Building my first PC

[Piff]

Hey guys, i'm in the starting deliberations of building my first personal rig, and was wondering if there's anyone around tech savvy enough to tell me if i'm doing it right. thanks for reading, below is the list of all the gear i've had an eye for so far.

thanks!

http://i.imgur.com/lvTY0.png

[Eccezan]

Piffen is almost level 54 btw...just sayin!

[Nuncio]

Why are you going AMD?
Why are you going with Windows 8?
Lose the Rosewill PSU and go with an Antec, Corsair, or similar.

[Nuncio]

Spend a little more money, and get something a whole lot better:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116782 is 50 bucks more
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157314 is 20 bucks more
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371016 is 10 bucks more

80 bucks more and vastly superior.

[theaetatus]

Ditch the warranties.

[nilbog]

If you go with AMD, get a Vishera. 4g 8 core is only 199.99. Not sure if price is a big concern, but you would also need to get a better board :x


edit- I also do not see a cpu cooler on your list. You will want something better than a stock cooler for AMD.

[Nuncio]

The i5 is 20 to 50% faster than the 5800k, depending on application.
The Vishera is in a similar boat to the 5800k, unless you are doing highly multithreaded applications that are very efficient in their multithreaded capabilities. Neither of these choices are reasonable for what appears to be a budget gaming computer.

[Fryhole]

Are all the Windows 8 deals done with - is it really $99 for a license now? =/
Tomshardware.com will have charts if you're interested in comparing performance between AMD & Intel. I see what these guys here are saying, but if you're playing *mostly* P99 for your gaming habit then I think you'll be fine.

I'd recommend a small (<120GB) SSD for your primary drive, but that might be beyond your budget. I use them in my home PC & work laptop, and it's rough to work with anything less once you've used one.

Just google'd this - if you know someone who bought a Win7 PC between June last year and until the end of this month, you can score a really cheap Win8 key. (assuming they could care less about Win8) www.windowsupg8adeoffer.com/

[Nuncio]

I can play p99 on a laptop with integrated intel graphics on a low speed (2.4ghz) i5 at 1366x768.

If all he plays is p99, theres no need to get a new computer at all. It was designed to run on pII 450's and a vodoo 3 card with 256mb of ram and an ata33 hard drive.

The amd 7770 he's looking at is a reasonably good video card. To feed it well, he should go with the i5.

[leezard]

Lose the Rosewill PSU and go with an Antec, Corsair, or similar.

/agree. Newegg has had some great Corsair deals recently, if your not seeing one atm I would suggest to keep looking. Rosewill psu's trash imo

Also, listen to the Nilbog. If you go AMD, ya better cool it with more than stock fan.

[Nuncio]

/agree. Newegg has had some great Corsair deals recently, if your not seeing one atm I would suggest to keep looking. Rosewill psu's trash imo

Also, listen to the Nilbog. If you go AMD, ya better cool it with more than stock fan.

Listen to me. Forget the AMD unless you have specific 'needs' that are covered by the AMD line-up (which is really only 8 thread CPU's for cheap. Again, their IPC is about 65% of intel counterparts.)

[Knuckle]

Asus should be your motherboard if you are building a serious gaming rig, you don't want to scrimp on the motherboard, even though you are probably thinking the CPU/GPU are more important, a poor mobo will wreck your system.

Anything Asus for Mobo, intel is a gimme for the CPU, gforce line is dominate for gcard, i personally use corsair for RAM, that's one area where you can usually pinch the most gigabytes per dollar, just pick one of their high frequency 1333 or better models, Power Supply I've seen excellent reviews on the Thermaltake tough series, with any power supply unit you should use at least 700 watts depending on your rig if you are doing something stupid like multiple GPUs you'll need more like 1k to 1.2k.
Hard drive is the one area right now that I would suggest you do your own research. SSD would seem to be the way to go, if you have the cash go ahead and get one with a couple 100GB because it is a pain in the ass to try and run a 120gb SSD as your primary drive. I do not recommend a RAID set up or anything retarded aspergers like that, as if one drive fails it will fuck up a lot of stuff since your memory is distributed across all drives. For your secondary drive get a terabyte or 1.5 TB regular HDD. Western Digital makes a good HDD but are typically a little more expensive, as a secondary drive this is of less importance, this is where you will save music, videos, photos, and any programs not currently being used/played.

