Gaming build without a GPU for $500?

Hey, I need some help putting together a build. I’m not looking for a monitor, peripherals, or a GPU—I just picked up an AMD Radeon R7 260X recently and I want to swap that into this new rig. My budget is sitting right around $1167, so I need everything else to be properly balanced with that card. It’ll basically be a do-it-all machine, but mostly for gaming, so I need it to actually handle whatever comes out next.

Thanks in advance

Brandon Ward31 said:Hey, I need some help putting together a build. I’m not looking for a monitor, peripherals, or a GPU—I just picked up an AMD Radeon R7 260X recently and I want to swap that into this new rig. My budget is sitting right around $1167, so I need everything else to be properly balanced with that card. It’ll basically be a do-it-all machine, but mostly for gaming, so I need it to actually handle whatever comes out next.

Thanks in advance

1 x ASUS M5A97 R2, AM3, AM3+, AMD 970, SB950, BUS 5200 MHz, DDR3
2 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x AMD FX-Series X6 6300 3.5GHz, 14MB, 95W, AM3+, FD6300WMHK
1 x XFX Core edition 80 450W PSU - EasyRail technology
1 x ASUS DRW-24F1ST/Black/B/AS SATA, DVD-R 24x, DVD-RW 6x, DVD+R 24x
1 x Seagate BarraCuda 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB
1 x CoolerMaster Hyper TX3, LGA775/1156 and AMD 754/939/940/AM2/AM3
1 x Coolermaster K280, MIDI, black, USB 3.0, no PSU
1 x Fractal Silent Series R2 120mm, 850-1200 rpm, 12-15 dBA

$1122
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2 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x XFX Core edition 80 450W PSU - EasyRail technology
1 x ASUS DRW-24F1ST/Black/B/AS SATA, DVD-R 24x, DVD-RW 6x, DVD+R 24x
1 x Seagate BarraCuda 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB
1 x Coolermaster K280, MIDI, black, USB 3.0, no PSU
1 x Fractal Silent Series R2 120mm, 850-1200 rpm, 12-15 dBA
1 x Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz (Max Turbo FQ 3.3 GHz), 6MB
1 x GIGABYTE B75-D3V, Socket : 1155, Intel B75, 4xDDR3 1066/1333/16

$1168

Robert Rodriguez2 said:1 x ASUS M5A97 R2, AM3, AM3+, AMD 970, SB950, BUS 5200 MHz, DDR3
2 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x AMD FX-Series X6 6300 3.5GHz, 14MB, 95W, AM3+, FD6300WMHK
1 x XFX Core edition 80 450W PSU - EasyRail technology
1 x ASUS DRW-24F1ST/Black/B/AS SATA, DVD-R 24x, DVD-RW 6x, DVD+R 24x
1 x Seagate BarraCuda 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB
1 x CoolerMaster Hyper TX3, LGA775/1156 and AMD 754/939/940/AM2/AM3
1 x Coolermaster K280, MIDI, black, USB 3.0, no PSU
1 x Fractal Silent Series R2 120mm, 850-1200 rpm, 12-15 dBA

$1122
admin.us

2 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x XFX Core edition 80 450W PSU - EasyRail technology
1 x ASUS DRW-24F1ST/Black/B/AS SATA, DVD-R 24x, DVD-RW 6x, DVD+R 24x
1 x Seagate BarraCuda 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB
1 x Coolermaster K280, MIDI, black, USB 3.0, no PSU
1 x Fractal Silent Series R2 120mm, 850-1200 rpm, 12-15 dBA
1 x Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz (Max Turbo FQ 3.3 GHz), 6MB
1 x GIGABYTE B75-D3V, Socket : 1155, Intel B75, 4xDDR3 1066/1333/16

$1168

Why not just go with Haswell? It's a much newer platform after all. 🤷

1 x Intel Core i5-4440
1 x Kingmax 1x8GB DDR3 1600 FLGG
1 x GIGABYTE Main Board Desktop iB85 (S1150,DDR3,VGA/DVI,USB3.0/USB2.0,LAN,SATAIII/SATAII) mATX Retail
1 x HDD Desktop Seagate BarraCuda (3.5", 500GB, 32MB, SATA III-600)
1 x LITE ON IHAS122 DVD-RW 22x Super Multi, SATA, Black, Bulk
1 x Zalman Z3+, USB3.0 black
1 x XFX Pro 450W, 80+

Total: $1153

FUTURA IT, includes free assembly and shipping.

Adam Moore3 said:Why not just go with Haswell? It's a much newer platform after all. 🤷

It’s slightly cheaper, Haswell runs a bit hotter, and the performance jump isn't even worth the extra cash.

