PC on $600 budget

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darkhunter139

Supreme [H]ardness
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Well I just built my first computer (Intel quad q6600 processor, 4 gigs of ram and the geforce 8800GT video card)

My brother is now considering building one but his budget is only about $600

What would be the best upgradable build to fit this budget? Or would it be smarter to just save up another 5 or 600? Could you build a PC that can run most games pretty well for $600?
 
Here's a quick one I put together. No monitor, speakers, keyboard/mouse. Not sure if you already have those or not:

Intel Pentium E2160 Allendale 1.8GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core
GIGABYTE GA-P35-S3G LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard
GeIL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
EVGA 512-P3-N861-AR GeForce 9600GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI
Western Digital WD1200AAJS 120GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s
SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black PATA
COOLER MASTER Elite 330 RC-330-KKN1-GP Black
Antec earthwatts EA430 ATX12V v2.0 430W Power Supply

About $550 after shipping from Newegg. If this were a non gaming rig you could get away with a MB with onboard graphics but that won't cut it for what your looking for. You could save a few buck on the graphics card by dropping to a 8600 but I personally don't think it's worth the savings.

Here is the wishlist link:

https://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/WishList/MySavedWishDetail.asp?ID=5865754
 
I might wait for a few others to chime in but what I posted should be more than enough. If you already have a monitor what is the resolution? Also, what kind of games are we talking about?
 
Is this built from scratch or will there be some parts re-used (KB, mouse, DVD, hard drive, case, Windows, etc.)? Does this include monitor?

EDIT: Nevermind, saw post above.

At first cut I'd say:
Ge-Force 8800GT for $133 AR. Buy NOW before it goes up:
http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1284699

Corsair PSU (550) $65 AR:
http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1284669

2GB of Corsair memory at Newegg for $28 AR:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145590&Tpk=N82E16820145590

500 GB WD HD at the Egg about $100

DVD drive, $30

This leaves about $250 for motherboard, CPU, and HSF. I'd recommend a good HSF like a Scythe Ninja (about $35), a good mobo (Gigabyte P35 recommended, $80-120), and an E2200 ($85) or E4500 ($120).
 
GrimR said:
I might wait for a few others to chime in but what I posted should be more than enough. If you already have a monitor what is the resolution? Also, what kind of games are we talking about?
Click to expand...

Its a 26" vizio LCD that can do 720p

And games like crysis (On low settings obviously). Star craft 2, age of conan, WiC ect..
 
GrimR said:
Here's a quick one I put together. No monitor, speakers, keyboard/mouse. Not sure if you already have those or not:

Intel Pentium E2160 Allendale 1.8GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core
GIGABYTE GA-P35-S3G LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard
GeIL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
EVGA 512-P3-N861-AR GeForce 9600GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI
Western Digital WD1200AAJS 120GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s
SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black PATA
COOLER MASTER Elite 330 RC-330-KKN1-GP Black
Antec earthwatts EA430 ATX12V v2.0 430W Power Supply

About $550 after shipping from Newegg. If this were a non gaming rig you could get away with a MB with onboard graphics but that won't cut it for what your looking for. You could save a few buck on the graphics card by dropping to a 8600 but I personally don't think it's worth the savings.

Here is the wishlist link:

https://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/WishList/MySavedWishDetail.asp?ID=5865754
Click to expand...

You could move up to the E2180 - its just $10 more. The rest are all good recs. Youll really want to OC to get good game performance though.

Other savings just depends if you/hes willing to deal with and wait for rebates.
ABIT IP35-E is $60AR on newegg right now. You can find also find 8800GTs around the same price after rebates.
 
Yeah, I was trying to stay away from rebates for him as it seemed he had a certain amount to spend.

If the OP feels comfortabe OC'ing then he should get some decent clocks out of the 2160 or 2180. You just need to factor in the cost of a aftermarket HS.
 
I'd buy the parts with the rebates now before the prices go up or the rebates go away. Save up a little more money or wait for the rebates to come back and finish purchases. I figured that the system would need to be OCed to get best performance for the $, that's why I recommended the E2200 for the best overclock and the Ninja for a HSF.

<Fenris dons fireproof suit>
Or, you could just go with a cheap Dell Inspiron 530 and add in a 8800GT and an extra two gigs of ram from the Egg. You would end up with a warrantee and copy of Vista.

