Best gaming PC build for under $500?

Alright, I'm looking to put together a gaming rig for under $500. If it's actually possible to build something decent on that budget... I just want to play Football Manager and some old classics like 😉
. I don't need some insane high-end beast
. I'll be paying in cash 🙂

Do I actually need a monitor, or just a trash can?

Just a clean build with nothing else included

Intel Core i5-7600K box, LGA 1151, 12nm, YD1600BBAFBOX$300
Asrock B450M-HDV R4.0$158
DDR4 8GB (1x8) Patriot 3200MHz Steelcase, PVS48G320C6$85
Patriot Hard Drive 512GB Samsung 970 EVO NVMe, PCIe 3.0 x4, NVMe,$199
Corsair Carbide Series$95
EVGA 400W Power Supply$111
Gainward GTX1050Ti 4GB, GDDR5$370
I might consider picking up a better used graphics card instead.
gov.us

Intel Core i5-7600K box
Gigabyte Intel H110
DDR4 8GB (1x8) G.Skill 3000MHz AEGIS , F4-3000C16S-8GISB
EVGA 400W Power Supply
Kingston Hard Drive 480GB A400 2.5" SATA, SA400S37/480G
Palit GTX1650 SUPER StormX OC, 4GB GDDR6, NE6165SS18G1-166F
LC-Power LC-7037B-ON, black without PSU, U2, U3 ATX

Total: $1250 gov.us

This should hit right around $550. You've got a GTX 1060 class GPU, a 6-core processor, and half a terabyte of storage. Pretty solid setup for a budget build 🙂

The Kingston Hard Drive comes with a 36-month warranty and runs about 2.5 times slower than the Patriot NVMe drive, which offers a 60-month warranty.
The B450 board is a step up from the Intel H110.
The buyer mentioned they just want to play older titles like Call of Duty 2 and various management sims.
Cutting the price on the Hard Drive and motherboard just to squeeze in a better GPU didn't make much sense here.

Nobody is ever going to notice the difference in a Hard Drive, period.
The motherboard is "better"? In what way? Just because it says B450 instead of Intel H110? These are all entry-level boards that basically only differ by having a few extra connectors here or there. If you had at least picked a board with four RAM slots, maybe I'd agree, but as it stands, there is zero real difference.

A "better" motherboard and a faster Hard Drive that won't even feel fast versus a graphics card that’s roughly 60-70% more powerful on average. Tough choice... 🙂

Adam Moore3 said:Nobody is ever going to notice the difference in a Hard Drive, period.
The motherboard is "better"? In what way? Just because it says B450 instead of Intel H110? These are all entry-level boards that basically only differ by having a few extra connectors here or there. If you had at least picked a board with four RAM slots, maybe I'd agree, but as it stands, there is zero real difference.

A "better" motherboard and a faster Hard Drive that won't even feel fast versus a graphics card that’s roughly 60-70% more powerful on average. Tough choice... 🙂

You didn't mention anything about the 60-month warranty, nor did you touch on COD2 or those older games.

Fair enough, you win. Having a 2-year warranty on an SSD makes all the difference 🙂
Spending $367 on a card that’s four years old, when for $50 you can get something 60-70% more powerful and brand new—that is the definition of a good deal.

Even if I were playing exclusively Super Mario, I wouldn't touch a 1050Ti in 2020 for that kind of money. With a decent card, at least you have the option to try something actually challenging. He probably mentioned COD2 because he isn't expecting any "wow" gaming experience for this budget. However, it is doable with a 1650S if you're smart about how you put the build together.

If I were him, I’d just pick up a used card. There's a massive influx of them hitting the market right now because everyone is upgrading to the latest Nvidia gear or waiting on the new AMD releases. It's making everything way cheaper.

It makes more sense to sink an extra bit of cash into a better motherboard so the whole build stays relevant longer. Grab a cheap GPU for $233 and just deal with it.

