Gaming PC for $1,500 - $2,000?

Alexander Moore67 said:If you think a Core i7-8700K is overkill for gaming, then tell me if a Core i5-2500K can still run every modern title after eight years. And why would I bother buying a motherboard for a Core i7-8700K today if it's only going to matter eight years from now compared to an i5-8600K? Also, please don't call me "buddy"—my buddies are long gone...

It’s already running the most powerful GPU on the market; there's no point in trying to go higher.

The Intel Core i8 is coming out soon anyway. In 2018, putting a 6-thread processor in a $5,000 rig is just insanity.

If we're really going down this road of comparisons... sure, an i5 2500K might technically launch any game today, but a 2600K is significantly more capable and sits at least a generation or two ahead when you actually consider how soon you'll need to upgrade.

Nowadays, the i5 2500K is already visibly struggling to keep up with 4c8t processors in modern titles.

Alexander Moore67 said:If you think a Core i7-8700K is overkill for gaming, then tell me if a Core i5-2500K can still run every modern title after eight years. And why would I bother buying a motherboard for a Core i7-8700K today if it's only going to matter eight years from now compared to an i5-8600K? Also, please don't call me "buddy"—my buddies are long gone...

Look, nobody is saying the Core i5-2500K is a bad processor, but let's face it—time has simply moved past it. I'm currently running a GTX 1070, and my bottleneck is actually an i5 4670K (which is two generations newer than the one you mentioned). I know I’d see a massive jump in FPS if I finally upgraded my CPU generation. Besides, like someone else pointed out earlier, if you've got a couple hundred bucks sitting around, there isn't much point in sticking with an i5, even if it is a 6-core, 12-thread chip.

Having jumped from a Core i5-2500K overclocked at 4.2GHz to a Core i7-8600K running at 4.6GHz alongside a GTX 1080, I can say the difference is massive. I don't really play many CPU-heavy titles, but Formula 1 2017 comes pretty close. My frame rate shot up from about 90-100 FPS—with some annoying stuttering and roughly 60-70% GPU usage—to a smooth 150-160 FPS without any drops. I guess an Everyman would find those old 2500K numbers perfectly fine, but they just didn't cut it for me since I'm always chasing every single millisecond of input lag.

Larry Ortiz5 said:Look, nobody is saying the Core i5-2500K is a bad processor, but let's face it—time has simply moved past it. I'm currently running a GTX 1070, and my bottleneck is actually an i5 4670K (which is two generations newer than the one you mentioned). I know I’d see a massive jump in FPS if I finally upgraded my CPU generation. Besides, like someone else pointed out earlier, if you've got a couple hundred bucks sitting around, there isn't much point in sticking with an i5, even if it is a 6-core, 12-thread chip.

The 8600K isn't 6c/12t, it's 6c/6t.

Back then, the Core i5-2500K was positioned much closer to the high-end than the 8600K is today, mostly because HyperThreading became way more essential over time.

My bad, I guess I overcomplicated things—when you're looking at a six-generation gap between processors, there really isn't much left to debate, is there? It's pretty much a no-brainer.

If he’s working with a budget that massive, there really isn't much of a debate...

The only thing I could possibly point to as a reason for "skimping" would be if he's building an Alienware Aurora $0.00, yet decides to drop over six grand on just the monitor.

It doesn't even matter; the guy is talking about saving $150 on a processor within a practically uncompromising $6667 build. I might have understood if he'd suggested a Ryzen, but an i5... 🤣 He still has plenty of wiggle room even with all his exaggerations, INCLUDING the motherboard, which isn't lacking anything at all except for pure value, since it already costs what it costs. Then again, there's still a few hundred bucks left before hitting $2,000, so there’s really no need to cut corners anywhere. Unless he actually wants to save money, but that's a different story entirely.

At the end of the day, I'm calling on all of you to put together some builds so I can see what they should actually look like 😬

What kind of "dead end" are you even talking about? For 20 $0.00, you can grab basically everything top-tier on the market and still have 4000 left over for a killer monitor. Seriously, why on earth would anyone even consider slapping a Core i5-2500 in a build at that price point?

Peter Green said:What kind of "dead end" are you even talking about? For 20 $0.00, you can grab basically everything top-tier on the market and still have 4000 left over for a killer monitor. Seriously, why on earth would anyone even consider slapping a Core i5-2500 in a build at that price point?

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It's total overkill for gaming, plain and simple. This isn't even the top-tier 1080 Ti; this one goes for $1,300 because the cooling is better.
ASUS ROG Strix GeForce GTX 1080

Alexander Moore67 said:It's total overkill for gaming, plain and simple. This isn't even the top-tier 1080 Ti; this one goes for $1,300 because the cooling is better.
ASUS ROG Strix GeForce GTX 1080

Is a Core i5-2500K overkill for gaming today?
No way! It wasn't overkill three years ago either!

