Hello, my computer mobo has died and I believe it is not worth replacing that since the CPU is like a 1st generation i5-760 and gpu is 9800gt. Yh, pretty old. I wanna have an idea how much a new computer will cost.
I am looking to mainly play csgo with good fps. (>200)
I already have a Corsair 600w Psu, Coolermaster hyper tx3 evo heatsink, samsung Hd502Hj, 4gb ram (1333mhz tho) and I can get windows for free since my university has partnership with microsoft.
So, I need a gpu, cpu, mobo, 120GB ssd and a case. Budget is around $500-600 since that will probably be $800+ here cos things are more expensive. Is that possible? Thanks for the help!

#421
I forgot to ask about windows, I'll just assume you don't need it.

Focus on TF2/CS:GO and streaming, not so much on pretty graphics, added a 120GB SSD.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($242.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($68.98 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Team Xtreem Dark Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX100 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($47.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 270 2GB DirectCU II Video Card ($145.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1100 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($28.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($14.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $704.75
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-02 10:22 EST-0500

There's a really good deal for an R9 285 going on so if your budget isn't too strict or if you're willing to drop either HDD, SSD or ODD, since you can just get them later, you should take advantage of that.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($242.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($68.98 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Team Xtreem Dark Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX100 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($47.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 285 2GB TurboDuo Video Card ($161.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1100 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($28.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($14.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $720.74
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-02 10:26 EST-0500

#422
I'm not sure about the exact prices in Brazil but it should be possible.
Exact PSU model?
Are you sure the mobo died? It might be the PSU
Stock cooler would be included anyway, new HDD or not isn't going to change much, 4GB RAM is <30$.
If it's the PSU that died then replacing it and selling the pc as a whole might be a better idea. If it's the mobo it depends on wether or not you can find a cheap one.

Could you link me the shop(s) where you would be buying the parts? I don't mind if it's in Portugese and it'll be much easier to meet the budget that way instead of using pcpartpicker with US prices and then trying to predict what it'll cost in Brazil.

@Setsul The PSU is a corsair CX600. It is working fine, in fact I had a 450W psu that I changed to this corsair because I thought it was faulty, the pc turns on sometimes but doesn't read my mouse etc. I am 100% sure its the mobo, already took it to a technician, and I am not sure if it's worth spending $100 on a mobo that is old and won't support newer processors and gpu, I think it's better to just upgrade everything?
Shops: http://www.kabum.com.br/ and http://www.mercadolivre.com.br/ which is like a brazillian ebay. These are the main ones, there are a bunch of others, but I can do the searching for cheaper prices afterwards. :)

I think you misunderstood, the idea is to replace the mobo for 50$ and then sell the whole thing for ~150$ so you can replace the PSU aswell.
That stands and falls with finding a cheap mobo.

It's not a problem though, the PSU isn't great but acceptable and then RAM should be fine aswell (check timings and voltage to be sure).

What would be your budget in R$?

I can't find any good SSDs on those, so a few more shops would be good.

The problem is finding a mobo that is compatible with 1st gen intel processor for cheap. I'll have a look.
My budget is preferably between R$2000-2500.
Here are few other websites: http://www.megamamute.com.br/ , https://www.balaodainformatica.com.br/ , http://www.pichau.com.br/ , http://www.submarino.com.br/
I noticed the majority only sell Kingston SSDs... :S

120GB 840 Evo for 320$R on merdacolivre, that takes care of the SSD problem.
Price seems to differ heavily by payment method so I'm not sure how it'll all work out exactly.
I focused on finding a decent mobo and case first.
Asus B85M-E
Cougar MG100
CPU depends a bit on the price. From what I've seen the Xeon E3-1230 v3 (or 1231) isn't available anywhere atm, but you can check again, I might have missed it.
That basically narrows it down to the i5-4590 and 4690. Get the 4690 if it still fits in the budget and is less than 7% more expensive.
There should be enough money left to get a 270X or 760, I'll look into the specific models again.
You could throw in another 4GB of RAM if you can afford it.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($269.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Motherboard: MSI H97M-G43 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($109.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Memory: Kingston Fury Black Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($99.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Storage: Corsair Force LS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage: Western Digital WD Blue 500GB 2.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($65.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Case: BitFenix Shadow ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($85.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN881ND 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($19.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Monitor: BenQ RL2455HM 60Hz 24.0" Monitor ($219.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Keyboard: Gigabyte Force K3 Wired Gaming Keyboard
Other: Sapphire Radeon R9 270X Dual-X OC 2GB ($239.00)
Total: $1183.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-03 07:42 EST+1100