That’s an option, sure. But my point is that dropping $367 on a 1050Ti in 2020 is just insane...
Basically, for this budget, you might top out at something like a Gigabyte B450M Pro4 or a DS3H, mainly because having 4 RAM slots is a plus. Beyond that, there isn't much of a massive upgrade available; nobody is going to squeeze an MSI Tomahawk into a $1233 budget anyway. Plus, they definitely won't be overclocking.

If I were buying a used GPU, I'd only touch it if it came with at least a six-month warranty. Otherwise, you're basically buying a pig in a poke. For instance, I picked up a used AMD Radeon RX 580 last year, and the warranty expired back in January.
Lately, I've been seeing artifacts pop up on the screen, so I'm pretty much just waiting for the day it finally dies. If a new card with a full warranty fits within the budget—I'd sacrifice two RAM slots in a heartbeat for that peace of mind.

I’d personally grab an AMD B450 with four slots and pair it with a used GPU because:
- you’ve got room for a CPU upgrade later
- you can just toss in two more sticks of RAM if you start with 2x4GB

But look, if upgrading isn't on the table, then 1x8GB on an A320 is fine. You can always add another 8GB down the line.
Otherwise, I'm with you on the GTX 1050 Ti—honestly, don't waste your money there. Better to stretch the budget for a 1650 Super or hunt down a used AMD Radeon RX 580 that still has some warranty left. Or, if you're feeling reckless, buy something dirt cheap with zero warranty and just say "screw it" if it dies. Those games will run on a GTX 950 too.
The only exception is if you're aiming for an AMD FreeSync monitor; then you either go Nvidia GTX 1000 series or newer, or stick with an AMD card.

Why not just throw in an APU? I guess he really went all out on this one, maybe.

wiredotter14 said:I’d personally grab an AMD B450 with four slots and pair it with a used GPU because:
- you’ve got room for a CPU upgrade later
- you can just toss in two more sticks of RAM if you start with 2x4GB

But look, if upgrading isn't on the table, then 1x8GB on an A320 is fine. You can always add another 8GB down the line.
Otherwise, I'm with you on the GTX 1050 Ti—honestly, don't waste your money there. Better to stretch the budget for a 1650 Super or hunt down a used AMD Radeon RX 580 that still has some warranty left. Or, if you're feeling reckless, buy something dirt cheap with zero warranty and just say "screw it" if it dies. Those games will run on a GTX 950 too.
The only exception is if you're aiming for an AMD FreeSync monitor; then you either go Nvidia GTX 1000 series or newer, or stick with an AMD card.

👍

fadedorca66 said:Why not just throw in an APU? I guess he really went all out on this one, maybe.

Because you can fit a decent gaming rig (with a new or used GPU) within this exact budget. I wouldn't cripple my graphics if I can squeeze in an RX580-tier card and a 6C/12T CPU.

But for shits and giggles:

CPU AMD Ryzen 5 Pro 4650G tray + Wraith Stealth cooler, s. AM4
ASRock B450M Steel Legend, AM4
DDR4 16GB (2x8) G.Skill 3000MHz AEGIS C16, F4-3000C16D-16GISB
Kingston SSD 480GB A400 2.5" SATA, SA400S37/480G
Zalman Z1 NEO Midi Tower Black
EVGA 500W Power Supply, PPA5004901

Total: $1224 Best Buy

By the way, the Steel Legend is $227 available at Best Buy, which is a killer price for this tier.
This setup will handle older titles quite well, and maybe even some slightly newer ones. However, it’s still incomparably weaker than any dedicated GPU solution. The only perk here is getting a better foundation for the platform and some room for upgrades. This build is basically just waiting for an RTX 3060 or 3070 to drop in.

Even if not everyone wants to plan for an upgrade a few hundred bucks down the line, it's something to keep in mind.

You're getting a much better foundation here—dual channel RAM paired with an AMD Ryzen 5 Pro 4650G that punches right up against an R5 3600.
But obviously, right out of the gate, the integrated GPU can't touch any kind of dedicated graphics card.

It’s not quite on par with the 3600; you can definitely see a gap in pure CPU performance— CLICK
Sure, it's still a powerhouse, but it doesn't hit the same levels as the 3600. The iGPU just had to take a slice of the pie, I guess 🙂