My first DIY Computer... Under $850.

[Mnaircckel]

Hello everyone this is not only the first computer that I have decided to build myself but also my first post on these forums!

First of all, I'm new to building computers so bare with me...

My current computer is now over 5 years old and dying, I can barely play any games on it and I pretty much have to invest in a new machine if I want to get back into gaming.

I'm going to be using my computer for gaming, it's a gaming rig. As well as other things such as surfing the web, streaming video, maybe some video editing.. Games I will be playing range from Super Meat Boy to Oblivion to Crysis.

As said in the title my budget is basically: Under 850 dollars.

My current computer is Intel and Nvidia based.. I have had no major problems with it. Thus, so far I'm leaning toward that. Although Amd processors seem cheaper which makes me want to go for them...

My resolution is 1680 x 1050.

Although I have done quite a bit of research on computers etc and I like browsing through Newegg.. What I don't know is compatibility, that's why I came here. I do not want to buy a computer and then learn that the parts don't work together.

I'm going to give you some parts that I am currently looking at and then I would love it if you would make comments on my build and give suggestions:

Also, I know nothing about motherboards? Could someone explain what they actually do, from what I know is that connect all the different parts..

Case:
COOLER MASTER RC-692
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119216

Case Fans(I Don't know if they are necessary):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...UE%20LED%20LED

Processor:
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103808

Hard Drive:
Western Digital AV-GP WD7500AVDS 750GB 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal AV Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-599-_-Product

Memory:
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-277-_-Product

Motherboard:
No Idea... Help?

Power Supply:
Antec BP550 Plus 550W Continuous Power
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...0ATX12V%20V2.2

Graphics Card:
EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR GeForce GTX 550 Ti (Fermi) FPB 1GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...GTX%20550%20Ti

Cpu Cooler:
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler I5 775 AMD compatible
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...20CPU%20Cooler

I already have a keyboard, mouse, monitor, cables.. So don't need to worry about that. I will need to buy a OS but I am not really including that in the 850, of course it would be nice if I could...

What else do I need? Just give me all the help you can, and if there is anything I can do to the thread to make it easier for you to help please tell me! I will check in every couple of hours! Also note that I have a friend that is going to help me setup my computer.

 

[ttujim]

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K

ASUS P8P67 (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

Combo: $354.98

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

$59.95 + 15$ rebate

CORSAIR Builder Series CX430 CMPSU-430CX 430W ATX12V Active PFC Power Supply

$44.99 + 10$ rebate

EVGA 01G-P3-1561-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support FPB Video ...

$247.99 + 30$ rebate

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

$49.99

G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10600CL9D-4GBNT

$39.99

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM

$94.99

LITE-ON CD/DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM

$19.99

Total: $912.87
After rebates: $857.87

 

[Kenmitch]

Hello everyone this is not only the first computer that I have decided to build myself but also my first post on these forums!

First of all, I'm new to building computers so bare with me...

My current computer is now over 5 years old and dying, I can barely play any games on it and I pretty much have to invest in a new machine if I want to get back into gaming.

I'm going to be using my computer for gaming, it's a gaming rig. As well as other things such as surfing the web, streaming video, maybe some video editing.. Games I will be playing range from Super Meat Boy to Oblivion to Crysis.

As said in the title my budget is basically: Under 850 dollars.

My current computer is Intel and Nvidia based.. I have had no major problems with it. Thus, so far I'm leaning toward that. Although Amd processors seem cheaper which makes me want to go for them...

My resolution is 1680 x 1050.

Although I have done quite a bit of research on computers etc and I like browsing through Newegg.. What I don't know is compatibility, that's why I came here. I do not want to buy a computer and then learn that the parts don't work together.

I'm going to give you some parts that I am currently looking at and then I would love it if you would make comments on my build and give suggestions:

Also, I know nothing about motherboards? Could someone explain what they actually do, from what I know is that connect all the different parts..

Case:
COOLER MASTER RC-692
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119216

Case Fans(I Don't know if they are necessary):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...UE%20LED%20LED

Processor:
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103808

Hard Drive:
Western Digital AV-GP WD7500AVDS 750GB 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal AV Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-599-_-Product

Memory:
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-277-_-Product

Motherboard:
No Idea... Help?

Power Supply:
Antec BP550 Plus 550W Continuous Power
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...0ATX12V%20V2.2

Graphics Card:
EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR GeForce GTX 550 Ti (Fermi) FPB 1GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...GTX%20550%20Ti

Cpu Cooler:
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler I5 775 AMD compatible
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...20CPU%20Cooler

I already have a keyboard, mouse, monitor, cables.. So don't need to worry about that. I will need to buy a OS but I am not really including that in the 850, of course it would be nice if I could...

