First, I would like to thank everyone at Tom's Hardware for the time they put into creating a fantastic site! I am learning how to build a PC, and am so happy that I found Tom's Hardware. Your guides and information are very helpful and I can find great articles and forum entries at my level.
Earlier this year, I braved replacing the PSU on a pre-built Cyberpower system; that's the extent of my experience.
I've been doing a ton of reading over the past couple of days and have learned so much from you all that I'm confident that I can brave this. Thank you!
That being said, it's obvious that you all are willing to help, so rather than stumble around I'm asking for help. I'm starting to feel overwhelmed and doubtful about what I've done so far.
So far, I've chosen (doesn't have to be final decision):
$135 ASUS Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 2GB
(Newegg.com rebate ends 6/23/2013)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121642
$120 AMD FX-6300 FX-Series 6-Core Processor Edition, Black
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009O7YORK/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
$85 ASRock 970 Extreme 4 Motherboard
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0058HUQJ0/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Someone on a forum recommended this PSU, but I haven't done enough reading on PSUs to make a choice yet.
$50 Rosewill Stallion Series RD600 600W ATX12V V2.3 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182277
I pretty much lifted these from Forum user recommendations. I think I chose the video card using the TH Guide article.
I took a forum user/expert's recommendation on the CPU for an FX chip and found the next one up (6300) on sale for about the same price at Amazon.
I think I chose the motherboard from michxymi's recommendation at http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-1704549/amd-build-review.html.
I've done so much reading in the past few days that it's hard to keep up with.
Thank you!
Approximate Purchase Date: Next couple of days (today is 6/22/2013)
Budget Range: $500-$600
System Usage from Most to Least Important: gaming (World of Warcraft)
Parts Not Required: Have an old Dell monitor and will buy a cheap keyboard and mouse (not included in this budget point)
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: none--just need a reliable retailer
Country: United States
Parts Preferences:
Overclocking: Don't anticipate doing this -- don't know how
SLI or Crossfire: Expect to use in the future
Monitor Resolution:
Additional Comments: Will need to purchase Windows 7
We need a system that will run World of Warcraft--the sole purpose for getting a 2nd system--so that I can play with my children. I had hoped to keep it at around $500, but at this point it looks like it's worth a bit extra ($100 overall) to get a decent graphics card and a motherboard which will allow the later addition of a 2nd graphics card. I'd like to recoup some of the additional expense on those items if possible in lesser-important things like the DVD drive which we seldom use. I'm going to purchase a set of headphones (not included in this budget point) and delay purchasing speakers for a bit.
For anyone who may read this posting for their research, as I have done so much in my research ... I chose this graphics card in this price range because I plan on adding another graphics card later. I learned on Tom's Hardware's Guide that Intel's GeForce GTX 650Ti is a much faster graphics card (being between the HD 7770 and HD 7790 in performance) than the Radeon HD 7770, but it doesn't allow for adding another graphics card later (don't recall where I read this point). We played WoW a few years ago for a couple of years, and the expansions and patches increasingly demand more from your system. So, I'm planning ahead for that.
TH June 2013 Guide: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html
Post Script: After posting, the site offered related links and I found a recent response at http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-1705170/build-run-world-warcraft-high-setting-budget-500-600.html .
Should I just follow this guideline and buy these items?
Also, I'm wondering if I'm understanding the description correctly and this is a CPU and a graphics unit?
http://www.amazon.com/AMD-Desktops-A10-6800K-Radeon-AD680KWOHLBOX/dp/B00CPLGGXM/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1371955341&sr=1-1&keywords=Radeon+HD+8670D
Earlier this year, I braved replacing the PSU on a pre-built Cyberpower system; that's the extent of my experience.
I've been doing a ton of reading over the past couple of days and have learned so much from you all that I'm confident that I can brave this. Thank you! That being said, it's obvious that you all are willing to help, so rather than stumble around I'm asking for help. I'm starting to feel overwhelmed and doubtful about what I've done so far.
So far, I've chosen (doesn't have to be final decision):
$135 ASUS Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 2GB
(Newegg.com rebate ends 6/23/2013)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121642
$120 AMD FX-6300 FX-Series 6-Core Processor Edition, Black
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009O7YORK/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
$85 ASRock 970 Extreme 4 Motherboard
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0058HUQJ0/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Someone on a forum recommended this PSU, but I haven't done enough reading on PSUs to make a choice yet.
$50 Rosewill Stallion Series RD600 600W ATX12V V2.3 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182277
I pretty much lifted these from Forum user recommendations. I think I chose the video card using the TH Guide article.
I took a forum user/expert's recommendation on the CPU for an FX chip and found the next one up (6300) on sale for about the same price at Amazon.
I think I chose the motherboard from michxymi's recommendation at http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-1704549/amd-build-review.html.
I've done so much reading in the past few days that it's hard to keep up with.
Thank you!
Approximate Purchase Date: Next couple of days (today is 6/22/2013)
Budget Range: $500-$600
System Usage from Most to Least Important: gaming (World of Warcraft)
Parts Not Required: Have an old Dell monitor and will buy a cheap keyboard and mouse (not included in this budget point)
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: none--just need a reliable retailer
Country: United States
Parts Preferences:
Overclocking: Don't anticipate doing this -- don't know how
SLI or Crossfire: Expect to use in the future
Monitor Resolution:
Additional Comments: Will need to purchase Windows 7
We need a system that will run World of Warcraft--the sole purpose for getting a 2nd system--so that I can play with my children. I had hoped to keep it at around $500, but at this point it looks like it's worth a bit extra ($100 overall) to get a decent graphics card and a motherboard which will allow the later addition of a 2nd graphics card. I'd like to recoup some of the additional expense on those items if possible in lesser-important things like the DVD drive which we seldom use. I'm going to purchase a set of headphones (not included in this budget point) and delay purchasing speakers for a bit.
For anyone who may read this posting for their research, as I have done so much in my research ... I chose this graphics card in this price range because I plan on adding another graphics card later. I learned on Tom's Hardware's Guide that Intel's GeForce GTX 650Ti is a much faster graphics card (being between the HD 7770 and HD 7790 in performance) than the Radeon HD 7770, but it doesn't allow for adding another graphics card later (don't recall where I read this point). We played WoW a few years ago for a couple of years, and the expansions and patches increasingly demand more from your system. So, I'm planning ahead for that.
TH June 2013 Guide: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html
Post Script: After posting, the site offered related links and I found a recent response at http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-1705170/build-run-world-warcraft-high-setting-budget-500-600.html .
Should I just follow this guideline and buy these items?
Also, I'm wondering if I'm understanding the description correctly and this is a CPU and a graphics unit?
http://www.amazon.com/AMD-Desktops-A10-6800K-Radeon-AD680KWOHLBOX/dp/B00CPLGGXM/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1371955341&sr=1-1&keywords=Radeon+HD+8670D
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