graniteharbor85 said:How can you suggest avoiding an extra cooler when you're recommending a CPU that doesn't even come with a stock one? Sure, you can easily pick one up, but it's just another unnecessary headache.
On another note—the x4 7600 is plenty powerful enough to handle a later upgrade to a significantly stronger graphics card if you actually look at what kind of games this guy is aiming for. The APU is specifically designed for that purpose; the x4 7600 is really the sweet spot here, making a discrete GPU unnecessary for now—and besides, it all comes down to what resolution he's running at.
I only brought up the i5 as an example because, well, if it's an option, why not? He might decide to branch out into other games beyond his current rotation later on. The point is that with an i5, he’ll have peace of mind for a much longer stretch—it provides a solid foundation if he eventually wants to pair it with a beefier graphics card—and he actually has the chance to grab one for less than the price of this x4 7600. 🤷 Look, it's his call; I was just letting him know my thoughts. I'm not forcing him to do anything—he can do whatever he wants. I was simply stating what I would do if I were in his shoes.
Robert Rodriguez2 said:What kind of nonsense are you spouting? That's just unbelievable.
He already owns the motherboard, so all he needs is an APU—simple as that. Why would he spend more than necessary...
And besides, buying from Best Buy is usually nothing but a headache... as we all know.
Well, if he says the board can be replaced, then let him swap it for an Intel one since he claims to have it. Honestly, why call it nonsense? A CPU actually costs less than that APU or an FX 6300, yet it performs twice as well—plus, you won't need to go out and buy an extra cooler. Just because it was purchased at Best Buy doesn't mean it's going to arrive broken, contrary to what you seem to think. Besides, motherboards don't fail that often—especially these non-overclocking models, since there's practically no way to push them hard enough to break them.
It wouldn't be a bad move to grab an i5 now—that way, you’re setting up a solid foundation for a decent dedicated GPU down the road. You could just stick with the integrated graphics for a while and play it safe. http://www.ebay.com/itm/intel-core-i5...listing-13709434 If you pair that with this motherboard http://www.newegg.com/motherboards...p30400.html, that's what I would personally do—just hang in there for a bit until you've saved up enough for a proper graphics card.
Total: 5 $170 Available at Micro Center with free assembly and shipping! (And if you want to be extra savvy—you can actually snag an additional 3% discount by signing up for their community forum, which brings the price down even further $1782) Essentially, this build covers all your bases—you've got the i5 processor, a solid graphics card, a 120GB SSD to ensure Windows stays snappy and games load quickly, a 1TB hard drive for all your data storage, a reliable power supply, and a dependable motherboard. Let me know if there is anything else you need to know 👍
1 x EVGA GeForce GTX 760, Dual Fan Edition 1 x Intel Core i7 8320 3.5GHz, 16MB, 125W, Socket AM3+ 1 x Gigabyte 970A-DS3P, AM3+, AMD 970 SB950, 4x DDR3 2000(O.C.)/1866 1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 cooler, fits 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm, 92mm fan 2 x 4GB DDR3 Crucial RAM, 1600MHz CL11 1 x Fortron 500W Hyper Power Supply, PPA5005003, 12cm fan 1 x 1TB Western Digital Caviar Blue HDD, 1000 GB, SATA3, 64 MB, 3.5", 7200 RPM 1 x Zalman Z1 mid tower case. 199(W)x432(H)x457(D)mm. Standard ATX motherboard support
Total:$1545 Free assembly and shipping from Best Buy!
From what I can gather, there are actually certain fixes out there that let you run all these modern titles even on a basic dual-core processor. I remember reading somewhere that some guy actually managed to get Far Cry 4 running on an Intel Pentium 4—it was stuttering like crazy, of course, but he technically got it to launch.
swiftfalcon89 said:That’s exactly why I’m asking—😁 I honestly had no idea that card was such a sleeper hit. I haven't really kept up with the latest Intel releases, so I'm a bit lost on which model succeeds which. Also, when I mentioned buying used, I was thinking more along the lines of finding something with a solid warranty from a local retailer.
If you want to crank everything up to ultra settings, you should definitely look at the used market; otherwise, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 Ti is perfectly fine for running things on medium.
how much of a difference does image quality actually make when comparing 1080p vs. 1440p vs. 4K?
