AMD FX Build for friend. ~$900. Please critique.

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mtx

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My friend was going to spend 1K+ on a pre-built Dell i7/integrated nVidia 745 for mainstream/light gaming so I decided to do a favour and custom build one for him for cheaper. I haven't paid attention to the PC industry for a few years so it was quite fun and reminded me of my hardcore HS days when gaming was all that I cared about . Before he pulls the trigger on the purchase though, I wanted to hear your thoughts and opinions on this build and whether it's worth it or not. I know Intel >>> AMD but my goal was to focus on price/performance/bang for buck, eco-friendly to save on power, and aim for higher quality brand names with decent warranty coverage. Maybe a tweak or two will help save a few more dollars or increase the performance?? What do you guys think?

First time using http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/sWhtyc for me...let me know if the link doesn't work!

AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor $119.99 (3 years I think, very eco @ 95W)
Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard $89.99 (3 years warranty)
Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory $69.99 (lifetime warranty)
Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive $75.00 (5 years warranty)
Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive $59.99 (2 years warranty, boo...maybe opt for WD Green for more eco?)
Gigabyte Radeon R7 260X 2GB WINDFORCE Video Card $144.99 (3 years warranty, only requires 6W PCI-E)
Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case $54.99 (3 years warranty)
EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply $74.99 (5 years warranty, made by Seasonic, very eco)
Windows 7 64-bit OEM $100 (from RFD BST)
Add any DVDRW for $20

Base Total: $874.93 CAD
Mail-in Rebates: -$65.00
Shipping: $2.99
Total: $792.92 CAD plus tax = close to $910 give or take (in Canadian $)
 
The FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor is a substantial a downgrade from any i7 and also it is in no way as energy efficient.
 
drescherjm said:
The FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor is a substantial a downgrade from any i7 and its in no way as energy efficient.
Click to expand...

You're right, but he never needed an i7 anyways for mainstream/office/browsing/light gaming. The original Dell pre-built had an i7-4790, integrated GeForce 745, and 16GB RAM and it was $1100+tax, on sale for $950.

It's hard finding an equivalent i5 for $120, and diving into i3 territory would be pointless no?

BTW he will not be overclocking. CPU/motherboard/PSU could probably be downgraded more to save $30-$50 but is it worth it to sacrifice warranty?
 
mtx said:
My friend was going to spend 1K+ on a pre-built Dell i7/integrated nVidia 745 for mainstream/light gaming so I decided to do a favour and custom build one for him for cheaper. I haven't paid attention to the PC industry for a few years so it was quite fun and reminded me of my hardcore HS days when gaming was all that I cared about . Before he pulls the trigger on the purchase though, I wanted to hear your thoughts and opinions on this build and whether it's worth it or not. I know Intel >>> AMD but my goal was to focus on price/performance/bang for buck, eco-friendly to save on power, and aim for higher quality brand names with decent warranty coverage. Maybe a tweak or two will help save a few more dollars or increase the performance?? What do you guys think?

First time using http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/sWhtyc for me...let me know if the link doesn't work!

AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor $119.99 (3 years I think, very eco @ 95W)
Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard $89.99 (3 years warranty)
Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory $69.99 (lifetime warranty)
Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive $75.00 (5 years warranty)
Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive $59.99 (2 years warranty, boo...maybe opt for WD Green for more eco?)
Gigabyte Radeon R7 260X 2GB WINDFORCE Video Card $144.99 (3 years warranty, only requires 6W PCI-E)
Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case $54.99 (3 years warranty)
EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply $74.99 (5 years warranty, made by Seasonic, very eco)
Windows 7 64-bit OEM $100 (from RFD BST)
Add any DVDRW for $20

Base Total: $874.93 CAD
Mail-in Rebates: -$65.00
Shipping: $2.99
Total: $792.92 CAD plus tax = close to $910 give or take (in Canadian $)
Click to expand...

I would check the AMD APU and look at some used parts. I think you can get a bigger bang for your buck looking at socket 1150 or even used AMD since they have been out so long. There just not much of a difference between the last few generations of CPUs and GPUs
 
Until Zen comes out, forget about AMD CPUs, especially for gaming. I'd recommend that your friend find a used R9 280X for the same price as a new 260X. Some manufacturers don't require the original receipt for warranty coverage, so that isn't a concern if you do your research, and shop carefully. For the CPU/motherboard, a Core i5-4440, and MSI PC Mate Z97 are good choices. Everything else looks good.
 
Let's forget about used parts for now...he has money to spend and he wants brand new parts with warranty. I have no issues with buying used but some people just want to buy brand new for piece of mind, and having something new..

