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Gaming Machine - $500 Budget

C

Chriz

n00b
Joined
Jun 7, 2006
Messages
15
Hey guys I'm trying to piece together a gaming machine for a family member. Budget is around $500. Mostly will be playing tf2 but would also like to be able to play starcraft 2 when it comes out. Thank you for any help! :D

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming, TF2, Source engine, Starcraft2

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
Budget: $500 - Would like to keep it as cheap as possible while still getting reasonable quality parts.

3) Where do you live?
MO, USA
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
CPU, MOBO, RAM, PSU, HDD,

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
LCD ONLY, Possibly Case depending on budget

6) Will you be overclocking?
If the parts allow for it, not a huge priority

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
1680x1050 resolution.

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Within a month or two.

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
Ethernet, sound, nothing fancy
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?
64 bit
 
defaultluser said:
Excellent build! But there's still the question of video.

The poster didn't mention the need for a video card, but at the same time, he didn't infer that he had one to reuse.
Click to expand...

yea i am wondering the same thing ... cause if the OP does need it my build is out the window
 
fromeo85 said:
yea i am wondering the same thing ... cause if the OP does need it my build is out the window
Click to expand...

It's not over. Let's combine brainpower, and get a build that's well-balanced.

$215 Intel Core i3-530 Clarkdale 2.93GHz + GIGABYTE GA-H55M-UD2H

$55 CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W $15 MIR

$50 SAMSUNG Spinpoint F1 HD322HJ 320GB 7200

$89 OCZ Gold 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 $10 MIR

$99 POWERCOLOR] AX4850 512MD3-PH Radeon HD 4850 512MB NOTE: you can get the 1GB model here for $10 more.

Total - About $510, before $25 MIR. And the video card performance is only a step behind the 5770 in the other build.
 
Wow, great builds, yes I do need video, I can't believe i forgot to add that. thank you all for the help!
 
Chriz said:
Wow, great builds, yes I do need video, I can't believe i forgot to add that. thank you all for the help!
Click to expand...

And now, you have to decide which one to go with.

The Core i3 will toast the Athlon X4 core in games and light multitasking. Purely parallel loads will see it slightly losing, but staying competitive. This is why I like to push it as an excellent entry-level gaming chip: it does everything well - single-threaded, multi-threaded, and smooth task-switching.

The 5750 will give you very little framerate bump over the 4850 1GB (%5 or less), and has a $35 premium attached to it just so you can get DX11 support. IF you only have $500 to spend on a system, a feature like DX11 is a waste. Upgrade to DX11 when you can spare the cash.

Both platforms offer you a CPU and GPU upgrade path, so the choice is up to you.
 
Last edited:
Whichever build you go with, don't get the F1 320GB for $50 when you can get the F3 500GB for $55. ;)
 
enginurd said:
Whichever build you go with, don't get the F1 320GB for $50 when you can get the F3 500GB for $55. ;)
Click to expand...

I think we can agree on this. I was just cutting corners as tight as I could to hit $500 :)

I would spend the $10 extra for the 1GB 4850 also. That would bring you to $525 - $25 MIR.
 
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