$320 computer with videocard that isnt terrible

[oreozz]

Just doing a favour for a friend.. He was going to get ripped off by a local deal and I figured it would be better if I just told him the parts to get instead.

Goal is to play games. Rules are:

doesn't need PSU
needs videocard


This challenge is set to expert mode especially because we are located in California and thus pay taxes(bah!)

Shopping Cart

Qty. Product Description Savings Total Price
1

SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner Black IDE Model SH-S222A - OEM

SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner Black IDE Model SH-S222A - OEM
Item #: N82E16827151175
Return Policy: 30 Day Return Policy




$22.99

1

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Item #: N82E16811129042
Return Policy: Manufacturer Warranty

-$11.00 Instant



$69.95
$58.95

1

Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3160813AS 160GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3160813AS 160GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM
Item #: N82E16822148397
Return Policy: 30 Day Return Policy




$39.99

1

ASUS EN9600GSO/DI/512M GeForce 9600 GSO 512MB GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card - Retail

ASUS EN9600GSO/DI/512M GeForce 9600 GSO 512MB GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814121314
Return Policy: 30 Day Return Policy


$15.00 Mail-in Rebate14-121-314


$69.99

1

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ - Retail

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ - Retail
Item #: N82E16820231098
Return Policy: Limited Non-Refundable 30-Day Return Policy




$29.99

1

AMD Athlon X2 7850 Black Edition Kuma 2.8GHz Socket AM2+ 95W Dual-Core Processor Model AD785ZWCGHBOX - Retail
Foxconn A78AX-S AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

*

AMD Athlon X2 7850 Black Edition Kuma 2.8GHz Socket AM2+ 95W Dual-Core Processor Model AD785ZWCGHBOX - Retail
Item #: N82E16819103678
Return Policy: Processors (CPUs) Return Policy

*

Foxconn A78AX-S AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813186147
Return Policy: Limited Non-Refundable 30-Day Return Policy

-$5.00 Instant
-$15.00 Combo
$15.00 Mail-in Rebate13-186-147


$138.99
$118.99

Subtotal: $340.90
What's this?Tax: $28.12
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Zip Code: 92505 Shipping: $12.20

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Grand Total: $381.22

-$30 rebates

$351.22

Making combo deals on the older parts here are what is holding back my price here.. I also don't understand most dualcore models price/efficiency and I'll trust that you guys do. I literally didn't keep up/look at computer parts for 4 or so years until the other day when I got my computer.. and for that I was looking up quadcores!


Summary:

Best for $320
room for budgeting on the cpu at discretion of you(I don't know which ones are good or bad!)
video card
already got psu
possible lurking combo deals!

Anyways, make it work! I have faith in you guys

 

[Helloworld_98]

you forgot a PSU.

don't go cheap on PSU's, expect to pay about $60 for a good one that can power your build.

 

[oreozz]

?!

I thought I made psu issue clear?!

 

[Helloworld_98]

whoops didn't notice.

but anyway,

1) change that HDD, the .11 series are known for firmware flaws.

2)that dvd burner is IDE, you want a SATA one.

3)PC's are a lot faster with 4GB of ram over 2GB, just make sure that if the OS is vista to get the 64bit edition fro $10 if he has the 32bit version.

 

[xthekidx]

You will get more out of an E5200 than that Kuma chip. The E5200 overclocks great. Look at this combo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.194586
Then cooler:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134
Then Case:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147124
HDD:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136074&Tpk=wd3200aaks
DVD:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152

Total is $382 with shipping and you get a free Call of Duty WaW game (sell it if you don't want it for ~$35) and $30 MIR. I don't know how much you have to pay in taxes. I think amazon ships to CA without taxes though, so you might check there and see if you can find any deals there. That Cooler and CPU should be able to take you to 4ghz. That rosewill case is very well ventilated and should provide pretty good cooling, and free shipping on it saves you a bunch.

This build is a tad more expensive than the one you put together, but you are getting much more for your money, all of these components are better than the ones you picked, save for perhaps the case.

 

[hundredislandsboy]

That motherboard sounds expensive. Get an e 5200 ($69) and G31 mainboard ($50) to OC the CPU to 3.3 Ghz on a 1066 fsb. Put the money you save from Kuma and AMD towards a GTS 250 that blows away the 9600 GS0.

 

[ohiou_grad_06]

As opposed to that gso, consider a 4670 as well. For a budget build, that's spending a bit much on the case, decent mid tower rosewill cases can be had for 25 on newegg, grab one of those instead, use the savings to get 4 gb of ram instead of 2. Remember on a low budget, the guts of your machine matter more than then look.

 

[Guest]

haha, you live on the other side of town from me. and i know you said you had a psu, but make sure it has enough power, like 550 watts and is a brand name psu.