Best Gaming Computer On A Budget
May 14, 2015 How To 11 comments adube15
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qfJXBm
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qfJXBm/by_merchant/
- CPU: Intel Core i7-5960X 3.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($995.99 @ SuperBiiz)
- CPU Cooler: Corsair H110i GT 113.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($130.98 @ Newegg)
- Motherboard: Asus RAMPAGE V EXTREME EATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($449.99 @ Amazon)
- Memory: Corsair Dominator Platinum 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-3300 Memory ($699.99 @ Newegg)
- Memory: Corsair Dominator Platinum 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-3300 Memory ($699.99 @ Newegg)
- Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($377.99 @ Amazon)
- Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($377.99 @ Amazon)
- Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($377.99 @ Amazon)
- Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($377.99 @ Amazon)
- Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX Titan X 12GB Video Card (3-Way SLI) ($999.99 @ Amazon)
- Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX Titan X 12GB Video Card (3-Way SLI) ($999.99 @ Amazon)
- Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX Titan X 12GB Video Card (3-Way SLI) ($999.99 @ Amazon)
- Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case ($99.99 @ Amazon)
- Power Supply: Corsair AX1500i 1500W 80+ Titanium Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($399.99 @ Amazon)
- Total: $7988.85
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Above is the parts list for an 8000 dollar gaming computer. Is it necessary? Definitely not. But what makes it so expensive? The CPU alone costs more than most gaming computers. It is the top-of-the-line CPU for any content creator who needs maximum performance. Most of the other components are expensive for the same reason; they need to be fast and very reliable. But this computer means nothing for the average computer builder. Here is a much better build for a gamer on a budget:
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/jPMxmG
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/jPMxmG/by_merchant/
- CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.95 @ SuperBiiz)
- Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($61.98 @ Newegg)
- Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
- Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ Best Buy)
- Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 270X 2GB HAWK Video Card ($168.98 @ Newegg)
- Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($43.99 @ SuperBiiz)
- Power Supply: Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($58.99 @ Amazon)
- Operating System: SteamOS (Free)
- Total: $613.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
For around 600 dollars, you can build a computer that will run most games on high or ultra at the standard 1080 resolution at the minimum recommended 60FPS. This allows for smooth visuals that look very good. This is compared to a “modern” console that can only play games at 720p at 45FPS, or 1080p at 30FPS on low settings. For the same price as a full gaming PC and a ton of free games.
This computer has a few different aspects to it that makes it what smart shoppers call a good “price to performance ratio”. This means that parts were purchased in order to get the most performance out of a given amount of money. All the parts are also balanced in performance to get the most for the money. Here is a short breakdown of each part:
- CPU: A “locked” entry level i5 which has 4 cores and will not bottleneck most games.
- Motherboard: An entry level motherboard with all the proper connections and features, as well as very good durability and high quality.
- RAM: 8GB of quality RAM is enough to play almost all new and old games. Another stick can be easily added for a total of 16GB of RAM.
- Storage: 1TB of fast enough storage. An SSD can be added later to improve boot speeds and loading speeds.
- GPU: AMD R9 270’s are the minimum recommended graphics cards to play comfortably at 1080p.
- Case: Entry level case that supports a lot of hardware with a small form factor.
- Power Supply: A good power supply with enough wattage to add more parts to the system, as well as being reliable.
For more information on custom builds, www.reddit.com/r/buildapcforme provides custom-tailored builds.
11 Comments
If you are good at building these gaming computers, could you sell them and make a profit?
I could sell them and make a profit if I wanted too, but in order to make a profit, parts have to be purchased on sale or in bulk. This involves waiting for large events, checking deals daily, and knowing when and when not to buy a part. Also, the more expensive a computer is, the more potential profit can be made on it. Sometimes cheap budget computers are impossible to make a profit on.
You should add another price list to show the difference between a $400 computer build and a $600.
The difference between 200 dollars in a budget build is quite a bit, with mainly the CPU and GPU being affected. Similar parts might be able to be purchased, but overall gaming performance might suffer a little with a 400 dollar build.
This is astonishing to know that the CPU is mostly the cause for the cost of one’s computer. I love to game and I have been trying to come up with a way to make my own for under 1,000 and I really feel that this really helped me at least come up with a plan. I really wanted a computer that can play a high resolution games because I feel more immersed in the game, the clearer it is. I almost makes me feel like I’m in the game 🙂 I really found your article to be very helpful! Thank you so much!
If you ever need help coming up with the best components for the price/use, I am always here to help.
Thank you very much! That would be great! I’m thankful for your hospitality 🙂
Something like this is recommended for 1080p+gaming, assuming all other peripherals are owned:
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/YFHGYJ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/YFHGYJ/by_merchant/
CPU: Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($31.50 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M PRO4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($72.00 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($98.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.80 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($319.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($39.60 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.30 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $926.16
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-05-25 19:07 EDT-0400
Wow that’s not too bad for the type of equipment all that is!! That I could probably save up for haha
This is some pretty cool stuff, Austin. If you decided to build a computer, how long do you think it would take you?
Well first I need to order the parts, which takes from 2-7 days, then assemble them witch takes anywhere from 1-2 hours, depending on how much detail I put into it. The final step is to install Windows, which takes about 2-3 hours.