A new barebone under$350?

[younghogget]

Hello guys,

I am just wondering that is it possible to build a barebone pc with: cpu, motherboard, and memory for less than $350?
I bought a monitor about 3 months ago, that I only used twice and didn't like it. I had to go out of town for a while so I am way over the 30 days return policy. So now the store only allow me to return the monitor with store credit. I calculated that I will probably get about $350 store credit after the re-stocking fee is applied. So I just want to use the credit to get something.

The computer I am using now is an old Athlon 64, so I am think might as well to get a new Intel Core 2 Duo. So for that I have to get a new cpu, motherboard and memory. Is it possible for me to get them for less than or around $350 if I could get the new walfdale 45nm core 2 duo?

 

[chuckm]

What store? Do they have a wolfdale in stock?

 

[oushi]

If you're not much into gaming, I think the cheapest route with the most bang for your buck would be to get:

CPU: Intel Dual Core E2160 ($70) and overclock it a bit

Mobo: ASUS P5K-VM ($100) with onboard graphics
You'll need a USB mouse since it doesn't look like there's a PS2 socket for one, but you can get a basic one for $5 if you don't already have one.

Memory: A-DATA 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 ($45 before $10 rebate)
There's tons of other choices, but this was the cheapest good ram I found with a quick search.

That brings you to $215 before tax, $10 rebate, and shipping.

Since you said you wanted something barebones, I put a mobo with onboard graphics. If you need something with a little more graphics power, you can change the mobo to a Gigabyte P35-DS3L ($90) and pick up a video card. I'm not too familiar with sub $100 video cards, but the 8600GT seems to be popular on newegg for ~$90. You'd have to ask someone else for better advise on a good cheap GPU. That would put you a little above $300, leaving you some room for tax and whatnot.

If you're not a big fan of overclocking and can live with the onboard graphics, you can also upgrade the cpu to a C2D E4600 ($140) or C2D E6550 ($170) putting you at $285 or $315 respectively. If you really want the E8400 and can find it in stock (listed ~$250 among reputable sellers), it would put you at around $400 before tax.

Of course, the prices and availability of the items will vary with whatever store your credit is stuck with...

 

[oushi]

After reading up a little more, it seems like your money might be better spent on a 780G mobo, since it seems to have the best integrated graphics available at the moment. The Gigabyte version ($100) seems to have the most features, though the ECS version ($64 after $10 rebate) is cheaper and isn't too shabby either. If you go this route, you'd have to get an AMD processor instead.

 

[younghogget]

I already have a PCI-E video card. So thats not a problem. I think it's just a cpu, motherboard and ram.

I haven't been keeping up with the technology for quite sometime now. I dont know what motherboard and ram to get. I thought Intel motherboard goes well with its own processor, but I might be wrong. And there are some DDR2 ram for a really cheap price for 4GB. They are like 50 dollars or something around that. Should I get those?

And in addition, the retail store is Fry's.

 

[oushi]

Keep in mind that I, myself, am still in the middle of building my own computer, so I have to admit I'm not the most knowledgeable person when it comes to computer components. But if you already have a GPU, here's what I recommend based on what I've learned so far and can find on fry's website...

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L ($94.99)
If you want a Core 2 Duo or Quad, this seems like the motherboard that is all the rage. As long as you don't need RAID or firewire and plan to only use a single GPU, you can't go wrong with this board. It's a P35 chipset, so you'll be able to use pretty much any intel cpu with it until the Nehalems which come out next year.

CPU: Intel Dual Core E2180 ($99.00)
If you're fine with overclocking, this is the processor to get. Many people have reported being able to OC to ~3GHz stable on stock voltage/cooling. You can also go for the E2160 which is usually 10 bucks cheaper and overclocks just as well. I just didn't see it on the website. If you don't want to OC, I would just go for whichever processor is the right price for you. It's hard to go wrong with any of the C2 Duos or Quads. The E4500 ($149.00) with the DS3L mobo would give you about $50 to spend on ram and have enough room to cover taxes (and shipping if applicable) with a little extra cash left over. The selection online seems a little slim, but if you can find a better cpu in-store for about $170, even better.

Memory: What ram are you looking at exactly? I haven't seen any 4GB set of ram for $50 on the website, but if you give the exact model you're interested in, people might be able to chime in about it. I'm not too knowledgeable about ram... I usually just look for what's in my price range and see what has the best reviews.

 

[chuckm]

4 gig of ram;
http://shop2.outpost.com/product/5475029
or
http://shop2.outpost.com/product/5269577

 

[younghogget]

Okay, looks good, thank you all.