The Neutron: A Budget-Friendly Gaming PC Build

Hey guys, this is Austin and today I'm here to show you my latest gaming PC build, the Neutron. When putting together the Neutron, I wanted to build the best all-around gaming PC without costing a ton of money. That's why we've got a quad-core CPU, solid graphics card, and an SSD all in a case that won't take up your entire desk.

The most important part though is how it handles gaming. To give you an idea of how it stacks up with some of my other recent builds, I ran them all through the 3DMark Fire Strike benchmark. This is a great general test to see how the graphics compare and as you'll see, the Neutron nicely shows off what it's capable of.

Open up Battlefield 4 and you're looking at a very playable 47.8 frames per second even on full Ultra settings at 1080p. Jump over to Metro: Last Light, another excellent-looking game that also happens to be a lot of fun, and the Neutron delivers just over 42 FPS on Very High settings. Another game that delivers awesome graphics is Bioshock Infinite where we're also able to play at 1080p on Ultra at 55 frames per second.

Load up Grid 2 and not only is it totally playable on Ultra but you can even crank the resolution up to 1440p without the system breaking a sweat. Now, let's crack open the Neutron and see how many quarks we find inside. That was a joke that no one is going to get, yeah.

For the case, we've got the Rosewill Line-M which I've used a few times in previous builds as it's a great choice with a pair of 120mm fans and enough room for a Micro-ATX motherboard. There are actually two versions of the Line-M, the standard model and the A model which I have here. The only differences are the lack of an LED for the front fan and one fewer USB 3.0 port on the A version, which makes it about $10 cheaper.

The choice is up to you but either way, you're getting a solid case. For the processor, we're looking at an Intel Core i5-4430, a quad-core CPU based on the Haswell architecture. While a Core i3 would get the job done, moving up to the Core i5 means you get four physical cores which can definitely come in handy, especially in some of the more demanding games.

On the graphics side, we have a Sapphire Radeon R9 270X, an excellent mid-range graphics card with 2GB of memory and a factory overclock. The 270X is a great choice as you guys saw earlier; it handles 1080p gaming no problem. For the motherboard, we have an MSI B85M-G43 which is a great Micro-ATX board with USB 3 along with SATA3 and support for up to 32GB of memory.

Speaking of for the Neutron, we've got 8GB of G.Skill Ripjaws RAM clocked at 1866MHz which should be more than enough for now while still leaving room to upgrade later on. For storage, we've got both an SSD as well as a standard hard drive. This really is the best of both worlds in my opinion as you can install Windows and other programs onto the SSD and everything else can go onto the hard drive.

Samsung has made some excellent SSDs for quite a while, and the 840 EVO is definitely no exception as with 120GB of capacity, you've got a decent amount of space. Put it together with a 1TB Western Digital Caviar Blue and you've got yourself an awesome setup that isn't actually all that expensive.

One thing I will mention is that to fit both drives into the case, you'll need to also grab a 2.5" to 3.5" adapter. Now, let's talk about what's inside the Neutron.

The CPU

For the CPU, we're using an Intel Core i5-4430 which is a great processor for gaming and general use. It's got four cores and eight threads which will handle most tasks without any issues.

The Motherboard

The motherboard is an MSI B85M-G43 which is a great Micro-ATX board with all the features we need for this build. It's got USB 3, SATA3, and support for up to 32GB of memory.

The Graphics Card

The graphics card is a Sapphire Radeon R9 270X which is an excellent mid-range graphics card with 2GB of memory and a factory overclock. This will handle most games at high settings without any issues.

The RAM

We've got 8GB of G.Skill Ripjaws RAM clocked at 1866MHz which should be more than enough for now while still leaving room to upgrade later on.

The Storage

For storage, we're using a Samsung 840 EVO SSD with 120GB of capacity and a Western Digital Caviar Blue hard drive with 1TB of space. This will give us plenty of room for our games, programs, and files.

The Case

The case is the Rosewill Line-M which is a great choice with a pair of 120mm fans and enough room for this build. There are actually two versions of the Line-M, but we'll be using the standard model for now.

Conclusion

And that's it guys, my latest gaming PC build, the Neutron. I hope you enjoyed watching me build this PC from scratch and learning about all the components that go into a great gaming PC. If you liked this video, make sure to like, comment, and subscribe for more PC building content. And don't forget to check out Hulu Plus for some amazing TV shows and movies.

Hulu Plus

For only $7.99 a month, you can watch your favorite shows anytime and anywhere. Consider that's about a quarter of a day it's so worth it. Just go to huluplus.com/austin and you'll be able to try it out for free for two weeks and help support the channel.

