Mid-range gaming build ideas

Hey all,

So I'm thinking about passing down my current desktop to a family member and build myself a new desktop build. Here's my current setup:

AMD FX-6300 (OC to 4GHz)
AMD Radeon R9 280X (stock)
Gigabyte GA970-UD3 rev 3.0 mobo
16GB DDR3
Intel 320 160GB + (x2) 1TB HDDs
Corsair CX600 PSU

The current setup is plenty of power for me and my gaming needs (don't really play AAA titles, and what AAA titles I do have are pretty old; I mostly only play WoWS/WoT, KSP, and Civ5), so I don't need a monster setup like an i7-xxxxK and GTX 1070/1080. Something with a small bump in performance or better, while being fairly low cost and (preferred) having decent energy efficiency is what I'm aiming for, preferably in a smaller form factor than a mid-tower ATX. I'm not in a hurry to build; if there are going to be great deals during Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc., that's fine by me to wait until then.

Right now, here's a configuration I'm looking at:

Intel i5-6500 (since there's no OC, stock cooler should be fine)
Asus Strix Radeon RX 470 (combo with i5-6500 for $385)
Gigabyte GA-Z170N-WIFI ($135, need WiFi due to home network setup)
some 2x4GB DDR4 RAM kit (~$40)
Intel 320 + (x1) 1TB HDD from old desktop ($0)
Thermaltake Core V1 ($50)
??? PSU ($???)

Any thoughts on this build?

As for the PSU, power calculators put the above build at a recommended wattage of 290W or higher, with 9.3A on the +3.3V rail, 8A on the +5V rail, and 18.2A on th +12V rail. A quick search on Newegg didn't turn up with any decent PSUs in the 300-450W range with those specs (or better) and a 6-pin GPU connector (which is what that particular RX 470 uses apparently). Any recommendations?

Thanks!

 

No OC, get a H class mobo, that should be 20USD saved. Get 16GBs of RAM, and Seasonic or EVGA PSU.

 

First "NO" Amd go all the way iNtel i5 or i7, AMD boards will bottle neck your processes. Stock should be fine unless they want to OC then you want to get a higher model of Air Cooler model. RAM go at least 16gig.

 

Are you referring to the FX-6300? That's my current desktop, which I will be replacing. I've already decided on the i5-6500 for the replacement. As for the Intel mobo, thanks KK1; I'll check into H-series WiFi boards if I can find one.

Also was browsing around and apparently the 3GB 1060 is at a decent price for 1080p gaming, compared to the RX 470. Hmm.. benchmarks!

 

I'd highly recommend you go with the following:

Intel i5-6600k ($237)
Gigabyte Z170X Gaming 3 or ASUS Z170 PRO ($140 - $190)
Gigabyte Windforce OC GTX 1060 (6GB) ($260)
Corsair SF Series SF450 Power Supply ($90)

80-Plus Gold Certified for $90? Can't beat that. And you won't need more than 450W.​

Corsair Vengeance 16GB DDR4 (2x 8GB) 3000MHz ($80)
Optional: Samsung 850 EVO 500GB ($160)

A lot of crap about the EVO series started with the 840's. The 850's are actually much improved.
​

Overall much better build than what you posted in the main post. If you would like a few more suggestions, shoot me a message.

 

any particular reason u're going with the RX 470 for $385?

GTX 1070's with AIB coolers can be had for that much or cheaper.

 

It's a combo, meaning he gets GPU and CPU for $385.

 

ok, i was about to say. lol.

 

Yeah, that $385 was a combo deal for the i5 + 470.

Anyway, I'm not looking for a really powerful gaming build; something mid-range is just fine for the sort of games I play, and I have no intention of buying any new games for awhile (unless the single-player games in my Steam wishlist drop drastically in price soon), so my ultimate goals are to match or exceed the performance of my current setup at a decent price (with better energy efficiency being a bonus). I'll continue using my current 1080p monitor, so above-1080p gaming performance and technologies like GSync/FreeSync don't interest me.

