$500 gaming budget build questions

[wolfseeker2828]

I am finishing up the specs of my budget build:

Antec Neo HE 500W PSU - $80 (already bought)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817103940

SATA DVD ROM Drive - $20
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135151

OCZ2 2GB CAS 4 DDR2 800 - $35 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227198

GIGABYTE P35 mobo - $95
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128059

Intel Dual-Core E2160 1.8 GHz processor - $85
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116036

SAPPHIRE HD 3850 256MB - $170

SAPPHIRE HD 3850 512MB - $200
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102715

- or -

NVIDIA 8800GT 512MB - $260
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130296

Rosewill case? - $20
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147087


TOTAL: $535

The questions are: Is the performance of the 512 to 256 worth the $30, and is the performance of the 8800 to 512 worth the $60? I will be playing at either 1280x1024 or 1600x1200. From what I can tell, the difference is only about 10 fps between the three at those resolutions.

And the case. Is this case okay?

 

[aklass]

Case is up to your own opinion what you like you buy. Wheres your hard drive? I prefer that hd3850 because its on par with g80 gts almost. just make sure that case fits your board look at demensions

 

[Kamrooz]

If you play at 1600, you'll want the 512 model, if you play at 1280x1024, a 256 solution would do fine. So choose based off that.

But, your system does look good, solid choices all around. If you plan to play at 1600 at all, just nab the 3850 512 as it's better bang per buck, if you can afford the 8800GT, nab it, because the performance difference is pretty vast.

 

[godsizesnakeyes]

I purchased that exact same case the day it hit newegg. For 20 bucks its a steal. It is thin metal so it is alittle flimsy but still plenty strong and its really light. Great layout and cooling, lots of potential modding for even more cooling. I would have recomended a earthwatts to go with it but I see you already have a Neo HE.

I am also building a low budget gamer and I understand the GPU situation cause I've had a really hard time deciding also. From the many reviews and specs I've been reading the 8800s are the top performers in games but you pay alittle more. The 3000 series sound like they are really good bang for the buck thou, run a bit cooler and use less power. I've also heard the drivers are holding the 3870s back atm and people are waiting on updates to improve performance. I'm going with a 3000 series but not quite sure which, gona watch avaliablity and reviews for another week or two before I decide and order one.

 

[wolfseeker2828]

Alright thanks guys. I am probably going to keep the case, and go with an hd 3850 512. And btw, aklass, I have two IDE Hard drives (200 Gb total) already.

 

[godsizesnakeyes]

What 512mb 3850 you going with if ya dont mind me askin?

 

[akhilles]

It's too bad the mods wouldn't sticky posts like this cuz it would save fellow members a lot of time. Great build, btw.

 

[wolfseeker2828]

Well I've just ordered the parts from newegg, the only changes are that I used some AData ram that was a little cheaper, and I bought one of the IceQ cards. It's 20 bucks more than the original, but the original was sold out and it didn't really matter to me whether or not I had to pay a little extra to get it now. Total with my PSU is about $620. This hopefully should offer a lot of bang for the buck. Can't wait to play Oblivion on my nice 1600x1200 monitor =P

 

[linearpasta]

your build is pretty much the same as what i think im getting, but you should have bought a case and PSU at the same time.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811156180
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811190069

if its not too late to return your PSU do it and get one of the two cases above.
your RAM is fine, though i chose the mushkin path. for another 5$ you could get the option to burn DVDs
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106228


Looks pretty good though.

 

[linearpasta]

oh, and get the 512mb hd 3850. its a steal at 200$. the extra memory gets rid of some of the obstacles faced by the HD 3850 256 model. the 8800gt is great, but its expensive