What else do I need? Just give me all the help you can, and if there is anything I can do to the thread to make it easier for you to help please tell me! I will check in every couple of hours! Also note that I have a friend that is going to help me setup my computer.

Read here for what a motherboard is/does http://www.techiwarehouse.com/cat/13/Motherboard

What part of Ca do you live in?

Besided picking out a motherboard you forgot some form of optical drive such as dvd, blu-ray etc.

 

[BofRA]

What part of Ca do you live in?

Yeah there are some good in store deals for Fry's right now

 

[Mnaircckel]

Thanks for the article, it helped me understand what it does a little better but I'm still not sure how to chose one, what makes a "good" motherboard. Anyway, I live in northern California, north of San Fransisco. Also I looked at my title and it says >850$. *Facepalm* I meant less than 850... Yea I need a dvd drive but that is super cheap if I'm correct.

I still need suggestions on all my parts.

Thanks

 

[mfenn]

You can do a lot better than a 955 and a GTX 550 for $850. I'm going to steal aphelion's excellent build:

If you don't need OS / peripherals, you can get an fantastic gaming rig for $800:

i5-2500k + Gigabyte P67 UD3 Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...t=Combo.622956

Corsair XMS 8gb RAM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145315

XFX HD 6950 1GB GPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150523

Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822152185

LG DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827136236

XFX 650W 80+ Bronze PSU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817207007

Antec Three Hundred Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129042

Total: $884.88 (w/ EMCKFHH39 free shipping promo) - $95MIR = $789.99

The only thing that I'd change is that the combo aphelion mentioned is no longer available. Since your budget is a bit higher, you can either buy the mobo and CPU separately or grab this i5 2500K + ASUS P8P67-M combo instead. The Gigabyte is full ATX, so it has a few more PCI and PCIe slots, but that probably doesn't matter for this build.

 

[Doclife]

You'd get better bang for your buck by going with Intel Sandy Bridge (SB) CPU system. AMD currently does not have anything that come close to the performance of Intel SB CPU.


Intel i5-2500K CPU - $224.99 (FS)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115073

GIGABYTE GA-P67A-D3-B3 LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard - $114.99 + $7.69 Shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128487

ZALMAN CNPS5X SZ 92mm Hydraulic CPU Cooler - $14.99 (After $15 Rebate, FS)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118090

CORSAIR XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 1333 SDRAM - $69.99 (After $20 Rebate, FS)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145315

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal HDD - $64.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822152185

SeaSonic S12II 520 520W Bronze ATX12V - $72.98 (Shipping included)
http://www.chiefvalue.com/product-_-...00159127010060

Total : $570.62 ($605.62 if you don't do rebate)

That leaves you $850 - $570.62 = $279.38 for the case and video card

Personally I would go with the Antec P183 case because of quiet, excellent cooling, front filters to minimize the amount of dust entering the case. The case is solidly built, thus, it will last you for several build cycles.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129174

 

[Kenmitch]

Not sure how far north of San Fansisco you live but Microcenter in Santa Clara has some pretty good deals on cpu motherboard combos from time to time. They always have AMD cpu/motherboard combos which you pretty much get the motherboard for free or a slight fee depending on which one you want. In-store only deals tho so youd have to order online and go pick it up.

Yep....DVD drives are pretty cheap like you said.

You could look at the combos on newegg to see if you can find one that you like. Heres and example one I found that fits your budget! Not sure if youd like the case as it has an industrial manly look to it.

Did you want an AMD based system? Or are you open to Intel also?

 

[aphelion02]

You can do a lot better than a 955 and a GTX 550 for $850. I'm going to steal aphelion's excellent build:



The only thing that I'd change is that the combo aphelion mentioned is no longer available. Since your budget is a bit higher, you can either buy the mobo and CPU separately or grab this i5 2500K + ASUS P8P67-M combo instead. The Gigabyte is full ATX, so it has a few more PCI and PCIe slots, but that probably doesn't matter for this build.

You could get this i5 2500k + MSI Mobo combo too if you want an full ATX case. I'd probably consider Asus a better brand, but not by much.

Considering your resolution, this HD 5850 is also a great way to save some money. The HD 6950 is better and will let you upgrade your monitors to a higher resolution later, so I would recommend that if you can afford it. The HD 6950 performs better and is more future proof, but the HD 5850 will perform just fine on your resolution in most games. With that money saved, you could consider bumping your budget up for an SSD.