(Please click the whole build link because I selected pccaesgear as only merchant it has left a few things out, also all of this is $1314 at pccagegear)

All from pccasegear save a few parts because they are local and a couple dollars more on a few parts doesn't bother me if its all in one pickup. My budget is $1300 max, the reason the build is cheaper is because I haven't included the operating system yet (looking to see if i can get it cheaper elsewhere).
Mind you I've been playing on a laptop for 2 years so no matter what i get it will be an upgrade, i just want it to be the right upgrade.
Still contemplating which case to get between corsair 200R and the bf shadow.
Switched the ssd to a corsair force LX which is much more pricey(not sure if any better?)

Here's what I'd get:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($339.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Motherboard: ASRock B85M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($99.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Storage: Crucial MX100 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($95.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($75.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 270X 2GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($229.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($55.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($85.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN881ND 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($19.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Monitor: BenQ RL2455HM 60Hz 24.0" Monitor ($219.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Total: $1314.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-03 08:25 EST+1100

Haven't looked at the WLAN Adapter or the monitor.

pricey != good
Corsair = pricey
Some time ago the hopped aboard the "let's cash in on our reputation and overprice everything"-train.
That Corsair SSD doesn't perform well. The only reason to recommend it when it came would've been if it were cheaper than other budget SSDs. It wasn't. SSD prices dropped. Corsair's prices didn't, if anything they increased. Now that SSD is priced higher than performance SSDs that run circles around it. The thing is it performs poorly because they used a cheap controller, yet somehow they priced it higher than the competition that uses more expensive controllers. They've been doing the same with PSUs. If you're trying to sell cheaper components at a higher price you either hired a wizard for your engineering department or you're going to get shit on.

I can recommend neither the Corsair 200R nor the Bitfenix Shadow. There's nothing major wrong with the 200R, I can overlook the little things like the lack of PSU decoupling or dust filters in a budget case. But that's the point. Budget case. For 30$ it's a great deal, for 50$ it's still ok-ish, depending on the competition, but for 85$? Nope, not happening. Same for the Bitfenix Shadow. That would've been a 50$ case a couple of years ago. Even if for you LEDs > up-to-date interior design I still wouldn't pay more than 50$ for this thing nowadays. 80$? No chance.

This looks great thanks man!

Just a few questions. I thought that the Xeons were for running servers? I read up at saw that they can run games well as well but i was wondering if it were that much of a step up from the i5-4590 considering there is a $80 price difference?

Changed the case to a fractal design core 1000 because the port orientation suits my setup well and i like the aesthetic look of it compared to the CM. The graphics card is 10mm to long for the case but should that be a major problem?

Looks like ill be making one trip to CPL for the keyboard and case.

http://au.pcpartpicker.com/p/JNYQNG

Single threaded about 3% faster.
Multi-threaded best case 30-40%.
1/3 bigger L3 cache is a bonus.

It's basically an i7-4770 without the iGPU. So it's within 5% of the i7-4790 and that thing is at 415$.

So if you have a discrete GPU and can take advantage of the multi-threaded performance (TF2, streaming, rendering, all that kind of stuff) it actually has a better price to performance ratio than the i5-4590. In fact even in single threaded only the 4790K beats it by more than 5% (and the 4790K is hella expensive). I can only think of some i3s that would beat it in price to performance, and they don't even have half the performance.
I am Commander Shepard and this is my favourite CPU on the Citadel.
What I'm saying is even though Intel isn't giving me any rebates, I'd still consider myself a little biased.

I didn't choose Core 1000 (or 1100 for that matter) because the internal layout is a bit lacking, but if you like the design better and the "front" ports on the side suit your setup better then go for it. After all you'll probably only build this pc once and use the ports and power button every day.

