Guide - the Budget Gaming PC

PogMoThoin · 01-10-2010 4:37pm

Ordered this beast of a mAtx lan pc for My Brother the other eve, €500 delivered.

Its main use will be a media centre pc, it doesn't include a gpu for now, but the onboard gpu has HDMI out so it will connect to his TV and the case will take any full sized one in future (waiting on price drops when 6 series Ati's get released) for gaming. Its also got onboard 7.1 surround. Should overclock nicely too as the case has great airflow. Serious value for money.

el dude · 01-10-2010 7:18pm

Hope you got there in time to have that Mobo shipped with everything else.

PogMoThoin · 02-10-2010 2:43pm

el dude wrote: »

Hope you got there in time to have that Mobo shipped with everything else.

I'm afraid not, it took 2 days for the cash to transfer, the mobo now says not ready for dispatch until 6th oct so I've emailed them today asking to change to this one which is €12 more expensive
http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=28374&agid=1292

ViDuchie · 04-10-2010 6:58pm

Hey,

Maybe someone can help. It's been 6 years since I was into custom building and things have moved on,,, just a bit.

Looking to get something mainly just as some kind of media centre but also to play EVE-online and that's it really.

Other than knowing I want something with 4GB RAM, 4/6 USB ports and is quiet enough I'm lost with so many different options on hardwareversand and now no real idea of what processor can do what.

I'm also on a strict budget looking at approx 450-500 Euro MAX, preferably lower, but considering I really just want something for media and EVE ( which I've never played ) the cheaper the better..

I already picked up a 23" LG HDMI Monitor.

HELLLP! I dont know what anything is anymore!!

Solitaire · 04-10-2010 7:26pm

Do you need an OS??

ViDuchie · 04-10-2010 7:27pm

Nope, I have a copy of XP I can use for now. Maybe upgrade later when budget ain't too tight.

Solitaire · 04-10-2010 7:33pm

Sounds good enough

Before I put up example builds do you have any special media-centre-related requests? Do you want/need a desktop instead of a tower? Do you need tuner cards?? Do you need a motherboard with USB3 or optical audio-out (TOSLink)? Anything like that?

ViDuchie · 04-10-2010 7:39pm

Cool

No tuner cards needed. I have no TV just going to plug this into the 23" Monitor HDMI/DVI connector.

More music media, but nothing spectacular, normal jack conection will do. 2.1 system.

Tower is best, smaller is better

Simple Simple Simple.

Just the selection boggles. Afraid I'd pick up some junk.

ViDuchie · 04-10-2010 7:42pm

USB3!

feck I had no idea. Doubt I need it

Solitaire · 04-10-2010 8:53pm

Had huge trouble with the mobo, as most new mobos on the market under €70 use dodgy VIA audio! :mad: We're now heading backwards to the days of needing expensive discrete soundcards! :mad::mad: PSU was also a pain as HWVS have dropped the CX400 and the SF Amazon 450W is out of stock until next month! :eek: So a naff PSU as opposed to an abysmal one

Anyway... €465 shipped:

You have a spare €35 to play with... you could get a quadcore CPU, or upgrade graphics to a HD5770 1GB. Or neither

ViDuchie · 04-10-2010 10:56pm

excellent, thanks for that.

One quick q. is this well capable of HD video playback with say a codec for mkv files.

I might go with upgrading the CPU as you say.

Thanks again

Solitaire · 04-10-2010 11:40pm

Certainly

ED E · 05-10-2010 1:20am

Or if its for media a nice wifi KB/Mouse or media remote?

ViDuchie · 05-10-2010 1:02pm

Lethal_Bullet wrote: »

Or if its for media a nice wifi KB/Mouse or media remote?

That'll be outside the budget, but yes I'll be getting those too at some stage.

Lateralus358 · 06-10-2010 11:31am

Hey guys! This is my first post but i need a bit of help. I have around 700e and i don't need a screen,keyboard,mouse or OS. But i do need a dvd drive. Also i was wondering if you could help me about getting firewire in it too. Do i need to buy a mobo with firewire on it or can i buy a seperate firewire card for the pci bus? Thanks!

Solitaire · 06-10-2010 3:18pm

Everyone needs a DVD drive :pac:

Unless you really mean you need a BluRay drive... or a second DVD drive for some reason...

And FireWire isn't too hard... some mobos have it, some cases have it (and almost all mobos have an internal FireWire header for it) and if both avenues fail there's always PCI adapter cards...

Anyway, €700 is the very highest "budget" amount for a budget PC and can probably get you either an i5+GTX460 or an X4+GTX460 1GB build

DuzAwe · 07-10-2010 3:43pm

Need serious help building a new machine for 450-550.

Need the best bang for my buck and needs to be as future proff as posible.
Must have nvidia card, 3ghz cpu,I do need a screen but dont include it in the budget, 4 gb ram and of course 64 bit. No os required or optical drive.

please help haven't built a machine in like 6 years am so lost.