Cooling - This is a heated debate among a lot of folks. I personally watercooled a system around 5 years ago and would never do it again. It ran amazing for 2 years but the potential problems outweigh the benefits in my opinion. First, you need big tubing, a radiator of sorts to offset the heat, a larger and more expensive computer casing, a water pump, and reservoir. You will also need some anti-freeze type coolant that will prevent the tubes from collecting algae which will ultimately wreck your cpu/gpu. On top of that once you have everything hooked up, you need to do a test run to ensure there is no leaks by doing the paperclip trick on your PSU to jump start the waterpump without any hardware running.

Once you have a good quality watercooling system set up(i used mostly danger den parts, none of that garbage pre fab shit), you have to change the tubes once a year, and after the second year i said fuck that shit, draining out all the fluid, changing the tubes felt like reinstalling the damn thing every year.

I did do some massive overclocking however, at the time there was a 1.8ghz chip that I was able to OC to 3.0ghz dual-crore for everyday use, it was a C2D intel chip that was very, very overclockable. I imagine after 5 years intel has wised up to leaving cost budget chips open to this sort of thing and has probably locked the multipliers on all their cores on the new chips. You probably have to be Neo to unlock a new CPU these days.

So for cooling, I recommend a large CPU case that has excellent airflow with large fans, I used a Gigabyte brand case designed for watercooling, but lots of room and fans sucking hot air out and cool air in is what you want, so definitely review the case you choose carefully.

Throw on one of the higher rated air cooled CPU copper heatsinks with a big ass fan and your rig should be fine, even if you decide to do some overclocking.

For monitor I use Asus. They make the best CPU monitors for the dollar, hands down. LG surprisingly also makes some great gaming monitors at a low price. I'm currently using an Asus 25" monitor with 2ms(this means no blurring when playing games with lots of quick movement, such as a FPS), and a 10,000:1 contrast ratio. Don't be a sucker and buy a 30" monitor for 200 bucks or something, it'll look like shit when your trying to move around in a fast paced game.


Well that's my garbled rambling, have fun, after the rig i built 5 years ago I bought a Asus laptop last year when my rig was struck by lightning, and it hasnt hitched playing skyrim or just about any game I've thrown at it. My only gripe is the primary HD is only 180GB and it's not a SSD. But I got the laptop for a much better deal than I would have building my own desktop other than the hard drive space.

[Knuckle]

Piffen after actually reading your post I'm pretty sure you are trolling, but regardless I'll bite since I enjoy these discussions. Ditch the AMD CPU, don't listen to anyone saying to get an AMD chip, they are simply not as efficient as intel processors and behind the mobo, the CPU is the most important purchase, I would take a 3.0ghz quad core intel chip over that AMD one you have in your cart.

The micro atx board is a terrible idea, get a full sized motherboard by asus, pair it with the appropriate intel CPU.

I have used radeon/ati GPU's in the past, and all I can say is you will probably have problems sooner than later, and their software suites tend to work like shit. Nvidia GPU's I do not have issues with.

Ditch the 530W rosewell piece of shit power suppply for something like thermaltake tough series 700W, and they come with a 3 year manufacturers warranty, not that mine ever acted up.

The G.Skill memory is probably fine.

Windows 8 is a step backwards in my opinion. It will catch on one day but they basically are beta testing windows 9 with you the consumer. Stick to windows 7, its the windows xp of its day for gaming.

[Nuncio]

Asus should be your motherboard if you are building a serious gaming rig, you don't want to scrimp on the motherboard, even though you are probably thinking the CPU/GPU are more important, a poor mobo will wreck your system.
This isn't a 'serious' gaming machine. He doesn't need a 200 dollar mobo. He also shouldn't be buying foxconn or similar though, which is why I posted the asrock one, which is really quite good.

Anything Asus for Mobo, intel is a gimme for the CPU,
I covered mobo, and agree with CPU.

gforce line is dominate for gcard, Not in the upper midrange, such as this 7770.
i personally use corsair for RAM, that's one area where you can usually pinch the most gigabytes per dollar, just pick one of their high frequency 1333 or better models,
I like corsair too, but mushkin is fine, as is PNY.

Power Supply I've seen excellent reviews on the Thermaltake tough series, with any power supply unit you should use at least 700 watts depending on your rig if you are doing something stupid like multiple GPUs you'll need more like 1k to 1.2k.
His rig does not require more than 500 watts from a good PSU. The 7770 is fairly low power pull. Hes got two sticks of ram, one HD and one CD. The lower end thermaltakes are, quite simply, junk. As I said, Antec or Corsair in the 450-750 range.

