My [H]ard Rig is 4 years old, time for a new one !!

M

MrExcite

n00b
Joined
May 25, 2007
Messages
31
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
BF3, MW3, LA Noire, CS3 Suite, CorelDraw Suite
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$600 plus tax and shipping
3) Where do you live?
Lancaster, PA
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc.
CPU,MOBO,RAM,GPU,PSU,HDD,DVD Burner,Case,Cooling,USB,Firewire,Keyboard,Mouse
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing?
Nothing
6) Will you be overclocking?
No
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
21" CRT "PanaSync/Pro C2192P"
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Summer 2011
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.
Firewire, USB 3.0, SATA
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
I am upgrading from XP OEM to WIN 7, not sure 32 or 64 bit?

If my budget is unrealistic, please tell me so and maybe budget build to it as close as possible. Yes, I can afford more, but 4 years ago, I spent $600, and I am thinking that is a good starting point for this rig.

I also know this forum has a lot of sharp minds. I was blown away with my first build thread as a nOOb, everyone was a big help with suggestions and tips. Thank you in advance for whatever you can offer me in a way of guidance.

For reference, see sig below for current rig, built in 2007, and spec'd by forum member Danny Bui. It has been a great all around PC, but I know it's time to build again !!!!!!

MrExcite
 
At $600, you're looking at an AMD Athlon/Phenom II-based build, but there's no guarantee that you'll obtain excellent gaming performance. What resolution are you currently using for gaming?

For the new OS, go with a 64-bit OEM copy of Windows 7 Home Premium, but you'll also pay $100 for it. Given that your entire budget is $600, I recommend raising it at least $100 to cover the costs of the operating system. However, some people here would recommend an Intel Sandy Bridge-based system, which outperforms AMD for a lot more money.

Summer 2011 is a vague time line. We recommend waiting two or three weeks before you're ready to buy everything (and that you buy all of your parts at once). When do you plan on starting to build this system?
 
Phenom II X4 965 $140 minus $20 promo code HARDOCPX525A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103727

GIGABYTE GA-870A-UD3 $95 with $10 rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128443

Kingston 4GB DDR3 $37 or $74 for two sticks
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820139398

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC $105 then $30 rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150447&cm_re=5770-_-14-150-447-_-Product

Antec NEO ECO 520C $66
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371030

Samsung F3 1TB $65
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185&Tpk=samsung f3

LG Black 22X DVD+R $19
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136216

Rosewill CHALLENGER case $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153

Windows 7 64 bit OEM $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...cm_re=windows_7_64_oem-_-32-116-986-_-Product

Hard to find a better CPU value, 3.4 GHz and 6 MB L3 for $120 after code, retail has a cooler also to save money if you aren't going to overclock.
Motherboard is a little expensive but has firewire onboard.
Video card is hard to beat after rebate, leaps ahead of old pc works great at that crt 1280x1024 resolution. If your budget would allow, go for a 6870.
With a single stick of ram you are out of pocket $657 and get back $40 in rebates

Forgot Keyboard and mouse, can pickup Logitech keyboard and Logitech optical mouse for about $25 at Wal-Mart. use old ones till rebates come in to get new keyboard and mouse?
 
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m_isom said:
Phenom II X4 965 $140 minus $20 promo code HARDOCPX525A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103727

GIGABYTE GA-870A-UD3 $95 with $10 rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128443

Kingston 4GB DDR3 $37 or $74 for two sticks
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820139398

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC $105 then $30 rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150447&cm_re=5770-_-14-150-447-_-Product

Antec NEO ECO 520C $66
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371030

Samsung F3 1TB $65
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185&Tpk=samsung f3

LG Black 22X DVD+R $19
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136216

Rosewill CHALLENGER case $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153

Windows 7 64 bit OEM $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...cm_re=windows_7_64_oem-_-32-116-986-_-Product
Click to expand...

The promo code on the Phenom II X4 965 expires on Tuesday, the XFX HD 5770 is out of stock, and we still don't know whether or not the OP is ready to buy everything right now.

Since it's nearing the end of the month, and NewEgg won't have its better June combo deals available for another two weeks, let's hold off until June 6. By then, we should have some inkling as to what's on sale.

While we're waiting, please answer the following questions:

What resolution are you using right now? Will you buy a new monitor within the next 12 months?
Can you raise your budget an additional $100 or $200?
Do you live near a Micro Center physical store?
Do you see yourself upgrading to the Adobe CS5 suite while using this system?
 
save your money up for a bit and build a better rig. You have a very low budget to get high performance for all of what your asking. plus the hardware market may be a little different late summer then it is now & your liable to get better chip for the money.
 
Tiraides:

What resolution are you using right now?
1280 x 720 for MW2
Will you buy a new monitor within the next 12 months?
I would if it will enhance what is spec'd for me, otherwise no
Can you raise your budget an additional $100 or $200?
Yes, I can raise it an additional $100
Do you live near a Micro Center physical store?
No
Do you see yourself upgrading to the Adobe CS5 suite while using this system?
No, I am presently migrating to the Corel world
When do you plan on starting to build this system?
Based on upcoming game releases, I will say mid-August

m_isom:

Very nice, I will go through the links and see what the details are on the parts, thank you !

I would love to see a intel version as well if someone has some ideas, no brand loyalty, just wondering what the upcharge will look like !! Thanks again [H]ard !!

