[PrometheusX]

This thread contains several gaming PC builds depending on the budget, starting from $250 up to $1500. I chose Superbiiz because it is the best online international retailer I could find, but I'm not sure about making other builds from Newegg(USA). Every build is over-budget by $22-$34, partly because of the HDD prices. Please post any opinions or suggestions you have, also if you want a build w/ a specific budget you can post and I will try and make one.




$250 BUILD

Component	Item	Price
Motherboard	ASRock A55M-HVS Socket FM1 MicroATX Motherboard	$62
Processor	AMD A-Series APU FM1 A6-3500 Triple Core Processor	$78
Graphics Card	ATI Radeon HD 6530D 512MB
Memory	2x Super Talent DDR3-1333 4GB - (2x)2GB - Chip Memory	$24
Hard Drive	Western Digital Caviar Blue 250GB SATA3 7200rpm 16MB Hard Drive	$70
Case	iMicro CA-IM813BK45 w/450W ATX Tower Case	$37
Power Supply	iMicro 450W Power Supply, w/ 1x 24pin connector & 1x SATA Connector
Total	[Grand Theft Auto IV @ Medium Settings - 30 FPS]	$273

$500 BUILD

Component	Item	Price
Motherboard	MSI 870S-G54 Socket AM3 AMD 870 DDR3 CrossFireX SATA 3 ATX Motherboard	$98
Processor	AMD FX Quad-Core Processor 4100 AM3+ Black edition	$109
Graphics Card	Sapphire Radeon HD6750 1GB DDR5 Graphics Card	$99
Memory	2x Super Talent DDR3-1333 8GB - (2x)4GB - Chip Memory	$37
Hard Drive	Western Digital Caviar Blue 250GB SATA3 7200rpm 16MB Hard Drive	$70
Case	Raidmax ATX-238WU Tornado ATX Mid Tower Gaming Case	$44
Power Supply	Thermaltake TR-500P TR2 500W 80Plus Bronze Power Supply	$66
Total	[Grand Theft Auto IV @ High Settings - 30 FPS]	$523

$750 BUILD

Component	Item	Price
Motherboard	GIGABYTE GA-Z68AP-D3 Socket 1155 Intel Z68 DDR3 AMD CrossFireX USB 3 ATX Motherboard	$80
Processor	Intel Core i5 Processor i5-2500K 3.3GHz 6MB LGA1155 CPU	$225
Graphics Card	XFX ATI Radeon HD6870 1GB DDR5 Video Card	$180
Memory	4x Super Talent DDR3-1600 16GB - 4x4GB - Memory	$84
Hard Drive	Western Digital Caviar Blue 500G SATA3 7200rpm 16MB Hard Drive	$81
Case	Thermaltake Commander MS-I Snow Edition Mid Tower Case	$55
Power Supply	XFX ProSeries Core Edition 550W 80Plus Bronze Power Supply	$67
Total	[Grand Theft Auto IV @ Very High Settings - 45 FPS]	$772

$1000 BUILD

Component	Item	Price
Motherboard	ASRock Z68 PRO3 LGA1155 Intel Z68 DDR3 USB 3 ATX Motherboard	$127
Processor	Intel Core i5 Processor i5-2500K 3.3GHz 6MB LGA1155 CPU	$225
Graphics Card	Sapphire Radeon HD7870 2GB DDR5 Video Card	$337
Memory	4x Super Talent DDR3-1600 16GB - 4x4GB - Memory	$84
Hard Drive	Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB SATA3 7200rpm 32MB Hard Drive	$96
Case	Cooler Master Elite 350 500W Power Supply Mid Tower Case	$65
Power Supply	Sparkle R-SPI650ACAG 650W 80PLUS Gold Switching Power Supply	$95
Total	[Grand Theft Auto IV @ Highest Settings - 60 FPS]	$1028

$1500 BUILD

Component	Item	Price
Motherboard	ASRock Z68 EXTREME3 GEN3 LGA1155 Intel Z68 DDR3 Quad CrossFireX & Quad SLI SATA 3 USB 3 ATX Motherboard	$122
Processor	Intel Core i7 Processor i7-2600K 3.4GHz 8MB LGA1155 CPU	$314
Graphics Card	Sapphire Radeon HD7950 3GB OC DDR5 Video Card	$465
Memory	4x Super Talent DDR3-1600 16GB - 4x4GB - Memory	$84
Hard Drive	Western Digital Caviar Green 1.5TB SATA3 64MB Hard Drive	$115
Solid State Drive	Samsung 2.5 inch 128GB 830 Series SATA3 Solid State Drive	$170
Case	Thermaltake V9 BlacX Mid Tower Case	$90
Power Supply	Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold 1000W Power Supply	$184
Total	[Any Game @ Highest w/ENB Settings - 60 FPS]	$1534

