Possible to get a worthwhile PC at a $400-$500 budget?

[MagicalGirlBeth]

I've been thinking lately how nice it would be to get a console experience from my PC. Looking for a rather budget PC gaming build but still good enough that it'll last for years to come. Not a fan of upgrading parts every 2 to 3 years. Is 4 years at the minimum with a $500 PC reasonable?

I'm going to list some information I found for PC gaming builds around $500 and I would like someone's opinion on it to see if I can't go wrong with these articles. I'll be excluding the cost of DVD Drives, OS software, peripherals and SSD drives from the overall cost of my final build.

As a side note, someone had also recommended me one time about an APU build, they were recommending a new $60 motherboard with a A10 5800k CPU[www.newegg.com]. (Not sure what an APU is to be honest. Judging from the Newegg it's some sort of CPU+GPU combo?). Also G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB[www.newegg.com] were also recommended. At the time (which was last year) they recommended these for an upgrade to my old PC. I'm not sure if they're still viable now.


Build an EPIC $500 Gaming PC 2015! [GTA 5 Ready!]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXlzK4kLuKk&feature=youtu.be
Note: Someone in the comments said they could have used a better CPU? I believe I'm going to use this guide and the parts recommended to build the my PC rig on.

The Best PCs You Can Build for $300, $600, and $1200
http://lifehacker.com/5840963/the-best-pcs-you-can-build-for-600-and-1200
Note: This seemed like a handy article.

PC build guide: budget gaming PC
http://www.pcgamer.com/pc-build-guide-budget-gaming-pc/
Note: PC budget guide from PCGamer. It's a bit over my budget but it still looks nice and useful.


I also have a few questions:

1. How long do PCs like this will last until you have to start worrying about changing parts?

2. I was wondering if it is ok to use a generic PC tower/chassis? I don't want to expense myself on the least important part of the PC build, but I heard this may not be a good idea because of cooling issues. (Sorry if that's a dumb question, while I have experience building a PC, I've never fumbled with a gaming PC rig)

3. Does anyone know any computer stores that ship internationally? Amazon and other US retailers (obviously) can't ship to my location. My only other option is eBay, or send the items via a forwarder.


I thank you in advance if you can leave some useful information. :)

[_I_]

if you ever plan on adding a dedicated gpu, amd apu build is not worth it
go wtih a pentium g or i3 if you can

under $400usd your better off buying a console
at $500+600 a prebuilt i3 and add a gtx750ti
$600-700 i5 4460 build with an r9 270+
$800-1000 4690k build with r9 280+
$1000+ 4790k with gtx970

the min board for non k cpu is a b85 with 4 dimm slots
will have usb 3.0 header and pci-e x16 3.0 slot
h81 will not have 4 dimm slots, and limit to pci-e x16 2.0, not all will have usb 3.0 headers

the lowest build i would do
if you need windows itll be about another $80-100

if you want to overclock
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/JxLgyc
g3258 can oc to (4.5ghz with 212evo) low end i5 levels for gaming

or i3 4160 if you do not want to overclock
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/PQCWLk

[Bad 💀 Motha]

For within the USA, I would try to aim for that $500 - 800 range (not including OS)
Anything below that and u might as well go with a Console.

Even an i3 + R9 270 is not bad for alot of the games out there. U just won't be cranking up all the visual details.

[MagicalGirlBeth]

"under $400usd your better off buying a console"
"Anything below that and u might as well go with a Console."

Very fair point, however consoles don't have Steam...unless we're talking about the unreleased Steam machines (which honestly don't look bad since I just googled them)


@_I_
Nice little price recommendation guide there. If possible financially for me, I wouldn't mind considering the $700 (or a little under) build. Quad cores also seem to becoming the standard for PC gaming in terms for modern gaming PCs, so I may consider that instead of a Dual Core CPU. H81 motherboard seems like a good choice to me, especially when it's cheaper. Non 4 DIMM slots doesn't bother me as if I wanted to upgrade two 8GB rams is good enough. It seems 2.0 isn't much different from 3.0 also.[difference-pci-pci.html]
I'm also a bit hesitant on overclocking since I've heard it kills your parts faster without proper cooling.

@Bad-Motha
"Even an i3 + R9 270 is not bad for alot of the games out there. U just won't be cranking up all the visual details."

True, I love beautiful graphics but I don't need everything maxed out so I don't mind making some degrades in the graphic settings.

[Bad 💀 Motha]

I mention the Console route because; U not going to be playing games really on a sub-$500-600 PC, there is just no way. Unless u want to run at maybe 720p with very low visuals. Which at that point, if that's all it can do in some games, it's really not worth doing.

It can be done on tight budgets with maybe an AMD APU; but just going this route cuts out the possibility of good future upgrade path.

[MagicalGirlBeth]

引用自 Bad-Motha：

I mention the Console route because; U not going to be playing games really on a sub-$500-600 PC, there is just no way. Unless u want to run at maybe 720p with very low visuals. Which at that point, if that's all it can do in some games, it's really not worth doing.

Really? That's not what I heard or was informed. I was told $500 was enough to get between 40-60fps @1080p on high settings.

