Best gaming / general use PC on a shoestring!!!! budget.

thecore2kid

thecore2kid

thecore2kid

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Joined
2 Jul 2014
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6
Location
Gloucestershire
Hi all,

I've only just joined the site and i'm looking for some solid advice - i've been researching building a PC for a while now and it's just (slowly) starting to come together - buying bits as and when i can afford them, and i really need to get the best performance / longevity for the money that i can. My PC knowlege isn't great and this will be my first complete build so excuse me if some of my questions seem a bit strange!

I've been a console gamer for years, and instead of buying a PS4 or Xbox one i've decided build a gaming PC instead. I already own a PC - Core 2 Duo E6700 Conroe with 4gb ram (3.25 useable due to onboard graphics shared memory!!) and a GTX 650 TI and enjoy it but would like something more powerful and current that i can add to / upgrade in the future as and when funds will alllow....

I have already purchased a Zalman Z11 plus case, and 750w XFX modular PSU in preperation, and now looking to buy a CPU & motherboard next but having a hard time deciding which way to go. From the research i have done so far, i have decided i can go one of two ways.

Either AMD 6350 / 8350. I originally planned an AMD build hence going for the 750 watt PSU but after doing lots of reading i am undecided. I know the AMD processors are very good but that that the individual cores are not as strong as the Intel's for gaming (although i believe that a lot of games are more GPU dependant than CPU and newer games are more multi threaded (and may well be in the future). But how many options would there be to upgrade later on down the line on socket AM3+?

Or another idea would be to buy a decent Z97 motherboard and the new G3258 Pentium initially with a view to upgrading to a 4690k or 4790k in the future.

One thing i'm definitely decided on is graphics cards - getting a R9 290 if i can (if not a 280x or 7970)

I will be gaming at 1080p for the foreseeable as a monitor upgrade is the last thing i will probably upgrade.

I've spent hours and hours reading various tests, benchmarks, forum posts etc but am still really struggling to decide......

Cheers,

Rob
 
If you're on that much of a budget, I would suggest going 2nd hand and getting a Z77 motherboard (£40-60) and 2500k (£80). There is really not much in the new chips, obviously they'll be a tad quicker, but in terms of noticeable performance, you'll get none of that.

The remaining components can be picked up for peanuts.
 
YOUR BASKET
1 x MSI Z97 Gaming 3 Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £87.95
1 x Intel Core i3-4130 3.40GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £82.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614) £74.99
1 x TeamGroup Vulcan RED 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLD38G2400HC11CDC01) £65.99
1 x Crucial MX100 128GB SATA 2.5” 7mm SSD + 9.5mm Adapter (CT128MX100SSD1) £56.99
1 x BitFenix Neos ATX Tower Black/Black £29.99
Total : £408.49 (includes shipping : £8.00).



MB will let you upgrade to a 4690k later
as i3 is in build you may not need aftermarket cooler
256 gb hdd currently out of stock,
 
Last edited:
thecore2kid said:
One thing i'm definitely decided on is graphics cards - getting a R9 290 if i can (if not a 280x or 7970)

I will be gaming at 1080p for the foreseeable as a monitor upgrade is the last thing i will probably upgrade.
Click to expand...

Two important things here. First, "shoestring" and 290 don't go together, that's a £300+ GPU!

Second, you don't need anything particularly extravagant for 1920x1080 gaming if you're happy to turn down some of the graphics settings. What kind of games were you looking to play?
 
Cheers for the input guys - much appreciated.

P4Clock - my budget is to get as good a setup as i can for as little as possible, i've already spent about £110 on the case & power supply. I'm in no rush and am picking componenets up as and when i can afford to.

snips86x - i was looking into doing that while researching, i was looking at the prices of a used 2600k but idealy i want as current a build as i can with a decent upgrade path.

lude1962 - thanks for the suggestions, idealy though i want an unlocked processor (something i've never had in a pc) so i can learn about the dark art of overclocking...

joeyjojo - Lol! thats a very valid statement! - To be honest i want to sink as much of the budget into as good as a GPU i can get for the price, and compared to a GTX780ti the 290 seems llike a decent performer - again i want to get a GPU that will last me as long as possible before having to upgrade it, although i may have to tone it down to a 280x depending on how much i can get together to get one. I have a big collection of older games that run fine on my current rig, and some more current(ish) ones that struggle a bit at 1080p at times on my GTX650 ti.

ubersonic - yeah, thats what i had been reading, that it's a dead socket which is a real shame.....originally i had my heart set on an AMD build with 8320/8350 but want to be able to buy a decent(ish) motherboard that allows for a better chip upgrade in the future.

After lots more reading and researching and several change of minds i think i am going to go with the G3258 Pentium initially - it gets very good reviews and it's a good price i feel for it's performance and buy as decent a Z97 board as i can for overclocking, and maybe 2 gpu support so i can add another in the future, not something i'll be doing initially (budgeting around the £100 mark for the board) that will allow me to go higher end Haswell / Broadwell in the future.

I've been looking at z97 boards but there's a hell of a lot out there and i don't know much about 'em.

I've been looking at the Asus Z97-A, MSI Z97 Gaming 3 & 5, and the Gigabyte Gaming 3 & 5 and not sure what would be best for the money - I don't know whether Asrock boards are any good.

Any motherboard advice would be appreciated.
 
lude1962 said:
YOUR BASKET
1 x MSI Z97 Gaming 3 Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £87.95
1 x Intel Core i3-4130 3.40GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £82.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614) £74.99
1 x TeamGroup Vulcan RED 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLD38G2400HC11CDC01) £65.99
1 x Crucial MX100 128GB SATA 2.5” 7mm SSD + 9.5mm Adapter (CT128MX100SSD1) £56.99
1 x BitFenix Neos ATX Tower Black/Black £29.99
Total : £408.49 (includes shipping : £8.00).



MB will let you upgrade to a 4690k later
as i3 is in build you may not need aftermarket cooler
256 gb hdd currently out of stock,
Click to expand...

You might as well go with the pentium anniversary cpu rather than the i3. Overclock the pants off it and it should be ok until the op can drop an i5 in there.
 
lee32uk said:
You might as well go with the pentium anniversary cpu rather than the i3. Overclock the pants off it and it should be ok until the op can drop an i5 in there.
Click to expand...

Yeah, thats what i was thinking after reading loads of reviews on them - they seem very good indeed for the price, and when overclocked they perform very well in current games with a decent GPU so i think it would be a good stopgap to get a rig up and running until i can save up for a 4690k/4790k or wait and see what the Broadwell CPU's are like. I will mainly be gaming with it, and no rendering / video encoding etc which the AMD's seem to excel at.
 
If you google 2600k vs 4790k then you will see that the improvements are marginal. With your shoe string budget you will be better off as some has suggested to go for second hand setup. What you may find is that it will last you a while maybe even a few gpu upgrades. Most games are usually gpu intensive therefore I would advise you to invest more on gpu instead.
 
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