Looking for a new PC build – budget over $10k

Hello everyone

After more than a decade, I suppose it is finally time for a new machine. I have been reading through quite a few threads regarding builds for various budgets, and frankly, I am still feeling somewhat uncertain. My primary reason for upgrading is to play titles like Company of Heroes or Red Alert; nothing extremely demanding by modern standards, though I would prefer something capable of handling more intensive games if the mood strikes. I also use my computer for general web browsing and downloading movies, so I am looking for a desktop setup plus a monitor for roughly $1667

Here is an AMD option for you 🙂

1 x Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz,14MB,95W,AM3+, FD6300WMHK
1 x Gigabyte 970A-DS3P, AM3+, AMD 970 SB950, 4x DDR3 2000(O.C.)/1866
2 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x TOSHIBA 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA050
1 x ZALMAN CNPS 5X, socket 775/1155/1156/AM2/AM2/AM3
1 x EVGA Core edition 80 450W PSU - EasyRail technology
1 x Spire Maverick 6009, kućište ATX/micro ATX
1 x MSI GTX 750 Ti Gaming 2GB GDDR5, N750Ti TF 2GD5/OC Gaming
1 x Dell V236HLBd 23", IPS panel, resolution : 1920x1080, Diagonal

$1693 admin.us

Hexa-core processor with decent upgrade potential, solid graphics, a highly reliable power supply, an aftermarket cooler, and a great IPS monitor 🙂

1 x AOC I2269VWM, IPS monitor 21,5" Wide, WLED, resolution : 1920x1080@60 Hz
1 x ASUS M5A97 R2.0, AM3,AM3+, AMD 970, SB950, BUS 5200 MHz, DDR3
1 x Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz,14MB,95W,AM3+, FD6300WMHK
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x HDD WD 1TB, Caviar Blue 10EZEX, 1000 GB, SATA3,64 MB, 3,5", 24mj
1 x Samsung SH-224DB sat Bulk Black, SATA
1 x Spire Maverick 6009, kućište ATX/micro ATX
1 x EVGA R9-270A, R9-270A-CDFC, Double Dissipation Edition 925M Boost
1 x CORSAIR 430W, CX Series 80+ Bronze, EPS12V v2.3, 80+
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 ,hladnjak, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm ,92mm

$1670
admin.com

1 x Samsung 23.6" LS24D390HL, VGA, HDMI
1 x INTEL Core i3-4150 (3.50GHz,512KB,3MB,54 W,1150) Box, INTEL HD Graphics 4000
1 x Asrock s1150 H97M PRO4
1 x Inno3D Geforce GTX750Ti 2GB GDDR5
1 x 4GB 1866MHz DDR3 CL10 DIMM HyperX FURY Black Series
1 x XFX Pro 450W, 80+
1 x Seagate HDD, 1TB, 7200rpm, SATA 6, 64M
1 x LITE ON IHAS122 DVD-RW 22x Super Multi, SATA, Black, Bulk
1 x Zalman T1 PLUS, USB3.0 black

$1669
futura-it

I'm looking for a large, high-quality monitor—something that seems like such a good deal I'd be crazy not to grab it, I guess.

Robert Rodriguez2 said:1 x AOC I2269VWM, IPS monitor 21,5" Wide, WLED, resolution : 1920x1080@60 Hz
1 x ASUS M5A97 R2.0, AM3,AM3+, AMD 970, SB950, BUS 5200 MHz, DDR3
1 x Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz,14MB,95W,AM3+, FD6300WMHK
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x HDD WD 1TB, Caviar Blue 10EZEX, 1000 GB, SATA3,64 MB, 3,5", 24mj
1 x Samsung SH-224DB sat Bulk Black, SATA
1 x Spire Maverick 6009, kućište ATX/micro ATX
1 x EVGA R9-270A, R9-270A-CDFC, Double Dissipation Edition 925M Boost
1 x CORSAIR 430W, CX Series 80+ Bronze, EPS12V v2.3, 80+
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 ,hladnjak, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm ,92mm

$1670
admin.com

Solid build, definitely better than mine. By the way, are you sure that cooler works on an AM3+ CPU? It doesn't mention support for that socket.

Thanks for all the input. I assume the level of detail in the game makes this the best choice out of the three?