I have one lying around so I measured it, if you put the SSD in the bottom slot with the connectors facing right the GPU will fit.

Thanks a ton mate :)

I will confidently take your word for the CPU, it seems that you know a ton about them, also thanks for measuring the drive bays as I would have had to wait till I actually had the parts to see if it would work.

Hopefully you'll see this build in the "post your setup" thread by this weekend!

Thanks for the advice. My friend helped me make it, i'll mess around with it again later. Thanks for the heads up on the PSU.

Hi, I'm planning on getting a new PC and need some help since I'm absolutely clueless on custom builds.
Budget : around 800€ (that's ~860 USD atm)
What it want to : I'd like to be albe to play GTA V and The Witcher 3 on max settings (when they come out) and TF2 with solid fps (maybe 200, I don't care about the graphic settings here).
Windows and Monitor are not needed.
I've never done overclocking, so unless it helps a lot with performance to price ratio, it's not needed.
Would appreciate any help :).

Worked out the details via steam.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (€248.20)
Motherboard: ASRock B85M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (€58.99)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (€59.05)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€96.99)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€49.80)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280X 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card (€225.99)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case (€33.09)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (€43.99)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer (€11.17)
Total: €827.27
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-19 18:39 CET+0100
Current prices from mindfactory and kepcom. Best case for shipping (midnight shopping at mindfactory -> free, 4.99€ for kepcom) would put it at 834.26€ total.

Links:
Xeon E3-1231 v3
ASRock B85M Pro4
Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB
Crucial MX100 256GB
Seagate Barracuda 7200.14 1TB
XFX R9 280X Double Dissipation
Cooler Master N200
EVGA 500B
Lite-On iHas124-04

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($224.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($88.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: PNY XLR8 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($104.98 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.49 @ Directron)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card ($332.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($43.98 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Rosewill 550W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: LG UH12NS30 Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer ($35.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1030.36
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-20 11:04 EDT-0400

This should be able to play TF2 at 1080p144, as well as stream at high quality (at a lower framerate), right? I'm also hoping to play other games at 1440p60.

What's your budget?
And yes, it should be fine.

Just some suggestions:
Imho overclocking isn't really worth it at the moment. I mean you're looking at +10-18% single threaded vs a Xeon E3-1231 v3 depending on the silicon lottery. There's not many situations where that would matter. If a game is single-thread bottlenecked by the CPU 100% of the time it has no multithreading or very poor optimization. If it's an old game you'll get a gazillion frames anyway, if it's a new game with ubisoft optimization going from 30 to 35 fps isn't going to help much.
Sure, fps drops cause by a single threaded bottleneck would be worse (e.g. 50 instead of 60fps) but let's be honest: You'll need a lot more GPU power than a single 970 for that to happen. I mean you could force it with 1280*720 on low settings, but on 1440p? Not happening.
And once we get into multithreaded, streaming is the best example, the i5 will lose every single time. Overclocked. On stock it'll just get wrecked.
Not even counting the mobo i5 + cooler is more expensive aswell.

RAM: Although the difference should be negligible dual channel is definitely faster. And it's a whopping 0.01$ cheaper.
HDD: Seagate Barracuda. Same specs. Slightly faster. Slightly cheaper.
PSU: No good deals right now. CSM450 is the best I can do. I'm not going to recommend the Rosewill ARC series until I've seen a review for it. The platform is ATNG ATM-B, the same as in the Coolmax ZX-500. I mean it's better than the usual stuff from Coolmax. It doesn't chatch fire and if you pull the rated wattage only a resistor and the PWM controller explode instead of basically the whole unit. Performance was only below average and not horrible so if they used proper components it could potentially be decent, but even then it would still be a group-regulated PSU without all those pesky features like OCP that prevent things from catching fire and/or blowing up which places it firmly into the shit tier of PSUs until a review proves otherwise.
ODD: Double the buffer and can write blu-rays. I agree with your choice if you won't ever write blu-rays.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($241.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($68.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Pareema 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($104.98 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card ($326.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($43.98 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair CSM 450W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($55.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG WH16NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $997.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-20 13:27 EDT-0400

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/McpHK8

Mainly for CS:GO when it comes to gaming.

