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GAF'S ultimate $500/£400/$650 CAD budget gaming rigs + bonus high end configs!

A

aryies

Neo Member
EGM92 said:
Why do you consider it wasting money? I have money to spend, I'll do with it what I feel like.
Click to expand...

oh your totally right in "my money, if i wanna waste it, il waste it", but its still a waste, since its not really needed. unless your gaming at something stupid like 2400p :)
 
D

Deleted member 1235

Unconfirmed Member
Zaphyr said:
I forgot to connect the 4 pin power cable at first, but it didn't take me long to figure that out. When I try to boot everything powers on: fans, harddisk, dvd-drive, the lot. Something must be faulty, right? I've taken everything out and put it back in twice now.

Been reading a lot of '3 red lights' topics and most of the gpu's seem dead on arrival. But that 2900xt I put in didn't work either, while it works perfectly in another pc.

EDIT: My keyboard and mouse don't seem to power on.
Click to expand...

you didn't plug the internal firewire into the usb or vice versa by accident did you? My motherboard doc said very specifically DONT DO THAT.

I just installed crysis warhead last night to see how my new computer performed

WD 640GB 32MB 7200rpm 3.5inch SATA3.0 Caviar

CoolerMaster Centurion 5 Tower Case No PSU black + silver

Sapphire ATI HD4890,1GB, GDDR5,HDTV,2xDVI,HDMI,PCIe

M4A78-E Motherboard

Coolermaster Real Power M620

Samsung SH-S223F/BEWE 22x DVDRW SATA Writer Bulk Beige

Amd PHENOM II X4 940 3.0GHZ BLACK SKT AM2+ 8MB 125W PIB 1

Totaal: €699.99

And a 23inch screen at another 250 euro brings it in at 950 total

Last night played crysis at 1280x1024 4x antialiasing and it ran great.

at 4x anti aliasing I noticed a quite a reduced draw distance though, trees were kind of popping in quite noticeably. I reduced it to 2x anti aliasing and that seemed to disappear. This was in a slightly diff area though. Not sure if it's the game or my graphics capabilities or what.

As for crysis, not sure I actually enjoy that game that much, but it looks good!
 
M

MisterAnderson

Member
catfish said:
you didn't plug the internal firewire into the usb or vice versa by accident did you? My motherboard doc said very specifically DONT DO THAT.

I just installed crysis warhead last night to see how my new computer performed

WD 640GB 32MB 7200rpm 3.5inch SATA3.0 Caviar

CoolerMaster Centurion 5 Tower Case No PSU black + silver

Sapphire ATI HD4890,1GB, GDDR5,HDTV,2xDVI,HDMI,PCIe

M4A78-E Motherboard

Coolermaster Real Power M620

Samsung SH-S223F/BEWE 22x DVDRW SATA Writer Bulk Beige

Amd PHENOM II X4 940 3.0GHZ BLACK SKT AM2+ 8MB 125W PIB 1

Totaal: €699.99

And a 23inch screen at another 250 euro brings it in at 950 total

Last night played crysis at 1280x1024 4x antialiasing and it ran great.

at 4x anti aliasing I noticed a quite a reduced draw distance though, trees were kind of popping in quite noticeably. I reduced it to 2x anti aliasing and that seemed to disappear. This was in a slightly diff area though. Not sure if it's the game or my graphics capabilities or what.

As for crysis, not sure I actually enjoy that game that much, but it looks good!
Click to expand...

I highly recommend getting a custom config download for Crysis, as they tend to make it look even better and run better as well. There's a special kind of AA in Crysis called edgeAA that smoothens out all the edges without as big of a performance hit that normal AA does. You mentioned "Warhead" in your post, but then also "Crysis." Not sure if you were just saying that since it's shorter to than typing Warhead, but if you are referring to the original Crysis as well you should check out this config:http://www.incrysis.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=23117. It should technically work for Warhead too, but it isn't optimized for it.

