$400~$500 Gaming PC. Advice please.

801 Views 15 Replies 12 Participants Last post by TheJack, Dec 1, 2009

Snowman1989

Discussion Starter · Dec 1, 2009

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You're forgetting the most expensive component: video card. I would just go for a 9800gtx, you can find them hovering around $120 and they should be able to play most games at that res (maybe not on the highest settings, but that resolution none the less)

IMHO, I like corsair memory better, and I perfer western digital over Seagate. Both are the best in their fields.

The mouse isn't worth spending a penny over. Save up your money and get a logitech g5 or get their new one: g500. Trust me, if you're into gaming, you won't regret it.

CPU and mobo are pretty meh, but if you're going for an inexpensive build, those two brands are the way to go.

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Snowman1989

Discussion Starter · #3 · Dec 1, 2009

I left the GPU out because whatever money is left after picking all the parts is how much my friend is gonna spend on the GPU.

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mmparkskier

· #4 · Dec 1, 2009

So far, it looks good. It's incomplete but it's good so far. I can vouch for the PSU, it works just fine.

9800GTX+, mine games just fine @ 1920x1080

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snowman1989

I left the GPU out because whatever money is left after picking all the parts is how much my friend is gonna spend on the GPU.

Meh, gotcha.

EDIT2:

I'd go with a differnet motherboard. Asus M4A785TD-M EVO or Asus M4A785-M. With either of those, you can do hybrid CrossFireX, saving you some money on the GPU.

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quentin

· #5 · Dec 1, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snowman1989

I left the GPU out because whatever money is left after picking all the parts is how much my friend is gonna spend on the GPU.

I don't think that's very wise...what if he has $50 left over? Is he gonna buy a fx5200? Lol

Out of the many systems I've built (many for myself, a gamer) I always direct the majority of my funds to the cpu and gpu. He knows what he wants, and in order to get that, he's going to need a decent cpu and decent gpu. The rest you can skimp on if you want, but don't skimp on the main components. The main components should be the ones you buy first, or put into your cart first...not last.

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eugeniokano

· #6 · Dec 1, 2009

I'm the friend that snow is speaking of. I don't do a lot of gaming but I want the possibility to do so. I want to at least run WoW @ 1920 x 1200 on highest settings.

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mmparkskier

· #7 · Dec 1, 2009

Pair up either of the motherboards I posted with this video card, and you should be fine. Unfortunately my knowledge in ATI's selection is limited, so I don't really know what card to pick out.

EDIT:

Well, I did a bit more research in the area of "Hybrid CrossfireX" and it looks like a load to me. Never mind about what I said about it.

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edalbkrad

· #8 · Dec 1, 2009

budget the 300$ for the pc. That should get a decent dual core athon 240. the remaining 100$ for videocard. At least 8800GT 512mb to handle wow.
or add a little more and get HD 4770 or GTS 250

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eugeniokano

· #9 · Dec 1, 2009

Thanks. I'm jus going to get what I have so far.

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Sm3gH3ad

· #10 · Dec 1, 2009

i remember running wow with my 3870 at about 1/2 of the max draw distance and 3/4 shadows at 1440 x 900, 4x aa, 16x af with everything else maxed.... yea it was really laggy, shadows KILL

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SyncMaster753

· #11 · Dec 1, 2009

i would recommend buying your video card from the for sale section here on OCN, we replace our cards WAY faster than they break down, most of them still have a warranty on them.

that way you could bag a 4870 for ~$110

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LarsMarkelson

· #12 · Dec 1, 2009

Used 940BE and used AM2+ mobo. You can get them for real cheap since people are off loading them to get a 965 C3 AM3. Then use the extra money for a video card.

Profit!

If you want to get new, here's a good CPU/MB combo for $150: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...t=Combo.294418

I'd definitely get a Black Edition processor as it'll be a lot easier to overclock high. For gaming 2 cores will do you good, especially if you can overclock them to something like 3.8, which you should be able to do at least with that 550BE. 555BE C3 should be coming out soon though, might want to get that instead... that should be able to hit 4GHz easily (at least) on something like $40 cooling.

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Ktulu

· #13 · Dec 1, 2009

You could shave 60 bucks off by going for 2 gigs or RAM and Athlon II X2. You don't need the extra RAM and CPU to max out WoW, it will be all up to your video card at that high of resolution.

You can barely build a respectable gaming PC at any resolution for 400 bucks, even if you have a monitor. You have to catch a good deal somewhere to make the difference. So with my suggestion you have 50 extra bucks for a GPU but for 500 bucks you are sitll looking at only 60 bucks (after all the purchases in the OP excluding tax for Cali) to meet your budget. if you go AM2 you will save on RAM DDR2 cheaper than DDR3) and on a motherboard. You could get a mobo for 50 and 2 gigs of RAM for 30 that would free you up another 60 bucks for a decent card like a ATI 4850 or Nvidia 9800 GTX+. FYI the Nvidia 9800 performs better at no Antiliaising compared to the ATI 4850, but if you add 4x anti-alising ([email protected] Settings) then they are about neck and neck, but you might have to dial down some eye candy to get good FPS in some areas.

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THEoBZ

· #14 · Dec 1, 2009

MY advice to you is buy used.

If anything buy a new motherboard and PSU, buy used everything else.

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W4LNUT5

· #15 · Dec 1, 2009

This was a 300 budget build for my GF's parents. You can compare it to what you have if you want. Good luck

https://secure.newegg.com/WishList/M...px?ID=16599987

Edit: After looking at that again, it looks like the prices have all changed. It used to be 279 or something, but now lists at 301. Either way, its another reference

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TheJack

· #16 · Dec 1, 2009

For a card right @ $100 he should look at the ATI 4770

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