A 350 Dollar Challenge

RedSheep · May 2, 2013

Hello I am having a lot of trouble with my new budget computer I will not be buying a graphics card an os or moniter or anything extra. I just need the computer. Oh and the graphics card I will be using is a gtx 560 ti. This computer will be a gaming only computer. Also I will need to upgrade in the future and I will not be planning to overclock. The main games i will be playing are RTS and FPS. Thank you and have a nice day.

IInuyasha74 · May 2, 2013

Not too difficult, do you have a preference on AMD or Intel? Do you have a hard drive? Or are you just wanting the best performance regardless?

envy14tpe · May 2, 2013

Tough to reach. but here's the best you can do.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($113.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock H77M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($64.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Gamer 2 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($47.98 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($56.68 @ Amazon)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($43.00 @ Newegg)
Total: $361.63
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-02 21:00 EDT-0400)

RedSheep · May 2, 2013

No I do not have a hard drive and on amd vs intel it doesn't really matter to me as long as I can get the best price to performance.

IInuyasha74 · May 2, 2013

Right then, give me just 10 minutes and I will put together a system in links.

RedSheep · May 2, 2013

IInuyasha74 :

Alright thanks

IInuyasha74 · May 2, 2013

envy14tpe · May 2, 2013

don't forget PSU. Without it your system is just components.

IInuyasha74 · May 2, 2013

The case comes with a PSU

envy14tpe · May 2, 2013

IInuyasha74 :

Most cases that come with a PSU are cheap. I would not spend $40 on a case and PSU. I'd be afraid my system blows up,...well..stops working cuz of cheap PSU. People do buy cheap PSUs and things go wrong often. At bare minimum I'd buy a Corsair, XFX, Antec, or Seasonic 80+ Bronze PSU.

I'm not alone in this. Ask the pc community and they will echo the same. Buy a case and buy a separate quality PSU.

IInuyasha74 · May 2, 2013

Honestly for best outcome you should mix what me and envy14tpe said. Buy the CPU and RAM he listed, buy the motherboard, case, HDD, and disk drive I listed. You do that you will have enough extra to grab a better thing of thermal paste for you CPU, because intel ships an alright fan for these small CPU's but the thermal paste they use is garbage. (I used it once, changed to ZM-STG2, difference of 50 degrees C)
You will have an extra bit after that too so if you wanted you could buy a slightly better case or just pocket the extra

IInuyasha74 · May 2, 2013

Just because a PSU is a little cheap doesn't mean it will stop working on you. My brothers PC has been running with an extremely cheap PSU we got for $20 and its been running for a year now. Its much cheaper to get a PSU with a case, and the PSU usually will work fine, just have a few less connectors maybe or be a little less efficient.

christop · May 2, 2013

You would be better of getting this..
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1270970

Man the other build with that super cheap case and psu with some no name ram is not a good idea..

IInuyasha74 · May 2, 2013

Both of the other builds lack CD/DVD drives, so unless you have an external USB drive and know how to load Windows 7 up on it as a USB installation and another computer to do it with, you will not be able to install Windows.

The case is super cheap, but its a case. It holds stuff, and lets air in and out of it. Thats all. His build isn't very hot so it would work perfect for his needs. The PSU is cheap, but again would work fine. They sell the PSU seperately on Newegg and they sell a lot of them, and work fine for people. As for the RAM Team makes a lot of Ram, SD cards, and flash devices. All of which sells pretty well and performs great. Like I said I used that brand before and it overclocked to 1600 and worked great.

christop · May 3, 2013

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136259 Here is a cheap dvd drive you can add to the build. The psu that comes with IInuyasha74 buld has one sata power connector and no pci power connectors at all. Anyways good luck with what ever you get.

DSzymborski · May 3, 2013

IInuyasha74 :

People drunk drive, too, without killing anyone.

A cheap PSU isn't just inefficient, but depending on which cheapo horror you go with, can easily destroy your computer in a number of interesting ways. Inefficiency is the least of the problems of one of those shoddily thrown together fire hazards.

IInuyasha74 · May 3, 2013

You linked the same DVD drive I listed earlier. Also, the PSU is just like other sold by Logysis on Newegg and sell hundreds. As for the number of SATA ports, being that the site does not list how many SATA ports are with it, I don't think you can claim it has just one, because you only see one in the picture among the cords. Even if there is, you can just grab some cheap molex to sata/PCIE power adapter and it works fine. Most GPU's seem to come with an adapter anyways.

