Gaming Builds for $500-2000

Illumiigel · Jul 7, 2015

I've decided to compile a list of gaming tailored PC builds for various budgets from $500-2000. These builds may not always provide the best performance in all situations, but will give you a great all-rounded PC that excels in gaming. These builds do not include CPU coolers (See bottom of thread), peripherals, software or a CD drive (you should choose one that suits your needs, if you just need a CD-DVD drive, get one with good reviews around the $15 mark). Since these builds are meant to be for gaming, I'm not going to be using any AMD CPUs. Feel free to change components in the build to suit your desires. My case choices weren't based on aesthetics. I decided to pick a good, solid case for each price range; you can swap it out for whichever case you want to use.

$500 - Pentium based, good performance at stock speeds, excellent when overclocked.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($64.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($84.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($58.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($50.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 270X 2GB PCS+ Video Card ($163.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($32.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $506.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 06:06 EDT-0400

I decided to go with the pentium, as it has an incredible performance/price ratio even at stock speeds. But, this processor won't reach its full potential unless overclocked. You can usually push them up to 4.2~4.5GHz using the stock cooler. I'd recommend watching some guides on YouTube if you're unsure. Anything from JayzTwoCents/NCIX/Linus is recommended.

The 270X is an obvious choice for a budget builder. It's a cheap 3GB card with good gaming performance.

$750 - Great i5 build with a strong GPU. Also includes an SSD for better desktop performance.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($166.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.95 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Kingston Beast 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($56.37 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 960 2GB SuperSC ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($194.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($52.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $733.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-07 16:22 EDT-0400

For the CPU, I chose a locked i5. This is one of the cheaper i5s, but still has comparative performance to the higher end ones. This build is more about upgradability than the $500 build; as the CPU allows for SLI & Crossfire setups and the overclocking of unlocked processors. The 960 is the obvious GPU choice at this price point; however I recommend spending a bit more money and getting an R9 290X for the large amount of additional VRAM it provides.

I chose to include an SSD as the boot drive, for obvious reasons. However, if you don't care about desktop performance a lot, you could put the money into getting a better GPU such as a GTX 970.

$1000 - Similar to the $750 build, but with an unlocked processor and a much stronger GPU.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($125.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury White 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($51.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($56.37 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($349.99 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1011.70
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-07 16:29 EDT-0400

This build is very similar to the PC I have myself, save for a few components. From the $750 build, I decided to suggest an unlocked i5 with a higher stock clock speed, a better GPU, a higher wattage PSU and a few other slight changes.

$1500 - Incredible gaming & all-round performance. A large and worthwhile upgrade from the $1000 build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($144.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card ($649.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 750D ATX Full Tower Case ($139.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1507.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-07 17:36 EDT-0400

Since this build is gaming-centered, there's no reason to upgrade to an i7 at this price point. The i5 + 980 Ti will make for a much better combination than an i7 + a lesser GPU. I chose the 980 Ti because it's one of the best performing cards available and currently cheaper than the Fury X (which it outperforms in a lot of benchmarks) and has an extra 2GB of VRAM. Still sticking with DDR3 for this build; if you're desperate for DDR4 memory, you'll have to take a hit in gaming performance.

The rest of the build is similar to the $1000 build, with the same PSU and a similar case being used. 2TB mass storage will be more than enough for storing large game libraries, and the 250GB SSD will allow for a much more spacious boot drive with room to store lots of commonly used games/programs.

$2000 - High budget X99 gaming PC/Workstation

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($378.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI X99S SLI Plus ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($215.99 @ B&H)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($124.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX Titan X 12GB Video Card ($999.99 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair 750D ATX Full Tower Case ($139.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $2102.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-07 17:34 EDT-0400

This build is a little over budget, but well worth the extra $100 at this price point. This build required more thought than the rest; particularly when deciding upon a video card. The Titan X is $350 more than the 980 Ti, with only a slight increase in gaming performance. However, the 12GB VRAM the Titan X provides will allow you to perform any rendering tasks with ease. Another choice was to get SLI 2 GTX 980s; although it would perform incredibly in games, you shouldn't build a PC with multiple GPUs unless they are the best available. If you're looking for pure gaming performance though, get 2 980s, but then you have to deal with SLI issues.

I chose to use the X99 chipset for this build as it has support for DDR4 memory. The 6-core i7 will be able to handle any games thrown at it with ease, along with any intensive multi-core processes. However, you will need to buy a CPU cooler with this build, as the i7 doesn't come bundled with one.