I can upgrade, but I have a budget of $1,000

It's going in the right direction but there's so many textbook mistakes, I just can't resist tearing it apart.
It might help whoever reads this to avoid them.

CPU: Outdated, the i5-4590 is faster and only 2$ more.
Cooler: Why? 1. There's no point in buying the 212 Evo for 30$. It's a bargain at 20$ and ok at 25$, but at 30$ there's better coolers. 2. The i5-4570 can't be overclocked so you don't need an aftermarket cooler.
Mobo: Same thing, can't overclock anyway, why get a Z87 motherboard?
RAM: Specs are fine, but you can get the exact same specs for 10$ less.
HDD: Seagate Barracuda > Western Digital Caviar Blue. Identical Specs, slightly faster, 1$ cheaper.
no SSD, your choice but it would've fit the budget and imho an SSD is worth it.
GPU: Unless you absolutely need nVidia, the low power consumption (not on a desktop except for compute) and that exact performance the 750 Ti isn't worth it. There's better or cheaper nVidia cards and better and cheaper AMD cards, only the power consumption is hard to beat in that performance class.
Case: It doesn't even have USB 3.0. Outdated and lacks features (e.g. dust filters).
PSU: The CX430M is a budget PSU. See Cooler. It's a bargain at 20$, ok at 30$, but at full price (60$) or close to it (50$) it doesn't stand a chance. There's so many better PSUs at that price. You might consider it at 40$ if you want a semi-modular PSU and there's no better options, but at 50$ when the non-modular CX430 is at 20$ it just doesn't make sense. Even the CX500M is 6$ cheaper. The CSM450 is 6$ more for that matter. So there's an identical non-modular PSU for less than half the price, a higher wattage and otherwise identical PSU for less and a way better PSU for 6$ more. Yeah, no point in getting the CX430M.
ODD: There's cheaper with the same specs. It's not a whole lot of difference, but 5$ is 5$.
OS: You are aware that Windows 10 will be a free upgrade even for the ... uhm less legitimate copies of Win7/8. Of course I do not officially condone this, just like Microsoft.
Monitor: Anything specific you're looking for?

That's it for the destructive criticism, here comes the constructive criticism:
Fixed everything I complained about, upgrades to CPU and GPU, added SSD.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($241.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($68.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Pareema 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ ARC 100 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($80.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 270X 2GB PCS+ Video Card ($143.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($43.98 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Micro Center)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Monitor: BenQ GL2460HM 60Hz 24.0" Monitor ($138.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $948.85
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-23 06:24 EDT-0400

Thanks for the help. I'm not very good with building computers.

With the specs you listed, what is the average fps do you estimate CSGO will run on max settings?

All I can offer is an educated guess, if you want precise numbers you should ask someone with a similar setup to test those settings. I've recommended a lot of similar builds so you shouldn't have any trouble finding someone who could help you with this.

I was assuming you were going for the usual fairly low settings in CS:GO since you were going for a low midrange GPU. CPU wise 400-500fps wouldn't be a problem. But for something like 1920*1080, 16x AF, 8xEQ AA/16xQ CSAA a 270X will limit you to 150-200fps. Not really a problem on 60Hz, but it could be less than optimal if you want to get a 120/144Hz monitor down the road. It's obviously not a problem if we're talking about more reasonable settings like 8x AF, 8x MSAA, that should put it at 200+ fps.

If you're sure about max settings I'd either take the CPU down a notch (back to an i5 again) and get a better GPU instead or I could squeeze in a 290 or even a 970 regardless. That should put you in the 300-400fps range.

goal is high fps in csgo (and I mean high). I will run low res 4:3 (1152*864 or perhaps 720) and low settings.
secondary goals are video editing, streaming, other games.

I'm not strictly constrained by a budget. vaguely thought 1k to 2k CAD.

here's what I came up with:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($416.98 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ Memory Express)
Motherboard: Asus MAXIMUS VII HERO ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($219.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($67.89 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($114.98 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: PNY GeForce GTX 970 4GB XLR8 Video Card ($388.98 @ DirectCanada)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Titanium) ATX Mid Tower Case ($129.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($45.99 @ NCIX)
Total: $1539.77
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-28 09:19 EDT-0400

In particular I'm having trouble with the case. none of the cases I see do anything to inspire me aesthetically.

