New to building looking to build an $800 gaming rig from scratch need help

B

Boggy

Posts: 10   +0
* What are you going to use the PC for? Mostly gaming I play WoW and SCII and would like to enjoy them on max graphics. However, there are some things I'd like such as a gtx 460 1gb graphics card
* How much is your budget? $800 which has to include everything in it. ONLY things I is a keyboard and mouse. (speakers I can probably do without)
* Are you willing to buy online? Only from newegg and amazon
* Are you going to re-use any parts from an earlier build? See above, no
* Do you need other peripherals like a monitor, keyboard and mouse, among others? Need everything except keyboard and mouse (monitor is needed)
* Have you already bought any parts? no
* Do you have an Operating System (OS)? yes
* Will you need any aftermarket cooling, such as a CPU\GPU cooler or a watercooling setup? I don't think so no

Current build i have picked out please make changes to as necessary

Asus M4785TD-V EVO $80
AMD Phenom II X2 555 (intend to unlock to 4 cores) $90
EVGA GTX 460 1GB Graphics Card $210
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 1600 $60
Rosewill CHALLENGER Black Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case $50
Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive $50
LITE-ON CD/DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM $18
Have not decided on PSU or Monitor

That comes out to be around $558, leaving 242 for monitor and PSU, feel free to make changes as you see fit and to redirect me to sites with better prices.
 
from what I read, people have had high success rates unlocking the 555, with the motherboard i picked out as well
 
Hi Boggy

Will you be spending the majority of your time in WoW & SC2? If this is the case I would recommend going with an i3 build over the AMD one. Latest benchmarks with 4.0.1 show significant advantages towards Intel even on the lower-end CPU's. So an Intel + Nvidia pairing for Blizzard games would give you the best results.

If you play other games just as often then going with AMD should be fine. However I do agree with HK, don't plan around being able to unlock extra cores. Look at it as a bonus rather then something that will happen, since unlocking isn't a guarantee even with a high success rate. If you really want a quadcore I'd recommend spending the extra $30-$40 and picking one up.

Regarding monitors, what resolution do you want? You can probably find yourself a pretty decent one for ~$150 depending on vendor/resolution. A GTX 460 1GB should handle 1680x1050 or 1920x1080 quite nicely.

Also this Corsair CX 500W should do well with whatever build you decide on.
 
The GTX 460 1GB model is a good call. However, I wouldn't restrict yourself to the EVGA brand. I saw a Palit GTX 460 1GB the other day (with a free game) for $149. And that's a damn good card with specs that compare favorably with the EVGA card. Lots of sales going on so keep an open mind on GTX 460 models and look for the best bang for your buck.

I can recommend the ASUS VH242H 23.6" monitor. Has a native resolution of 1920x1080 and 5ms refresh rate, so perfect for gaming. You can find them in the $150-$160 range. I use one at work and it really is a sweet display.
 
Hmmm I'd much rather get a 4-core processor to have the potential to expand to more core demanding games and I think I'll take my chances with the core unlock. Will the 500W PSU be able to power everything even if i overclock all the components?

I am shopping around looking for a cheaper gtx 460, or any piece for that matter if you can find a better price PLEASE send me a link
 
I'd definitely go with an i3 proc then. And in fact, I'm playing two games right now (Civilization V and Rise of Flight: Iron Cross Edition) which both make heavy use of 4 core processors, so your point is very valid.

I'll keep an eye out for any good processor and GTX 460 sales and let you know.
 
Boggy said:
Hmmm I'd much rather get a 4-core processor to have the potential to expand to more core demanding games and I think I'll take my chances with the core unlock. Will the 500W PSU be able to power everything even if i overclock all the components?
Click to expand...

If you can unlock the two additional cores it will indeed be a great quadcore, just note that Blizzard games won't favor you, however most other titles should be fine. Regarding power supplies, this Antec NEO ECO 520W should work just as well and cost you less, but you will need to use your old power cord.

Boggy said:
I am shopping around looking for a cheaper gtx 460, or any piece for that matter if you can find a better price PLEASE send me a link
Click to expand...

This EVGA 1GB GTX 460 is currently going for $180 with another $20 MIR which is the best deal I've found so far.

I would also recommend you upgrade that hard drive to something large, maybe a Spinpoint F3 1TB.
 
Relic said:
If you can unlock the two additional cores it will indeed be a great quadcore, just note that Blizzard games won't favor you, however most other titles should be fine. Regarding power supplies, this Antec NEO ECO 520W should work just as well and cost you less, but you will need to use your old power cord.



This is currently going for $180 with another $20 MIR which is the best deal I've found so far.

I would also recommend you upgrade that hard drive to something large, maybe a Spinpoint F3 1TB.
Click to expand...

Would any old power cord from any old power supply from any old computer work?
Is antec a company to trust for PSUs? I haven't heard much about them
Also, i wouldn't mind getting a bigger drive but i would have to trim some fat from the budget in order to afford it, if anybody could give cheaper alternatives or simply better deals, I'd be very grateful
 
Boggy said:
Would any old power cord from any old power supply from any old computer work?
Is antec a company to trust for PSUs? I haven't heard much about them
Also, i wouldn't mind getting a bigger drive but i would have to trim some fat from the budget in order to afford it, if anybody could give cheaper alternatives or simply better deals, I'd be very grateful
Click to expand...

All PSUs (as far as I'm aware, I'm doubtful there's some minority that don't) use kettle leads (IEC13), they're the three-pronged connectors. Although the lead itself will have three holes (female) and the PSU will have the prongs (male).
 
I'd recommend this build instead:
[*]Grand Total = ~$790. Should leave you with enough to buy an appropriate DVD burner.
 
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