$2000 BUILD

Component	Item	Price
Motherboard	ASRock Z68 EXTREME7 GEN3 Quad CrossFireX & Quad SLI SATA3&USB3.0 ATX Motherboard	$270
Processor	Intel Core i7 Processor i7-2700K 3.5GHz 8MB LGA1155 CPU	$321
Graphics Card	Sapphire Radeon HD7970 3GB DDR5 Video Card	$550
Memory	4x Super Talent DDR3-1600 16GB - 4x4GB - Memory	$84
Hard Drive	Western Digital Caviar Green 2TB SATA3 64MB Hard Drive	$118
Solid State Drive	Samsung 2.5 inch 256GB 830 Series SATA3 Solid State Drive	$346
Case	Thermaltake Level 10 GTS Snow Edition Mid Tower Case	$125
Power Supply	Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold 1000W Power Supply	$184
Total	[Any Game @ Highest w/ENB Settings - 60 FPS]	$1998

This post has been edited by PrometheusX on Thursday, Apr 12 2012, 04:40

[Stinky12]

You should post the resolution at which each system is able to achieve that FPS, because it's a bit misleading for those that aren't that technical with this stuff.

A build for $2000

-	Item	Pcs	Price
1	Corsair Graphite Series 600T CC600TM Mid-Tower Gaming Case	1	$159.99
2	Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKX 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive	1	$84.99
3	XFX Double D FX-797A-TDFC Radeon HD 7970 3GB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card	1	$559.99
4	CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX750 V2 750W ATX12V v2.31/ EPS12V v2.92 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC High Performance Power ...	1	$104.99
5	G.SKILL Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL7Q-16GBZM	1	$149.99
6	ASUS P9X79 PRO LGA 2011 Intel X79 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with USB BIOS	1	$319.99
7	Intel Core i7-3820 Sandy Bridge-E 3.6GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 2011 130W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80619i73820	1	$309.99
8	COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Compatible with latest Intel ...	1	$34.64
9	Rosewill 10ft. USB2.0 A Male to B Male Cable, Black, Model RCW-101RT	1	$0.00
10	LITE-ON Black 12X Blu-ray Burner with Blu Ray 3D Feature SATA IHBS112-04 - OEM	1	$79.99
11	Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)	1	$154.99
-	Subtotal	-	$1,959.55

[Slamman]

Resolution is also dependent on matching to a display, perhaps a Display guide is worth an additional posting, since there are a number of good ones out there

Maximum PC is covering a three tier system in the new issue, the highest high end computer build will cost you $2100, and it could go higher then that!!
The sky's the limit if you have DEEP DEEP pockets.

The MID RANGE system with full ATX board cost $1300 to build. They comment their two lowest cost builds in the last 6 months range from integrated graphics at REAL low cost $350 or some such affordable price, last November I believe, 2011, and this month's system at a price of $500
They say you're skimping so much you have to make do with a case and PSU included, a Celeron that's fitting the new 1155 sockets, well, that build is not a spec you need to stick to because they figure in their own parts availability and they figure in Windows 7 Premium for each build, at a price of $100 usd

It depends on you which OS you wanna run and availability into the price. AS WELL, cost and type of ODD and HDD, SSD

[PrometheusX]

QUOTE (Slamman @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 16:40)

It depends on you which OS you wanna run and availability into the price. AS WELL, cost and type of ODD and HDD, SSD

Exactly, but I can't fit a $100 Windows 7 into the $250 build, let alone a (discrete) GPU.

QUOTE (Stinky12 @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 13:30)

You should post the resolution at which each system is able to achieve that FPS, because it's a bit misleading for those that aren't that technical with this stuff.

I'll make sure to do that, and to add more benchmarks, and regarding your build, it's good, but i'm not sure about the CPU, since it is a gaming build, I think it is better to get a 2600k.

Also should I add a Newegg(USA) builds other that those?

[vertical limit]

Nice list and welcome back.


I think that you should include the Asus P8P67
http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8P67/

[PrometheusX]

QUOTE (vertical limit @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 18:25)

Nice list and welcome back. I think that you should include the Asus P8P67 http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8P67/

Thanks!

I thought about adding that mobo but I found some cheaper Z68 ones, yet i'm not really sure.

[Slamman]

We're still in a transitional mode in tech, I believe, the chipsets have not evolved enough to cover the latest SATA properly or USB 3.0
I think spending too much even on those boards is gonna come back to bite you later, just like the 1156 buyers, of which I am one. (Intel H55)
The recent article I mentioned Haswell info shows some rather interesting plans for further CPU manufacturing, so as soon as that's become a workable solution, it will no doubt come to market with the 3D transistors on new fabrication dies
I think part of the problem for me was buying something I felt was covering the "new" i3, i5, i7 CPUs I suspected would have some better life expectancy. Sandy proved to be worth it's weight in hype. I feel like an early adopter! haha Got burned buying "first gen" Core2 follow up

This post has been edited by Slamman on Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 18:51

[PrometheusX]

QUOTE (Slamman @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 18:46)

We're still in a transitional mode in tech, I believe, the chipsets have not evolved enough to cover the latest SATA properly or USB 3.0 I think spending too much even on those boards is gonna come back to bite you later, just like the 1156 buyers of which I am one

Well not 1155, specially w/ ivy bridge coming, there isnt much upgrade.

