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Need advice for buying a CPU on BUDGET

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Gh0sT-NoVa

Member
Joined
Apr 5, 2012
Location
Malaysia, South East Asia.
OK at first i thought i have everything planned out , i was aiming for a FX4100, since im under budget i thought FX4100 its quite new and its very cheap compare to all the INTEL CPU , so i thought i go for it , then it got me thinking , no way how come its so cheap there must be something wrong.

So i check online well alot people said its no good if your using this CPU for gaming. Many people said the FX series is failed.....one of the most weird thing i read is if u dont run anything faster than a 6850 GPU for the FX4100 , your GPU will bottleneck your CPU :shock: ? Thats a first i hear such thing.

Since i dont know much about PC stuffs , specially CPU , im very confused and lost.

If i want to build a gaming PC but under budget , but i want it able to run all of the recent release games and future releases , without high demand , i usually won go to ULTRA, just at HIGH or MEDIUM least. Be running a HD 7850 GPU with my new build.

My budget for a CPU its not more than 200 USD , is there any good suggestion ? ?
 
An i3 2120 would do you perfectly fine. Grab a cheap H77 board (EG, Asrock H77M); pair it with a i3 2120 and your HD 7850; and you'll be fine for a good while =).

If you feel you might need the extra power; try to find a cheap ish i5 2400.

Either way I personally would pick the i3 2120 over the FX 4100 anyway..
 
I have do a bit of calculation , so my budget at first was actually only 1800....now it has gone up to 2016 due to the INTEL CPU price.....

I can go for I5 2500 actually , 2500 not 2500 K , with a Gigabyte Z77M-D3H Mobo , i find this Mobo its sufficient for me.

But of course the I5 2400 is cheaper around 580 or 560 , the 2500 is 620 here.

I was wondering how much is the 2500 better compare to the 2400. Even though its just 50 - 60 bucks different its alot for me.

I have quite an EGO for Intel zz but i think this is for the best.....i do not want to suffer what im suffering now , as in my CPU bottlenecking the hell out of my current GPU !
 
Frankly short of really cheap budget systems and HTPC's, Intel is the way to go.

If you're not getting the K version; don't bother getting a Z77 motherboard. You can save money by just getting a cheaper H77 board. An i5 2400 is plenty enough for gaming. If you're going to buy a 2500; its worth just buying a 2500K.

I'd go with a decent cheap board and a i5 2400. It will be fine for gaming. It won't bottleneck a HD 7850 =).

Speaking of; what is your current setup? CPU? Motherboard/ram/power supply, etc.
 
So go for the I5 2400 and a Gigabyte H77M-D3H instead ? If that works im happy with it lol. Because the Z77 board doesnt have any different compare to the H77M-D3H from the spces i read but i wonder why there are 2 of this boards.....the price different its only 10 bucks actually lol

If a 2500 K well i have to dump another extra 30 bucks might not much in US i think , but 30 bucks i can get another extra LED 120mm fan for my casing LOL.

I will think about it then , but in that case comparing to a 2400 and a 2500 K how much a big difference is there ? Also if i were to get 2500 K i should get the Z77 board instead right ?
 
If you get the 2500K; yes get the Z77 board.

If you get the i5 2400 get the H77 gigabyte board yes.

Z77 allows over clocking; H77 does not.

For gaming over clocking may only gain you a couple FPS.. Game dependant. But it's more you have to spend on say; cooling and it takes time, etc.

Sticking with the cheaper board and processor may be better if you're on a budget. An i5 2400 is a decent CPU.

Short answer; yes the H77 and 2400 will work great.

Do me a favour and search the i5 3450. How much does this processor cost in your area? For non-overclocking rigs; Ivy Bridge is a good path to go. If the price is right.
 
If i want to build a gaming PC but under budget , but i want it able to run all of the recent release games and future releases , without high demand , i usually won go to ULTRA, just at HIGH or MEDIUM least. Be running a HD 7850 GPU with my new build.

I'm sorry to tell you this, but that graphics card will be able to max out any game for the next year and a half to 2 years...

I'm sorry I had to tell you this :cry:
 
I'm sorry to tell you this, but that graphics card will be able to max out any game for the next year and a half to 2 years...

I'm sorry I had to tell you this :cry:

He said medium or high. A HD 7850 will easily run any game on medium/high for a couple years no sweat. He said won't run ultra... He doesn't wish to max out games.. >.>
 
He said medium or high. A HD 7850 will easily run any game on medium/high for a couple years no sweat. He said won't run ultra... He doesn't wish to max out games.. >.>

I know, but I was informing him that he had the option with that card :p

Its like saying, I built a new i7 6 core computer to play Diablo 3...
 
I know, but I was informing him that he had the option with that card :p

Its like saying, I built a new i7 6 core computer to play Diablo 3...

Oh; I mis-read. Haha I thought you said WILL NOT. Haha. I'd say it'll easily max 95% of games right now; and 80% of games in 2 years. OC'ing will help definitely.

