Budget 51-70k Looking for feedback on component choice for new gaming PC

S

siddharthp

Recruit
Hey folks,

I'm looking to build a new desktop PC primarily for gaming. I will be building this completely from scratch (i.e. no parts being transferred over from an existing machine or anything like that). It'd be great if I could fit everything into a budget of INR 60,000. I've already done research on a few components so I'd like some advice on whether these are good choices or if I should swap them out for others. Here goes.

Questions


Q: What is your budget?
INR 60,000.

Q: What is your existing hardware configuration (component name - component brand and model)
None. I do not currently own a desktop so this will be built with all new components.

Q: Which hardware will you be keeping (component name - component brand and model)
Not applicable.

Q: Which hardware component are you looking to buy (component name). If you have already decided on a configuration then please mention the (component brand and model) as well, this will help us in fine tuning your requirement.
CPU - Intel Core i5 3450
Motherboard - ASUS P8H67-M
RAM - Kingston ValueRAM DDR3 4 GB PC RAM x 2 (total 8 GB) <-- DDR3-1333/PC3-10600
GPU - ASUS GTX 650 1 GB
OS Drive - OCZ Agility 3 60 GB SSD <-- SATA 6.0
Data Drive - WD Caviar Green 1 TB HDD (WD10EARX) <-- SATA 6.0
Monitor - BenQ 21.5" LED Monitor (GW2250HM)
Speakers - Creative SBS A335 2.1
Case - Cooler Master Elite 311 Mid Tower Cabinet (Not sure about this. Could use suggestions.)
SMPS - Corsair CMPSU-600GUK 600 watts PSU
Keyboard - Logitech K200
Mouse - Logitech G400
Webcam - Logitech C270HD

Q: Is this going to be your final configuration or you would be adding/upgrading a component in near future. If yes then please mention when and which component
I do not intend to upgrade for at least a year.

Q: Where will you buy this hardware? (Online/City/TE Dealer)
Mumbai
I am open to purchasing online.

Q: Would you consider buying a second hand hardware from the TE market
No.

Q: What is your intended use for this PC/hardware
The primary focus will be gaming. I will also be using it to listen to music and watch HD movies.

Q: Do you have any brand preference or dislike? Please name them and the reason for your preference/dislike.
No particular dislikes.

Q: If you will be playing games then which type of games will you be playing?
Strategy - StarCraft II
MOBA - DotA 2, League of Legends
FPS (single player mainly) - Dishonored, Crysis, Bulletstorm

Q: What is your preferred monitor resolution for gaming and normal usage
Gaming - Undecided. Feedback from the community on this would be useful. I feel that 1600 x 900 should be sufficient.
Desktop - 1920 x 1080

Q: Are you looking to overclock?
No.

Q: Which operating system do you intend to use with this configuration?
Windows 7/8 64-bit.

Am I likely to fit the configuration posted above into my budget? I'd really appreciate some help on this. Thanks!
 
@siddharthp this is what I suggest you go for --

Intel Core i5 3450 ~11500/-
GIGABYTE-B75M-D3H ~4500/-
Corsair Vengeance 4GB x2 1600MHz ~3200/-
AMD HD7850 2GB ~16000/- OR AMD HD7870 2GB ~19000/-
Seagate Barracuda 7200.14 1TB ~4500/- (avoid green edition drives, they have poor performance)
HP (boxed) optical drive ~1000/-
Seasonic S12II 520W ~4500/- (better than the Corsair SMPS that you have short-listed)
NZXT Gamma ~2500/- OR Corsair Carbide 300R ~4500/-
DeLL ST2220L ~8500/- (comes with HDMI-IN port which the BenQ monitor lacks)
(rest your configuration is good)

  • Avoid buying SSD's with low capacity (storage), Windows 7 will eat it mostly and other applications / games cannot be installed there hence lack of performance improvement(s).
  • For gaming, as this is a new RIG I suggest that you go for 1080p resolution, stepping down to 1600 x900 will make the image a little stretched and details lost. If you are ready to go 20" monitor then the latter resolution will be fine (native) but if you are getting a 22" --> 21.5" device the image will not look good.
Hope this helps; And welcome to TE have a pleasant stay. Cheerio!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi ALPHA17,

Thanks for the lightning quick response! Just a few questions regarding your suggestions.