I honestly think Robert Rodriguez2 put together the most balanced build here. He managed to squeeze in a top-tier GPU without compromising on the processor, which is obviously the most critical part for gaming. He achieved that by cutting corners slightly on the RAM, using a bit of a weaker power supply, and opting for a lesser cooler. But those are all minor investments when you compare them to the heavy hitters in the rig, so if you ask me, his configuration offers the best bang for your buck. 🙂

Adam Moore3 said:I honestly think Robert Rodriguez2 put together the most balanced build here. He managed to squeeze in a top-tier GPU without compromising on the processor, which is obviously the most critical part for gaming. He achieved that by cutting corners slightly on the RAM, using a bit of a weaker power supply, and opting for a lesser cooler. But those are all minor investments when you compare them to the heavy hitters in the rig, so if you ask me, his configuration offers the best bang for your buck. 🙂

The power supply can handle even heavier builds than this one, so there’s nothing to worry about 🙂

That cooler is better than the stock one, and he didn't mention anything about overclocking 😬

At the end of the day, having a solid CPU and GPU is what counts. Upgrading RAM later is easy enough :P

Robert Rodriguez2 said:The power supply can handle even heavier builds than this one, so there’s nothing to worry about 🙂

That cooler is better than the stock one, and he didn't mention anything about overclocking 😬

At the end of the day, having a solid CPU and GPU is what counts. Upgrading RAM later is easy enough :P

Yeah, I agree. The CX is plenty for this setup since the components aren't drawing much power, and adding more RAM down the road is easily done.👍

Robert Rodriguez2 said:1 x AOC I2269VWM, IPS monitor 21,5" Wide, WLED, resolution : 1920x1080@60 Hz
1 x ASUS M5A97 R2.0, AM3,AM3+, AMD 970, SB950, BUS 5200 MHz, DDR3
1 x Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz,14MB,95W,AM3+, FD6300WMHK
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x HDD WD 1TB, Caviar Blue 10EZEX, 1000 GB, SATA3,64 MB, 3,5", 24mj
1 x Samsung SH-224DB sat Bulk Black, SATA
1 x Spire Maverick 6009, kućište ATX/micro ATX
1 x EVGA R9-270A, R9-270A-CDFC, Double Dissipation Edition 925M Boost
1 x CORSAIR 430W, CX Series 80+ Bronze, EPS12V v2.3, 80+
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 ,hladnjak, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm ,92mm

$1670
admin.com

man 👍
Honestly, starting off with 4GB is plenty for now, right? You can always just grab another 4GB stick later on and call it a day 🙂
though if it were me, I’d definitely go with Seagate over that WD blue drive... 😉

Hey @Adam Moore3, why on earth are you pushing for a 500GB drive when the price difference is basically nonexistent?

Roger Gray8 said:man 👍
Honestly, starting off with 4GB is plenty for now, right? You can always just grab another 4GB stick later on and call it a day 🙂
though if it were me, I’d definitely go with Seagate over that WD blue drive... 😉

Hey @Adam Moore3, why on earth are you pushing for a 500GB drive when the price difference is basically nonexistent?

The difference is only about a dollar. When you're building a rig and trying to squeeze everything into a tight budget, $23 it actually matters. If he needs 1 TB and wants it, he should just get it. I went with the cheaper option. 🙄

There are already plenty of solid ways to go, but here’s one build where I think we’re getting the absolute most bang for our buck across the board:

FX 6300
LC CC 95
GIGABYTE 970A-DS3P
KINGSTON 2+4 GB 1600 MHZ (6GB)
SEGATE 3,5 BARR. 1TB SATA 3
XFX R9 270X 2GB BLACK EDITION
LITE ON DVD-RW SATA
SILVERSTONE STRIDER 500W
MS PHOENIX MIDI ATX + 80 MM FAN

ACER 22" VA LED FHD

= $1707 - Futura it.

Honestly, a VA panel is the real sweet spot for budgets like this—you aren't really missing out on much. And hey, if you’re dead set on an IPS, just grab something with good optics that's easy to upgrade later, like that AOC we talked about.

