$1500 computer (Needs to get me through college)

[brynkng87]

I have a $1500 budget to make the best computer that I can. I need it to last for the next four years. Hypothetically I can upgrade, but at most probably only the GPU and memory in a couple years. I'd like to run the DX10 games as they come out the next couple years, especially Crysis. I made a wish list on newegg, so if you guys could take a look at it and give me your feedback I'd greatly appreciate it.

https://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/Wishlist/PublicWishDetail.asp?WishListNumber=4413472&WishListTitle=%241500+Computer

 

[Sookums]

MMMMMKay. I want to try and put some input into this forum after getting some superb replies to my own thread. I consider myself to be at least somewhat reliable, but remember to take everything i say with a grain of salt.

I am actually building my own rig right now, and i am getting the same cpu and vid card you are, and those are just fine. However, i feel compelled to mention the whole intel price cuts on july 22nd making the Q6600 at a mere 266$. I'm sure there will be more price cuts to the dual cores, so if you don't mind waiting, do so.

On topic of the mobo, i'm not at all used to MSI boards so i'm going to be a little up front and biased and recommend the board i chose. It supports ddr3 for when it gets cheaper and is pretty good all around for OC'ing.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16813128048

On the HDD, memory, hell even keyboard we have the exact same, so all good there.

Now that monitor seems to be sold out according to newegg, so you may want to have a backup or a different choice. Are you deadset on that price or size? I bought
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009111
and i can honestly say while looking at it right now, it is beautiful. Some may not like the gloss, and if you don't just try to get a high contrast ratio and a low response time and pay heed to reviewer's but don't base your decision just on that.

Finally, the case is really up to you. It's all about how you like it and whatnot. But you realllllly should, and i emphasize this, get a higher PSU for upgrades and general all around safety in the long run. 600+ should be good. You may want to take that into consideration when buying the case.

Oh yea, one last thing. I think you should change your drives to sata interfaces. IDE is out, sata is in. But that is just my opinion.

 

[chedrz]

First off, wait until July 22 or so to purchase your processor. I know the other guy pointed out the rediculously cheap price of the Q6600, but also, the E6600's gonna be about $133, so that would be a good processor too. Plus, if you stick with the E6600, you'll be able to jump up to at least a 680i LT board, which would offer you a lot more than the 650i. I don't really think you'll need the 640MB version of the 8800GTS. I say that because I have a friend with that particular monitor (it's very nice, btw) who's running everything maxed out with a 7900GT, which only has 256MB ram. The 320MB version would give you enough oomph and then some, I believe. Use the money you save to get a better power supply. Just about anything with 600W and a decent 12V rail will be better than a PSU that's bundled with a case, and they tend to run around $100 or so. Plus, you can get a good case for $40-$100, depending on your personal preferences, of course. There's not really much point to having two separate optical drives, so you could probably ditch one. Use the extra dough to beef up your mouse. Optical's good, but laser's oh-so-much better. And you could probably go with an X-Fi Xtreme Gamer sound card, too.

Just a recap...with prices and links, where necessary...

BenQ 20.1" monitor...$180 w/rebate

Intel E6600 (w/price drop)...$133

PSU=OCZ GameXStream 600W...$100 w/rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341001

Case=Cooler Master Centurion 5 Series...$45
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119068

Video Card=eVGA 8800GTS 320MB...$260 w/rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130082

2@Seagate Barracuda 320GB...$160

2GB GSKill DDR2 800 RAM...$115

Saitek Keyboard...$45

Sound Card=Creative X-Fi XtremeGamer...$60 w/rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102006

Mouse=Logitech G5...$46
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104191

Motherboard=eVGA 680i LT SLI...$170
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16813188015

Pioneer Optical Drive...$32

Total=$1346 after rebates...and I've dealt with most of these companies, they come through on their rebates. And even if they don't, you're looking at right around $1500. I hope this helps you out bud.

 

[FallenSniper]

I would go with the Mobo suggested by Sookums. It is very high quality. For processor, you kind of have to wait until July 22nd and see what the prices are. Everyone thinks they will be cut 50%, but some might not be, and the new line is coming out then as well, so..

For the PSU, instead of the GameXstream you could buy the StealthXstream for just a little less with literally no performance loss...