139 posts shown.
Look, you can actually put this all together in a Uzi case for even less than what you're seeing here:
1x Gainward GTX 960 Phantom 2GB DDR5
1x Intel Core i5-4440
1x Gigabyte GA-B85M-D3H motherboard
2x Kingston Technology HyperX Fury Memory White 4GB 1866MHz DDR3
1x XFX Pro 450W
1x Seagate 1TB SATA HDD Barracuda, Serial ATA III, 1000 GB
1x Cooler Master N200
Total: 5 $211 UZI.shop, free assembly and shipping included!
If you sign up for the PC Expert forum, you get a 3% discount, which brings the total down to $1821.
Basically, for a lower price, you end up with the exact same rig but with 8GB of RAM. Don't bother paying extra for a better processor; all these non-K models are pretty much identical—they just have slightly higher clock speeds that won't actually make a noticeable difference in your games. I threw in a solid XFX power supply so you've got plenty of breathing room. Between the GPU and CPU, you're pulling about 200-210W, and with the rest of the components, you're looking at maybe 260W total. That leaves you with roughly 170W of headroom, so you can easily swap in a beefier graphics card down the road without everything melting.
gentlesailor43 said:Just running an Intel Core i5-4570, 3.20GHz, Haswell.
Just running a Gigabyte GA-B85M-DS3H on an Intel ® B85 chipset. Simple enough.
Just picked up a Gigabyte GTX960 WF2 Overclocked with 2GB of GDDR5. It’s got the usual DVI-I, DVI-D, and HDMI ports. Simple enough.
Just a single 1TB Seagate HDD, SATA III, spinning at 7200 rpm (ST1000DM003).
Just one stick of 4GB DDR3 Kingston RAM, running at 1600MHz with CL11 latency. It's the basic Value series.
Got a Fortron 500W unit here—specifically the HEXA plus 500—with a 12cm fan.
One Thermaltake V4 Black edition Middle Tower, weighing in at about 10 lbs.
1 x SCYTHE Slip Stream Slim 120mm 1200 rpm, 21.71 dBA / 24.03 CFM
$1870 AMD
I stretched my budget by about another $90 and managed to pull this build together. Now the big question: do I pull the trigger on this right now, or should I hold out and hope prices drop a bit?🤔
This is just brutal. $1,500? Seriously?$533 For a standard i5, you could have easily snagged an i5-4670k for that kind of cash at Best Buy or Micro Center just a few months back. As for the PSU, grab a Fortron Hyper 500W instead—it comes with a five-year warranty and is actually a step up from what you're looking at, even if it costs a bit more. $13You don't even have 8GB of RAM? That's pure chaos. Honestly, if I were in your shoes, I wouldn't touch a single upgrade for at least five months. Just hold off.
I'll see what I can pull together in the Uzi.
coastaltiger2 said:totaling $1423...
So, did you end up grabbing that USB adapter for the internet too?
coastaltiger2 said:Just placed my order at Micro Center... they should have it built by Monday.
Thanks everyone...
Here's the loot:
1 x Cooler Master Z1, USB3.0 black, 2x120mm
1 x XFX R9 270A 2GB DDR5
1 x Intel Core i5-2500K 3.5Ghz (4.1GHz) box
1 x GIGABYTE GA-970A-DS3P, AM3+
1 x LC POWER LC-CC-95, socket 775/1155/1156/AMD
1 x Crucial 4GB DDR3 1600 Mhz (PC3-12800) CL11
1 x XFX TS 450W, 80+ Bronze
1 x HDD SEAGATE Barracuda (3.5",1TB,64MB,SATA III)
👍 Nice, glad you stepped up to a decent case. That Cooler Master is a solid choice.
coastaltiger2 said:There's no cooler included... do I actually need one or what?