The same guys also released a Warhead specific config that you could probably track down but I for some reason don't have it on hand. If you are interested but can't find it I can send you the installer.
 
D

Deleted member 1235

Unconfirmed Member
MisterAnderson said:
The same guys also released a Warhead specific config that you could probably track down but I for some reason don't have it on hand. If you are interested but can't find it I can send you the installer.
Click to expand...

Sorry, I mean 'Crysis Warhead' I didn't have 60 Eurobux for both games so I went with the newer one.

I'm pretty new to PC gaming, as in this is the first one I've owned I think ever (well in 10 years) so this stuff is all new too me. I'm an IT guy though so I should pick it up fast, but it's kind of dominating at first, playing a game never felt so much like science.....

I'm going to go run the game again when I get home and put on the FPS counters etc and see exactly what I am getting on all settings.
 
F

Firestorm

Member
Wasn't sure if I should post it here or in the other thread, but it's about $1000 CAD / $800 USD (remove one of the two HDDs) so here's what I'm thinking of getting:

Gigabyte EP45-UD3P ATX LGA775 P45 Motherboard - $133.09 after Price Match and $30 MIR
BFG GeForce GTX 275 OC 896MB GDDR3 - $199.99 after $20 MIR
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 2.83GHZ Yorkfield 1333FSB 12MB - $249.79 after Price Match
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB 7200RPM 32MB Dual Proc 3.5IN SATA Hard Drive - $77.55 after Price Match
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive - $99.85 after Price Match
Corsair XMS2 4GB 2X2GB PC2-8500 DDR2-1066 CL5-6-6-18 240PIN Memory - $48.68 after $17 MIR
Samsung SH-S223F Black 22X DVD Writer SATA - $25.88 after Price Match
Antec Sonata III Black ATX 16IN Mid Tower Quiet Case 500W 120MM Fan - $118.88
PC Assembly and Testing with 1 Year Limited NCIX System Warranty - $50.00

Enviromental Fee: $10.00
Subtotal: $1,080.71
7% PST - BC residents: $75.65
GST(5%): $54.04
YOUR TOTAL: $1,210.40 CAD
After MIR: $1143.40 CAD (~1030 USD. when did our dollar get so high again? parts are lower on newegg so it should be about 800 USD if you remove an HDD)

Ok, so I need to stick with the motherboard. I also need to have a Core 2 Quad and nVidia video card. Reasons being that I want this to be a Hackintosh. Windows 7 as my primary OS on the 1TB HDD with OS X as my schoolwork OS on the 640 GB HDD.

What my primary concern is whether or not that case and included power supply will work for this set up. From what I understand, the wattage isn't as important as how it's configured and I don't know how to tell that. Any help?

I do not plan on overclocking. Might do so near the end of the first year warranty.
 
Z

Zaphyr

Neo Member
catfish said:
you didn't plug the internal firewire into the usb or vice versa by accident did you? My motherboard doc said very specifically DONT DO THAT.
Click to expand...

I do not have a firewire cable to begin with thankfully
 
Z

Zaphyr

Neo Member
Ok, it would seem one of my RAM is dead, pulled one out and it's running ok now ( though on 2gb ). I hope this is the end of it :lol
 
B

brain_stew

Member
Firestorm said:
Wasn't sure if I should post it here or in the other thread, but it's about $1000 CAD / $800 USD (remove one of the two HDDs) so here's what I'm thinking of getting:

Gigabyte EP45-UD3P ATX LGA775 P45 Motherboard - $133.09 after Price Match and $30 MIR
BFG GeForce GTX 275 OC 896MB GDDR3 - $199.99 after $20 MIR
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 2.83GHZ Yorkfield 1333FSB 12MB - $249.79 after Price Match
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB 7200RPM 32MB Dual Proc 3.5IN SATA Hard Drive - $77.55 after Price Match
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive - $99.85 after Price Match
Corsair XMS2 4GB 2X2GB PC2-8500 DDR2-1066 CL5-6-6-18 240PIN Memory - $48.68 after $17 MIR
Samsung SH-S223F Black 22X DVD Writer SATA - $25.88 after Price Match
Antec Sonata III Black ATX 16IN Mid Tower Quiet Case 500W 120MM Fan - $118.88
PC Assembly and Testing with 1 Year Limited NCIX System Warranty - $50.00