Robert Rodriguez2 said:It’s slightly cheaper, Haswell runs a bit hotter, and the performance jump isn't even worth the extra cash.

Honestly, grabbing a newer platform with a slight edge in performance for about $5? I think it's worth it.🙂

Just putting this out there 😁

1 x AMD FX-Series X8 8320 3.5GHz, 16MB, 125W, AM3+, FD8320FRHK
1 x DDR3 8GB (1x8GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x Seagate BarraCuda 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB
1 x ASUS DRW-24F1ST/BLK/B/AS SATA, DVD-R 24x, DVD-RW 6x, DVD+R 24x
1 x SILVERSTONE Strider 500W, Essential ST50F-ES AC 90-264V, 47/63Hz
1 x ASUS M5A97 R2, AM3, AM3+, AMD 970, SB950, BUS 5200 MHz, DDR3
1 x SCYTHE Katana 4 SCKTN-4000, socket 754/940/939/AM2/AM2+/AM3+/FM1
1 x COOLERMASTER N400, NSE-400-KKN1, MIDI, USB 3.0, black, no PSU

$1195

crimsonstag84 said:Just putting this out there 😁

1 x AMD FX-Series X8 8320 3.5GHz, 16MB, 125W, AM3+, FD8320FRHK
1 x DDR3 8GB (1x8GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x Seagate BarraCuda 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB
1 x ASUS DRW-24F1ST/BLK/B/AS SATA, DVD-R 24x, DVD-RW 6x, DVD+R 24x
1 x SILVERSTONE Strider 500W, Essential ST50F-ES AC 90-264V, 47/63Hz
1 x ASUS M5A97 R2, AM3, AM3+, AMD 970, SB950, BUS 5200 MHz, DDR3
1 x SCYTHE Katana 4 SCKTN-4000, socket 754/940/939/AM2/AM2+/AM3+/FM1
1 x COOLERMASTER N400, NSE-400-KKN1, MIDI, USB 3.0, black, no PSU

$1195

Intel All The Way if you're choosing a platform, though 😛 In my opinion 😛

crimsonstag84 said:Just putting this out there 😁

1 x AMD FX-Series X8 8320 3.5GHz, 16MB, 125W, AM3+, FD8320FRHK
1 x DDR3 8GB (1x8GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x Seagate BarraCuda 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB
1 x ASUS DRW-24F1ST/BLK/B/AS SATA, DVD-R 24x, DVD-RW 6x, DVD+R 24x
1 x SILVERSTONE Strider 500W, Essential ST50F-ES AC 90-264V, 47/63Hz
1 x ASUS M5A97 R2, AM3, AM3+, AMD 970, SB950, BUS 5200 MHz, DDR3
1 x SCYTHE Katana 4 SCKTN-4000, socket 754/940/939/AM2/AM2+/AM3+/FM1
1 x COOLERMASTER N400, NSE-400-KKN1, MIDI, USB 3.0, black, no PSU

$1195

OP OP 👍

I figured I’d throw something interesting into the mix too 😁

G3258
PROLIMATECH BASIC 65
ASUS Z97-K
PATRIOT SIG 8GB 1333 MHZ
Seagate BarraCuda 3.5 1TB SATA 3 SSHD
LITE ON DVD-RW SATA
XFX Core edition 80 450W 80+ BRONZE
ZALMAN Z3+ USB 3.0 MIDI ATX

= $1200including assembly and shipping from Micro Center

The short version:
- Intel is finally bringing some glory back to the Pentium name—this G3258 comes with an unlocked multiplier, making it a killer little chip for overclocking, especially since it stays pretty cool and doesn't gulp power.
- Since you're looking at this for gaming, where it's shown more than decent performance, I think this is your sweet spot. Plus, your GPU is a perfect match for it—honestly, an i5 & FX 8320 would be kind of overkill for an AMD Radeon R7 260X, though that's not a huge deal.
- On top of that, you've got a motherboard that's packed with features, solid build quality, and plenty of room to overclock or upgrade later—you could jump from Haswell to Devil's Canyon or even move up to Broadwell down the road.
- You also get that SSHD, which gives you massive storage without the lag—it's way faster than a standard old-school HDD, meaning much quicker game loading times.
- Then there's the high-quality Seasonic unit with a 5-year warranty—totally enough juice for everything listed here, including your GPU and any future upgrades you might throw at it.
- You've got a solid aftermarket cooler ready to go to keep things quiet, cool, and stable during those overclocking sessions.
- And finally, the Z3+ is a total best buy—it's got everything you actually need: great airflow (4x120mm fans), a voltage knob, dust filters, decent cable management, room for GPUs up to 30cm+, and USB 3.0...

