If you had $300.00, what Cpu, board and memory combo?

WangoZ

Senior member
Feb 24, 2005
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If you had $300.00 to spend on a CPU, stable mobo and memory for some good gaming (no worries playing any game out there) and general all around PC use that will last for awhile what would you buy?

Of course this IS a budget set up but lets say all you had was $300.00!
cpu, mobo and memory only.
 

aigomorla

CPU, Cases&Cooling Mod PC Gaming Mod Elite Member
Super Moderator
Sep 28, 2005
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if you live near frys, id get a frys combo.
 

heyheybooboo

Diamond Member
Jun 29, 2007
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Originally posted by: WangoZ
If you had $300.00 to spend on a CPU, stable mobo and memory for some good gaming (no worries playing any game out there) and general all around PC use that will last for awhile what would you buy?

Of course this IS a budget set up but lets say all you had was $300.00!
cpu, mobo and memory only.

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5400+ Brisbane 2.8GHz 65W: $87
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16819103235

MSI K9A2 CF-F V2 AM2+/AM2 AMD 790X ATX: $104
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813130172

If you were eying a 45nm quad down the road I'd go with 2Gb DDR2 1066 - otherwise 4Gb DDR2 800.

And when that HD4850 you purchased started feeling a little lonely I'd pop his twin brother in there beside him :p
 

WangoZ

Senior member
Feb 24, 2005
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I wish I DID live near a Fry's...I see some nice prices!
Help this $300.00 get spent!

And overclocking IS something that could work...
 

zm307

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Jul 5, 2008
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I like the flist DSF gave you..I am running a very similar setup, with the same mobo, and I Oc'ed my e6750 to 3.4Ghz and its stable.
 

firewolfsm

Golden Member
Oct 16, 2005
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His is best IF you can do the RMAs, otherwise there's some G.Skill DDR2 800 4-4-4-12 memory for the same price. You can get an AMD setup done for 200, the processor will be a little slower, but you can put another $100 on the graphics card.
 

svodka

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Jun 3, 2008
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Keep in mind, if you go with an E7200, the price drop should be in effect within the new couple of weeks, and will be 20 dollars less. Doesn't seem like much, but it'll give you some more savings and not have to worry about MIR's
 

svodka

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Jun 3, 2008
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Forgot to add, here's my pick:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 - $129.99

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3L - $89.99

RAM: Patriot Extreme Performance 4GB (2X2GB) DDR2-800 - $83.99

Total: $303.97

There's also a $15 dollar MIR for the RAM, which would bring it down to $68.99 ($288.97 total)

Edit: Also, as I just mentioned, 20 bucks cheaper than that yet after the price cuts which will happen soon. ($268.97! crazy cheap for what you get)

If it's a real tight budget, you could even switch out the 4GB kit for a 2GB kit of the same ram, which is 53.99 with a 20 dollar MIR, making it $33.99 :eek:
 

Zap

Elite Member
Oct 13, 1999
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I'm with the other guys...

E7200 CPU
4GB RAM
budget P35/P45 chipset board
 

Drsignguy

Platinum Member
Mar 24, 2002
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Originally posted by: Zap
I'm with the other guys...

E7200 CPU
4GB RAM
budget P35/P45 chipset board



This would be a good choice... I have a very simular setup and it runs great. :thumbsup:

 
Dec 30, 2004
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If you have gfx card then Intel, if not then AMD is for sure the way to go.
Actually, if you have an AMD and you got a AMD proc + integrated gfx, then you can use that to cross-fire for even better gameplay.
 

nyker96

Diamond Member
Apr 19, 2005
5,630
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Originally posted by: svodka
Forgot to add, here's my pick:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 - $129.99

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3L - $89.99

RAM: Patriot Extreme Performance 4GB (2X2GB) DDR2-800 - $83.99

Total: $303.97

There's also a $15 dollar MIR for the RAM, which would bring it down to $68.99 ($288.97 total)

Edit: Also, as I just mentioned, 20 bucks cheaper than that yet after the price cuts which will happen soon. ($268.97! crazy cheap for what you get)

If it's a real tight budget, you could even switch out the 4GB kit for a 2GB kit of the same ram, which is 53.99 with a 20 dollar MIR, making it $33.99 :eek:

this one gets my vote!
 

Fox5

Diamond Member
Jan 31, 2005
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On $300? Go for the cheapest X2 possible, plus a 780G motherboard. Get cheap PC6400 ram (crucial or something among those lines), say 2GB. Overclock the X2. Buy a low end radeon video card with the left over money, as best as you can avoid (this will make the real difference with gaming anyhow), and use it in crossfire with the 780g integrated graphics.
 

perdomot

Golden Member
Dec 7, 2004
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Originally posted by: Fox5
On $300? Go for the cheapest X2 possible, plus a 780G motherboard. Get cheap PC6400 ram (crucial or something among those lines), say 2GB. Overclock the X2. Buy a low end radeon video card with the left over money, as best as you can avoid (this will make the real difference with gaming anyhow), and use it in crossfire with the 780g integrated graphics.

The 780G is considered the best onboard vid solution at the moment and if paired with a compatible inexpensive vid card to enable hybrid video, you should have a nice rig. I like the idea of pairing this mobo, I have the Gigabyte version with is fully loaded for $90, with the $75 X2 5000+BE and 2GB of PC6400 ram at $20AR. This still leaves $115 left over for a discrete graphics card if you really need one. You can actually get a 9600GT for less than that AR. Can't beat that deal.
 

DSF

Diamond Member
Oct 6, 2007
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I made the assumption that there was a separate budget for the video card. If the OP has additional money to buy a decent graphics card and wants to maximize his $300 in terms of CPU, motherboard and RAM only, I stand by the E7200/4GB DDR2-800/P35 idea.