Parts for my first build

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Addicus2888

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Feb 13, 2011
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edit - spelling

Ive never build a PC before but Ive done several part replacements in mine and its starting to fall behind on the newest games after 5 years of faithful service. Lately Ive been playing a lot of shooters like Battlefield Bad Company 2 and the graphics are lagging on the lowest settings. Battlefield 3 is coming out soon with 64 person maps and id love to be able to run those in a few months. I know enough about most of the parts to find them myself but im a little shady on how certain points, such as what makes a motherboard or certain ram better than others and part compatibility between motherboard and CPU.

Approximate Purchase Date:
~ This weekend (Feb 25-28)

Budget Range:
~ $500-$600

System Usage from Most to Least Important:
~ gaming, GIS digital mapping and analysis, surfing the internet, watching movies

Parts Not Required:
~ Graphics card, keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS

Preferred Website(s) for Parts:
~ Newegg.com

Country of Origin:
~ USA

Parts Preferences:
~ AMD set-up

Overclocking:
~ Potentially if a friend of mine helps me out with it later

SLI or Crossfire:
~ doubtful

Monitor Resolution:
~ 1920x1080

The graphics card in my current PC is a Radeon 4870 512mb. I just bought it last year when my old card died and its most likely bottle-necked where it is now. Its still a good card so I was just going to steal it for my new comp and buy a cheap card more worthy of my old PC for resale purposes.

I think I would prefer to have 8gb of RAM for rendering digital maps for my schoolwork but other than that im open to suggestions.

I also thought these looked like pretty good deals to start with if I can order them while they're still on sale over the weekend.

Cooler master HAF 922 case + 700w power supply combo for $110
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.611141&nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL022411&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL022411-_-EMC-022411-Index-_-Combo-_-Combo611141-LM2A

G.Skill Ripjaws X series 8gb RAM for $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231426&nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL022411&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL022411-_-EMC-022411-Index-_-DesktopMemory-_-20231426-L0A
 
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mosox

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Mar 31, 2010
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AMD Phenom II X4 955 + ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.592295
2xG.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231275
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185
or
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152181
ASUS Black 24X
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204
SeaSonic S12II 520 Bronze 520W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151094

HAF 922
LIAN LI Lancool PC-K62
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112239

 
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dalauder

dalauder

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Your old card died? Have you tried baking it?

All the parts listed by mosox will work...but they're not the best choices IMO. I'm using Newegg.com prices.

CPU: $140 Phenom II x4 955BE
Mobo: $90 ASRock 870 Extreme 3 (runs 2x PCI-e at 8x/8x instead of x16/x4)
RAM: $45 Any 1600MHz CL9 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3
HDD: $55 Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB (cheaper on non-Newegg places)
PSU: $40 520W Antec (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371030)
Possibly a $45 AR 600W Corsair, prices change on Newegg site (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139019)
DVD: $17 Any
Case: $60 Antec 300 Illusion
Graphics...

Total is $447. That leaves $150 for graphics. You should sell your 4870 for $80 on ebay and spend $250 to buy a 6950 2GB. If you'd like to keep your budget to $600 even, then get a 5850 (which is just as good as a 6870 or better).



I include shipping in the case and PSU prices.

Cooler master isn't the best PSU maker and about 1/4 of those reviews were for DOA items--way too many. I only recommend (Corsair, Antec, Seasonic, Silverstone, XFX PSUs). There are some more expensive brands like PC Power & Cooling too.

But I really should ask you: What is your current build? If you consider a 4870 to be lagging, then you really should get at least a 5850 or it won't be an upgrade. I'd say a 6950 2GB. But depending on your current build, you may just need a GPU upgrade. And if you're running something like an Athlon x2 5600, then it's severely bottlenecking your 4870 and you need a new build, not a new GPU. $600 is actually not enough to get a new build and a graphics card much better than a 4870 unless you add $80 for selling that card.

You might want to swap the 955 I recommended for an Athlon II x4 640 for $100 even and put that $40 on graphics. You won't beat my build by much for the price point.
 
