Another "Check my PC parts" thread

L

Lance

EGO Zealot
Joined
Feb 4, 2009
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Alright, I'm building a supercheap PC (hopefully under 400 dollars) that will at least play any Source games at decent settings at decent speeds.

The shopping list:
  • Cheap Rosewill case (I'm a "just a cold box" kind of person, it could look like a cardboard box for all I care... in fact, that'd actually be cool)
  • Probably WD hard drive just from what I've found on Newegg, but any suggestions on this very welcome
  • ASRock 780G (A780FullHD, to be exact) AMD Motherboard
  • Athlon X2 4850e (yeah, it's only a 2.5 GHz dual core, but I have been playing on a 2 GHz Intel Dual Core [not sure if it's Core 2 Duo or Pentium Dual Core or what] which runs TF2 and GMOD fine, so this should be enough)
  • Kingston 2x2 GB DDR2 800 RAM (twice what the aforementioned PC has, and I've had good luck with the Kingston RAM I've bought before)
  • Sapphire Radeon HD 3850 512MB. Seems like the best deal, as long as I don't have huge AA or a "ridiculous" resolution
  • Lite-On 22x DVD Burner... my other Lite-On Drive actually works ok, considering the prices of the things

Any suggestions that will keep this cheap are welcome. I'm thinking the CPU might be the bottleneck, but I don't have a whole lot of actual experience using this kind of hardware (for reference, best PC in the house is the aforementioned Dual 2GHz, 2 GB RAM, and NVIDIA IGP of some sort [does at least have a good amount of memory]) so most likely someone else knows better, and being eGO I'm sure anyone with knowledge is willing to help :)
 
With your specs, the only issue you will have will be with the hard drive. A computer is only as fast as the slowest hardware. You will need at least a 7200 to take full advantage of those specs, or even a variable speed drive that uses 5400 RPM but then switches to 7200 RPM under highload. Other than that, your CPU is overpowered as far as running Source. Your RAM is overload as far as most games are concerned. The motherboard and video card are more than sufficient.
 
I'd start by telling us what your max budget is. then list your current pc parts. Be as detailed as you can. Like with most computers you can just use the drives and cases from them. Save a lil more money. I dunno about you, but every little bit helps ;)


As far as making htat a gaming system, we can do better man... it'll be a good one, but we can do better, just give use a budget!!


ninja edit! the new 720 x3 is proally right up your ally!!!
 
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He already gave us his budget, $400.

E5200: $73 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116072

Ignore the 'Pentium', it's a Wolfdale, without the SSE4 instructions and 2MB of L2 cache. Best of all, you can overclock it to around 3GHz quite easily.

Gigabyte GA-EP43-UD3L: $85 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128380

Kingston 4GB DDR2 800: $45 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134641

Sapphire HD4830: $90 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102822

WD Caviar SE 160GB: $42 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136075

Corsair VX450: $70 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139003

Total: $405

We still need a case...if you can cough up an extra $50, then we can get this CoolerMaster Centurion 5 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119068
 
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OCZ 500W Power Supply ($60 + free shipping - $20 MIR) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341012

Corsair 4GB DDR2 800 ($45 + free shipping -$25 MIR) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145184

G.Skill 4GB DDR2 800 ($40 + free shipping) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231122

Rosewill Case ($30 + free shipping) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147068

Go with the OCZ power supply and Corsair memory, and you are $55 under Hardhat's build with the mail in rebates. Don't like MIR? Then go GSkill and forget the OCZ MIR, you are still $15 under, which is half of that case!

Normally I would suggest AMD for a cheap build, but I actually really like Hardhat's mobo/cpu combo there. Great price. You could go:

Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-US2H ($80 - $10 MIR) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128379

plus

AMD 64 X2 7750 ($60) http://microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0306467
 
Stay away from the OCZ. It ripples under high load. It's low on amps for the 12v rails. Crack open the casing, and its internals are of low quality.

Compare the quality of its inside: http://www.techaddicts.net/reviews/stealth500/stealth500.html

Ignore the 'Value Award', i only used that site for a picture of its internal parts, not for their poor methodology in testing a PSU.

To the Corsair VX450: http://www.silentpcreview.com/article751-page3.html

See the difference? The Corsair's $10 more, but its a price worth paying for in the long run. You're on a tight budget, but that's no reason to skimp on the most important part of any PC. Go with the Corsair.
 
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I swear, you guys are better than dedicated tech support forums!

