It should be noted, when I mention Black Friday, I am suggesting shopping online (no lines, no hassle). In fact, if I recall correctly, the sale I found last year was "Pre-Black Friday". I'd start pricing a bit before that, but start really looking to buy starting at the beginning of that week into Cyber Monday if you want an all-in-one package often cheaper than building it yourself.

Personally, I used benchmark sites for the CPU and GPU. Looked at what I could get in my price range for a stock gaming PC. Considered that my baseline. So when I found a deal with a better CPU and GPU combo that originally was clearly out of my price range, it was a done deal.

It is better for everyone if he buys an xbox one :) Sorry :P

But srsly it is always better if you build a pc instead of buy a prebuilt one. Prebuilt ones always has weak spot and you pay much more for the parts because it is prebuilt.

Being a gaming machine I suspect your friend is aiming at Windows, but since you mentioned cross-platform (although probably not in this context) I'm inclined to check just in case. Also, if your friend opts for it, does he already have a working copy or would he like to purchase it with a computer? The reason I'm asking is that some money may be saved if buying a box with Linux as opposed to Windows preinstalled.

As for the specifics, that depends on many unknowns at the moment, one already being mentioned, the other is what exact games he intends to play and how long would he like to use it for such purpose. Knights of Pen and Paper vs. Witcher 3, too broad a spectrum. In case he's interested in the latter, looking at its requirements (preferrably not minimal) would give you the hint and significantly narrow the field, which would also cover him for several more years when talking about AAA titles and much more where others are concerned. But that also means we're dangerously close to being evicted from the specified price range, if not already.

I can't give you Xbox one comparisons first-hand, but there are many things that can be done to utilise your rig to the max, though most I know of concern Linux, so do say if you're interested.

Regarding the Xbox, frankly I'd say that the main issue is what games he wants to play. The Xbox will have a lot smaller selection, although it might have some exclusives. If the games he wants to play are available on the Xbox then it's a good choice. I don't think a CPU/GPU power comparison would have much of a point.

By the way, my first joke recommendation (which I didn't post) was that he'd buy an Android tablet and the Humble Kemco mobile bundle and he'd be set with RPG's for a while. Well, that's the way I go, at least.

Nah he wants a PC really - choice of games, price of games etc. Just using the xbox as a comparison so he can get some kind of grip on what he can get for his money* (ie comparing Witcher 3 to the console version), so he can better understand things - rather than get baffled by technojargon.

Edit: *and how it will run in comparison

Given that you're looking at a small initial budget and the desire to expand upon this with some more music-centric hardware such as a dedicated sound card, speakers and seriously capacious storage and backups, I'd say make the necessary investments in motherboard and PSU now. Don't skimp on these because perceived savings will bite you in the arse in the long run.

But yes, I have to agree that right now isn't the best time to be considering your options given the inevitable sales in the not too distant future. For instance, while Intel is stronger overall, I wouldn't write off AMD in that price bracket. That's a major consideration that will shape the rest of your purchases and one you can't really decide until you've seen what kind of discounts you can get.

You have to start somewhere though. :P
First time building one was last year.

It's rather tricky to compare, but comparing the GeForce 950 to the Xbox One in the Witcher 3, the 950 wins by a little. It gets around 30fps at 1080p, while the Xbox drops to 900p at times, and might get a tad slower frame rate at times. It's really hard to compare because updates include optimisations, and it may be that the 950 was reviewed with an older version. Also, the quality level may be different (the 950 was tested with 'high', not 'ultra', and I have no idea how that compares to the Xbox).

Technically, mid-range PC hardware is much stronger, but console games have fixed target hardware and libraries to take good advantage of it, so optimisation is easier. On the PC side there's typically a lot more control of quality level, which can allow lower end hardware to run the game (but it will look worse).

I also looked at Dragon Age Inquisition and it looks like a PC with a GeForce 950 or Radeon R9 270 would run it at over 30fps at 1080p at the highest quality level, while the Xbox only runs it at 900p with some frame rate drops.

So PC with these graphics cards could be considered better for these games than an Xbox. The PS4 is a little more powerful, graphics-wise, and typically runs at 1080p where the Xbox runs at 900p, but the PC would still likely be somewhat better.

not to mention the vast back-catalogue, bundles etc etc etc

PC:
- Nicer, smoother
- Cost more money
- Cheaper game prices, bigger sales,
- Some devs forget to optimize their games to pc

Console:
- Cheaper
- Games cost more
- Need to pay for online
- You can run every games
- Less fps, worse resolution

He could give Palicomp.co.uk a shot, I`ve found them to be really good & a friendly bunch.

He could get lower end gear & upgrade via Dabs.com as & when he wants to upgrade.
Personally, I`d say go for an Intel CPU.
i3 (which I still use, 540 for easy OC) can handle most things I play easily enough, i5 better if wants to pay out that bit more though.

gfx card, Nvidia are doing some very silly things of late, but their cards do use less power from what I recall, so lower PSU required.
I prefer AMD gfx card, as used to them & with DX12/Vulkan, AMD may get a step over Nvidia.

I may have 4gig DDR3 spare for him in month or two if he wants it, saw him other day. Didn`t realised he lived fairly nearby now :)

Its Yog tho innit - I'll be ensuring he gets something with beefy photoshop painting compatability if I get the chance (so maybe an i7 or equivalent) ;D - need something to use if my laptop dies again! Heheh!.

Good thing is, he will most likely continue with PC gaming unlike ruprecht!

Ruprecht never did learn did he. Perhaps if we put a cork on his console instead of his fork...?

If you can find a cheap i7, then obviously grab eet! But can you get one & all the other bitsits in the price range Yog` is looking at?

I have no idea as yet - right now its a case of taking a vague field of expenditure and showing him the kind of thing he can get for his money - rather than a case of him saying "I've this much to spend" - hopefully it will provide him with some incentive this way.

Modern Photoshop can use GPU acceleration, so depending on his needs (not all filters are accelerated) the CPU might not matter as much.

And by the way, for GPU use in serious software it's better to get an NVIDIA GPU. CUDA still gets a lot more use than OpenCL.