Thanks guys, I will catch you in the next one!

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enHey guys this is Austin and today I’m herewith a videogoing over my latest gaming PC build, theNeutron.When putting together the Neutron I wantedto build thebest all around gaming PC without costinga ton of money.That’s why we’ve got a quad core CPU,solid graphics cardand an SSD all in a case that won’t takeup your entire desk.The most important part though is how doesit handle gaming?To give you an idea of how it stacks up withsome of my otherrecent builds I ran them all through the 3DMarkFire Strikebenchmark.This is a great general test to see how thegraphicscompare and as you’ll see the Neutron nicelyshows off whatit’s capable of.Open up Battlefield 4 and you’re lookingat avery playable 47.8 frames per second evenon full Ultrasettings at 1080p.Jump over to Metro: Last Light, anotherexcellent looking game that also happens tobe a lot of funand the Neutron delivers just over 42 FPSon Very Highsettings.Another game that delivers awesome graphicsisBioshock Infinite where we’re also ableto play at 1080p onUltra at 55 frames per second.Load up Grid 2 and not onlyis it totally playable on Ultra but you caneven crank theresolution up to 1440p without the systembreaking a sweat.Now let’s crack open the Neutron and seehow many quarkswe find inside.That was a joke that no one is going to get,yeah.For the case we’ve got the Rosewill Line-Mwhich I’veused a few times in previous builds as it’sa great choice with apair of 120mm fans and enough room for a MicroATXmotherboard.There are actually two versions of the Line-M,the standard model and the A model which Ihave here.The only differences are the lack of an LEDfor the front fanand one fewer USB 3.0 port on the A versionwhich makes itabout $10 cheaper.The choice is up to you but either wayyou’re getting a solid case.For the processor we’re lookingat an Intel Core i5-4430, a quad core CPUbased on theHaswell architecture.While a Core i3 would get the job donemoving up to the Core i5 means you get fourphysical coreswhich can definitely come in handy, especiallyin some of themore demanding games.On the graphics side we have a Sapphire RadeonR9 270X,an excellent mid-range graphics card.With 2GB of memoryand a factory overclock the 270X is a greatchoice as you guyssaw earlier it handles 1080p gaming no problem.For themotherboard we have an MSI B85M-G43.This is a greatMicroATX board with USB 3 along with SATA3 and support forup to 32GB of memory.Speaking of for the Neutron we’ve got8GB of G.Skill Ripjaws RAM clocked at 1866MHzwhich shouldbe more than enough for now while still leavingroom to upgradelater on.For storage we’ve got both an SSD as wellas astandard hard drive.This really is the best of both worlds inmyopinion as you can install Windows and otherprograms onto theSSD and everything else can go onto the harddrive.Samsung has made some excellent SSDs for quitea while andthe 840 EVO is definitely no exception aswith 120GB of capacityyou’ve got a decent amount of space.Put it together with a 1TBWestern Digital Caviar Blue and you’ve gotyourself an awesomesetup that isn’t actually all that expensive.One thing I willmention is that to fit both drives into thecase you’ll need to alsograb a 2.5” to 3.5” adapter as while theSSD can be mounted onbottom there’s no room to actually plugit in.Speaking of for thepower supply we’re using a 500W CorsairCX500.So if you guyshave watched these gaming builds before you’llknow that I reallylike to use these supplies as not only arethey going to be fairlyaffordable but they’re also very reliableand most importantlythey’re going to have plenty of power tohandle the system todayas well as with some additional upgrades lateron.Put it alltogether and you’ve got yourself an awesomegaming rig that’sperfect for 1080p.As always you guys can find the full partslistin the description of this video over on mywebsite.Anyway I’vegot to give a big shoutout to Hulu Plus formaking this videopossible!You’ve probably tried Hulu on your computerbut HuluPlus is so much more.With Hulu Plus you can watch currentseason episodes of your favorite shows likeThe Colbert Report,Shark Tank and Family Guy along with everyepisode of showslike Naruto, South Park and Doctor Who alongwith ad-freemovies and kids shows.One show you guys absolutely have tocheck out is Cosmos which is fantastic andthe entire season isavailable on Hulu Plus!For only $7.99 a month you can watchyour shows anytime and anywhere.Considering that’s like aquarter a day it’s so worth it.Just go to huluplus.com/austin andyou’ll be able to try it out for free fortwo weeks and help supportthe channel.That’s huluplus.com/austin so go check itout andstart streaming TV today.Anyway guys thank you so much forwatching and I will catch you in the nextone!