ok all i want is a mid to upper level pc w/ good enough stuff to run 3d grafix program and newere games..and i need it to cost around 2000$ does anyone think that they can do that?

yes, you can do alot with $2000 when you build yourself.

for starters, do you have any existing components that you can re-use in your new rig?

Are you sure you "need" it around 2000$? You can build a *very* decent rig for much, much less than that. And the leftover money could be used for a sweeeeet monitor and keyboard/mouse.

Exactly what games do you wish to play and at what settings (maxed out, decent, low)? You can probably get away with a good and fast pc being able to play most recent games at quite high settings for under 1000$.

Just like King cody said for $2000 you can do a ton. I had the same price cap as you and my finnal pieces of my computer are supposed to get here tommorrow( processor, video card, dvd/cd burner). I only ended up spending about $1670 w/ shiping and I got a monitor, mouse and keyboard, and OS. I was able to get pretty highend system.

um (post above) what did u buy for your computer you sound like your pretty good into computers ..... and in my price range...so could u give em a list of the things that you bought?

oh and no im am starting from scratch no other components!!

umm like oblivion, prey, san andreas things like that oh and half life!!.. but i deffinatly am going to spend way more than 1000 because i know things cost a more for better and i said i wanted a good pc i mean u know 2 GB ram and an almost top of the line video card but not the best a good processor thats 3.0 GHz or better you know stuff like that ..i would say its between a mid level and high end pc but more toward high

o and therapist i click on that picture link...do u seriously own my house now!! because i know thing like that can happen and **** and im like freakin out!

Well this is my first build and I had a lot of help from the great people hear a techspot, but here are the specs of the system I built. The price may not come out exactly the same b/c of rebates, 1 day deals, free shipping days ect...

I made a few edits to it but mostly it's just copied from the MWord doc where I kept track of it all. R means received. Oh and I cut out the OS b/c I got it on a student discount (xp pro $70). I wouldn't go by my final price though as prices have probably changed.

RAM

CORSAIR XMS 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Unbuffered DDR 400 (PC 3200) Dual Channel Kit System Memory - Retail
Price:Like $207 I think
#1 ORDERED!!!
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145575

R

HD/s
Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
· Model #: WD2500KS
· Item #: N82E16822144701
· now like $79.99 I think.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822144701
#2 ORDERED!!!
R

Monitor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824009087
Acer AL1916Fbd Black 19" 2ms (GTG) LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 700:1 0.294mm Pixel Pitch - Retail
$230

Mother Board
ASUS A8N32-SLI Deluxe Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce SPP 100 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
· Model #: A8N32-SLI Deluxe
· Item #: N82E16813131568
· $169.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131568
ORDERED ORDER #6
R

Processor
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4800+ Toledo 2000MHz HT 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket 939 Dual Core Processor - Retail
Model#: ADA4800CDBOX
Item#: N82E16819103544
Price: $632.00 expect to drop to around $350 on July 25
GOT this one from Cheapguys.com for $330 newegg has it for like $423 or something.

Video Card

Decied to wait for DX10 so I went with a decent and way cheaper card.

eVGA 256-P2-N553-AX Geforce 7600GT CO 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130283
$169.99 $30 if orderd before or on 7/31
ORDERD #8


CD/DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827152058
NEC Black 16X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 16X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2M Cache IDE/ATAPI 16X DVD±R DVD Burner - OEM
$30

DVD Drive
· SONY Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model DDU1615/B2s - OEM

Cache: 512K
CD-ROM: 48X
CD-ROM Access Time: 165ms
Data Transfer Rate: 1,800~3,600 kB/s (CD), 8,788~21,632 kB/s Single Layer, 5,586~13,520 kB/s Dual Layer
DVD-ROM: 16X
DVD-ROM Access Time: 80-220ms
Form Factor: 5"
Load Type: Tray
· Model #: DDU1615/B2s
· Item #: N82E16827101131

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827101131

Case
XION Ultimate Engineering XON-002 Black/Silver SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 450 Watt (P4 & AMD Ready) Power Supply - Retail
Model #: XON-002
Item #: N82E16811208004
Price:$64.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811208004

#1 ORDERED!!!

R

Keyboard
Logitech Ultra X 967353-0403 2-Tone 104 Normal Keys 6 Function Keys PS/2 Wired Standard Keyboard - OEM
Model #: 967353-0403
Item #: N82E16823126135
Price:$21.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16823126135

PSU
Antec TRUEPOWERII TPII-550 ATX12V 550W Power Supply 115/230 V UL, TUV, CB, FCC CLASS B, CUL - Retail


One Day SaleOriginal Price: $89.99Instant Savings: -$6.00 $83.99($68.99 after $15.00 Mail-In Rebate)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817103931
#1 ORDERED!!!
R

Headset
SENNHEISER DJs HD212 Circumaural PRO Stereo Headphone - Retail
· 12Hz-19KHz
· 3.5mm/ 6.3mm Connector
· 8.0 feet - 10.0 feet Cord Length
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16826106324
$44.99
ORDERED!!! ORDER #3
R

PSU Tester
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16899888901
Price: $8.99 + $4.99 shipping
ORDERED!!! ORDER #3
R



Possible cooling systems
120mm
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835129030
+16
ORDERED ORDER #6
R
TOTAL= $1878.91 before all rebates and cpu price cut.
-100 in rebates
-250 for cpu price cut
+4.99
+8.96
+16.34
+5.46
+5.46
+5.46
+5.46
+10.80
+6.67
-280.46
$1578.45 with rebates, shipping, price cut.

yeah i only have one question..why did u decide to go with only a 2.0GHz processor?? isnt that like the minimum for games now a days? I mean i dont really get it i saw an intel idk what kind or anything buit it was a 3.4GHz and it only cost like 350$ on newegg so whats the diference and why does this one cost that much w/ 1.4GHz less? o and why do you need a DVD burner and drive ..the burner does eveything?/..and what is the psu tester for?

you can't go by clock speed when comparing an AMD processor to an Intel processor (or even an intel to an ntel). there are other important factors that determine processor performance besides it's internal clock speed alone.

AMD processors can meet or exceed the performance of Intel processors at much lower clock speeds. the main reason for this is because AMDs do more work per clock cycle, so they don't have to run as fast to perform as well.

this has been true for the past few years, but has just changed with the recent release of the Intel "core2" (conroe) processors. now the tables have turned and for the time being, the new Intels can outperform current AMD processors. but you still can't go by clock speed alone for comparison

cheers