Build questions

[Droc]

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Browsing, media server, light gaming
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$500-$750
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
Canada/Ontario
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget?
Mobo, CPU, ram, GPU, possibly CPU heatsink
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing?
Antec P180, HDDs(WD blacks), 500w powercolor PSU, thermalright ultra 120 extreme push/pull
6) Will you be overclocking?
Probably not
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
1680x1050 I run two 22 screens but only game on 1.
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Within the next 2 months
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video? etc.
Nothing specific
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Win7 64


I thought I was done with PC gaming and was going to ride my old core2duo into the sunset, but after many years its really showing its age.....and I got the itch for BF3
I dont really have the budget for a full build, nor do I really need it. I thought I would look into just grabbing an old Q6600 but its impossible to find. and any GPU upgrade will be bottlenecked by my PSU and slow ram.
Looks like im stuck with a half build at least. I figure Im fine with my current case, screens, HDDs, and possibly CPU cooler.
Im looking for a budget build thats half decent but as cheap as possible.

 

[tiraides]

How old is the PowerColor PSU?

Are you ready to buy and build everything right now?

 

[Droc]

How old is the PowerColor PSU?

Are you ready to buy and build everything right now?

PSU is a few months old.

I am ready, depending on the costs. I think all I really need is the mobo, ram, CPU and GPU. Everything else I should be able to recycle.
videocards I can usually figure out, but its the mobo, ram and CPU that Im very out of date on. I wouldn't know where to start

 

[tiraides]

Since you need only a few components for your "upgrade," you can go with an Intel Sandy Bridge-based build. Using NewEgg.ca as a guide -- but where will you buy parts from? -- I recommend the following parts:

$195 - Intel Core i5 2400
$115 - Gigabyte GA-Z68A-D3H-B3
$40 - G.Skill Sniper F3-10666CL9D-8GBSR 2x4GB DDR3 1333
$190 - XFX HD-687A-ZHFC Radeon HD 6870
=====
$540 - Subtotal (not including shipping, taxes, or rebates)

If you can obtain a bolt-thru kit, you could reuse your TRUE heatsink with your new setup. (That may be enough to encourage you to go with the Core i5-2500K instead of the i5-2400 and start overclocking. It's pretty easy to overclock with the K-series Sandy Bridge processors.)

I have some serious reservations about the PowerColor PSU. It's not a brand that I'd recommend. Which model number is it?

 

[ThaSpacePope]

Since you need only a few components for your "upgrade," you can go with an Intel Sandy Bridge-based build. Using NewEgg.ca as a guide -- but where will you buy parts from? -- I recommend the following parts:

$195 - Intel Core i5 2400
$115 - Gigabyte GA-Z68A-D3H-B3
$40 - G.Skill Sniper F3-10666CL9D-8GBSR 2x4GB DDR3 1333
$190 - XFX HD-687A-ZHFC Radeon HD 6870
=====
$540 - Subtotal (not including shipping, taxes, or rebates)

If you can obtain a bolt-thru kit, you could reuse your TRUE heatsink with your new setup. (That may be enough to encourage you to go with the Core i5-2500K instead of the i5-2400 and start overclocking. It's pretty easy to overclock with the K-series Sandy Bridge processors.)

I have some serious reservations about the PowerColor PSU. It's not a brand that I'd recommend. Which model number is it?

All good choices but you can buy a used/openbox 6950/6970 for $190 or less. Would still work with a 500W PSU (at least an antec 520, from personal experience)

 

[tiraides]

Where can you get a used/refurbished HD 6970 for under $190 in Canada? And why would you get one for a 1680x1050 resolution?

 

[Droc]

Since you need only a few components for your "upgrade," you can go with an Intel Sandy Bridge-based build. Using NewEgg.ca as a guide -- but where will you buy parts from? -- I recommend the following parts:

$195 - Intel Core i5 2400
$115 - Gigabyte GA-Z68A-D3H-B3
$40 - G.Skill Sniper F3-10666CL9D-8GBSR 2x4GB DDR3 1333
$190 - XFX HD-687A-ZHFC Radeon HD 6870
=====
$540 - Subtotal (not including shipping, taxes, or rebates)

If you can obtain a bolt-thru kit, you could reuse your TRUE heatsink with your new setup. (That may be enough to encourage you to go with the Core i5-2500K instead of the i5-2400 and start overclocking. It's pretty easy to overclock with the K-series Sandy Bridge processors.)

I have some serious reservations about the PowerColor PSU. It's not a brand that I'd recommend. Which model number is it?

Thanks for the list to work from.

I had reservations on the PSU aswell, but it got surprisingly decent reviews and my alternatives wernt any better (had an antec burn on me and the corsair was plagued with buzzing).