Hard drive is the one area right now that I would suggest you do your own research. SSD would seem to be the way to go, if you have the cash go ahead and get one with a couple 100GB because it is a pain in the ass to try and run a 120gb SSD as your primary drive. I do not recommend a RAID set up or anything retarded aspergers like that, as if one drive fails it will fuck up a lot of stuff since your memory is distributed across all drives. For your secondary drive get a terabyte or 1.5 TB regular HDD. Western Digital makes a good HDD but are typically a little more expensive, as a secondary drive this is of less importance, this is where you will save music, videos, photos, and any programs not currently being used/played.
I really doubt he can afford and SSD with the equipemnt hes already listed, so be realistic.

Cooling - This is a heated debate among a lot of folks. I personally watercooled a system around 5 years ago and would never do it again. It ran amazing for 2 years but the potential problems outweigh the benefits in my opinion. First, you need big tubing, a radiator of sorts to offset the heat, a larger and more expensive computer casing, a water pump, and reservoir. You will also need some anti-freeze type coolant that will prevent the tubes from collecting algae which will ultimately wreck your cpu/gpu. On top of that once you have everything hooked up, you need to do a test run to ensure there is no leaks by doing the paperclip trick on your PSU to jump start the waterpump without any hardware running.
Stock cooler on i5 at stock speeds is completely adequate, no water cooling or aftermarket required, ever.

Once you have a good quality watercooling system set up(i used mostly danger den parts, none of that garbage pre fab shit), you have to change the tubes once a year, and after the second year i said fuck that shit, draining out all the fluid, changing the tubes felt like reinstalling the damn thing every year.

Watercooling without extreme overclocking is a waste of money

I did do some massive overclocking however, at the time there was a 1.8ghz chip that I was able to OC to 3.0ghz dual-crore for everyday use, it was a C2D intel chip that was very, very overclockable. I imagine after 5 years intel has wised up to leaving cost budget chips open to this sort of thing and has probably locked the multipliers on all their cores on the new chips. You probably have to be Neo to unlock a new CPU these days.
Thanks for proving my point (he doesnt need watercooling. He's got a midrange card with a midrange cpu, OCing any one thing wont make much of a difference. Get of the WCing kick for him.)

So for cooling, I recommend a large CPU case that has excellent airflow with large fans, I used a Gigabyte brand case designed for watercooling, but lots of room and fans sucking hot air out and cool air in is what you want, so definitely review the case you choose carefully.

Throw on one of the higher rated air cooled CPU copper heatsinks with a big ass fan and your rig should be fine, even if you decide to do some overclocking.
There we go, kinda. Again, intel stock coolers are more than adequate.

For monitor I use Asus. They make the best CPU monitors for the dollar, hands down. LG surprisingly also makes some great gaming monitors at a low price. I'm currently using an Asus 25" monitor with 2ms(this means no blurring when playing games with lots of quick movement, such as a FPS), and a 10,000:1 contrast ratio. Don't be a sucker and buy a 30" monitor for 200 bucks or something, it'll look like shit when your trying to move around in a fast paced game.
Notice he didnt list a monitor in his cart? Prolly cause he's not going to buy one because he already has one.
Yep.


Well that's my garbled rambling, have fun, after the rig i built 5 years ago I bought a Asus laptop last year when my rig was struck by lightning, and it hasnt hitched playing skyrim or just about any game I've thrown at it. My only gripe is the primary HD is only 180GB and it's not a SSD. But I got the laptop for a much better deal than I would have building my own desktop other than the hard drive space.


OK.

[fishingme]

This isn't a 'serious' gaming machine. He doesn't need a 200 dollar mobo. He also shouldn't be buying foxconn or similar though, which is why I posted the asrock one, which is really quite good.

.

I would listen to this guy. Also, there's absolutely no need to spend more than $800-$900 on a new gaming rig. It will easily play any game in the next 1-2years at max settings with max fps unless a groundbreaking new game engine comes along which isn't too likely considering game devs aim towards lower minimum settings to work or their profit margins are cut due to many people not wanting to upgrade to play a game.

[Piff]

Spend a little more money, and get something a whole lot better:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116782 is 50 bucks more
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157314 is 20 bucks more
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371016 is 10 bucks more

80 bucks more and vastly superior.

thanks!

Piffen is almost level 54 btw...just sayin!

CHEERS!!! :D

Thanks for all the help knuckle - no troll. i've got a nice 23 inch asus monitor myself.