EDIT:
This video I saw for example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciFmlCCukP0

[_I_]

fx is as good as an i3 for gaming

but fx has no viable upgrade, 6300 can go to 8350, but its still the same core performance

i3 4160 can go to i5 4440-i7 4790 with the same board and windows install

[MagicalGirlBeth]

引用自 _I_：

fx is as good as an i3 for gaming

but fx has no viable upgrade, 6300 can go to 8350, but its still the same core performance

i3 4160 can go to i5 4440-i7 4790 with the same board and windows install

I didn't know that. That sounds really nice and convient for future upgrades. Thanks for leaving that tip.

[76561198135154379]

At $500 you're better off buying somebody else's PC off Craigslist.

[MagicalGirlBeth]

引用自 Riley ♡♡♡：

At $500 you're better off buying somebody else's PC off Craigslist.

So...$500-$600 would get me a laughable gaming PC? :\
(Well so much for the "PC Gaming isn't expensive" bs)

[76561198135154379]

引用自 DracioGreg：

引用自 Riley ♡♡♡：

At $500 you're better off buying somebody else's PC off Craigslist.

So...$500-$600 would get me a laughable gaming PC? :\
(Well so much for the "PC Gaming isn't expensive" bs)

It isn't expensive in the long run. Steam sales, free online, etc. Plus, it's a ----ing computer.

But if you're dead set on buying new then get a G3258, buy as cheap parts as you can, and blow the rest on a GPU.

A $500 is still decent. Buying used will get you more for your money.

[Bad 💀 Motha]

Actually u might be surprised. I've seen teens and college students all on tight budgets get decent $1000+ PC systems from places like CraigsList for 1/2 or even 1/4 of the going rate of what such systems are really worth. Sure u might not have warranty, but when things are tight, it is sometimes worth going such routes to get what u want/need, if it does the job.

Now when people speak about it being on the expensive side for PC Gaming, u have to take a step back and realize the PC isn't just for gaming. Pretty much anything u want to do u can do on a PC. Now even newer consoles aren't just limited to games, but aside from that there is really little more they can do. So if u had to choose between the rather limited constrains of a game console -vs- a Windows PC, which would u rather have? Even if a decent PC might cost twice as much. Plus there alot of good, well designed and fun games on Linux/Windows for PC that are Free-2-Play; very little of which u will see on a console, not just in the free department, but in the wide range of apps/games in general. Plus what u do for online, work, school, etc. U can do on that same PC.

[Rove]

I had something I wanted to post here but for some reason every time I try is says "error try again later". I have it saved and I want the OP to know that $400-$500 gaming PCs are possible and I will follow up with the builds I was trying to post as soon as it becomes possible to do so again without that error.

Here are the builds:

AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor
Asus A88X-PLUS ATX FM2+ Motherboard
A-Data XPG V2 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory
Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 2GB Dual-X Video Card
DIYPC Solar-M1-R ATX Mid Tower Case
EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/sWgfcf
Base Total: $482.60
Combo Discounts: -$16.00
Mail-in Rebates: -$75.00
Shipping: $1.99
Total: $393.59

AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor
Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard
A-Data XPG V2 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory
Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Sapphire Radeon R9 280 3GB Dual-X Video Card
Azza SIRIUS ATX Mid Tower Case
EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/dRr8qs
Base Total: $591.49
Promo Discounts: -$10.79
Mail-in Rebates: -$90.00
Shipping: $5.99
Total: $496.69

I had a few more things I wanted to say but for some reason Steam wouldn't let me post it. Error, Error try again later....

[IAmEvil]

I'm building one for around 750$, it won't rival anyone's top end gear but its enough to get you "in" the proverbial game.

Someone mentioned earlier that they've seen people obtain killer deals on craig'slist, yes I'd agree with that.
Alot of people also underestimate the power of auction sites like ebay, my neighbor bought his kid a 2500$ gaming pc for something like 340$ and shipping.

Sometimes its just luck of the draw, years ago, my best friend growing up found a curb side pc that someone at a dorm threw out after the college school year ended, and he brought it to me, turned out to be a nice piece at the time, easily worth the 1100$ he got for it.

[MagicalGirlBeth]

To be honest buying used parts didn't even cross my mind as I thought and was focused on buying new. It does raises a flag for me though as I know computer parts can be rendered useless pretty easy, at least that's my assumption. However as Riley said, it would be pretty cost effective so that's very note worthy. Those are some pretty interesting stories as I haven't heard of something like that before, nor did it cross my mind it would be quite possible to get $2500 parts with a mere $350 o_o. I did had buying computer parts at sales on mind though.

@Bad-Motha
Well I can't argue there, PCs being not just for gaming that is.

@Rove
Thank you, I really appreciate the effort assembling those two lists. I gotta say those are some very nice parts for a build, especially the CPU components. I was considering Intel CPUs so I'll check the two AMD CPUs in those build lists out so see if they may be easily upgraded to a stronger processor in the future. (Hope you get the error resolved).

[DiamondFluxify]

I wouldn't recommend getting a GTX 750 Ti, it's not enough performance for the price. The R9 270 is good though.

For $500 you can do better though. The AMD build with the FX-6300 listed by Rove is awesome. If you'd prefer to go with Intel (It has a better upgrade path CPU wise) then you could do something like this

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qgqzdC

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($64.95 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($82.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.75 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 280 3GB Dual-X Video Card ($162.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake Versa H21 ATX Mid Tower Case ($32.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($56.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $499.63

The Pentium G3258 is a dual core, but that'll only really cause it trouble with Far Cry 4. It can be OCd to roughly 4.5GHz with the stock cooler, and the socket allows you to upgrade to a higher end i5 in the future.