400$ Budget PC Suggestions?

May 2, 2012 11:15:00 PM

Approximate Purchase Date: 3-4 weeks

Budget Range: 400-450$, 450 is above my limit but I can go there if needed.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Mostly gaming, looking to run mainstream games at mid-high setting smoothly.

Parts Not Required: For parts, i'm going to need everything except a keyboard, mouse, monitor, and speakers.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I'm still not sure if I will be using used parts or new parts, but Newegg and Ebay will be the primary websites.

Parts Preferences: Not sure if I should go with new or used products. I would like to use brand name products, to insure that they work and respond correctly, but I know this may not be possible with such a low budget.

Overclocking: Maybe, but probably not.

SLI or Crossfire: No

I have a few parts selected already, but I am open to suggestions and comments regarding them.

ASUS EAH6670/DIS/1GD5 Radeon HD 6670 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

ASRock 880GM-LE FX AM3+ AMD 880G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ965FBGMBOX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-8GBXL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

These are the parts I have picked out so far, if anyone has suggestions on any of the parts above or a PSU, or hard drive that would be greatly appreciated. Also, any advice on cooling or fans would help as well. Thanks for reading!

More about : 400 budget suggestions

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popatim

CPUs Master

May 2, 2012 11:41:40 PM

With a $400 budget you're only going to be gaming at lower settings or lowered resolutions. You will probably do ok at x1050 res.

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digdog

May 3, 2012 12:34:21 AM

honestly i don't think you will be able to assemble a rig for $400 .. it's just not enough. even with the most basic case and PSU ..

if you go for a "case+ PSU = $50" combo then you're looking at a really dodgy setup, that could blow up at any time ..

i would say bare minimum if $100 for case + PSU.
another $50 for a HD

which leaves $250 for ram, cpu, mobo and gpu.

honestly, i'd just go to eBay and try to find a deal there.

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 12:40:00 AM

I found a 50 dollar case with cooling, and a PSU for 50 dollars.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Plus, i found the processor for 80 bucks on ebay, slightly used.

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werewolfyman

May 3, 2012 12:47:19 AM

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Pearlmam

May 3, 2012 12:58:51 AM

ryanrhino24 said:

Approximate Purchase Date: 3-4 weeks

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-8GBXL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

I would splurge 6 dollars for this:

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL7D-8GBXH
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

It has 7-7-7-21 timings vs the 9-9-9-24 of the one you listed.

I know very little about AMD CPUS or Radeon GPUS, so I wont say anything about that.

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 12:59:37 AM

Ya that is what I had in mind, except i would probably stick with the phenom, just for the quad core, similar price, and great reviews I have heard about it. And regarding RAM, 4gb is enough?

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werewolfyman

May 3, 2012 1:04:10 AM

Plenty in most cases.

I never use more than 3 gb on my i5 in most tasks.

Using a new quad core of ANY kind would necessitate at least $100 being added to that budget.

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cmi86

CPUs Authority

May 3, 2012 1:06:02 AM

werewolfyman said:

Are you serious right now ?? Comparable performance hahahahahaha ?? Yeah maybe in single threaded applications. Anytime the Phenom II is able to use it's 2 more cores it will embarrass a G series CPU , any of them. Not interested in an off topic fanboi rant, just setting the record straight.

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cmi86

CPUs Authority

May 3, 2012 1:06:40 AM

ryanrhino24 said:

Ya that is what I had in mind, except i would probably stick with the phenom, just for the quad core, similar price, and great reviews I have heard about it. And regarding RAM, 4gb is enough?

Do you live near a microcenter by chance ??

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werewolfyman

May 3, 2012 1:08:26 AM

cmi86 said:

Are you serious right now ?? Comparable performance hahahahahaha ?? Yeah maybe in single threaded applications. Anytime the Phenom II is able to use it's 2 more cores it will embarrass a G series CPU , any of them.

Fair enough.

I was thinking of emulation, but I suppose some games do use more than 2 cores.

I built my PC for about $650.

