$500 "gaming" system?

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vsrdan

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Jun 29, 2005
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What would be a "gaming" system I can build for around $500 (with monitor) budget? This is for a friend of mine who is not into serious games, but general stuff.

Should I go for this? : Athlon 3200+, MSI Neo 4 Nforce 4 MB, Sapphire X1600PRO 256MB, DDR400 512MB x 2, DVD-ROM, 160GB HDD, a cheap case for ~$30, he has a 400W PSU already, 17" LCD monitor

Can this be upgraded within the same budget?

Thanks for help!
 
A core system and a LCD on a $500 budget? That leave you with about $350... this is going to be pretty low end...

I'd get a Geforce 7600, they go for about $100 after rebate online and are fairly midrange.

For a core system under $250 I'd recommend AMD's lowend offerings.

If you dropped the monitor you could get:

$180 - C2D E6300
$70 - Cheap Mobo
$100 - 1 Gig DDR2 - 6400
$100 - Geforce 7600 after rebate
-----------------------------------------------
$450 Total

A HDD and CD/DVD player is about $80 altogether so the total would be about $560 with a cheap case.

I'd recommend something similar to what I posted above if you're planning on it to be decent for a long while. It has alot of expansion possibilities with high performance potential through overclocking.
 
Your on the right track but I would go to AM2 For example.

3200+ Orleans 79.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103031

7600GS 88.88 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814143054

512 DDR2 533 53.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145529

Mobo 72.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130050

CD drive 11.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827134012

40 GIG hard drive 41.49 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822144173

Case your choice 30

grand total 349.33 before shipping and no monitor

17in LCD 149.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16824138041

grand grand total = 499.32 with tax and shipping.

AM2 will allow upgrades to Dual or maybe quad core. PCI-E Video is good. Ram is expandable.
 
tisb0b said:
For $150 you can actually pick up a 17" LCD since the one that was linked was 15": http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16824112004

To the OP I'd be dropping in an extra $20 to get a 160gb hdd: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822152020
Click to expand...
Whoops

Actually I would put that 20 bucks towards a gig of ram or a dvd drive.

I guess I didnt look that close but an 80 Gig drive is only 2 bucks more.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822135106

Opps on the display I ment to link a 17.
 
for $500, a gaming machine w/ monitor, i donno, thats reallly tight.

i would suggest you go with 939, and a 7600. theres lots of good S939 mobos and S939 procs on clearance right now. c2d wont fit in that budget. a 7600GS ghetto modded with a fan will be able to push 7600GT speeds, thats a half decent gaming machine.

Dechache put together a good system for you. if its set in stone, you need a gaming machine for $500, i would agree with that list, if you need future proofness.
edit: he forgot PSU. psus that come w/ case are usually complete bull. i would suggest the Antec SLK 1650, comes with a 350W PSU that will deliver 350W, possibly more. Antec makes quality everythings, in all my dealings with them. this unfortunatly puts you $20 over budget.
 
Another option would be a Dell.

http://www.dell.com/content/default.aspx?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd
Enter E-Value code AFFT-bdcw5bz to find the new Dimension E521 with AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core 3800+ CPU for $569 - $180 "No Monitor" option = $389 with free shipping. Specs include:

# AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core 3800+ CPU, 1GB DDR2, 160GB SATA Drive
# 16X DVD ROM Drive, GeForce 6150 LE IGP, Ethernet, XP Home, 1-Yr Warranty
Click to expand...

Add in a monitor...
$70 - 17" Hanns-G HU-171D LCD Monitor - Black Analog Digital ($170 - $100MIR)
=====
$460 + tax and shipping (after rebates)

--or--

$140 - ViewSonic Q171b Black 17" 8ms LCD
=====
$530 + tax and shipping (after rebates)

You mentioned he wasnt seriously into games. Well, he can start off with the integrated GeForce 6150 video, then upgrade later. This way, he starts off with AM2 dual core, a somewhat capable onboard video, and has room for expansion (pci-e 16x).

If he wants a dvd burner, be sure to add it on the dell config, since the board is SATA only. Not only would it save you from having to purchase extra adapters for an ide drive, you'll be getting a sata dvd burner for only $60 (Plextor is the only sata dvd burner out right now, and its about $100).

It also comes with a XP Home license :D
 
Your best bet for a $500 'gaming system' is either an Xbox 360 or a PS3.
 
DeChache said:
Your on the right track but I would go to AM2 For example.

3200+ Orleans 79.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103031

7600GS 88.88 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814143054

512 DDR2 533 53.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145529

Mobo 72.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130050

CD drive 11.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827134012

40 GIG hard drive 41.49 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822144173

Case your choice 30

grand total 349.33 before shipping and no monitor

17in LCD 149.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16824138041

grand grand total = 499.32 with tax and shipping.

AM2 will allow upgrades to Dual or maybe quad core. PCI-E Video is good. Ram is expandable.
Click to expand...

Yup, that's what I would have suggested. However, I would push for an extra $50 for 1GB of ram. There's just no point in building a "gaming" system these days with anything less. Otherwise, he'll just have to upgrade as soon as he gets the itch to play a recent game.

I would also spend $5 more on a DVD-ROM drive, since there are more and more things being released on DVD. They can always buy a burner later, but for 5 bucks it's foolish not to get the DVD-ROM.

And then there's an XP license. If you have to pay for a new OS license, that's another $80.
 
With this (see the following list) I am going $100 over the budget. Is it worth it?