Also yes my spelling and gramer suck. Sorry

Solitaire · 07-10-2010 8:08pm

Just over €480 shipped:

There's nearly €70 spare in that budget, whether it be for fancy new peripherals or beer

Or you could go with a slightly better system... an i5 quad build is probably a bit out of reach on €550 but you could easily go for a 95W Phenom2 X4

Just note that a Phenom over 95W TDP or any attempt to OC will require a better PSU for more wiggle room and probably an aftermarket CPU cooler too. HWVS are crap at PSUs right now! :mad:

Gambra · 08-10-2010 3:14am

Looking for a bit of help putting together a set up from hardwareversand. Have the basics picked out and I know I'll be going an Intel i5 760 set up with the usual 4gb ram and one of the GeForce 460 variations. I found this motherboard on overclockers and it's perfect for what I need but what's the product code for it on hardwareversand? There's a few matches for the same mobo code. Also, advice on the best PSU and case for all this to go in is appreciated as I'm worried I'll pick something over the top or not enough..

Edit: I won't be doing any crazy overclocking or anything like that, it'll mostly be for HD video editing as well as playing games.

Gambra · 08-10-2010 3:48am

Actually, I think I found everything I need. I know €635 pushes the limit of a "budget" computer but this will be my first major PC purchase in well over 5 years and I hope to be using it for that length in the future.. Also, should I be worried about the mobo availability? I can order it from overclockers if it's not likely to come into stock anytime soon.

Gambra · 08-10-2010 3:55am

Oh wait, I appear to have 2 cases in the basket. Whoops! Brings the total to just under €600 including shipping.

Solitaire · 08-10-2010 2:00pm

1. It would bring the price down to €590 excluding shipping, actually

Which means €620 all in. And we're not fininshed yet...

2. You can get the mobo elsewhere or get the GA-P55-USB3 or the GA-P55A-UD3 instead.

3. That PSU is drivel, and I wouldn't dream of running an i5+GTX460 system on it. Sadly HWVS is a bit naff for 500-600W PSUs right now, with everything overpriced, out of stock (no Amazon 550W units until the end of the month!!

:() or vanished from the lists :eek: You'll be dropping €70-75 for a decent 500W+ unit there right now

giggsy664 · 08-10-2010 11:26pm

Me again

I'm not building for a while, but would it be worth shelling out much extra for a 1GB GTX460 instead of a 768MB?

Cheers

Solitaire · 09-10-2010 12:50am

At that price? Yes! Nearer €200? Not so much

It really depends on what you're willing to pay. Under €170 is excellent as the GPU of the 1GB version is almost always OCd and regardless of speed always has 33% more memory, at least 33% higher memory throughput and - easy to forget - at least 33% more rendering capacity. The former helps with higher resolutions (beyond 1080p, including multi-monitor), the second helps with demanding AA/AF settings and the last helps avoid bottlenecks with geometrically-intricate hi-poly scenarios.

As the price climbs the benefit wanes. Sure, a heavily OCd GTX460 1GB performs as good as a HD5850, but a heavily OCd HD5850 will blow it away and for not that much more money either!

Jack Bracken · 09-10-2010 4:02pm

Solitaire wrote: »

(no Amazon 550W units until the end of the month!

Really? I must have caught one of the last ones when I ordered on Thursday.

*feels smug about timing*

Anyway, just wanted to pop in and thank you Solitaire, this thread helped me save a bit of time on deciding which parts to get, and to find a few bargains too.

EDIT: 123 posts. o:

Monotype · 10-10-2010 9:01pm

I saw this on hardwareversand today:

Corsair Builder Series CX430, 430 Watt.

It could explain why the CX400 disappeared if they're trying to push this. Unlike the seasonic CX400, this is a CWT. We've seen some good CWT units from them, but I'm wondering how many corners were cut to get the price that low - Lower amps on the 12V and only a 2 year warranty for starters. It doesn't sound terrible and let's hope corsair will not be throwing away their good name (or benefiting from those who don't know any better). I look forward to seeing the reviews.

Solitaire · 10-10-2010 9:06pm

That sounds more than a bit sh!t

:(:(

Roll on 25/10/10! More Amazon units!

:P

Solitaire · 10-10-2010 9:27pm

From what I can see the CX430 has been in the wild for six weeks already - the thing with HWVS suggests a justified and nasty dose of DO NOT WANT!! They could have had it in back at the very end of August, but made sure every CX400 was long gone and the Amazon 450W was out of stock before they'd even touch it with a bargepole :eek:

Still no sign of Corsair sending review samples to anyone, not even cherry-picked ones; word on the street is that it's a cheap, overrated (should be sold as a 380W max!), badcaps unit based on CWT's DSA platform. A few years back you'd only see that design in emerging markets; nowadays half the mediocre-but-okay-ish budget units are DSA, and the fact that the CX430 is considered sub-par even then, and not making it into budget shootout reviews, isn't allaying anyone's suspicions. Not good, not good, not good

:(:(

ViDuchie · 12-10-2010 5:21pm

Will this processor:

AMD Athlon II X4 640 Box AM3

Happily fit with this motherboard, and is it worth the upgrade from the X3 do you think?

MSI 770-C45, AM3

Cheers,
V

quarryman · 12-10-2010 5:24pm

Similar to the above. What is the best bang for buck in a gaming rig these days, an AMD or Intel build?

I was thinking of an Intel i5. Do AMD offer better value for similar performance?

Guide - the Budget Gaming PC

Comments