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Gaming PC for $300

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August 18, 2009 4:18:53 AM

So I'm obviously on a very tight budget, but this is what I have been able to build for around $300; can anyone build a better rig/ tell me if all the parts of this one are even compatible hahaha?

Intel Pentium D e5200 - $66
GIGABYTE GA-G41M-E52L (sorry I don't know what part of the long ass name for the mobo to write haha) - $65
2GB Crucial DDR2 667 RAM - $23
2GB DDR2 667 RAM I already own - Free :D 
Sapphire Radeon HD 4670 512mb - $65
WD 320GB 7200rpm HDD - $50
TOTAL: $269

What should I be putting my extra ~$31 dollars towards? a HD 4850 or 4870 perhaps? Thanks for any and all answers!

Note: I'm aware I left out monitor, case, PSU, etc, etc... That's because I already have all of that haha :p 

More about : gaming 300

August 18, 2009 4:32:45 AM

You might be able to find a 4830 or 4770 for a little over a 100 dollars but that's pushing it, i think you might even find some 4580's in that price range if you look hard enough at least you already have 2 gigs of ram so that saves you money i laughed when i saw the title of this thread but i am quite impressed but then again you already have a case and other parts i assume...try and see if a 4850 can fit in your budget or a 4830/4770...other than that you should be ok although you will have to overclock the cpu if you plan on gaming which is fine toms has some articles on how to do that...good job...personally at that price range i would have gone amd but you did just fine.
August 18, 2009 5:51:03 AM

i think for the cpu it be better to go with amd as its better performance and for a good price, and as for video card go with xfx 4850 as its only 120.
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August 18, 2009 4:00:17 PM

What PSU do you have? That may determine what GPU you can get. The 4670 is not a slacker though, so as long as your resolution isn't too high and/or you can stand a few less-than-maxed settings, you'll be fine with that.
August 18, 2009 4:24:04 PM

$300 for a gaming rig?

Why don't you just go buy a console?

(No, I'm not busting ballz - It's a serious question)
August 18, 2009 8:30:27 PM

Scotteq said:
$300 for a gaming rig?

Why don't you just go buy a console?

(No, I'm not busting ballz - It's a serious question)


Because I need to build a new computer anyway... Oh and just some added info:

For the moment my monitor is running at 1024x768 and my PSU is like 500W-ish.
August 18, 2009 8:36:28 PM

huntsman said:
i think for the cpu it be better to go with amd as its better performance and for a good price, and as for video card go with xfx 4850 as its only 120.


Well i was debating whether or not to go with the e5200 or a 6000+, and i looked at some benchmarks and such and the e5200 seems like the better deal... especially since it can OC so easily.
August 18, 2009 8:51:39 PM

The 6000+ is old and runs hot. Consider instead a 550BE, which also overclocks well.
And, "500W-ish" sounds suspiciously like a cheap generic PSU. If it is, stick to a 4670; better still, replace it with something solid like an Antec Earthwatts, then you can get a 4830.

Edit: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/default.aspx?p=97&p2=66
Except for narrow wins in a couple of productivity scores, at stock the 550BE stomps the e5200. The latter may overclock a little better, which might bring it to parity, at the expense of heat and possibly chip life. I think AMD is the better choice.
August 18, 2009 9:31:15 PM

how bout just save up another 200 and ull have ur self a good gaming rig. Instead of trying to squeeze things into the 300 range
August 19, 2009 5:24:26 AM

^ I agree.

300 is the amount I spend on a single component.

I would say 500$ is the bare minimum for a gaming pc, go with a 4850. get that other 50$ somehow because a 4670, you just won't be happy with it.
August 19, 2009 6:17:03 AM

stevensl2 said:
^ I agree.

300 is the amount I spend on a single component.

I would say 500$ is the bare minimum for a gaming pc, go with a 4850. get that other 50$ somehow because a 4670, you just won't be happy with it.


Ah, no, I'm actually quite confident I will be satisfied with a 4670. As i said, my screen runs at 1024x768. Also I'm not a picky when it comes to whether my graphics are played on medium opposed to high, or getting ~35fps opposed to ~50fps. It just doesn't matter that much to me. I don't have any gaming computer right now so anything will be good.
August 19, 2009 6:24:49 AM

yes but wouldnt it be better to get a 500 dollar gaming rig and have it pretty much be future proof as new games come out either way its gonna be a couple of years before ull need to lower ur graphics for the new games, on the other hand a 300 dollar pc wont last you as long and you gonna have to keep upgrading it. In my opinion i would save up some more money.
August 19, 2009 6:25:49 AM

and frames might not matter to you for now but once they start getting low and ur game lags it will matter.
August 19, 2009 4:10:11 PM

Well, thank you for your opinion, huntsman. It is much appreciated.
August 19, 2009 4:30:46 PM

no problem, its ur decision what you pick but if you dont want to upgrade it soon say like 5 or more years save up at least 500 bucks for a pc, now if you just need one for now and will get a new one soon then go with ur 300 dollar one.

http://www.frys.com/product/5942364?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN... amd phenom 2 x2 550 black edition = 104

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/ite... hd 4850 = 124

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/ite... gigabyte mobo = 120
damn wish i would of bought this one instead of the the ga ma 790x ud4p, cuz this one supports ddr3. but the 790x supports am2 , am2+, and am3 while this one only supports am3.

your 320gb hard drive = 50

total is 398

and if you want buy 4gb of ddr3, and does this mobo support ddr2 ? as it only mentions ddr3.
August 19, 2009 4:48:16 PM

alright, i like what you picked but eh... i just can't get an extra 100 bucks. How about this:

Phenom ii x2 545 - $90
ECS IC780M-A - $60
Same RAM from OP - $23
XFX Radeon HD 4850 (the 512mb one) - $110
Same HDD from OP - $50
Total: $333

definitely better than my original, no?
August 19, 2009 4:50:45 PM

Oh and I know that's a ATX mobo and the other one i posted was a mATX - i have an ATX tower so it'll fit don't worry :D 
August 19, 2009 6:57:32 PM

lol i see u really trying to squeeze it in the 300 range. and did u read reviews about the products you chose? try to read as much as possible before you buy.
August 19, 2009 7:09:02 PM

huntsman said:
lol i see u really trying to squeeze it in the 300 range. and did u read reviews about the products you chose? try to read as much as possible before you buy.


haha go look at my new thread - you will be quite happy to see that my budget has gone up :D 
!