Budget gaming build ideas?

Hey everyone!

I’ve been getting a real itch to get back into some gaming! 😁 When I say gaming, I'm thinking about more recent titles (like Far Cry 4, Assassin's Creed, and things along those lines), though I don't necessarily need everything cranked up to max HD resolutions. My main focus is on smooth gameplay and longevity—basically, I want a build that won't be obsolete overnight, something where I can eventually swap out a processor or a graphics card down the road. I'm looking for a nice bit of balance, using high-quality components that can actually withstand my... let's call it "enthusiastic" handling 😵 It's been quite a long time since I was part of this world, so please excuse me if I'm struggling to find the right words! To wrap it all up: I want something that runs modern games without stuttering, and hopefully, something that doesn't require constant tinkering (though at this rate, it feels like I'm hunting for the Holy Grail)!
Budget (the mother of all questions, isn't it?) — roughly $4,000, give or take $500.

Thanks in advance!

I'm looking for some light gaming recommendations, specifically some more demanding titles 😬

Does this budget include a monitor as well?

Nah, I don't need any of that extra fluff. Like I said, I’m pretty much "out of the loop" on this stuff. (I haven't actually finished a game in maybe ten years or so.) At this stage in my life, I really couldn't care less about technical specs or resolution levels.

Seagate BarraCuda 1 TB, 64MB, 7200rpm
I guess it's an EVGA 550W Power Supply, 80+.
Maybe it’s just me, but that Zalman Mid-Tower Black (ZAL-R1) looks pretty decent. I guess it could work.
I guess it’s the AMD FX-8300.
I guess the ASUS GA-970A-DS3P is a decent enough choice for a build. Maybe it does the job.
I guess this LC-CC-95 90mm cooler for Intel or AMD is worth a look, maybe.
I think I might have found some Kingston DDR3 HyperX Fury sticks—1866MHz, 8GB, the Black HX318C10FB/8 model.
It’s an EVGA GeForce GTX 950 XTREME, featuring 2GB of GDDR5 and a 128-bit bus. Clock speeds sit at 1026MHz/7000MHz on a PCI-E 3.0 x16 interface, I guess.

Mid-Tower Black total: $1471 I guess I should probably mention that everything is looking pretty centered now. Maybe it's finally sorted.

Everything seems pretty well balanced here. If you scaled back a bit on the power supply and the case, and maybe went with a slightly lower-end version of that GPU, I guess you could probably squeeze an SSD in there too.

crimsonstag84 said:Seagate BarraCuda 1 TB, 64MB, 7200rpm
EVGA 550W Power Supply, 80+
Zalman Mid-Tower Black, ZAL-R1
AMD FX-8300 Processor
ASUS GA-970A-DS3P Motherboard
LC Power CPU Cooler LC-CC-95 - 90mm Intel/AMD
Kingston DDR3 HyperX Fury, 1866MHz, 8GB Black HX318C10FB/8
EVGA GeForce GTX 950 XTREME, 1026MHz/7000MHz, PCI-E 3.0 x16

Total: $1471 Center

Everything looks pretty well balanced here. Honestly, if you were to shave a little off the power supply, maybe pick a different case, or grab a slightly weaker version of that card, you could probably squeeze an SSD in there too.

If I went with a different case—though I'm not entirely sure how much that would impact performance, I'd assume cooling and noise levels might take a hit—it wouldn't be a huge deal to me personally, but overall, it's just one of those things.

If you wanted to "cram" a beefier GPU in here... 👍

1x AMD FX-8300
1x LC-CC-95 CPU Cooler
1x ASUS GA-970A-DS3P
1x Gigabyte GTX960 IX OC, 2GB GDDR5
1x Kingston DDR3 HyperX Fury, 1866MHz, 8GB Black
1x Western Digital Blue 1TB 3.5''
1x XFX TS Series 450W PSU, XFX-P1-450S-GREN
1x Mid-Tower Black

Total: $1493

Here’s a rough idea of how those titles might run on this setup:

Far Cry 4
Assassin's Creed Syndicate
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 (BETA)
Mad Max
The Witcher 3
Fallout 4
GTA 5

The GPU and power supply aren't available... and I wouldn't want to put all that stress on the graphics card, since I guess the OP has a slightly different setup in mind.

1. Intel i3 6100 – $312
2. Gigabyte GA-H110M-DS2 – $145
3. Kingston DDR3 HyperX Fury 8 GB 1600 MHz – $97
4. CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO – $95
5. EVGA GeForce GTX 950 XTREME – $425
6. EVGA 550W Power Supply – $146
7. Patriot 120 GB BLAST – $120
8. Zalman Z1 Neo – $97
9. Shipping – $21
Total – $1458 (Micro Center)

If you ask me, this setup would be totally solid for gaming! :P I might even stretch my budget by about $50 just to grab an i3 6300 instead... 😁

It’s probably best not to blow it up. That forum user was actually spot on about how quickly these things die. It failed on him (I'm not sure if he mentioned anyone else), and it happened to a buddy of mine after just a few months—especially once you factor in those depressing threads with 20+ angry comments over on Newegg... Sure, it isn't a massive sample size, but for such a small group, it's a pretty bad sign. 😁
To be fair, I don't know if the same thing applies to the 120GB models. There are plenty of other budget SSDs out there, like Adata SP550 or various SanDisk drives where many people even carry a 5-year warranty.

Timothy Kim60 said:I wouldn't count on it. Honestly, that other user was onto something regarding how quickly they die out. I heard about someone else—maybe a buddy of mine too—who had one kick the bucket after just a few months. Plus, when you start digging through those depressing threads with 20+ angry comments on Newegg... yeah, it’s a bad look. It might not be a massive statistical sample, but for such a small group, it’s a pretty nasty trend. 😁
I'm not totally sure if the same goes for the 120GB models, though. There are plenty of other budget SSDs out there, like the Adata SP550 or various SanDisk drives where some people even get a solid 5-year warranty.

Oh, really? Sure, they're dirt cheap and have "great" performance. Personally, I've never touched one. In my book, based on what I've actually used, I'd stick to a Corsair Vengeance or maybe a Samsung 850 EVO.