Ryken, that 7750 sounds good, but I'd like to stick with Newegg, and they don't seem to carry it :( Your other stuff was still helpful, though! :)

Is the Intel dual core enough of an advantage over AMD's offering with the same "frequency" to justify the extra money? After all, the AMD is only about 55 dollars, and the ASRock motherboard sounds decent for around the same price (55-60).

Also, http://www.tomshardware.com/news/Radeon-4830-RV740,7324.html doesn't exactly flatter the 4830. It does have double the Stream processors the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102794 I was looking at before has, but it sounds like there may be better options.

Anybody have any personal suggestions on the RAM, or is it just whatever set's the cheapest?

Any idea what size fan fits in the front of that Rosewill case? For that matter, do you think I'll need another one?

You're great helps, but we're not done shopping yet, it seems :P
 
If you are going to overclock, then you need to get 4-4-4-12 in the 800DDR2.... if you are not going to oC, you can affford less in the timings...

If you can wait for the rebate, I would use this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220293

Partially because it is cheap after rebate, but I have been running Patriot RAM in my computer for years now.... absolutely no problems (I run 3GB of the stuff with a smalled heatsink).

Ram: Patriot Viper 2x2GB ($53; $28 after MIR)
PSU: Corsair VX450 looks great ($70; $60 after MIR)
Case: Antec 300 ($55)
Mobo: GIGABYTE GA-G31M-ES2L ($53)
CPU: Pentium E5200 ($73)
Video: MSI R4670-2D1G/D3 Radeon HD 4670 1GB ($89; $59 after MIR)
HDD: Western Digital Caviar RE WD2500YD ($40)
Optical: Use your old drive

Total: $433 before MIR.... $368 after...

My reasonsing is pretty simple.... it is obvious that you do not expect to play everything at max settings, so I looked at power consumption too. My gaming rig is 1.5-2 years old now and it looks like this:

Case: Antec 900
PSU: OCZ 700w StealthXtreme
Mobo: Asus P5B-E
CPU: Pentium E6600
Ram: 3GB Patriot 4-4-4-12 800DDR2
Video: Gigabyte 3870 512mb
HDD: 250GB WD Sata... the same one I listed above

My rig does GREAT with TF2 and the few other games I play... it may not be the BEST, but it is very good. The system I laid out for you meets you price point and should be VERY similar to mine in performance.

Antec 300? I like Antec cases.... the 300, 900, 1200 line does an excellent job at managing heat and they are pretty quiet. They are also easy to work with and look pretty darn good. Both my wife and my brother in law (both rigs built by me) use the 300... except for the top fan, the 300 is much better than the old 900 (my case).

Gigabyte board? Highest rated and a large number of reviews on newegg. Sounds stupid, but their reviews are based off of real world people. I built my wife's computer (and the inlaw) using a little larger Gigabyte board and was very happy with it. This board will also give you the flexibility for some overclocking if you choose to try it.

Video card? I am very happy with my 3870... it does an excellent job in TF2. The 4670 seems to be the current card that closely resembles the 3870. It also consumes about half as much power than my 3870 and has twice the ram as my card... so it should give you a little bit of a bump over my 3870. The lower power will help preserve your PSU and generates less heat so it helps keep the AC bill down.

CPU... again.... closely resembles my CPU on paper... and it is pretty darn cheap... overclocks reliably... and in the future... the mobo will still allow you to upgrade to a E8500 if your heart desires.

I think I am actually going to write this down and hand to my sister in law... she is wanting a computer... i think she would be hard pressed to beat this... :D
 
The Intel offering is faster clock for clock, and is definitely worth the extra money. For your budget, there is no better gaming card than the 4830.

And as for RAM, since you're on such a small budget, go for the G.Skill pair Ryken suggested.
 
I don't know Hardhat, I look at that review, plus the reviews and advice I've seen from countless people, and they all like OCZ power supplies. The OCZ has 36amps across two 12V rails, as opposed to 33A on a single rail for the Corsair. Yes, it is better to have them on one rail, no, it probably won't ever make a difference for this budget build.

The Intel will be faster than that 7750, but it's also more money. Intel is by far the super cpu, but it is also more expensive. I have never ordered anything online from micro center, but I buy stuff at their store all the time, and they have really great customer service for what it is worth. They also might have a real store in your location, worth checking out.