And these cards scale extremely well with overclocking!

An i5 2400 + HD 7850 running a game.. You'd be also pulling less than 200w from the wall. Great efficiency there as well =)
 
Well this is a shocked

I5 3450 is 580 and I5 3550 is 640

They are basically same price with I5 2400 and 2500 K !

The I5 2400 is 570 , I5 2500 K is 650

O i wont OC actually , i think i know how to abit , but i doubt i will do it. For cooling i be using Cooler Master USP 100 , a casing which is only 200 bucks here yet it has lot of space , cooling fan slots. 1 on the front built ready , 3 more empty slots , i be adding all 3 fans when i get it , also i be buying a CPU cooler on the day purchase , maybe a Xigmatek Dark Knight or Loki

LoL , well depends because sometime if i play with ULTRA settings , maybe its fine but maybe sometimes certain area or throughout the game i might get 1 or 2 spike i wont like it im very sensitive about this. This is why im suffering with this CPU bottlenecking my GPU lol.

But if its really that good then i guess its worth buying then the card =)
 
Thats a good thing then = p

In that case i go for Ivy Bridge no doubt.

But what board , same thing applies ?

I5 3450 = H77
I5 3550 = Z77

Correct ? As i mentioned i dont mind if i cant OC , i doubt i ever will lol. The turbo boost thing on the CPU is meant by OC right or is it another thing
 
You only need a Z77 board if you want to OC. H77 is fine for both of those chips (as you can't OC either of them, only chips with a K at the end can OC).

Turbo Boost is similar to OCing, but a bit different. It basically OCs the CPU when it's under load. When we OC, we disable Turbo Boost and make that speed the default setting.
 
O so meaning i must get a CPU with a K behind and a Z77 board to able to OC it ?

If i get a K chip CPU but not a Z77 board i cant OC it either ?

Then if i get either 3450 or 3550 , i can just go with a H77 board then

If the 3450 / 3550 its good enough i doubt i want get the 3570 K it cost 700 bucks , hell my budget its getting higher and higher lol !

Dont forget i need to get a new GPU which the 7850 costs 800 bucks here lol = ="
 
Right, if you have a K CPU but a H77 motherboard, you can't OC.

The 3450/3550 with a H77 board should be fine for gaming though. :)
 
A 3450 + H77 board = Win. I would go that route. Would be perfectly.

Keeping the price lower is the better option here; So a Gigabyte H77 board, A i5 3450 and a HD 7850. These 3 will do you very well for a long while =). Just make sure you get a good Power Supply as well. A Corsair CX V2 430 or 500W is a good choice. A 430w unit would do you well. A HD 7850 only requires a single 6 pin PCIE connector.

If you want your computer to 'feel' as fast as it can be; make sure you get an SSD! But if you're keeping the budget down; forget it. It'll be fast anyway :p.
 
I be going for a Xigmatek 600W 80+ BRONZE , they seem decent. Most our stuffs are Taiwan branded not many USA and others. Since im from South East Asia ,so Taiwan stuffs are cheaper too but they do make some decent hardwares.

I check out Corsair if i want something like 600 W and above it cost me over 370 - 400 here for a 80+ BRONZE types = = "

We do have Corsair GS series 600W 80+ BRONZE too its same price with the Xigmatek im getting 279 but what I heard that the GS series are the cheaper types , i had a friend told me not to get them. Better off i get something else.

If i can afford for a SSD i would get one lol , its super fast ! But lets go for a big SSD as in using it as a HDD , so we go for 500 GB , 500 GB here cost like 1 K to 2 K !

I can build a new PC with the money lol , as in now my grand total be only like 2.8 K !

I wonder will casing fans take up lot of power ? I be using Xigmatek 120mm LED fans. I can put up to 3 , my casing stock has one 120mm fan on the front. So its total of 4 fans.

Well include CPU cooler be 5 then = p
 
Yeah, big SSDs cost as much as an entire computer, that's why most people just get a small one and put Windows on it, and use a HDD for everything else.

Exactly what PSU are you planning to buy?

Average fans take like 3W each, barely anything.
 
Look for a Corsair CX v2 500W. Forget the 'Bronze' rating. It's efficient enough. The Xigmatek appears to be an older model; but looks fine. 500W is more than enough for your build. Even a Corsair CX v2 430W would be enough if you can find one for a good price.

Do you have a link to the site you're buying from so I can see your options?

Case fans don't use a lot of power at all (Depending on the fan). What case are you using? Have you bought one already?

You don't necessarily NEED to fill your computer with fans. Realistically 1-3 fans is more than enough for 99% of peoples builds. For intakes/exhaust that is. I personally only have 1 intake. That's it. But my case is also niche. It's an matx case with a 180mm fan on the front for purely positive air pressure.

I'd consider trying to find a 64G/60GB SSD for windows/boot/main applications, and just the cheapest 1TB drive you can find (Usually Western Digital Greens or Seagates)
 
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