I would listen to this guy. Also, there's absolutely no need to spend more than $800-$900 on a new gaming rig.

Yeah that's what i'm really focused on. it will definitely be kept under $900. I'm building this rig with the intention that when i do find a game that needs more computing power, i'll be able to make the correct adjustments to my machine at that time.

Now for a new question before i show you all my updated list: If the mobo says it's only supported by a cpu with integrated graphics - what does this mean exactly. I'm obviously not going to invest in integrated graphics, but does this mean that i have to find a cpu with integrated graphics?

Alright here's the new list.. the case appears to have enough room and plenty of expansion, the SSD is only 120 but with the backup 500g WD blue i should be fine if it's only the stuff vital to the operating system and technical stuff not personal files. thoughts?

http://i.imgur.com/T6A0j.png

[Nuncio]

thanks!



CHEERS!!! :D

Thanks for all the help knuckle - no troll. i've got a nice 23 inch asus monitor myself.



Yeah that's what i'm really focused on. it will definitely be kept under $900. I'm building this rig with the intention that when i do find a game that needs more computing power, i'll be able to make the correct adjustments to my machine at that time.

Now for a new question before i show you all my updated list: If the mobo says it's only supported by a cpu with integrated graphics - what does this mean exactly. I'm obviously not going to invest in integrated graphics, but does this mean that i have to find a cpu with integrated graphics?

Alright here's the new list.. the case appears to have enough room and plenty of expansion, the SSD is only 120 but with the backup 500g WD blue i should be fine if it's only the stuff vital to the operating system and technical stuff not personal files. thoughts?

http://i.imgur.com/T6A0j.png


All that means is that the CPU has to have the video built in for the 'board' to have buil tin video. You arent using onboard, and the CPU I linked you does not have the IGP onboard, and so doesn't matter.

One thing I'd do before ordering is to see if Asrock has a tested-memory list with that particular board, and buy memory that is on that list. If not, the gskill is prolly fine, but I generally use corsair or mushkin.

[Thulack]

All i have to say is get a mobo that supports core unlocking for 50 bucks and get a AMD Athlon II X3 450 Rana 3.2GHz for 70 bucks and you have your self a cheap ass quad core rig. I paid 340 dollars for a setup minus hard drive and can run anything i want.

[Nuncio]

All i have to say is get a mobo that supports core unlocking for 50 bucks and get a AMD Athlon II X3 450 Rana 3.2GHz for 70 bucks and you have your self a cheap ass quad core rig. I paid 340 dollars for a setup minus hard drive and can run anything i want.

An unlocked, overclocked 450 rana is still a lot slower than the i5.

[Thulack]

An unlocked, overclocked 450 rana is still a lot slower than the i5.

But it is capable of doing everything i want without lagging. That is all i need and all most people need. You dont have to spend more then 500 dollars building a computer unless you do graphic design as a living.

[Bushido]

i find http://www.cpubenchmark.net/ very useful when finding a video card or processor to get the most bang for the buck.

[Nuncio]

But it is capable of doing everything i want without lagging. That is all i need and all most people need. You dont have to spend more then 500 dollars building a computer unless you do graphic design as a living.

There is so much wrong with this post, I don't have the energy to go into it.
The only correct part: "But it is capable of doing everything i want without lagging."

Which, of course, is totally subjective and irrelevant to the discussion.

Glad you are happy with your build, though.

[Thulack]

There is so much wrong with this post, I don't have the energy to go into it.
The only correct part: "But it is capable of doing everything i want without lagging."

Which, of course, is totally subjective and irrelevant to the discussion.

Glad you are happy with your build, though.

I mean feel free to tell me whats wrong with a quad core pc 8gb ram with 1gb ddr5 video card for under 300 dollars?

Tell me things that you would really need more then that to do? Sure saying i spent 1k on a 6core 16gb ram monster pc is nice but really what would anyone ever use something like that for?

[theaetatus]

Also, get it without Windows if you can and stick a cracked version on there. You can spend the $99 saved on hardware.

[Nuncio]

I mean feel free to tell me whats wrong with a quad core pc 8gb ram with 1gb ddr5 video card for under 300 dollars?

Tell me things that you would really need more then that to do? Sure saying i spent 1k on a 6core 16gb ram monster pc is nice but really what would anyone ever use something like that for?

Theres nothing wrong with it.
It works for you.
That's cool.

This guy is going for a little more.

