Trying to make a 400USD gaming PC

Sarutobi0997

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I'm looking to put together a good desktop for gaming but I'm trying to keep a low budget of 400USD. I made a configuration here, but i would like to know if any of the parts I'm using are bottle-necking the system or if there is a way to get a better parts with out exceeding around 435USD (the price only includes the case and the components that go inside the case). I want to play games like Planetside 2 and Crysis 2 on med-high settings on 900p with about 35+fps because i prefer performance over visuals.


Thanks and I look forward to reading you responses.
 
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FYI this build will be cheaper if you wait a few months so good luck! OEM just means it is meant for DIY builds. So can you select me as best answer? Thanks! Not that I helped you for that! ;)

CaptainTom

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Great choices except for the CPU. DO NOT get a bulldozer CPU. Get this instead:

http://www.amazon.com/AMD-Phenom-3-4Ghz-512KB-4000MHZ/dp/B002SRQ214/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357800813&sr=8-1&keywords=phenom

It is stronger, uses less power, and it's cheaper!
 
actually dont get an AMD CPU the intel G860 is better for gaming and cheaper. AMD Phenom's are good but nearly impossible to find, in fact in Australia you havnt been able to buy one for a couple years. I dont know how any are still in stock, they havn't been made for a while. http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/404?vs=700 the g850 even beats the fx 4300 in games, although in that bench i showed its a limited selection of games, the fx 4100 is even worse than the 4300. it is cheaper and would allow you to spend more elsewhere.
 

Sarutobi0997

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i changed it to the Phenom II 965 which increased the price to $412.67(there was a discount if i bought that the FX 4100 and the Crucial 8gb ram but its all cool). i was just wondering, whats wrong with the bulldozer (aside from power) because futuremark has the FX 4100 listed as better than the Phenom II 965.
 

CaptainTom

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Bulldozer was just a clear step backwards for AMD. The Phenom II x4 965 is about on par with an i7-920. Plus if you get an aftermarket cooler you can overclock it to 4 GHz easily. It isn't the best by any means, but with AM3+ you have a clear upgrade path to whenever AMD's new 8-cores come out late this year (And they should be ass kickers!).
 

Sarutobi0997

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what cooler do you recommend under 40USD? and also does the motherboard ihave support over clocking because i dont rly understand motherboard specs
 

CaptainTom

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That motherboard is junk. Get this instead:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157323

ASROCK is a great mobo brand and they overclock easily with the included software!


Get this CPU cooler:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103064

I have it and I can get up to 4.5+ GHz on my 3.8 GHz i5=3570k! Also my brother had that phenom and 4+ GHz was a piece of cake...

Now this does add to your price so if you want to save by keeping the motherboard it is up to you. However this one will be worth the investment in the long run. Just curious, how far can you stretch your budget?
 

CaptainTom

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I am tired of this Pentium nonsense. Here is an FX-4300 trading blows with an i7-920 the entire time.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/the-vishera-review-amd-fx8350-fx8320-fx6300-and-fx4300-tested/5

A phenom 965 is equal at stock, and quite stronger than an i7-920 when overclocked to 4GHz (I know, I have owned both!). Those Pentiums are for bottom of the barrel builds. An i3 or Phenom/FX-4300 is a FAR better choice (Especially in a year when ALL games are optimized for Quad Cores).

Don't get me wrong, a year ago the Pentiums were crazy good for the price compared to Faildozer, but times have changed!

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-5.html

That is the pentiums two tiers below the Phenom II x4 980 which runs at 3.7 GHz (Which is slower than how fast his will run).
 

Sarutobi0997

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well i rly dont want it to exceed 450USD for the computer alone. im getting a Monitor, keyboard, mouse, and OS for about 212USD so over all i dont want the final price to go over 700USD price with new fan and mother board is 428.88USD which is right on budget
 

Sarutobi0997

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do you think i would be better off getting a GTX 460 instead of the HD 7770 Ghz edition?
 

CaptainTom

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Not really; they are about equal to be honest. The only difference is the 7770 uses half the power, and the 7770 you are looking at is a great deal.

Also, I just asked about your budget to see if you could squeeze in an HD 7850 1GB. If not, then you have a very balanced and forward thinking build for a good price. Stick with it and you are good! But again, a 7850 would nearly double your performance...
 

Sarutobi0997

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thanks, i got the hard ware down but what do you think of these parts for the desk and also is the case i have sufficient? i only got i since it was cheap and looked cool
 

CaptainTom

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-The case looks great, especially for the price!
-The monitor also looks amazing for the price
-The keyboard is a keyboard lol
-The mouse is bottom of the barrel. Not really for gaming. Here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826664025

-Windows 7 can often be found cheap on ebay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-Home-Premium-SP1-64bit-English-System-Builder-DVD-1-pack-Brand-New-/160952944143?pt=US_Operating_Systems_Software&hash=item25798b060f


Also don't worry about cooling and all of that. That aftermarket cooler will keep your CPU cold as ice (Make sure the fan on it is pulling air towards the back of the case), and the fan built into the case will be more than enough to keep your 7770 cold since they produce so little heat.
 

Sarutobi0997

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Thanks, i really appreciate youe feed back. one last thing; do you know what wireless card i should get for about 30USD. i dont know how to choose one compatible with the motherboard and the usb ones have bad reviews.
 
here's my slight twist:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($129.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: MSI 760GM-P23 (FX) Micro ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 1GB Video Card ($106.97 @ Newegg)
Case: MSI TC- (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($22.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $434.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-10 15:43 EST-0500)

the piledriver 6300 is better than the phenom II, still fits in the 95w TDP of the board, and gives you a modern chip. the 6300 will give you performance better than an I3-3220, but not as good as an i5-3470, but its only a bit more than an I3. You also stay under $435
 

CaptainTom

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BOOM:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833315091

I use this and it works fine. Put it in one of your USB 3.0 slots though.

I am assuming you will be mostly using Ethernet (It's a desktop after all!). This thing will do everything you NEED it to do. However it doesn't have the best range or speed (But again it works fine, even for gaming).
 

Sarutobi0997

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Thanks!
this PC build is done and costs 626.83USD for everything, but the Operating System which will probably set it to 700USD which is not too bad i guess. I upgraded to the AMD 7850 like you said and the final price is not too bad. I'm planning on hopefully building this sometime during the middle of this year (hopefully before the steam summer sale).

Thanks for your feedback, it really helped :)

btw, what does OEM mean in operating systems?
 

CaptainTom

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FYI this build will be cheaper if you wait a few months so good luck! OEM just means it is meant for DIY builds. So can you select me as best answer? Thanks! Not that I helped you for that! ;)
 
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