Gaming PC ~ $1000?

• 

  scrimshaw on 03/12/2017 - 16:45

  +1

  That's already a pretty optimised build. No other components can really be downgraded to save money, but if you want, feel free to spend more on the graphics card / CPU if you want to play games newer than the ones you listed.

  This deal looks like it's still active. $129 for 4TB HDD.

  https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/346411

  8GB of RAM should be sufficient, but hold off on upgrading due to DRAM shortage. RAM prices are not expected to normalize until middle of next year when Samsung finishes building their DRAM factories.

• 

  garetz on 03/12/2017 - 17:40

  +1

  I would change the psu, 80 plus white rating doesnt really mean anything, you want at least for it to be 80+ bronze rated with a good warranty ( minimum 3 years). I usually go for seasonic or corsair. Even look for 2nd hand, i got a 660 seasonic platinum for $100 recently, they arent that hard to fine.

  • 

    kcyw on 04/12/2017 - 00:13

    Thanks. What's the difference between gold and bronze? Is it only the efficiency and power-saving? Just wondering if it's worth the $25 difference. How many Watt do I need?

    • 

      garetz on 04/12/2017 - 03:47

      The different ratings means greater efficiency and better quality components.

      Enter all the parts into https://au.pcpartpicker.com/ , it will tell you the wattage required.It will also tell you if there is any hardware incompatibility problems.

• 

  Kangal on 03/12/2017 - 18:17

  -4

  To be honest, I would focus your budget more on getting a great case, a great X370 motherboard, a great HDD, and a great PSU. These aren't overpriced, and will service you well for the duration of the system (6 years?).

  I would spend as little as possible on the RAM, GPU, CPU, and VR-Headsets. Not until April 2018 anyway.

  Maybe even focus on a keyboard, mouse, display, headphones, chair, desk, RGB, cooling, webcam, microphone, speakers, lights, and desk accessories instead.

  So maybe handicap build now:
  Ryzen 1200, 1x8GB DDR4-3200, GT 1030.
  Upgrade to:
  Ryzen 2700, +3x8GB DDR4-3200, GTX 1170 and sell off the previous CPU and GPU for $150.

  • 

    Slippery Fish on 04/12/2017 - 00:27

    -1

    :/ this is bad advice imo… If your that strapped pick up a second hand case for $5, it's metal if it'll fit your bits spending more does very little. Only elite of PC's need venting ect, and at that level your into water or dry ice not air.

    Are they over clocking? If there asking for parts lists prob not, save cash and get a cheapish but reasonable mobo, I avoid ASRock due to historical warranty issues people had but they could have improved alot since.

    Get a solid PSU, if it fails it could fry the PC, never skimp there.

    Buy the CPU you want now, in 4-5 years it'll be the graphics you upgraded not the CPU which usually is running fine.

    HDD I like and only buy wd. Never had a single one fail so I stand by that.

    I'd go amd card for freesync as the Intel version is hardware based and increases the price of your monitor.

    • 

      Kangal on 04/12/2017 - 12:22

      PCPartpicker Historical Trends/figure (USD)

      Well, Mid-2016:
      $350 - CPU - 6700k*
      $180 - GPU - RX 470
      $140 - RAM - 2x8GB DDR4-3200
      $340 - SSD - 1TB
      USD$1,010 Total

      And then, Mid-2017:
      $310 - CPU - 6700k
      $390 - GPU - RX 570
      $220 - RAM - 2x8GB DDR4-3200
      $400 - SSD - 1TB
      USD$1,320 Total

      Prospect, Mid-2018:
      $290 - CPU - 6700k
      $170 - GPU - RX 570
      $130 - RAM - 2x8GB DDR4-3200
      $320 - SSD - 1TB
      USD$910 Total

      Price hike 2016-2017 ~$300
      Potential savings from 2017-2018 wait ~$400
      Hence, my previous post, where that extra $400 could be used to get a better system (case/motherboard/keyboard etc etc).
      And this is on the US Market, where prices are actually more stable than our smaller AUS Market. So the price differences are likely to be higher, albeit, not by a huge stretch. So that potential USD$400 savings might look more like AU$650… and that's nothing to scoff at, especially on OzBargain.