Enviromental Fee: $10.00
Subtotal: $1,080.71
7% PST - BC residents: $75.65
GST(5%): $54.04
YOUR TOTAL: $1,210.40 CAD
After MIR: $1143.40 CAD (~1030 USD. when did our dollar get so high again? parts are lower on newegg so it should be about 800 USD if you remove an HDD)

Ok, so I need to stick with the motherboard. I also need to have a Core 2 Quad and nVidia video card. Reasons being that I want this to be a Hackintosh. Windows 7 as my primary OS on the 1TB HDD with OS X as my schoolwork OS on the 640 GB HDD.

What my primary concern is whether or not that case and included power supply will work for this set up. From what I understand, the wattage isn't as important as how it's configured and I don't know how to tell that. Any help?

I do not plan on overclocking. Might do so near the end of the first year warranty.
Click to expand...


That's an excellent PSU, it will manage that, no bother.
 
B

brain_stew

Member
404Ender said:
Thanks, those look awesome, I'll definitely look into getting them instead.

Oh also, does the mobo in the parts I quoted support optical out or something that I can plug into a surround system?
Click to expand...

The GPU supports multi channel PCM audio over HDMI with one cable. If your amp supports HDMI audio, you can hook it all up (both audio and video) in one cable straight out of that GPU.
 
B

brain_stew

Member
EGM92 said:
Any of you have a GTX295? I'm looking to "upgrade" from my 2x HD4870X2 to a SLI GTX295 setup and I'm trying to get real world performance, benchmarks don't mean shit when actually gaming.
Click to expand...

With DX11 cards around the corner, there doesn't seem much reason to drop more than $1000 on a set of GPUs. Wait till ATI's new the hotness hits at the end of the year to get DX11 funcitionality and a performance boost for your money.

I assume you're running a 3.4ghz+ i7 right? You're going to be insanely CPU bottlenecked otherwise. If not that'd be where I'd be looking to upgrade in your situation

If you want to switch to Nvidia and want to buy now, I 'd have a look at tri SLI GTX 260s/275s.
 
R

RaySpencer

Member
Do you have recomendations for Intel and Nvidia stuff instead of the AMD/ATi ? Nothing against AMD/ATi, but this PhysX thing looks amazing, but if its not as good bang for your buck wise, then i wont bother.


There is just so many differant people making the same stuff, that I dont know whats best, or why I need certain things, or what works with what.... Im having a hard time figuring out what I should buy.


I do know for sure that I need a GPU with HDMI so I can run it into my TV, but I think most have DVI to HDMI connector things right?


Edit: I've been using your first post as a guide as to what to buy as well, but like I say, when I try to swap something out like the GPU or/and CPU, I probably need to change the motherboard, and PSU, and then change the case to something a little slicker lookin. :p
 
F

Firestorm

Member
Ah crap. I clicked Checkout and the card was sold out x.x I guess I'll wait a bit.
Nobiru said:
Do you have recomendations for Intel and Nvidia stuff instead of the AMD/ATi ? Nothing against AMD/ATi, but this PhysX thing looks amazing, but if its not as good bang for your buck wise, then i wont bother.


There is just so many differant people making the same stuff, that I dont know whats best, or why I need certain things, or what works with what.... Im having a hard time figuring out what I should buy.


I do know for sure that I need a GPU with HDMI so I can run it into my TV, but I think most have DVI to HDMI connector things right?


Edit: I've been using your first post as a guide as to what to buy as well, but like I say, when I try to swap something out like the GPU or/and CPU, I probably need to change the motherboard, and PSU, and then change the case to something a little slicker lookin. :p
Click to expand...
You should be able to just change the 4870 or 4890 to an nVidia card and keep the rest the same. You don't need to go Intel for CPU. If you do, then you'll need to change the motherboard too. The GTX 275 is probably the card you'll be looking at for around the same price as the 4890. For 4870, I believe the GTX 260 is more around that range.
 
