HELP! Budget gaming rig tips!

[Icte]

Hi guys!

I'm planning to build a budget gaming rig for my girlfriend for her birthday but I am in need of some assistance!

My budget is 600 Euros or around $800 including a monitor (she already has a gaming mouse and keyboard).

The following parts/configurations are already set (NO OTHER OPTIONS PLEASE):

a) Bitfenix Prodigy case, which already is around 76 Euros or $100

The following is what I need:

1) M-ITX or M-ATX motherboard (doesn't really matter, there is a Bitfenix Prodigy-M coming out soon that supports M-ATX)
2) CPU with 4 cores & good iGPU (talking Ivy Bridge or Haswell integrated graphics)
3) 8 gb of RAM, preferably 2x4 gb sticks
4) At least 500 gb hard drive
5) DVD drive
6) Decent monitor (no ultra expensive $500 ones)

The build must be able to handle Battlefield 3 on Ultra with good FPS when a good GPU is added to the system. A GPU is atm not necessary (unless Sims 3 can't be handled good in iGPU's?).  There won't be any overclocking done (only a little to speed up the system a bit, say 200 MHz up or so).

k thx bai 

[Badwrench]

Since I don't know where you shop, I did a build with local to me vendors, but the parts are still what I would recommend.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($189.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard:  ASRock B85M-ITX Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($85.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory:  Mushkin Stealth 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($73.99 @ Newegg)
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($61.98 @ Outlet PC)
Power Supply:  SeaSonic 450W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply  ($63.74 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive:  Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer  ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor:  Asus VS248H-P 24.0" Monitor  ($178.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $669.66
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-06 17:21 EDT-0400)

[Icte]

Since I don't know where you shop, I did a build with local to me vendors, but the parts are still what I would recommend.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($189.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard:  ASRock B85M-ITX Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($85.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory:  Mushkin Stealth 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($73.99 @ Newegg)
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($61.98 @ Outlet PC)
Power Supply:  SeaSonic 450W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply  ($63.74 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive:  Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer  ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor:  Asus VS248H-P 24.0" Monitor  ($178.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $669.66
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-06 17:21 EDT-0400)

I usually buy online, got a great website here in Sweden to find the cheapest prices + got amazon.co.uk!

Great list, but pne question - are Seasonic PSU's really that good? I've heard of some.. exploding..

[Tym]

If you're buying from .co.uk you should try .com because its generally always cheaper.

[meiosis]

seasonic and corsair both use the same OEM branded PSU's of which are quite good quality. probably the best for budget since seasonic does not have as large of a premium as corsair

[tp4tissue]

Hi Icte,

It is impossible to put together a "good build" under that budget "including monitor"...

Is it at all possible for you to obtain $1500 total? 

[tp4tissue]

Basic minimum setup for gaming

Haswell 4670k, $200-250
Motherboard Asus z87 pro, $150
Samsung ULV 8Gb ram, $60
500watt Corsair, $50
128gb SSD, $100
Graphics card ati HD7950, $250, $200 after selling game coupon
3TB seagate harddrive, $100
Aftermarket cooler, Thermaltake frio, $50
Case, $30 on sale
2x Extra 120mm fans, $30

That comes out to $1070 +/- $100 for just the computer.

I'd highly recommend a $400 24" Dell IPS for more movie watching or a 27" gaming 120hz panel for more games.


IF YOU DEVIATE from the listed setups above, You will dramatically reduce Performance/ Price Ratio..

That means, you will get less Performance for every dollar spent.. so each dollar "counts" for LESS.

[Sniping]

If this isn't a personal rig I wouldn't be dropping that much.
AMD isn't too great for gaming, but the A10-5800K can do BF3 pretty stable 1080p at High (Not Ultra) on the integrated GPU. i3 is great too but too bad you don't get deals like in the US...the 2100 is just $65 here. The size of the hard drive really depends on how much space your GF will use, many won't even use more than 1TB+SSD. Memory and PSU as you know won't affect performance but you'll just want to get something known for reliability so it doesn't give you any trouble. An aftermarket heatsink probably isn't necessary, I would just spend the money on a better GPU. For gaming it all comes down to GPU, i3 vs i7 is like a 3FPS difference in BF3 so just prioritize the GPU and SSD for a fast system overall. I would tell you to get the Qnix as a monitor but running BF3 1440p is out of your budget, so just pick up a more average monitor.

[Leslieann]

If it's just for gaming, I agree with Tp4tissue, go AMD. No need for Intel for that.
Try the integrated video card, if it's not enough, add one. If you do go Intel, you absolutely will need a GPU.

A 200mhz overclock is utterly useless, the only way you will ever see it, is on a benchmark.

[tp4tissue]

If this isn't a personal rig I wouldn't be dropping that much.
AMD isn't too great for gaming, but the A10-5800K can do BF3 pretty stable 1080p at High (Not Ultra) on the integrated GPU. i3 is great too but too bad you don't get deals like in the US...the 2100 is just $65 here. The size of the hard drive really depends on how much space your GF will use, many won't even use more than 1TB+SSD. Memory and PSU as you know won't affect performance but you'll just want to get something known for reliability so it doesn't give you any trouble. An aftermarket heatsink probably isn't necessary, I would just spend the money on a better GPU. For gaming it all comes down to GPU, i3 vs i7 is like a 3FPS difference in BF3 so just prioritize the GPU and SSD for a fast system overall. I would tell you to get the Qnix as a monitor but running BF3 1440p is out of your budget, so just pick up a more average monitor.

i3 and i7 is NOT 3fps

for Average frames, the difference is more like 50fps

and for minimum it's around 20fps.

You might be able to get away with an i3 on singleplayer, but who plays battlefield single player.

[bear95]

You might be able to get away with an i3 on singleplayer, but who plays battlefield single player.

arrrrr!

[Hak Foo]

The AMD integrated GPU is still significantly more robust than the Intel one, and a nice A85 mainboard is probably cheaper than a Z87 or many B85 ones.

[nubbinator]

seasonic and corsair both use the same OEM branded PSU's of which are quite good quality. probably the best for budget since seasonic does not have as large of a premium as corsair

Not true.  Some Corsair PSUs are Seasonic OEM, but not all are.  Some are CWT, some are Chicony Power, and some are Flextronics.

And generally the cheapest high quality PSUs are the Seasonic made XFX PSUs or the Superflower made Rosewill PSUs.

[Icte]

If you're buying from .co.uk you should try .com because its generally always cheaper.

Not with the tolls and taxes when shipping to Europe >.<

[Tym]

Fair enough, I don't know how your taxes operate sorry

[tp4tissue]

The AMD integrated GPU is still significantly more robust than the Intel one, and a nice A85 mainboard is probably cheaper than a Z87 or many B85 ones.

It is impossible to game on ANY AMD cpu...

The performance tradeoff is immense whenever CPU compute is required.

Even if you get decent "average fps",  on an AMD cpu, the MINIMUM fps will be much much lower than intel..

The Minimum FPS greatly affects the game because it is felt as a Hard-STOP during gameplay.. very disruptive.