Let's also forget about gaming. When I used the word "light" gaming, I meant it. I'm talking about low-end Steam games, not Crysis, Battlefield, etc. or anything high-end.

i5-4440 is ~$250 here, Im guessing the motherboard is at least another $100. That's $350 vs $210, or $140/67% more. Is the i5 really 67% better to justify the money?
 
mtx said:
i5-4440 is ~$250 here, Im guessing the motherboard is at least another $100. That's $350 vs $210, or $140/67% more. Is the i5 really 67% better to justify the money?
Click to expand...

Sadly, it is.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/699?vs=1368
Note: The i5 in this comparison is the closest they had to the i5-4440, it is slightly slower than a i5-4440 because it's low voltage.

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116942
It's $229 and you can get a compatible board for under $100 easily.
 
I agree that the Intel chip is faster, but if he is going to be playing stuff like Shovel Knight, then he could grab a Q6600 and a GTX 460 and be good. :) OP, could you give us like 5 examples of what type of games he likes?
 
Quix said:
Sadly, it is.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/699?vs=1368
Note: The i5 in this comparison is the closest they had to the i5-4440, it is slightly slower than a i5-4440 because it's low voltage.

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116942
It's $229 and you can get a compatible board for under $100 easily.
Click to expand...

The performance is there. Where is the value if he's not gaming? Are we spending the extra $100+ so that we can proclaim we own an Intel i5???
 
cageymaru said:
I agree that the Intel chip is faster, but if he is going to be playing stuff like Shovel Knight, then he could grab a Q6600 and a GTX 460 and be good. :) OP, could you give us like 5 examples of what type of games he likes?
Click to expand...

No I can't, because he doesn't play games. But he threw in "light" gaming to give himself an option. He's at best a casual gamer and will play the non-intensive offerings from Steam (my guess). Nothing like Crysis, BF4, COD on 1080P high quality. He could totally get away with my used E8500, GTX640, 4GB DDR2, but he wants to spend $$ on a new desktop for the next 5+ years doing God knows what. I honestly don't care what he buys, I just don't want him to spend 1K+ at BestBuy and get ripped off because some salesman tells him he needs an i7 because it is the best and fastest blah blah blah.
 
I would go for a well clocked i3 and a B85 motherboard, should land around the same price range.
 
mtx said:
It's hard finding an equivalent i5 for $120, and diving into i3 territory would be pointless no?
Click to expand...
Not realy no. If your friend truly is playing low-end Steam games, those are the type of games that rely more on raw IPC power than multi-threaded advantages. As such, going with the Core i3 4130 would be the better choice compared to the FX-6300 route. Not to mention that the Core i3 4130 would actually fit your goal of being relatively eco friendly due to its significantly lower power usage.

As far as motherboards go, go for the Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H as it's a relatively decent budget motherboard and only costs $10 to $15 CAD more than your planned AMD setup.

mtx said:
Let's also forget about gaming. When I used the word "light" gaming, I meant it. I'm talking about low-end Steam games, not Crysis, Battlefield, etc. or anything high-end.

i5-4440 is ~$250 here, Im guessing the motherboard is at least another $100. That's $350 vs $210, or $140/67% more. Is the i5 really 67% better to justify the money?
Click to expand...
Well no because the Core i5 4440 is outdated. The Core i5 4460 is the replacement for the 4440 and costs a little less:
http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646i54460

If you have the budget for it and if the system is geared towards heavy gaming, then yes the Core i5 4460 is worth it. Remember that it's significantly harder and more costly to upgrade a CPU and mobo after the fact. Hence why it's generally better to go heavy on the CPU and mobo and weak on the GPU and RAM since RAM and GPU can be upgraded relatively easy later on.

As for the rest of the system:
- That better be the cheapest 8GB set of RAM you can find because those tall heatsinks are generally deal killers in my book: They'll interfere with the placement of most good 3rd party HSF out there.

- Don't drop down to the WD Green drives. They're not that good.

- At $165, that R7 260X card is really really overpriced considering that you can find the R9 270 card can be had for around ~$180 CAD. The R9 270 offers a 25% to 30% performance increase over the R7 260X card. So even if you get the rebate, that R7 260X card would still be overpriced. Either upgrade to the R9 270 or downgrade to the onboard video (if going Intel) and wait until your friend can afford something better. Or if you're still going to insist on AMD, then downgrade the card to the R7 250X or upgrade to the R9 270. Either way, don't get that R7 260X card.

- That case is really outdated, cramped, and is not a very good case at all even at the $55 CAD mark. So at the $75 CAD mark, it's horrible. I recommend the NZXT Source 210 Elite case or the Coolermaster N200 cases
 
Why not the AMD a10 7800 and motherboard for 220 or so and add a video card later if he plays games that need better video card?
 
