Go Back   PCMech Forums > Help & Discussion > Build Your Own PC
Gaming build help? Budget of at most $700. Gaming build help? Budget of at most $700.
Register FAQ Members List Social Groups Rules Calendar Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read

Need Some Help? Type Your Keywords Here:

Reply
Page 1 of 2 1 2
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Search this Thread Rate Thread Display Modes
Old 06-19-2011, 12:18 AM   #1
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
Gaming build help? Budget of at most $700.
I have a recent interest of building a gaming setup... My friend picked this parts and said this would work pretty well, this would be my first time so I'm trying to get opinions and such?

Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB 3.5" SATA 6.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #:N82E16822136795
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136795

CORSAIR Enthusiast Series CMPSU-650TX 650W Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
Item #:N82E16817139005
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139005

ASUS 24X DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS
Item #:N82E16827135204
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827135204

MSI GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) N460GTX Hawk Talon Attack Video Card
Item #:N82E16814127534
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127534

COOLER MASTER HAF 912 RC-912-KKN1 Black Computer Case
Item #:N82E16811119233
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119233

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory
Item #:N82E16820231277
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231277

ASUS M4A88TD-M/USB3 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
Item #: N82E16813131654
Newegg.com - ASUS M4A88TD-M/USB3 AM3 AMD 880G HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor
Item #: N82E16819103727
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103727

Is there anything else I need or changes?

Also I'm most likely going to be using windows 7 with this.
Last edited by iLi3kCa3k; 06-19-2011 at 12:22 AM. Reason: Specification.
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-19-2011, 12:54 AM   #2
glc
Forum Administrator
Staff
Premium Member
 
glc's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2000
Location: Joplin MO
Posts: 37,767
Replace the Ripjaws ram with Corsair, Crucial, Kingston, or A-Data. 1333 speed is all you need unless you will be overclocking.
glc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-20-2011, 09:38 AM   #3
Member (10 bit)
 
birddog_61's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Graham, TX
Posts: 600
If you can afford the i5-2500 the jump in gaming performance is pretty significant.
__________________
Case: Thermaltake V9 Blacx Motherboard: Intel DP55WB Processor: I7 875K OC 4.0ghz Cooler: Zerotherm Core92 Ram: Kingston 4gbx2 PSU: CUG-950B(oops) HDD: Intel X-25 40gb SSD, 2 Seagate 1tb drives
birddog_61 is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 06-20-2011, 10:52 PM   #4
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
I've made some revisions, mostly a bigger case and the switch from AMD to intel.

Sony Optiarc CD/DVD Burner Black SATA Model AD-7260S-0B - OEM
Newegg.com - Sony Optiarc CD/DVD Burner 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model AD-7260S-0B - CD / DVD Burners

COOLER MASTER HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP Black Steel + Plastic and Mesh Bezel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Newegg.com - COOLER MASTER HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP Black Steel + Plastic and Mesh Bezel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Western Digital Caviar Black WD7502AAEX 750GB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Black WD7502AAEX 750GB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

MSI N460GTX Hawk Talon Attack GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Newegg.com - MSI N460GTX Hawk Talon Attack GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

CORSAIR Enthusiast Series CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
Newegg.com - CORSAIR Enthusiast Series CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL
Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL

ASRock P67 EXTREME4 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Newegg.com - ASRock P67 EXTREME4 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

Intel Core i5-2400 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz (3.4GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52400
Newegg.com - Intel Core i5-2400 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz (3.4GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52400

The total here is around $850 and that's probably as high as I'm going.
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-20-2011, 11:47 PM   #5
glc
Forum Administrator
Staff
Premium Member
 
glc's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2000
Location: Joplin MO
Posts: 37,767
Quote:
Originally Posted by glc View Post
Replace the Ripjaws ram with Corsair, Crucial, Kingston, or A-Data. 1333 speed is all you need unless you will be overclocking.
I kid you not - G.skill has been having quality and compatibility issues!

Asrock boards are not reliable. I recommend you replace that with this:

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
glc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 12:01 AM   #6
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
Hows this for the RAM?

CORSAIR Vengeance 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-343-_-Product
Or
CORSAIR XMS3 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMX4GX3M2A1600C8
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-263-_-Product
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 02:00 AM   #7
glc
Forum Administrator
Staff
Premium Member
 
glc's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2000
Location: Joplin MO
Posts: 37,767
The Vengeance is a better choice because it's 1.5 volt, but you really don't need anything faster than 1333.
glc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 01:42 PM   #8
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
Ah, thanks!

