$1000 Gaming Computer Build

voxtex

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Jul 12, 2008
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My goal was to spend about $1000 and get the most bang for my buck. I went for cheaper versions of a few of the parts, so basically I would like to know if any of these items are unreliable or just really bad. I would also like to know if there are any parts I can replace to get more bang for the buck or if any of the parts are bottle necked somewhere.

Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021 - $119.99

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218 - $89.99

HIS Hightech H485F512P Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x 2 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161235
Crucial Ballistix Tracer 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) x 2 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148076
This combo is $411.96

OCZ StealthXStream OCZ600SXS 600W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341010 - $84.99

XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003 - $36.99

DFI LANPARTY DK X38-T2R LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813136045 - $179.99

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115037 - $189.99

Total comes out to $1120.89.

$165 worth of mail-in rebates. Total after rebates is $955.89

I UPDATED THIS WITH MY NEW BUILD TODAY. I think this is my final setup.
 

licid24

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Jun 15, 2008
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Rosewill PSU is no good, dont underestimate how inportant it is. EVERY THING IS RIDING ON IT!

look at the OCZ 600w great deal, WAY better brand.
Id also look at the OCZ reapers 2x2g its like <$60

If you think your going to CF down the road get a x38 or x48 board. better preformance with 2.0 x16
and lastly look at the Western Digigtal 640g hard drive. fastest besides raptors and price ratio is good.

Also if your buying an after market cooler i figure your going to OCand get the xigmatek 1283 with braket. Its the #1 or 2 best cooler right now for a good price.

GOOD LUCK
 

rabidbunny

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^
Seconded. The psu you listed isn't going to hold up with a 4xxx series card for long and the xigmatek is a great cooler (i own one), However, i would recommend buying the retention bracket since that will ensure it's secured properly. I don't have it and the pins worked just fine for me so I dunno what others are so concerned about, but it's a cheap part that I would've bought had I known there was a bracket at the time.

Good luck!
 

voxtex

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Jul 12, 2008
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Awesome thanks for the extremely helpful reply. Exactly what I wanted to hear. I think the x38 and x48 motherboards are a bit out of my price range. I do see myself upgrading to CF but I don't think I can afford the motherboards.

Is this the hard drive you were referring to? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218
Is it really faster than 7200.11? Also does the speed make up for the lack of buffer? 16mb vs 32mb seems to me like it would be quite the difference.

OCZ Reaper HPC Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227267 - $91.99

OCZ StealthXStream OCZ600SXS 600W ATX12V - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341010 - $84.99

That's the new memory and power supply per your recommendation. They definitely look better than what I had and there are even mail-in-rebates on both so the prices come out the same. Any more recommendations would be great thanks a lot for your help.
 

licid24

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I was looking at the exact same HD as you thinking the 32meg cache was a great thing. It may have a very small increase in preformance BUT from all the reviews its really unstable. I really DONT want to load every thing get all my games, pics, music, movies ect. OC just to the right spot and THEN BAM! a crash becaue of a not great hard drive. The WD 640 is one of the best rated and stable.

Also as far as Mother board goes, remember that you can change the ram easy, GPU too. even a proc if you want BUT a whole new hard drive? its kinda the rock of your sytem. Even though it doesnt get as much attention as a GPU or Proc, its goign to be with you a lot longer.

DFI x38 is $184.00 andall the bad review are because it doesnt work witha 3870x2. who cares im using 2 4850s :)

Oh and check out hte HIS 4850. It comes with a combo of ram thats FREE 2 gigs of crucial ballistix!
 

voxtex

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Jul 12, 2008
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Okay now you've opened my eyes a bit. If I were to get the 4850 deal with 2gb of ram and ordered 2 of them, that would give me 2x4850 and 4x1gb of ram. With this I can have my 4850 crossfire setup which seems to be a significant improvement over the 4870. Also the cost would be about the same as my 4870 and 2x2gb of ram. Would this be the way to go? Seems like it is...thanks for the help.
 

