New budget gaming build - $600

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rex000

rex000

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Sep 20, 2011
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Hello,

Just wanted some opinions for a budget gaming PC like so:



Intel i3-2120 CPU - $120

Gigabyte H61 MOBO - $50

Corsair Vengeance 8GB 1600Mhz DDR3 RAM - $55

EVGA GTX480 GPU - $200

OCZ Agility 3 120GB SSD - $60

OCZ ModXStream 700W PSU - $50

Any ODD
Any HDD (when the prices go down)
Any Case

Total: Almost $600

I don't foresee any plans to upgrade this build at all... so I'll just make it as best I can and leave it at that. Any flaws / suggestions?

Thaaannnnkkksss.
 
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C
Excellent build. I wouldn't change anything.

I do NOT agree with trading out the SSD for a more expensive processor. The SSD will speed up your system load times much more than a higher end processor (which will just be waiting on data from the hard drive).
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amkronos

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Jun 15, 2012
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My advice:

Drop the SSD and get an i5 core. If you're not going to get into overclocking you can get a sub $200 i5 chip, and still use that H61 mobo.

Cases are cases but a well recommended one for the cheap but decent quality is the NZXT Source 210 series. Newegg is running a promo for 20% off for the next 2 days too.

HDD depends on how much space you need. 500GB HDD is basic enough for most gamer needs. Don't spend extra for a SATA 6gb/s since no HDD has yet to go fast enough yet to even need that bandwidth.





 
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CollegeisaScam

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Jun 27, 2012
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Excellent build. I wouldn't change anything.

I do NOT agree with trading out the SSD for a more expensive processor. The SSD will speed up your system load times much more than a higher end processor (which will just be waiting on data from the hard drive).
 
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rex000

rex000

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Hmmm.. I understand what you're both saying.

I would see more performance from getting a Z68 mobo, and I would also see more performance from using an i5.. I think the upgrade from current i3+H61 would cost about $100-$150. For a 'budget' build, do you think that calibre of hardware is justified...?

As for case, ODD, and HDD, I think I can just reuse it from my old build.
I have a WD Caviar Blue 500GB. :O
 
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amkronos

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This is the system I ordered this week.

CASE CM|ELITE 430 RC-430-KWN1
CASE FAN|APEVIA(ASPIRE) CF4S-UBL
MB ASUS|P8Z68-M PRO Z68 LGA1155
VGA XFX|HD-687A-ZDFC HD6870 1G
PSU ROSEWILL| RG630-S12 630W
CPU INTEL|CORE I5 2310 2.9G 6M
MEM 4Gx2|CORSAIR CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B
HDD 500G|ST ST500DM002 7.2K 16M
DVD BURN SAMSUNG | SH-222BB/BEBE
OS: WIN 7 64 BIT ULTIMATE (I owned this already)

Was $670 from newegg. The CPU and MOBO were a combo, as well as the GPU and RAM.

I'll probably pick up an SSD in a month or so, but it was important to have decent hardware before I spent any extra on whistle and bells. I can live without an SSD for now. All the SSD helps with is load times, and I can live with a slow load time considering I am going from an ancient Dell Inspiron 530 to this system. and it will already be a huge difference.






 
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firedice

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Where the HELL can you get a 120gb agility 3 for 60$? You would NOT get any performance increases from switching from h61 to z68. z68 simply has more options, among them overclocking. If you already have a hard drive, I would just use that and put the 60$ on an i5 instead of and i3. It's very much so easier to add an SSD later when you have a bit of spare cash than upgrading a processor, because then it's a pain to sell it and you end up losing money. If I were you I would not spend a dollar more on the motherboard, would get a cheap i5 and would buy an SSD later.
 
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rex000

rex000

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I just bought the SSD from ncix last saturday, was wondering if I should keep it for this build or return it.

I actually picked up two as they were really cheap. win.
OCZ Vertex 3 120GB + bracket - $70 (after $10 MIR)
OCZ Agility 3 120GB - $55 (after $15MIR)

I think I'm just going to stick with my original 'budget' and not upgrade to the i5. I personally think that if I were to go to that level, I should just get a K version and overclock. An i5 would be wasted in a 'budget' system like this.

FYI: SSDs speeds... unreal. My main PC is an AMD Phenom II X4 955 OC along with all the bells and whistles now. With the SSD, everything is just so snappy and smooth. I usually have to use my laptop (i5 + HDD) on the go and I get frustrated waiting for things to load XD
 
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amkronos

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If you do get an i5 K and over clock it a decent heatsink/fan that won't break your bank is the COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus. Just be careful with RAM with this beast and you might need to look into low profile ram with it.

 
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jcec92

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Checkout this build, hope it helps you.

-CPU: Intel Core i5 2500k - $170 microcenter
-Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z68-UD3H-B3 - $75
-Ram: corsair Corsair Vengeance Low Profile 8GB - $55
-Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 - $60 (or a cheaper one, your choice)
-PSU: Corsair CX600 80 plus - 60
-GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD 6950 1GB - $230

Total: $650
 
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2fast4thetown_down

2fast4thetown_down

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That is the same mobo and cpu as I have and they are a keep :D

The gpu is a little weak for it get a 7850 and that should do it just get a cheapre case and a 500 watt psu....dont let anyone convince you to get a different mobo and cpu then the ones you paired they are sweet!!
 
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