Alternate Builds

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($176.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($69.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury White 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($50.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($65.25 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 390 8GB Video Card ($329.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: NZXT S340 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($63.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G-750 750W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($104.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $914.53
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-11 03:45 EDT-0400
Build Submitted by Diacor

CPU Coolers

For your cooler; if you don't plan on overclocking, just use the stock cooler. Some CPUs (such as the G3258) can be overclocked pretty hard without needing an aftermarket cooler. Here are some coolers I recommend though if you do plan on buying one:

Air Cooling:
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
Noctua NH-D15
Cooler Master RR-HT2

AIO Water Cooling:
Corsair H60/H100i/H105/H110
NZXT Kraken X31/X41/X61
Cooler Master Seidon 120M/240M
Cooler Master Nepton 240M
Swiftech H240-X

If you find any inaccuracies in this guide, or if you think better components could be used in any of these builds, feel free to comment below. Also, if you have any builds for other budgets, please post them and I will try to add them to this collection. I made this guide with the intention of being able to give people builds/build ideas at their budget. Hopefully this will decrease the amount of "Build me a PC for $X" posts that litter this sub-forum. This thread will be updated regularly with new builds whenever new, suitable components are released. This site is also great for getting builds at any budget, but isn't specifically tailored towards builds for gaming.

RasclartsRELOADED · Jul 7, 2015

nice builds BRo i can see you put a dankload of effort into this

ImTheNarwhal · Jul 7, 2015

Might actually consider buying some of the parts of these c:

Mamiamato24 · Jul 8, 2015

Cool thread, I'll definitely be referencing this when I plan on getting a computer built, probably around Christmas.

Diacor · Jul 10, 2015

Illumiigel said:
I've decided to compile a list of gaming tailored PC builds for various budgets from $500-2000. These builds may not always provide the best performance in all situations, but will give you a great all-rounded PC that excels in gaming. These builds do not include CPU coolers (See bottom of thread), peripherals, software or a CD drive (you should choose one that suits your needs, if you just need a CD-DVD drive, get one with good reviews around the $15 mark). Since these builds are meant to be for gaming, I'm not going to be using any AMD CPUs. Feel free to change components in the build to suit your desires. My case choices weren't based on aesthetics. I decided to pick a good, solid case for each price range; you can swap it out for whichever case you want to use.

$500 - Pentium based, good performance at stock speeds, excellent when overclocked.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($64.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($84.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($58.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($50.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 270X 2GB PCS+ Video Card ($163.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($32.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $506.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 06:06 EDT-0400

I decided to go with the pentium, as it has an incredible performance/price ratio even at stock speeds. But, this processor won't reach its full potential unless overclocked. You can usually push them up to 4.2~4.5GHz using the stock cooler. I'd recommend watching some guides on YouTube if you're unsure. Anything from JayzTwoCents/NCIX/Linus is recommended.

The 270X is an obvious choice for a budget builder. It's a cheap 3GB card with good gaming performance.

$750 - Great i5 build with a strong GPU. Also includes an SSD for better desktop performance.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($166.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.95 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Kingston Beast 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($56.37 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 960 2GB SuperSC ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($194.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($52.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $733.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-07 16:22 EDT-0400

For the CPU, I chose a locked i5. This is one of the cheaper i5s, but still has comparative performance to the higher end ones. This build is more about upgradability than the $500 build; as the CPU allows for SLI & Crossfire setups and the overclocking of unlocked processors. The 960 is the obvious GPU choice at this price point; however I recommend spending a bit more money and getting an R9 290X for the large amount of additional VRAM it provides.

I chose to include an SSD as the boot drive, for obvious reasons. However, if you don't care about desktop performance a lot, you could put the money into getting a better GPU such as a GTX 970.

$1000 - Similar to the $750 build, but with an unlocked processor and a much stronger GPU.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($125.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury White 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($51.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($56.37 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($349.99 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1011.70
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-07 16:29 EDT-0400

This build is very similar to the PC I have myself, save for a few components. From the $750 build, I decided to suggest an unlocked i5 with a higher stock clock speed, a better GPU, a higher wattage PSU and a few other slight changes.