licid24

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yeah thats exactly what im gunna do. you really dont need more than like 2g of ram for games so 4g will be great for like 2-3 years. I am also still on the fence about the hard drive tho. Id rather have stability i think. plus the ram is sup fast 4-4-4-12 and has awsome leds on top :)
 

rabidbunny

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I believe2x2gb of ram is easier to overclock with than one stick of 4gb. I'm not entirely sure, so can anyone else shed some light on this?
 

rammar16

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for your last question about the xigmatek cooler the case is 8.1in. wide and the fan is 159mm or about 6 to 7in. tall so yes by the dimensions it should fit

hope this helps
 

voxtex

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Jul 12, 2008
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Thanks to everyone for the help.

I want to know if anybody has experience with rebates mixed with combos ordered twice. Will the manufacturer allow me to send in 2 rebates each for the ram and video cards?

Also I'd like to know if the difference between the P5Q Pro and DFI X38 motherboards would be noticable using 2x4850 crossfire. The price difference seems fairly large.

Beside that I'm most definitely going for the 640gb. Everything else seems to be in order.
 

rockyjohn

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Rebates have different limitations. Newegg usually lets you click on the rebate form and it tells you - just read it.

Newegg has your mobos big brother - the Antec Nine Hundred - on sale after rebate for only $10.04 more than the price you listed for the Three Hundred. You might want to consider the larger case.

Update - I just checked and the 900 comes with free shipping and for the 300 shipping is $15.99 - making the 900 $5.95 cheaper AR and shipping.
 

pcgamer12

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Get a WD6400AAKS and a better brand power supply. Good brands are Antec and PCP&C for example. I like the HSF you picked, I just ordered one this last Wednesday morning for $26.99 dollars shipped. I'll have to wait till Monday to get it.
 

tagasur

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Jun 27, 2008
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:bounce: SYSTEM NAME: nukestriker™ [nuclear winter] :bounce:

DIAMOND 4870PE5512 Radeon HD 4870 512MB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail [$299]

NZXT Apollo Black SECC Steel Chassis ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail [$69.00]

ASUS M3A32-MVP Deluxe AM2+/AM2 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail [$189.00]

KINGWIN ABT-1000MA1S 1000W ATX / BTX Power Supply - Retail [$289.00]

AMD Athlon 64 X2 6400+ Windsor 3.2GHz Socket AM2 125W Dual-Core Processor Model ADX6400CZBOX - Retail [$145.00]

mushkin XP 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model 996622 - Retail [$119.00]

HITACHI Deskstar P7K500 HDP725032GLA360 (0A35411) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM [2 in RAID-0; $99.98 total]

PHILIPS 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe 2-Tone SATA Model SPD6104BD - Retail [$29.00]

XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - Retail [$37.00]


TOTAL = $1,284.90
LESS MAIL IN REBATES $105.00 TOTAL = [$1180.00]

I'M WAITING FOR 4870 PRICE DROP/REBATE OFFER TO FIT $1k BUDGET, OR IN THE ALTERNATIVE, I'M BUYING IF IT TOUCHES $1.1k.

THIS LOOKS BETTER AESTHETICALLY, [ROSEWILL WTF? :pt1cable: ] AND WILL GIVE YOUR WOLFDALE SOME GOOD COMPETITION.

PLUS, SPIDER PLATFORM ALLOWS FOR FUTURE UPGRADE WHEN AMD GOES 45nm, BULLDOZER>NEHALEM.

DID I MENTION THE 1kW PSU? :sol:
 

voxtex

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Jul 12, 2008
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Thanks for all the suggestions I updated my initial post with my new build. Depending on my budget I may just get 1 x 4850 with 2 x 1gig of ram for now and then upgrade to crossfire down the road and stick in some extra ram. Still I think it's perfect for the price.
 

bloodymaze

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Lol AMD fanbois. I hope for your sake they do pull a rabbit out of the hat, (It'll be good for the consumers) just like when all of you said Phenom was to be the best EVAR! lol.