Other stuff to remember:

- A Dell system is NOT an option
- We like to go with AMD since this is "low" end
- 1GB RAM is preferred
- A PCI-Ex 16x video is preferred
- Must have a DVD ROM
- A 400W PSU and a new XP Pro already available

If I avoided the video card and went for a Nvidia 6100 or 6150 MB with on-board video, it'd be very close to $500 (but it will be DDR400 RAM with socket 939). Will it decrease the performance significantly?

1 Rosewill R5717-P SL 120mm Fan ATX Mid Tower Computer Case withTool-Free kits - Retail
Model #: R5717-P SL
Item #: N82E16811147057 $24.99

1 ABIT KN9 Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD
Model #: KN9
Item #: N82E16813127010 $74.99

1 3D Fuzion 3DFR76256GSE GeForce 7600GS 256MB GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail
Model #: 3DFR76256GSE
Item #: N82E16814143054 $88.88

1 AMD Athlon 64 3200+ Orleans 2.0GHz Socket AM2 Processor Model ADA3200CWBOX - Retail
Model #: ADA3200CWBOX
Item #: N82E16819103031 $79.99

2 WINTEC AMPO 512MB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model 3AMD2800-512M1-R - Retail
Model #: 3AMD2800-512M1-R
Item #: N82E16820161066 $99.98

1 Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 ST3160811AS 160GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Model #: ST3160811AS
Item #: N82E16822148149 $57.99

1 SCEPTRE X7G-NagaVI Black 17" 8ms LCD Monitor - Retail
Model #: X7G-NagaVI
Item #: N82E16824112004 $149.99

1 LITE-ON Combo Drive Black IDE Model SOHC-5236V BK RTL - Retail
Model #: SOHC-5236V BK RTL
Item #: N82E16827106992 $23.99

Subtotal: $600.80
 
vsrdan said:
With this (see the following list) I am going $100 over the budget. Is it worth it?

Other stuff to remember:

- A Dell system is NOT an option
- We like to go with AMD since this is "low" end
- 1GB RAM is preferred
- A PCI-Ex 16x video is preferred
- Must have a DVD ROM
- A 400W PSU and a new XP Pro already available

If I avoided the video card and went for a Nvidia 6100 or 6150 MB with on-board video, it'd be very close to $500 (but it will be DDR400 RAM with socket 939). Will it decrease the performance significantly?

1 Rosewill R5717-P SL 120mm Fan ATX Mid Tower Computer Case withTool-Free kits - Retail
Model #: R5717-P SL
Item #: N82E16811147057 $24.99

1 ABIT KN9 Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD
Model #: KN9
Item #: N82E16813127010 $74.99

1 3D Fuzion 3DFR76256GSE GeForce 7600GS 256MB GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail
Model #: 3DFR76256GSE
Item #: N82E16814143054 $88.88

1 AMD Athlon 64 3200+ Orleans 2.0GHz Socket AM2 Processor Model ADA3200CWBOX - Retail
Model #: ADA3200CWBOX
Item #: N82E16819103031 $79.99

2 WINTEC AMPO 512MB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model 3AMD2800-512M1-R - Retail
Model #: 3AMD2800-512M1-R
Item #: N82E16820161066 $99.98

1 Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 ST3160811AS 160GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Model #: ST3160811AS
Item #: N82E16822148149 $57.99

1 SCEPTRE X7G-NagaVI Black 17" 8ms LCD Monitor - Retail
Model #: X7G-NagaVI
Item #: N82E16824112004 $149.99

1 LITE-ON Combo Drive Black IDE Model SOHC-5236V BK RTL - Retail
Model #: SOHC-5236V BK RTL
Item #: N82E16827106992 $23.99

Subtotal: $600.80
Click to expand...
By going back to 939 all you are really doing is limiting your upgrade opions. I personaly still use 939 and still a decent computer. But I cant in good faith recomend a a skt where you may or may not beable to get chips in a year to upgrade or what ever your intention is.

The other thing i would pay a little more and pick a better PSU the rosewell ones are junk.

I would pay the extra couple bucks and get this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817189003

It would be better to spend the extra 15 bucks now or drop it back down to 512 ram and upgrade to a gig in a month remember ram is cheap. Same thing with hardrives get an 80 now and in a couple months add a bigger storage drive and get quality main compainets now and add the extras latter. I used my computer with 512 of DDR 333 for a month while I rmaed my good ram and they system was at least usable and it would game and it just seemed all that sweeter when you do get it.
 
vsrdan said:
With this (see the following list) I am going $100 over the budget. Is it worth it?

If I avoided the video card and went for a Nvidia 6100 or 6150 MB with on-board video, it'd be very close to $500 (but it will be DDR400 RAM with socket 939). Will it decrease the performance significantly?
Click to expand...
Yes, the extra $100 is worth it for a gaming system, but only if you play games that are that demanding.

If you avoided the video card, you wouldn't have to go to a s939 system. You could get the Abit NF-M2 board, and drop the 7600GS; which would drop the price to around $525. Read the reviews on the the 6100/6150 boards to see how well it can perform. The onboard video is basically a GeForce 6200, so you wouldn't really be able to play demanding games that well. I'd stick with the GS card instead -- its worth it.
 
DeChache said:
The other thing i would pay a little more and pick a better PSU the rosewell ones are junk.
Click to expand...
He's just getting the Rosewill case. He already has a 400W PSU he'll be using.
 
enginurd said:
He's just getting the Rosewill case. He already has a 400W PSU he'll be using.
Click to expand...
My Bad. Really need to learn how to read. :eek:
 
Well... seeing as how your original case choice was $25, the most reasonable way you can drop back down to $500 is by goin with what I posted earlier, the Abit NF-M2 board and dropping the GS card.
 
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