I was thinking the fractal design r5, enthoo pro, nzxt h440, or s340 but I just can't get excited about any of them.
I like my old case so much better than anything on the market, it's depressing (murdered xps 720 h2c with purple leds). I mean the only ones I saw that I remotely like the aesthetic of are the Lian Li pc-tu200b, thermaltake lanbox (discontinued), InWin 901/904.
PSU is random and I may change it.

All suggestions, criticism, and builds are welcome^^

I also drafted a lian li 200b build.. mid range itx mobo, smaller modular psu, better cooled 970, smaller air cooler + industrial fan or liquid cooling. I really like the style and portability, but the airflow seems awful without modding the case which is too much work for me.

Nice, this is going to be fun. No budget constraints. Finally another type II build.

I believe there's only two ways to get proper build:
Type I: Set a budget and then optimize for performance
Type II: Set a performance goal and then optimize for price
Both with a bit of wiggle room to optimize for price to performance ratio.

Type II is more fun but also more difficult to not go overboard.

You need to know exactly what you want/need.

Are you going to overclock, is it a must, a bonus or just for performance.
Would ECC RAM be beneficial?
What features should/must the motherboard have?
SSD/HDD size?
How much CPU/GPU do you actually need? How much do you want? 970 is overkill just for CS:GO on low settings. 4790K + OC mobo + cooler wastes a lot of money if you need neither the CPU power nor the mobo's additional features compared to a cheaper one.

Dual socket an option?

I died a little inside when I saw the RAM, SSD and PSU.

Well it's the time of simplistic, rectangular, black box cases, certainly not everyone's cup of tea.
Anything specific you're looking for in a case? I might be able to dig something up.

You're right about the Lian Li PC-TU200B, there's simply no exhaust if you don't include the GPU in a custom loop or mod either the PSU mount or the PSU itself.

It's type II, but the problem is it's hard to be precise with performance goals.
I can say I want really high fps something like 500+
300+ streaming would be nice.

1. In this build I posted I would obviously be overclocking. In general I'm indifferent to the process, it's just for performance.
I figured the d14 cooler is a legend and I could probably use it in later builds too, it may be overkill but I do like it. the motherboard has asus sonar radar which I wanted to mess around with (just a bonus) and is good for overclocking. so it kind of fit.
2. ECC RAM. I don't think I need it. Do you think it would benefit me or something?
16gb maybe, I don't see that I need it for games, video editing it would help. I have trouble quantifying any performance gain for higher speed ram etc just wasting money.
3. Motherboard requirements. Um I don't really know. preferably good sound, if I'm overclocking cpu I'd want voltage in addition to clock speed (and the other mystical things that make it overclock well), needs a ps2 slot lol. asus radar II is a feature id like to mess around with (but its not essential or anything)
4. HDD I need 3-4tb. (video editing and some torrent stuff).
SSD I'll just put my OS on the SSD and nothing else (maybe like a game or two).
so probably 120-250gb. I can always upgrade this later, and they will probably be cheaper/better at that point.
5. Hard to say what I NEED. probably an i5 4690k its 479.99 in combo with the same motherboard ($30 combo, $157 less than i7 total).
What I want is the best processor for games that is priced within reason which is a 4790k.
GPU I could get away with a lot less than a 970 perhaps. its good on power and heat though, and I'll probably play GTA and stuff so it's not totally wasted. also I didn't know what I would get instead? the 290 is almost as much in Canada, didn't seem worth it.
Thoughts/suggestions on video card instead?

I think the CPU is the most important part to me by a mile. GPU is a distant 2nd. I could care less (lmk if you hate american expressions) about SSD, HDD, RAM, PSU, motherboard beyond how it effects cpu etc. I mean I care but like to put it in perspective, I would build a computer with no SSD if it gave me a better processor/20 frames.