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Addicus2888

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Here is my current 6yr old Dell XPS 700 gaming PC running windows XP.

CPU - Pentium D Presler 940, 3.2G, 2X2M, C1

RAM - Dual In-Line Memory Module, 1G 667M, 128X64, 8, 240, 2RX8 (2x1gb)

HDD - 250G, S2, 7.2K, 3.5 WD-HAWK

Mobo – Foxconn LS-36

PSU – Dell Power Supply 750W NPS-750CB A

Case – Some monstrously large Dell XPS 700 steel case.

GPU – originally came with an ATI X1900 about 6 years ago. It finally died out of warranty last year and I replaced it with my Radeon 4870 512mb.


Im down for getting a better gfx card I just didnt know how it would fit into my budget and figured my current one was pretty good so why not keep it. If you think I could actually get $80 for it on ebay then that changes things. I posted a few weeks ago about the GPU thing and the general response was that if I got a new card in the 5000 series it would be a downgrade unless I went all the way up to the 5850 and even then not much of an upgrade. I am completely open to suggestions though.

I am also not adverse to going over my $600 budget for a good deal, id just prefer to avoid it because there is always a better part just $20 away.

I dont necessarily have to game at 1080p, I understand this is a budget rig, thats just the resolution my monitors go to.

Is my current PC worth anything as is? I figured id be lucky to get $100-200 if I can get someone to buy it at all. If its worth something obviously leaving the 4870 in there would make it more valuable.
 
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4745454b

4745454b

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If you had the 1GB I'd say its ok. But the 512MB model is slower then the 1GB model due to the lower memory amount. And at 1080, thats going to hurt you. Use it for right now if you get afford to buy something else, but to see the power of your new rig your going to want something faster.
 
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mosox

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Mar 31, 2010
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ASUS M4A87TD EVO + ASUS EAH6850
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.598563
AMD Phenom II X4 955
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808
ASUS DRW
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB
SeaSonic S12II 520 Bronze
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB
COOLER MASTER HAF 912
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233

$655.92

http://www.hwcompare.com/5933/radeon-hd-4870-512mb-vs-radeon-hd-6850/

ASUS M4A87TD EVO + ASUS EAH6870
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.598554

http://www.hwcompare.com/6041/radeon-hd-4870-512mb-vs-radeon-hd-6870/

$695.92

Both are very good combos with $30 discount + $20 mail-in rebate.
 
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dalauder

dalauder

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Your Pentium D in your current rig is severely bottlenecking your 4870. That CPU would cap out around a 3850 or 9500GT. The cheapest great upgrade is the one I listed above for $447 and keep your current GPU. You'll see at least double the framerates with the same graphics card.

Mosox's build has an overpriced mobo with an underperforming graphics card (compared to ASRock 870 Extrem 3 and 5850's), a worse HDD, a PSU that's too expensive since it can impact which graphics you buy. The Haf 912's solid though. If you don't run AA (and you won't with the 6850 on most games), the 4870 is at least 80% as good in most applications. There's no sense in such a minimal upgrade.

I figure there's no point in spending the money to upgrade your graphics until you see what your graphics you already own can do. The 512MB will bottleneck you at that resolution though--but why not see the upgrade first to be impressed.

That 520W in my build could handle pretty much any single graphics card (single GPU cards) when you do decide to upgrade the 4870 (which you'll want to do by Black Friday at the latest). I suggest a 6950 2GB at that point. And even if you just wait one month to upgrade (after your new build is setup), you'll see a price drop on graphics. Win-win for you.

And if you add a second in crossfire (and upgrade PSU) in two years, then you'll still be tearing through new games at max settings (and high settings three+ years from now).
 
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Addicus2888

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That sounds like a good idea. The GPU would be a quick and easy upgrade to do at any time.

Im in school right now on a tiny stipend, so the idea is to build the budget PC now and then in 2-3yrs when I have a job I can spend money on a top of the line gaming rig.

What about the RAM? Most every build I see only has 4gb. Is getting 8 not that necessary for gaming?