Yes drunk driving and buying a cheap power supply are so similar. I guess next you will compare it to playing Russian Roulette.
You people really need to think. Pretty much every computer that is sold pre-assembled by a company like Dell just grabs and use whatever PSU works for their needs and is cheap. I have never seen a single one with a quality PSU. They don't all explode. Just because one out of ever few hundred might, and even then its only a might. Chances are the PSU will work fine for you.

envy14tpe · May 3, 2013

Well if his system has any issues then I can't say that I advised the buyer wrong. We are trying to help the buyer so he doesn't waste his money.

Also, many people have old DVD drives laying around and don't need to buy them.

DSzymborski · May 3, 2013

IInuyasha74 :

Yup, Russian Roulette is a good comparison too.

One out of every few hundred? Not bloody likely. Tests of the various Logisys PSUs generally have the unit crippled and running out of spec at half the rated load, with practically no ripple control.

The original poster wants to use a a GTX 560ti and is interested in future upgrades. You offered something that's not safe to run anything more than a very basic PC from 2001 on. It would be a miracle if he got 350W long-term with that hunk of junk - Hardware Secrets couldn't even get the *600W* from the same manufacturer to hit 400 without dying after it failed every single load test.

Original poster, please go for something along the lines of what envy suggested. If money is tight, there are reputable entry-level power supplies in the $40 range that won't risk your investment. The PSU is the lifeblood of your computer and if you need to cut costs to the bone, it's the last place you should do it.

IInuyasha74 · May 3, 2013

I understand that, but he has a very limited amount to spend. I know a different PSU would be better, but he would go over and thats still leaving off the Disk drive. For keeping under that price it seems best to buy it with the case

That is true though, he may be able to find a used DVD drive for a little bit less if he wants to save a little on that bit.

christop · May 3, 2013

I am pretty sure this is the one that comes with the case..http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817170014. Man you are acting like this is some argument. You do see it has one sata power cable. I do know gpu come with molex adapters. I just wanted the op to get the best parts for the money. I do think and I am not the fool to buy cheap crap or dells or hps as they are a piece of crap too. I never said all cheap psu explode. I do know from building over 300 computers for customers That 2 in 5 will be a junker. I am done with this thread as you are taking it personal and that arguing is not helping the op.. Again Good luck to op with what ever you get..

IInuyasha74 · May 3, 2013

DSzymborski, just because a company produces one bad product doesn't mean all of them are. Every company has produced a bad product before, but that doesn't mean other products from them will be. While the PSU is important, its still better to get a cheaper part than cut back on his RAM or CPU. If the computer isn't using a decent CPU and RAM it may not be a real improvement over what he had before.

christop, The power supply you listed is not the same power supply in the case. Not only are they different colors, they have fans placed in different areas and probably are different in the connectors on them. I am not taking this personally, I am just point out that I believe it is best for the customer to use that PSU that comes with the case. Pretty weak to say I am taking it personal because I disagree with your opinion. That doesn't make what you say correct, and neither does stating you have build computers before as I am sure most people answering questions have built numerous computers. It is still true however that schools and businesses buy hundreds of computers from companies like Dell, HP, Gateway, whatever and use them for years. Often for more than ten years, and all of them have similar low quality PSU's as are in this case. If the person also disagrees with me, he is obviously free to buy whatever he wants, but if he is really tight on cash and decides to buy a case like I listed with the PSU and it works fine for him with no issue then clearly my posts were inevitably helpful to him. Not just personal and argumentative.

christop · May 3, 2013

Sorry it was the other piece of crap..http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817170012 and a whole dollar more . Man that is sweet!! You are retarded... How many school district computers have a gtx 560 ti running in their dell? O that's right none. So imagine a psu rated for 480 watts but really is only producing 250 or 300 running a gtx 560 ti and not going Chernobyl.

DSzymborski · May 3, 2013

IInuyasha74 :

It's not like it's an anomaly - the whole line is cheaply made. Overclockers had their review Logisys 480W fail at 290. We're not suggesting he buy a Platinum-rated SeaSonic, simply that he buy an entry-level PSU that actually is competent at doing what a PSU needs to do. He asked for a *budget* system with a real GPU, not something he's going to use the check his email twice a week.

I'd rather try to power my PC with one of those potato batteries that kids make at science fairs - at least *that's* not going to deep-fry my CPU.

A 350 Dollar Challenge

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