Another cheap gaming PC thread.

darthnater · February 18th, 2009, 11:17 AM

Hi everyone, I am new here, I found this site through Google and from the threads I have read it seems like this is a great place to get advice.

I currently have a laptop (Dell xps m1210) that I love for the size and portability, but it is definitely not up to par for gaming. I play a lot of counter strike (though my frame rate often drops to 10fps), and I got Bioshock for xmas and it really isnt playable for me even with the graphics dialed all the way down.

I dont need anything that is top of the line, and i challenged myself initially to try to find parts that could put together a system in the $300 range. I found quickly that this isn't really possible, but I think I have found a decent set of components that will be under $400 and I would like to keep it that way. I have poked around the insides of a computer before and feel comfortable assembling everything, but I dont have a lot of knowledge about what works best together from a compatibility standpoint. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Here is the list of parts I have put together (I already have a spare copy of Windows XP or Windows 7 beta to put on it, I also have a monitor, keyboard, and mouse)

AMD Phenom 9600 Agena 2.3GHz Socket AM2+ 95W Quad-Core Processor Model HD960ZWCGDBOX - Retail (link goes to a combo with this Mobo ASUS M3A78-EM AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail ) 168.98
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ - Retail 45.99
XFX PVT86JYAHG GeForce 8500 GT 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail 45.99
Linkworld 43706-228FU+P04 Black Steel MicroATX Mid Tower Computer Case 430W Power Supply - Retail 33.99
Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500AAJS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM 47.99
Sony Optiarc 22X DVD±R DVD Burner Black IDE Model AD-7220A - OEM 19.99
Subtotal 362.93
Shipping 21.58
Total 384.51
Are there red flags here? Anything that wont play nicely together? I hear a lot of talk about cases and power supplies, am I asking for trouble with a cheap case? Thanks in advance for your help.

nickslick74 · February 18th, 2009, 11:41 AM

Hi Darthnater, welcome to TechIMO. For your budget you've constructed a decent system, though a few small tweaks might be in order. The video card you chose (8500GT) really won't make much use of all that memory, especially at the memories clock speed. This 8600GT has faster clock speeds and uses faster GDDR3 memory. Plus it is only $4 more!

Power supplies that come included with case are almost always crap, though there are a few exceptions. This is not one of those exceptions. The Antec earthwatts 380 is nice, has enough power for what you need and only weighs in at $40 with free shipping. The case it self fine, that is more of a personal preference anyway.

darthnater · February 18th, 2009, 01:17 PM

Hey Nick, Thanks for the quick response. I noticed the graphics card you suggest is 256MB vs the 512MB one when you say that the one I picked won't make use of all that memory do you mean the system RAM or the 512MB it has?

As for the PSU, that is one thing I have never messed with, how difficult would it be to swap it out? I would probably look into buying a different case if I was going to buy a PSU separately. Thanks again!

nickslick74 · February 18th, 2009, 02:35 PM

I meant the 512MB that it already has. The main advantages that the 8600GT has over the 8500GT is the faster memory and core clocks, and the GDDR3 memory. The 8500 is just too slow to properly utilize all that memory.

Taking out a power supply in an unassembled system is as easy as removing the 4 screws that hold it in place.

darthnater · February 18th, 2009, 02:39 PM

I didnt realize that all that is involved with the PSU is the screws, that is great news for me. What do you think of this card?
Galaxy 95TFF8HUFEXX GeForce 9500 GT 512MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
I was looking through the GDDR3 cards and this one has more memory for the same price (after rebate) and it ships free. Is there any quality difference between the Galaxy and the BFG cards?

nickslick74 · February 18th, 2009, 03:02 PM

It would appear to be about on par with the 8600GT, though it is slightly newer tech. Since they are the same price I guess I'd go for the 9500GT and I've never heard anything bad about Galaxy cards myself.

I went to Tom's Hardware to see if I could compare the cards, but THG has been seriously slacking lately and only have cards up though 3rd quarter 2008.

EXreaction · February 18th, 2009, 03:09 PM

Dump the Phenom and expensive mobo and get a better graphics card. No sense in building a gaming machine with only an 8600 GT.

A minimum of a 9800 GT or 4850.

darthnater · February 18th, 2009, 03:13 PM

EXreaction, do you think that the cards we were talking about would handle the games i want now and in the future i could upgrade to a better card when the time came? I tried to put the system together so that i could invest in it in the future (hence the decent processor and mobo combo) i figure when i start playing games that tax this graphics card it should be trivial to install a new one and hopefully not have to touch anything else.

EXreaction · February 18th, 2009, 04:14 PM

Well, an 8600 GT should be able to play CS just fine and probably Bioshock, but it is less than half the speed of a 9800 GT.

darthnater · February 18th, 2009, 04:18 PM

Wow, that is a huge dropoff in performance, I didnt realize the difference was that big. I am trying to see if i can config this in a way to stay under my $400 budget and still include a card like you were talking about.

An unrelated question i have though, can you put a Micro ATX mobo in an ATX case? ATX are bigger, but would i just end up with some empty space and it would still fit in there ok?

Never mind! According to this thread the answer is yes