RAM speed won't bee a factor really, since which gaming I'll use the GPU's VRAM anyway and anything DDR4 will be a "huge" upgrade for me anyway (currently running a mix of DDR3-1333 and DDR3-1600 sticks). The only time where I've ever broken 8GB is when I purposely try to max out the dictionary size whenever I'm running compression jobs on various games' files (for example: World of Tanks replays only work with that replay's game version, so I have a collection of client versions going back to patch 8.5, totaling around 200GB-250GB uncompressed). However, that's not much of a concern for me anymore since 1) I don't run compression jobs as often as I used to, 2) I have a stupid amount of storage space on my NAS to use up, and 3) it's fine with me to reduce dictionary size to fit 8GB of RAM given 1 and 2. I'd rather spend the $30-$50 difference between 8GB and 16GB on the GPU.

Considering that I never fully used the OC abilities of my current CPU (I only OC'ed to check Fallout 4 performance, since that's why my sister wants this machine in the first place) and considering that my chances of buying the latest-and-greatest, high-performance AAA titles in the next few years are pretty low, I don't see much of a point in OC-able CPUs for my usage. By the time I'd think I'd need to OC, I'm already considering new parts anyway (as is the case right now).

I forgot to mention that my speaker setup requires the six-connector analog audio instead of the 3-connector ones I've seen in some of the mITX boards.

As for the RX 470 and GTX 1060 compared to the R9 280x, here are a few benchmarks I was able to find:

• Power usage is similar between the two, far better than the R9 280x: http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/msi_geforce_gtx_1060_gaming_x_3gb_review,7.html
• 470 is roughly 10fps faster than the 1060 in Hitman @ 1080p (a game I have and want to play sometime): http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/msi_geforce_gtx_1060_gaming_x_3gb_review,13.html
• Both are roughly equal at Ashes of the Singularity (a wishlist item): http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/msi_geforce_gtx_1060_gaming_x_3gb_review,15.html
• 1060 edges out in front of the 470 in DX11 benchmarks: http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/msi_geforce_gtx_1060_gaming_x_3gb_review,21.html
• And against the 1060 slightly edges out in DX12 benchmarks: http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/msi_geforce_gtx_1060_gaming_x_3gb_review,21.htm
• Neither will have *any* issue with WoWS (which is what I play the most currently): http://www.notebookcheck.net/World-of-Warships-Desktop-and-Notebook-Benchmarks.151274.0.html

And for the i5-6500 CPU:

• Seems powerful enough for KSP (a CPU-bounded game): http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/39487-cpu-performance-database/&page=14
• Passmark says it's slightly better than the FX-6300: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i5-6500+@+3.20GHz
• i5-6500 TDP of 65W vs the (stock) FX-6300's 95W is a clear winner, especially considering mine's OC'ed.

-------------------------------

So here's a revised build of the mid-range mITX idea (all prices from Newegg for consistency):

Intel i5-6500 ($205)
STRIX-4G-GAMING (RX470 4GB, $195) or EVGA 03G-P4-6162-KR (GTX 1060 3GB, $215)
Crucial BLS2K4G4D240FSE (2x4GB DDR4-2400, $36)
Gigabyte GA-B150N (Functionally similar to the H-series chipset for my uses, $102)
SeaSonic SSR-360GP ($66)
Thermaltake Core V1 ($50)
---Total $654 (RX470), $674 (GTX 1060)---

J.Dre, your build comes out to $807 (excluding SSD, since I'm reusing my Intel 320), and personally I don't see much use out of that extra $120-150 given the above.

Any thoughts on the above? Improvements? Suggestions? Thanks for the posts so far guys!

 

MSI RX 480 for $230 or less: http://slickdeals.net/f/9139127-new...te-free-s-h?src=SiteSearchV2_SearchBarV2Algo1

Gigabyte Windforce 1060 because 2 fans are better than 1 : https://jet.com/product/GIGABYTE-NV...layPort-PCI-/a2938e7a0188488eb8702f745cd8285f

Intel i5-6500 is cheaper from MicroCenter: http://www.microcenter.com/search/s...k=all&sortby=match&N=4294966998&myStore=false

 

I respect your beliefs, but I don't have the time nor audacity to go into detail about why I recommended those parts.