MrExcite
 
Revisit this thread around the first week of August. Price and parts that we recommend now could be outdated, out of stock, or overpriced by the time that you're ready to buy.

The following is a rough estimate of the costs of the core components of an Intel Sandy Bridge-based system:

$200 - Intel Core i5-2300 or i5-2400 (the i4-2400 trades blows with the X4 965, at stock speeds, with most benchmarks)
$130 - A good P67 or Z68 motherboard from Asus, Gigabyte, or MSI
$85 - A 2x4GB DDR3 1333 dual-channel kit (the minimum amount of RAM that we'd recommend for Corel/Adobe products)

You could easily spend around $400 to $500 on the above core components. Someone may also recommend that you buy a good SSD of at least 60GB in capacity, but the ones that we recommend cost at least $120.

The HD 5770 or the GTX 460 (1GB non-SE model) could easily handle any game at that resolution.
 
To All:

Thank you for the input and links to components, I very much appreciate it !!

I would say after reading through the replies I need to sit tight until mid august to see where these hardware prices settle down to, and maybe repost my details for a final crack at spec'ing the system out. I will post back in August, and will continue to follow build threads here for ideas and tips. thanks again !!

MrExcite
 
You have to consider a different route of building a system. Buy a CPU/Motherboard/RAM/PSU first and then when you have more money buy a HDD, a video card, and accessories later. Say you spend 600 now and then another 300 around Christmas.

It is ridiculous to expect a kick-ass system for no money.
 
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While I agree that more money for this build would help matters, I'm reluctant to split this build up wholesale -- especially when the OP isn't planning on buying anything until mid-August at the earliest.
 
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I can wait this out to August no problem. If not for the fall releases of Battlefield 3 and MW3, I may not be even looking to upgrade/build, but I am so geeked up for BF3, I'm willing to build a new rig to play it. They got me right where they want me !!!!!!

I was hesitant to throw this out, but since we're discussing things, here is my other thought. Tiger Direct is another vendor I like and they are promoting their "barebones builds" kits that on the surface, look priced pretty nicely. My problem is getting up to speed with AMD and Intels processor specs. I need to find a apples to apples comparison chart to sift through all of the I5.core.AMD.Phenom.II jargons to understand what they are actually selling. Anybody have any experience with a Tiger Direct build kit?
 
MrExcite said:
I was hesitant to throw this out, but since we're discussing things, here is my other thought. Tiger Direct is another vendor I like and they are promoting their "barebones builds" kits that on the surface, look priced pretty nicely. My problem is getting up to speed with AMD and Intels processor specs. I need to find a apples to apples comparison chart to sift through all of the I5.core.AMD.Phenom.II jargons to understand what they are actually selling. Anybody have any experience with a Tiger Direct build kit?
Click to expand...

Generally TD barebones kits comes with really shitty power supplies and motherboards that are on the low-end side of quality.

And remember: Never compare AMD and Intel CPUs are specs alone. As you somewhat noted, you're gonna need to read a ton of reviews to get a good handle on the performance difference. HardOCP, Anandtech, Bit-Tech.net and Xbit Labs are some of the sites I use for CPU comparison/reviews.

And also note that doing all this CPU research now is somewhat of a waste of time considering that new CPUs from both Intel and AMD should be coming to market by or a little past that August timeframe. As such. you're basically gonna have to start over again with the research but for newer Intel and AMD CPUs.
 
Danny Bui said:
Generally TD barebones kits comes with really shitty power supplies and motherboards that are on the low-end side of quality.
Click to expand...

Aha, that would explain some of the pricing on the low end . . .


Danny Bui said:
And also note that doing all this CPU research now is somewhat of a waste of time considering that new CPUs from both Intel and AMD should be coming to market by or a little past that August timeframe. As such. you're basically gonna have to start over again with the research but for newer Intel and AMD CPUs.
Click to expand...

Good point. In a perfect world then, a $800 build today could morph into my $600 by the end of summer, if I should be so lucky !!!!
 
MrExcite said:
In a perfect world then, a $800 build today could morph into my $600 by the end of summer, if I should be so lucky !!!!
Click to expand...

More than likely, your $600 build would balloon to around $1000 in a few months... which, honestly, could change your proposed build from "a good starting point" to "a good rig."
 
tiraides said:
More than likely, your $600 build would balloon to around $1000 in a few months... which, honestly, could change your proposed build from "a good starting point" to "a good rig."
Click to expand...

Haha, you have to stop talking to my wife, she is already bracing for a busted budget !! When I think back to my Pentium II Gateway system with 250Mb hard drive that I dropped 3 grand on back in 2000, I wonder why I'm splitting hairs over $600 versus $1000 ?????
 
With the i5-2500k being so cheap I feel like you're throwing your money away if you have any way to stretch your budget a little more

i5-2500k=200
Cheap P67 mobo=130
600 watt Psu=80
6850 video card=150
case=60
4gb Decent Ram=60

So youre like 100 dollars over, I'm assuming you have the small parts to carry over like Hard Disk, Dvd drive, monitor etc
 
@Vriess - The OP is reusing his monitor, but will need the PC tower and its internals, plus the operating system, keyboard, and mouse. The most he's willing to spend is $700. He is not overclocking, which defeats the primary reason for grabbing the i5-2500K (its unlocked CPU multiplier).

Yes, you can assemble a Sandy Bridge system for under $700, but many people use that budget only for the PC tower itself. Plus, the OP is planning to build everything around mid-August, so it's way too early to flesh out a complete system.
 
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