Rate my $500 budget Build

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seanoh93

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Nov 3, 2012
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Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042&name=Computer-Cases -$55

Video Card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130625 -$105

Hard Drive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136771 -$50

PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153023 -$43

Ram: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428 -$40

CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116777 -$95

MoBo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157236 -$74

Budget-$500
Grand Total including tax&shipping: $502.11


Hey I'm new here and I'd like some help with my first intel build. I'm gonna use this computer just to surf the web, youtube, netflix, write essays. The only game I play is League of Legends and I would like to play on a high fps. I'm thinking the video card might be overkill for just LoL.

Does everything seem compatible to you guys? Any way I can save money or upgrade parts without going over $500.

Thanks guys for the help
 
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sonicers

sonicers

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You should really spend the extra 5 dollars on getting the 500GB version of that hard drive, 5 dollars for 250GB is definitely worth it.

That PSU is not worth 43 bucks, Thermaltake makes second rate power supplies, and aren't as nice as offerings from Antec and Corsair. The Antec VP-450W is the best power supply under 45 dollars, and at max load can actually generate 550W of power at 81% efficiency, based on tests. It's $40, and was recommended in Tom's Hardware's System Build Marathon. If that's not in stock, go for the Corsair CX 430. It's 35 dollars including a mail in rebate.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139026&Tpk=cx%20430

That motherboard is way too expensive for your build. Since you're not overclocking, you don't need more features, and that money would be better spent on a better CPU and a lower end motherboard. The motherboard in THIS case won't make a difference.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002MRROO4/?tag=pcpapi-20

This is a motherboard with the same chipset, and is made by Asrock, a better quality MOBO maker.

You'll save like twenty dollars on it, so you can put that extra money into buying an i3 2120, which will far outperform the Pentium you picked out.

http://us.ncix.com/products/?sku=59192&vpn=BX80623I32120&manufacture=Intel&promoid=1016

Your graphics card is fine, but make sure you use the mail in rebate; you'll bring the price of that GPU down to only $90. You can then spend that saved $15 dollars on buying RP in LoL! :D

Good luck on your build!
 
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seanoh93

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I decided to go with the Intel i3 sandy bridge. Im going to go with all of sonicers recommendations but my only concern is that the mobo supports only 3 gb/s while the hard drive is 6 gb/s. Will this affect the performance of the computer?
 
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azathoth

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The difference is 250mb/sec bandwidth versus 500mb/sec bandwidth.
The hard drive in reality will never come near saturating this bandwidth, so there will not be any difference at all.

Even if it was a high end SSD, the difference then would still be negligible.
 
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bawchicawawa

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hdd - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822236339
mobo - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157319
cpu - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808
ram - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220557
psu - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182200
gpu - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131473
case - http://www.newegg.com/Shopping/ShoppingItem.aspx?ItemList=N82E16811133094
= 551.25$ after you use the EMCJNGN28 promo code. (There's also -20$ in rebates, which would bring it down to 531.25$, if you are the kind of person who sends them in.)

phenom II x4 955
1tb hdd, SATA III, 64 mb cache, 7200 rpm
am3+ 970 chipset board
8gb of 1333 mhz ram
630W 80 plus psu
Thermaltake V3 Black Edition mid tower case
7850 2gig vram, aftermarket cooler

THE best build you can get for the price.
 
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Josheyman123

Josheyman123

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Mar 21, 2012
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If I were you, I'd save 15 dollars and get this case ( I have three of them and they all run absolutely GREAT while keeping an internal temp of 22 C )

Fractal Design Core 1000: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352009

I would also take a small upgrade and get an H77 motherboard. I use these all the time and my only complaint WHATSOEVER about this board is the location of the SATA ports. This is flat out the best board on the market for the money.

ASRock H77M: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157303

Hope this helps!
 
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need4speeds

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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883113239

Gateway DX Series DX4860-UR15P (DT.GCCAA.001) Desktop PC Intel Core i5 2320(3.00GHz) 4GB DDR3 1TB HDD Capacity Intel HD Graphics Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit

$429.99 $24.25 Shipping

Highlights:
-Intel sandybridge i5 quad core.
-1tb hdd.
-wireless lan.
-windows 7 instead of running windows xp or a hacked os copy that could be buggy.
-Not too bad gateway micro atx case.