Just know that I never recommend something without good reason. It's worth the additional $120~$140.

 

Great find.. I would personally get the RX480 since it is the 8GB version!

Sent from my LG-H850 using Tapatalk

 

I'll definitely check out those GPUs and hope that the prices stay roughly the same by the time I buy.

As for the CPU, it's in-store only and I'd have to drive out of state to Atlanta for the closest store :/.

 

So I've been mulling over the parts, and decided that Dre might have a point with his part list. So right now I'm thinking of this build (decided I'll make the trip to the Atlanta Microcenter this weekend):

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/einzelgaenger/saved/#view=sCRJxr

Any thoughts and ideas? From videos I've seen, I can mount both the H60 and the case's 200mm fan, with the radiator/fan being mounted within the case and the 200mm staying where it is. Still very indecisive between the 480 and 1060, so I think it'll boil down to what they have in the store and what minor features each card has.

 

Looks like a solid build! I do agree with paying marginally more for the k series part as you might regret it down the road if you dont. I feel like k series parts offer that extended life through overclocking look at all the sandy bridge owners with the 2600K/2700K keeping them happy for years with a decent OC. I feel(have researched) like the 480 and 1060 are very comparable so go with whatever is cheaper / brand you prefer. H60 should do the job even with a decent OC. I prefer AIO over air only due to the heat being exhausted out of the case especially in a SFF pc(also if you have a window you get a clear view of the other components).

 

Personally I'd rather have air cooling since it's more idiot-proof, though given the limits of a cube mITX case, I'm more or less stuck if I want an OC'ed CPU. Since I'm heading to MC, the i5-6600K is cheaper than getting the i5-6500 on Newegg (even before the $30 motherboard combo discount).

Both GPUs are more than enough for me, so initially I was just going to pick whatever had the nicest gimmicks, cooling, etc. Though now that I've changed my mind in that I'm making this a themed build (in a way), MC does have a few white 1060s...

 

i'd just go 1070 and call it a day

 

Much more expensive and I wouldn't be able to use the full capability within its lifespan .

I could actually reuse my r9 280X since that provides great performance for my needs. But that's going to power Fallout 4 for my sister .

Besides, I blew my "fun and stupid things" money on a brand-new car recently

 

If you want air cooling with a decent overclock would this not fit?

http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/noctua_nh_d9l_and_nh_u9s_cpu_cooler_review,9.html

 

Hmm, those would fit, though if I'm going to get them by tomorrow or Saturday, it'll end up being more expensive than the Corsair H60 anyway.

Plus, I'm not a big fan of the desert brown and poo color scheme.

 

Heck, why not go Titan XP all the way?

/s

 

nice. what did u get?

if that's the case then i'd just go with the 480 because of the higher amount of VRAM. or check out those new 1050Ti's.

AIO liquid cooling all the way. throw the radiator in the back where the stock exhaust fan is and have 2 exhaust fans mounted in the 2 open fan slots on the case.

 

And I should definitely get an i7-6900K to go along with that Titan XP

 

Obviously there is time and place to recommend something powerful, but this is not it, because Jarhead already expressed quite often that he doesn't want to go all out on the new rig.

 

Sarcasm is sometimes lost through text. Emoji's don't quite make up for what is lost in translation in a generation filled with texters... Also gingers scare me put that in a spoiler next time and warn me ...

Anyhow I'm really interested to see how this turns out hope jarhead does a build log or at the very least posts some finished product pictures!!

 

I absolutely will do a build log and take pictures. However, that'll be a separate thread.

 

That's why you use this:

Well be waiting your building log Jarhead

 

If all goes as planned, should be able to post something by Saturday night or Sunday. Case was already ordered earlier this week from Amazon, so now all I need is the CPU(+cooler), GPU, RAM, Mobo, SSD, and any other silly things I think of (LED?)

 

Which is pretty much everything lol? GL hahaha!!

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