New user building a cheap gaming computer

[acardwell3]

Hey guys, I found these parts and am considering buying all this to assemble a good gaming computer. I'd really like a lower price, but currently with all of this I am standing at about $667, but I'd really like to make it cheaper. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for the help. Here's the specifications:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115037
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121389
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211188
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150465
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136074
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151175

Sorry about all the links! I'd post descriptions but again I've never done any of this and I hardly have a clue about the small print details of it all!

Thanks in advance guys!

It's also worth noting that I will be making this computer in about 5 or 6 months

 

[GIXXERGUY6]

SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache IDE 22X DVD±R DVD Burner - OEM

Western Digital Caviar Blue WD3200AAKS 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache

SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

OCZ Fatal1ty OCZ550FTY 550W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Active PFC Power Supply - Retail

XFX HD-575X-ZNDC Radeon HD 5750 XXX Edition 1GB 128-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card - Retail

A-DATA 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model ADQVE1B16K - Retail

Intel BOXDG43GT LGA 775 Intel G43 HDMI Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail

There you go guys.

Personally I would opt for a different motherboard as this one has hdmi and you already have a good gfx card listed and don't need onboard video.

I have used this board in a recent build I did for a customer and loved it. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131347

Might want to consider using it if you can spit the coin out for it.

 

[MattNo5ss]

Will you be OCing at all? What games will you be playing and how high of quality settings are you wanting to use? What will be your gaming resolution?

You should change the mobo to GA-EP45-UD3L, it's the same price $90 ($80 AMIR) and it's a MUCH better motherboard.

For games, you could go with a cheaper dual core CPU as well, like the E5300 for $68. It's a great budget processor and can be OCed to 3.5-3.6GHz pretty easily.

Also, if you're gonna spend $160 on a GPU get the HD5770 for $164.

 

[shotawe]

Will you be OCing at all? What games will you be playing and how high of quality settings are you wanting to use? What will be your gaming resolution?

You should change the mobo to GA-EP45-UD3L, it's the same price $90 ($80 AMIR) and it's a MUCH better motherboard.

For games, you could go with a cheaper dual core CPU as well, like the E5300 for $68. It's a great budget processor and can be OCed to 3.5-3.6GHz pretty easily.

Also, if you're gonna spend $160 on a GPU get the HD5770 for $164.

about the e5300 i got one for currently $55 FS

http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=634974

 

[acardwell3]

Wow, thanks so much for the quick responses! It's a lot to go through but I will consider everything that everyone suggested. The thing I saw that I found most interesting was the different graphics card. Also, someone asked if I was planning to overclock my processor. I know virtually NOTHING about overclocking, and I'm a little scared I'd mess something up. Can someone mention the basics of overclocking the suggested processor someone posted? I'd love to save some money on a processor because so much of my budget is going to it, but I'm not sure how simple it is.

Also, to elaborate on graphics. I'd like to run Crysis on max settings at something like 1600x900. Also, other stuff like L4D2, Mirror's Edge, Bioshock 2, and other such games at max settings. I'm assuming Crysis would be the most intensive of all the ones I mentioned, so I see it as the only requirement. Correct me if I'm wrong though.

Again, thanks so much for the prompt help! I really appreciate it guys

 

[JonSimonzi]

I'd stay away from buying an LGA775 build now. You're just shooting yourself in the foot for later upgrades, it's essentially a dead platform. Especially when you can get an i3 530 for $120 and a good H/P55 motherboard for $80 - $90, even cheaper if you live near a Microcenter or Frys. That way, if in another year you want to upgrade your CPU, or your motherboard, something of the ilk, you won't be boned with your options. But for the love of god, don't base a hole new build on a dead platform.

 

[acardwell3]

Thanks for the response. What graphics card would you recommend then? I would like one that could handle the stuff I posted earlier, very preferably under $200.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Bobnova]

PSU wise, get a corsair 400CX. Fairly cheap($54 with free shipping), plenty of power for your setup, and extremely quiet.

GPU wise, $200 gets you one of these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150447
with some spare money.
Used to be a lot of 4890s at that price, all gone now i guess.

 

[acardwell3]

PSU wise, get a corsair 400CX. Fairly cheap($54 with free shipping), plenty of power for your setup, and extremely quiet.

GPU wise, $200 gets you one of these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150447
with some spare money.
Used to be a lot of 4890s at that price, all gone now i guess.

Thanks for the suggestions! I will most certainly consider the graphics card and my current preference for the PSU is the one you suggested. Can you tell me anymore about your experiences with that graphics card?

Thanks again for the tips!

 

[PolRoger]

I'd stay away from buying an LGA775 build now. You're just shooting yourself in the foot for later upgrades, it's essentially a dead platform. Especially when you can get an i3 530 for $120 and a good H/P55 motherboard for $80 - $90, even cheaper if you live near a Microcenter or Frys. That way, if in another year you want to upgrade your CPU, or your motherboard, something of the ilk, you won't be boned with your options. But for the love of god, don't base a hole new build on a dead platform.

