building gaming pc with budget

[waynec121]

ok...I am new to these forums but I have been reading some of the threads on pc builds. Most people's budget is below 1000 at around 700-800. My budget is around $1400. I have decided to sell my ps3 and 360 to contribute haha...I won't get into why but lets just say I have realized pc gaming is where I want to be...so back to the topic. What would you guys recommend on my budget? I am looking for the best performance and reliability and quality at that price. I am leaving my options open except one thing, the case has to be black with a window preferably. Thanks so much for the help in advance!

[George Hallam]

does that price include monitor, windows vista, keyboard, mouse, speakers etc?

Before i go on, within the last two weeks Intel have released there new i7 range of processors on socket 1366 so this means new MOBO's aswell as new tri channel DDr3 RAM all of these "new" products have good increase on performance vs the LGA 775 CPU's and MOBO's (the SLI has been amazingly optimized on the new X58 MOBO).

I think this would do nicely

New i7 920
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202

Asus X58 MOBO
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131346

1Gb 4870
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131120

3Gb tri channel DDr3 (if i were you i would get 6Gb (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231225))
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145221

Corsair 750w PSU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

500Gb Hdd
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136073

DVD-rw
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151171

case (up to you choose) say $160 for case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010090007%201054907954%201054808289&bop=And&Order=RATING

total = $1357 + P&P

this system will be future proof and very fast, But if you have to buy all the things i said at the top you will not get the same sort of system. You will have to use the old hardware (don't get me wrong it will only loose 25% on the CPU processing side [you wont notice it ;)] its just that you will not be able to upgrade in the future

Hope that has helped ;)

[waynec121]

thanks so much im kind of scared to get the new technology but im sure it would work great...i am not building this system until late december-early january...its going to be my xmas present to myself and also a learning experience since i will be building it. i do not have a keyboard and mouse or windows but i guess my new question is how much will the price of the quad cores and dual core go down or should i just stick with the i7?

another question that i have is this is my first build so should i go ahead and spend 1400 on it or should i make my budget a little less than 1K or so...i mainly just want to be able to run games that are out now and games coming out in 09. i guess crysis would be the model for that since most graphics will be about that good or a little better in 09'. i mite end up playing battlefield 2 and 2142 on it...and im not really sure if there are any good games just like that with giant open maps...does anybody have any pretty good fps multiplayer suggestions to go along with my build??

[123456]

COD4 has excellent multiplayer.

[waynec121]

haha yea i have played that on the 360 and i mite look into into it again but idk im more interested in figuring out what to build...then i can get into games but still any suggestions at all would be great.

[George Hallam]

that would be great if you get in January prices should drop by 10-15%, that current set up should be fine for all up and coming games and you have the option of putting two of your graphics card together (crossfire) on that MOBO so all is good.

hmm FPS games
-I love COD 4 i have over 800hours on it :)
-I have just got COD 5 and that is also fantastic and it has an epic co-op zombie challenge for up to 4 players (great for LAN and few clan mates)
-Dont get crysis, get crysis warhead IMO it has the best single player i have ever played on an FPS and it also runs smoother than crysis
-I didnt like farcry 2 but if u liked assassin creed mixed with a dodgy FPS then get it
-Also getting an Xbox 360 controller and getting the odd driving game like race driver grid and NFS undercover are nice if you want a break from an FPS :D
-I have heard lots of good things about fallout 3 not had chance to play it myself yet but i will get round to it sooner or later (have a look at saphs thread :p (http://www.pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?p=413051#post413051))

:)

[waynec121]

That sounds good and thank you for that. I mite also be getting a job at Micro Center as a sales associate starting out...but they also have openings in building pcs for customers. i really think i would love to do this as a good part time job while im in school. I am pretty sure I would need a microsoft certification and a pretty good knowledge of computers and how they work, etc. etc... Any suggestions on how to do all this in a short amount of time like maybe a month or two? Thanksss

[waynec121]

i dont know if i am allowed to double post but my next question is...how big of a difference performance wise would i be losing if i made my budget about 800-1k instead? i can do either but i just want to see if i really need to spend that much money extra based on what i am doing.

[George Hallam]

well you can spend anything from$500 to $8000 on a system the more you spend the less performance you get per buck have a look at this

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/system-builder-marathon,2056.html

will help you alot on bang per buck

[waynec121]

thanks for the link it is really helpful...i have plenty of time to decide on what i want but i will keep everyone updated on what i choose and if i have any more questions. thanks again.

[George Hallam]

No problem matey ;)

[waynec121]

ok ive been doing some research and i am really considering the Intel Core 2 Duo E8600 3.33 GHZ because the fact that its cheap and i don't mind upgrading it in a few years and i can oc it pretty easily. i am pretty sure that this will not be my only pc build and ive messing with an old computer and taking it apart and putting it back together and i find it really fun. so i want to know what you guys think? and if i do go with the E8600 what would be good components to go with it, considering my budget is around 1k?

[George Hallam]

get the same (par the CPU)

then replace the MOBO to this
ASUS Maximus II Formula P45 (best overclocking MOBO)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131319

replace the RAM with
OCZ DDr2 1066Mhz 4Gb
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227289

Also get this CPU cooler or similar, then you should easily hit 4Ghz on air ;)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835154001

[waynec121]

thanks for the suggestion!!! i have been doing even more research...and i am going with an i7 build. I am definitely getting the p182 case or the p190 in the gun metal black finish. I am considering doing the i7 build now because I have been pretty much guaranteed a job at a computer store making 10 dollars an hour. I am 19 btw so keep that into consideration being as I am also a college student. That allows my budget to go up and also the fact that I am selling about 1000 worth of stuff that sits around in my room.

So the:
i7 920
p182 or p190 case- sophisticated and classy but underneath will be a monster!!!
logitech z5500 sound system
already have a acer 24" monitor so thats 1080p mite upgrade though
motherboard?
ddr3 ram?
gpu? im thinking dual but xfire or sli?
psu?
harddrive?
keyboard?
sound card?
and last but not least mouse?

i have an i7 build suggested on the 2nd post but I am wondering if anybody has any suggestions also...thanksss

[George Hallam]

logitech z5500 sound system

nice choice i have the Z5450's and they are awesome

well if i were you and on your sort of budget i would get the X58 MONO i said then get a HD 4850 GPU and Crossfire when you can afford another (about $160 each)

PSU i would recommend 620w + the 750w corsair i choose is VERY good

HDD - 750Gb

Keyboard and mouse depends on what you want? gaming either go logitech or Razer i prefer Logitech G9 mouse and the Logitech G15 keyboard with a good Razer mouse mat ;)

sound card.. not really needed
i spend $130 on a sound card and the difference is next to nothing :p

[waynec121]

Thanks...the cpu and mobo I am going to get is definitely what you chose. As for the power supply...is 750w all I need to run this beast? And the 4850 hd and run them is crossfire seems like a good choice. I was thinking about getting two 500gb hdd and running them in raid 0. Now I just have to play the waiting game and wait until about new years then I will start this build. My only worry is the antec p182 case I want, I am afraid that the gpus won't fit and the power supply. I will just have to do some measurements. But again thanks for all the help!!

[George Hallam]

750w all I need to run this beast?

Ye will be fine ;) more than enough

My only worry is the antec p182 case I want, I am afraid that the gpus won't fit and the power supply. I will just have to do some measurements.

The 4850 isn't that big its the width of the MOBO so that will fit, and the PSU is standard size im 99% sure it will all fit ;)