Faults:
- crummy oem motherboard.
-Os system tied to the motherboard's bios string.
-poor oem power supply
-typical package system "crapware" that will need to be uninstalled.
-It's a refurbished system meaning "used".

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102967

SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card ( 11201-00-20G)
Free Nexuiz & Far Cry 3 w/ purchase, limited offer
$119.99 $104.99 after $15.00 rebate card

(in the pictures it looks like it includes a molex to pcie power adapter, mini hdmi to hdmi plug and dvi to vga plug)

It should work ok with the 300 watt oem ps since the hd-7770 is under 100 watts.
 
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sonicers

sonicers

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He's looking for the best price over performance. That CPU is old, which won't serve him well in the long run. It's the rough equivalent of Pentium.

The PSU you picked is a pretty bad PSU; Rosewill PSUs that are not of the Capstone/Hive series are sub-par.

The Antec 300 is a far better case in terms of build quality, and if you were willing to sacrifice build quality, why go for a 45 dollar case?

He doesn't need a 7870 for League of Legends; an A8 APU could max LoL on ultra settings.

If you're only looking to max League of Legends, this build would be far more than what you'd need.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/m05V
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/m05V/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/m05V/benchmarks/

CPU: AMD A10-5800K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($119.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A75M-DGS Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard ($60.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($37.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Antec 450W ATX12V Power Supply ($35.83 @ NCIX US)
Total: $349.77
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

The MOBO has SATA 6.0 GB/s and USB 3.0 which should resolve any MOBO concerns you have. Your APU's integrated graphics will be reaching roughly 6670-6770 performance, thanks to the 2133 MHz memory.
 
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oxford373

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best build yet but i would pay 5$ more for phenom II 965 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/amd-cpu-hdz965fbgmbox
phenom II 965 is faster than A10-5800K in games http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/102?vs=675
and if you want cheaper graphics card i suggest AMD 7770 which it is faster than 550TI and much more efficient for 120$ http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102967
 
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sonicers

sonicers

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The i3 2120 beats the Phenom II X4 in just about everything, and I clearly stated he could go with the A10 if he wanted to save money because he stated before, he ONLY plays League of Legends, which, again, an A8 with no graphics card could max out on max settings.

The Phenom II X4 beats the A10 in games, but if he were to want to play games, he'd need a dedicated graphics card, which with the A10 he wouldn't need. In the end, you're getting less gaming performance form the Phenom II X4 + low end $40 graphics card (Phenom + 40 = 130, which is how much the A10 costs) The A10 offers better price/performance, and you're going to be getting MUCH lower framerates from a 40 graphics card than the build in graphics of the APU. This is, again, only if he decides to save some money and go with an APU build.

He chose the 550ti most likely for the price after rebate, which would come out to $90. A comparable card at this price point from AMD would be the 7750, which I believe is below the 550ti, but either way, he won't need such a nice graphics card.
 
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bawchicawawa

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I suggested the 7850, not the 7870.
You need to brush up on your benchmarks (Telling by your suggestions/criticisms, you don't pay attention to benchmarks much.), the phenom II x4 955 is still the best price/performance and will get better frames than an I3 or a pentium in games that utilize 4 cores, like BF3 multiplayer.


The build I suggested is the best price/performance hands down for 550$.
 
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sonicers

sonicers

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Benchmarks are some of the most unreliable measurements of CPU power, ad even if you wanted to use your CPU, it's still not the best price/performance.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/mG9s
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/mG9s/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/mG9s/benchmarks/

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($82.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($26.22 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock 960GM/U3S3 FX Micro ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($61.97 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston HyperX T1 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($209.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($37.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $550.13
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

Same price, Seasonic made PSU, which would be better than the Thermaltake in terms of build quality, longevity, reliability, and efficiency.

You're also getting a MUCH better graphics card for the price point.

You're getting better, faster RAM that's also better for overclocking at the same price point.