What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.

[Knuckle]

This isn't a 'serious' gaming machine. He doesn't need a 200 dollar mobo. He also shouldn't be buying foxconn or similar though, which is why I posted the asrock one, which is really quite good.


I covered mobo, and agree with CPU.

Not in the upper midrange, such as this 7770.

I like corsair too, but mushkin is fine, as is PNY.

His rig does not require more than 500 watts from a good PSU. The 7770 is fairly low power pull. Hes got two sticks of ram, one HD and one CD. The lower end thermaltakes are, quite simply, junk. As I said, Antec or Corsair in the 450-750 range.

I really doubt he can afford and SSD with the equipemnt hes already listed, so be realistic.

Stock cooler on i5 at stock speeds is completely adequate, no water cooling or aftermarket required, ever.

Watercooling without extreme overclocking is a waste of money

Thanks for proving my point (he doesnt need watercooling. He's got a midrange card with a midrange cpu, OCing any one thing wont make much of a difference. Get of the WCing kick for him.)

There we go, kinda. Again, intel stock coolers are more than adequate.

Notice he didnt list a monitor in his cart? Prolly cause he's not going to buy one because he already has one.
Yep.




OK.

In regards to the mobo, yes Asus motherboards can easily run $200 dollars but you don't have to buy the most expensive model, mine personally only cost $170 dollars, and it held up to anything I threw at it, untill it was struck by lightning via ethernet port.

Why do you think i recommended the thermaltake tough series 700w? You are picking apart shit that doesn't need to be picked apart. You are making assumptions on what his budget is by what he picked out, however in his post he asked for criticism and I provided it, he did not say I need to build the cheapest gaming rig possible, did he?

No, you are attempting to make an ass out of you and me.

I threw the watercooling bit in there because it's something every person building a rig has at least heard of, so I gave some real feedback on the pros and cons.

Obviously he already has a monitor, but a guy asking for advice on all his computer parts might find it beneficial to understand the benefits of a good brand to purchase and why its beneficial to gaming.

You 'doubt' he can afford a solid state drive. Good for you, luckily he didn't mention price so I pointed out the obvious fact that solid state drives are MUCH better.

Picking apart my valid advice is fucking hilarious when you failed to even read through it properly, such as the thermaltake PSU bit and assuming piffen is broke because hes black. I'd suggest saving your critiques for someone who gives a shit.


Here's one more thought, the rig i recommend is more future proof, oh all he needs is 500 watts? thats terrific because you want more power than you need when it comes to a PSU so you don't stress the PSU or any components on it. And if he goes to a power hungry GPU in a few years to handle a new game coming out he will be glad to know it can handle it.



"This isn't a 'serious' gaming machine. He doesn't need a 200 dollar mobo
I really doubt he can afford and SSD with the equipemnt hes already listed, so be realistic."

What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.
What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.
What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.

foot in mouth you fucking mongoloid.

[Knuckle]

thanks!



CHEERS!!! :D

Thanks for all the help knuckle - no troll. i've got a nice 23 inch asus monitor myself.



Yeah that's what i'm really focused on. it will definitely be kept under $900. I'm building this rig with the intention that when i do find a game that needs more computing power, i'll be able to make the correct adjustments to my machine at that time.

Now for a new question before i show you all my updated list: If the mobo says it's only supported by a cpu with integrated graphics - what does this mean exactly. I'm obviously not going to invest in integrated graphics, but does this mean that i have to find a cpu with integrated graphics?

Alright here's the new list.. the case appears to have enough room and plenty of expansion, the SSD is only 120 but with the backup 500g WD blue i should be fine if it's only the stuff vital to the operating system and technical stuff not personal files. thoughts?

http://i.imgur.com/T6A0j.png

list is good, bump that PSU to a 650w antec/thermaltake/corsair model, make sure its at least 4 1/2 eggs.

[Nuncio]

In regards to the mobo, yes Asus motherboards can easily run $200 dollars but you don't have to buy the most expensive model, mine personally only cost $170 dollars, and it held up to anything I threw at it, untill it was struck by lightning via ethernet port.

Why do you think i recommended the thermaltake tough series 700w? You are picking apart shit that doesn't need to be picked apart. You are making assumptions on what his budget is by what he picked out, however in his post he asked for criticism and I provided it, he did not say I need to build the cheapest gaming rig possible, did he?

No, you are attempting to make an ass out of you and me.