$1500 - Incredible gaming & all-round performance. A large and worthwhile upgrade from the $1000 build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($144.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card ($649.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 750D ATX Full Tower Case ($139.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1507.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-07 17:36 EDT-0400

Since this build is gaming-centered, there's no reason to upgrade to an i7 at this price point. The i5 + 980 Ti will make for a much better combination than an i7 + a lesser GPU. I chose the 980 Ti because it's one of the best performing cards available and currently cheaper than the Fury X (which it outperforms in a lot of benchmarks) and has an extra 2GB of VRAM. Still sticking with DDR3 for this build; if you're desperate for DDR4 memory, you'll have to take a hit in gaming performance.

The rest of the build is similar to the $1000 build, with the same PSU and a similar case being used. 2TB mass storage will be more than enough for storing large game libraries, and the 250GB SSD will allow for a much more spacious boot drive with room to store lots of commonly used games/programs.

$2000 - High budget X99 gaming PC/Workstation

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($378.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI X99S SLI Plus ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($215.99 @ B&H)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($124.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX Titan X 12GB Video Card ($999.99 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair 750D ATX Full Tower Case ($139.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $2102.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-07 17:34 EDT-0400

This build is a little over budget, but well worth the extra $100 at this price point. This build required more thought than the rest; particularly when deciding upon a video card. The Titan X is $350 more than the 980 Ti, with only a slight increase in gaming performance. However, the 12GB VRAM the Titan X provides will allow you to perform any rendering tasks with ease. Another choice was to get SLI 2 GTX 980s; although it would perform incredibly in games, you shouldn't build a PC with multiple GPUs unless they are the best available. If you're looking for pure gaming performance though, get 2 980s, but then you have to deal with SLI issues.

I chose to use the X99 chipset for this build as it has support for DDR4 memory. The 6-core i7 will be able to handle any games thrown at it with ease, along with any intensive multi-core processes. However, you will need to buy a CPU cooler with this build, as the i7 doesn't come bundled with one.

CPU Coolers

For your cooler; if you don't plan on overclocking, just use the stock cooler. Some CPUs (such as the G3258) can be overclocked pretty hard without needing an aftermarket cooler. Here are some coolers I recommend though if you do plan on buying one:

Air Cooling:
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
Noctua NH-D15
Cooler Master RR-HT2

AIO Water Cooling:
Corsair H60/H100i/H105/H110
NZXT Kraken X31/X41/X61
Cooler Master Seidon 120M/240M
Cooler Master Nepton 240M
Swiftech H240-X

If you find any inaccuracies in this guide, or if you think better components could be used in any of these builds, feel free to comment below. Also, if you have any builds for other budgets, please post them and I will try to add them to this collection. I made this guide with the intention of being able to give people builds/build ideas at their budget. Hopefully this will decrease the amount of "Build me a PC for $X" posts that litter this sub-forum. This thread will be updated regularly with new builds whenever new, suitable components are released.

Your builds are decent, but I can go ahead and correct them into much better builds.

Better 500 dollar build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/cPPDsY

Better 750 dollar build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3Dtd23

Better 1k build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/TQpnBm (actually 900, but yolo)

Better 1.5k build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Fztd23

Better 2k build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/kqGM7P

(Note, I went AMD in most of the builds due to the 15.7 driver update putting those cards ahead of Nvidia's)

As for the 12 GB of VRAM thing, false.

Rendering out things is mostly going to be reliant on your CPU, and 12 GB is not going to be needed for anything other than stuff in CAD/using Cuda.

If you are going to buy a 1k card for rendering stuff, it is better to buy a Quadro

Illumiigel · Jul 10, 2015

Diacor said:
Your builds are decent, but I can go ahead and correct them into much better builds.

Better 500 dollar build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/cPPDsY

Better 750 dollar build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3Dtd23

Better 1k build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/TQpnBm (actually 900, but yolo)

Better 1.5k build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Fztd23

Better 2k build- http://pcpartpicker.com/p/kqGM7P

(Note, I went AMD in most of the builds due to the 15.7 driver update putting those cards ahead of Nvidia's)

As for the 12 GB of VRAM thing, false.

Rendering out things is mostly going to be reliant on your CPU, and 12 GB is not going to be needed for anything other than stuff in CAD/using Cuda.

If you are going to buy a 1k card for rendering stuff, it is better to buy a Quadro

The $500 & $750 builds are both $20-30 over budget, which is basically the extra cost of the GPUs you changed. Also, if you look at the notes for the $750 build, I recommended that the builder uses a 290 instead of a 960, but that would put the build over budget.

I guess you added that PSU as a mistake for the $750 build, because who would put a $110 PSU in a $750 build? I also chose to use a more expensive motherboard in that build as I mentioned that it was more about upgradability and the ability to SLI/Crossfire.

