Need help/starting point with ~$1200 gaming build

[Neri25]

Sorry to be that jackass but I don't really have a starting point for this beyond what I want it to do.

The goal is to play most current games on fairly high settings while being upgradable enough that I won't be looking at replacing the entire damn thing before, say, 5 years or so. Ideally it'll hold stable FPS in raid (60 or so).Current monitor is 1920x1080, but I may be getting a new one.(open to suggestions if you have a particularly nice one in mind, it's outside of the budget).

Current intention is to get this built sometime next week (hence I need to order parts sometime this week) as I am flush with free time. I don't want to wait because my current rig is an unreliable piece of crap that is starting to really show its age and I'm not really sure it can make it to fall. Current case isn't reuseable. Peripherals are being dealt with, handling those on my own outside of any monitor suggestions.

Budget not entirely set in stone but this seems a reasonable upper bound for price vs performance.

Sorry for any trouble.

[Kagthul]

Keep in mind, this is only a place to *start*.

its got a very basic case, for instance, which youll probably want to change. No SSD, which some people seem to consider mandatory.

But this is the basis for a solid 1080p/60/Ultra rig.

Understand though, that there is no such thing as a rig that runs full Ultra and a constant 60fps in busy raids in WoW (or capitals, Ashran, and 40v40 BGs). Youll AVERAGE more than 60, but there WILL be times when youll dive into the high 40s/low 50s for at least a few seconds (on the pull, Lust/Heroism, lots of adds or AoE, etc).

Still totally playable.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/th6wNG
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/th6wNG/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($247.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.74 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170-HD3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($110.66 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($34.99 @ Adorama)
Storage: Seagate 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive ($69.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 390 8GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($328.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Directron)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($55.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $913.22
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-02 21:47 EST-0500

Like i said, its a solid start. You can rejigger things to match your budget.

One thing i might recommend, however:

We are on the cusp of probably the single biggest leap in GPU performance in the last 10+ years. Usually, there isn't a huge jump between generations, so if you bought something top-end now, the next generation or two you'd still be good....

this time, though, we're looking at at least 25% better performance across the board (at all price segments) - maybe as high as 40% or more (engineering samples are hitting 40%+, but engineering samples dont always mean the production chips will match that) - AND full support for DX12, which will provide EVEN MORE performance boosts in CPU-limited games due to leveraging Asynchronous Compute.

Its quite literally the worst time to be buying a new GPU, as Pascal and Polaris (nVidia and AMD's new lineups) are due out in May/June.

So.. what you might want to do is build the entire rig (other computer parts like the CPU/MoBo/etc will be good for years to come) and either continue using your current GPU for a few months, or buy a low-end GPU to tide you over (like a GTX 950) and then grab a new Polaris or Pascal GPU when they launch.

[Neri25]

I don't mind slight dips, current rig has been approaching the SLIDESHOW ZONE in MMO content that is remotely graphics intensive (and this is at fairly minimal settings ._. )so sustaining high FPS would be a step up.

The problem is my current GPU is somewhere in the neighborhood of 5 years old as well , so idea of getting something a bit more low-end now and upgrading later seems the better play if the generation gap is going to be that large.

In any case, thank you for your time.

[Kagthul]

The GTX 950 is actually a pretty solid low-end choice, particularly if you plan to replace it within a year. It will run WoW at 1080p no problem, mostly Ultra (with some settings like Shadows and AA turned down) and a lot of other games at 1080p/high or better.

Its only about ~140$ (depending on sales/MiR, can be even cheaper), and you could probably resell it when the new GPUs drop for 60-80 bucks, if you wanted to (or keep it for a backup).

[Deleted]

This is what I'd build right now, absent further information regarding Polaris:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($247.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.75 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170-HD3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($110.66 @ Newegg)
Memory: GeIL SUPER LUCE 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($86.75 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.90 @ B&H)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 950 2GB Superclocked+ ACX 2.0 Video Card ($139.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Deepcool TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case ($48.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($55.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $838.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-03 04:50 EST-0500

An alternative to the GTX950, which would give you marginally more budget for a new GPU, is the R7-370, but IMO it isn't quite as good for WoW as the 950.

Put that money left over towards a Polaris GPU later this year, sell/donate the GTX950 when you get that, and everything should be gravy.

[Deleted]

I would take a different PSU from the above builds. The seasonic does not support the C6/C7 powerstates van Skylake, and it is also quite old.

I would look for this one or this one or this one

I would probably go for the seasonic, for only 15 bucks more you get a gold rated, semi modular PSU which supports the powerstates.

[Deleted]

I'm with the tenangrychickens above about the gpu. Either get an R9 390 if you want this right now, or grab a gtx950 temporarily till new gpu's are out later in the year. Gpu aside this is the complete build i'd have a look at (monitor+o/s incl):

On a sidenote, Ultra raiding @ 1080p 60hz can be done, was proven recently:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($247.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock 3 67.8 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler ($74.90 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming 3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($131.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($86.75 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 390X 8GB SOC Video Card ($400.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Phanteks ECLIPSE P400 ATX Mid Tower Case ($77.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA GS 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: BenQ GW2765HT 60Hz 27.0" Monitor ($349.00 @ Amazon)
Total: $1657.42
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-03 05:34 EST-0500

[Kagthul]

On a sidenote, Ultra raiding @ 1080p 60hz can be done, was proven recently:

Yeah...no.

That guy kept shutting off options ("they dont make an actual difference, so they dont count"), was not in a real raid, and eventually resorted (in his most recent video) to using his GPU control panel to force AA off completely while still showing it as "on" in the WoW settings. (Seriously look at the mountain of jaggies)

He didnt prove anything, other than hes an inventive liar.

[Deleted]

That guy kept shutting off options ("they dont make an actual difference, so they dont count"), was not in a real raid, and eventually resorted (in his most recent video) to using his GPU control panel to force AA off completely while still showing it as "on" in the WoW settings.

Your opinion, not mine and lets leave it there.

[Artorius]

The Nano at this price is a complete no-brainer.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($247.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H5 Universal 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI Z170-A PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($111.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($64.99 @ Adorama)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($86.75 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 Nano 4GB Video Card ($464.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $1198.56
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-03 15:32 EST-0500