Build Guides

Published on February 10th, 2014 | by Brandon

15

PC Build Guide – February 2014

Welcome to the February 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.

The Starter ($500 maximum)

Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2QxtP

• CPU: Intel Core i3-3240 ($115.78 @ SuperBiiz)
• Motherboard: Asus Z77-A ATX LGA1155 ($74.99 @ Newegg)
• Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport XT 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1600 ($67.99 @ Newegg)
• Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5″ 7200RPM ($59.66 @ OutletPC)
• Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R7 260X 1GB ($127.27 @ TigerDirect)
• Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
• Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W ($19.99 @ Microcenter)

Total: $495.67

The Sweet Spot ($800 maximum)

Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2QxLY

• CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K ($229.29 @ Amazon)
• CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper TX3 ($19.99 @ Amazon)
• Motherboard: MSI Z87-G43 ATX LGA1150 ($99.99 @ NCIX US)
• Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1600 ($74.99 @ Microcenter)
• Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5″ 7200RPM ($59.66 @ OutletPC)
• Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 270X 2GB ($222.98 @ SuperBiiz)
• Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
• Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W ($29.99 @ Newegg)

Total: $786.88

The Enthusiast ($1300 maximum)

Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2Qy1F

• CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K ($339.99 @ Newegg)
• CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO($29.98 @ OutletPC)
• Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z87 Killer ATX LGA1150 ($124.99 @ Newegg)
• Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport XT 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3-1866 ($139.99 @ Newegg)
• Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5″ SSD ($89.89 @ Amazon)
• Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5″ 7200RPM ($59.66 @ OutletPC)
• Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 770 4GB ($370.98 @ Newegg)
• Case: NZXT Phantom (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
• Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W ($64.99 @ Microcenter)

Total: $1300.46

The Professional ($1800 maximum)

Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2QyeW

• CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K ($339.99 @ Newegg)
• CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
• Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z87 Killer ATX LGA1150 ($124.99 @ Newegg)
• Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport XT 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3-1866 ($139.99 @ Newegg)
• Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5″ SSD ($154.95 @ Amazon)
• Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5″ 7200RPM ($59.66 @ OutletPC)
• Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti 3GB ($699.99 @ NCIX US)
• Case: NZXT Phantom (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
• Power Supply: Corsair RM 850W ($159.99 @ Newegg)

Total: $1789.53

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vol1tion

Brandon

Brandon 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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