Looking for advice on building a new (budget) system

Hello,

I am going to build a new pc, gaming-oriented, and I'm looking to build it on a budget. I'm going off this graphics card as a starting point:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814102935
It's very good for the price, and I was thinking of building the rest of the computer around it. I'm trying to figure out the cheapest motherboard/cpu/RAM/PSU configuration that will fully take advantage of the card. Any suggestions?

Can you fill this out for us?
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/ [...] ild-advice
It'll allow us to help you better. Most notably these sections:
"Preferred Website(s) for Parts"
"Budget Range"
and
"Approximate Purchase Date"

This is the most budget conscious system I can put together without going to amd cpu which I would not do personnally.
With no detail as to what you will do with your system I have considered a system that will suite most needs from browsing to gaming and even be capable of vid editing albeit not the best at it, but then what do you expect on a budget.

Mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 31786-L03C
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115072
Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 0v4%20case
Ram: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820148421
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139031
Your gpu: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814102935
O.S.: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6832116986
Hdd: http://www.ebay.com/itm/WD-Caviar- [...] 48436513bf
Optic dr: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827135204

All total around $800u.s. You could get a lesser processor and an h61 mobo if you want cheaper but with this one you will be able to have an overclockable cpu that is known for quality and you will be much happier with your system.
I picked this psu because chances are you will want to crossfire later and this will make sure you will have the power.
If you plan on oc'ing you will also need aftermarket cooling but you can wait for all that.

If I was going to go with a lesser processor, before I went to far I would consider this
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applica [...] &CatId=333
You would still need the gpu and O.S. making your total around $550u.s. but you could get a larger cpu later if you want. However with a setup like this, you could not crossfire your gpu's

Keep in mind that with the set up I put together above you will be set to upgrade if you want with more ram, larger processor(like i7-2600k), you can crossfire your gpu later if you need to etc.

Also the z68 chipset lets you take advantage of your on processor graphics to give your gpu a break between gaming.

In my opinion it is not worth spending the money for less of a system when all you would save is a hundred or two.

As far as taking advantage of the card you picked out, even an i3-2100 would do that, but just spend the extra $80 and get an i5-2500k. You'll be glad you did.

Also consider the card above, He is right about it being better.

AMD Radeon graphics tend to trump nvidea as far as better graphics until you reach the highest cards where I think nvidea pulls ahead. The catalyst software however leaves allot to be desired.
I have had problems with 5 out of 6 of the last AMD gpu's with catalyst, and to date with more than 30 nvidea installations have never had a problem.

Roaring dragon is right as far as saving you a couple of hundred dollars.

He is also right about me criticising ,but not much. My only real disagreement is with the amd processor for the most part.

As you stated this is a budget build but you never mentioned a price you were shooting for. If it was me I wouldn't spend the 600 bucks for a foundation of amd when I could add a couple of hundred and have the best.

While we say we are building a pc and need to stick to a budget, we set a price and try to stay inside it.Well good, now what do we get for it.
I myself like the thought of knowing I got the best and that I am not limited in my choices of future upgrades.
i.e. If you spend (x amount of $) on a system with the best processor amd has to offer, then you are stuck there. At least with the i5-2500k, you have cpu upgrade options for the future such as a whole line of i7 processors,and who knows what amd will try to catch up with next.

But enough of the subject of cpu's

Roaring dragon is also right about the radeon graphics card above. You will profit most for your gaming build, the better gpu you can achieve.

I agree with most of his advice and the products he linked are good stuff, Heck, If you picked his psu, case, and ram, over what I linked youyou would save money and could still get the better gpu and the i5 processor for the price I originally posted.

All in all if you know you will want to trash this computer later to build another and only are concerned with the right now of it all, then back up to an amd and save a few bucks.
However, if you want a pc that will awe and amaze you and be ready for the future then stick with intel.

I'm actually going to go with the graphics card you wanted, the 6670, and start from there. If you want a BETTER graphics card, the intel systems already mentioned might be better.

CPU- AMD A8-3870K ($145)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819106001

Brand new unlocked CPU, untested as far as capabilities go. The A8 can boost the power of a 6670 using hybrid crossfire.

MOBO-ASUS F1A75-V PRO ($120)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131765

Plenty of OC features in the BIOS.

Memory-Patriot Viper Xtreme 8GB ($48)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820220561

Llano benefits more from DDR3 1600

PSU - Antec Earthwatts 430W ($60)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817371034

Case, DVD, and HD above are probably fine. ($140)

$573

Also the cost of the 6670, an OS, a heatsink if you want to OC, and whatever else you need.