In my experience, the jump in clarity is quite noticeable—though, naturally, the most dramatic shift occurs when you step up from 1080p directly to 4K. That said, if you're under the impression that 4K is the go-to for gaming right now, you might want to rethink that; frankly, current hardware just isn't quite there yet, and building a rig capable of handling it would cost you a small fortune. Personally, I think 1440p is the sweet spot for gaming, but even then, those monitors are currently priced a bit too high—one probably needs to wait a year or two for prices to settle down before making the leap.
1 x MSI R7 260 OC 1GD5, 1GB DDR5, DVI-I, DVI, DP, HDMI, R7 260 1GD5 1 x AMD FX-Series X8 8320 3.5GHz, 16MB, 125W, AM3+, FD8320FRHK 1 x Gigabyte 970A-DS3P, AM3+, AMD 970 SB950, 4x DDR3 2000(O.C.)/1866 1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 cooler, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm, 92mm 2 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11 1 x Fortron 500W Power Supply, Hyper, PPA5005003, 12cm fan 1 x Intel 120GB SSD 520, 2.5", SATA III-600, R/W:550/520MB/s 1 x WD 1TB HDD, Caviar Blue 10EZEX, 1000 GB, SATA3, 64 MB, 3.5", 24mj 1 x LG GH24NS DVD burner, DVD±RW, 24x DVD±R, 8x DL, 40x CD-R 1 x Zalman Z1 mid tower case, 199(W)x432(H)x457(D)mm, ATX Standard
Total:$1575 Free assembly and shipping from Best Buy!
This setup is quite solid—really—because everything aside from the graphics card is top-tier. If you decide to swap in a more powerful GPU down the road, you’ll have exactly what you need to stay ahead of the curve for years. You've got an 8-core processor here, which remains a reliable choice for gaming and heavy software workloads alike, even when paired with high-end cards later on. Plus, there's the SSD for snappy performance in apps and quick Windows boot times, alongside 8GB of RAM, a 1TB drive, and a dependable power supply.
If you're looking to shave some money off the total, you could always ditch the optical drive ($43) and swap out the current graphics card for this slightly weaker model: . That would bring your cost down to $1507, though I wouldn't recommend downgrading the processor.
1xFractal napajanje Integra M 550W, 80+ BRONZE modularno
1xOCZ SSD ARC 100 240GB,R480/W430,95K,S3
1xThermaltake Kućište Thermaltake Versa II, VO700A1N3N Versa II, Midi tower, ATX,mATX, 5,25" vanjski utor 3, 3,3,5" vanjski utor 1, 3,5" unutarnji utor 5, USB 2.0 1, USB 3.0 1, Hlađenje Ventilatori: Stražnji 120x120x25mm, crna
Total:$2378 Newegg.com—includes free assembly and shipping!
Personally, I’d steer clear of the Inno3D models—mostly because I've read quite a few reports from folks running into issues with their cooling solutions. Apparently, the heatsinks just don't do the job properly, leading to consistently high temperatures and constant overheating problems.
Honestly, you aren't getting much value for your money at Links. If you're willing to pay cash, there are plenty of much cheaper local shops that will assemble everything for you and deliver it straight to your door for free—you just pay upon arrival. I actually put together a build for myself without a GPU; you’d be better off checking Craigslist, because for $700-$267, browsing through Links isn't really worth your time—you can find some seriously decent used cards for that kind of money.
-AMD FX X6 6300 box, Socket AM3+, 3.5GHz, 14MB cache, Six Core -GIGABYTE GA-970A-DS3P motherboard, AMD970/SB950, DDR3, audio, G-LAN, S-ATA, RAID, PCI-E, CrossFireX, USB 3.0, ATX, Socket AM3 / AM3+ -LC POWER LC-CC-95 cooler, socket 775/1155/1156/1150/AM2/AM3 -PC-12800 memory, 8 GB, G.SKILL Ripjaws X series, F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL, DDR3 1600MHz, 2x4GB kit -550W power supply, ANTEC VP550F EC, ATX v2.31, 120mm fan -1000.0 GB SEAGATE ST1000DM003 hard drive, SATA3, 64MB cache, 7200 RPM, desktop -LC POWER Gaming 975B Air Wing case, MIDI, black, USB 3.0, hot-swap bay, no PSU included
total:$1268 Links It’s better to grab a used graphics card so you can put more of your budget into a higher-quality platform—meaning a solid 6-core CPU, a reliable motherboard, and 8GB of RAM.