For gaming, AMD is still a totally viable alternative to Intel especially if youre budget shopping. A 6300 with a solid overclock on it and paired with a stout video card will handle anything at 1080 with no problem. Now if youre into a bunch of video encoding or synthetic benchmark competition then Intel is a far better choice. But for light gaming at 1080, AMD is just fine.

Here is what I threw together for $945 CAD. $45 over your budget but uses a FX-6300, Cooler Master Hyper 212 for some overclocking and a Powercolor 290x. Will handle any game out right now at 1080 at max settings with great frame rates.

http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/NBC6gs
 
Nerdydave said:
Why not the AMD a10 7800 and motherboard for 220 or so and add a video card later if he plays games that need better video card?
Click to expand...
Because it doesn't make sense to negate the main reason to get an APU in the first place by getting a seperate video cards. In other words, APU only make sense for a gaming PC if there's ZERO chance of a GPU upgrade.
MacLeod said:
For gaming, AMD is still a totally viable alternative to Intel especially if youre budget shopping. A 6300 with a solid overclock on it and paired with a stout video card will handle anything at 1080 with no problem. Now if youre into a bunch of video encoding or synthetic benchmark competition then Intel is a far better choice. But for light gaming at 1080, AMD is just fine.

Here is what I threw together for $945 CAD. $45 over your budget but uses a FX-6300, Cooler Master Hyper 212 for some overclocking and a Powercolor 290x. Will handle any game out right now at 1080 at max settings with great frame rates.

http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/NBC6gs
Click to expand...

The Bitfenix Neos is a pretty bad case:
http://techgage.com/article/a-fine-line-between-inexpensive-and-cheap-bitfenix-neos-review/

The problem with the AMD route is that while it may provide good performance now, it may not provide acceptable levels of performance later on. PLus the OP specifically said no overclocking and that he's planning on playing low-end Steam games. As such, that R9 290X card is really overkill.

Also, that 500GB hard drive is overpriced considering that $6 to $7 can get you twice as much storage space.
 
MacLeod said:
For gaming, AMD is still a totally viable alternative to Intel especially if youre budget shopping. A 6300 with a solid overclock on it and paired with a stout video card will handle anything at 1080 with no problem. Now if youre into a bunch of video encoding or synthetic benchmark competition then Intel is a far better choice. But for light gaming at 1080, AMD is just fine.

Here is what I threw together for $945 CAD. $45 over your budget but uses a FX-6300, Cooler Master Hyper 212 for some overclocking and a Powercolor 290x. Will handle any game out right now at 1080 at max settings with great frame rates.

http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/NBC6gs
Click to expand...

That's $954+tax = $1078, mine was $900 with taxes in for a difference of $178!

Mine also comes with SSD + 1TB and IMO a better PSU.

There's going to be no overclocking, so I see no reason for an aftermarket cooler. And light-gaming, so why the need for a $250+ video card that won't be used??
 
i3-4130 for $15 more @ 134.99. Lower power usage @ 54W. But only 2 (4) cores vs 6.
 
mtx said:
That's $954+tax = $1078, mine was $900 with taxes in for a difference of $178!

Mine also comes with SSD + 1TB and IMO a better PSU.

There's going to be no overclocking, so I see no reason for an aftermarket cooler. And light-gaming, so why the need for a $250+ video card that won't be used??
Click to expand...

I was just throwing it out there for a different approach. I didnt consider the taxes so my bad on that. Both power supplies are Seasonic built so thats a draw. That XFX is just always my go to PSU when putting together a budget build because its almost always the cheapest Seasonic built 550 unit so I just always select it. As for the HDD, I couldve sworn I clicked the 1TB version. Its $10 more and the next in the Seagate list so I mustve hit the 500GB by accident. Again, my bad.

The Hyper is so cheap I dont see why not buy it. You never know if the guy is going to get bit by the OC'ing bug. Even if he doesnt, just go in the BIOS and click the multiplier up to 20 and he'd be running 4.0 GHz on stock voltages. That would be a 15% boost with no extra voltage or tweaking needed. But if he's adamant about running at stock clocks then leave the Hyper off the list and youve saved $35. Again, just throwing out some different options.

The reason for the 290x is that a 260x is bare minimum for gaming and youll still have to lower settings in several games. A 290x would play anything at max settings and will still be plenty capable years down the road. You can always add in a SDD later if you even need one but Id rather put those funds towards a better GPU. Even for light gaming, a faster GPU is still worth the investment. Even the casual gamer would enjoy Crysis 3 at max settings instead of low. You could go with the 280x version for $60 less and still have a rig capable of maxing about anything at 1080. Also, the more he pays for a GPU now, the longer itll be before he'll need to buy a new one. .

