~$600 Gaming Rig Advice

[domokauf]

This will be my first custom rig that I will actually be putting together... Ordering mainly from Newegg and I'm really just planning on playing WoW and Battlefield 3 on medium / high settings when it comes out. I'm hoping the rig wont become dated for atleast a couple years and want it to be reliable. It's basically the $500 rig that they featured on this site ( http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/budget-gaming-pc-phenom-ii-radeon-hd-6850,2903.html ) but I had to change the case, power supply, and processor because of out of stock items. I just want to make sure everything here is good and approved by people who know what they're talking about, because I sure don't.

Approximate Purchase Date: Within the next week or two.

Budget Range: $600 final price. With rebates, shipping, etc. (Give or take ~$20 is fine)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Music, Internet, School work.

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, Monitor, Mouse.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg or TigerDirect (TD if it's just one or two parts).

Country of Origin: United States

Parts Preferences: AMD build, other than that no strong preferences.

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: No

Monitor Resolution: 1680x1050 or possibly 1920x1080

Additional Comments: Doesn't need to be flashy. OS: Windows 7 Premium 64 bit.

LITE-ON CD/DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

Xigmatek ASGARD II B/B CPC-T45UC-U01 Black
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811815004

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F4 HD322GJ/U 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152244

ASRock M3A770DE AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157176

SAPPHIRE 100315L Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102908

Antec Basiq BP430 430W Continuous Power ATX12V Version 2.2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371023

G.SKILL NS 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231396

AMD Athlon II X4 640 Propus 3.0GHz Socket AM3 95W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103871

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116754

Total with shipping and discounts/ rebates included: $583.51

So my questions to you guys: What do you think about the rig? Will it all fit in the tower I chose? Is there anywhere where I can save or should be spending more? And anything else you feel like saying?

Thank you so much this community has been extremely helpful so far

 

[singemagique]

Looks alright to me for the price point. I would suggest upgrading the ram to DDR3 1600 such as this one:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

And perhaps you could think about a small SSD (64GB) for OS and productivity software. I bought a X25-M last year after using RAID0 74GB Raptors and the improvement in speed and responsiveness was night and day.

Other than those, this should do okay as a low to mid level gaming rig for a couple years.

 

[mattius92]

Looks good but I do recommend this PSU over the Antec, it has more plugs for stuff and its a Corsair.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139018

Also you it would be wise to buy an additional 120MM fan since your case comes with one installed.

 

[domokauf]

Thanks for the replies.

Singemagique: I read somewhere earlier today that there was hardly a difference between 1333 and 1600 RAM. Is that true? And that small drive is a good idea, I'll look into it. What's productivity software though?

Mattius92: Hmmm, it probably would be a good idea to buy a PSU from a more reputable company.

 

[mattius92]

Productivity software is like Microsoft Office or Photoshop.

1333 vs 1600, 1600 is supposedly better but you can just OC your memory to at least 1500 easily. So I really don't think its a big issue.

 

[Subidoo]

In gaming i don't think there is a really big difference maybe 2 -7 fps, couple % increase maybe.

 

[Supermuncher85]

I would concur with going with the 1600ram since it's supported by the motherboard you chose. There isn't really a price difference but there will be a performance difference.

 

[imaurer269]

I'd spend a few more bucks on this HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152181 Spinpoint F3 500GB

This is a decent PSU also: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371035 Antec earthwatts 500W

 

[singemagique]

You are correct, there will only be a minor (a few %) increase in performance by using 1600 ram. That said, that motherboard supports it and the price difference is only ~$15. Also, the ram you have listed does not have a heat spreader and you should keep that in mind if you do plan on overclocking it.

 

[aznshinobi]

Check my build guide in mah siggy.

BTW, from 1600 to 1333 no difference at all in reality.