Dual socket motherboard? it's an option but I can't see two processors doing much for gaming.
Dual socket and ECC RAM is more server style no? not that server style is bad its just expensive for things I could do without.

Case: it falls into three categories for what I like.
1. modern and classy architecture. beautiful.
2. portable. has a beefy handle, smaller probably. somewhat unique
3. flashy attention seeking but still very nice. (see old case) http://imgur.com/40vT8qb
there's very few cases that I really like in this style

the equivalent in a car would be like
1. rolls royce phantom, high end audi
2. mercedes g-wagon
3. modded supra or lamborghini gallardo thats clean.

bwm 330i = every 'nice' pc case on the market, not bad but not my style. unimaginative
2fast2furious civics, aventador, ferraris in the last 30yrs except f40 = angular cases with leds, unless they are insanely well done I don't like them

if the car analogy didn't do anything for you thats fine too, I was bored. :)

its hard to reason out the build because I don't have a budget, unless I arbitrarily pick a figure. exact performance goals are not a thing cause I don't know how well each system is going to perform beyond my best guess. im inclined to just go ham because I have an i7 2600/560ti atm (and its not enough). or my old q6850
overclocked monster which is around the same fps. last thing I need is a 3rd mediocre computer :^)

if I kept this build assuming a full size case what PSU should I get?

i5s are pretty much out of question, streaming just begs for hyperthreading.

1. NH-D14 actually makes sense in Canada, the PH-TC14PE is more expensive (which is unusual) and the NH-D15 is way more expensive (not that unusual). Overclocking Haswell isn't easy though, are you willing to delid the CPU?

2. My brain has failed me. I kept looking back up at your post while typing and "CAD" triggered full server mode after I already saw "streaming" and "rendering".
16GB could help with rendering, bandwidth/speed isn't really a concern unless you're doing some really intense stuff, I'm more worried about latency. Dual channel 1600MHz CL9 should be good enough, it's only 1 or 2$ more and a fairly big jump from 1333MHz CL9, anything above 1600MHz is only an option on Z87/Z97 anyway so let's figure that out first.

3. In other words you don't need anything special. For the 4790K you definitely want Z97 for overclocking which has all the features anyway. With another CPU you could get away with a cheaper chipset but I wouldn't recommend it. The mystical power delivery stuff that made some motherboards better for overclocking than others became irrelevant since Haswell has the voltage regulator on the CPU package. As long as the motherboard can provide enough power it'll overclock all the same.
PS/2 is actually worth mentioning since it's not a given anymore. I'm guessing you just need one for the keyboard?
Motherboard onboard sound is ok, but I wouldn't really invest in anything high-end. The ALC1150 is good enough anything better than that and I'd be more worried about interference from all the digital signals on the motherboard and all the fields. If you need an amp you might aswell get a soundcard (though even a well shielded won't like the magnetic field that you get when the CPU goes from almost 0A to 100A in a millisecond) or an external DAC+amp so you don't have to worry about anything.

4. 3TB got the best price to performance/size ratio so I'd go with that.
256GB should be a bit faster and got a far better price to size ratio aswell. Midrange/performance SSD should be perfect, you don't need the absolute best performance but you're not hard pressed on the budget either.

5. The 970 actually makes sense if you'll play "GTA and stuff". Just keep in mind that much of the 970's appeal comes from its overclockability. While the 290s strengths lie at higher resolutions so the 970 got more of an advantage at 1080p they are a lot close than you might think. Even overclocked the 290 might have a better price to performance ratio depending on the game, settings and resolution. I'd still get the 970 for 1080p though, if you're going to overclock it.

CPU is interesting, the 4790K actually makes sense even when you're not overclocking, simply because of the 4.0GHz base clock.
Price to performance would be:
No OC, cheap mobo > OC + delidding, cheap mobo > OC, cheap mobo > OC, expensive mobo > no OC, expensive mobo
An expensive mobo only makes sense if you actually need the features. Since you care about CPU performance the most (and no, I don't mind american expressions, would be hard to survive in a forum full of americans otherwise), I'd recommend OC + delidding. I mean you get to whack a CPU with a hammer, that's fun! The only thing left to decide is wether or not you might want/need SLI in the future. You'd already be getting a Z97 mobo so it'd only be about 30$ more, but that's still 30$ you should only spend if you actually need it.