The Antec 300 is a very very nice case. I wish I had built my computer in it instead of a Centurion 5. It is, however, $70 after shipping from newegg. I've also built an Antec p182 and a $20 case from MicroCenter, and I can tell you there is a difference in build quality, noise, and cable management, but at the end of the day, they both are metal boxes with a power button. On a budget build, your money is better spent elsewhere.

It looks like there are a couple of holes in the front that should fit an 80, 90, and 120mm fan. I would measure it when you get the bad boy, and then order the fan separate.

EDIT: I've done 4 builds with Gigabyte boards, and I am a huge fan. Always packaged nicely, good manual, and well laid out boards.
 
I'll vouch for the 4830. I have that card, and I love it. It's powerful enough to play TF2 at 1600x1050 high settings at 50-60FPS, and is just all around a great card for the price!
 
*hudda hudda hudda*
*tarzan yell*
*head explodes*
*gets Gorilla Glue, reconstructs*

Alright then, continuing the research (also, glad to help your sister-in-law I-Die-Often o_O), here we GOOOO.

In order of posts:
Not planning to overclock, but see the item 3 steps down.

For the future, I'd like a board with 4 RAM slots, so i guess if I go for Intel+GB, I'm getting the 84.99 one... unless you think the MOBO would be something more likely to be upgraded in the future anyway (yeah, here I am spending a ridiculously low price on a gaming PC, and already talking about future proofing :P)

Guess it's the G-Skill, then.

As it turns out, there is a Micro Center pretty near where a friend of ours lives, and we visit him pretty often. You guys think the Intel (including the Motherboard prices) is still worth the extra money? This is a BE AMD (which apparently come with cooling now, not sure if that's good or bad), so if the maboard (I made that up) supports it it's easy to overclock (I think that ASRock one I mentioned a couple times lets us change the multiplier, but I never looked too close).

Guess it's the 4830, then.

And the Corsair, then.

The current list, then.


  • Think we'll go with Rosewill case... if need be, I'll open it up and put a tabletop fan on it. I don't pay for the electricity anyway. HA. HA. HA.
  • The 160 or 250 GB HDD. I hear Newegg's shipping can be rough on these things, would Micro Center be a better bet? Only like $7 more, and if it means I don't have to pay for return shipping, yay.
  • Don't think anyone mentioned CD/DVD drive. No comments on the Lite-On one I found on Newegg?
  • 7750/E5200
  • AMD Board (ASROCK A780FullHD?)/Gigabyte EP43
  • G-Skill RAM
  • 450VX PSU
  • HD 4830

Bedtime :closedeyes:
 
Thank you, that helps my decision a lot :) I love when I find reviews and such focusing on the exact things I'm looking for.

I think if I can get to the store soon I'll go for the 7750, but if not I'll go for convenience over price and get the E5200.

Updated list, things in bold with ?'s are things I'd still like to discuss
  • Rosewill R6426-P
  • The 160 or 250 GB WD HDD
  • Lite-On CD/DVD burner?
  • 7750BE/E5200
  • ASROCK A780FullHD?/Gigabyte EP43
  • G-Skill 2x2 GB DDR2 800 RAM
  • Corsair 450VX PSU
  • HD 4830

Sounding ok?
 
Lite-On burners are actually pretty good merchandise despite their bargain-basement price. I have one in my machine now, runs quite well.
 
Yea after reading that review. It looks like the 7750 is better for source games. It did a lot better on left 4 dead than the e5200. Other than that it looks like you got yourself a solid gaming rig. :)
 
You're gonna love Micro Center. Mine is completely out of the 1980's, and is full of huge computer nerds. It's a really great place.

As for your rig, welcome to the world of budget gaming. Nothing better than paying less and playing almost the same. I'm a huge budget gaming guy myself. It's just really satisfying to find the best deals. I think you are going to be really happy with your setup.

I have a Lite-On DVD Burner with Lightscribe. It works very well, and I only have two complaints. It is not quiet, at all. If you don't like drive noise, you would hate mine. Also, when it opens, it looks like it is stuck, and opens slowly. I don't know if this is a Lite-On thing, or just my drive, but it has been very reliable. Make sure to go SATA.

Have you ever put a computer together before? If not, let us know, and I'm sure we can give you some good tips to make everything go smoothly.
 
I have a Micro Center within walking distance of my house (Denver DTC) and I love that place. It's typically more expensive than newegg, but if I desperately need a SATA cable at 8:00pm on a tuesday, they are open until 9!
 
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