      If you really want the best value possible, I would say do as much research as possible, and instead buy from the Used market. Pretty much do dumpster dives and Scrapyard wars. You can save a lot of money, for, not much worse performance. However, the major expense becomes the time you invest in it.

      One interesting point of contention is JERMGaming's series the PS4 vs Potato Masher (2015), PS4 Pro vs Potato Masher (2016), and Xbox One X vs Potato Masher X (2017). The original was okay, the Pro did well with the 2016 prices, however, its slumped with the 2017 market.
      (*I won't use AMD since Ryzen wasn't available before the RAM/GPU surcharge, and high-power PSU unavailability)

      • 

        Slippery Fish on 04/12/2017 - 12:31

        -1

        I had thought you saying to buy a cheaper CPU ect to spend more on a case right now, which would eat a chunk of those savings your talking about :)

      • 

        Kangal on 04/12/2017 - 13:59

        @Slippery Fish:

        Getting a Ryzen r3-1200 instead of the r3-1300x that was stated in OP.
        There was a suggestion of a r5-1400 (or was it 1500x)… which I think is largely pointless, as the r3-1200 can safely OC to 3.8GHz with the stock cooler, so you can achieve most (85% ?) of the performance for free.

        Then upgrading the r3-1200 to a r7-2700 in the next 6 months.

        The AM4 platform is here to stay until two more platform updates in 2020.
        So, getting a very good AM4 motherboard (and not needing to upgrade) in 2017 is a smart buy. The AM5 platform won't be introduced until 2021.

        Most people get $80 cases, and sort of regret it. They either live with an eyesore or subpar case for years on end. Or decide to upgrade the build to a new case two years later, and spend $150 or so on it, and eventually throwing the old one into the dump. It would be better to spend something like $130 on a case they like, from the get-go, and stick to it.

        I also said GT 1030 because its quite a bit cheaper than the GTX 1050 Ti (price is high now), and priced equal/below the RX 550.
        There's no point for FreeSync, until you hit the performance levels of the RX 470. So really pointless to get something like an RX 550 over a GT 1030 if the argument is FreeSync. It's better to get the GT 1030 because Nvidia drivers generally are a bit more polished (Windows only), but, its moreso about having a graphics card to plug in to the ryzen (no iGPU) system. When the dust settles in 6 months, get the new hardware (GTX 1170 ?). At this point you can sell the GT 1030, which I suspect will hold a little more value than the RX 550 due to past history/midshare, and it can still be a useful graphics card for those SFF prebuilt systems.

      • 

        Slippery Fish on 04/12/2017 - 14:45

        @Kangal: we could do the back and forwards all day :) and I'm actually enjoying it lol.

        I personally don't care what my case looks like, as long as it does what I need.

        Is the op going to OC? I doubt it but you never know, and yes that CPU is quite the lil beast isn't it. It was a good suggestion.

        Re graphics card I have never had an issue with any and drivers so maybe just lucky? But your right alot more programs are designed for NVIDIA use, though I think that's not as much of an issue any more.

        Anywho thanks for the chat.

  • 

    Ryanek on 04/12/2017 - 10:37

    -1

    You're trolling right?

• 

  Cyphar on 03/12/2017 - 18:41

  CPU: AMD Ryzen 3 1200 $148 (Feel encouraged to overclock it at least to 1300 levels)

  I have this running @ 3.6ghz on my MSI B350M Gaming Pro mobo with the standard fan. Not sure if you can get the same on the Asrock but it's a mighty fine CPU! RAM is good, you can O/C it to 2800mhz without issues usually

• 

  Magus on 03/12/2017 - 19:49

  Samsung 960 EVO 250M is aroud 165. It is a NVMe M2 drive. Bea aware the samsung 850 is just a M2 drive, subject to the same speed liminations as SATAIII.

• 

  aussieprepper on 03/12/2017 - 19:59

  -1

  I would skip the SSD and upgrade the CPU because you can always buy another SSD later but of you want a new CPU this one would have no use? With the extra cash saved you could get a Ryzen 5?

  • 

    Cyphar on 04/12/2017 - 09:23

    +1

    You can O/C the 1200 to beyond Ryzen 5 levels. It's one of the best CPU's around. You can even reach 4ghz if you go for cooling beyond the stock.

    • 

      dheywood on 04/12/2017 - 15:12

      There is also more to a CPU than just the speed. Cores and cache make a difference.