Definitely a solid setup worth thinking about 😉

Ugh, honestly? I have zero clue what to pick right now. Total brain fog. xd

So, looking at the recommendations for CPUs... it seems like everyone's basically saying... $200 do $400 So now I'm sitting here wondering... am I really gonna need that $1,200 unit? Or is that just straight-up overkill? I don't have any plans to touch this rig for a good long while, so I gotta know if I'm just throwing money down the drain. Also, I'm thinking about grabbing 2x 4GB sticks of RAM instead of just one 8GB stick. People keep telling me it runs faster that way, but honestly, I don't see myself upgrading the memory anytime soon either.

It’s totally your call, but if I were in your shoes, I’d probably go with the Pentium—especially since you mentioned you aren't planning any big upgrades anytime soon. You've already got that AMD Radeon R7 260X, which should carry you through about two years of decent gaming on higher settings without much trouble. After that, you'll definitely want to look at something new, and the Pentium actually gives you some breathing room to pair it with a beefier GPU later on thanks to its higher clock speeds. You won't feel forced to swap the CPU immediately, though after a couple of years, moving up to an i5 or maybe an FX 8320 paired with a GPU in the ballpark of an R9 290 or GTX 780—or even something a bit lighter like an R9 280X or GTX 770—would be the move. Plus, by then, power consumption will have dropped significantly, so you won't have to stress about whether your power supply can handle it.

Also, don't sleep on what you're getting here—the difference is actually pretty noticeable. As for RAM, honestly, the gap between single and dual channel is almost invisible in most cases—it's mostly just something to keep in mind for those APU setups, which aren't really your thing anyway.

If you're dead set on a more powerful CPU right out of the gate, aim for the i5 or FX 8320 and then upgrade the GPU later. Just a heads up though—if you go that route, ditch that tiny generic power supply and grab at least an XFX 450W unit.

graniteharbor85 actually presents a solid option here; we're looking at some truly high-quality components. This little Pentium, once overclocked, performs absolute miracles in gaming, and it's a perfect match for your graphics card—just take a look at the link in his post if you're wondering how that's even possible. 😉

If you can swing a Pentium instead of an i5 while staying within your budget, I guess there isn't much else to look for, IMO. Even if we're talking about a really solid unlocked version, maybe the i5 is still the smarter play. With an i5, you'll probably be set for years without any headaches, and it gives you enough breathing room to drop in a much beefier graphics card later on.

Amy Vaughn12 said:If you can swing a Pentium instead of an i5 while staying within your budget, I guess there isn't much else to look for, IMO. Even if we're talking about a really solid unlocked version, maybe the i5 is still the smarter play. With an i5, you'll probably be set for years without any headaches, and it gives you enough breathing room to drop in a much beefier graphics card later on.

+1. While it's definitely an interesting option, let's be real: if you're working with a tight budget, a Pentium just doesn't offer much to work with $1167 unless you're pairing it with a dedicated GPU.

Honestly, there are like a million different ways to go with a budget like this. I suggested this specific setup mainly because of what he's actually doing—gaming—where the performance gap won't even be that noticeable. Plus, with that Pentium and the other upgrades moving him onto the s1150 platform, it really puts that old s775 stuff into perspective... it feels like people might actually stick around on this socket for a bit longer than expected. Long term, he’s going to end up with a solid PC regardless of which path he takes—it just comes down to whether he wants more power right out of the gate. The rest of the parts in my suggestion pretty clearly show what he gets now versus what he can add later.

I’ll probably just end up grabbing an i5. What's the actual deal with the difference between the 4440 and the 3350P? From what I can tell, the 4440 bumps up the performance a bit, but the price is basically the same anyway.

It won't make much of a difference for gaming, though I guess the 4440 might be about 5% better for applications.

Still, I’d probably just go with an H97 motherboard and the i5 4440.

Brandon Ward31 said:I’ll probably just end up grabbing an i5. What's the actual deal with the difference between the 4440 and the 3350P? From what I can tell, the 4440 bumps up the performance a bit, but the price is basically the same anyway.

In real-world usage (performance), there isn't much of a gap; the 3350P might run just a tiny bit cooler and costs a bit less, but the real advantage of the 4440 is that you get integrated graphics, and they're actually quite decent.

As The New Guy mentioned, the folks over at Haswell were relying on integrated graphics that are a massive step up from the previous socket—so honestly, you might want to just grab the 4440.