Could someone suggest another motherboard? I'm not into to this one.
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 03:31 PM   #9
Moderator
Staff
Premium Member
 
jdeb's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Detroit, MI
Posts: 3,794
Quote:
Originally Posted by iLi3kCa3k View Post
Ah, thanks!

Could someone suggest another motherboard? I'm not into to this one.
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
I think that is a solid choice but I had good success (single) with this board if it interests you...

Newegg.com - MSI Z68MA-ED55 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
Last edited by jdeb; 06-21-2011 at 03:36 PM.
jdeb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 03:52 PM   #10
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
I was kinda looking for something with slots for both mouse and keyboard, I don't intend on buying new ones... At least for now, but I will consider those.
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 04:19 PM   #11
Moderator
Staff
Premium Member
 
jdeb's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Detroit, MI
Posts: 3,794
Quote:
Originally Posted by iLi3kCa3k View Post
I was kinda looking for something with slots for both mouse and keyboard, I don't intend on buying new ones... At least for now, but I will consider those.
O.K. well you have to make a choice. I am stumped at a decision involving a keyboard and mouse.
jdeb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 05:13 PM   #12
glc
Forum Administrator
Staff
Premium Member
 
glc's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2000
Location: Joplin MO
Posts: 37,767
There are no Z68 boards that have two PS/2 ports - and there are continuing issues that have been plaguing the P67 chipset. If you absolutely MUST have 2 ports in the $150 range:

Newegg.com - ASUS P8P67 LE (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

Newegg.com - ASUS P8P67 (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
glc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 10:16 PM   #13
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
Eh, I guess I can buy a new mouse or keyboard so thats fine.

I'm gonna go with this one.
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

But I am wondering about the other one, aren't DVI/VGA/HGMI ports and such normally on the graphics card?
Newegg.com - MSI Z68MA-ED55 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
Last edited by iLi3kCa3k; 06-21-2011 at 10:34 PM.
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 10:38 PM   #14
Moderator
Staff
Premium Member
 
jdeb's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Detroit, MI
Posts: 3,794
Z68 chipset supports the K Sandy bridge which has integrated video and lets you overclock it.
jdeb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 10:43 PM   #15
Techphile.
 
David M's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: San Francisco Bay
Posts: 5,959
Quote:
Originally Posted by iLi3kCa3k View Post
Eh, I guess I can buy a new mouse or keyboard so thats fine.
You can buy PS/2 to USB adapters so you don't have to worry about what your motherboard does or does not have in that respect.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...EAR-_-12107901
__________________
Asus P8P67 WS Revolution | Intel 2600K @ 4.7 GHz | Win 7 Pro 64 |8 gigs Corsair 1600 | Two Diamond 6990's in Crossfire| Corsair AX1200 | Thermalright Silver Arrow | Western Digital Black 2TB 64 meg cache | Lian-Li PC-A71B | Logitec Z-5500 | Three Asus 26" VW266H monitors running under Eyefinity |
Last edited by David M; 06-21-2011 at 10:47 PM.
David M is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 11:25 PM   #16
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
Eh, all I have is crappy keyboards and such that came with pre-built PC's.
I think I'm going to upgrade speakers, mouse and my keyboard. xD
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 11:48 PM   #17
Avanzato Tecnico
Premium Member
 
Khalil's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Illinois
Posts: 3,380
Quote:
If you can afford the i5-2500 the jump in gaming performance is pretty significant.
I thought we were not supposed to sway people away from one brand of CPU to another or does that rule only apply when it is disadvantage Intel?????????

The Intel will give you no advantage that you will ever feel over the AMD 965 as long as you are using a high end gaming card. Save your money and stay with the AMD and put more money into a better graphics card!!

I would drop down to a Phenom 840 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103921 and go with either a a GTX470 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...%20%28Fermi%29 or even better an ATI 6870 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814161369
__________________
Want to help cure Cancer and other Diseases?
You easily can, all you need is your Computer, Find out how!
Last edited by Khalil; 06-21-2011 at 11:56 PM.
Khalil is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2011, 11:59 PM   #18
Techphile.
 
