Hey guys. Looking for a little build advice for a gaming rig.
I have a budget of about $450 to $500.
parts I already have that can be reused:
sata hard drive
cd drives
case (optional - not against replacing if there's a phenomenal case for a great deal)
4 gb ddr400 (again optional)
2 pci-x evga geforce 7800 gtx (optional, but would rather stick with these for now unless again a great deal)
fx-57 socket 939 amd processor.
The mobo fried and the psu is a silverstone which I've never heard of so I figured the psu should def be replaced. No monitor or peripherals necessary. No OS necessary. It will be running xp home for now but an upgrade to win7 in the next year or two is likely.
Now, given the state of socket 939, motherboards are tough to find. Rather than just replace the mobo, I think it would be more cost effective to upgrade to an intel based system with at least a core 2 duo or better. Now I'm not sure if that falls into a 500 dollar budget. I'm ok with staying on par with the performance of the fx-57 so long as there is a LOT of headroom to upgrade, but naturally faster would be better. The guy I'd be building this for seems to be interested in constantly upgrading the machine now that he's able to so headroom is a must. It's been forever since I've gotten new parts and I'm really out of the loop in terms of price & performance. I really appreciate any help you guys can give.
-Kevin