Without SLI:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($416.98 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.95 @ Vuugo)
Thermal Compound: Coollaboratory Liquid Ultra 0.15g Thermal Paste ($19.23 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($94.95 @ Vuugo)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($129.88 @ Canada Computers)
Storage: Crucial BX100 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($119.99 @ NCIX)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($114.98 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card ($419.95 @ Vuugo)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Titanium) ATX Mid Tower Case ($129.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($44.99 @ NCIX)
Total: $1580.89
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-29 09:10 EDT-0400

With SLI (better onboard audio aswell) and better PSU.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($416.98 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.95 @ Vuugo)
Thermal Compound: Coollaboratory Liquid Ultra 0.15g Thermal Paste ($19.23 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($124.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($129.88 @ Canada Computers)
Storage: Crucial BX100 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($119.99 @ NCIX)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($114.98 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card ($419.95 @ Vuugo)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Titanium) ATX Mid Tower Case ($129.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ NCIX)
Total: $1640.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-29 09:14 EDT-0400

The Gigabyte G1 970 was on sale on NCIX for 410$ until yesterday, keep an eye out for that.

I'll see if I can find a case that you might like.

PSU: bare necessities CX430/500B
A step up from that, fully modular and 80+ PLUS Gold I'd recommend the G1 650W atm.

sorry for afk. I thought about it a bit.

I'm willing to delid the cpu (I imagine I'll see where it's at without before I void the warranty.)
I will not want SLI in the future
I won't go over 1080p

I don't want anything from vuugo (shipping is expensive amongst other things) or mail in rebates.
and that memory is sold out (even though it shows up on pcpartpicker)
bx100 sounds good (was considering it before), and 16gb ram with a bit better latency is fine
I know the phanteks performs better but its more expensive and louder on stock fans.

so this is where im at now with the overclocked build
fractal design R5 black (im happy enough with the case after thinking about it)
priced it out with shipping on everything

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($418.98 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ NCIX)
Thermal Compound: Coollaboratory Liquid Ultra 0.15g Thermal Paste ($19.23 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($128.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($140.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Crucial BX100 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($119.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($119.98 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($410.88 @ DirectCanada)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($151.39)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($54.99 @ NCIX)
Total: $1655.38
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-05 07:01 EDT-0400

edit: bought this except I didn't get a video card yet (waiting for a deal or something) and I need 2 case fans

I can walk you through delidding if you want me to. There's also the possibility that Intel might replace delidded CPUs, but I wouldn't bet on it.

PH-TC14PE vs NH-D14 depends on testing methodology, they're that close. Usually the price is in favour of the Phanteks, but in your case it isn't. I never understood why people care about cooler colours if their case doesn't have a window, we seem to be on the same page on that one.

Without mail-in-rebates other mainboards would've been cheaper.
Sorry about the RAM. You listed a CL10 kit though, is that a mistake?

MSI 4G and Gigabyte G1 are my recommendations.

I should be fine with the delidding, as far as I understand it - tape up my vice grip with some electrical tape, clamp the lid part of the cpu in securely with the voltage regulator facing away, tape the chip loosely to the vice so it doesn't fly away, hit the chip with a block of wood and a hammer till it pops off. use a credit card to clean off the glue, wipe off the thermal paste and clean with alcohol, apply the liquid metal to the chip (spreading it manually), put it in the mobo and clamp the lid on.
I read intel won't replace your cpu if its delidded (I guess you can glue it back together and hope they don't notice?)

I don't mind the color of noctua stuff. by itself. It just looks horrible with other things cause it doesn't match at all. but yeah I don't care really.

I didn't really see anything that looked better for z97. I'll probly send the mail in rebate anyway (since its $30 :/)
and yeah that is a mistake my bad. I got the same ram in CAS 9 :O

I know the 4g and G1 are the best, you think they worth $30-40 over the other ones though?

I don't know about the electrical tape. I never used it and haven't damaged any CPU yet. Not sure what it's supposed to do in this case anyway.

