Gaming Build - 700-800$ budget

[AminoAcidd]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: 1 week

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Everything outside the case (keyboard,mouse,monitor,speakers)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: The Egg / TigerDirect, but any reputable company works

PARTS PREFERENCES: Dont care about the name as long as they are quality parts

OVERCLOCKING: Ofc, anyone who dosent is wasting money :]

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 19" 1440x900

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I'll be needing everything that goes inside the case(CPU,Mobo,HDD,DVD-RW,RAM,etc) and an aftermarket cooler. Have around 700-800$ to spend on a new build including taxes/shipping. I dont care about running games at 16xAF 8xAA, but 4/4 would be nice. I do not plan on going crossfire/SLI at any point.

 

[not moose]

Antec 300 / Antec EA650 - $114.94
AMD Phenom II X3 720 / ASUS M4A78 Plus - $208.99
G.SKILL 4GB DDR2 1066 - $54.99
SAPPHIRE 4890 OC Edition - $219.99
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB - $74.99
LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD+R - $23.99
XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V - $39.99
Tuniq TX-2 - $4.99

Current total: $742.87 | After rebates: $717.87

There you go.

 

[Cpt Deadboots]

I wouldn't get a 4890 - a 4850x2 will offer superior performance for the same price:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102813

Great build otherwise, though! I concur with all of the other component choices - but since you're overclocking, you might want to get an SB750 motherboard. A 790 GX/newer 790 X chipset should be perfect. Here are a few options:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128387

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131368

I'd personally get the Gigabyte - seems like much better value.



You'd be hard-pressed to build a better gaming computer for less than $800.

 

[mlcloud]

The 4850x2 has had driver issues, fan issues, heat issues, breaking-down-after-months issues...

Whereas the 4890 is hugely overclockable, does not have the issues of multi-gpu, has a very decent fan with low temps/low noise.

Maybe if it was 4850 crossfire or 4770 crossfire I'd consider them, but the heat and longevity of the 4850x2 worries me.

 

[AminoAcidd]

Do I really need that powerful of a card?

Would a Radeon HD 4850 1GB 256-bit (700/1920) or a Radeon HD 4850 XXX 512MB (625/1986) give me what I need? I figured If I save a little on the card, I could toss in another 4GB of ram. Plan on using Windows7, if that matters at all.

Could even bump it up to the Phenom X4, possiably 😱

 

[not moose]

Going with a 4890 will allow you to upgrade to a higher resolution monitor, without losing major performance. If you were open to crossfire then a 4850 would be great because you can always get a second card.

 

[AminoAcidd]

Going with a 4890 will allow you to upgrade to a higher resolution monitor, without losing major performance. If you were open to crossfire then a 4850 would be great because you can always get a second card.

I'll be staying with this 19" monitor for quite some time, I dont forsee myself getting a bigger one at all, at least not for this build.

 

[gkay09]

^ Nice option of the 4850...
The above builds are nice but for your requirements I would suggest this build...

CPU + Mobo
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.198616

Hdd
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319

Graphics card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161275

DVD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152

Case + PSU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.198951

Total - $780 without rebates...
And this setup can play nearly all the games @ that resolution well...
And If you change you monitor, then you can add one more 4850 in crossfire as the mobo and the PSU can easily handle xfire...

The stock CPU cooler that comes with the X4 955 is an improved one with copper base...And in reviews of that CPU, it was easily overclocked 400MHz on that stock cooler...
But if you want more performance, then get this CPU cooler...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003

 

[AminoAcidd]

Graphics card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161275

HIS are total assclowns when it comes to rebates, I'll never be buying a product of their branding ever.

And there is no RAM in your build 😀

 

[gkay09]

😛 I had the link for the RAM but forgot to put it...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227448

And for the Graphics card, the Gigabyte that you had chosen is also very good...

 

[AminoAcidd]

😛 I had the link for the RAM but forgot to put it...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227448

And for the Graphics card, the Gigabyte that you had chosen is also very good...

Question: Why the DDR3 Ram? Wouldnt DDR2 1033 work just as nice? The AM3 platform does work better with 1033 over 800 speed ram, i've heard that. Could this GSkill 2x2 work just as well?

 

[gkay09]

^ DDR3 RAM because the DDR2 are being phased out and DDR3 are becoming mainstream so when you want to add more RAM, DDR3 would cost less than DDR2 and the AM3 mobo are better than the AM2+ boards and future AMD CPUs would take advantage of the DDR3 speeds...

 

[wgdz]

Get the sumbeam core contact & it already comes with the TX-2 Paste Tube included and has $10 rebate. $25 for this vs $45 for the above + paste. This even performs a little better per frosty tech review.

Sunbeam Core Contact
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207004

Also get the XFX ATI 4890 - Heck CHEAPER and DOUBLE life time warranty (awesome resale value since the life time warranty transfers!). Also this is the best branded manufacture you can't go wrong. Also this site is reputable, you can confirm it yourself at resellerratings, also many people have experience with this company as well. $160

XFX ATI 4890 - use coupon code "SIZZLE15" also if you can use bing for 5% cash back (it's the old live.com)
https://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=XFX-4890&src=DC

By the way you can also get the XTX ATI 4870 for around $125 from ewiz as well, same coupon etc. That'll save you some more cash for only a small performance loss! At your gaming resolution it probably won't matter too much anyway 😛 Also this is much better than the 4850 that was listed above, better performance brand warranty resale for $10 more! Update: well base price went up so it's $140ish now.

XFX ATI 4870 - use coupon code "SIZZLE15" also if you can use bing for 5% cash back (it's the old live.com)
https://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=XFX-487G1B&src=DC

 

[waynec121]

+1 for all of gkay's suggestions. The 4850 1gb should serve your needs very well for 1440x900. Also gkay's processor choice is an absolute beast!!!

However if you do want to save some money go with gkay's build but swap out the cpu for an x3 720.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103649
If alls you are doing is gaming the x3 720 should serve your needs great! And with a good cpu cooler it can overclock extremely well.

And later on you could CF another 4850 with that mobo gkay suggested.