D

Deleted member 12837

Unconfirmed Member
brain_stew said:
The GPU supports multi channel PCM audio over HDMI with one cable. If your amp supports HDMI audio, you can hook it all up (both audio and video) in one cable straight out of that GPU.
Click to expand...

Also, can the power supply I listed handle the new GPU you suggested?

This is starting to become a lot more expensive than I originally anticipated, especially when I really don't need that the HTPC to be that powerful...
 
J

JoeBoy101

Member
I just got an Nvidia GTX 275 and am very happy with it. Its a beast and quite a bit longer than my 8800GT was, so bear that in mind, ESPECIALLY if you have a mid-tower case. BTW, I got eVGA which I highly recommend due to their customer support and step-up plan. Their step-up plan is that for 90 days after getting a card, you want to upgrade, you can return the card for a full refund towards the cost of the more powerful card.
 
R

RaySpencer

Member
Firestorm said:
Ah crap. I clicked Checkout and the card was sold out x.x I guess I'll wait a bit.You should be able to just change the 4870 or 4890 to an nVidia card and keep the rest the same. You don't need to go Intel for CPU. If you do, then you'll need to change the motherboard too. The GTX 275 is probably the card you'll be looking at for around the same price as the 4890. For 4870, I believe the GTX 260 is more around that range.
Click to expand...


So I should just grab whats in the first post, but drop in a GTX275 instead and im done? what about the PSU though, someone a page or 2 back was saying they might need a little larger PSU ?
 
F

Firestorm

Member
Nobiru said:
So I should just grab whats in the first post, but drop in a GTX275 instead and im done? what about the PSU though, someone a page or 2 back was saying they might need a little larger PSU ?
Click to expand...
That power supply is enough.
 
F

Firestorm

Member
T

Tom Penny

Member
My computer just died and now I'm using and old one I had in my basement. My computer would turn on but it would not recognize the hardrive and the CD drive wouldn'[t even get power. How would I determine if my mobo is toast or my power supply isn't working? Yesterday My CD drive worked but I could not select boot from CD to reinstall windows to my hardrive ( i thought that might be the problem). I got to the screen for boot options using f12 but I couldn't use the arrows buttons to move up and down and select "boot from cd" so i'm thinking my bios and motherboard are toast. Any suggestions?
 
R

Rur0ni

Member
Tom Penny said:
My computer just died and now I'm using and old one I had in my basement. My computer would turn on but it would not recognize the hardrive and the CD drive wouldn'[t even get power. How would I determine if my mobo is toast or my power supply isn't working? Yesterday My CD drive worked but I could not select boot from CD to reinstall windows to my hardrive ( i thought that might be the problem). I got to the screen for boot options using f12 but I couldn't use the arrows buttons to move up and down and select "boot from cd" so i'm thinking my bios and motherboard are toast. Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
If the HDD spins up, and the cdrom tray can open, and all your fans are running, then the PSU isn't the problem best I can tell. Your problem sounds a bit weird, one of those things I have to see first-hand. :p
 
T

Tom Penny

Member
Rur0ni said:
If the HDD spins up, and the cdrom tray can open, and all your fans are running, then the PSU isn't the problem best I can tell. Your problem sounds a bit weird, one of those things I have to see first-hand. :p
Click to expand...

It did all that yesterday but I have 3 hard drives so I was checking each one and suddenly id didn't reconize them anymore in the bios and my CD tray wouldn't open. Weird. I guess it's an excuse to upgrade!!!
 
T

Tom Penny

Member
E

Eaten By A Grue

Member
Tom Penny said:
These are the 3 most similar cheapest combo's I saw and I'm buying one since my computer is toast

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.211759
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.211757
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.211637
Click to expand...
Nice, thanks that last one looks like a good deal.