What do you mean there's no cooler? This is literally your fourth LC POWER LC-CC-95, socket 775/1155/1156/Intel
Just call them up or shoot them an email to order it. Why bother wasting $167 on gas when they'll just drop everything right at your doorstep within 24 hours? You can just pay the delivery guy cash when he shows up.
coastaltiger2 said:Look, I'm telling you... I'd just go with some built-in Bluetooth module and an internal Wi-Fi card... I know Wi-Fi cards are easy to find, but I'm not so sure about the Bluetooth side of things...
What exactly are you even planning to do with Bluetooth?
If you just need internet, just plug a USB dongle into a port, connect to your network, and boom—you're online.
coastaltiger2 said:I don't know... maybe I'll decide on some kind of payoff once I see the terms... actually, honestly, I have no clue. 😁
Wait, so the suggestion from Smartcard differs in the power supply and the GPU... or is it just the PSU? Is the first one weaker? And which one is quieter? Does a truly silent power supply even exist?
My build has a way beefier graphics card, double the storage speed, and a much higher quality power supply, though the case itself isn't top-tier. Don't sweat it—you won't hear a thing, all these components are pretty quiet.
Here’s how I’d put this thing together:
1 x Gigabyte GTX960 WF2 Overclocked, 2GB GDDR5, DVI-I / DVI-D / HDMI
1 x AMD FX X6 6300 3.5GHz,14MB,95W,AM3+, FD6300WMHK
1 x Gigabyte 970A-DS3P, AM3+, AMD 970 SB950, 4x DDR3 2000(O.C.)/1866
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 ,hladnjak, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm ,92mm
1 x DDR3 8GB (1x8GB) Kingston, HyperX Fury, 1866MHz, CL10
1 x CORSAIR 430W, CX430M, CX Series Modular, EPS12V v2.3
1 x Thermaltake Versa II, Midi tower, ATX,mATX, 5,25" vanjski utor
Total:$1599 $700.00 USD with free assembly and shipping!
You get a slightly beefier GPU that actually pulls way less power, a solid modular power supply to make cable management less of a nightmare, and some faster RAM. Everything else stays pretty much the same, except for the case—those cheap Zalman Z1, Z3, and Z3+ models are all sold out, so this Thermaltake one is basically the only decent swap left in this price bracket, and honestly, it's nothing bad.
Morgan Lopez34 said:Hey everyone,
I've got a quick question, and if any of you experts could spare a second to help me out, I'd appreciate it.
Basically, I'm looking for a graphics card. My budget is pretty tight—around $117—and I don't really play games. I found two options and was wondering if anyone could tell me which one is better?
http://www.bestbuy.com/example-link-1
or
http://www.bestbuy.com/example-link-2
Here's my current setup:
CPU name: Intel Pentium E5200
package: Socket 775 LGA
core speed: 1800.22 mhz
Mainboard manufacturer: Gigabyte
model: G31M-S2l
RAM: 2 GB
As for the power supply, it looks like a 420W ATX Switching Power Supply.
Anyway, I'd be super grateful if someone could take a look. 👍
Honestly, for that kind of money, buying anything brand new from a big-box retailer is a waste. You'd have way better luck hunting for a decent card on eBay or Facebook Marketplace for maybe $35-$$133
Christian Richardson362 said:thanks,
tell me if it even makes sense to swap everything out right now, or should I just stick to replacing the GPU?
basically, will jumping to entirely new HW actually give me a massive boost for running new games, or am I better off just hanging onto what I've got.
I'm asking because everything I've played so far has run pretty decent enough.
btw, looks like the R9 270 X performs a bit better. Is that okay for my motherboard?
If I were you, I'd hold off on upgrading for a bit. Prices have gone absolutely insane lately and most components aren't worth the premium right now. Better to wait maybe four months until The Witcher drops, and there's a good chance AMD will release a new series by then too, which should hopefully drag prices back down. Things might actually stabilize in a few months because the current markup compared to three months ago is just straight-up ridiculous.
Look, you could grab an R9 270; seems like a solid deal at this price Going for the R9 270 X isn't really worth it since they're basically the same card—you're looking at a 4 fps difference for an extra $250$100.
