Some advice needed for new PC specification

I'm going to be buying a new PC soon, and need some advice on what specification to go for, because I'm not really up to date on current hardware. I've listed some of the more demanding games that I'd like to run on high settings with a good fps...

Current games I'd like to run on high settings include:

Skyrim
Witcher 2
Far Cry 3
Saints Row IV
Cryostasis
Dead Island
Metro 2033 + Last Light

Some future games I plan to get on PC:

Thief
Murdered: Soul Suspect
Dying Light
Witcher 3
Watch Dogs

So what would I need to run these games at a good fps on high settings? Should I wait for any new tech to come out this year, or is it okay to get a new PC now? Any help would be appreciated.

My budget is around £700 (excluding VAT), and I won't be building it myself (health reasons).

Do you need a monitor? OS? Any old parts you can re-use?

www.cyberpowersystems.co.uk

696 including VAT

This build includes Corsair 200R case, Corsair H60 water cooling, a coupon to either Splinter Cell Blacklist/Assassins Creed Black Flag/Call of Duty Ghosts.

OR 691 excluding VATSame as previous build BUT with better CPU and GPU:

Thank you for the feedback.

Kraken2109 - I have all of the peripherals and a monitor, so no worries there. The only things I can re-use are a hard drive that I use as a data drive and a sound card. The PC I currently use is on loan from work, and the PC I did previously own is sadly completely defunct.

PredatorRules - Thank you for coming up with a whole specification for me. I'll have a good look at that. :)

why are you using a sound card?

@PredatorRules said:

www.cyberpowersystems.co.uk

696 including VAT

This build includes Corsair 200R case, Corsair H60 water cooling, a coupon to either Splinter Cell Blacklist/Assassins Creed Black Flag/Call of Duty Ghosts.

OR 691 excluding VATSame as previous build BUT with better CPU and GPU:

Indeed.

Sorry for the delay in answering your question. The sound card has a built-in amp and decent set up options, which I need because I am partially deaf in one ear. :)

Okay, I've done a bit of tweaking to the recommended spec by PredatorRules, and came up with this:

Case: CoolerMaster Elite 430 Mid-Tower Gaming Case with Side Panel Window

Extra Case Fan Upgrade: Maximum Case Cooling Fans for your selected case

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.00 GHz Eight-Core AM3+ CPU 8MB L2 Cache & Turbo Core Technology *** Overclocking S&S **

Cooling Fan: Cooler Master Seidon 120M Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator (Cooler Master Seidon 120M Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator)

Motherboard: ASUS M5A97 V2 AMD 970 Chipset, ATX mainboard w/ 4 RAM slots, 7.1 Audio, GbLAN, USB3.0, SATA-III, RAID, 2 Gen2 PCIe, 2 PCIe X1, & 2 PCI ***Overclockable S&S ***

Memory: 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3/1600mhz Dual Channel Memory (Kingston HyperX Blu w/Heat Spreader)

Video Card: AMD Radeon R9 280X 3GB 16X PCIe Video Card (Major Brand Powered by AMD)

Power Supply Upgrade: 600 Watts Power Supplies ( CoolerMaster G600 G-Series Bronze Gaming Power Supply, SLI / Crossfire ready)

Hard Drive: 1TB SATA-III 6.0Gb/s Cache 7200RPM Hard Drive (Single Hard Drive)

Optical Drive: 24X Double Layer Dual Format DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE. (BLACK Colour)

Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO

That all comes to £697 ex. VAT.

My question now is what would be the best OS to go with this system? Should I stick with Windows 7, or bite the bullet and go with Windows 8.1? Which OS would take best advantage of Mantle in future?

That's a good question. I've been using Windows 7, but I keep hearing that Windows 8.1 offers a surprisingly significant increase in performance.

If I may make a suggestion, you might want to consider a PSU with 650 watts or more, in case you decide to get another R9 280X. 600 should be perfectly fine, and probably more than enough, but better safe than sorry :)And if you do choose another one, you might want to choose a modular or semi-modular one. Much better for cable management (doesn't bother some people, but personally I'm a huge stickler, and can't handle a cluttered case)

Thanks for the advice about the PSU. I'll certainly keep that in mind. :)

As for Windows 8.1 - the question has become academic for me. :/

I've been checking my PC game collection against the Windows Compatibility Center, and far too many are coming back as incompatible. So far I've managed to check 470 PC games (out of 550 in my collection) and only 140 have a tick for compatibility, with 90 not compatible. The remainder either aren't even recognized or their status is unknown. That's a major deal breaker for me, because I don't want to be without any of my games.

I guess I'll be sticking with Windows 7 for the foreseeable future.

That's a good question. I've been using Windows 7, but I keep hearing that Windows 8.1 offers a surprisingly significant increase in performance.

If I may make a suggestion, you might want to consider a PSU with 650 watts or more, in case you decide to get another R9 280X. 600 should be perfectly fine, and probably more than enough, but better safe than sorry :)And if you do choose another one, you might want to choose a modular or semi-modular one. Much better for cable management (doesn't bother some people, but personally I'm a huge stickler, and can't handle a cluttered case)

That case doesn't come with proper cable management, it will prevent good airflow.

I can recommend Corsair 200/300/400/500R, 230T

Sharkoon REX3/8, T5/9

Antec GX700/900

EDIT: Also if you plan to OC you CPU to 4.6Ghz you'll want 650Watt PSU (Also try to get Antec/Corsair/Seasonic brand if you can)