$600-$700 PC Build- Final review

T

tirminyl

Gawd
Joined
Jan 9, 2007
Messages
638
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming, Photoshop, Web, Video, Coding
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$600-$700. Tax and shipping preferably included.
3) Where do you live?
OP, KS
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
Everything. Case, CPU, Ram, PSU, Optical, Video.
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
None. Keyboard, Mouse, Monitor
6) Will you be overclocking?
No.
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
Currently have Acer AL2223W 22" Widescreen
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Now.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
Crossfire would be nice for future use.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?
Win 7 64bit


I am currently thinking about:

Antec VSK-2000 MidTower Case ($39.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129069

Radeon HD 4850 ($109)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131163

Athlon II X4 630 ($109)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103704

Seagate Barracuda 500gb ($55)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148395

Sony Optical ($28)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118030

Antec TruePower 750 / G.Skill Ripjaws 4gb ($195)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.343597

Gigabyte MA770 UD3P ($77)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128392

I don't think the Mobo works so hopefully you guys can help. Also, there is a Microcenter near me with a $99 price tag for the X4 630 with discounts on mobos if I purchased it:

Athlon II X4 630 ($99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0327513

GA-790XTA-UD4P ($125 w/ mobo. $109 after rebate)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0327154
 
Both the MA770T-UD3P and the 790XTA-UD4P will work with your processor. That said, it's up to you as to which board would suit your needs better.

May I ask why you're interested in CrossFire? At the resolution you're currently using, you could easily find a single video card that could perform well -- though the HD4850 is pretty good at that resolution on its own.
 
At some point in the future I plan to upgrade and add additional monitors to my PC. I just didn't know if it would be something I need at that point.
 
Which monitors were you considering? When were you planning on buying them?

Unless you're a serious gamer that uses ultra high (or maxed out) visual settings in most games at a large (1920x1080 or greater) resolution, you don't really need a CrossFire or SLI setup as you could easily find a single-GPU video card capable of playing most games well.
 
Yeah, your right. I won't be upgrading monitors until this summer and have not started consideration for them.
 
Even at $100, that X4 630 is a bad buy considering that you can get this combo for only $20:
$197 - AMD Phenom II X4 925 CPU + Gigabyte GA-MA770T-UDP3 AMD 770 ATX Motherboard Combo

A Phenom II 925 CPU is a huge upgrade over a Athlon X4 630 especially in gaming and photoshop.
 
Danny Bui said:
Even at $100, that X4 630 is a bad buy considering that you can get this combo for only $20:
$197 - AMD Phenom II X4 925 CPU + Gigabyte GA-MA770T-UDP3 AMD 770 ATX Motherboard Combo

A Phenom II 925 CPU is a huge upgrade over a Athlon X4 630 especially in gaming and photoshop.
Click to expand...

Nice. I missed this. Reading up on this cpu, thanks! FYI- This is my first build.
 
Agree with Danny. For a little more, the Phenom II X4 925 is much faster than the X4 630 cpu. The X4 630 cpu is crippled by its lack of 6MB of L3 cache. If you look at the differences in gaming and photoshop, the X4 925 beats the X4 630 by a big margin.
 
Thank you for the links Guru. That CPU definitely looks better, so I will go with Danny's recommendation.

Antec VSK-2000 MidTower Case ($39.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129069

Radeon HD 4850 ($109)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131163

Seagate Barracuda 500gb ($55)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148395

Sony Optical ($28)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118030

Antec TruePower 750 / G.Skill Ripjaws 4gb ($195)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.343597

AMD Phenom II X4 925 CPU + Gigabyte GA-MA770T-UDP3 AMD 770 ATX Motherboard Combo ($197)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.335019

Total is $618.76 with shipping. If everything looks good then I will order it this weekend. Being my first build I am excited and can't wait.
 
gwarren007 said:
Consider getting the Coolermaster 335 case -its the same price AR and only $10 more than the VSK-2000 . I have seen both of these up close and the Antec seemed "cheap".

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119161
Click to expand...

Actually once you factor in shipping, those cases come out to be the same price. That's also without factoring in the rebate. So technically if the rebate goes through, that Coolermaster case is actually $10 cheaper.

The setup looks fine for a $600 build. Granted the PSU is a tad overkill but for the price you're paying, it's hard not to pass it up. If you're fine with the $618 price and don't want to spend more, let us know.
 
LOL, I saw the 29.99 price and 9.99 shipping, and didn't see the 29.99 was AR :)
 
Danny Bui said:
Actually once you factor in shipping, those cases come out to be the same price. That's also without factoring in the rebate. So technically if the rebate goes through, that Coolermaster case is actually $10 cheaper.

The setup looks fine for a $600 build. Granted the PSU is a tad overkill but for the price you're paying, it's hard not to pass it up. If you're fine with the $618 price and don't want to spend more, let us know.
Click to expand...

I think the $600 hits the mark but what else should I look at that would keep me in the $700 budget?
 
gwarren007 said:
The only additional money spent would be on the Videocard. I prefer XFX for the Warranty
XFX 4850 $124.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150351

You have to decide if the $15 is worth it to go from a 2yr warranty to a lifetime warranty.
Click to expand...

Hmm, this is definitely getting into feature/hardware creep territory but personally I would not get the XFX HD 4850 1GB for $125 considering that for only $30 to $35 more, you can get the faster XFX HD 5770 1GB:
$165 - XFX HD-577X-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 1GB PCI-E Video Card
 
Yah, for a few dollars more than the HIS 5770, it would be more wise to get the XFX brand one.
 
$700 budget dude with shipping & taxes. This is gonna kick ass. You can't go wrong with this.

CASE - Coolermaster Elite 335 for $49.99 ($10 MIR) w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119161

XFX Radeon HD 5770 + Antec Earthwatts EA650 both for $229.98 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.339650

CPU - AMD Phenom II X4 955 3.2Ghz for $160.99 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103674

MOBO - GIGABYTE GA-MA770T-UD3P for $76.77 ($10 MIR) w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128392

RAM -G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 for $104.99 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

HDD - Seagate 500GB for $54.99 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148395

OPTICAL - LG 22X DVD Burner for $22.99 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136167

Total: $700.92 w/shipping
 
Last edited:
HardwareGuru said:
$700 budget dude with shipping & taxes. This is gonna kick ass. You can't go wrong with this.

CASE - Coolermaster Elite 335 for $49.99 ($10 MIR) w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119161

XFX Radeon HD 5770 + Antec Earthwatts EA650 both for $229.98 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.339650

CPU - AMD Phenom II X4 955 3.2Ghz for $160.99 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103674

MOBO - GIGABYTE GA-MA770T-UD3P for $76.77 ($10 MIR) w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128392

HDD - Seagate 500GB for $54.99 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148395

OPTICAL - LG 22X DVD Burner for $22.99 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136167

Total: $700.92 w/shipping
Click to expand...

No RAM in that build, not going to work out :(
 
All I can say is "Why not". I will be pulling the trigger on that today Guru. Thanks!
 
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