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New Upgrade/Computer

Joined
Feb 20, 2004
Messages
532
Hey guys its been a while since I've posted on here so I hope you wont be too hard on me if I forget some posting etiquette. Right now I'm running a Shuttle Sn21g5 with a manchester and 1.5 gigs of DDR 400mhz. The graphics card isn't even worth mentioning. I abstained from video games while I was studying and ended up missing the SC2 release. Well since I did extremely well on my final exams I'm going to treat myself to some SC2 and maybe some other games when I get the time.

My system could run it. But just not as well as I would like. So I'm going to cannabalize some parts, restore an older ATX case and get back to gaming again on a tight budget. Nothing is set in stone but I'm eager to order soon.


Here's what I picked out:

Sapphire 4850 1 GB 256-bit GDDR3 - $110
seems to be a good card for cheap. I picked this over the slightly more expensive 9800gtx to get a better powersupply.

OCZ 550w - $64
Appears to be a badass powersupply for not a lot of money. I know enough not to skimp out on the PSU and I think this will serve me well. Amirite?

A-DATA DDR3 1600 - $50
Of course I'll have to buy more ram soon. But I think this could hold me off until next paycheck.


Now here's where it gets tricky. I have a Callisto and an MSI board on a newegg combo deal for 150.

Phenom II X2 550 - $100

MSI 870-G45 - $50

With the combo deal totaling $150 I guess you could say that practically the mobo is $50. If I'm not mistaken this would be a board with relatively high end features for the money. I'm happy to let anyone talk me out of this because I'm still not convinced that newegg combos aren't tricky scams.

This all totals to $366 which just barely exceeds my budget of 350.


Any advice is hugely appreciated.


-mp
 
I trust the Antec NEO ECO 520C more than I would any OCZ-branded power supply.

If you can afford to, spend a bit more on a combo deal with the Sapphire HD4850 and a 4GB kit of OCZ RAM. Paired together, the combo kit cost $14 more than buying the RAM and video card separately.
 
I am not sure how tight your budget is, but for about 400 shipped there is ALOT more computer in this build. .

175 SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100273L Radeon HD 4850 1GB + OCZ Special Ops Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
154 MSI 870-G45 AM3 AMD 870 ATX + AMD Athlon II X4 635 Propus 2.9GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core
60 Antec NEO ECO 520C

This is about 15 bucks more then your build (shipped prices) but gets you a quad core & 4gb ram.. Also has a MUCH more reliable PSU & still 25 in MIR & a free game if ordered before the month ends.
 
Your build was fine, since bastage and I reused your video card and motherboard selections. However, we both thought that it needed a few tweaks, hence our suggestions.

Go ahead and go with what you're considering now (bastage's build). And don't forget to take pictures of the completed build.
 
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