PC Build Guide – September 2013
Welcome to the September version of our PC build guides. As with before, we have implemented hard price limits ($500, $800, $1300, $1800) on ourselves and have had to make tough decisions with each build. Your personal budget will likely be flexible, but we hope this article will give you a baseline. You can of course spend more or spend less, but you run into a case of diminishing returns at either end. Please keep in mind that pricing information is immediate and may not necessarily reflect real prices by the time you have read this article.
As we move toward the fall, September provides a couple notable changes. First up, the Starter switches from a Nvidia to AMD with a Sapphire Radeon 7790 video card. Next, the Enthusiast sees a welcome upgrade from Ivy Bridge to Haswell as it graduates to an i7-4770K. Lastly, we’re able to pick up a higher-end MSI gaming motherboard in the Enthusiast and the Professional, thanks to a killer Newegg combo deal.
The Starter ($500 maximum)
Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1CDaJ
- CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 ($114.99 @ Amazon)
- Motherboard: MSI Z77A-G41 ATX LGA1155 ($80.99 @ SuperBiiz)
- Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1866 ($62.99 @ Newegg)
- Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5″ 7200RPM ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
- Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7790 1GB ($114.99 @ Newegg)
- Case: Cooler Master Elite 370 ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX US)
- Power Supply: Thermaltake TR2 500W ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $498.92
The Sweet Spot ($800 maximum)
Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1CDrO
- CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K ($219.98 @ Outlet PC)
- CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus ($19.99 @ Newegg)
- Motherboard: MSI Z77A-G43 ATX LGA1155 ($92.99 @ NCIX US)
- Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1866 ($62.99 @ Newegg)
- Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5″ 7200RPM ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
- Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 2GB ($249.99 @ NCIX US)
- Case: Antec One ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.99 @ NCIX US)
- Power Supply: Thermaltake TR2 600W ($34.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $785.90
The Enthusiast ($1300 maximum)
Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1CHTp
- CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K ($339.99 @ Newegg)
- CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus ($19.99 @ Newegg)
- Motherboard: MSI Z87-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 ($159.99 @ Newegg)
- Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1866 ($62.99 @ Newegg)
- Storage: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5″ SSD ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
- Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5″ 7200RPM ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
- Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB ($399.99 @ Newegg)
- Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Mid Tower Case ($74.99 @ Newegg)
- Power Supply: Corsair Professional 650W ($109.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $1287.90
The Professional ($1800 maximum)
Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1CIjc
- CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K ($339.99 @ Newegg)
- CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus ($19.99 @ Newegg)
- Motherboard: MSI Z87-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 ($159.99 @ Newegg)
- Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1866 ($62.99 @ Newegg)
- Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5″ SSD ($162.99 @ NCIX US)
- Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5″ 7200RPM ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
- Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card – 2-Way SLI ($399.99 @ Newegg)
- Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card – 2-Way SLI ($399.99 @ Newegg)
- Case: NZXT Phantom (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($102.68 @ Amazon)
- Power Supply: Corsair Professional 750W ($119.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $1798.58
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vol1tion
BrandonBrandon started his PC gaming days playing Doom II (IDDQD/IDKFA for life) and has been hooked on online gaming since the original Starsiege: Tribes. The way to his heart is through proper grammar, corn dogs, and cookie cake.
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