re: PC Discussion - Gaming, Performance and Enthusiasts

13.6 beta 2


Looking for opinions on something --

I'm working on a PC guide at the moment, that walks a newbie through configuring a build, part by part -- essentially, what to look for and why.

As part of the guide, I wanted to configure an example build with a particular budget, just to show what you'd get with X amount of money. Just not sure what a good baseline budget is. I think it would be ideal for this sample build to have all around good performance in most applications, with excellent 1080p performance (i.e., consistent 60+fps with very high or max settings in most games, not necessarily including MSAA or SSAA).

Whatever budget I choose will have a natural deviation of 10% or so, since I won't be able to update it every time X brand of GPU gets a rebate deal or otherwise changes in price.

I'm thinking a nice, round budget would be $1,000 not including monitor. My gut says some of you are probably going to say that's waayyy too much. You can get by with less, but I think that's the budget you need to get not just an excellent gaming rig, but an all-around workhorse with some futureproofing in mind.

I suppose I could do multiple sample builds.
$500 steam box, $1,000 performance PC, $1500 powerhouse for 1440p, etc.

Would just be a pain to update them all every few months.

Open to suggestions. I've seen build help threads on both sides of the spectrum -- some with challenging low budgets, and others with unnecessary inflated budgets, and many in between.