+1...
I agree and think that going i3 cpu /P55 chipset motherboard /DDR3 dram would be a wiser course of action. You should be able to put together a system that does not cost any more (and maybe even less) than the socket 775 based rig that you are currently considering.

 

[A-Dub]

Can you tell me anymore about your experiences with that graphics card?

Thanks again for the tips!

I'm really happy with my XFX 5770. It handles most any game maxed out at 1680x1050.

Games I have played on it:
WoW
Dragon Age
Crysis
Battleforge

 

[acardwell3]

+1...
I agree and think that going i3 cpu /P55 chipset motherboard /DDR3 dram would be a wiser course of action. You should be able to put together a system that does not cost any more (and maybe even less) than the socket 775 based rig that you are currently considering.

I see your point about the motherboard. Could you be a little more specific about exactly which motherboard you'd recommend? Also, do you think the case and the RAM are alright? Also, what do you think about the graphics card that has been suggested... It definitely sounds good to me but the more opinions the better. It looks like I really came to the right place for some great help! Keep it coming, I really appreciate everyone taking the time to post.

 

[PolRoger]

Your budget is pretty lean. Compromises will likely have to be made.

Your 775 based choices... $168/cpu and $87/mobo = $255
My 1156 based examples... $128/cpu and $115/mobo= $243


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115222


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138177

The case seems fine to me and the 5770 gfx card that has already been recommended looks good. The DDR2 ram you have listed has a better cost budget-wise then the current pricing for 4GB kits of DDR3 which is running about $100 to $115 for quite a wide number of available choices. Your 5 to 6 month build window is far enough out that you could see price fluctuations with the various parts of your build.

 

[JonSimonzi]

The DDR2 ram you have listed has a better cost budget-wise then the current pricing for 4GB kits of DDR3 which is running about $100 to $115 for quite a wide number of available choices.

He would need to get DDR3 to work on an i3 platform though. Still, a i3 mobo/cpu/ram combo can be build for less than his purposed build, and perform better.

Gigabyte GA-H55-S2H $90.00
i3 530 $125 ($100 if you live near Microcenter )
OCZ 4gb DDR3 $100

$315 for a total, the choices you made were $335.

 

[acardwell3]

He would need to get DDR3 to work on an i3 platform though. Still, a i3 mobo/cpu/ram combo can be build for less than his purposed build, and perform better.

Gigabyte GA-H55-S2H $90.00
i3 530 $125 ($100 if you live near Microcenter )
OCZ 4gb DDR3 $100

$315 for a total, the choices you made were $335.

I definitely like the build you proposed there. I've already updated my current preferences to the new mobo and cpu. The only thing I was wondering about was the RAM. Are there significant differences between DDR2 and DDR3? What would the advantages be? Also, the reviews on newegg seemed pretty bad for the RAM. Should that be any concern to me? Also, would I want to overclock the cpu? I know zilch about overclocking but I'm curious to know how I would hypothetically overclock it. Sorry for so many questions! And thanks for the quick responses guys! This is all helping a lot

 

[Marshmallow64]

Main differences is that ddr3 ram has faster speeds, it is also the future of memory so you have better upgrade choices in the future. Glad you listened to some other members about the cpu/motherboard. They are right, the 775 platform is dead.

 

[acardwell3]

Main differences is that ddr3 ram has faster speeds, it is also the future of memory so you have better upgrade choices in the future. Glad you listened to some other members about the cpu/motherboard. They are right, the 775 platform is dead.

DDR3 it is then. Thanks for the advice! What do you think about overclocking that previously recommended intel cpu?

 

[JonSimonzi]

DDR3 it is then. Thanks for the advice! What do you think about overclocking that previously recommended intel cpu?

There isn't a choice of DDR2 or DDR3 if you get a 1156 socket CPU, they all require DDR3. As far as overclocking, as long as you pick up any decent aftermarket cooler, the CPU should overclock like a beast. All tests I've seen done on the i3 530 show them performing like champs.

 

[acardwell3]

There isn't a choice of DDR2 or DDR3 if you get a 1156 socket CPU, they all require DDR3. As far as overclocking, as long as you pick up any decent aftermarket cooler, the CPU should overclock like a beast. All tests I've seen done on the i3 530 show them performing like champs.

That's what I thought on the RAM. I definitely want a mobo that will be set for future upgrades. Here's the CPU that I'm currently planning on getting:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115222
I still don't know a lot about overclocking though... What else would I need to buy with that processor to overclock it? Also, what would be the exact process for overclocking that specific processor? I've found guides, but nothing simple or specific enough for my needs.
Also, nice pic and thanks for the advice!

 

[acardwell3]

Any more suggestions guys? Here's what I'm looking at right now:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115222
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150447
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139008&Tpk=corsair 400CX
Will that PSU be enough power for the other components?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227495
The reviews on newegg of that RAM are pretty terrible. Any different suggestions?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128420
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...=AFC-C8Junction&AID=10440897&PID=3067296&SID=
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136074