Looking into building a Gaming computer. Could I have some suggestions and an estimated ballpark for price?

Question

I am looking into building a Gaming computer. Could I have some suggestions and an estimated ballpark for price? Just give me some links,and a price with PA sales tax (6% on the dollar) Please keep it under $700 but have it be able to work on the most current games please.

Answer 1

You can build a gaming computer for under $700, just that it won't run "most current games" on maximum settings. A good mini-mid ATX case, 8 GB of RAM, a 500-600W power supply, a 500 GB 7200 RPM hard drive (Seagate Barracuda), Windows 7/8, and a competent motherboard will cost around $400, which gives you $300 of room to play around with.



You should get an Intel Core i5 to make your system more future proof, or you could invest more in a more powerful graphics card, the more viable option to run "most current games" at higher settings, so consider:



1. Intel Core i3-2120 (Sandy Bridge) + AMD Radeon HD 7850 = $300



2. Intel Core i3-3220 (Ivy Bridge) + AMD Radeon HD 7850 = $305 (about $5 over budget)



3. Intel Core i3-2100 (SB) + AMD Radeon HD 7850 = $295



The AMD Radeon HD 7850 is an amazing graphics card that runs with only one 6-pin power connector, meaning you can power it with just 500W of power ($30-50) although you probably can't overclock the card. Intel Core i3 CPUs, despite only being i3's are very good at gaming. I previously owned an i3-2100 paired with an AMD Radeon HD 6850 and it played Starcraft II @ 1600x900p on max settings and yielded 45-60 FPS. My point is, $700 is definitely good enough for a gaming PC. Consider downgrades on a few parts if you'd like to save even more money, but here are just some suggestions I've found throughout a year and a half of playing around with low-mid end parts.

Answer 2

Here's a budget build suggestion but still a little over your hopeful $700:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/yHCR



You can build a gaming computer on close to that budget, you just cannot expect Intel besides the i3 or a high-end graphics card. I tried to arrange this build so that you aren't too lacking in any areas. And despite AMD haters, the Athlon is a good processor.

Answer 3

You can most certainly build a gaming computer for $700 that will be able to run most new games maxed out. you would want to base it off an amd proc, and probably a xfx hd7770 gpu, 8gb of ram is enough, and a 1tb hard drive will last for atleast a year until it fills up, just a normal disk-drive/mobo, and a rosewill case will do you fine. a 500w psu is more than enough, and you can get oem win 7 home for around $70 i beleive two good sites to buy are newegg, and memory express because they let you pricebeat items.

also, heres a quick amd build i put together, you could change things, however this would run games just fine. http://pcpartpicker.com/ca/p/yHzX

Answer 4

A "gaming computer" will be well over $700. Just so you know. You may have a decent computer with a respectable video card that can play games well for less than that, but still, nobody will call it a gaming computer.



And if you didn't know that, maybe you should stick to buying computers that are pre-made. It's really not much more expensive than building one yourself, and you can find some pretty good ones for under $700.

Answer 5

There right unless u know people giving away the parts a decent gaming computer is gonna cost about 1000$ but I wouldn't reccomend Alienware I think there a scam just like most ppl think apple is a scam.For a computer that could play on ultra settings maybe $1500 to $2000 I'm not sure about prices but certainly not $700

Answer 6

Truthfully most gaming computers run on the low side of about $1200 to $3-4000. It all depends on what you are playing. You could probably have a decent gaming computer if you spend right around $1000. The main reason is the processor and motherboard alone run $400-500 that's not including graphics card which will easily be another $100-200. I think your budget isn't realistic.

Answer 7

Some of these people are being downright outrageous. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SPEND 1000s OF DOLLARS TO BUILD A GAMING PC! First of all, if you're going budget gaming, you're going to want to go AMD. They're cheaper and still give good performance. Get a nice quad or hexacore for around 100-150$, and make sure its AM3+. Then you need a nice motherboard. This is definitely NOT the area you want to skimp on. Get something that you like and is going to be very easy to upgrade on. Now let's talk about power, airflow and wattage are key here. Getting a decent modular PSU is key if you don't want to spend a lot of money on a case and if you're planning on upgrading your pc. 700w-800w would be good. RAM is an important part in a gaming pc. 4gb to 8gb would be great. You can always add more. Disc drive: grab a cheap $20 dvd burner. Hard drive: definitely important, getting around 500gb is perfect and you don't have to break the bank. Case: Easy, get something big enough to fit everything and has sufficient airflow.





FINALLY! Probably the 2 biggest keys in gaming pcs, a video card, and a cpu cooler. Video cards come in all shapes and sizes, do not be scared of video cards running for 400-500$... You may want to get a half-way decent video card that can support SLI or CrossFire X (make sure motherboard can too) so yo can add another one later. GTX 500 Series and up can run skyrim, BF3, Crysis 2, and all that good stuff on medium-ultra settings. Obviuosly you're not going to be running 3 monitors, at the same time. CPU cooling: this is key. very very key. many people who build their own computers want to overclock their cpu, meaning they make it go faster, which makes it get hotter. Spend a good $50 on cpu cooling





Here's a few links:







Case: http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-HAF-912-RC-912-KKN1/dp/B003ZM7YTA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1358784853&sr=8-1&keywords=cooler+master+haf+912





CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819113286





Video Card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121435





CPU Cooler: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103089

Answer 8

If you want a gaming computer that runs most current games, you are looking at a computer that costs AT THE VERY LEAST $1000. And that computer will be running games at low specs. I suggest you visit alienware.com for some good gaming computers. Sorry to break it to you, but you just won't get a gaming computer for under $1000, much less $700.

Answer 9

My sugestion would be to start doing research now and wait for stocktake sales and you will get good bargains and will probably build one for $700 to under $1,000.00 easily, and don't be affraid to use not so well know parts, that is where you will save rather than paying fo a well known brands name, but you can mix and match.

Answer 10

First of all, Mr_123 is wrong, the best gaming computer you build yourself, you don't buy or custom order.

And Alienware sucks, it's just an overpriced Dell piece of crap.



Here are the costs:



Budget build (good for most games in medium or even high settings) - $750

Good build (good for most games in medium-high and ultra settings) - $1,000

Best build (good for most games in high to ultra settings) - $1,500



Main components:

Processor: Intel Core i3-3220 ($130) for budget, i5-3570K for good and best ($320)

Processor cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO ($35)

Motherboard: LGA115 socket with the new Z77 chipset - $90 for budget and good, $220 for best

Graphics card: GTX650 Ti ($140) for budget, GTX660 Ti ($280) for good, GTX680 ($500) for best

RAM: 8GB (two x 4GB) DDR3 1600 MHz ($48)

Hard drive: 500GB for budget, 1TB or 2TB for good and best.

SSD: SATA III (6.0Gb/s) 120GB or bigger for best

PSU: 600W Corsair 80plus for budget and good, 750W Corsair or Thermaltake (80 plus) for best