For $350 you can get:

PROCESSOR Intel®Pentium® dual-core processor E2180 (1MB L2 Cache,2.00GHz,80
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista® Home Basic - English
MONITOR No Monitor
MEMORY 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz- 2DIMMs
HARD DRIVE 250GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache&#8482;
OPTICAL DRIVE 16X DVD+/-RW Drive
VIDEO CARD Integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 3100
SOUND Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
KEYBOARD & MOUSE Dell USB Keyboard and Dell Optical USB Mouse
FLOPPY & MEDIA READER No Floppy Drive Included
MODEM & WIRELESS 56K PCI Data Fax Modem

Granted, there's no overclocking, but the price is very hard to match. You can probably get free shipping with it too.

<remove flameproof suit>
 
Rebates are ok

And I dont know if I feel conforatable OCing just yet. If its not hard I might try it though.


I have that same CPU fan in my PC and it works great so far I am liking Grimr's build the best
 
Fenris_Ulf said:
Or, you could just go with a cheap Dell Inspiron 530 and add in a 8800GT and an extra two gigs of ram from the Egg. You would end up with a warrantee and copy of Vista.
Click to expand...

He'd probably need to upgrade the PSU on that system as well, which adds another $50, at least.
 
enginurd said:
He'd probably need to upgrade the PSU on that system as well, which adds another $50, at least.
Click to expand...

I've got two co-workers with that same system but a Q6600 instead. They've put a 8800GT in there with no problems.
 
Fenris_Ulf said:
I've got two co-workers with that same system but a Q6600 instead. They've put a 8800GT in there with no problems.
Click to expand...

No problems... yet. ;) It depends how often they stress the system and what PSU came with the system. If its a 305W w/ a heavy +12V rail, then they probably won't see any problems. If the +12V rail only has 20A, then they may start seeing problems later on, depending on what else is in the system. Dell OEM systems come with PSUs that don't account for much in upgrades... they're specifically chosen for the config they were originally spec'd for.
 
enginurd said:
No problems... yet. ;) It depends how often they stress the system and what PSU came with the system. If its a 305W w/ a heavy +12V rail, then they probably won't see any problems. If the +12V rail only has 20A, then they may start seeing problems later on, depending on what else is in the system. Dell OEM systems come with PSUs that don't account for much in upgrades... they're specifically chosen for the config they were originally spec'd for.
Click to expand...

That's what warantees are for ;) I priced out a "very good" C2Q system for my co-workers, but it was still slightly more than Dell and didn't include a 24" monitor, or a copy of Windows and the Dell came ready to go out of the box. The only thing they had to do was add a 8800GT and another 2GB of ram, both purchased from places cheaper than Dell. Sure the system i specced out could OC like mad, but they won't even use all the capability of a stock quad for years. Dell also shipped for free, which was a HUGE deal because we live in Alaska and shipping would have been $110. Plus Dell can do tech support.
 
I'm not sayin the dell deals are a bad deal, I think they're great deals sometimes... I actually recommend them to many people, lol. I'm just sayin that I'd change the PSU if I added a high powered graphics card to a dell system that came with a low-power PSU. ;)
 
Will the Intel E2180 do ok for gaming? He doesnt really want to OC at all but I guess he could.

Would it be better to step up to a $100-150 processor?
 
darkhunter139 said:
Will the Intel E2180 do ok for gaming? He doesnt really want to OC at all but I guess he could.

Would it be better to step up to a $100-150 processor?
Click to expand...

It'll do fine, and OC'ing to 2.8-3Ghz should be easy enough on stock cooling. If he's on a tight budget, he's better off OC'ing because you can't really get much higher, in terms of stock CPU clock speed, unless you go higher than that $150 budget. Don't worry, these new chips have so much headroom, it won't lower the life of your chip if you keep it under 1.5v and 60°C during full load. As for cache size, its negligible for the sole purpose of gaming.

Cache size reviews:
Does cache size really boost performance? @ Tom's
Influence of L2 Cache Size on Conroe Processors Performance @ XBit
UT3 Review: Cache Scaling: 1MB, 2MB, 4MB @ AnandTech (from Danny)
2MB or 4MB Cache? @ AnandTech (kinda old)
 
Ok hows this build look

SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S203N - OEM

RAIDMAX NINJA ATX-918WB Black SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500AAJS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

XFX PVT94PYDF4 GeForce 9600GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

G.SKILL 2GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL6S-2GBMQ - Retail

ABIT IP35-E LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

Intel Pentium E2180 Allendale 2.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80557E2180 - Retail

Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD - OEM (So he can upgrade to 4 gigs of ram later on)

Then a crosair 550W power supply.