But whatever, I was just throwing out what Id rather have myself given that budget. Guess I figure if somebody is just wanting bare bones and minimum performance and theyll never play anything tougher than Candy Crush or Farmville, just go buy some cheap $500 rig out of Best Buy. You still got a warranty and you could even spring for one of their extended warranties and still come out cheaper.
 
Last edited:
mtx said:
i3-4130 for $15 more @ 134.99. Lower power usage @ 54W. But only 2 (4) cores vs 6.
Click to expand...
This is what you said:
mtx said:
" He's at best a casual gamer and will play the non-intensive offerings from Steam (my guess). Nothing like Crysis, BF4, COD on 1080P high quality
Click to expand...

The extra cores won't help. Nor have you mentioned any sort of video editing work.
 
Dangman said:
This is what you said:


The extra cores won't help. Nor have you mentioned any sort of video editing work.
Click to expand...

He will be multitasking on the PC 95% of the time, whether it be email/movies/work/browsing/downloading. Gaming is at the bottom of the list. There is no video editing work. This is going to be a more mainstream build, more like an office PC. The more I think about it, the more I think I should remove the WD Caviar Blue and the R260X GPU and go with the Intel Core i3-4160 w/ integrated GPU. When he decides he wants to "game", and he tells us exactly which game he wants to play, we can then decide the proper dedicated GPU. In the meantime, prices will keep dropping or we can keep an eye out on a used card for dirt cheap.

Which motherboard/chipset would you guys recommend for the Intel Core i3-4160?
 
mtx said:
He will be multitasking on the PC 95% of the time, whether it be email/movies/work/browsing/downloading. Gaming is at the bottom of the list. There is no video editing work. This is going to be a more mainstream build, more like an office PC. The more I think about it, the more I think I should remove the WD Caviar Blue and the R260X GPU and go with the Intel Core i3-4160 w/ integrated GPU. When he decides he wants to "game", and he tells us exactly which game he wants to play, we can then decide the proper dedicated GPU. In the meantime, prices will keep dropping or we can keep an eye out on a used card for dirt cheap.

Which motherboard/chipset would you guys recommend for the Intel Core i3-4160?
Click to expand...

Gave you a recommendation earlier.
 
Samsung 850 EVO 120GB SSD sold out and is back to normal price @ $100... which 120GB SSD would you guys recommend now for OS/applications?
 
mtx said:
Any particular reason for the Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H Micro ATX version and not the normal ATX?
Click to expand...

One last question re: mobo. Why not the newer Z97? I know the i3-4160 is unlocked/no OC but wouldn't the Z97 provide greater flexibility in the future?
 
mtx said:
Any particular reason for the Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H Micro ATX version and not the normal ATX?
Click to expand...
Because the mATX costs less and there's no real reason to get ATX since you're not going SLI or Crossfire.
mtx said:
One last question re: mobo. Why not the newer Z97? I know the i3-4160 is unlocked/no OC but wouldn't the Z97 provide greater flexibility in the future?
Click to expand...
The problem is that a good Z97 motherboard costs significantly more in Canada. If this was the U.S, no problem. Then again, nor would Z97 necessarily provide greater flexibility.
mtx said:
Too expensive @ https://ca.pcpartpicker.com/parts/internal-hard-drive/
Anything in the $60-$75 range?? This one is $90+
Click to expand...
Crucial BX100. That's really as low as you can get before getting shitty SSDs.
 
Dangman said:
Because the mATX costs less and there's no real reason to get ATX since you're not going SLI or Crossfire.
Click to expand...

If he goes mATX mobo then he might as well use the same logic and go mATX case, but it's all about leaving my friend options and a couple dollars won't break the bank.

The problem is that a good Z97 motherboard costs significantly more in Canada. If this was the U.S, no problem. Then again, nor would Z97 necessarily provide greater flexibility.
Click to expand...

If my friend decides to buy a cheap, used, unlocked i5 or i7 2-3 years down the road, wouldn't the Z97 platform provide him flexibility in terms of overclocking? That's just one thought that came into my mind.

Is there anything wrong with these boards?

ASRock Z97 Anniversary
MSI Z97 PC MATE
ASRock Z97 PRO3
Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3

They are all in the $100 - $110 range.
 
I have a mATX mobo in a ATX case. Airflow is always better in a larger case and you rarely save much going mATX on cases without losing features.
 
mtx said:
i3-4130 for $15 more @ 134.99. Lower power usage @ 54W. But only 2 (4) cores vs 6.
Click to expand...

