Hi all,
I'm in the market to build a super budget (around $600) gaming machine to get me started back into PC gaming. I'm looking to build a system that I will be able to upgrade in the future as components become cheaper, but that will still allow me to play games with decent settings (Orange Box, Savage 2, etc). I'm not planning on OC-ing or running SLI and I realize that I'll probably have to upgrade the GPU first, followed by the CPU/MB. I already have a 22" Samsung 226BW, XP, Mouse/keyboard, speakers, etc.
Here is what I'm thinking: UPDATED CPU, MB, GPU
CPU- AMD Athlon 64 X2 5200+ Brisbane 2.7GHz ($109.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103210
MB- GIGABYTE GA-MA69GM-S2H AM2 AMD 690G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard ($74.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128056
PSU- Antec earthwatts EA500 ATX12V v2.0 500W ($54.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371007
GPU- Radeon HD 3870 512MB ($184.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102719
RAM- G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) ($44.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231098
HD- Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB ($69.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148262
CD/DVD- SAMSUNG DVD+RW ($29.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151153
CASE- COOLER MASTER Elite 330 ($34.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119115
Total = $604.92 (A bit more than I wanted, but I'm guessing this would be a lot more functional and require less upgrading than I previously had it specced)
Are they any areas where I am totally screwing myself? Will all of these components work together? Any ways I can save some money without sacrificing performance?
Thanks for any comments or advice. These forums are great! They are what got me thinking about building my first system and saving some cash.
I'm in the market to build a super budget (around $600) gaming machine to get me started back into PC gaming. I'm looking to build a system that I will be able to upgrade in the future as components become cheaper, but that will still allow me to play games with decent settings (Orange Box, Savage 2, etc). I'm not planning on OC-ing or running SLI and I realize that I'll probably have to upgrade the GPU first, followed by the CPU/MB. I already have a 22" Samsung 226BW, XP, Mouse/keyboard, speakers, etc.
Here is what I'm thinking: UPDATED CPU, MB, GPU
CPU- AMD Athlon 64 X2 5200+ Brisbane 2.7GHz ($109.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103210
MB- GIGABYTE GA-MA69GM-S2H AM2 AMD 690G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard ($74.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128056
PSU- Antec earthwatts EA500 ATX12V v2.0 500W ($54.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371007
GPU- Radeon HD 3870 512MB ($184.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102719
RAM- G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) ($44.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231098
HD- Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB ($69.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148262
CD/DVD- SAMSUNG DVD+RW ($29.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151153
CASE- COOLER MASTER Elite 330 ($34.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119115
Total = $604.92 (A bit more than I wanted, but I'm guessing this would be a lot more functional and require less upgrading than I previously had it specced)
Are they any areas where I am totally screwing myself? Will all of these components work together? Any ways I can save some money without sacrificing performance?
Thanks for any comments or advice. These forums are great! They are what got me thinking about building my first system and saving some cash.