      • 

        Cyphar on 04/12/2017 - 21:24

        +1

        4 cores on a Ryzen 3 is more than adequate for most gaming. OP can then move on to a Ryzen 7 down the road for a nice little upgrade. If OP intends on streaming though, then the Ryzen 5 is where it's at.

• 

  srhardy on 03/12/2017 - 20:58

  -2

  xbox-x is $630 RRP before xmas deals and is the best gaming pc you can buy IMO. Windows is coming out with updates for keyboard and mouse support soon.

• 

  shangoz on 04/12/2017 - 10:45

  CPU replace to Ryzen 7 1800X, forget the 1TB HDD, buy one M2 instead, Motherboard change to AsRock X370, Ram 16GB 3200MHz, PSU 600W-1kW.

  • 

    scrottyB on 22/12/2017 - 18:50

    for under $1000?

• 

  dheywood on 04/12/2017 - 15:31

  +1

  Made a few notes below after each component. It seems like a decent base for a gaming machine, just be warned, it may struggle playing AAA titles and recording, depending on the method used. Do some research on CPU vs GPU encoding (nVidia ENVNC for example). GPU based the much better if the video card supports it.
  Also check out the recommended specs required for certain games, these can usually be found on the developers/publishers website.

  CPU: Should do ok, if recording/streaming/rendering. More cores of the Ryzen 5 will be of benefit. I'd definitely be overclocking the most you can with the stock cooler, to get the most out of the chip. I'm sure there is plenty of posts/YouTube videos about overclocking Ryzen CPUs to help you learn if you are not familiar. Just take you time and read plenty about it. Just keep an eye on temps and don't be raising the voltage to much with the stock cooler.
  Mobo: Excellent board for the price, I bought one myself. Actually meant to be the best B350 board around due to the VRM setup.
  RAM: Ryzen is VERY picky about ram, be sure to check it is on the motherboard supported module list, using found on the support page of the motherboard website. 3000/3200Mhz ram with the C14 rating is the ideal for Ryzen, but not suited for a budget build.
  SSD: Seems like a decent price, not NVMe, but definitely make a difference over a mechanical drive for OS/game install.
  HDD: Will need more than 1Tb if going to be recording a lot. I easily have files up to 200Gb minimum after a gaming session. But HDDs are easy to upgrade later on.
  GPU: Go for the 1050Ti in my opinion, or if you can get the little bit extra cash for a 1060 3Gb the faster chip will be noticeable. I had one and it played 1080p games without issue, most at Ultra/High settings. Only upgraded to a 1070 due to going 1440p. 3Gb VRAM is ample for 1080p gaming.
  Case: just go for what ever is cheapest and fits your gear.
  PSU: I'd suggest a Corsair personally, but this will prob do the job fine. A decent 500w is heaps for this build. I've just built a Ryzen 5/GTX1070/2x HDD/2x SSD build with a 650w and that was more than enough. Hardware is much more efficient now than it was a year or two ago.

  Overall it looks like an OK build, but don't expect it to run newer games at ultra, or maybe even high settings. Medium is prob where it will run with AAA titles or graphics intensive titles.
  It has room to easily be upgraded in the future also if you find you need to.

  Edit: As someone mentioned above, if you were willing to put up with a mechanical drive for a while. I'd skip the SSD and use the money saved to get a Ryzen 5 and get an SSD when you have the extra money.

  • 

    kcyw on 06/12/2017 - 02:45

    Thanks for your detailed reply. I am checking the SSD against the Mobo's QVL but there are not many choices with popular SSD like Samsung 850 EVO excluded. Is it important to choose SSD in the QVL?

    https://www.asrock.com/mb/AMD/AB350M%20Pro4/index.asp#Storag…

    • 

      dheywood on 06/12/2017 - 10:03

      +1

      SSD is less of an issue from my experience, I'd be focusing on making sure the ram is on the QVL, as Ryzen is very fussy about ram. Try find the cheapest available that is on that list, to keep your costs down.
      If money was less of an issue, I'd be HIGHLY recommending going with any 3000Mhz or 3200Mhz kit that has a C14 rating. As they have a certain chip (Samsung B-Die) which are known to be the most stable to run at they rated speeds. As mentioned previously, Ryzen loves fast ram.