Over the next three days, we'll select components for, build and test low, medium and high cost PC systems. Today's system comes in at $525.

If they add one AGP system to the test, this will answer , a lot of questions like :

Is good to upgrade to a budget pci-x system, or buy a new AGP card. ?

We won't be adding an AGP system to the tests. If you're putting together a new system, it really wouldn't make sense to go AGP at this point.

As far as upgrading your AGP card in an existing system, we've already compared AGP to PCIe cards. The difference in performance is essentially nonexistant.

Good article though man. Solid component choices IMO. Even w/ the core2 stomping on the x2 I still think it is a viable budget system that would give the owner good service. Looking forward to seeing the "real world" diffs between the 3 systems.

rock on man.

False/Misleading info on that PSU. The 12 volt rails do not have 36 AMPs of power available. More like 25-26.

After all, to calculate watts you multiply the volts times the amps. 36x12 = 432 Watts. The PSU in this article is a 400 watt PSU with 450 watt Peak. I would be weary powering an 8800 GTX with any bit of overclocking at all.

Just something I think you guys should change/make more clear. It is a good PSU (I have it), but don't mislead people to think they have 36 amps worth of 12v

Good article, nonetheless.

Why in the article do you talk about the 'Fortron Source AX450-PN Power Supply', yet in the components list you give us the 'Aero Cool Zerodba 620W Crossfire/SLI ready'?

On the whole a good article, though. A cost table would be useful, however, as I am not clear on if Windows was included in the price, or a monitor, or what-not. I had some of the same decisions to make when I built my new rig (see sig) a couple of months ago.

I've been thinkin of upgrading on a budget and I was gonna get a am2 3800 and only 1 gig of ram. Nice to see I've got it right!
Dunno about the case though i'm sure you can get cheaper cases that look ok, I was looking at one the other day for £25 with a 25inch side fan! and from customer reviews it seemed pretty good, it looked ok too was all black.

Nice article...budget stuff is cool.....in regards to gaming I imagne a single core cpu of the same speed would have fared just as well in the benchmarks. But hey why buy a single core when the dual core is so cheap.

The power supply is still enough to support most cards out there, and in time we will probably see cards that have the same power as the 8800, but consume less power.

Not just a gaming system though. This is an all-round system, so dual core will help.

I'm trying to see if I can bench the low-cost system with an 8800 GTX to compare in the final article. Purely from a gamer's perspective, I'm interested in seeing if it can take on the much more expensive mid-range system...

Thanks, I'll pass that info about the PSU on to the web guys, it should be the fortron PSU.

The article mentions the cost doesn't include the monitor or OS (or the benchmarking software)

You're right about that, I knew better and I had thought I corrected that line - or reworded it at least. Nice catch.

while yes there is a diff between peak and nominal loads, the specs on it are listed as dual 12v rails w/ 18 amps. Yes, that is peak but that is what the manufacturer rates it as. I do not think it was "false" info, just not "all" of the info for n00bs. Most ppl that are reading it know that ALL psu's are rated on a peak level and only some include nominal ratings.

Regardless, yours is a good point that you would not sustain that peak for very long, but still... kinda nit-picky about whether it clarifies that the listing of the specs are peak or not don't you think?

Not arguing against you, just countering the point with logical moderation.

You're right about that, I knew better and I had thought I corrected that line - or reworded it at least. Nice catch.

Thats cool. A newb like me would take that info and run with it though. I don't doubt that the PSU could power a non-overclocked GTX system, but it would be pushing it.

You guys should most definitely include a cost table. Also, they have that ampx RAM in dual channel for $50 on the egg, that could increase the performance and bring the price down a little.

I really do love these articles, really helpful for the budget builder without a lot of time to research parts.

Overall, a very solid budget build. Personally I'd spend just a bit more money on a better PSU and consider it an excellent investment on the system.

ONLY thing I'd change without a doubt would be the case to a Coolermaster 534......better layout, rotate hard drive, airflow.....and for the same price! I honestly don't know why people persist in pushing the Centurion 5, it's clearly bested by the 534, and costs the same


Other than that, well done! Great article for newbies or budget-conscious builders.

Ever under peak load, I do not think it would be capable of providing 36 amps. Most (quality) 450watt PSUs have about 300 watts available for the 12v rail which is only 25 amps. 25 and 36 are pretty far apart.

It is kind of nit picky, but I think it is important. Most people thi