I agree with your choice for the $1000 build GPU; I drafted out some of these builds a few weeks back before the new AMD cards released. But I'd still choose the 4690k at that price, and a more a capable motherboard. Guess it's up to the user whether they want to pay a bit more for the ability to upgrade their system down the line or not.

For the $1500 build you recommended, I'd still go with the 980 Ti. It's a little cheaper and has an extra 2GB of VRAM. Since there are games pushing near to 4GB VRAM now, it won't be long until 4GB cards are limited by their VRAM.

Your $2k build makes sense. Like I said, it was hard deciding the GPU. The Titan X isn't great for performance/price, but there's no other single GPU that really matches it. It's a $2000 build, the one you suggested is about $1700. The one I suggested will perform better, but you get more value out of the one you suggested.

Lots of editing/modelling software now allows for GPU rendering; it doesn't use the CPU. However, not many users actually know about this as they don't have a powerful enough GPU to consider it. But you're right, the 12GB VRAM is excessive for gaming and the average user probably won't use even half of the VRAM in the titan.

If you'll allow me to, I'll add your $1k ($900) and $2k (~$1700) builds to the original post, with credit of course. The others have minimal differences, a lot of which I touched on in the notes of each build.

Col_StaR · Jul 10, 2015

I'd probably refer to http://www.logicalincrements.com/ first.
It's a site that accomplishes much the same goal, but with more strata for budgets.

Imanol · Jul 10, 2015

I recommend not building a computer beneath $700, it just wont turn out as planned for the builder.

Illumiigel · Jul 10, 2015

Col_StaR said:
I'd probably refer to http://www.logicalincrements.com/ first.
It's a site that accomplishes much the same goal, but with more strata for budgets.

Yeah, I've recommended that site before. I believe it's more tailored to all-round builds over gaming specifically though, as it uses a lot of AMD CPUs.

I'll throw in a link to it at the bottom, as it is a good site.

Imanol said:
I recommend not building a computer beneath $700, it just wont turn out as planned for the builder.

Depends on the user's needs. If they're just building it to play Minecraft and CS:GO, they'll get by fine on a ~$500 build.

Diacor · Jul 10, 2015

Illumiigel said:
The $500 & $750 builds are both $20-30 over budget, which is basically the extra cost of the GPUs you changed. Also, if you look at the notes for the $750 build, I recommended that the builder uses a 290 instead of a 960, but that would put the build over budget.

I guess you added that PSU as a mistake for the $750 build, because who would put a $110 PSU in a $750 build? I also chose to use a more expensive motherboard in that build as I mentioned that it was more about upgradability and the ability to SLI/Crossfire.

I agree with your choice for the $1000 build GPU; I drafted out some of these builds a few weeks back before the new AMD cards released. But I'd still choose the 4690k at that price, and a more a capable motherboard. Guess it's up to the user whether they want to pay a bit more for the ability to upgrade their system down the line or not.

For the $1500 build you recommended, I'd still go with the 980 Ti. It's a little cheaper and has an extra 2GB of VRAM. Since there are games pushing near to 4GB VRAM now, it won't be long until 4GB cards are limited by their VRAM.

Your $2k build makes sense. Like I said, it was hard deciding the GPU. The Titan X isn't great for performance/price, but there's no other single GPU that really matches it. It's a $2000 build, the one you suggested is about $1700. The one I suggested will perform better, but you get more value out of the one you suggested.

Lots of editing/modelling software now allows for GPU rendering; it doesn't use the CPU. However, not many users actually know about this as they don't have a powerful enough GPU to consider it. But you're right, the 12GB VRAM is excessive for gaming and the average user probably won't use even half of the VRAM in the titan.

If you'll allow me to, I'll add your $1k ($900) and $2k (~$1700) builds to the original post, with credit of course. The others have minimal differences, a lot of which I touched on in the notes of each build.

Go ahead! The PSU was a choice, because it basically allows you to do anything with your PC, with it being one of the highest quality PSU's.

I didn't know that you didn't count Mail in Rebates.

Gaming Builds for $500-2000

Illumiigel

Survivor

RasclartsRELOADED

Career

ImTheNarwhal

District 13

Mamiamato24

Diamond

Diacor

Survivor

Illumiigel

Survivor

Col_StaR

District 13

Imanol

Diamond

Illumiigel

Survivor

Diacor

Survivor

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