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New Gaming Build Help

S

Steven Chell

n00b
Joined
Nov 10, 2008
Messages
26
I'm 17 and just got my first job. I've been saving 85% of my paychecks to go towards a new computer. All my past computers have either been my dad's old computers or (more recently) custom builds, but on the cheap end. I've answered the questions below to help.

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
I do a lot of gaming, mainly in Source games (TF2, L4D[2], etc) but I'm slowly expanding my library. I also do a fairly heavy amount of web designing with GIMP/PhotoShop.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
Preferably under $1,000.00USD, shipping/tax included.

3) Where do you live?
Colorado, USA

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
I'm looking for an almost completely new system:
Case/Chassis
Power Supply
Motherboard
Processor (preferably Intel this time around)
CD/DVD drive/burner (preferably dual layer & SATA)
Video card (preferably ATI)

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Hard drives, 150GB SATA | 80GB ATA

6) Will you be overclocking?
No.

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
I have a 19" 4:3 monitor I'm planning on using. I can always upgrade down the road; this one is close to dying anyway.

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
As soon as possible, really. Within the next couple months.

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
I don't need much more than defaults on most boards.

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

Thanks for the help. Let me know if you need any more information.
 
$285 - Intel Core i5 750 CPU + Gigabyte GA-P55M-UD2 Intel P55 mATX Motherboard combo
$82 - G.Skill F3-10600CL9D-4GBNT 2 x 2GB DDR3 1333 RAM
$220 - XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 1GB PCI-E Video Card + XFX P1-650X-CAG9 650W Modular PSU
$55 - Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
$25 - LG GH22NS50 DVD Burner
--
Total: $667 plus tax and shipping

The above setup is more than enough for gaming on a 19" monitor. Included a new hard drive as well since that'll be the biggest difference in performance from your old system to the new.

Do note that most of these combo deals will disappear at the end of the month meaning that the above build will be about $75 more in August.

Choose your own case:
$70 - Cooler Master RC-590-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$80 - Cooler Master RC-690-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$70 - Cooler Master CM690 II ATX Case
$90 - Cooler Master HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$100 - Lian Li PC-7B Plus II ATX Case
$100 - Lian Li Lancool PC-K7B ATX Case
$90 - Cooler Master HAF 922M RC-922M-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$110 - Lian Li PC-E8B ATX Case
$110 - Lian Li PC-7FN ATX Case
$120 - Velocity Micro GX2-W Silver Classic Aluminum Case with Side Window
$120 - Thermaltake ElementS VK60001N2Z ATX Case
$130 - Cooler Master Storm Sniper ATX Case
$150 - Antec P183 ATX Case
$140 - Cooler Master HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$170 - Cooler Master Cosmos S 1000 RC-1100-KSN1-GP Full Tower ATX Case
$180 - Cooler Master ATCS 840 RC-840-KKN1-GP Full Tower ATX Case
$180 - Lian Li PC-B25F ATX Case
$210 - Silverstone FT01-B ATX Case
 
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GIGABYTE GA-870A-UD3 AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard and AMD Phenom II X6 1055T Thuban 2.8GHz Socket AM3 125W Six-Core Desktop Processor HDT55TFBGRBOX
combo $275

or

Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor BX80605I5750 and
GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard Combo $320

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL and CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power ... Combo $200

COOLER MASTER RC-692-KKN3 CM690 II Basic Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case $70

LG 22X DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model GH22LS50 LightScribe Support - OEM $20


XFX HD-585X-ZNFC Radeon HD 5850 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity $290

or


EVGA 012-P3-1470-AR GeForce GTX 470 (Fermi) 1280MB 320-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card $320
 
 
I'd go with the X6 as well. That would give enough processing muscle for years to come for not only games but pretty much any kind of applications as well.
 
I agree but, at the same time disagree. I do agree that an Intel Core i5 750 or AMD Phenom II X6 would be good choices with a mobo combo. The Core i5 750 build would still be faster in gaming as well as photoshop but, the Phenom II X6 is $30 cheaper though. What I disagree on is the 5850 video card. I wouldn't get that now when he only has an old 19" display. The response time on his old 19" lcd must be pretty high. The XFX PSU + XFX Radeon 5770 combo for $220 w/free shipping and $20 MIR is a killer deal. He can max out TF2 or L4D2 at 1280x1024 res. By the way, there's no 4:3 19" monitors. You must mean 5:4. Use the extra money and save up for a new IPS panel since you working with photoshop.
 
HardwareGuru said:
I agree but, at the same time disagree. I do agree that an Intel Core i5 750 or AMD Phenom II X6 would be good choices with a mobo combo. The Core i5 750 build would still be faster in gaming as well as photoshop but, the Phenom II X6 is $30 cheaper though. What I disagree on is the 5850 video card. I wouldn't get that now when he only has an old 19" display. The response time on his old 19" lcd must be pretty high. The XFX PSU + XFX Radeon 5770 combo for $220 w/free shipping and $20 MIR is a killer deal. He can max out TF2 or L4D2 at 1280x1024 res. By the way, there's no 4:3 19" monitors. You must mean 5:4. Use the extra money and save up for a new IPS panel since you working with photoshop.
Click to expand...

OP said that his monitor is dying too so there is a chance that he will upgrade sooner than later which is why I would say stick with the 5850 but that combo for $220 sounds pretty good, I won't lie. I think with the money saved with the X6 build he could easily put that toward the 5850.
 
One thing Id suggest the OP to do is upgrade his hard drive, that 150GB SATA is going to be the major bottleneck in his system and everyday desktop use is going to be affected pretty bad, no matter which was he goes.
A Samsung F3 500GB is only $50 and would offer twice, maybe even triple the performance.
 
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