$500-$600 Gaming Computer?

[Nekonunu]

I was wondering if the following is possible: to piece together a machine that includes a GeForce 8600GTS and is under $600? The pieces needed are: motherboard, CPU, RAM, case, power supply, and the 8600GTS. No hardware needs to be specific for overclocking as the computer will be run at stock speeds. Ideally, there would be 2 GB of RAM. Any suggestions on the different components is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Drace]

I hear the 7900gs are more bang/buck minus DX10

 

[mitcity22]

8600gts = 175
if you have a frys get there E4300 + ecs mobo for $99
2gb of RAM can be found for $90
Cases are easy to find really cheap $30
Power supply XCLIO 500w (its good, don't go cheap here) $50

=Total of $445 (if you have a frys)

just check out the hot deals and and if you absolutely have to you can get a AMD x2 3600 for around $65, then get a decent $80 AM2 mobo and still be within budget.

summary:YES

 

[Dangman]

Why an 8600GTS? It's not that great of a card when compared to the x1950pro or even the 7900GS. In a few reviews, it takes an Factory overclocked 860GTS to get roughly the same or slightly better performance over the two aforementioned cards. In addition, the 7900GS and x1950Pro are around $30 to $40 cheaper than the 8600GTS.. Until some hard numbers about DX10 performance with the 8600GTS comes out, I'd hold off on buying that card.

However I do like making build lists and I decided to up things a bit: $600 with an 8800GTS

AMD Athlon64 X2 3600+ - $69
BIOSTAR TFORCE 550 NVIDIA nForce 550 Motherboard - $80
G.SKILL F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ 2 x 1GB DDR2 800 RAM - $85
XCLIO GOODPOWER 500W PSU - $50
eVGA 320-P2-N811-AR GeForce 8800GTS 320MB PCI-E Video Card - $295
Cooler Master Centurion 534 ATX Case - $35
----
Total: $614 PLus tax and shipping

It may be slightly unbalanced but you'll get some fantastic performance with the 8800GTS when compared to the 8600GTS. Here's an article that did something similar with combining a low-end CPU with an high-end video card (X2 3800+ & 8800GTX):

http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/05/11/system_builder_marathon/page10.html

However, if you still want the 8600GTS, here's a more balanced build in terms of CPU and GPU power:

Intel Core 2 Duo E6320 - $168
GIGABYTE GA-965P-S3 Intel P965 Express Motherboard - $105
G.SKILL F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ 2 x 1GB DDR2 800 RAM - $85
XCLIO GOODPOWER 500W PSU - $50
MSI NX8600GTS-T2D256E-OC GeForce 8600GTS 256MB Over Clock Edition HDCP PCI-E Video Card - $175
Cooler Master Centurion 534 ATX Case - $35
-----
Total: $618 Plus tax and shipping

Either system will do you fine. The more balanced system has a better CPU with fantastic overclocking capability and the 8600GTS you wanted.

 

[Nekonunu]

The computer is for a friend and his monitor's resolution is 1440x900, I think, so the more balanced setup seems to be the better choice. Are there decent motherboards for the core 2 build list that are under $100? Thanks!

 

[MrMitch]

assuming your reusing your HDD, if its IDE it will severly limit your Core 2 choices, as a great number only have 1 IDE channel.

 

[ashmedai]

Are there decent motherboards for the core 2 build list that are under $100? Thanks!

Yup.

Gigabyte P965-DS3, $100
ABIT P965-IB9 $95, $70 after MIR

 

[JinxCA]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813127015

Abit IL9 Pro $84.99

Used it myself before I moved onto a board that could overclock. There's probably cheaper board by other brands, but this is the cheapest Abit board and it performs well.

 

[Dangman]

GIGABYTE GA-945P-S3 Intel P945 Express Motherboard - $79

Used this board in my bro's rig. Should be good enough for you. It's based on the 945P chipset instead of the 965P chipset meaning that the board above has limited overclocking potential.

 

[SentToSchool]

Why an 8600GTS? It's not that great of a card when compared to the x1950pro or even the 7900GS. In a few reviews, it takes an Factory overclocked 860GTS to get roughly the same or slightly better performance over the two aforementioned cards. In addition, the 7900GS and x1950Pro are around $30 to $40 cheaper than the 8600GTS.. Until some hard numbers about DX10 performance with the 8600GTS comes out, I'd hold off on buying that card.

However I do like making build lists and I decided to up things a bit: $600 with an 8800GTS

However, if you still want the 8600GTS, here's a more balanced build in terms of CPU and GPU power:

Intel Core 2 Duo E6320 - $168
GIGABYTE GA-965P-S3 Intel P965 Express Motherboard - $105
G.SKILL F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ 2 x 1GB DDR2 800 RAM - $85
XCLIO GOODPOWER 500W PSU - $50
MSI NX8600GTS-T2D256E-OC GeForce 8600GTS 256MB Over Clock Edition HDCP PCI-E Video Card - $175
Cooler Master Centurion 534 ATX Case - $35
-----
Total: $618 Plus tax and shipping

Either system will do you fine. The more balanced system has a better CPU with fantastic overclocking capability and the 8600GTS you wanted.

He can buy an E4300 and have better overclocking and about $65 cheaper. The $65 can go towards an 8800GTS.

So E4300 8800GTS >>>>>>>>> E6320 8600GTS.

 

[JinxCA]

He can buy an E4300 and have better overclocking and about $65 cheaper. The $65 can go towards an 8800GTS.

So E4300 8800GTS >>>>>>>>> E6320 8600GTS.

No hardware needs to be specific for overclocking as the computer will be run at stock speeds.