Please help a returning PC gamer build a decent PC

sam.superbiker · 11 May 2014 at 11:48

Hi all,

Long time lurker first time poster, I have been planning to return to the PC master race as I don't want to play on the consoles any more, I used to really be up to date with PC specs as I was an avid Counter-Strike player (back in the day!) but I'm struggling to get myself a decent PC together with available funds.

My budget is £500 - £600, I have already ordered a decent monitor: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-074-BQ, and I have my eye on this gfx card: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-242-MS, so excluding the monitor but including the gfx card in the final price, can someone suggest me a decent build please?

Will be mostly looking to play Battlefield 4 on it with decent FPS.

Will also need an OS to go with it, I would greatly appreciate any feedback! Thanks!

Idleman · 11 May 2014 at 12:02

YOUR BASKET
1 x MSI Radeon R9 270X Gaming Edition OC 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £179.99
1 x AMD Piledriver FX-6 Six Core 6300 Black Edition 3.50GHz (Socket AM3+) Processor - Retail £83.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614) £74.99
1 x TeamGroup Vulcan RED 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLD38G1600HC9DC01) £55.99
1 x Gigabyte 970A-DS3P AMD 970A (Socket AM3+) DDR3 Motherboard £50.99
1 x SuperFlower Golden Green HX 550W "80 Plus Gold" Power Supply - Black £49.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) HDD £43.99
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x Raijintek Themis Direct Contact CPU Cooler £19.99
Total : £607.91 (includes shipping : £12.50).

Doomedspeed · 11 May 2014 at 12:03

Good spec Idle,

My only concern is you may struggle to get the best out of your 120hz monitor with a low(ish) budget PC.

sam.superbiker · 11 May 2014 at 12:16

Excellent thanks Idle, I may be able to dig out an old 450w PSU from a PC, would this be sufficient to power the card etc? Have the connectors from older PSU's changed that much?

I agree Doomed but its only to get me up and running, I would never scrimp on a monitor as components can be upgraded when I have more money etc!

Idleman · 11 May 2014 at 12:23

What make is the Psu?

sam.superbiker · 11 May 2014 at 12:29

Idleman said:
What make is the Psu?

At a guess I think its either an Aerocool or SuperFlower, however I'm not 100%. It's defiantly 450w though!

Idleman · 11 May 2014 at 12:45

sam.superbiker said:
At a guess I think its either an Aerocool or SuperFlower, however I'm not 100%. It's defiantly 450w though!

Can you take the side panel off your case and have a look.

The Superflower should be OK, not sure about the Aerocool.

You could then spend the money on a better mobo. This would then allow you to upgrade to an 8320 Cpu when funds permit.
You could also use Windows 8.1 Evaluation for 90 days and then buy, this would get you a 280X.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-gb/evalcenter/hh699156.aspx

Idleman · 11 May 2014 at 12:54

YOUR BASKET
1 x Asus Radeon R9 280X DirectCUII TOP 3072MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £239.99
1 x AMD Piledriver FX-6 Six Core 6300 Black Edition 3.50GHz (Socket AM3+) Processor - Retail £83.99
1 x Asus M5A97 EVO R2.0 AMD 970 (Socket AM3+) DDR3 Motherboard £74.99
1 x TeamGroup Vulcan RED 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLD38G1600HC9DC01) £55.99
1 x SuperFlower Golden Green HX 550W "80 Plus Gold" Power Supply - Black £49.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) HDD £43.99
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x Raijintek Themis Direct Contact CPU Cooler £19.99
Total : £616.92 (includes shipping : £12.50).

sam.superbiker · 11 May 2014 at 14:47

Idleman said:
Can you take the side panel off your case and have a look.

The Superflower should be OK, not sure about the Aerocool.

You could then spend the money on a better mobo. This would then allow you to upgrade to an 8320 Cpu when funds permit.
You could also use Windows 8.1 Evaluation for 90 days and then buy, this would get you a 280X.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-gb/evalcenter/hh699156.aspx

I will check when I get back, is the 280X much better than the 270?

Doomedspeed · 11 May 2014 at 14:50

sam.superbiker said:
I will check when I get back, is the 280X much better than the 270?

Yes, and its a fair chunk better than the 270X too.

sam.superbiker · 11 May 2014 at 14:53

It's an Asaka that I got from OC a few years ago, 2007 to be precise....https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-022-AK, not even made anymore haha!

sam.superbiker · 11 May 2014 at 14:54

Doomedspeed said:
Yes, and its a fair chunk better than the 270X too.

Haha no worries, I just figured more RAM on the card meant better! Like I said, been out the game a while

Doomedspeed · 11 May 2014 at 14:59

sam.superbiker said:
It's an Asaka that I got from OC a few years ago, 2007 to be precise....https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-022-AK, not even made anymore haha!

Yeah, youll need a new one for sure, the one in the spec above would be ideal.

sam.superbiker said:
Haha no worries, I just figured more RAM on the card meant better! Like I said, been out the game a while

Not exactly, like the GT640 4GB cards is NOWHERE near as good as a 2GB 270X. But normally the manufactures will give the appropiate amount of VRAM to its cards. As the 290's will be ideals for a 1440p/4k rig VRAM becomes more an issue, so 4GB is needed.

As the 270X won't really be upto 1440p/4k action (on its own) you'll only need 2GB (1080p display).

The 280X is in the middle, nearly TOO GOOD for 1080p but won't max out 1440p.

sam.superbiker · 11 May 2014 at 15:08

Wicked thanks Doom, appreciate it!

Idleman · 11 May 2014 at 15:55

sam.superbiker said:
I will check when I get back, is the 280X much better than the 270?

This will give you some idea.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1043?vs=1041