[Wolf68k]

I can understand why the OS is not included in these builds.
If you already own an OS you can usually reuse it. Granted in that regard, if you already have any parts on a current system you don't have to buy them over again for a new build.

These list are simple parts list to give people an idea of what they can do with a budget. If you need an OS you need to figure that out for yourself and include that into your budget.


He could have included a lot of different parts as options for each build, but to do that would have taken forever and by the time he would be done most of those prices would have changed and the parts be out dated.

[Slamman]

The OS is an important part, but yeah, hopefully you won't have to pay $100 for an OS each time out, the System Builder versions are not too hard to procure.

@Promo, I am thinking out to Haswell and beyond, the die shrink for Ivy Bridge is what's allowing the GPU improvements in the same socket

[sivispacem]

QUOTE (Slamman @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 20:15)

hopefully you won't have to pay $100 for an OS each time out, the System Builder versions are not too hard to procure.

However, unless you are willing call Microsoft and grovel that you couldn't replace a dead motherboard with an identical version, they can only be validated on one machine. There's a reason they are £50 cheaper than retail copies- if the worst does happen or you want to upgrade the motherboard in the future, either call Reading (well, here in the UK) or your stuck buying another copy.

[vertical limit]

QUOTE (PrometheusX @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 11:09)

Here is the same image but with transparent background.

[Stinky12]

QUOTE (PrometheusX @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 18:21)

QUOTE (Slamman @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 16:40) It depends on you which OS you wanna run and availability into the price. AS WELL, cost and type of ODD and HDD, SSD Exactly, but I can't fit a $100 Windows 7 into the $250 build, let alone a (discrete) GPU. QUOTE (Stinky12 @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 13:30) You should post the resolution at which each system is able to achieve that FPS, because it's a bit misleading for those that aren't that technical with this stuff. I'll make sure to do that, and to add more benchmarks, and regarding your build, it's good, but i'm not sure about the CPU, since it is a gaming build, I think it is better to get a 2600k. Also should I add a Newegg(USA) builds other that those?

K CPU have their multipliers unlock so it's easier to overclock, for non K CPUs , it's locked, however it can still be overclocked.
You already included a Core i7 2600K in your build, I don't think it's necessary for me to repeat a similar setup just with a few parts change. I can add a Core i7 2700K.

Here is the SB-E version of a K CPU and the price sky rockets and so does the amount of CPU cores
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819116492

[PrometheusX]

QUOTE (vertical limit @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 20:26)

QUOTE (PrometheusX @ Tuesday, Apr 3 2012, 11:09) Here is the same image but with transparent background.

I've used it. Thanks!

[vertical limit]

i7 2700k
http://ark.intel.com/products/61275

[finn4life]

QUOTE (vertical limit @ Thursday, Apr 5 2012, 07:32)

i7 2700k http://ark.intel.com/products/61275

The 2700k is a waste of money, like an extra $40 aud for 100mhz, despite what I said a mate of mine went and spent the extra money.

[Slamman]

It's recommended by Maximum PC, but the i5 wins the bang for the buck award, and finally, a product that's universally praised with a life span that warrants it!

[Wolf68k]

QUOTE (finn4life @ Wednesday, Apr 4 2012, 16:22)

QUOTE (vertical limit @ Thursday, Apr 5 2012, 07:32) i7 2700k http://ark.intel.com/products/61275 The 2700k is a waste of money, like an extra $40 aud for 100mhz, despite what I said a mate of mine went and spent the extra money.

Depends on what you're using it for.
For strictly gaming the i5 2500(K) is fine and will get the job done just as well as an i7 2600(K). However with most other things where CPU is truly utilized then the 2600 is going to get the job done faster than the 2500.

[PrometheusX]

QUOTE (Wolf68k @ Thursday, Apr 5 2012, 17:30)

QUOTE (finn4life @ Wednesday, Apr 4 2012, 16:22) QUOTE (vertical limit @ Thursday, Apr 5 2012, 07:32) i7 2700k http://ark.intel.com/products/61275 The 2700k is a waste of money, like an extra $40 aud for 100mhz, despite what I said a mate of mine went and spent the extra money. Depends on what you're using it for. For strictly gaming the i5 2500(K) is fine and will get the job done just as well as an i7 2600(K). However with most other things where CPU is truly utilized then the 2600 is going to get the job done faster than the 2500.

Well, its $17 ($330) more than the 2600k, so it won't make a difference on a $2000 build.

But is the 3930k worth the money?

[Wolf68k]

The SB-E are not a gaming CPU. They are for people doing more CPU type work. Compressing lots of files, video editing/encoding, 3D rendering and so on.
For a gamer, that is a real waste of money.