Budget Build w/ Re-Use

J

jaebekae

Weaksauce
Joined
Feb 25, 2005
Messages
103
I'm looking to upgrade my computer. I'll be reusing:
- Case
- 9800GT Video Card
- 74 Gig Raptor Drive
- 1TB Hard Drive

I'm looking to spend about $300 give or take $100.

I've been out of the hardware scene for a while. Can you guys give me some options? I'll be using it for minor gaming (wc3, wow. future: sc2, diablo3). I like to multi-task just like anyone else. I want to build something that'll hopefully last me another year or two+.

I also do a bit of development work. J2EE, Photoshop, Premier, Flash, etc.

What do you guys recommend for Motherboard/Cpu/Ram/Power Supply?

Thanks in advance.
 
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
  • Gaming (WC3, WoW. Future: SC2, Diablo3)
  • Photoshop, Premier, Video Editing, Web Development
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
300-450

3) Where do you live?
Los Angeles, California

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
CPU (Quad-Core), RAM, Motherboard (ASUS preferred), Power Supply (Enough to power everything)

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Case, 24" Monitor, 9800GT, 74g Raptor, 1TB Harddrive

6) Will you be overclocking?
Possibly

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
I currently have a 24, possibly another 24 in the future

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Within the next 2-3 weeks.

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
Open

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
Yes
 
If you went $500 you could get i7 if you bought used... but I don't know if you're up for that. Could watch FS/FT for a week or two, get a chip for ~$225, board for $150, RAM for $100. Still need a PSU then, and you'd want at least a quality 650-750w, which would be another $80 or so. Probably out of budget but something to consider. Certainly has a longer upgrade life than something LGA775 based.

AM2+ / AM3 is also an option. You could get an Phenom II 920, 4GB DDR2-1066 and and AM2+ board for like $300. That'd keep you within budget but wouldn't be near as fast as the i7.
 
My recommendation:
$285 - AMD Phenom II X4 920 CPU + ASUS M4A78-E AMD 790GX HDMI AMD Motherboard Combo
$42 - G.Skill F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ 2 x 2GB DDR2 800 RAM
$68 - BFG Tech LS-550 550W PSU
-----
Total: $395 plus tax and shipping.
 
silent-circuit said:
If you went $500 you could get i7 if you bought used... but I don't know if you're up for that. Could watch FS/FT for a week or two, get a chip for ~$225, board for $150, RAM for $100. Still need a PSU then, and you'd want at least a quality 650-750w, which would be another $80 or so. Probably out of budget but something to consider. Certainly has a longer upgrade life than something LGA775 based.

AM2+ / AM3 is also an option. You could get an Phenom II 920, 4GB DDR2-1066 and and AM2+ board for like $300. That'd keep you within budget but wouldn't be near as fast as the i7.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the response.

My question is... Is the i7 really worth it for my usage? I won't really be doing any hardcore graphic intensive gaming.
 
Danny Bui said:
My recommendation:
$285 - AMD Phenom II X4 920 CPU + ASUS M4A78-E AMD 790GX HDMI AMD Motherboard Combo
$42 - G.Skill F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ 2 x 2GB DDR2 800 RAM
$68 - BFG Tech LS-550 550W PSU
-----
Total: $395 plus tax and shipping.
Click to expand...

That looks pretty good. Thanks for your input.
 
Video editing / encoding and things like Photoshop and Premiere are actually where i7 excels the most, not gaming. With regard to gaming, i7 offers almost no advantage over Phenom II or a Core2 series Quad.

Danny's build is quality, though, and will be plenty fast if you are sticking to your budget. I realize a $150 difference in price is not nothing; it's a big part of why I'm still running a Core2 Quad and do not plan to go i7 any time soon.
 
silent-circuit said:
Video editing / encoding and things like Photoshop and Premiere are actually where i7 excels the most, not gaming. With regard to gaming, i7 offers almost no advantage over Phenom II or a Core2 series Quad.

Danny's build is quality, though, and will be plenty fast if you are sticking to your budget. I realize a $150 difference in price is not nothing; it's a big part of why I'm still running a Core2 Quad and do not plan to go i7 any time soon.
Click to expand...

Gotcha. Thanks for the info!

Quick Question. Why'd you choose Core2 Quad over Phenom II?
 
jaebekae said:
Gotcha. Thanks for the info!

Quick Question. Why'd you choose Core2 Quad over Phenom II?
Click to expand...

Probably 'cuz X4 wasn't out when s-c built his rig? (a guess) Its only recently that AMD has finally caught up to Core2, but it'll be another long wait until they catch Core i7. Anyhow, I agree with s-c, if you can, go for the i7, since it will benefit you and your needs. If not, the X4 is cheaper than an Intel alternative. Though, I believe the Core2's still OC better. As always, Danny's build is good (and I see he's changed his linkage... new editor? :p I use crimson).
 
enginurd said:
As always, Danny's build is good (and I see he's changed his linkage... new editor? :p I use crimson).
Click to expand...

Naw, same editor as always: Notepad++ plus Google Docs. Though Crimson looks interesting.:) Anyway, changed the linkage format since I finally figured out that your way of linkage looks better than my way :)
 
enginurd said:
Probably 'cuz X4 wasn't out when s-c built his rig?
Click to expand...

This.

Also, a Phenom II X4 is barely faster than my current chip, at least in everything I do, so there is zero incentive to upgrade.

Were I building now I'd build i7, but not for current performance, only longevity of the socket. LGA775 is a strong platform still, but it's a dead platform. No new chips, no reason to build on it.

AMD can finally keep up, and if you go AM2+/AM3 you at least have a future upgrade path. I doubt they will ever catch up to Intel in pure performance, at least not on this set of sockets, but options are worth something, and so is keeping money in your pocket.
 
silent-circuit said:
This.

Also, a Phenom II X4 is barely faster than my current chip, at least in everything I do, so there is zero incentive to upgrade.

Were I building now I'd build i7, but not for current performance, only longevity of the socket. LGA775 is a strong platform still, but it's a dead platform. No new chips, no reason to build on it.

AMD can finally keep up, and if you go AM2+/AM3 you at least have a future upgrade path. I doubt they will ever catch up to Intel in pure performance, at least not on this set of sockets, but options are worth something, and so is keeping money in your pocket.
Click to expand...

Gotcha.

I was wondering. Do you happen to know if the Core 2 Quad overlocks better than the Phenom II? Or is it pretty close.
 
It would appear than the Phenom II X4 clocks about as well as my X3220 / a Q6600 (basically the same thing) from what other members here are posting. The Q9450/9550 clocks a good bit better though, about 400Mhz higher than a Q6600 on air, average, from what I've seen if you have the board to support it and are a little faster clock for clock, but they cost about the same as a Phenom II 920 and a board, and there's no upgrade path from a Q9xxx chip, so...
 
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