WIDE-OPEN SPACES WITH ROOM TO GROW
LOW-BALLING ON PRICE isn’t something we normally do here. We love our big $100 cases and $300 CPUs, but we get it that not everyone can afford to build in the $1,500 range.
At the same time, if we’re going to compromise in the name of budget, there are some things we just aren’t willing to skimp on. Even with a relatively modest $100 CPU, gaming relies heavily on GPU performance. Investing that $200 in a GPU will pay off in the long run, as other components are upgraded.
Building PCs is more than just performance, it’s a hobby and passion for us. If money is tight, it’s sometimes better to get a modest base and improve it all the time. That will make a story out of the continual work. Just as a project car can go from rust-bucket to show material, a computer can go from a budget build to a face-melting machine that bends space-time given enough time, blood, sweat, tears, and disposable income.
We wanted to create a solid base to build on. The case offers plenty of opportunities for expansion, and the GPU and CPU combo will get the system started in the right direction. While the build drags its ass for a number of reasons—namely, the modest CPU and a spinning hard drive for the OS—the six cores of the FX-6300 combine to get work done in multithreaded applications. Also, you should be able to play quite a few games at 1080p at modest settings with the GTX 960.
Transforming this build from modest to mighty can take any number of approaches with incremental improvements. An SSD will level-up your data-transfer speeds significantly, and is the best way to enhance the build. The boost in storage speed should be followed by a more robust motherboard with features like M.2 support. A mobo upgrade will present the choice to stay with the AM3+ socket or to switch over to an Intel board.
If you choose to stay with AM3+ and go with a better AMD CPU or overclock the FX6300, investing in a closed-loop water cooler is ideal. Packing in more case fans will make life easier for overclockers, as well. With this case, there’s plenty of room for a small cooler and extra fans. Going with Intel will cost you some extra coin, but will allow for a less aggressive cooling solution.
We enjoyed this challenge, even if we couldn’t quite get it down to $500. Sorry about that, Harley, but we wanted to make sure you’d have a better base machine for gaming and video. Prices do fluctuate, and we saw a few rebates that brought the build down by $40– $50. By the time you read this, maybe you’ll be lucky enough to take advantage of a couple of deals and get started. Happy trails!