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#1
8th Oct 2008, 19:45
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Ok so here's the story:
I've got this guy who I'm helping build a computer. I've built one once before, and I couldn't have ever done it without you guys. So I'm back! I've got two rough builds and here's the reason why I have two: The guy came to me and said "Hey, I want a gaming PC." I asked him under what guidelines (max spending, what different specs, blah blah.) These are his only rules: No more than $600, 3GB ram, 150-200GB H/D, a decent enough/good processor. Also he has an ancient Video card he wants to transfer untill he can buy a new one so he wants the Motherboard to have at least 1 PCI slot (easy-as-pie I said). Also there is no need to include the following extras in a build as he will be using his current peripherals and such: Monitor Speakers Operating System Keyboard Mouse So here's the first build I came up with, and this is pretty much along his guidelines with obviously some more money to spend. Build A: Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115037 $169.99 Motherboard: MSI P6NG Neo-Digital LGA 775 NVIDIA GeForce 7100 / nForce 630i HDMI ATX Intel Motherboard – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813130186 $74.99 Memory (RAM): Kingston 2GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820134797 $27.99 And: Kingston 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820134487 $14.49 H/D: Western Digital Caviar SE WD1600AAJS 160GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive – OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136075 $41.99 Case: COOLER MASTER Elite 330 RC-330-KKN1-GP Black SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119115 $39.99 Power Supply: Broadway Com Corp P4-OKIA600-BLACK 600W ATX Power Supply – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817162017 $29.99 Overall cost: $399.43 before S&H and potentially Tax. As you can see I didn't include a video card in that one as his guidelines suggested. Now, throwing in a video card and a bit more ram and a different motherboard, I made a better build using more of his expendable $600 dollars. Build B: Motherboard: ASUS P5K SE EPU LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131278 $84.99 Video Card: EVGA 256-P2-N761-TR GeForce 8600 GTS 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130394 $79.99 Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115037 $169.99 Ram: Kingston 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820134730 $56.99 H/D: Western Digital Caviar SE WD1600AAJS 160GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive – OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136075 $41.99 Case: COOLER MASTER Elite 330 RC-330-KKN1-GP Black SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119115 $39.99 Power Supply: COOLER MASTER eXtreme Power RP-550-PCAR 550W ATX from factor 12V V2.01 Power Supply – Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817171016 $69.99 Overall cost: $543.93 Now my question to you all is: Are there any parts I shouldn't buy due to lack of quality? Are there any parts I should replace because I can get the same thing for less/better thing for the same price? Is everything compatible in these two builds? Any other suggested changes you'd like to make to either of the two builds? When suggesting a change, please specify which build you are changing. |
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#2
8th Oct 2008, 20:49
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Try reading this thread. It will give you some suggestions that may change your mind. One thing I think for sure that Carbon (the author of the thread) would say is that instead of the P35 motherboard you are looking at, try one that is P45. But read the thread. Lots of good info and if you scroll down the first post far enough your will see some recommended builds. Since you aren't getting some of the peripherals included in those three builds, you could easily get others from higher priced builds.
http://www.computer-juice.com/forums...station-18844/ |
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#3
9th Oct 2008, 00:41
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Yeah, not too bad but you can do a little bit better. I'd just point you to the budget build in the guide, but I might as well address this in a little more detail because that's a _little_ out of date (not a gamechanger though).
First off, his 3GB rule is a little silly. 3GB will knock your RAM out of dual channel - mixing memory sets tends to cause a lot of headaches and it's not really worth it. I think we can fit in 4GB of RAM here, though. The E8400 is a great processor, but for a $600 build, it's a little overkill. Generally speaking, the first thing you want to chop off in a gaming build when your budget gets tight is a "high-end" CPU - mostly because it's nice to have a higher one clocked out of the box but a E7200 or even E5200 is very similar in performance. I don't like that power supply. Either of them. I've never heard of Broadway, and Coolermaster makes nice cases but terrible power supplies. Try something like a Corsair 450W. You don't want to skimp on this, I promise you. The 8600GTS is terrible. Yeah, it's cheap, but it's horrible performance for the price. The 9500GT is way cheaper ($60 AR), but I think you can squeeze in a better one. The cheapest 8800GT at the moment is XFX's 9800GT for $100 or so. For $30 more, you can get the much faster 4850 which is a mid-high end graphics card, so I think it's worth it even on a budget build. You're also using a really old motherboard in the first build. P35 is good, though, but the P43 is only a little bit more expensive and better all around. It will give you by default a nicer southbridge too: the Intel ICH10. So here's a little bit better of a build. Since it's more "a complete overhaul", I'll just list the whole thing rather than pointing out what I changed on yours. Feel free to remove the video card to get an equivalent of your first build. CPU: Intel Pentium E5200 Wolfdale ($83) Motherboard: ASRock P43Twins1600 Intel P43 ($80) Video: SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 4850 ($139 AR) RAM: CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR2 800 ($45 AR) PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W($55 AR) Optical: LITE-ON Black SATA ($22) HDD: Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB ($75) Case: COOLER MASTER Elite 330 ($40) TOTAL: $574 This is around (or might be a little above) $600 before rebates. It is a massive upgrade from what you have there, for only a little more.
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"I loved the P182 so much that, when my wife's system was all noisy and needed all sorts of cleaning, I bought her one. Then, when I wanted a cat, I bought a P182. The P182 is not a cat per se, but it's still an excellent buy."
My System: 日夏子
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#4
9th Oct 2008, 10:35
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One thing I will say - if he has an OEM version of his OS then he PROBABLY WON'T be able to use it on his new build. This is becuase an OEM OS is bound to the motherboard it is first installed on for life. The only exception is that Microsoft realise that sometimes motherboards die and will allow you to transfer the install - however this isn't garunteed.
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#5
9th Oct 2008, 11:24
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The OEM transfer is apparently a lot more likely to be able to be done if it's Xp than if it's vista.
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My System: First OC
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