Okay so I am building my first rig right now and I've done a lot of research. I've also consulted with pronstar who has been tremendously helpful in this entire process. I'm trying to make a computer that costs around $500-600 dollars, as close to $500 as possible.
What we have so far: RAM 66.50 (after 20.00 MIR) CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp.. OR 44.99 G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
I am pretty sure I am going to switch the $150 dollar video card out for one of the other two for cost purposes (pretty much 100% sure unless I stumble upon some money - highly unlikely) so your input on which of the two I put up or any suggestions for cards around that $70-80 mark would be helpful. Also, with regards to the 2x2GB of memory as opposed to the 2x1GB of memory, my school gave out free copies of "Microsoft WIndows XP Professional x64 Edition," would I be able to use the 4GB of ram with that OS and, if so, would that version of XP work with my build?
If you are on a budget, in order to save money to get the best cpu/mobo/vid card youll need to skimp elsewhere;
get the BFG 8800GT 512mb, it has a lifetime warranty and great card for value, dont buy the GS or 256mb versions theyre crap.
if youre going with vista, 4gb of ram. dont skimp here.
get a smaller / cheaper HD, do you really need 500 GIGS? I got a 160gb SG for 40$ do you have an old HD you can use?
do you have an old psu/dvdrom/cdrom you can use in the meantime to save money ? a 400w will run your system
get a cheaper case or use the old one.
hd 80$ case 55$ psu 60$ dvdrom 30$ == 225$ in savings if you can use any old parts to supplement your new computer
if you make savings on the parts that have absolutely no impact on performance,you can get a much better motherboard, even cpu and afford the good video card.
About the case check out your Local Bestbuy store and ask if they have a rocketfish full tower on sale XD I got mine for $49.99 on sale. They were made by Lian Li
Looks good. If you're just playing Source games then the 8800GS will be sufficient, but I guarantee you'll want to upgrade after a few months. Having said that, the 8800GT is definitely worth another month of waiting. :D
Scorp is right...keep researching,check the good and bad reviews on Newegg.I bought a Lite-On DVD drive,and it ended up crashing my comp every time i played a game.I would of never bought it if i saw the "this DVD drive will give you the blue-sreen-of-death" in the bad reviews section.I fixed the problem but there are risks.Also,be careful buying cheaper PSUs...its one of the most important components in a computer.I bought that HD..500 gig,and i love it.Tons of space,but to save money maybe a smaller size HD.I also suggest a better CPU.. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
...to make sure noone has anything else to say before I buy the parts!
I will be buying the 8800GS and Corsair RAM.
(Also, Sub221 - why do you say that I'm putting my money down the pisser? "Buy something decent" do you mean spend absurd amounts of your parent's money on a system? I'm a college student, as I said, I'm not looking to spend lots of money).
I have a couple questions about it. Is the upgrade in CPU from the 2.53 to the 3.0 worth it? Will the decreased size of the HDD really matter? I realize the Video Card is relatively crap - do you have any better suggestions for the $50-80 price range for that? I know eventually I will probably upgrade it, but for now (if you have no suggestions) will it run my Source games as well as upcoming games like Diablo 3 and others well enough in your opinions?
New Rig Help! (researched)
What we have so far:
RAM
66.50 (after 20.00 MIR)
CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory – Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
OR
44.99
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
HDD
79.99
Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
CPU
129.99
Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 Wolfdale 2.53GHz 3MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
MOBO
59.99
GIGABYTE GA-G31M-S2L LGA 775 Intel G31 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
PSU
59.99 (after 15.00 MIR)
CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W ATX12V V2.2 Power Supply 90 - 264 V UL, CUL, CE, CB, FCC Class B, TUV, CCC, C-tick - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
Case
54.99 (after 15.00 MIR)
APEVIA X-JUPITER-JR S-Type X-JPJST-BK Black SECC Steel Chassis ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
Rom
29.99
SAMSUNG Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
Video Card
149.99 (after 20.00 MIR)
EVGA 512-P3-N801-AR GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card – Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
OR
79.99 (after 30.00 MIR)
EVGA 384-P3-N851-AR GeForce 8800 GS 384MB 192-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
OR
69.99 (after 30.00 MIR)
GIGABYTE GV-NX88T256HV1 GeForce 8800 GT 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
I am pretty sure I am going to switch the $150 dollar video card out for one of the other two for cost purposes (pretty much 100% sure unless I stumble upon some money - highly unlikely) so your input on which of the two I put up or any suggestions for cards around that $70-80 mark would be helpful. Also, with regards to the 2x2GB of memory as opposed to the 2x1GB of memory, my school gave out free copies of "Microsoft WIndows XP Professional x64 Edition," would I be able to use the 4GB of ram with that OS and, if so, would that version of XP work with my build?
Thanks for your help and sorry to wall of text!
get the BFG 8800GT 512mb, it has a lifetime warranty and great card for value, dont buy the GS or 256mb versions theyre crap.
if youre going with vista, 4gb of ram. dont skimp here.
get a smaller / cheaper HD, do you really need 500 GIGS? I got a 160gb SG for 40$
do you have an old HD you can use?
do you have an old psu/dvdrom/cdrom you can use in the meantime to save money ? a 400w will run your system
get a cheaper case or use the old one.
hd 80$
case 55$
psu 60$
dvdrom 30$
== 225$ in savings if you can use any old parts to supplement your new computer
if you make savings on the parts that have absolutely no impact on performance,you can get a much better motherboard, even cpu and afford the good video card.
Get the 8800GT 512MB if you can and OC it :)
And about the HD isn't that too big?
About the case check out your Local Bestbuy store and ask if they have a rocketfish full tower on sale XD I got mine for $49.99 on sale. They were made by Lian Li
1!!!!!
Good build.
You'll be able to use the 4gigs of RAM, so get the Corsair set.
If you're going to play at high resolutions (over 1280x) you should get the 8800GS
If you're going to play at lower than 1280x, get the 8800GT 256.
#7
The E6850 ain't better than the E7200.
...to make sure noone has anything else to say before I buy the parts!
I will be buying the 8800GS and Corsair RAM.
(Also, Sub221 - why do you say that I'm putting my money down the pisser? "Buy something decent" do you mean spend absurd amounts of your parent's money on a system? I'm a college student, as I said, I'm not looking to spend lots of money).
RAM
66.50 (after 20.00 MIR)
CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory – Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
HDD
54.99
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
CPU
184.99
Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 Conroe 3.0GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
MOBO
59.99
GIGABYTE GA-G31M-S2L LGA 775 Intel G31 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
PSU
59.99 (after 15.00 MIR)
CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W ATX12V V2.2 Power Supply 90 - 264 V UL, CUL, CE, CB, FCC Class B, TUV, CCC, C-tick - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
Case
54.99 (after 15.00 MIR)
APEVIA X-JUPITER-JR S-Type X-JPJST-BK Black SECC Steel Chassis ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
Rom
29.99
SAMSUNG Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
Video Card
69.99 (after 30.00 MIR)
GIGABYTE GV-NX88T256HV1 GeForce 8800 GT 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp..
I have a couple questions about it. Is the upgrade in CPU from the 2.53 to the 3.0 worth it? Will the decreased size of the HDD really matter? I realize the Video Card is relatively crap - do you have any better suggestions for the $50-80 price range for that? I know eventually I will probably upgrade it, but for now (if you have no suggestions) will it run my Source games as well as upcoming games like Diablo 3 and others well enough in your opinions?
Thanks!
Chris
p.s. thanks again pronstar
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