Building PC to run MMOs & < $1300

You could put together a nice i5 system for about $800. 4870 is a good choice for your current games. I wouldn't even recommend getting anything better than a 4870 unless you upgrade your monitor, 1680x1050 resolution won't be all that demanding for a single 4870.

yeah, 1000 is a bit overboard. Those PSUs only exist because there are some people out there who want to do quad graphics card setups, and extreme overclocks. A 550 Watt PSU will probably be enough to power your system, 650Watts would give you enough headroom if you plan on staying with single GPU configurations. 750 would be plenty for affordable Crossfire/SLI setups. I like the Corsair 650TX for it's quality and price. There's other good brands out there, but Corsair is probably the most recommended one on these boards.

for RAM, you really won't see much improvement by getting more that 4 at this time. Most games won't run all that much better with more RAM than they can allocate, faster RAM is a better investment and will have some impact on performance.

only thing evongugg left out was a case, and Newegg has some specials going right now. http://promotions.newegg.com/Cases [...] ses&cm_lm=

use the coupon code SPETFS to get free shipping on the cases featured there.

looks like evongugg just put one in. Antec 900 is a great case, the 300 is almost as good, just smaller and cheaper.

I was looking at the corsair PSU + antec 1200 case, but newegg has a great deal on the cooler mater combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.250438

do you think this would be a bad choice? would save me $100 over the corsair/antec solution

I'd check the reviews first on the coolermaster PSU. They make great cases, but their PSUs haven't been up to par in the past. This may have changed recently. Also, you're comparing the HAF 922 to the Antec 1200, the HAF 932 is a full tower like the Antec 1200. You might want to consider the Antec 900 and possible combos there.

The main concern with cases is if it will fit everything you want to put in it. There are little extras that are nice to have in the more expensive cases, but they become more important if you want to tweak stuff or do upgrades. The Antec 300 should be a good choice.

Ok, I think I have this figured out at last. I decided not to wait for the 5850 because it doesn't sound like it will actually be available until late next month, at the earliest, and will likely cost $260+ where as the 4890 is $190 now and will handle everything I want to use it for. I can always upgrade next year.

Here are the parts I've selected. Any feedback or advice on parts that may not work together would be appreciated. Also, please let me know if you think I missed anything. Note: I already have the OS, Monitor, Keyboard, and Mouse. The only thing I'm missing are speakers. Thanks!

CPU: Intel Core i5-750 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor ($200)

Motherboard: ASUS P7P55D PRO ATX Intel Motherboard ($140)

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory ($177 - two of these, total of 8GB)

Case: Antec 300 ($60)

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ($140)

Storage:
Samsung Spinpoint F3 500GB drive ($50) - for OS/Apps
WD Green 1TB drive ($85) - for data storage

Optical drive: SAMSUNG DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S223L LightScribe Support ($32)

Video:
SAPPHIRE VAPOR-X Radeon HD 4890 100269VXL Video Card ($195)

Cables: OKGeare SATA II Cable 10" ($6 - getting three of these for OEM optical drive and two OEM HDs)


I went with 8GB of RAM because I feel a little more comfortable having extra even if 4GB is sufficient for most gaming scenarios. This brings me to a total of ~$1100 for what seams like a reasonable, mid-range gaming system. Thoughts? I'd like to order today

the drives are OEM so I thought that meant they won't come with the cables?

what sort of CPU cooler is recommended? I thought that the retail version of the cpu came with a fan?

is the stock cooler not sufficient if you overclock? what would you recommend? i don't mind spending a bit here if it will help with the stability of the system (i have heard stories of builds being unstable due to heat issues - will i have to worry about this with the i5 chip?)

If you are looking at the antec 300, look at the antec 300 illusion. Its the same case with two front 120mm fans included and usually is only about the cost of one fan different.

*edit your text only says Antec 300, but that is the link to the 300 Illusion. Good choice.

the 4890 is just a massaged 4870 but the 4890 is clocked higher the 4890 linked can clock well with the vapor x cooling but if you want you can step down to the xfx 4870 the reference design one