Need some advice on a new build

[jbltecnicspro]

Hello guys, I've been a lurker here for years. I love the site, and I love the computer gaming culture. That said, I have an old Dell Dimension 8300, and I've decided that it's time for this dinosaur to go. Currently, I have been throwing little upgrades in it to keep it more or less alive, and I've finally decided that it's just a money pit. My build goals are simple - to build a cheap Skyrim-capable PC that will play the game at very high settings with a resolution of 1440x900.

Here's my current rig:
Pentium 4 3.2 Ghz, 2GB of RAM
Radeon HD3450
Sound Blaster Audigy 2ZS
320 GB IDE Hard Drive
DVD-ROM Drive (I also have an external burner).
Netgear Wireless PCI adapter

My questions are this:
1. What hardware can I salvage for my new build? I'm hoping that Creative's audio drivers support the Audigy 2ZS in Windows 7. Do mainstream motherboards have IDE connectors anymore? Or would I have to get a crappy/vanilla board?

2. I'm conflicted as to whether or not I should go with an Intel Core i3 or an AMD Phenom. Basically, someone help me decide.

3. My budget is around $500-600. Is this reasonable? Assuming all of my hardware goes over, I should only need to purchase a case, PSU, RAM, CPU, and Video Card. My college gives me full access to my own copy of Windows 7, so this isn't an issue. Keep in mind that my monitor's resolution is only 1440x900, and from what I've seen, it shouldn't take a monster video card to run high settings on Skyrim in that resolution.

And yes, I realize that I can do my own research. But I'm a full time employee, student, fiancee, etc; and it's been YEARS since I've kept up with all of this stuff. Last new video card I bought was the Radeon X800XL (I loved that card!). And that was in 2005 - when it was current-generation.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Dangman]

Moved to the correct subforum, General Hardware.


1) Only the sound card, wireless adapter and external burner can be reused. Most new mobos these days don't come with IDE. Not to mention that IDE hard drives would limit the performance of a modern system by a huge factor.

2) For a gaming only setup, your best bet would be the Core i3 as that CPU is faster than the AMD Phenom

3) You might have to increase your budget by another $50 considering that you have to get a new hard drive and motherbaord as well.

If you want specific hardware recommendations, please answer the stickied "ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS FIRST!" so that we can help you better.

 

[jbltecnicspro]

Alright here's my answers to the questions:
1. I'll be gaming with the computer mainly, and some music listening too. I'm a CS student and need to write C++ code and other languages too.

2. Budget is about $650 max, shipping not included.

3. I live in the US and in Missouri.

4. I need a CPU, RAM, Motherboard, HDD, Case, and PSU.

5. I'll be re-using my Soundblaster Audigy 2ZS, Roland Sound Canvas SC-8850 (if there isn't a driver, I can use a MIDI adapter), Roland MT-32 (MIDI adapter), External DVD Burner, Internal DVD-ROM drive.

6. I will not be overclocking

7. Max Resolution is 1440x900 - 19 inches.

8. I plan on building the PC in a couple of months. Latest is March.

9. I don't need any special features in the motherboard.

10. I do have a legit OS license. Windows 7 64-bit.

 

[Dangman]

8. I plan on building the PC in a couple of months. Latest is March.

If you can't narrow down that timeframe, please come back and bump up this thread when you're roughly 2-3 weeks away from buying. I say that because our hardware recommendations tends to change monthly and sometimes even weekly. So it doesn't help you at all to plan a build this early. So if you want up to date hardware recommendations and advice, your best bet would be to ask when you're 2-3 weeks away from buying the PC.

 

[Haiku214]

Considering that you never bought a new PC in like 8 or more years, then maybe you could up your budget more. Doing so will ensure that your new PC will still be good for the next 5 years or so.

 

[jbltecnicspro]

Danny Bui, noted. I'll bump it up later.

Haiku, I'll consider it. The reason I haven't purchased a new PC in so long is because my situation didn't call for it. The only games I've played since then are Halo PC and a couple of other multiplayer games.

These days, PC building and buying is almost like playing the stock market, huh? You never know when prices on certain products will fall or raise. Thanks for the insight guys.