So I want to build a gaming rig for my brother. Right now he is play on a mac book and the video card is beginning to crap out. The only game he plays at the moment is World of Warcraft. I'm trying to stay around $500 but I could go up to $550. I want it to be able to play WoW with minimal lag, if not none at all and be future proof for when Wotlk expansion comes out. I figured since WoW requires low system requirements I could build a pretty decent rig for him.
This is what I came up with minus memory. Not sure what to go with for memory. Also I do want the possibility of overclocking. Thanks ahead of time for any input.
I know its over my $500 target, and I still need some memory. Thats why I am willing to go up to $550. But if someone could suggest some cheaper alternatives to bring it down without hurting performance. Also need to know what else I would need to be able to overclock it.
Total: $548.93 + Shipping
Total Mail-in Rebates: $60
Side notes:
Free 3DMark08 Vantage Advanced Version w/ RAM Purchase
Better brand CD/DVD Drive
Better Video Card
The only thing is that I had to get a Case and PSU combo towards the end to tuck it under the $550 maximum mark. With whatever route you go, I'm sure you'll be able to build your brother a very WoW-playable system. As you said, it's not very system intensive unlike say... Crysis.
So I want to build a gaming rig for my brother. Right now he is play on a mac book and the video card is beginning to crap out. The only game he plays at the moment is World of Warcraft. I'm trying to stay around $500 but I could go up to $550. I want it to be able to play WoW with minimal lag, if not none at all and be future proof for when Wotlk expansion comes out. I figured since WoW requires low system requirements I could build a pretty decent rig for him.
This is what I came up with minus memory. Not sure what to go with for memory. Also I do want the possibility of overclocking. Thanks ahead of time for any input.
I know its over my $500 target, and I still need some memory. Thats why I am willing to go up to $550. But if someone could suggest some cheaper alternatives to bring it down without hurting performance. Also need to know what else I would need to be able to overclock it.
Save $20 and go for E2180 instead. They are the same processor, and if you overclock, will top out around that same speeds.
E2180 $69: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819116052 Use the save $20 on a better video card or for some cheap memory.
Message edited by flyin15sec on 06-29-2008 at 09:11:30 PM
The 9600GSO is essentially an overclocked 8800GS, but it's cheaper. Also, BFG is a great brand with a limited lifetime warranty, and since your brother is only playing WoW you don't really need anything more than this to play on max anyway. The $20 price drop should put it below $500 as well.
Never get an EIDE drive...sans your optical drive. The cables are large and block airflow not to mention they are a bummer to install. Pay the extra $1 and get a SATA drive. Someone on this board should have caught that for you already. Anyways this build below is a bargain and will overclock very well with an addition of a aftermarket heatsink. As it is, you can push that cpu to 3.16GHz on the stock heatsink (9.5x333). btw good call on that RAM.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811119153 $69.99
COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 red version FR-T05-URI-GP Black / Red Aluminum Bezel , SECC Chassis ATX Mid Tower Computer Case with AC connector 430W Power Supply - Retail
I'm staying away from open box and refurbished parts. Just dont trust them. After looking at all the post I came up with this revised list. One question; I went with a e2180 because it can be overclocked easily, just wondering if getting the e7200 would make that much of a differance in game? Also is there a cheaper aftermarket cpu cooler for OC'ing on par with the one I went with? Oh and how reliable is a psu that comes with the case? I chose the one Why_Me suggested but would like some more input on it.
---------------
Robert Wilensky: We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true.
I think 780G graphics will play WoW just fine actually (I mean, at max settings at 1024x768 its does around 30fps which is fine for most users). This build has some high quality parts, that will last you. I like overclocking, but with somebody who isn't savvy on the subject, it can seem like a challenge. With the BE 5000+X2 all you have to do in the BIOS is change the multiplier number, it's much less trouble. That's all that's involved, but correct me if I'm wrong. With Intel's it isn't complicated, but it involves many more steps than this build.
Something I want to note about the 780G, if you drop in something like an ATI 3850, its going to do hybrid graphics with that card, to increase frame rate overall. Which is a nice option. Something like this would suit your brother extremely well. (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102715)
The provided article: http://www.amdzone.com/index.php/r [...] ew?start=2 , will detail some of the things I'm trying to explain. The things in the wishlist, like the processor take the edge over the 4850e, and it actually reaches near 3.2ghz with less than 5 minutes in the BIOS. I hope this clears up how undemanding WoW really is.
Your brother will have a very high end, high capacity harddrive that, if taken care of, will last him a while. 2GB of pretty nice quality OCZ ram is going to keep the rig silky smooth, and you won't have to worry about wasted money on 4GB of ram that goes completely unused in 32bit OSes. In addition, you get a 80+ certified powersupply that will keep your system well powered, all the time. You can rest assured that this one won't fail like some cheaply bundled psu in too many other combos other companies offer.
You get a really nice computer case, and will have sufficient hard drive and component cooling, with a nice appearance to boot. Let me know what you think of the build, as I spent some time finding these parts, and justifying why I picked them out
I'm staying away from open box and refurbished parts. Just dont trust them. After looking at all the post I came up with this revised list. One question; I went with a e2180 because it can be overclocked easily, just wondering if getting the e7200 would make that much of a differance in game? Also is there a cheaper aftermarket cpu cooler for OC'ing on par with the one I went with? Oh and how reliable is a psu that comes with the case? I chose the one Why_Me suggested but would like some more input on it.
That motherboard I posted utilizes PCI Express 2.0 unlike the P35 you want to go with. Read up on PCI Express 2.0. I posted that mobo for a reason. Also you buying a Zigmatek s1283 for that rig is like putting a ferrari engine inside a 1974 Pinto. That build of yours make ZERO sense.... and I forgot you screwed yourself out of a $20 rebate on the vid card you chose.
That motherboard I posted utilizes PCI Express 2.0 unlike the P35 you want to go with. Read up on PCI Express 2.0. I posted that mobo for a reason. Also you buying a Zigmatek s1283 for that rig is like putting a ferrari engine inside a 1974 Pinto. That build of yours make ZERO sense.... and I forgot you screwed yourself out of a $20 rebate on the vid card you chose. Why start a thread on here if you don't want good advice? It's a waste of bandwidth.
One problem I have with your logic Why_Me is that you think you have the best
kipton1@hotmail.com 