When you build a rig without compromises, you expect it to push max FPS for years to come. And by "max," I mean playing at high refresh rates.

Throw in potential streaming or whatever—nothing unusual there.
Thinking an i5 is the peak gaming CPU is some outdated mindset from five years ago when nobody knew what to do with extra threads.

P.S.

The guy isn't even sure if he'll overclock. Even at stock, a Core i7-8700 is plenty fast. You don't even need an OC if you have a decent motherboard that holds the all-core turbo.

Thanks for all the input so far 🙂
Still waiting on those prices next week to see how they shift, or if they actually start dropping. I can't wait to see how this whole thing plays out in the end...
Look, yeah, I'm a hardcore gamer, but I'm the type who doesn't track component specs or any of that junk because... honestly, I've just been too damn lazy to care for years now 😁 So I usually just hit up a buddy of mine whenever I need to ask about stuff, like overclocking if I ever decide to dive into that mess.
Anyway, I'm used to making do. My last rig—the one I had until I moved last year—was ancient... like, 9 years old. Back then, I dropped maybe $2,000 on the whole setup including peripherals and everything... it wasn't even remotely top-tier, but it... it held its own enough to run most things, I guess :P
But now? Now I finally want a total beast. Something with zero compromises... a machine that absolutely crushes everything I throw at it when I'm gaming.
And money isn't really an issue here; since I'm going to be spending this much anyway, I might as well go big. (I pull in roughly $1,500 a week down here, maybe even more soon if luck is on my side.)
Whatever, I'm just dying to get back to building this PC 🙂
Thanks again! Feel free to keep the discussion going 😁 this is getting interesting.

Like I mentioned before, since NVIDIA hasn't officially dropped their next generation of GPUs yet, you’d be much smarter to just hang tight for a bit (rumor has it they're coming out this month)

You can just order the whole rig without a GPU and start using it right away. Intel processors come with integrated graphics, so you can just pick up whatever card you want from any site whenever you're ready.

Then again, Intel's 9th gen—Coffee Lake Refresh—might be dropping soon, so it's worth keeping an eye on that.
Mind you, a killer 8-core chip will probably cost a lot more than the current Core i7-7700K 6-core, so whether it actually fits your budget or makes sense for you is anyone's guess. But either way, it might drive down the prices on what's available right now.

Regarding the CPU, don't hold your breath for a price drop—it's never actually happened. Even the Core i7-7700K is still sitting around $2300-$800 and up... An Intel Core i8 might land at maybe $1333 +/-, but if he picks out some badass 6K monitor, his budget could get hit hard 😬 and honestly, he doesn't even need it.

Kimberly Gomez34 said:Regarding the CPU, don't hold your breath for a price drop—it's never actually happened. Even the Core i7-7700K is still sitting around $2300-$800 and up... An Intel Core i8 might land at maybe $1333 +/-, but if he picks out some badass 6K monitor, his budget could get hit hard 😬 and honestly, he doesn't even need it.

Agreed. He might as well grab the whole rig right now, just skip the GPU.

And it’s happening! The moment has finally arrived 😁 the cash is officially saved up!
It looks like I’m actually sticking to this parts list my buddy put together after all!
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/user/PsY...d/#view=dTp8YJ
One exception though—I’m going to listen to the experts here and just grab the Noctua NH-D15 instead.
Still haven't made a final call on the case... maybe the one on the list, maybe not. Who knows.

BUT!! I still need some input from the crew here.
I'm looking at keyboards now. I was eyeing this one as a sort of... high-end option? https://www.mwave.com.au/product/asu...mx-red-ac17244
Honestly, I want RGB because, well, yay shiny 😁 . Cherry red (or maybe brown) switches seem like my vibe, and I just want something that feels premium and high-quality, you know?
Any advice?

In about two weeks or so, I'll be hunting for a monitor, a mouse, and speakers too. So please, I am desperate for suggestions on those as well 🙂
Everything is being sourced right here in the US, just as a heads up XD
Tnx!!

Why on earth would you need 32GB of RAM just for gaming? Most titles have only recently started making even a dent in more than 8GB, and even then, it’s a small minority of games. In my opinion, 2x8GB is plenty... You could also look into a newer, slightly more compact case (like a Fractal R6), or if you're into that flashy aesthetic, grab one with a tempered glass side panel. Besides, new GPUs are dropping in about a month—they'll be officially unveiled any day now.

For the motherboard, you could go with the Z370 Extreme 4. It's top-tier stuff, yet almost $100 cheaper, and honestly, you won't notice a difference. Unless you're planning to overclock, you can just enable all-core turbo and sit pretty at 4.7GHz.
BTW, where do people usually shop over in the Australian Office?

NVIDIA RTX 2080 🎉