550$ upgrade-ready build - Hardware & Software

Hello. I recently have ended up in a situation where my old computer has met the end of its life. Unfortunately, time sensitive work has kept me from waiting to save up any longer for a more expensive build, so I hope you guys can help me find the best build for my price range. My requirements for the build and other information pertaining to the purchase are as follows: This is a desktop pc build. This must be an Intel processor build. I would like the motherboard for this build to be fully upgrade-ready in that it can accept whatever hardware advancements might appear in the next year or two (processors, RAM, GPUs etc). I hope this is not too much to ask for. I plan on putting in a better processor, graphics card, and other hardware a few months from now when I can gather some money together. There will be multiple hard drives, multiple GPUs, liquid cooling, an audio interface, and some other things along the way. I would like the motherboard to be very reliable and have a nice track record. This computer will be used for modern gaming, audio design, and game development within UE4 and Cryengine SDK. There will also be some video editing done on the side, but I'm sure this can be remedied with a RAM upgrade in the future. My budget is 550$ USD, but if need-be, 600$ is my absolute limit. Shipping and what-not will be covered separately, no need to factor that into the budget for this post. I do NOT need: HDD, Monitor, Speakers, Mouse/Keyboard, Operating System, any software, or audio interface/card (as long as the mobo has an onboard soundcard, since this will also be part of a future upgrade where I purchase an audio interface for sound design.) For right now, I just want the computer to be able to handle some decent gaming before the upgrade which will occur in a few months time. P.S.: The case doesn't need to be the greatest looking thing on earth. That will also be upgraded along the line. As long as it gets the job done and does not pose any issues with the current build arrangement. I appreciate any and all help with this and I am looking forward to seeing some interesting build selections!

This is a very confusing post. I have no idea what sort of upgrade you have in mind for the future. $1k? $3k? I can't really give you a good suggestion without knowing what you really want to upgrade and not. Are you only looking to keep the motherboard after this and upgrade the cpu, psu, case, and gpu? Well you basically have two choices when it comes to upgrading. You could buy a good z87 board now with a cheap i3 and then upgrade to an i7 or i5 devil's canyon once it comes out, or you can buy a cheap board and cheap cpu and then upgrade both when Broadwell comes out (though I would not expect a big difference in performance). So I went with the z87 option for you. I suggest just getting a [URL="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131562"]7850 [/URL]so you don't waste your money right now. You could fit a 760 into your budget but then when you upgrade to dual gpus (i'm assuming 780s?) it would be a waste. A 7850 for $100 is a good deal and you'll get similar performance to a 265 or 270 (maybe 5-10 fps lower). This way you can get a good case from now and upgrade just the cpu, psu, and gpu, saving you the most money probably. [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3FZxh]PCPartPicker part list[/url] / [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3FZxh/by_merchant/]Price breakdown by merchant[/url] / [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3FZxh/benchmarks/]Benchmarks[/url] [b]CPU:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646i34130]Intel Core i3-4130 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor[/url] ($124.99 @ Newegg) [b]Motherboard:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gigabyte-motherboard-gaz87xud4h]Gigabyte GA-Z87X-UD4H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard[/url] ($144.99 @ Newegg) [b]Memory:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-memory-cmz8gx3m2a1600c9]Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory[/url] ($72.99 @ Newegg) [b]Case:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-case-750d]Corsair 750D ATX Full Tower Case[/url] ($129.99 @ Micro Center) [b]Power Supply:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-power-supply-cx430]Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply[/url] ($19.99 @ Newegg) [b]Other:[/b] PowerColor AX 7850 2GB ($100.00) [b]Total:[/b] $574.95 [i](Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)[/i] [i](Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-08 00:22 EDT-0400)[/i]

[QUOTE=Lilyo;44751813]This is a very confusing post. I have no idea what sort of upgrade you have in mind for the future. $1k? $3k? I can't really give you a good suggestion without knowing what you really want to upgrade and not. Are you only looking to keep the motherboard after this and upgrade the cpu, psu, case, and gpu? Well you basically have two choices when it comes to upgrading. You could buy a good z87 board now with a cheap i3 and then upgrade to an i7 or i5 devil's canyon once it comes out, or you can buy a cheap board and cheap cpu and then upgrade both when Broadwell comes out (though I would not expect a big difference in performance). So I went with the z87 option for you. I suggest just getting a [URL="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131562"]7850 [/URL]so you don't waste your money right now. You could fit a 760 into your budget but then when you upgrade to dual gpus (i'm assuming 780s?) it would be a waste. A 7850 for $100 is a good deal and you'll get similar performance to a 265 or 270 (maybe 5-10 fps lower). This way you can get a good case from now and upgrade just the cpu, psu, and gpu, saving you the most money probably. [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3FZxh]PCPartPicker part list[/url] / [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3FZxh/by_merchant/]Price breakdown by merchant[/url] / [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3FZxh/benchmarks/]Benchmarks[/url] [b]CPU:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646i34130]Intel Core i3-4130 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor[/url] ($124.99 @ Newegg) [b]Motherboard:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gigabyte-motherboard-gaz87xud4h]Gigabyte GA-Z87X-UD4H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard[/url] ($144.99 @ Newegg) [b]Memory:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-memory-cmz8gx3m2a1600c9]Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory[/url] ($72.99 @ Newegg) [b]Case:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-case-750d]Corsair 750D ATX Full Tower Case[/url] ($129.99 @ Micro Center) [b]Power Supply:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-power-supply-cx430]Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply[/url] ($19.99 @ Newegg) [b]Other:[/b] PowerColor AX 7850 2GB ($100.00) [b]Total:[/b] $574.95 [i](Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)[/i] [i](Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-08 00:22 EDT-0400)[/i][/QUOTE] Hi Lilyo, my apologies for not specifying my upgrade intentions. I'm not sure of the exact price range that my upgrade will span, as I will not be upgrading the cpu, gpu/gpus, psu and case all at the same time due to how unpredictable my budget can be. But if I had to guess, it would be between 500-800$ USD, and I will most likely purchase an i5 Devil's Canyon once it comes out. To summarize, I will be upgrading the cpu, gpus, psu and case, but will eventually upgrade the motherboard to the new z97 lineup. If I waited to purchase a GPU (I don't need to do any high end gaming right off the bat, since my priority this month is to finish my audio design work that is already in progress), what is the best processor I could get with the extra 100$ that would have otherwise gone toward the 7850? The Intel's onboard HD graphics will be fine for this month. Does this build include the necessary cooling for the current setup? I appreciate your help and I apologize for being a bit confusing, as this is the first time in over 5 years that I am putting together a PC/upgrading a computer.