Edit: That last motherboard, can it support the RAM listed on the original post?

Edit Edit: Looks at the PDF manual online looks like it does, and purchased! Thanks for the recommendations GAF.
 
I

ItAintEasyBeinCheesy

it's 4th of July in my asshole
Quick question bout Crossfire, i have the 2 bridge connectors for inside the PC connecting the 2 cards together. Do i need the DVI Y cable like this as well?

cable2fh.jpg
 
Y

yanhero

Member
Nobiru said:
Do you have recomendations for Intel and Nvidia stuff instead of the AMD/ATi ? Nothing against AMD/ATi, but this PhysX thing looks amazing, but if its not as good bang for your buck wise, then i wont bother.


There is just so many differant people making the same stuff, that I dont know whats best, or why I need certain things, or what works with what.... Im having a hard time figuring out what I should buy.


I do know for sure that I need a GPU with HDMI so I can run it into my TV, but I think most have DVI to HDMI connector things right?


Edit: I've been using your first post as a guide as to what to buy as well, but like I say, when I try to swap something out like the GPU or/and CPU, I probably need to change the motherboard, and PSU, and then change the case to something a little slicker lookin. :p
Click to expand...

Do you want lossless audio over HDMI? If you do you should go for a 4890.
 
C

Chris R

Member
Hopefully this thread is still around and getting updates at the end of August when my brother builds his next rig. I know for sure he is going to get a 4890 because the performance/price ratio can't be beat, just can't decide if he should go i7 or Phenom II X4 :| Also nice to see DDR3 prices getting to a more reasonable level.
 
R

RaySpencer

Member
yanhero said:
Do you want lossless audio over HDMI? If you do you should go for a 4890.
Click to expand...

Im not much of an Audio guy, the TV its going into is just an 32" 720p set I got a couple years ago, no sound system at all. I was planning on getting some Logitec speakers or something, but I will keep that in mind to save me some space on my desk. Does Nvidia offer something with lossless audio with around the same graphical punch as a 4890?
 
Y

Yazus

Member
Jesus motherfucking christ, god damn fucking big cases. The Antec Nine Hundred V2 is goddamn 45CM Tall, and my desk is only fucking 41. JESUS CHRIS

Edit: fuck it, I'm getting an Antec Skeleton.
 
D

Dynamic3

Member
I think I have finally figured out what I want to do. Right now, all I have is a MBP (15", Leopard, 1.5GB RAM, 80GB HD, 2.0GHz Core Duo). My ideology is that I can sell the MBP, and use the funds to build a desktop for windows gaming and which I will hackintosh for daily use, and get a netbook which I will also hackintosh for travel. I would like to try and value my MBP, but also keep in mind that I won't be restricted to this budget, rather I will use it as a starting point.

From what I have been told, if I am going to hackintosh the desktop (I would like to be able to dual boot as I will be using Windows for gaming and OSX for daily use) that I should go with an Intel CPU as AMD/OSX compatibility isn't ideal. Is this true? I also would prefer to use an Nvidia GPU (I have had my eye on the GTX 270) as Physx (in particular its use in Mirror's Edge) is one of the main reasons I have become interested in PC gaming.

So I was wondering if you guys would mind helping me build a desktop with OSX compatible parts that can also run with the PCs in this thread GPU-wise. All I have picked out so far is the monitor (Dell SX2210 [1080p] - $189), keyboard (Apple wired w/ numpad - ), and netbook (HP Mini 110 ? - ? [can I hackintosh the Mi edition or do I need to start with the XP version?]).

Thanks a lot, I appreciate it.
 
F

Fredescu

Member
ItAintEasyBeinCheesy said:
Quick question bout Crossfire, i have the 2 bridge connectors for inside the PC connecting the 2 cards together. Do i need the DVI Y cable like this as well?
Click to expand...
Can't see the picture, but no, the image will just be pumped out one card.
 
