BEST GAMING PC UNDER $500?

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: ASAP

BUDGET RANGE: $500-$600 After Rebates for the machine (i.e. not including OS, monitor, speakers, mouse, or keyboard)

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, Multimedia (i.e. Internet, word processing, movies, music)

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: HDD(I have a Barracuda 750GB but wud prefer a 80-160 HDD in the PC for the OS), Optical Drive can be just a dvd reader or even if there is no optical drive its fine, I have a Samsung DL Dvd Burner, I also have a 2GB Stick of Cosair Ram(not sure of the speed)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: I trust Newegg.com but if other websites come recommended I'll look into them.

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Omaha, NE USA

PARTS PREFERENCES: NZXT Case or a cool looking case like an alienware that has some USB 2.0 ports on the front, also e-sata port on the pc so i can hook up my external hdd

OVERCLOCKING: I don't intend maybe a couple months down the line

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: dont know what that means but isn't like when you have 2 Graphics cards in? I might do that later on.

MONITOR RESOLUTION: DONT CARE

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Right, this is my first time building a computer and I've heard quite a few horror stories about DOA parts, incompatibilities, and cheap PSUs burning out so I'd appreciate it if people could double check my build before I start ordering parts. Any other advice for a first-time builder would be welcome as well.

I'm planning on this computer lasting 1-2 years, if not more. The goal is to be able to run new/intensive games (Bioshock, Crysis, Source games, etc.) at mid to high graphics right now.


See I have $750 on me right now. Iam looking at:

$500 for PC
$150 for G15 or G19 Keyboard and a Gaming Mouse
$50-$100 for Good Surround Sound Speakers(maybe ones that I can hook up my Xbox 360 also too  



Here was my old rig that I bought off ebay for $500 and then sold for $750 locally  

Motherboard: Asus M3N-HT Deluxe with HDMI

Processor: AMD Phenom x4 Black Edition Quadcore processor

Memory: Cosair 6GB DDR2 RAM

GFX card: XFX Geforce 9800 GT 512mb DDR3

HDD: Western Digital Caviar 500GB HDD

Media: LG DVD-R/RW Dual-Layer Burner

Power Supply: 650 watt Ultra

Case: NZXT Guardian 921


I want to match the power of the PC above for $500. Is it possible? Even a little less power would be fine since that PC was never really challenged by me! PLEASE help me come up with a list of parts! THANKS!