Nope
This is the most important part. Those thingies on the package (they're mostly on-package inductors btw, the voltage regulator is the whole arrangement of parts both on-package and on-die), you want them facing the hammer.
If you get the amount of force just right the package won't move at all, just the epoxy will crack. Since it takes quite a bit of force to do that you can slowly work your way up. If you're less gentle however it might move more than 1mm and guess what happens with the inductors facing the side the package is moving? They'll hit the lid. *insert crunching noise*

Isopropyl alcholol >75%. Higher concentration -> evaporates faster.

Intel doesn't care about delidding afaik. They want the lid (called IHS, internal heat spreader, just so you know if it ever comes up in an RMA talk) because the batch/serial number is on there.
However they don't cover hardware/overclocking damage and any other kind of damage is really unlikely.
The question is does the overclocking warranty (PTPP = Performance Tuning Protection Plan). As far as I know they will replace a CPU killed by overclocking no questions asked, even if it's delidded, but I'm not sure if anyone tried to get a CPU replaced that was killed by delidding.

Performance over colours is a form of function over form I guess and I'm firmly in that camp.

Not necessarily better mobo, just a few bucks cheaper. Doesn't matter now since you're sending it in anyway. I'm relieved to hear about the RAM, suboptimal RAM in high end builds is one of my pet peeves.

Depends on which models you're comparing them with and how much you value noise levels and overclockability. Keep in mind even 40$ is less than 10% of what you're spending on the GPU. Just wait for a sale like you planned on doing, even for 20$ I don't think it's a question anymore.

its just to stop the metal vice scratching stuff. any tape will do but electrical tape but is probably the best.

http://www5.pcmag.com/media/images/324515-intel-haswell.jpg
I just meant the dots at the top. so those mostly on-package inductors that are part of the voltage regulator then

face that towards the hammer? that's odd because all the tutorials I've seen face it away..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_rji1Nx5qM&t=1m50s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SFh4LA_byE&t=44s

Just to be clear by 'the inductors facing away from the hammer' I mean the arrow would be the side which you strike as opposed to the inductor side.

I'm obviously not understanding something, how can the inductors hit the lid if you face them away from the hammer? They are beyond the lid and just fly off into air.

and yeah I know the lid is called an IHS. I guess if I don't brick the chip from delidding but something else after its delidded then maybe they will warranty it. I think the one I heard about was bricked with a razor and intel wouldn't replace it. anyway since they should replace it my risk is reduced. I doubt I'll break it in the process of delidding, seems easy enough, I'll probably just do it off the bat

There was also a hair dryer method to melt the glue then just pull it apart. not sure how well it works and if it would be better.

You don't need to tighten the vice that much. You're not putting any pressure on the CPU from left or right, you could literally hold it against the edge of a table and start hammering. The only reasons why no one does that is because you'd need three hands and you'd leave an IHS-shaped dent in the table.
I didn't get any marks on the IHS but I guess I was careful.

I skipped a few sentences, I guess. What I meant was: The voltage regulator isn't monolithic. It's an arrangement of parts. What you need is basically:
-Capacitors: SMD stuff, would be there anyway
on package

http://techreport.com/r.x/core-i7-4770k/3770k-vs-4770k-bottom.jpg

3770K on the left, 4770K on the right
on the mobo

http://techreport.com/r.x/core-i7-4770k/socket-pins.jpg

-switching devices
-control circuitry
there's plenty of both of those in a CPU anyway so adding a few more doesn't change much, the benefits far outweigh the cons (except when overclocking), all of that is on-die so you can't see it.

-inductors
That's the only change. Most of them are on-package, that's where the "mostly on-package" comes from.

Now here's the stuff you should be worried about:

http://i.imgur.com/NwY18Ue.jpg

Those gold contact points are pretty much indestructible.
Those tiny little SMD thingies aren't.
They are far enough away from the edges that you're not likely to hit them if you're careful, but if you're not (put a pillow behind the vice) you might and they won't take it kindly.
Looking back at the picture you want to hit the bottom side. Or if the writing is right side (right as in correct, not as in left/right) the left side.

Hair dryer will get sticky and messy.