caseking)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case (€93.53 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (€69.00 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €915.60

Save some money on the CPU. Getting a locked CPU may mean you can't OC it, but you save lots of money on the CPU, no cooling, and cheaper mboard. If you're willing to get a 4690K, look at the Xeon E3 1231v3 instead. Any apps that would benefit from four faster threads on the i5-K will do even better with the Xeon's eight threads and larger L3.

Don't skimp on the case. If a quiet computer is important to you, then spending a little extra for creature comforts is worth it, even if that money doesn't show up in benchmarks. The FD Define series are acoustically insulated for a quiet rig.

 

[sublimeXS]

Is there a recognizable difference in performance?

Depends on the application. In gaming, no, not really. In professional apps that can saturate every CPU thread, yes OCing can make a big difference.

Here's what I'm thinking. Forgive me if these prices aren't accurate for your preferred vendors. If the prices aren't right, use this as a part guide alone.

PCPartPicker part list

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (€189.34 @ Home of Hardware DE)
Motherboard: MSI H87-G43 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (€85.41 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (€131.68 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Crucial BX100 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€96.74 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280X 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card (€249.90 @ Caseking)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case (€93.53 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (€69.00 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €915.60

Save some money on the CPU. Getting a locked CPU may mean you can't OC it, but you save lots of money on the CPU, no cooling, and cheaper mboard. If you're willing to get a 4690K, look at the Xeon E3 1231v3 instead. Any apps that would benefit from four faster threads on the i5-K will do even better with the Xeon's eight threads and larger L3.

Don't skimp on the case. If a quiet computer is important to you, then spending a little extra for creature comforts is worth it, even if that money doesn't show up in benchmarks. The FD Define series are acoustically insulated for a quiet rig.

I like the case. Very much tbh. Just watched a few Youtube videos and I think I will invest the extra buck. And the misses will approve as well, I guess. Silent PC -> Happy wife

In regards to CPU - I think I'll have to go with the cheaper alternative. Sure, a Xeon or 4690 would be nice, but I have to stay on budget.

Anyways. Thanks!

 

[bootcher]

Depending on what game/application you are using, overclocking can make a huge difference. Games that are very cpu-intensive for example will run better at higher settings. Also for example for video-editing a faster cpu can cut rendering times significantly.

In case you opt for the I5 4460, I would opt for a H97 based board, asides from slightly more features only the H97/Z97 based motherboards can be upgraded with next generation intel cpu's.