I5 2300

Asus p8h67-m

8gb corsair vengeance ddr3

Evga GTS 450

Raidmax Altas case

Antec BP550

Tuniq thermal paste.

Lite-on DVD-burner

And a 320gb WD hard drive.

(If that helps.)

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 1:10:39 AM

Sorry, not sure what a microcenter is haha, but @werewolfyman, the phenom X4 is available for around the same price, so I will probably be going with that.

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cmi86

CPUs Authority

May 3, 2012 1:14:02 AM

ryanrhino24 said:

Sorry, not sure what a microcenter is haha, but @werewolfyman, the phenom X4 is available for around the same price, so I will probably be going with that.

Microcenter is a computer super store. You can go there and buy any hardware your heart could ever desire. What state are you in ? (not web-creeping just trying to see if an MC is near you) They have a CPU+Mobo bundle deal with a 960T and a motherboard for $99.99. You can't lose !

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werewolfyman

May 3, 2012 1:14:13 AM

Meh.

AMD is just sort of average.

They do make for good backup builds, IMO.

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 1:16:10 AM

I live in southern California, and that sounds awesome!

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werewolfyman

May 3, 2012 1:19:02 AM

No, I was just messing around, they actually do overclock exceptionally well for the price, they just aren't as price-performance as they used to be right now.

I want to see Piledriver!

Hell, I considered getting a 960t before my i5, and then I realized I'd be doing mostly single and dual threaded tasks so I went Intel.

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cmi86

CPUs Authority

May 3, 2012 1:19:53 AM

ryanrhino24 said:

I live in southern California, and that sounds awesome!

Well there is one in tustin and one in silicon valley so whichever would be closest for you. The 960T is still an extremely sought after chip as it has the ability to unlock to a 6X in about 80% of cases. The fact MC is selling them for $99.99 with a board is mind blowing.

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 1:23:42 AM

Can i order online from a microcenter? That would be ideal

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cmi86

CPUs Authority

May 3, 2012 1:25:54 AM

ryanrhino24 said:

Can i order online from a microcenter? That would be ideal

No unfortunately its an in-store only deal. You can build a machine with $400, you just gotta find the good deals

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werewolfyman

May 3, 2012 1:27:50 AM

I got my build on black friday.

My GTS 450 would have been a GT 430 if not for that.

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 1:30:49 AM

The one in tustin is about 45 minutes from my house, might be a good idea to go there. 100 bucks for a 960t and motherboard thats insane. It would be around 180 dollars on new egg.

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 1:49:29 AM

Would a 450 watt PSU be enough to power what im getting? Or should i get 550 watts just in-case.

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cmi86

CPUs Authority

May 3, 2012 1:57:09 AM

I would choose a higher quality 450W over a lesser quality 550W. I would go ahead and call the Tustin store ahead of time to verify that they have the 960T in stock, they tend to sell out very very fast.

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 2:04:15 AM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Found this for 47 bucks, good reviews. 600 W which should be plenty.

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cmi86

CPUs Authority

May 3, 2012 2:49:45 AM

I recommend this 530W Rosewill PSU-$49.99. Single 12V Rail and 80+ Bronze certified.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 5:32:39 AM

Hey what do you guys think of this??

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?I...

Pretty cheap, so i can buy the AMD Radeon 6670 GPU, and I should be set. Just not sure on the case with the built in 500W PSU. Thoughts?

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dreadlokz

May 3, 2012 5:42:32 AM

minecraft pc? =S $400 isn't enough!

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Robi_g

CPUs Expert

May 3, 2012 6:13:03 AM

maybe a stupid question but do you need an OS?

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ryanrhino24

May 3, 2012 11:05:59 PM

I'm actually thinking of using my old 500GB hard drive with windows 7 on it in my new build. Will that work? It will open up some room in my budget for sure if it does.

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popatim

CPUs Master

May 4, 2012 12:53:26 AM

Newegg has an I3 kit on shellshocker today for $291 leaving you $100 for a GPU.

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