G

Great King Bowser

Property of Kaz Harai
Great King Bowser said:
What's a good aftermarket CPU heatsink/fan for the Phenom X2? Would one compatible with AM2 socket be okay?
Click to expand...

Just to say, I ended up buying the Zalman CNPS9900 LED heatsink and that took my temperatures down by 15 degrees. :lol Running at a stable 3.8ghz now.
 
R

RaySpencer

Member
How much more powerfull is Firestorms config vs the one in the original post (the Canada GAF one). assuming they both had a GTX275 on them? Im thinking I might spend a little more than the one Brain Stew suggests, but im not sure if i want/need to get into the one Firestorm built. I mean case and PSU stuff isnt a factor, i guess im basicaly just looking at the CPU and mobo.
 
F

Firestorm

Member
Nobiru said:
How much more powerfull is Firestorms config vs the one in the original post (the Canada GAF one). assuming they both had a GTX275 on them? Im thinking I might spend a little more than the one Brain Stew suggests, but im not sure if i want/need to get into the one Firestorm built. I mean case and PSU stuff isnt a factor, i guess im basicaly just looking at the CPU and mobo.
Click to expand...
The one I'm going with is more along the lines of the $1000 build rather than the $650 build. The Phenom 940 is $210 while the Q9550 is $250. I'm restricted to Intel because of what I want to do. You can decide CPU on the CPU yourself:

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=3492&p=20
 
B

brain_stew

Member
I decided to do something a little different today, to see what I could come up with, and wow, I've surpassed all my expectations. Believe it or not you can now build a budget gaming rig for $400 that will give you great high settings in every game. This thing will utterly wipe the floor with any console, yet costs the same amount and manages to pack a 640GB HDD, DVDRW and a really nice and roomy case in for good measure.

The only area I skimped in is the motherboard really. Its not ideal for future upgrades but it still has solid caps. so reliability should be good, and you've got to make some compromises at this price point. If all you want is a great little machine to play PC games and do general PC work, you really can't complain with this little thing:

ME said:
US GAF'S ULTIMATE $400 GAMING RIG

[CPU/MOTHERBOARD/MEMORY COMBO (2.8ghz E6300 / ECS G31 / OCZ SLI 4GB 800mhz)]: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.215870 ($157 +$23 MIR)
[DVDRW (Samsung 22x SATA)]: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151187 ($27)
[GPU (Sapphire E HD 4850 512M)]: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102824 ($100)
[HDD (WD CAVIAR BLUE 640GB )]: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218 ($60)
[CASE/PSU COMBO (Coolermaster Centurion 5 / Coolermaster 460w): http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.208506 ($75)


$418.92 - $33 rebates = $395.93
Click to expand...
 
K

Kosma

Banned
My 399 rig that I built last year is still going strong. Not nearly as good as the the rig you can build now for that price though. But I think I can always upgrade in a year if its needed.

Looking forward to see how it does RE5 and Mass Effect 2 :)
 
I

Ice Monkey

Member
Also, my rig right now includes:

gigabyte ga-ma780g-ud3h - $80 (after $10 mir)
amd phenom II x4 920 - $140 (no mir)
hitachi 1TB 7200 - $80 (no mir)
bfg gtx 260 OC - $126 (no mir)
OCZ 700W PS - $75 (after $25 mir)
4gb 2x2gb OCZ ddr2 1066 ram - $45 (after $10 mir)
and I shoved it all into a coolermaster elite 360 (smallest atx case around) using a sawzall - $40 (no mir)

That's IMHO a complete, blazing fast computer setup for a grand total of $586, with $631 upfront before MIRs . If you need a monitor, they have a 2048x1152 great 23" monitor for $200 after 40 mir. I bought it all at microcenter, recently so you can even get a nice easy way to return some of it as opposed to ordering from newegg with their restocking fees.

There was a crossfire capable version of my mobo with the 790gx chipset for $130, ive tried sli and hated it and wanted the gtx 260 anyway instead of ati so i didnt bite. But thats always an option, and it has heatpipes for better overclocking.