You're getting a CPU cooler which would allow for overclocking, to bring the Phenom to i3 performance. If you didn't already know, the i3 is two tiers above the 955 on Tom's chart.

Best price/performance hands down?

No OC, lower GPU, lower clocked memory, bad power supply, and still, best price/performance hands down?

On a side note, I never said the A10 was best price/performance for $550, and either way, OP said $500. I'm just jumping on the 550 bandwagon.

 
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CaptainTom

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DONT GET A 550Ti! The 7750 uses less power (No external connectors needed), costs $90, and is just as strong!!! Sorry I am just so tired of people putting it in builds...
 
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sonicers

sonicers

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Haha we've established how the 550ti is not a good choice already, don't get your jimmies rustled. No need for caps.
 
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Onus

Onus

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BF3 Multiplayer appears to be irrelevant.
The Rosewill "RG" line has also tested well; HardwareSecrets gave one of them a Golden Award iirc. It's the old, non-80+ units that destroyed Rosewill's reputation in PSUs.
Otherwise, I agree with the gist of what sonicers is saying. If an APU's integrated GPU would be enough for the stated goals, then there's no reason to get anything more powerful (or more expensive) than a HD7750, especially if that frees up money to get other, better parts. It is easy enough to upgrade a graphics card later, if needed.
 
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bawchicawawa

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I never said you said the a10 was best price/performance for 550$

Anyways, your case is too small for the 212 plus... On top of that, the ets-t40 is a better cooler than the 212 plus
(Proof) http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/enermax_ets_t40/4.htm

Also, found a case that benches better at the 40$ range.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146061


Edit! The heatink on the ram you picked out won't allow the CPU heatsink to fit WITH the motherboard you picked out...
Also, I'd like to add the HDD you picked out is a slower drive, on top of it lacking 500GBs compared to what I picked out......

Edit #2. Also, I'd like to add that I wouldn't try and overclock on the motherboard you picked out... Older chipset/cheaper amd mobos are known for their crappy mosfets. What I picked out was a nicely built 970 chipset board.

You didn't think this through, did you?
 
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seanoh93

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This price would be perfect if it could indeed play Lol at max fps with max settings. Could I get this Mobo instead: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157277

It's cheaper and it has an HDMI port that I could connect to the monitor.
 
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sonicers

sonicers

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You didn't include a cooler in your build, so there's you thinkin it through...

I agree with your motherboard choice, I didn't notice that one.

The NZXT Gamma is a good case, so good pick there. I'd edited a mATX build for the same price point, my bad on that.

The drive I picked was SATA III 7200 RPM, if I'm not mistaken... it's not necessarily slower, and I never said the hard drive was a better choice. The hard drive doesn't have an impact on gaming, so he COULD sacrifice some there, if he was truly going for hardcore gaming; the hard drive is not of priority, and would take away from price/performance. Then again, he never said he was a hardcore gamer which negated these more expensive builds in the first place...

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/kingston-memory-khx16c9b1rk28x Low profile, still better for overclocking than the RAM you picked out, and still faster at stock speeds.

If you HAD included the cooler in your build, the price would rise to 593, which I'M PRETTY SURE is a little over OP's request. Which is just you thinking everything through, once more.



 
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sonicers

sonicers

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No, that motherboard uses the FM1 socket, and the A10 5800K uses the FM2 socket.

This motherboard has an HDMI port, but would only support 1866 MHz RAM.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138367&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

Here's some 1866 MHz RAM in contrast to the 2133 MHz RAM I picked earlier. It's more expensive, but of better quality, and will work with the alternate motherboard.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233170&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

A Radeon HD 6670 can max LoL easily, and with 2133 MHz RAM and the A10, you're likely reaching the point of a 6670, or at least a 6570, which can also max out LoL.
 
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amk09

amk09

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Getting a phenom II x4 would be a piss poor choice. Old power hungry CPU with no upgradibility. Get the i3, it matches or beats the pII x4 in every game(although irrelevant because OP explicitly stated he only plays LoL) and its more future proof. That way if you want more juice down the line you can just pop in a quad-core i5/i7(which poo all over amd). Thank you and have a nice day.
 
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