Could use doule check for $600 AMD build

arthurrr157

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Jul 15, 2011
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18,510
Hey I've been really trying hard to find the best possible price for the best possible performance for a desktop that costs about $500-650 with a littttttle bit of room for stretch. I don't need to play games on high for the next 3 years or anything. For the past two years I've been playing all the games I've wanted fairly well on a $700 laptop.


So here's what I picked out.


$60 Case, looked decent and has fans in it, I'd rather not have to install fans
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233

1TB HDD, I'll use the space. 6.0 Gb/s seems like it could be good.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148697

Motherboard I picked out to be able to hold the phenom II 955 I plan to get, and other stuff. Possible upgrade to bulldozer chip is possible here eventually
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157262

Pretty good video card, HD 6850. Probably would be the best thing/a little too good for this system
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150551

Kind of cheap power supply, doesn't get amazing effeciency...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153114

Dirt cheap DDR3 1600 RAM (2x2) Might get another set if these work
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211409

Phenom II 955 x4. The most conflicting part of the build for me at the moment
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808



So this is the best I could do. With rebates it's about $600 and I'm going to get the student discount for windows 7 professional (64-bit)

I'm wondering if you guys think I could do any better on these parts, or if any of them are particularilly risky such as the RAM. I am not sure if the Phenom II 955 is the best way to go, maybe I should buy the $110 GTX 465 (refurbrished....) and get an i5 processor or something.

Anyways suggestions would be great, I got really tired of reading reviews on power supplies too so suggestions could be helpful

EDIT: I ommitted the CD drive, I did pick one but nobody actually cares about CD drives anyways...
 

puttsy

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Aug 14, 2010
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Looks good. I always recommend Intel builds BUT, that is just me preference. Currently you can get better performance on Intel CPU's per price but, you pay a higher premium for unnecessary power more often than on an AMD system. Also, bulldozer looks really promising so, this may be the best route to go in terms of affordable upgrades.

Also, there are probably some slightly cheaper PSU's but, You won't be wasting money on a TR2 either. It's a good brand and good PSU so I would say stick with it if you like it.
 

arthurrr157

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Jul 15, 2011
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For this budget do you have any recommendations on intel processors? I was considering buying a decent i3 processor because a lot of games like Starcraft II only use two cores but I don't think these games will be too taxing on the 955 and I expect newer games to support quad core. I know there was one i5 which looked like it could be decent for my price range but I'd probably have to sub out for a lower video card to get it