Let's compare this to the i7 computer i just helped my dad build.

core i7 920 - was $230 or more, now $200 microcenter
asus p6t deluxe mobo - $289
ocz ddr3 1600, 8 8 8 ram - $100 (after 20 mir)
xfx gts 250 - $150 (after 20 mir) (can get galaxy 250 at $99 now)
(OR ati hd4870 that we returned, too loud- $180 (after 20 mir)
ocz 700w ps - $75 (after 25 mir)
seagate 1.5TB 7200 - $120
coolermaster cm 690 case that i bought on black friday - $90 ($110 now)

Now, the cheapest x58 mobo they have is a gigabyte at 185, with 20$ MIR. so you're talking about $100 less if you switch to the cheapest mobo.

So, you're looking at $1054 for what we built, after upfront before MIRs = $1119. If, you instead want to limit yourself to no choice for the mobo at the cheapest mobo i can see, the 1TB from up top, the galaxy gts250, 200$ for the i7 now, then you will spend $859. Note, that is after MIRs so its above $900 upfront, and includes the more expensive case that unless you like to use a sawzall and get a crazy small case like me, you will need to spend 60-90 on a case likely. Also, this is without the monitor too.

Anyway, after all that shit, my point is, I have this nice little speedy quad core, gtx 260 computer for probably $586 bucks, even though i added in some stuff that I already had bought awhile ago because who buys all new components at once? :)

Lets assume you just want to upgrade from a dual core like i did since i got that a few years ago, well then you probably already have the ddr2 ram, so lets use that, and you might already have the video card, hard drive and case and power supply. Between the i7 and the phenom, I'd say you could get away with just upgrading the mobo and the cpu for the phenom, so you could get the good $80 mobo like me, the phenom II x4 920 for $140 and you just spent $220.

If instead, you'd like the i7, you spend $200 minimum for the i7 at microcenter, $185 for the cheapest mobo available and $100 for the tri channel ram. Even if you only wanted 4GB of ddr3, thats a waste because its still $70 and you dont get the triple channel. So that's $485. Even if you needed the ddr2 ram for the phenom, and REALLY wanted to just get the 4gb ddr3 if necessary, you're looking at $260 vs $455.

Now all the pricing differences aside, I was hesitating to get the i7 because of the need for ddr3 alone. However, one thing not a lot of people recognize is that the lga 1366 is made just for the i7s, so when i8 comes out or whatever's next, bye bye motherboard.

Instead, AMD likes backwards compatibility, so if/when AMD comes out with a bleeding edge AM3 cpu that rivals the i7, guess what? You can go ahead and keep the AM2+ mobos because they support AM3 cpus. Just the possibility of that, even if it would limit my precious new amd cpu, made me go with the AMD.

You could even say im making a bad price comparison between the i7 and the phenom, because the phenom is in a lower class that instead competes with the quad cores, but again with amd mobos you can possibly upgrade while intel mobos are locked to a specific type of proc which makes all the difference to me.
 
E

expy

Banned
This thread is really helpful. I'm about to upgrade the mobo/cpu/memory/gpu of my system, I'm going to use the old parts with some older components I have left over.

I'm looking towards an i7 processor, I've heard good things about them.
 
U

UT66

Banned
Kosma said:
My 399 rig that I built last year is still going strong. Not nearly as good as the the rig you can build now for that price though. But I think I can always upgrade in a year if its needed.

Looking forward to see how it does RE5 and Mass Effect 2 :)
Click to expand...


You are set. Hell my 2006 setup is still going strong. :lol

E6600 3.2GHZ
ASUS P5B-E
4GB DDR2
4770 DDR5 900 / 900

= 64 FPS ON RE5 AT 1280 X 1024 4XAA
 
K

kurahadol

Member
I got a friend in the states to pick me up an i7 at microcenter and ship it to me here in Canada. Ended up saving a bunch of money compared to buying it anywhere here. Now I just need to buy the rest of my system :lol
 
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