[angelo88]

I'm planning to build a gaming rig, it's my first time to attempt building one from the ground up. I'm on a budget, too, so I'll be getting a core2duo e7500(although I may try to put a bit more into it and get a e8400, but that's not a sure thing yet).

I'm planning to get 2 gigs of ram. I was initially planning to get 4 gigs, but people told me that in games, you don't really need much RAM as you do a good GPU. And I guess they have a point, especially since I can easily buy an extra 2 gigs of RAM sometime down the road since individually they're not that expensive. So, it's down to what graphics card I'm going to get.

I don't understand specs as much, but I was initially planning to get a Nvidia gtx 260. However, some friends of mine(and people from other online forums) have told me that the Radeon 5770 is way better. After doing more research and forum hopping, I'm pretty much sold on the 5770. But just to make sure, I'd like to ask you guys what you think? Specifically, I'd like to ask someone to try to convince me that the gtx 260 is a better deal than the 5770, just to see if I'm sure about the Radeon card. Thanks!

 

[MrLinky]

the gtx 260 IS more powerful than the 5770, but it also costs more. The 4890 is less than the 260 and is faster than both the 260 and 5770. But the 5770 has dx 11, eyefinity, and will become better as drivers improve.

Also, you are right that the gpu will make a bigger difference vs ram, but a 2x2gb kit of ram is only a tiny bit more than a 2x1gb pack, and the extra 2gigs WILL help.

As for the cpu, you should look into an i5-based setup... they core2's are way overpriced considering their age, and the i5 route may not be more expensive (mobos are very inexpensive and ddr3 ram is the same price as ddr2).

EDIT: welcome to OCN!

 

[Fear of Oneself]

Okay, your not going to be gaming on XP (i hope) so 2gigs is not enough, get a 2x2gb kit. Next, i say 5770 hands down, it may not be "as fast" at the moment, but when drivers mature it will pull ahead. Also, it has DX11 support.
I would also say get an Xfire board so you can Xfire later, you would have a DX11 monster. I say 5770, 4gb of RAM and maybe not get an e8400 yet, wait a year or so and C2Q's should be cheaper. hope i helped, and welcome to the forum

 

[D3FiN3 SiN]

Don't buy a lower end Core 2 Duo, get a Phenom II. You can get a Phenom II quad core for the price of an E8400.

 

[angelo88]

The e8400(and consequently the phenom II x4) is still a big if, so let's say I only have enough cash for a e7500, will that suffice for say, the next 2 years? Or will core2duos really have a hard time with games? Note I'm not really a hardcore gamer, and I'm not really planning to get a big screen. A 20'' lcd is my plan. I just want to know if I can still play games comfortably a year or 2 from now(doesn't have to be highest settings, mid to mid-high will do) until I upgrade.

Yeah, I'm planning to get an extra 2 gigs later on, like a month after.

 

[tNok85]

What's your budget?

Do you live near a Microcenter by chance?

 

[CDub07]

Won't comment on anything but the ram. Im running a Athlon II X4 620 on Vista and it just feels like it would be a little more smoother with 4GBs of Ram. Get the RAM!!!!!!

 

[MrLinky]

Quote:

Originally Posted by angelo88 The e8400(and consequently the phenom II x4) is still a big if, so let's say I only have enough cash for a e7500, will that suffice for say, the next 2 years? Or will core2duos really have a hard time with games? Note I'm not really a hardcore gamer, and I'm not really planning to get a big screen. A 20'' lcd is my plan. I just want to know if I can still play games comfortably a year or 2 from now(doesn't have to be highest settings, mid to mid-high will do) until I upgrade.

A core2 duo, with 4gb of ram and a 5770 will still be able to play most games on medium to medium-high for several more years. Its not a BAD or unusually slow cpu, but considering a phenom II or i5 will only be a little more money for much more power, its worth it to atleast do some shopping and see if its in your budget. But still, your original build will be fine

 

[Sethy666]

As someone said, you not going to use XP... so 2 x 2gb ram is definitely the way to go.

If your budget can afford it, skip the E8400 and go i7. I love my E8400 but the "i" series seem the most logical path for CPU choice.

GPU - Im bias, I like nVidia but the 5770s seems like a beast - GTX 300s have been pushed back, so its a good choice.

Other things to consider...
what mobo are you looking at?
CPU cooler?
Dont forget your PSU..

 

[kcratos]

I agree that 4 gigs of ram is a must with the current operating systems, but what is your budget exactly?