And I didn't ask about your power supply. Give me the exact model and wattage..
If they're planning on ordering online, I'd probably go this route since delivery costs in Downtown can be a total rip-off $27.
1 x XFX R9 270A 2GB DDR5
1 x AMD FX X6 6300 3.5Ghz (4.1GHz) box
1 x GIGABYTE GA-970A-DS3P, AM3+
1 x LC Power Office Series, socket 775/1155/1156/AMD
1 x Crucial 4GB DDR3 1600 Mhz (PC3-12800) CL11
1 x XFX TS 450W, 80+ Bronze
1 x HDD SEAGATE Barracuda (3.5",1TB,64MB,SATA III)
1 x MS PHOENIX case without PSU
Total:$1378 futur , plus free assembly and shipping!
velvetgardener25 said:1 x Crucial 8GB DDR3 1600 Mhz (PC3-12800) CL11
1 x GIGABYTE GA-970A-DS3P, AM3+
1 x Zalman Z1, USB3.0 black, 2x120mm
1 x LC POWER LC-CC-95, socket 775/1155/1156/AMD
1 x Gigabyte R9 280 WF3 OC, 3GB GDDR5, HDMI, DVI
1 x Procesor AMD FX X6 6300 3.5Ghz (4.1GHz) box
1 x Fortron Raider S 550W, 80+ SILVER
Some other forum recommended this build to me, total cost is $1500. A buddy suggested swapping out the power supply, and I'm thinking about grabbing different RAM. What do you guys think?
And where's your hard drive?
Christian Richardson362 said:Hey there.
Could use a little help here.
I’m looking to just upgrade my GPU since I think everything else in my rig is fine. Just need two things:
1. Is my current setup actually okay? Is it even worth just swapping the card given what I'm running?
2. If so, which one should I get? Looking for the best match for my specs—money isn't really an issue.
Just to give you an idea of my goal—I want to run The Witcher 3 on max settings without much trouble. Playing at 1920x1080.
Here’s what I’ve got:
GIGABYTE 870A-UD3 AM3 Motherboard
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition
8 GB DDR3
And my current GPU:
AMD Radeon HD 6870
thanks😉
Ugh, honestly? For The Witcher 3, I'm worried you'll end up needing a new GPU, motherboard, AND processor if you want decent performance. Based on what I've seen, I doubt the game will be optimized enough to save older rigs. With your current CPU, you're probably looking at an R7 265 or R9 270 as your absolute ceiling.
Harold Alvarez49 said:Hey, I need some help. Here’s my current setup: i3 4330 @ 3.5 GHz, Gigabyte GTX 750 OC, 2x4GB DDR3 1600 RAM (Adata), AsRock B85M motherboard, High Power 500W 80+ Bronze PSU, WD Blue 1TB HDD, and a 22-inch Samsung monitor. I've played Shadow of Mordor and Far Cry 4, and right now I'm running Dragon Age: Inquisition and I'm pretty happy—everything is at max settings. My question is: what's the strongest GPU I can throw at this power supply so I can actually play Assassin's Creed Unity? Because with my current card, it's a total disaster; basically unplayable. Thanks in advance!
Here are a few options, just pick whichever one looks best to you:
R9 280 X
http://www.amazon.com/graphics-card-example-280xGTX 960
https://www.newegg.com/nvidia-gpu/31...2ggb-ddr5.htmlhttps://www.newegg.com/nvidia-gpu/31...2gb-gddr5.htmlR9 280
http://www.bestbuy.com/product_info.php?products_id=15588http://www.bestbuy.com/product_info.php?products_id=14489http://www.bestbuy.com/product_info.php?products_id=15386 Just make sure it actually fits in your case, because this one is pretty long.
Basically, the R9 280 X is the powerhouse here. The GTX 960 and R9 280 are similar in performance, but the GTX 960 pulls way less power, maybe around 120W.
