catch is.. im on a budget. could anyone help me in building a cheap gaming PC? i already have a graphics card and 1 sata hard drive and 1 IDE hard drive. id like it to be 300 bucks or less or is it possible?

my PC finally fried or something and i guess building a new PC would be the cheapest.

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you're right...

i never tried AMD before so whats the difference? also, could you provide links to all the hardware ill need?

i got a geforce 7600GT 256mb PCI-E DDR3 card. its not much but it does work for me. im not sure how much power it takes but i think its in between 300w-350w.

i could use my old dell case but i dont think they will be enough room for anything anyway.

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I recommend these parts:

Asus M2A-VM AMD Motheboard CPU Bundle - AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Processor 2.60GHz Black Edition (http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3948273&CatId=2621) - $129.99
Kingston 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134384) - $38.99 + free shipping
Antec earthwatts EA500 500W ATX12V v2.0 Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, FCC, TUV, CE, CB, C-tick, CCC - Retail (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371007) - $49.99 + free shipping
ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 64 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185125) - $29.99 + free shipping


Grand Total = $248.96, which leaves enough for any suitable case of your choice plus shipping on the motherboard and CPU combo. If it's stretching your budget a bit, get this (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371013) PSU instead of the one I've recommended above. The Earthwatts is a steal at that price, since it's able to power an 8800GTX-equipped system quite easily. So it's an excellent choice since you don't need to worry when you upgrade the rest of your system. But if money's a problem the Basiq 350W is as good and will be more than adequate for your system, although it won't power anything more than an 8800GTS or an HD 3850.

Good luck and let us know how it goes. :)

thank you very much for helping me.

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ah okay.

wont i need some thermal paste or something for the processor?

also, im wondering if i could use my old dell case. its a dell e510 and i could post pics if you want. i may have to replace the power supply in the case too since its only 305 watt.

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thanks..

i think ill go with the CPU/motherboard combo. i mean i already have a 1gb DDR2 pc2 4200 ram module i could probably use also but i will buy some ram as well.

i dont think black AMD comes with a heatsink or fan either which is why rage recommended that fan/heatsink CPU cooler.

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get this ram instead
http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/OCZ-2GB-DDR2-800MHz-Special-Ops-Edition-Dual-Channel-Memory-Kit-OCZ2SOE8002GK/sem/rpsm/oid/204246/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do
only $25 after rebate(friggan cheap)

im about to buy parts for a gaming computer

3.0ghz dual core amd athlon(ima OC it to 3.2:p)
8800gt 512 mb evga graphics card(later on ima buy another to SLI it)
that ram i told u about
antec 500w psu
ASUS M2N-SLI AM2 NVIDIA nForce 560 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard

i think its a nice way to spend $600 especially with a green led case to showcase it

sorry for the double post btw the page refreshed on nits own while editing and it looked like it deleted my post(i refreshed it several times and it still wasent there) so i made another one

The AMD CPU does come with an HSF since it's a retail box, but the cooler was recommended in case you want to OC, since the chip can easily hit 3GHz and still stay very cool and not heat things up in your case.

okay thanks..

im looking for a power supply now. what do you guys think about this one? its cheap and everyone says its good.

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/119227

edit: oops.. that website is UK only :( could anyone recommend a PSU?

Go for an OCZ StealthXStream 500W PSU, and you'll be fine.

LMAO you dont have to be that cheap for god sake

like at least 500 man

now a days if you want to support new games you gotta have nice video cards and crap

if you want a gaming computer, don't be so cheap, cause it won't happen with just 300 bucks

LMAO you dont have to be that cheap for god sake

like at least 500 man

now a days if you want to support new games you gotta have nice video cards and crap

if you want a gaming computer, don't be so cheap, cause it won't happen with just 300 bucks


like i said, I ALREADY HAVE most necessary computer parts. i could just buy a MOBO, power supply, CPU and thats all. i already have 1.5gb pc2-5300 ddr2 ram, a case, hard drives, graphic card, esc.

im not one of those people who wont play a game if i get 30 frames or less. so i don't want no 299 buck processor when i can get about the same performance with a AMD processor that costs 70% less. and i may have a geforce 7600GT but it still handled most games pretty well except for crysis and im not going to buy another video card just to play one single game.

nosebleedXD, some of us really do have to be that cheap, because we don't have enough time/money ratio. We get very little a month, and so much goes to bills and payments, I haven't got ANY money, and haven't been able to save any.

To saioke, it isn't one single game you'll be missing out on, though. Any game newer than crysis will be unplayable. FYI, when you do get an upgrade, make sure its worth it!

LMAO you dont have to be that cheap for god sake

like at least 500 man

now a days if you want to support new games you gotta have nice video cards and crap

if you want a gaming computer, don't be so cheap, cause it won't happen with just 300 bucks
Finding ways to stick to a budget is more important than having "nice video cards and crap". Also, read the OP's first post carefully before shooting your mouth off. He has clearly stated what parts he already has and what he needs.

thanks guys..

nosebleedXD, some of us really do have to be that cheap, because we don't have enough time/money ratio. We get very little a month, and so much goes to bills and payments, I haven't got ANY money, and haven't been able to save any.

To saioke, it isn't one single game you'll be missing out on, though. Any game newer than crysis will be unplayable. FYI, when you do get an upgrade, make sure its worth it!

exactly. i dont get paid very well either and when i do its every 2 weeks.

true but i usually wait until prices go down on graphic cards before i buy one. i bought this 7600GT for 40 bucks about a month ago but i really needed it too because i was using a geforce fx 5200 PCI card which was worse than on-board graphic chipsets.

Ouch, but unless the onboad was good, it shouldn't have been worse, mine performs 4x better.....

haha yeah i know but still, just saying, if you really want a gaming pc, 7600gt won't do for newer games these days

7600gt won't do for newer games these days
That's a very relative comment. The 8600GT is not very far from the 7600GT performance-wise, except for a few games. This means that both will perform about the same in most games, with the 8600GT scoring on average about 10% better. Not a big reason to get it over the 7600GT, unless you need the newer card's excellent onboard HD-decode capability.
The 8600GT is also among the most popular cards out there, being available for cheap and performing pretty well.

yeah.. i guess so, but i think both suck

if you don't care money wise, i would get the 8800gt

Then you're simply using this thread as an excuse to increase your post count and are not bothered about helping the OP in any way.

Although I'm not helping much, your posts aren't adding ANYTHING to the thread.

I upgrade every two years really, my 7900 GS can play ANY game for sometime.

haha well im not really increasing my post counts, i could careless how much i've posted

but to be honest yeah i'm sorry and i'll shut up now

i think i lost all the links, but a year ago i was planning on buying a computer and had all these parts bought online, with free shipping, i'll link you if i find it. the total was 400 i believe or less and it was pretty godly, i searched many webs to put the parts together

ALSO, i have a great deal i found for 800, and yes i know your budget was 300 but if you do manage do somehow get the money, sell your old parts, w.e here is the link

http://www.pcvonline.com/productDetails.aspx?id=5531

i'd possibly buy it in the next couple months