 

[angelo88]

I live in the Philippines, so I don't know of there are any Microcenters around haha. Ok, I think I'll go with the Radeon 5770 then.

My budget's around 30k pesos, which is roughly $650. Here's what I'm planning to get. I'll post the price in dollars so you guys will have an idea of how much the stuff costs here. Take note that the price are as is, since we sell stuff here with tax already included in the price.

Intel Core 2 Duo E7500 - Php 5500 = $118.30
Gigabyte GA-EP43-US3L Intel P45 - Php 4950 = $111.79
Corsair Gaming Memory 2GB DDR2 800 - Php 2500= $54.27
Sapphire HD 5770 1gb - Php 8200 = $178
HEC Win+ 550w - Php 3450 = $74.89

The following are just stuff I got randomly, didn't really shop much for them, coz IMO they're not as important as the stuff above.

Seagate Barracuda 500GB HDD SATA - Php 2550 = $55.35
Samsung SH-S223 DVD writer - Php 1300 = $28.87
Casing: Gigabyte GZ-X6 - Php 1550 = $33.65

Total - Php 30,000 = $651.18

So that's pretty much it. I dunno if I can stretch it and get a better processor, since I don't really have that much cash. The E8400 costs around $70 more(the best deal I could find), and the Phenom II x3 costs $159(that seems to be the going price here), around $40 more.

And I read online that 32 bit Operating Systems don't read more than 3 gigs of ram, and I'll be using a 32 bit Windows 7 OS (got it for free from my school, they had some deal with Microsoft or something like that), so will the extra RAM be necessary? I'm not one to multi-task, when I play games that's pretty much all I do.

So what do you guys think?

 

[MrLinky]

Quote:

Originally Posted by angelo88 And I read online that 32 bit Operating Systems don't read more than 3 gigs of ram, and I'll be using a 32 bit Windows 7 OS so will the extra RAM be necessary?

being a 32 bit OS means it is limited to USING 3.6gb of ram. However, Vista and 7 will tell you how much ram is INSTALLED, and thats what alot of people get confused about. There are workarounds and hacks to use more than 3.6gb on a 32 bit OS, but im not familiar with them.

And for your budget, it'll be impossible to build an i5 setup, and pretty hard to build a phenom II rig. You're probably just better off going the core 2 duo route right now.

 

[Pao]

You're building a gaming computer, buy an AMD Phenom II x3 720 for $120, and you're golden, much better off then your C2D option.

 

[Fear of Oneself]

okay, $650, not bad. Lets start from the ground up, with that low of a budget, your Going AMD (that's what i had to do) CPUs+mobo's are dirt cheap, and the Phenom II's rip. Ill start looking now, keep in mind, these are Canadian prices, but they should give you an idea of a ~general amount
these prices are all off of TigerDirect.ca btw
Athlon II X4 620 109.97
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applicatio...8&Sku=A79-0620
ASUS M4A78T-E 171.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applicatio...096&CatId=4296
OCZ PC3-10666 Platinum RAM DDR3 99.97
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applicatio...464&CatId=3361
Ultra LSP650 650-Watt Power Supply 69.97
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applicatio...Sku=ULT-LSP650

And what you found was good, the 5770. Case and other stuff. I just think that this is a good price for a quad core, and since it's AM3, you'll have processors for this platform until 2012. Also you could put another 5770 in in maybe 4~5 years, when they are dirt cheap

I don't know if you have all of this in the Phillipenes, but it's a good idea to shop around if you guys have TigerDirect.ph for newegg.ph lol

Also a side note, clock for clock, an athlon II X4 is faster than a Phenom II X3

 

[angelo88]

Seriously? The athlon beats the phenom? What if I try to unlock the 4th core, will that make the phenom faster than the athlon?

And I'm pretty much a dunce when it comes to processors, but someone told me that the Phenom II x3 would be better than an intel core2duo(which I was initially planning to get) or quad core because it uses integrated memory control rather than a FSB, so if that's true, would the athlon II have IMC as well?

And wouldn't it be better to get a motherboard without a integrated graphics chip coz they'd be cheaper? I was thinking of getting either the MSI 770-C45 or the Gigabyte GA-MA770T-UD3P, what say you about these mobos?

Unfortunately, we don't have as varied a stock of hardware here as we do there, and those 2 are pretty much the only amd 770 mobos I could find.

 

[angelo88]

Oh, and another thing. If I won't be overclocking anything in my system, but I'll be gaming alot, will I still need to buy extra cooling fans? Or will the stock coolers be fine?