Let's get this moving 😬

1 x AOC I2269VWM, IPS monitor 21,5" Wide, WLED, 1920x1080@60 Hz
1 x CORSAIR 430W Power Supply, CX Series 80+ Bronze, EPS12V v2.3, 80+
1 x Seagate 500GB HDD, Serial ATA III, 7200 rpm, Barracuda 7200.12
1 x MS Albatross Case, no PSU
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x Sapphire R9 280 3GB OC Dual-X, 3GB GDDR5 384bit, 28nm
1 x ASUS H81M-K, 1150, Intel ® H81 express chipset, DDR3
1 x Intel Core i5-4440 (3.10GHz,1MB,6MB,84 W,1150) Box

$1719

No optical drive, the case doesn't have fans included (though you could add some), an entry-level motherboard that gets the job done, a small hard drive, and just 4GB of RAM. I guess the CPU and GPU combo is probably the strongest part here and should deliver decent gaming performance, but otherwise, the build feels a little unbalanced.

The monitor is definitely this Samsung 23.6 inch LS24D390HL, featuring VGA and HDMI. The price seems solid considering the performance, so it should probably fit within that $100 to $200 range. $100 That part shouldn't be an issue. Also, if anyone has a recommendation for Windows—I don't want to start a whole new thread—since I've been running an old version like 98 until now.

So, you should probably just stick with what Amy Vaughn12 put together for you—it’s a solid setup and gives you plenty of room to grow later if you want to upgrade. But, if you’re really feeling the itch for a beefier CPU like the FX 6300, just swap out the GPU in my previous post for the MSI R7 265 and bump that RAM up to 4GB, and then that Samsung monitor you want will fit right in.

Go with Win 8.1.

If possible, let's go through this 😁

AMD FX-6300 box Asrock 970 EXTREME3 R2
Asrock 970 EXTREME3 R2.0
Kingston 4GB DDR3-1600
Toshiba 500GB 3.5"
XFX PRO550W
LC-CC-95 - CPU cooler
Sapphire R9 280 Dual-X 3gb
Techsolo TC-G20

4 $82 local shop
Free assembly and shipping
(Delivery takes 7-10 days)

Samsung LS24D390HL Monitor

If that's too much, $73 you'll save some money with this card...

Sapphire RADEON R9 270 x Dual-X OC

crimsonstag84 said:Let's get this moving 😬

1 x AOC I2269VWM, IPS monitor 21,5" Wide, WLED, 1920x1080@60 Hz
1 x CORSAIR 430W Power Supply, CX Series 80+ Bronze, EPS12V v2.3, 80+
1 x Seagate 500GB HDD, Serial ATA III, 7200 rpm, Barracuda 7200.12
1 x MS Albatross Case, no PSU
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x Sapphire R9 280 3GB OC Dual-X, 3GB GDDR5 384bit, 28nm
1 x ASUS H81M-K, 1150, Intel ® H81 express chipset, DDR3
1 x Intel Core i5-4440 (3.10GHz,1MB,6MB,84 W,1150) Box

$1719

No optical drive, the case doesn't have fans included (though you could add some), an entry-level motherboard that gets the job done, a small hard drive, and just 4GB of RAM. I guess the CPU and GPU combo is probably the strongest part here and should deliver decent gaming performance, but otherwise, the build feels a little unbalanced.

It's a bit much 🤣

So, what should I go with? I'm stuck in a bit of a dilemma here. Is the best configuration the one suggested by Robert Rodriguez2, Amy Vaughn12, crimsonstag84, or Adam Moore3?

Ryan Taylor6 said:So, what should I go with? I'm stuck in a bit of a dilemma here. Is the best configuration the one suggested by Robert Rodriguez2, Amy Vaughn12, crimsonstag84, or Adam Moore3?

My 😬

there aren't any middle grounds here 😁
you get a decent CPU, good GPU, solid motherboard... you've got the foundation for a major upgrade down the road 😛

plus the monitor has an IPS panel 😁

Eh, honestly, an IPS panel just isn't going to cut it if you're looking at a larger monitor.
And while you could swap that i3 out for an AMD FX 6300, I guess if there isn't any overclocking potential involved, it might actually be better to stick with the Intel setup, since that has its own set of advantages too. The NVIDIA GTX 750 is maybe about 15% weaker than a 270, but the power draw is significantly lower; once you factor in that efficient i3, you're looking at a difference of at least 100W.