[QUOTE=Lilyo;44751813] You could buy a good z87 board now with a cheap i3 and then upgrade to an i7 or i5 devil's canyon once it comes out, or you can buy a cheap board and cheap cpu and then upgrade both when Broadwell comes out (though I would not expect a big difference in performance). [/QUOTE] Intel predicts broadwell will have a 40% increase in performance from what I have seen on their roadmap.

[QUOTE=JC2Gamer1456;44753407]Intel predicts broadwell will have a 40% increase in performance from what I have seen on their roadmap.[/QUOTE] I call bullshit. They keep saying that, but I've yet to see it happen with maybe the exception of the 1156 to 1155 jump.

[QUOTE=DaveOfDefeat;44752531]Hi Lilyo, my apologies for not specifying my upgrade intentions. I'm not sure of the exact price range that my upgrade will span, as I will not be upgrading the cpu, gpu/gpus, psu and case all at the same time due to how unpredictable my budget can be. But if I had to guess, it would be between 500-800$ USD, and I will most likely purchase an i5 Devil's Canyon once it comes out. To summarize, I will be upgrading the cpu, gpus, psu and case, but will eventually upgrade the motherboard to the new z97 lineup. If I waited to purchase a GPU (I don't need to do any high end gaming right off the bat, since my priority this month is to finish my audio design work that is already in progress), what is the best processor I could get with the extra 100$ that would have otherwise gone toward the 7850? The Intel's onboard HD graphics will be fine for this month. Does this build include the necessary cooling for the current setup? I appreciate your help and I apologize for being a bit confusing, as this is the first time in over 5 years that I am putting together a PC/upgrading a computer.[/QUOTE] You could get the 4670k which will be similar to the devil's canyon i5 that's coming out soon, but then it wouldn't make sense upgrading to devils canyon. I think your best option is just going with the current i5 4670k and then just buying a 780 or 770 and a psu once you upgrade in a few months. Yes the case has cooling. I would say just use my current setup but remove the gpu and add a 4670k instead. Once you have the money for an upgrade just buy a new psu, gpu, and aftermarket cooler for the cpu.

[QUOTE=Levelog;44754403]I call bullshit. They keep saying that, but I've yet to see it happen with maybe the exception of the 1156 to 1155 jump.[/QUOTE] I wouldn't compare other jumps to this one. We will have to wait and see but Broadwell is suppose to be huge. I held back on upgrading to the i7-4960X so I can wait and see what Broadwell is like.

And here I am still hoping to grab a 3570K for my 'outdated' 1155 motherboard, and the new intel chips / 8 series Nvidia GPUs are right around the corner.

You could also get a z97 board instead which is what Broadwell will work with. They're prices are the same as z87

[QUOTE=Lilyo;44759841]You could also get a z97 board instead which is what Broadwell will work with. They're prices are the same as z87[/QUOTE] I would wait and see how Broadwell plays up against Haswell-E. Haswell-E is coming out with X99 chipset and the 2011-3 socket. [url]http://wccftech.com/intel-roadmap-confirms-x99-chipset-ddr4-haswell-e-processors-compatible-socket-lga-20113/[/url] Here's the latest specs of one of the Haswell-E processors: Model: Intel Core i7-5960X Platform: Haswell-E Process: 22nm Cores/Threads: 8/16 Cache: 20 MB L3 Core Clock: 3 GHz ES Socket: LGA 2011-13 TDP: 140W Memory: DDR4-2133 MHz Chipset: X99 "Intel has detailed 6-8 cores for their Haswell-E processors that would be equipped with massive 20 MB of L3 smart cache and just like Haswell, would feature an integrated voltage regulator “FVIR” and the flagship part would ship with TDPs around 140W which is impressive since that’s 10W under what we get on the Core i7-3970X which has 6 cores compared to the Haswell-E beast that would feature 8 cores and 20 MB of L3 cache. Intel is aiming for an 55% IPC improvement over quad cores with their flagship Haswell-E processors." Read more: [url]http://wccftech.com/intel-haswelle-engineering-sample-8-cores-3-ghz-clock-speed-spotted-features-140w-tdp-2133-mhz-ddr4-memory/#ixzz31DXFqF00[/url]

Who cares about Haswell E for gaming? It's obviously out of his budget.

[QUOTE=Lilyo;44763131]Who cares about Haswell E for gaming? It's obviously out of his budget.[/QUOTE] Not to mention the fact that it's super overkill for gaming. Aren't E-series Intel CPUs geared towards overclocking and benchmark enthusiasts?