More cores does not = better. Check sites and almost every one an i3 and i5 beat out quad core or more AMD rigs except in applications that use cores properly which is not many.
 
mtx said:
If he goes mATX mobo then he might as well use the same logic and go mATX case, but it's all about leaving my friend options and a couple dollars won't break the bank..
Click to expand...
Thats why I recommended Coolermaster N200.... Unfortunately a lot of the good ATX cases cost a lot (relative to your friend's budget) in Canada. But let's do the numbers: What's the shipped after tax cost of the Coolermaster N200 for you friend?

Now, is that lower or equal to the Corsair 230T at $75 shipped + tax from NCIX.com?:
https://ca.pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-case-cc9011036ww
mtx said:
If my friend decides to buy a cheap, used, unlocked i5 or i7 2-3 years down the road, wouldn't the Z97 platform provide him flexibility in terms of overclocking? That's just one thought that came into my mind.
Click to expand...
You have to absolutely make sure that's an actual chiselled into the stone plan. Otherwise that's a waste of $30+ CAD in a tight budget. Remember that's $30 plus whatever taxes you pay on that extra $30.

Remember what you just told us about your friend?:
Let's forget about used parts for now...he has money to spend and he wants brand new parts with warranty. I have no issues with buying used but some people just want to buy brand new for piece of mind, and having something new..

....
He could totally get away with my used E8500, GTX640, 4GB DDR2, but he wants to spend $$ on a new desktop for the next 5+ years doing God knows wha
Click to expand...
Do you honestly think that he'll be open to buying used Core i5 or Core i7 CPUs from a stranger when he won't buy used parts from a trusted friend?
mtx said:
Is there anything wrong with these boards?

ASRock Z97 Anniversary
MSI Z97 PC MATE
ASRock Z97 PRO3
Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3

They are all in the $100 - $110 range.
Click to expand...
I don't factor in MIR until you actually receive them. As such, none of those motherboards are near that $100 to $110 range but more in the $130 range. Last I checked, you don't have $30 CAD to spare in the budget.

With that said, those mobos are generally decent budget overclockers.
Logan321 said:
I have a mATX mobo in a ATX case. Airflow is always better in a larger case and you rarely save much going mATX on cases without losing features.
Click to expand...
Not necessarily true. The $50 Coolermaster N200 mATX case is far better than many of the low-end Thermaltake, Coolermaster, Raidmax, and other cheap ATX cases out there both in cooling, quality, and cable management.
 
@ mtx
AMD is a bad choice no matter how you look at it now days unless you're looking for a really cheap X86/AMD64-router or so. That said, a pre-built by Dell, HP, Fujitsu might be the right way to go if he wants lets say 3 years of effortless warranty (it's usually just call-in and someone will go there and replace part X).

If you want to build a computer, this is much more suitable....

Motherboard: ASUS H97M-PLUS
http://www.ncix.com/detail/asus-h97m-plus-matx-lga1150-h97-db-97033.htm

HDD: Toshiba DT01ACA200
http://www.ncix.com/detail/toshiba-dt01aca200-2tb-sata3-7200rpm-34-77085.htm

CPU: Intel Core i5 I5-4590 Haswell 3.3GHZ Processor LGA1150 6MB Cache Retail
http://www.ncix.com/detail/intel-core-i5-i5-4590-haswell-24-96202-1323.htm

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB 2X8GB PC3-12800 DDR3-1600 1.5V CL9
http://www.ncix.com/detail/crucial-ballistix-sport-16gb-2x8gb-3f-68899.htm

Case: Corsair Carbide Series 200R Black
http://www.ncix.com/detail/corsair-carbide-series-200r-black-cb-76376.htm

OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Edition 64BIT SP1 DVD OEM
http://www.ncix.com/detail/microsoft-windows-7-home-premium-c0-45271-1323.htm

PSU: Seasonic S12II-520 Bronze 520W
http://www.ncix.com/detail/seasonic-s12ii-520-bronze-520w-eps12v-6d-52173.htm

912 CAD

So, no SSD. Budget doesn't really accommodate for it unless you decide to drop down to a i3 instead of an i5 CPU and/or dropping 8Gb of RAM. Even doing so you'll end up with a dinky 128Gb SSD which is really tiny nowdays and being the easiest part to upgrade later on (if needed) I don't see an issue (and I'd rate the performance penalties larger than the benefits of getting a SSD). As for the video the integrated graphics will do fine and if you want a decent video card at least go for the GTX 960 but again, budget.
//Danne
 
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