David M's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: San Francisco Bay
Posts: 5,959
I my opinion I would think it is okay to list facts and if that also happens to persuade people to your way of thinking then so be it.
Last edited by David M; 06-22-2011 at 12:01 AM.
David M is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:01 AM   #19
Avanzato Tecnico
Premium Member
 
Khalil's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Illinois
Posts: 3,380
Its not a fact at all David, that Intel with 460 will not outperform an AMD 840 with a GTX470 or an ATI 6870, we need to give people the best value for their money when they come here looking for a specific build. I have seen many people get in trouble in the past recomending AMD when an OP listed an Intel in his initial build!!
Khalil is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:01 AM   #20
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
Would this
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...D=z20vca7jgz7g

Be better than this
Newegg.com - MSI N460GTX Hawk Talon Attack GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

I know nothing about Radeon.

And the switch to intel was based on a higher budget personally.
Last edited by iLi3kCa3k; 06-22-2011 at 12:04 AM.
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:03 AM   #21
Avanzato Tecnico
Premium Member
 
Khalil's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Illinois
Posts: 3,380
Yes by far!!!
Khalil is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:06 AM   #22
Techphile.
 
David M's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: San Francisco Bay
Posts: 5,959
I wasn't arguing your point, I agree with you. Just saying I see nothing wrong with listing facts about another brand or type etc, which is exactly what you did. People make the best decisions when they have the most information.
Last edited by David M; 06-22-2011 at 12:08 AM.
David M is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:07 AM   #23
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
Alright, whats the best card that I can get for $200?
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:12 AM   #24
Techphile.
 
David M's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: San Francisco Bay
Posts: 5,959
Have you looked through the rankings/prices in Tom's Hardware? This may not give you a firm answer but it will give you a feel for which are the best/fastest cards in that price category.

Benchmarks 2011 Gaming Graphics Charts
David M is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:12 AM   #25
Avanzato Tecnico
Premium Member
 
Khalil's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Illinois
Posts: 3,380
Quote:
Originally Posted by David M View Post
I wasn't arguing your point. Just saying I see nothing wrong with listing facts from the other side, which is exactly what you did.
The Intel i5-2400 will outperform the AMD 965 as a CPU however the OP has a certain amount of money for his build, would I go recomending a faster processor to him or a faster Video card, after all he is gaming. If the OP was suggesting he was going to buy a GTX580 or an HD6990 and we then recommend a faster processor it would make sense.

To the OP, 80-85% of the load gets handled by the GPU (Video Card) when gaming so you need to put your money first in the best video card possible then apply the money towards a CPU, memory and a fast hard drive.

Quote:
Alright, whats the best card that I can get for $200?
In my opinion the ATI 6870 for performance, reliabity and cooler operation!
Last edited by Khalil; 06-22-2011 at 12:15 AM.
Khalil is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:42 AM   #26
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
Would these essentially be the same card?

HIS IceQ X Turbo H687QNT1G2M Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity
Newegg.com - HIS IceQ X Turbo H687QNT1G2M Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity

And

XFX HD-687A-ZNFC Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity
Newegg.com - XFX HD-687A-ZNFC Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:47 AM   #27
Techphile.
 
David M's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: San Francisco Bay
Posts: 5,959
Same cards specification wise. There is a big difference in the quality of who manufactures them.

Do you want Lexus or Yugo making your card?

You decide...
Video Card Rating
David M is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:55 AM   #28
Avanzato Tecnico
Premium Member
 
Khalil's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Illinois
Posts: 3,380
Quote:
Do you want Lexus or Yugo making your card?
LOL

XFX failure is very high, I like some of the things they do with their video cards but alas their quality control is still the pits.
Khalil is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 12:57 AM   #29
Member (4 bit)
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 14
Ah. I'll go with this one the other one then.
I'm probably looking at around $870 with shipping.
Last edited by iLi3kCa3k; 06-22-2011 at 01:06 AM.
iLi3kCa3k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-22-2011, 01:21 AM   #30
glc
Forum Administrator
Staff
Premium Member
 
glc's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2000
Location: Joplin MO
Posts: 37,767
Let's put the AMD/Intel argument to bed.

Best Gaming CPUs For The Money: May 2011 : May Updates

You are both correct. The exact processors in question aren't listed, but similar ones are, and as you can see, AMD wins at some budget points and Intel wins at other budget points.
glc is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply
Page 1 of 2 1 2

Bookmarks

Still Need Help? Type Your Keywords Here:


« Previous Thread | Next Thread »
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Linear Mode Linear Mode
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 10:49 PM.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2012, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
SEO by vBSEO 3.6.0 PL2

PCMech - Archive - Top