Gaming Computer Suggestions Budget $1200 roughly

Wishmaster · 02 Oct 2014

I agree, you'd be better off with 8GB RAM.
16GB is a bit overkill at this point and time for many of us, especially those who are mainly gamers.
Unless you are doing alot of work that requires it obviously.

But I think you'd be better off dropping to 8GB (2x4 kit) and put that saving towards a SSD, better GPU or PSU. Those 16GB kits are a good deal more expensive and a bit of a waste if you do not have a specific need for it.

Personally, I would stay with Win7 HP myself.

I7s rock on heavily muti threaded apps. Especially Video Encoding. Gaming, they are just as good as the cheaper 4 core version ($100 cheaper on Intel side)
So, unless you do a LOT of heavily threading work, an i5 will serve you just as well.
I went i7 myself because I do lot of things that benefit from it. But I'll admit, outside of that, the large majority of my work (gaming included) it just kinda sits there.

This was a quick setup, so it would need tweaking, but check this out:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboB...=Combo.1670091
Gigabyte z97 MOBO, Intel i5 4690, 8GB Gskil Ripjaws DDR3 1600

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820147247
120GB Samsung SSD

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822236343
2TB Western Digital HD

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814133564
Nvidia GTX 970

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835103065
Coolermaster 212 CPU Cooler

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139060
Corsair 650W PSU

Windows 7
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832416806

Total Build cost: $1145
But, you'd need a case still to put it all in.

Of course you can find some better deals, combos, and maybe even go cheaper on a few things or more expensive on others. Better quality here and there etc. Just have to balance it out and have a set budget in mind.

The point is, That would be a very good gaming rig at the price. Keep in mind I threw that together in a matter of just a couple minutes. So just an example and not exactly a "get all this" list.
But still, I think probably better than most pre-builts at that price. I could be wrong though.

Summerbear5 · 02 Oct 2014

How about this? It's a little over my budget but I might back down the memory. http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/saved/1GDNUQ

ignatzatsonic · 02 Oct 2014

If I read that right, you chose an AMD processor with no SSD.

No indication at all about the power supply. Which is code for "we'd rather not tell you".

Not what I'd do with $1357.

What can you get at HP for the same price?

Summerbear5 · 02 Oct 2014

I picked the power supply at 800W. (800 Watts - Standard 80 Plus Certified Power Supply - SLI/CrossFireX Ready)
What is SSD?

What do I need an SSD for?

How about this? (256GB ADATA SP610 SSD + 2TB SATA III Hard Drive Combo (Single Drive))

ignatzatsonic · 02 Oct 2014

800 watts says nothing about the quality of the unit.

You certainly don't need 800 watts. You need 500 or 600 and a quality unit. That would handle any video card and the rest of the components.

SSD is Solid State Drive. As opposed to an ordinary hard drive. For that money, you should have one of each.

Summerbear5 · 02 Oct 2014

How about this? (256GB ADATA SP610 SSD + 2TB SATA III Hard Drive Combo (Single Drive))

ignatzatsonic · 02 Oct 2014

Summerbear5 said:

How about this? (256GB ADATA SP610 SSD + 2TB SATA III Hard Drive Combo (Single Drive))

Hard to say without seeing a total price for the entire machine.

You may well not need an SSD that large.

ADATA is not at the top of the food chain for SSDs.

Is that one single drive containing both SSD and HDD or is that 2 separate units?

Summerbear5 · 02 Oct 2014

I chose this power supply (800 Watts - Standard 80 Plus Certified Power Supply - SLI/CrossFireX Ready) because it was actually cheaper than the 600W ones and I figured more is better especially if it's cheaper right?

Summerbear5 · 02 Oct 2014

You seem pretty knowledgable could you maybe go to cyberpowerpc and share a configuration with me? I customized the AMD FX5 Eight Core. Would love to compare yours to mine within my $1200.00 budget...doesn't have to be exactly of course hehe.

ignatzatsonic · 02 Oct 2014

Summerbear5 said:

I chose this power supply (800 Watts - Standard 80 Plus Certified Power Supply - SLI/CrossFireX Ready) because it was actually cheaper than the 600W ones and I figured more is better especially if it's cheaper right?

Wrong.

An 800 watt unit that is cheaper than a 600 watt unit doesn't speak well for the 800 watt unit.

More is not better.

You don't need over 500 or 600.

Both of those are likely mediocre quality at best, with a brand name no one ever heard of or would consider if building their own PC.

You could look for power supply brands like Antec, Seasonic, Corsair, XFX, EVGA, etc, but you may find those name in short supply at Cyberpower. I'd guess Dell units would be better than whatever Cyber Power would come up with.