Since you're already dropping serious cash on such an expensive case, you might want to take a look at this one—honestly, it’s one of my favorites. http://www.hardwareversand.de/Tower/...tzteil.article
Larry Ortiz5 said:I'm done arguing with you. Go ahead, enjoy life under whatever new handle you pick, just do us all a favor and use some decent grammar and line breaks next time, because honestly, you're impossible to read. 👋
Look, there are a million people on this forum writing exactly like that, so I have no idea what you're struggling to understand. But fine... "the wolf doesn't lose sleep over the opinion of sheep." Old saying, but it fits.
Larry Ortiz5 said:I’m just being real here. You’ve only been on this forum for two months under the Sean Garcia3 handle, and I'm waiting for you to get banned again. People aren't idiots; they can tell when someone just makes a new profile to dodge a ban. You really want me to guess which one you used before? Please, no. You're clearly still in your teenage years.
First off, you don't know anything if you're actually asking us to help build a PC for your sister. Second, everything you think you "know" is just surface-level stuff you picked up from reading something online or overhearing a conversation—half of which you probably didn't even process correctly.
You've got me totally mixed up with someone else. I ended up here by accident because I was weighing the pros and cons of running 2x GTX 760 vs a single GTX 970. While I was browsing the web, I stumbled upon this place, decided to register, and started my own thread since the forum seemed pretty active. Once I saw how much discussion goes on here, I figured I'd stick around and join in.
Besides, buddy, you're a little too young to be talking to me like that. I've got enough years on you that I have zero interest in bickering with you and a few others like a spoiled brat over nonsense. I work, I live in my own place, I'm waiting for my son to get home... meanwhile, you're still clinging to your mom's sleeve. Don't provoke me or try to label me as someone I'm not, or I'll report you to the admin for harassment and let them deal with the consequences.
Enjoy!
Larry Ortiz5 said:Alright, genius, the whole forum is against you. Every time I see you posting in a thread, it feels like a fight is starting. It’s honestly no wonder you’ve been banned a few times; if I were an admin, I’d just IP ban you so you could leave us alone forever. It's not normal to start a thread and then reply to yourself, or even better, ask a question and then start giving out advice just minutes later. This is the last you're getting from me. Work on yourself. Peace.
Man, you must be on some heavy stuff. I've been on this forum for maybe two months max, so I have no clue how I managed to rack up this many bans, but hey, that's your business. I'm not going to waste my energy on it.
So what if I started a thread just to see which way people lean? And as for "answering myself"—I was just replying to you. Besides, I didn't even start the thread because I didn't know much about the topic, unlike you, who acts like an expert even though you were clueless when you started that thread about your sister's PC. You love handing out advice to everyone else, but you think you can lecture me? Even if I didn't know what I was talking about in my case, it's not the same as yours.
Looks like you're still young and get triggered easily whenever someone points out you aren't actually right about everything. But whatever, we've all been there, so I won't hold it against you.
Larry Ortiz5 said:Give me 1500 bucks.$667 Look, just go ahead and grab a GTX 980 already. You’re always blowing past your budget anyway, so you might as well finally do something nice for yourself and pull the trigger now. 😉
And don't go twisting my words here. Who actually said AMD has bad drivers or that they don't work properly? I'm just saying NVIDIA has the better ones.
If that GTX 980 actually lived up to the hype and was significantly better than the GTX 970, maybe I’d consider dropping the cash. But paying an absolute fortune for a card that only gives me an extra 3 or 4 FPS over the lower model? Yeah, no thanks. Not happening. $667 Nothing cheaper comes to mind right now. Like I said, I’m just gonna sit tight and wait for AMD to drop their new series, and that's that. Period.
And what exactly are you rambling about regarding budget limits? That logic doesn't hold water for me either. I hit that $50 mark just like everyone else.$33 Sometimes I don't say anything at all, but other times I'll tell you it's worth dropping a little extra cash to get something better that'll actually last you longer.