Recommended Pascal GPU based builds on summer 2016

Last Xmas we posted and article in the series based in Skylake builds  from budget to enthusiast and, of course, a premium user. We will take those builds, and updating its prices, to introduce the new Pascal GPUs by Nvidia, which are really powerful and power efficient and also set 3 tiers of prices lower than those of the past generation. Currently the price of the Pascal GPUs seems more stabilized to the recommended price but availability is very variable.

We want to set 3 typical tiers, budget around $500, advanced $800 and top at around $1200, which for these Skylake builds are difficult to accomplish. As we stated on the last post you can get the inspiration to upgrade your existing computer, like an SSD or a new graphic card using the different tiers described below.
We will use The Witcher 3 as a benchmarking tool, as it is the recent game more demanding on your computer rig.

Budget

A good configuration for playing last year games or The Witcher 3 at medium/low quality:

• CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 $120
• Motherboard: Asus B150M-A D3 DDR3 $77
• Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR3 1600 MHz $43
• Graphics: MSI GAMING GeForce GTX 1060 6GB GDDR5 $270
• CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO $30
• Hard drive: Any WD with 7200rpm depending on your budget, from $50
• Power supply: Any 80+ PSU (EVGA 600W for $50)

Total: $640
Way over the $500 budget, the price tag of the "lower end" Pascal GPU has increased but with enough power to play most games at good quality at 1080p. As we stated in the last article, the CPU is locked so we will get a cheaper motherboard with 4 DIMMS to have the possibility of upgrading it, also with DDR3 so you can take advantage of your old computer’s RAM and take advantage of its low price.

Advanced

A mid-tier PC, unlocked, The Witcher 3 at a very good quality:

• CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K $230
• Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170-HD3 $105
• Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB Kit (2x8GB) 2133MHz DDR4 $84
• Graphics: ASUS GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Dual-Fan $430
• CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO $30
• Hard drive: Any WD with 7200rpm depending on your budget, from $50
• Power supply: Any 80+ PSU (EVGA 600W for $50)

Total: $979
I know, quite over budget but worth the extra penny, paying a little more for the GTX 1070 and an unlocked cpu is worth will make a computer able of playing at 1440 resolution and as a base capable of playing in VR.

Top

A top-tier PC, unlocked, The Witcher 3 at a ultra quality:

• CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K $320
• Motherboard: ASUS Z170-A ATX DDR4 $150
• Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB Kit (2x8GB) 2133MHz DDR4 $84
• Graphics: Asus STRIX GTX 1080 8GB $650
• CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO $30
• Hard drive: Samsung SM951 256GB $180
• Power supply: Corsair CX 750 $70

Total: $1484
Also way over budget, we go premium for the best Skylake build possible with a 1080 Pascal GPU, for $100 less than last edition top build we got a more powerful build capable of playing at 4K.