You could use that board if you want to and you could find some really good deals on a core 2 duo processor, like this one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819116347

You can build a nice little gamer that will play most games out there. you wont have quite the speed of a sandy bridge system but you could play none the less.
You will notice however that your memory with this board is limited to 4g and it is ddr2 which is less speedy and getting harder to find and seems to cost just as much as ddr3.
If you plan to only use this computer for a year or so and rebuild sometime soon then this may well be a good route for you.
I would just make sure I spent the most money on the graphics card . one that you can take with you to your next build. I would also not skimp on the power supply, as you can transfer it as well to a new build later. I would suggest a good name like seasonic,antec,corsair,or silverstone,get at least 600watts and 80+ efficiency and for cable mgmt purposes get modular. You shoulld be able to find one around $80-$100.
A good hard drive can carry on to your next system as well and you should be able to find a good 1 tb card for under a hundred bucks, like this http://www.ebay.com/itm/Seagate-Ba [...] 5d31bad106
or this
http://www.ebay.com/itm/WD-Caviar- [...] 48436513bf

Going this route will definately keep you in your budget while giving you parts for your future build.
My only problem with my own advice here is that I'm not familiar with the ecs boards and I don't really know the condition of your particular board. I would hate to send you this route and have you end up wasting your effort on a board that isn't up to it.

On the other hand you can go with a inexpensive msi h series 1155 mobo and an i3-2100 processor and with all the rest can still maintain your budget, while building a pc that can handle up to 16g of ram and support a larger i5 or i7 processor in the future.
Even if you wanted to build later with a new board, This computer would have a higher resale value than the ecs, core 2 configuration.

Personally I would stick with an nvidea gpu for the fact that they are easier to work with what with all of amd's catalyst software issues. It is just easier for a new builder to work with, and a 550ti will play any game out there albeit not on ultra settings. you could snag one of those for a hundred bucks as well
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1507282968 [...] 1438.l2649

Don't worry about the ncix canada links being out of the country. I have ordered from them more than once and each time my shipment arrived 3 days later. Quicker than amazon or newegg. If you pay through paypal you can return anything you don't like within a week no matter what the seller says and paypal will refund your purchase price. So your safe there as well.

Good luck and post results for your new build and any other questions that may arise.

That is a really good suggestion but the components we were talking about upgrading later were the mobo and psu, so the old wont need to be compatible in the future.
I would go with your idea myself because it will be more future proof.
All of the components you have listed are good quality and price,but I would pick an Asus board over Asrock for the fact that in the past two weeks, on these forums 2 of the 2 people who bought an aAsrock board that I have witnessed got bad boards.
Have no real problem with Asrock but have just been noticing a trend.

Well, who in their right mind, with simmilar pricing, would choose a toyota over a lexus?
If you can find the same or close price on the real deal why would you go with a lesser product?

Heres one
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131773
and here
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131781
and here
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131786

Those are just from newegg, I didn't look at any of my other suppliers links.

Your right about the pci3.0 and ivy br. readiness.

Assuming there are no need for revisions on the earlier boards after the new techs release.

Right now there are only a few 3.0 specific gpu's on the market to test the performance of the slots on the board with.

Going to the asustek website and reading obout the boards I mentioned earlier, they do confirm crossfire capability.

This being the dawn of the new techs so to speak, I prefer to wait until the new stuff comes out ,all issues worked out (for sure) and a few more choices in products ,before I buy.

Not saying there will be any issues with the products ,just better to wait and see before investing in the first wave of products to hit the market.

Everyone I guess has their own way of looking at it I suppose, but as far as a new build now, I would go with the best for the price of what I knew was tested and good quality.

I wouldn't really personnally buy the i3-2100 if I was going as far as a z68 mobo, I would spend the extra $100 bucks for the i5-2500k and eliminate the need for a near future upgrade there.

I would again, buy the best graphics card I could afford that is a tried and tested performer.

There is nothing 3.0, or ivy bridge will have to offer that will really change my pc experience that much anyway,for now.

This build would last me a as much time as I need into the release of all the new tech ,and quite a variety of products designed for its use.

I could even wait until the best of the best comes out with the new tech and the prices on the recent released products begin to drop, before finally beginning to decide on a new build.

No offence , just how I look at the approach to a new build at this time.

Isn't it the norm to sli\cf with 1x16 and 1x8 slots?