It will cost like $620 afte rebates
 
I'd go for a WD2500AAKS instead of the JS, but thats just me.

As long as he isn't using any old hw/sw/peripherals, 64bit Vista is fine.

Also, as long as he can afford the up-front cost of everything, then it looks good. None of those rebates are guaranteed, and you still have to front the cost of the item.
 
i just built a

q6600
4gb corsair
520hx psu
abit ip35-e
8800gt
antec p180 case

no hdd, mosue,keybaord, monitor

for about $700 total AR.

around $800 - 820 before rebate
 
enginurd said:
I'd go for a WD2500AAKS instead of the JS, but thats just me.

As long as he isn't using any old hw/sw/peripherals, 64bit Vista is fine.

Also, as long as he can afford the up-front cost of everything, then it looks good. None of those rebates are guaranteed, and you still have to front the cost of the item.
Click to expand...

Why arn't they garanteed?
 
darkhunter139 said:
Why arn't they garanteed?
Click to expand...

Because they just aren't -- If they were, they'd be instant rebates. There are a multitude of reasons why you wouldn't get a mail-in rebate. Here are a few that are somewhat out of your control... postmark date (unless you get it certified), post office loses your mail, rebate center loses your application, rebate check gets lost in the mail, the company decides to stop honoring the rebate, the company decides you don't qualify for the rebate for one reason or another, etc. There are other things within your control... like postmark date (certify it -- costs extra, though, lol), follow ALL directions on the application, make copies of all materials submitted, follow up with the rebate and appeal if you have to, cash the rebate check before it expires, etc. Most people get their rebates... there are a few, however, that don't -- thats why companies play the mail-in-rebate game -- instant rebates are taken at the register... mail in rebates have a chance of not being approved, so they have a chance at saving SOME of their money.

Dont forget that you have to front the cost, and that the rebate, if approved, could take up to 6 months. Time is money.
 
I understands that but most rebates i have filled out I have gotten back so I am not too worried.

Does that seem like a good build for $620 after shipping
 
As long as he's comfortable with the pre-rebate price, then its fine. Its common for people to think that mail-in rebates are guaranteed, when they're really not.
 
Check out ebay. There's a guy selling a ton of refurb dell system for around 650. These systems come with a 8800gt, 3gb ram, 500gb hdd, and a e6550 (2.33 ghz). I don't think it can be built for cheaper and just bought one.
 
Will this PC be able to run crysis (not the dell the one I was thinking about putting together for 620)
 
i usually dont bother with rebates. I sent in a samsung rebate over a year ago for $30 and they said they received it but i never got anything back. just look for things that dont have rebates or if you buy something with a rebate dont count on it for you money.
 
darkhunter139 said:
Will this PC be able to run crysis (not the dell the one I was thinking about putting together for 620)
Click to expand...

Depends on the resolution. I say 1280x1024 at medium settings is about as high as the system can go.
 
Hows this hard drive look?

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250310AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
 
Looks good for the price. I've had 4 Seagates in my current rig for about 4 years and have had ZERO problems. Nice and quiet too.
 
SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S203N - OEM

RAIDMAX NINJA ATX-918WB Black SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250310AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

XFX PVT94PYDF4 GeForce 9600GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

G.SKILL 2GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL6S-2GBMQ - Retail

ABIT IP35-E LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

Intel Pentium E2180 Allendale 2.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80557E2180 - Retail

Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD - OEM (So he can upgrade to 4 gigs of ram later on)

Then a crosair 550W power supply.

There is the final build I put together for him.

I think he is going to go ahead and order it. Looks pretty good to me
 
hi I am building a pc for the first time and could use some advice. I plan to do some gaming, i have 1680x1050 monitor. I don't really want to spend too much, but I definitely want this thing to be futureproof. I might overclock a little, but I don't plan on going too crazy.

I don't know much about mobos. It seems like the gigabyte ds3l is pretty popular. Any reason to get a different one?

Also, heatsink? and can I use that pc2 6400 ram for the gigabyte mobo?

sound? I dont plan on buying a sound card so how is gigabyte onboard sound.

Lastly, i have a 430W thermaltake psu. That should be okay right?

Case – $60 M9 Antec Nine Hundred
other possibilties: VI1000BWS or p182
Mobo – $90 GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35
other possibilities: ABIT IP35 Pro ATX Intel
Cpu – $250 Q6600
Heatsink – $30 ??
Hd – $140 western digital caviar 640gig
Ram – $50 CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
Gfx card – $200 evga 8800gt
Dvd drive – $30 samsung dvd burner

Thanks.
 
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