[Solved] $1000 Starcraft 2 Computer

Go with the i5 if you have no problem upgrading that and your mobo a few years from now. Go with the i7 to more future proof yourself. Looking at it the only real difference is which socket type.
Any preference in which type of video card?
And do you want a flashy case? One that glows/side window?

If you aren't going to OC no need for the aftermarket cooler. Starcraft 2 has pretty minimal specs, a GTX 460 for ~$200.00 would be more than enough, or if you need to save a little money get a 5770. This is a great case for $69.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product

I don't know much about Intel so I can't help with a mobo.

You will also need a PSU. Get something from a reputable brand Corsair, Antec, Seasonic, etc. For that system 550w would be more than adequate and give you a little room to OC or maybe CF or SLI in the future.

You might consider one of the i3's instead, it'd still be plenty for SC2 and would cost a lot less.

I just built up a PC for a friend and his Mobo/Ram?CPU cost about ~330 before taxes and shipping. i3 530, Gskill ripjaws 4gb 1600mhz, and some msi crossfire board. great value imo.

lets put it this way: My socket 478 pentium 4 (non OC 3ghz) coupled with 2GB DDR RAM and an AGP X800 Pro 256mb ran it easily at medium/high settings (1280x1024) and around 10 fps on highest (everything maxed).

If all you want is Starcraft 2 then go:

Any 2.6ghz+ AMD dual core or maybe a tri core (AMD = better value)
a GTX 460 (The palit sonic platinum is my personal fave price/performance wise)
2GB DDR3.

Even that will be overkill for SC2. Youll be able to crank up the settings on even crysis but dont expect miracles.

I was going for this build:


LG 22X DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model GH22NS40 - OEM
$17.99

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
$74.99

ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 AM3 AMD 890GX SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
$139.99

XFX HD-585X-ZAFC Radeon HD 5850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity
$294.99

G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ
$149.99

Combo
COOLER MASTER RC-692-KKN3 CM690 II Basic Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
COOLER MASTER eXtreme Power Plus RS-500-PCAR-A3 500W ATX12V V2.3 Power Supply
$89.98

Combo
AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ965FBGMBOX
GELID Solutions Tranquillo CC-TranQ-01-A 120mm Hydro Dynamic CPU Cooler
$209.98

Total = $978

I also like your build... :s So many options! hahah

Which would you go for?

Pfuu...you got me there..
To tell you the truth i always liked intel chips. When i bought my PC a friend bought his and mine was way more expensive because i chose intel chip and other stuff witch he did not chose, he went with amd chip. Mine is still at 3.4GHz from 2.66GHz with no problems his is at 2.8 from 2.5GHz. Mine is a core 2 duo and his is a dual core AMD. His heats up more then mine does..ha ha ha..

With these new chips from amd the temperature issue is a little over but they still get hotter then the intel chips, in my opinion(i think i am not wrong).

Asus motherboard are known to have more bugs then Gigabyte. I do not say this from personal experience but from reading the forums. -just went to the link and from what i have seen that looks like a good motherboard.
A guy said there that "pci slots could have been organized better" but i say they are organized perfectly if you want to ad a second video card because it will have a gap to draw air and cooling will not be that big of an issue.

LG dvd rw are ok, i owned one for a wile (2 years) then give it to my sister.

RAM: Capacity 6GB (3 x 2GB)
Speed DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
Cas Latency 9
Timing 9-9-9-24
Voltage 1.5V – 1.6V
You can not put a 6GB kit on that motherboard because the 6 gb kits are meant for core i7 1366 socket. A;so try to buy RAM that has lower timings because they are faster, like 7-7-7-20.(cas latency 7)
You need a 4 gb kit.

Cpu combo..i can not say anything about that cooler, never heard of it. You could buy a cheaper amd CPU at 3 or 3.2GHz. You do not need to buy the most expensive one. Also the money you save you could invest in this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835181010 water cooling with ni maintenance. You just have to pay attention with the installation, i heard that it is tricky.

The video card is good.

Hard drive is also good from what i've heard. A lot of members here suggested samsung HDD's to people. I never used one.

The case is ok but the power supply ain't that good i think.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/57780/star [...] mbuild.png

Built a simple system that skims pretty close to the official recommended system requirements for StarCraft II. Under $400.

*no DVD drive, but honestly, who doesn't have a spare one already? Also, you can install an OS via USB and just buy/download StarCraft II digitally from the B.net store.

Bleh. Cheers.

But he might want more after he has it. I would. I think he had that in mind also.
If not then a system that Lucuis said with a corei3 would suffice.

Thanks a bunch! Thats exactly what i'm going with!

$70 over target, but what the heck, and too bad the rebates are going o be wasted

One more thing, remember to register your video card to xfx website because if you do not do that in 30 days you lose the warranty.