If you suggest not purchasing a 60 GB SSD, should I go for a 120 GB SSD instead? If you agree, please suggest some options.
Thanks for the tip regarding the Caviar Green drives. I looked up reviews on the Barracuda you suggested. It seems to be a very solid performer indeed. Good choice.
I have heard that AMD video cards suffer from driver issues. How true is this? Is it enough to warrant buying a GeForce series GPU instead? Do you recommend a particular brand for the 7850? The ASUS is working out to close to 20k which is a bit too steep for my budget. The graphics card should ideally cost around 12-13k.
I will go with your advice regarding the SMPS and case as I know very little about such things. Why is the NZXT Gamma so much cheaper than the Corsair Carbide?
I have looked up the specs on the BenQ and it does support HDMI natively. Both monitors are about the same price though. Do you recommend the Dell for any other reason?

Thanks again for the detailed reply.
 
siddharthp said:
If you suggest not purchasing a 60 GB SSD, should I go for a 120 GB SSD instead? If you agree, please suggest some options.

I have heard that AMD video cards suffer from driver issues. How true is this? Is it enough to warrant buying a GeForce series GPU instead? Do you recommend a particular brand for the 7850? The ASUS is working out to close to 20k which is a bit too steep for my budget. The graphics card should ideally cost around 12-13k.

I will go with your advice regarding the SMPS and case as I know very little about such things. Why is the NZXT Gamma so much cheaper than the Corsair Carbide?

I have looked up the specs on the BenQ and it does support HDMI natively. Both monitors are about the same price though. Do you recommend the Dell for any other reason?
Click to expand...

A good 120GB SSD will set you back by ~8000/- INR and I don't think it is feasible in your budget so skip this for now.

I have an AMD HD5770 and it plays games flawlessly. There are a few bad drivers in a year but that does not mean that the card is not worth it. In-fact at price points currently nVidia cards retail for a much higher pricer with not a great increment in performance. For the brand, best would be you stick to Sapphire, HIS and MSi --
  • Sapphire HD7850 2GB ~16000/-
  • Sapphire HD7850 1GB ~13500/-
As a rule of thumb the HIS cards will be more expensive while the MSi cards will be slightly cheaper.

Because the NZXT cabinet is smaller, cheaper does not come with as many fans as the Corsair 300R and most important no forward USB 3.0 ports.

GO for whichever you find then, DeLL would have better after sales support though (my opinion).

Hope this helps, Cheerio!
 
Hi ALPHA17! Sorry for replying late but I was out of town for work.

Anyway, I've decided that I would really like an SSD and so have decided to up the budget to INR 70,000. I've also made a couple of other changes to the configuration semi-finalised above. Please let me know what you think. I've also listed the prices.

Intel Core i5 3470 - Rs. 11,500 (Only Rs. 400 more than the i5 3450 so I figure it's worth it)
ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP - Rs. 6,500 (There seems to be an availability issue with the Gigabyte GA-H77M-D3H. Is this board any good?)
Corsair Vengeance 4 GB DDR3 RAM x2 - Rs. 1,450 x 2 = Rs. 2,900
OCZ Vertex 4 128 GB SSD - Rs. 7,900
Seagate Barracuda 7200.14 1 TB HDD - Rs. 4,200
Sapphire HD7850 2 GB GPU - Rs. 15,800
Dell ST2220L 21.5" Monitor - Rs. 8,450
Corsair Carbide 300R Cabinet (Again availability seems to be a problem but I really didn't like the NZXT cabinets) - Rs. 4,200
Seasonic S12II 520W SMPS - Rs. 3,900
D-Link Wireless Adapter - Rs. 750
HP DVD Writer - Rs. 1,050 (OEM... not boxed. Is this OK?)
Creative SBS A335 2.1 Speakers - Rs. 1,500
Logitech K200 Keyboard - Rs. 450
Steelseries Kinzu Mouse - Rs. 1,250
Logitech HD C270 Webcam - Rs. 1,000

Total: Rs. 71,350
 
Hi Jakob!

I was looking at the Corsair Carbide 400R but the case design isn't really to my taste. I've decided to go for the CoolerMaster CM690 II Advanced case instead. It's only Rs. 400 more than the 400R and seems to be a better performer.
 
Hey guys, I had my desktop delivered a couple of days ago with the above configuration in a CoolerMaster CM690 II Advanced case. It's worked out extremely well. Thank you so much for all the help and recommendations.

Cheers!
 
Back
Top