Also, what else do I need to build my own PC? Im assuming all the wires come with their respective parts. Fans? Heatsinks?
 
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vibhas

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An addition to that :

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371030&Tpk=antec%20neo%20eco%20520

$20 kingston 1600mhz ram (4gb)

People that advertise seasonic power supplies in this thread are off their rocker ... $500~ build and the best quality PSU maker... 10% of his build going on a 520W psu that won't offer much more than a $40 psu?
It can't offer SLI on a decent GPU and no single card will struggle on the antec neo eco.. $30 cheaper.

A good thing to look at is a GTX 460 768mb version - $108 AR. It'll play your 1920x1080 just fine.
 
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Addicus2888

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Alright I just did price comparing and this is what I came up with. Planning on ordering tomorrow so let me know if I should make any last minute swaps.

Prices include shipping and rebates.

PSU - Corsair Cx series 600w ($50)
http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Memory-Compatible-Certified-CMPSU-600CX/dp/B0044R93S0/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1298768223&sr=1-1

Mobo - AsRock 870 Extreme3 ($90)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157198&cm_re=ASRock_870_Extreme_3-_-13-157-198-_-Product

CPU - AMD Phenom II X4 955 ($140)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-RSSDailyDeals-_-na-_-na&AID=10521304&PID=3463938&SID=

HDD - Hitachi Deskstar 1TB ($55)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145304

RAM - G.Skill Ripjaws 1600 4GB ($50)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

DVD - Asus 24x ($22)
http://www.amazon.com/Asus-DVD%C2%B1RW-DVD-RAM-Internal-DRW-24B1ST/dp/B0033Z2BAQ/ref=sr_1_20?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1298767813&sr=1-20&dropdown-selection=lomgtwjor

GPU - Radeon 5870 1GB ($205)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150476

Case - Antec Three Hundred Illusion ($55)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066

Fans - Scythe S-FLEX 120mm X2 ($32)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185006

Comes to a total of exactly $700

I can get a really good deal on the 600w corsair power supply so I thought I would go with that.

The Antec case comes with two fans but has room for 5. Do I need to buy 3 extras or will the two I listed work? Obviously I would prefer a quieter setup.

Also do I need to buy a heat sink for the processor? Any other small parts im missing? Ive never built before.
 
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vibhas

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I'm rather curious as to why you ignored the $20 1600MHZ (4gb) ram i showed you by kingston. Kingston is a very reputable brand, and the ram will save you $30 - To get closer to your budget range.
 
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dalauder

dalauder

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Btw, your parts looked great--except that the Hitachi Deskstar isn't a Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB performance wise. But I think Hitachi, or was it Fujitsu, has amazing reliability historically.

The 6950 2GB (with unlocking) has a slight performance/price edge on the 5870. If you're planning on Crossfiring, the 2GB frame buffer will make a difference two years from now.
 
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Addicus2888

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Ah I didnt know there was any different in performance for the Hitachi. It was just cheaper and had very good reviews.

Yeah I did some research on whether to get the 5870 or the 6950 2gb. It looks to me like the 6950 only has a slight edge and I was able to find a 5870 for $50 less than the cheapest 6950. Plus, like you say, I could buy a second one in the future and crossfire them for an easy upgrade.

I did end up ordering mostly your parts. Thank you very much for the help. Ill try and let you know how the build goes in a week or so.
 
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dalauder

dalauder

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Oh, a 5870 for $205 hands-down beats a 6950 for $250. But the fact that pretty much all 6950 2GB's unlock to 6970 performance for $250 puts the 6950 2GB ahead on price/performance. Anyways, I can't knock the $5870 for $205. That's an amazing card for an amazing price. I've been tempted to get one myself...but my GTX 470 for $197 I got for Christmas is sooo new...

I'm just glad you didn't get the Seagate Barracuda 7200.12. It's worse than the Hitachi and the Hitachi is a great drive. I almost bought one--but then I saw the Samsung Spinpoint F3 1Tb's on sale (this was back in August) for $58.
 
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