I am doing a budget build So far I have the components listed below. Everything is up and running perfectly. Feel free to rate this build. I know most people prefer Intel now a days but I just couldn't pass up the price of the black box Brisbane.
Total so far (without a video card) was ~$400 shipping included.
Surprisingly, it actually can play many of the demos I tried with the on board graphics, but I am not interested in playing games on low. I want a system that will run MOST games on high for atleast a year or more.
BIOSTAR TForce TF8200 A2+ AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8200 HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 X2 5400+ Brisbane 2.8GHz Socket AM2 65W Dual-Core black edition Processor Model ADO5400DSWOFThis is overclocked to 3.2GHz. Can easily go higher as I am still set inthe AMD recommended volts.
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-8500CL5D-2GBPK
HITACHI Deskstar P7K500 HDP725032GLA360 (0A35411) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
ZALMAN CNPS 9500 AM2 2 Ball CPU Cooling Fan/Heatsink
Rosewill RZS05 BLK Black Sturdy SGCC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Rosewill RP500 500W ATX12V v1.3/ EPS12V Power Supply
So, my main question is which video card is right for me.
I have done some research and thought I had it nailed down which card I was going to get (4850) but the new price drops have me rethinking this.
So below are the possibilities I have found. Feel free to add a different one and confuse me more =P if I missed a better one. Keep in mind I will not spend over $300 and would like to get the best bang for my buck. Maybe that means buying one of the higher end cards now and replacing it less frequently or maybe that means buying a cheaper card and replacing it sooner.
For now and in the foreseeable future I will be running all games at 1680x1050.
All prices are from NEWEGG. If you know of a better price somewhere else feel free to let me know.
SAPPHIRE 100245L Radeon HD 4850 - $149.99
SAPPHIRE 100247L Radeon HD 4870 - $249.99
PNY VCGGTX260XPB GeForce GTX 260 - $229.99
PNY XLR8 VCG98GX2XPB GeForce 9800 GX2 - $244.99
Total so far (without a video card) was ~$400 shipping included.
Surprisingly, it actually can play many of the demos I tried with the on board graphics, but I am not interested in playing games on low. I want a system that will run MOST games on high for atleast a year or more.
BIOSTAR TForce TF8200 A2+ AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8200 HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 X2 5400+ Brisbane 2.8GHz Socket AM2 65W Dual-Core black edition Processor Model ADO5400DSWOFThis is overclocked to 3.2GHz. Can easily go higher as I am still set inthe AMD recommended volts.
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-8500CL5D-2GBPK
HITACHI Deskstar P7K500 HDP725032GLA360 (0A35411) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
ZALMAN CNPS 9500 AM2 2 Ball CPU Cooling Fan/Heatsink
Rosewill RZS05 BLK Black Sturdy SGCC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Rosewill RP500 500W ATX12V v1.3/ EPS12V Power Supply
So, my main question is which video card is right for me.
I have done some research and thought I had it nailed down which card I was going to get (4850) but the new price drops have me rethinking this.
So below are the possibilities I have found. Feel free to add a different one and confuse me more =P if I missed a better one. Keep in mind I will not spend over $300 and would like to get the best bang for my buck. Maybe that means buying one of the higher end cards now and replacing it less frequently or maybe that means buying a cheaper card and replacing it sooner.
For now and in the foreseeable future I will be running all games at 1680x1050.
All prices are from NEWEGG. If you know of a better price somewhere else feel free to let me know.
SAPPHIRE 100245L Radeon HD 4850 - $149.99
SAPPHIRE 100247L Radeon HD 4870 - $249.99
PNY VCGGTX260XPB GeForce GTX 260 - $229.99
PNY XLR8 VCG98GX2XPB GeForce 9800 GX2 - $244.99