£400 rig?

RollerBall · 31 Jan 2013 at 23:58

Trying to build a rig for a friend on a strict budget. I can't link components specifically because I've had to shop around for him to get the absolute lowest price I can find. I've been out of the loop a bit the past year so any pointers to cut cost or components swaps is welcome. He doesn't need HDDs or windows.

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-B75-D3V - £60
CPU: i3-3220 - £90
RAM: Corsair XMS3 8GB DDR3 1600 MHz CAS 9 -£40
GPU: GTX 660 -£155
PSU: Corsair Builder Series 80+ Bronze 430w -£35
Case: Bitfenix Merc Alpha - £27

Total: £407 (£425 with delivery)

He plays on 1680x1050 and wants to play stuff like Skyrim, MW3, BF3, Metro etc etc without having to worry about settings. I'm pretty sure the above should max anything on that res out at the moment and should be fine for the next few years. Upgrade path is clear (better IvyBridge CPU + GPU upgrade). I'd prefer to get a 500-550w PSU if only for the upgrade path but I don't think it's feasible in this budget.

Thoughts?

CinderzFTW · 1 Feb 2013 at 00:17

I would go for the A10 Trinity chip from amd myself...

Audigex · 1 Feb 2013 at 00:52

The trinity won't handle the games the OPs friend wants without thinking about settings. It'll play reasonably well, but not on ultra settings.

The i3 3220 and 660 should be fine with the games mentioned, although make sure that the list is exhaustive - if he wants to play something like Rome 2: Total War in the near future, the i3 will struggle.

Bacon? · 1 Feb 2013 at 06:55

Can he get a Z77 instead of the B75?

Z77 can have an ivy quad core put straight into it whereas B75 is second gen.

pr1roda · 1 Feb 2013 at 07:11

I don't see anyway of getting the z77 instead of the B75. He would have to change his gpu but I wouldn't suggest to change the 660 to get a Z77 for a £400 rig. Although yes Z77 would be a better bang if he can increase his budget a bit. I would've done it if it was me.

Bacon? · 1 Feb 2013 at 07:14

If he can get a 660 at that price then the 7850 of equal performance should be cheaper.

snips86x · 1 Feb 2013 at 07:54

Bacon? said:
If he can get a 660 at that price then the 7850 of equal performance should be cheaper.

The B-Grade 7850 is £129, much cheaper than the £155 660!

RollerBall · 1 Feb 2013 at 11:48

Just checked out the benchmarks and the 7850 seems to be ~10FPS slower in most games than the GGTX 660 and dips down to just below what I would consider playable.

Will the B75 chipset not allow for the upgrade path I'm thinking then (a better IvyBridge quad down the line when it's cheaper)?

Mirmo · 1 Feb 2013 at 12:20

The 7850 can be insanely overclocked though and the general consensus is an overclocked 7850 beats an overclocked 660. correct me if I'm wrong though.