I threw the watercooling bit in there because it's something every person building a rig has at least heard of, so I gave some real feedback on the pros and cons.

Obviously he already has a monitor, but a guy asking for advice on all his computer parts might find it beneficial to understand the benefits of a good brand to purchase and why its beneficial to gaming.

You 'doubt' he can afford a solid state drive. Good for you, luckily he didn't mention price so I pointed out the obvious fact that solid state drives are MUCH better.

Picking apart my valid advice is fucking hilarious when you failed to even read through it properly, such as the thermaltake PSU bit and assuming piffen is broke because hes black. I'd suggest saving your critiques for someone who gives a shit.


Here's one more thought, the rig i recommend is more future proof, oh all he needs is 500 watts? thats terrific because you want more power than you need when it comes to a PSU so you don't stress the PSU or any components on it. And if he goes to a power hungry GPU in a few years to handle a new game coming out he will be glad to know it can handle it.



"This isn't a 'serious' gaming machine. He doesn't need a 200 dollar mobo
I really doubt he can afford and SSD with the equipemnt hes already listed, so be realistic."

What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.
What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.
What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.

foot in mouth you fucking mongoloid.

Don't be an idiot.

The reason he picked those items in the first place gives a very clear indication of his budget.

My recommendations added less than 100 dollars to the total.

No one wants to read the wall of text you posted.

He obviously didnt need a bunch of fucking info about watercooling and monitors.

Secondly, he does not need a 650 watt PSU for that machine. All he needs, honestly, is about 450 watts with good amperage.

Maybe you aren't sure how electricity works, and thats cool, not everyone is.

His total draw on that machine, with peripherals, is less than 400 watts.

The thermaltake you are talking about (650 watt) is over a hundred bucks, yet has less amperage on it's single 12v rail than the Antec does across its 3 separate 12v rails by about 40%. (And the Antec costs less.)

Not sure what you're trying to point out with this stupidity:

What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.
What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.
What I'm saying is that you being happy with your computer does not mean that other people would be happy with your computer.

foot in mouth you fucking mongoloid.

But whatever.

And, glad you agree with the changes he's made.

(By the way, Asrock is, or at least was, a subsidiary or child company of Asus.)

[Poundruss]

list is good, bump that PSU to a 650w antec/thermaltake/corsair model, make sure its at least 4 1/2 eggs.

you don't really know what you're talking about.

650w for that setup? he'd be fine with 450w.

as for the OP, do you live next to a microcenter?

if so, you can get a great deal on an i5 3570k (even an i5 2500k if you want to go a generation less).

to be honest, if i were you, i'd try to min/max what i could with my budget. i'd drop the SSD and use that money to bump up your video card and processor a bit. the only thing an SSD is going to effect is your windows and game boot time. it has no additional performance increase. it is an amazing piece to have to any computer, but if i were on a budget, i'd go for a bit more power on the GPU/CPU.

this, of course, all depends on the games you are going to be playing. if you're not going to be playing any type of high-end demanding game then stick with the SSD as that power is perfectly fine for lower to mid games.

[EvilMallet]

i do kind of agree with upping the PSU to 650, that gives the duder some breathing room if he upgrades his video card down the line.

[Nuncio]

i do kind of agree with upping the PSU to 650, that gives the duder some breathing room if he upgrades his video card down the line.

The antec 550 has more than enough to handle a more power hungry video card, especially considering it's on it's own 12v rail.

[Piff]

CHALLENGE MODE: Can i build this under $600? Can i build it INTEL for under 600? Can i strategize this budget rig well enough that it'll run games like tf2, cs:s, and even payday: the heist? thanks guys

http://i.imgur.com/hg7uQ.png

[EvilMallet]

dude, tf2, cs:s, and payday can be run on a 400 dollar laptop from costco.

[Piff]

dude, tf2, cs:s, and payday can be run on a 400 dollar laptop from costco.

my main objective here is to have a desktop that is able to be upgraded and adjusted as times change. and while i wouldn't mind playing these guys on my shitty laptop, its age and other factors have made it run games like these with a bit of chop.

[Nuncio]

CHALLENGE MODE: Can i build this under $600? Can i build it INTEL for under 600? Can i strategize this budget rig well enough that it'll run games like tf2, cs:s, and even payday: the heist? thanks guys

http://i.imgur.com/hg7uQ.png

This would be substantially faster. Like, very much faster. Twice, if not more, on most games, and generally faster at everything else.


http://www.hotspringscomputer.com/junk/budget2.jpg