$500 BF3 Rig

[mfenn]

Currently the G850 is out of stock at newegg.ca, but at NCIX the price is $109.84. So if I go with the G850/6870 or the i3-2100/6850 the price will basically be the same. I just want whichever will provide the best avg/min framerates.

EDIT:

So 2 possible builds:

#1
Thermaltake V3 Black Edition $44.99
CORSAIR Builder Series CX430 V2 430W $49.99
BIOSTAR H61MGC $54.99
Intel Core i3-2100 $129.99
G.Skill 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1333 $25.99
Powercolor HD 6850 1GB $149.99
Total $455.94

#2
Thermaltake V3 Black Edition $44.99
CORSAIR Builder Series CX430 V2 430W $49.99
BIOSTAR H61MGC $54.99
Intel Pentium G850 $109.84
G.Skill 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1333 $25.99
Powercolor HD 6870 1GB $174.99
Total $460.79

#2 easily. When building a gaming rig, you almost always want to choose spending money on the GPU over spending it on the CPU.

 

[mvbighead]

#2 easily. When building a gaming rig, you almost always want to choose spending money on the GPU over spending it on the CPU.

Why not both? Seems silly to spend $460 and not $480 for a system with a better Proc, but maybe that's jest me. Still under the proposed $500 mark.

 

[nubki11a]

On unlocking a 6950 to 6970: http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/overclocking/vidcard/159 Note that the chart at the bottom was last updated 28th of March.

 

[dmoney1980]

BF3 on 30 different GPU's: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/battlefield-3-graphics-performance,3063-2.html

 

[lehtv]

Canada

Argh. OK, from NCIX.CA:

4GB DDR3 $25 (or 2x2GB)
MSI H61 $62
XFX Core 450W $30 AR
Antec 300 $50
i3-2100 $130 (this one's newegg, free shipping) - vs. G830: hyperthreading and 200Mhz more for $20? easy choice
Gigabyte 6870 $160 AR

The PSU has 1 pci-e connector but it has a more powerful single rail than CX500 which has two pci-e connectors; you can use an adapter for a GPU that needs 2 connectors with no problem whatsoever.

$460 AR + shipping from NCIX

 

[dpodblood]

Argh. OK, from NCIX.CA:

4GB DDR3 $25 (or 2x2GB)
MSI H61 $62
XFX Core 450W $30 AR
Antec 300 $50
i3-2100 $130 (this one's newegg, free shipping) - vs. G830: hyperthreading and 200Mhz more for $20? easy choice
Gigabyte 6870 $160 AR

The PSU has 1 pci-e connector but it has a more powerful single rail than CX500 which has two pci-e connectors; you can use an adapter for a GPU that needs 2 connectors with no problem whatsoever.

$460 AR + shipping from NCIX

Very nice. Best of both worlds and still under budget!

 

[lehtv]

Doublechecking that XFX 450w - it's the same 34A on +12V as CX500. Not more, not less. Read the review by JonnyGuru before you decide whether to buy it. I knew it's a Seasonic unit so I expected high quality all around, but turns out that despite being based on the Seasonic S12II platform, its +12V regulation is pretty off the mark. It still offers good quality in other respects and 5 year warranty, and at $30 AR it's still probably your best value for money choice. But I'm a bit disappointed at that +12V regulation ;<

 

[mfenn]

Why not both? Seems silly to spend $460 and not $480 for a system with a better Proc, but maybe that's jest me. Still under the proposed $500 mark.

Good point!