@justnelle
Just to add to this... since we didn't talk about CPUs at all.
High-end CPU + Low-end GPU = not very good gamer
Low-end CPU + Mid-High GPU = fine
Rule of thumb is games like High Clock Speeds (Ghz) and not very many cores. Things have been changing over the years and high-end games are using more cores now.
Also it depends on the game though. Generally it's the GPU but some games really tax the CPU heavy.
i5 Quad-Core no HT is probably where I'd look for most people on a budget.
AMD's 8350 8Cores are a strong contender and I wouldn't be afraid of one. I'd expect similar performance to a i5 quad no HT though.
*edit* Personally I would only ever pair AMD CPU with AMD GPU, not nVidia. Intel I'd pair with either one... that's just what I'd do... doesn't feel right having AMD CPU with nVidia GPU
If you want to overclock and feel like a "god of electricity"... Pentium Anniversery Edition is only 70$ and it overclocks like crazy.
Only 2-cores though so future proof it is not.. but an amazing "bang for the buck" when overclocked heavily.
Since dual-cores are more-less dead, I would bet this dualcore is the best gaming dualcore maybe ever.
On the higher end... I'd only be looking at Intel CPUs. To save money some Xenon's are rebadged i7's for $100 cheaper just missing the integrated graphics (that won't be used). Example: i7 4790 vs E3-1230v3, basically the same thing one is just cheaper... ironically it's the xenon.
On the super high end... X99 woot woot all aboard
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RAM... doesn't really matter what type or how fast. I usually will run my RAM even slower than what its rated for but tighten the timings.
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SSD's are amazing... I wouldn't ever want to use a computer without one again. I have probably close to a dozen. Everything in the house that takes HDs has SSDs (gaming systems, laptops, desktops).
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TL/DR
Don't go spend $400 on a CPU and $100 on a GPU... if you do something like that spend the $400 on a GPU and the $100 on a CPU.
