Mid-Range: Compromising, But Still Powerful
System Builder Marathon, October 2008 : The Articles
Here are links to each of the four articles in this month’s System Builder Marathon (we’ll update them as each story is published).
- Day 1 : The $4,500 Super PC
- Day 2 : The $1,500 Mainstream PC
- Day 3 : The $500 Gaming PC
- Day 4 : Performance And Value, Dissected
When it comes to personal computers, what exactly is the “mid-range ?” Unfortunately, the answer to that will vary a great deal depending on whom you talk to. Without a recognized standard as to what constitutes a mid-range price tag, we needed to arbitrarily decide where to set the benchmark for our middle-of-the-road system build. Based on a great deal of feedback from our readers asking for a $500 entry-level gaming PC option, we decided that $1,500 was a good mid-range price point.
This time, we’ve decided to include overclocking tests along with the original build. This way, overclockers can immediately see if our components play well together before shelling out the cash for a similar system.
As usual, let’s first look at the laundry list of parts, and then explain our rationale for choosing them :
Component | Model | Price (USD) |
---|---|---|
CPU | Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 | 185 |
CPU Cooler | Swiftech H20-220 | 140 |
Motherboard | DFI Lanparty X38 | 175 |
RAM | Patriot Viper 2x 2GB DDR2-800 Model PVS24G6400LLK | 88 |
Graphics | 2x ASUS Radeon 4850 TOP | 360 |
Hard Drives | 2x Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 500 GB ST3500630AS (1.0 TB total) | 140 |
Sound | Integrated | 0 |
Network | Integrated Gigabit Networking | 0 |
Case | CoolerMaster Cosmos 1000 | 180 |
Power | CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W | 130 |
Optical | LITE-ON 20X DVD±R SATA Model iHAS120-04 | 24 |
Total Price | $1,422 |