This is my first build and so much of what I'm coming across is beyond my level of comprehension. I've done my fair share of research and have a little experience deconstructing computers. To put it simply, I can basically put this thing together from the perspective of them being Lego pieces. Here is some general information including the parameters of the build.
Purpose: This computer must be a passable low-end gaming machine that can also handle the multitasking necessary for my school work. Do I have that backwards? Also, this is a microATX build. Why the hell not?
Budget Range: I have a hard cap on my budget of $400 before shipping.
Location: Shipping, even from Newegg, is a concern because I won't benefit from the many free shipping options as I live in Puerto Rico. That being said, I will be ordering all my parts from Newegg regardless.
Brand Preference: Being so limited in my resources, I am building an AMD-based machine.
Parts Already Owned: Keyboard, mouse, and monitor.
Overclocking: Eventually, but not right now.
Gaming Resolution: 1920x1080, although I do play some games windowed at lower resolutions.
Build Date: I'm ordering the parts tonight, hopefully the build will be early next week.
For each major component I've assembled a list of parts I'm considering... If you have any suggestions or could point me in the right direction that would be greatly appreciated. Also if you could verify the compatibility of the parts that too would be a tremendous help.
Motherboard:
BIOSTAR A880G+
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813138283
microATX, customer choice award winner, seems to be a reputable if basic mobo.
CPU:
AMD Athlon II X2 250
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103903
AMD Phenom II X2 555
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103846
I believe the 555 has been mentioned as the most basic CPU for gaming rigs. Could I get away with the 250? I don't play FPS' so I may not necessarily need 60 FPS on mega-ultimate settings. I play less intensive games like Civilization IV (still learning V) and sometimes Warcraft III or World of Warcraft.
GPU:
Purpose: This computer must be a passable low-end gaming machine that can also handle the multitasking necessary for my school work. Do I have that backwards? Also, this is a microATX build. Why the hell not?
Budget Range: I have a hard cap on my budget of $400 before shipping.
Location: Shipping, even from Newegg, is a concern because I won't benefit from the many free shipping options as I live in Puerto Rico. That being said, I will be ordering all my parts from Newegg regardless.
Brand Preference: Being so limited in my resources, I am building an AMD-based machine.
Parts Already Owned: Keyboard, mouse, and monitor.
Overclocking: Eventually, but not right now.
Gaming Resolution: 1920x1080, although I do play some games windowed at lower resolutions.
Build Date: I'm ordering the parts tonight, hopefully the build will be early next week.
For each major component I've assembled a list of parts I'm considering... If you have any suggestions or could point me in the right direction that would be greatly appreciated. Also if you could verify the compatibility of the parts that too would be a tremendous help.
Motherboard:
BIOSTAR A880G+
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813138283
microATX, customer choice award winner, seems to be a reputable if basic mobo.
CPU:
AMD Athlon II X2 250
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103903
AMD Phenom II X2 555
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103846
I believe the 555 has been mentioned as the most basic CPU for gaming rigs. Could I get away with the 250? I don't play FPS' so I may not necessarily need 60 FPS on mega-ultimate settings. I play less intensive games like Civilization IV (still learning V) and sometimes Warcraft III or World of Warcraft.
GPU:
Here I'm at a total loss in which manufacturer to go with. Radeon/GeForce seem to be very comparable on the low-end, so that's not a major concern for me, but rather who's manufacturing the actual card and their reliability. The Radeon 5550 and GeForce 420 seem to be the cards appropriate to my budget, but as with my CPU dilemma, I'm not sure what I could get away with and still play games smoothly at relatively high settings.
RAM:
G. Skills Ripjaw Series 7-7-7-21 4GB (2x2GB)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231276
I'm wondering if I should just make the jump to the $40-50 range and aim for 8GB. Conversely is there memory in the $20-30 range that I could downgrade to without a noticeable loss in performance?
Power Supply:
Diablotek 380W microATX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817822001
Another solid if unspectacular component. I appreciate that it's sleeved and 380W seems more than sufficient. Still, I'd prefer something modular.
Hard Drive:
I'm not going to list any as it's a relatively small market of manufacturers. I see that the Samsung Spinpoint 1TB has garnered some acclaim, but I sincerely do not need that much space. Is there a smaller, faster option at $60 or less that could be recommended?
Case:
Thankfully the microATX case is another small market that doesn't take long to wade through. Rosewill seems to be the low-budget choice here, but oh, how I long for Lian-Li. Would a microATX build look ridiculous inside, say: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811112238 ?
If so, please provide me with some microATX case recommendations. Also, are there any worthwhile Case/Power Supply combinations that could help me invest more in to the components?
I think that covers the major components I'll need to get started, other than an optical drive. As far as OS, I'll likely go with Ubuntu although I have some Windows options.
If I've left out any information I'd be more than happy to supply it, thanks for any recommendations you leave! I'll be checking this thread throughout the day to hopefully place an order tonight.
RAM:
G. Skills Ripjaw Series 7-7-7-21 4GB (2x2GB)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231276
I'm wondering if I should just make the jump to the $40-50 range and aim for 8GB. Conversely is there memory in the $20-30 range that I could downgrade to without a noticeable loss in performance?
Power Supply:
Diablotek 380W microATX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817822001
Another solid if unspectacular component. I appreciate that it's sleeved and 380W seems more than sufficient. Still, I'd prefer something modular.
Hard Drive:
I'm not going to list any as it's a relatively small market of manufacturers. I see that the Samsung Spinpoint 1TB has garnered some acclaim, but I sincerely do not need that much space. Is there a smaller, faster option at $60 or less that could be recommended?
Case:
Thankfully the microATX case is another small market that doesn't take long to wade through. Rosewill seems to be the low-budget choice here, but oh, how I long for Lian-Li. Would a microATX build look ridiculous inside, say: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811112238 ?
If so, please provide me with some microATX case recommendations. Also, are there any worthwhile Case/Power Supply combinations that could help me invest more in to the components?
I think that covers the major components I'll need to get started, other than an optical drive. As far as OS, I'll likely go with Ubuntu although I have some Windows options.
If I've left out any information I'd be more than happy to supply it, thanks for any recommendations you leave! I'll be checking this thread throughout the day to hopefully place an order tonight.
Facebook
Twitter