Help building a Budget PC

[ConceptMachine]

Hi all,

I've been out of the loop for years when it comes to pc parts due to school/work, but I finally have time to get back into computers. (for reference, my current PC is a skt939 athlon 64 ). So I was hoping you guys could help me build a newer rig.

Secondly, I have a Corsair HX620w and was wondering if it is good enough for a more modern PC?

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming; right now Shogun 2, Witcher 2, CS 1.6 (and a bit of Source), and Bad Company 2 but I plan to play Battlefield 3, ME 3 etc when they are released.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$500-600 but less is better? (unless there is a significant uptick in performance for a few more dollars)

3) Where do you live?
Los Angeles, Not really near a Microcenter, but there are a few Fry's in the area.

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
CPU, Motherboard, Ram, Videocard.

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
PSU: Corsair HX620w
Optical: Samsung DVD drive
Monitor: 20" (1680 x 1050)
Case: Antec P180
Others: keyboard, mouse, headphones

6) Will you be overclocking?
Most likely not.

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
20" (1680 x 1050)

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Soon as I get a list together unless there is a major revision coming up soon.

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.
None of these are deal breakers.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Yes. Windows 7 64bit.


Thanks in advance!

 

[Dangman]

A prelim overclocking capable setup:
$220 - Intel Core i5-2500K CPU
$130 - MSI P67A-G45 Intel P67 ATX Motherboard
$36 - Patriot PSD34G13332 4GB DDR3 1333 RAM
$190 - XFX HD-687A-ZNFC Radeon HD 6870 1GB PCI-E Video Card
---
Total: $576 shipped

A prelim non-overclocking capable setup:
$195 - Intel Core i5-2400 CPU
$85 - MSI H67MA-E35 Intel H67 ATX Motherboard
$36 - Patriot PSD34G13332 4GB DDR3 1333 RAM
$190 - XFX HD-687A-ZNFC Radeon HD 6870 1GB PCI-E Video Card
---
Total: $506 shipped

 

[ConceptMachine]

Ouch, so they've totally phased out IDE?

In that case I think I might need a new hard drive. I don't think I ready to start messing with SSD's just yet; or is the price/performance worth it? Do you guys have any suggestions?




*also, it's good to see that RAM price has dropped since the days of DDR2.

 

[Dangman]

Ouch, so they've totally phased out IDE?

Basically yes.

In that case I think I might need a new hard drive.

That you definitely do.

I don't think I ready to start messing with SSD's just yet; or is the price/performance worth it? Do you guys have any suggestions?

Depends: Can you spare another $180 for a SSD + fast hard drive? If not, then just go for this hard drive:
$60.50 - Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

 

[ConceptMachine]

Hey, thanks for all the help danny bui!

 

[Dangman]

Good luck with the build!