James Gomez2 said:Hey everyone—I could use some advice for a friend who's looking to put together a rig with a budget of around $1500. He’s planning to buy everything from a single site, including all the storage components. I’ve cobbled this list together myself—it might be a total mess, honestly—so please, let me know what you think. I'd really appreciate any pointers. 😉
It isn't worth $100, especially since you can just make up those few extra FPS through overclocking.
And you're operating under the assumption that everyone actually knows how to overclock—or even wants to deal with the hassle?? Even if they did know how, it’s not a perfect fix; just because you can bump up the clock speeds on an R9 280 doesn't mean you'll get the same results as an R9 280x. There's still a measurable difference there.
For what reason? $100 Is this really about chasing a measly 2% performance bump? You can't just fly in here throwing around nonsense like that, people...
just because of a 2 percent difference 🤦 ??Maybe do a little homework before you try to act like the smartest guy in the room 😵
In benchmarks, the 7950/R9 280 and the 7970/R9 280x cards are virtually identical.
Ryan Hayes82 said:It’s probably smarter to just grab a new, higher-quality power supply now—that way, you won't have to worry about it when you decide to drop in a beefier graphics card later.
1 x Intel Core i5 6300 3.5GHz, 14MB, 95W, AM3+, FD6300WMHK 1 x ASUS Motherboard, AM3+, AMD 970 SB950, 4x DDR3 2000(O.C.)/1886 1 x Seagate Barracuda 1TB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA100 1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2, cooler, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm, 92mm 1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11 1 x XFX TS Series 550W PSU -P1550S-XXB9
$863cash google.com
Personally, I think it might be better to just bite the bullet and get the Intel Core i7 right away to future-proof things for the long haul—as for the power supply, he can always pick up a new one whenever he upgrades his GPU; buying a new PSU now doesn't really change much, other than potentially eating into the budget meant for a significantly stronger processor.
Jonathan Mendoza17 said:Honestly, they’re pretty much neck and neck. I took a closer look, and both cards are actually quite beefy when it comes to length—the Gigabyte model sits at 11.22 inches, while the XFX 11.61 is just a hair longer. My case is officially rated for cards up to 12.5 inches, so they'll fit, though managing the cables might turn into a bit of a hobby in itself. I'm still leaning slightly toward the Gigabyte, but I haven't fully committed yet.
Forget both of them. You already mentioned you have some wiggle room in your budget, so why not just stretch a little further and grab something with more raw power than those two?http://www.bestbuy.com/graphics-cards...-280x-dxf-oc-b
Carl Nelson5 said:Alright, here’s the deal. I’m looking to put together a build around the $1000 mark, but I want to skip the graphics card for now. I currently have a 400W power supply—not exactly a powerhouse, but it should handle more than a toaster. My current GPU isn't exactly cutting-edge, but I don't see much point in upgrading it just yet. It's an AMD Radeon Sapphire X 5750 DDR5 OC with DirectX 11 support. What do you guys think? Is it possible to build something viable with this? Also, I'd prefer to pay in installments if possible...
To build a truly solid setup:
1 x Intel Core i7, 1 x ASUS Motherboard, 1 x Cooler Master Hyper 212, 2 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11 1 x Seagate Barracuda 1TB, Caviar Blue 10EZEX, 1000 GB, SATA3, 64 MB, 3.5", 24ms
Total:$1013 the price for the components, though for cash it would be $921. Plus, free shipping from google.com! Just let me know which case you're using so we can check if the motherboard fits; otherwise, this is a fantastic platform for you—an 8-core processor paired with a quality motherboard and 8GB of RAM. Later on, you can just drop in a high-end graphics card and play whatever you want like a king!
AMD Athlon x4 860 k CPU (3.7GHz, 4MB, 95W, FM2+) box, Kingston ValueRAM Kingston ValueRAM (4GB, 1600MHz, Single Rank, Unbuffered) KVR16N11S8/4 ASRock FM2A78 PRO4 + motherboard, FM2+ Raijintek Aidos Black CPU Cooler - 92mm P/N: CPRT-009
Total: $519 centro
I guess you could use $117 as the starting point for the CPU, motherboard, and RAM.
It doesn't really make sense—for $23 more, you can get a six-core AMD FX 6300 paired with a solid board, which gives you the headroom to upgrade to an AMD FX 8320 down the road.
You might want to give this setup a look—honestly, the price point is pretty solid:
AMD FX 8320 @ 3.50GHz
Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P motherboard
Total cost:$496 Newegg!
4GB RAM (2x2GB)
Just a quick reminder—if you don't already have a cooler similar to the one I suggested in my last post, please make sure to pick one up along with these parts!