PC Build under $1,200

Hi there,

I'm looking to buy a desktop computer, and I'd prefer to pay in cash upon delivery. I'll be using it to run an embroidery machine, so I think I'll need a recommendation for a decent monitor—probably something around 27" so I can clearly see all the thread details and such.
On top of that, my teenager will be using it for gaming occasionally. Right now, they're mostly stuck on Minecraft, but I imagine they'll want something more demanding in a year or two. My total budget for everything is roughly $7,000 or $8,000. It needs to be a quiet build and have some room for future upgrades. I'm leaning toward an Intel Core i5 setup, and I'd like the monitor and graphics card to be well-balanced. The monitor doesn't necessarily need to be from the same brand.
Thanks for any advice you can give.

1 x Dell 27 inch Monitor, IPS panel, FullHD
1 x FullHD 1 x HDD Western Digital 1, Serial ATA III, 7200 rpm, ST1000DM003
1 x OCZ SSD ARC 100 120GB, Kontroler OCZ Barefoot 3 M10
1 x EVGA 400W Power Supply, Hyper, PPA5005003, 12cm fan
1 x LG GH24NS, DVD±RW, 24x DVD±R ,8x DL , 40x CD-R
1 x MSI B150M Pro-DH, LGA1151, 4xDDR4 (max 64GB), SATA Express 16Gb/
1 x Intel Core i5-6500 3.20GHz, Turbo : 3.6GHz, 4 core, 6MB
2 x DDR4 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 2400MHz, Ballistix Sport DDR4
1 x Gigabyte GTX950 WF2 Overclocked, 2GB GDDR5
1 x Zalman Z1 mid tower case. 199(W)x432(H)x457(D)mm. MB standard

$2638 Micro Center

1 x Intel Core i5-4460 (3.20GHz, 1MB, 6MB, 84 W, 1150) Box
1 x Asrock H81M-HDS, s1150, Intel H81, M-ATX, dual Channel 2 xDDR3
1 x MSI GTX960 Gaming, 2GB GDDR5, Twin Frozr V, GTX 960 GAMING 2G
1 x EVGA 400W power supply, 12cm fan
1 x Kingston SSD 120GB HyperX Fury, 2.5", SATA 3 6G
1 x FullHD 1 x HDD Western Digital 1, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA100
1 x DDR3 8GB (1x8GB) Corsair, 1600MHz, CL11, Value, CMV8GX3M1A160C11
1 x Zalman Z1 mid tower case. 199(W)x432(H)x457(D)mm. Standard ATX size

$1856
Best Buy

Monitor

What’s the deal with shipping and warranty coverage if I order through Amazon?

1 x Dell 27 inch Monitor, IPS panel, FullHD
1 x ASUS B85M-G, s1150
1 x Core i5-4460 (3.20GHz,1MB,6MB,84 W,1150) Box
1 x dual Channel 2 xDDR3 8GB (2x4GB) Kingston, 1866MHz, CL10, HyperX Fury
1 x OCZ SSD ARC 100 120GB, Kontroler OCZ Barefoot 3 M10
1 x FullHD 1 x HDD Western Digital 1 1TB, Caviar Blue 10EZEX, 1000 GB, SATA3,64 MB, 3,5", 24mj
1 x Zalman Z1 mid tower case. 199(W)x432(H)x457(D)mm. MB standard
1 x Napajanje FORTRON 550W Raider, RA550, 12cm ventilator
1 x MSI GTX960 2GD5T OC, 2GB GDDR5, Armor 2x, DVI,HDMI, 3xDP
1 x LG GH24NS, DVD±RW, 24x DVD±R ,8x DL , 40x CD-R
$2623

Drew Roberts3 said:Hey,

Looking for a desktop. I can pay cash upon delivery. It’s for running an embroidery machine, so I need a solid monitor recommendation—something bigger, maybe 27", so I can actually see the thread work clearly.
Also, a teenager will be gaming on it occasionally, so it needs to handle games (mostly Minecraft right now, but probably something heavier in a year or two). Total budget is around $700 or $800. Needs to be quiet and easy to upgrade later. I’d prefer an i5 setup where everything—monitor and GPU—is balanced. The monitor doesn't have to be from the same brand.
Thanks for the help.

Adam Moore3 said:What’s the deal with shipping and warranty coverage if I order through an online retailer like Newegg?

From everything I've heard and read, they have a pretty solid track record.

Thanks for the advice, crimsonstag84, Amy Vaughn12, and Robert Rodriguez2. Honestly, I’m fine with any of these combinations, so if you three could just grab a beer somewhere and decide which of the three I should order, that would be great. And maybe put the tab on my tab? :-)
I’ve seen some pretty good reviews for the Core i5-4460 here, so I’m wondering what the actual edge is with that i5-6500 crimsonstag84 mentioned?
Another thing—about the monitor. I was looking at some LG models the other day; they looked similar, but the more expensive one is actually a TV. I guess it might not make sense, but is it worth spending an extra hundred bucks for the TV option?
I’d probably prefer to have everything pre-assembled and shipped straight to my house. I assume Newegg is the right place to go for that kind of service?
Thanks again, and best regards.

crimsonstag84

You suggested the latest Intel processor—honestly, if I were in your shoes, I’d definitely go that route. Since you're investing so much into this build anyway, why not just grab the best components currently available on the market?

Larry Ortiz5 said:crimsonstag84

He suggested the latest Intel processor. Honestly, if I were you, I’d take that route. If you're dropping that kind of cash on a rig, just go all out with the newest tech on the market.

Performance difference is basically zero, but it costs $100 more. For that extra money, you could grab a better GPU, a bigger SSD, or a nicer monitor...

Drew Roberts3 said:It needs to be quiet, plus offer some decent upgrade paths.

I wonder why the 1151 platform and DDR4 😛 along with all those modern standards (USB3.1, SATA Express, M.2 SATA)—it would make jumping to an i7 Cannonlake, for example, much easier.

It looks like Cannonlake probably won't land on that specific socket—rumor has it their "tick-tock" cycle is officially broken. We can expect a Skylake refresh, or what they're calling Kaby Lake, sometime next year. After that, if they stick to this pattern of swapping out the socket every two generations, we'll likely see a whole new socket again later on.

As far as upgrading goes, just keep in mind that within any given socket, you might be able to jump up a class, like moving from an i5 to an i7.