 

[Mnaircckel]

I'm like 4-5 hours north of San Fransisco so it's kind of a hassle to drive down.
Remember that while I am willing to go up to $850 if it will save me money by not having to upgrade for awhile I would prefer to stay around 750-800. Also is it really worth the extra $100 to go with Intel over a AMD Processor? I'm fine going Intel if you guys think it is worth it. Also, someone said that 550 GTX ti is not enough, I've heard that it can play most games now adays on max settings at around 40-60 fps. That is fine with me.. I don't need to play Crysis 2 on max setting at 65 fps. The human eye can barely tell passed 30.

I'll have to check out the combo deals, I didn't notice those before.

Doclife's build is just a little too pricey, the case he suggests coasts 150, leaving me only about 120 dollars for a video card, not to mention an OS.

Aphelion02's Combo looked good but it's not available any more so that's a bummer.. also how do you get the -95 MIR he mentions?

Kenmitch's Combo looked good but a lot of the parts got poor reviews, I don't really want to buy a computer and have half the parts breaking in 1-2 years. I like my computer to last.

Thanks for the responses, keep em coming!

Edit:

I'm perfectly fine with a HD 5850 if you think that is a better bang for the buck than the 550 Gtx Ti, also one reason I didn't consider buying a radeon card is because a couple of my friends said that Nvidia is better, if you guys say that is false then again, I'm willing to go radeon.

 

[aphelion02]

Mnaircckel: Get this combo instead of the one in my original build. The mail in rebate will show up when you add it to your cart.

The Intel is definitely worth it over the AMD. The AMD is old generation and significantly underperforms the i5-2500k, which can perform to the level of $700+ processors from last year, and is on top of that a great overclocker if you wish to go for that option.

Also, the gtx 550 is simply horrible value for the price. If you want to save money on the graphics card, go for this HD 5850 instead. I still think the HD 6950 is worth it, if only for future proofing, but at those prices its a much closer call. Just don't get the gtx 550 - its like pissing your money away.

 

[aphelion02]

I'm perfectly fine with a HD 5850 if you think that is a better bang for the buck than the 550 Gtx Ti, also one reason I didn't consider buying a radeon card is because a couple of my friends said that Intel is better, if you guys say that is false then again, I'm willing to go radeon.

Did your friends mean Nvidia is better? For the last two generations of cards, AMD has either had the upper hand or two companies have been very close (as in right now). Judging from what your friends say, I'm afraid they don't know too much about computers (no offense).

Its in the CPU department that Intel has been crushing AMD, if Bulldozer doesn't perform it will be really hard to recommend AMD processors at all but the lowest of price points.

 

[Mnaircckel]

Yes, I meant Nvidia, and the MIR is awesome, I hadn't noticed that.

Ok, one more question, what about Cpu Fans and Case Fans? Cooling in General.

 

[aphelion02]

Case fans will be unnecessary if you go with the Antec Three Hundred, it comes with fans of its own and is a good cooling case in general (like all Antec cases are).

As for a CPU cooler, I recommend the Xigmatek Dark Knight now that it has the rebate. You might want to get your own thermal paste too (only a few bucks).

 

[weez82]

Yes, I meant Nvidia, and the MIR is awesome, I hadn't noticed that.

Ok, one more question, what about Cpu Fans and Case Fans? Cooling in General.

most good cases come with good case fans pre installed. The case you linked to in the first post looks good. You should also look at the cooler master haf series. Really good imo. As for heat sinks, if you dont plan on doing any over clocking than the stock heat sink will get the job done. But if you want something better than i'll recommend the cooler master hyper 212+. And you can save about $10-$15 if you get it from amazon ($27 + free shipping as of 4-23-2011) compared to newegg :sneaky:

 

[Mnaircckel]

So we are looking at:

Dvd Drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827136236

Antec 300 Case:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129042

1Tb Hard Drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822152185

SAPPHIRE 100282XTREME Radeon HD 5850 Xtreme 1GB:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102932

650w power supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817207007

8GB ram:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145315

Cpu Cooler:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835233029

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) & MSI P67A-C43 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...t=Combo.635170

The Total Is:
$755 after MIR. 839 Before. Add Os for about 70.. I still stay under. Everything look good to you guys?

 

[Mnaircckel]

Sigh, I posted the new build I'm looking at based on comments but we will have to wait for it to be approved by a mod cause of the links, thanks though guys, keep commenting.

 

[Kenmitch]

This motherboard and memory combo looks pretty decent. The motherboard is m-atx but does offer the option of sli/crossfire at 8x/8x if you decide later you wanna run dual cards.

You also get $25 off the memory with the promo code EMCKFHJ22 (ends today)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...&SID=u00000687

adding the 2500K comes make it's $467.36 shipped for the cpu,motherboard, and memory

 

[aphelion02]

I suggest this:
Buy this combo (I like the full-atx better, and you can still go multigpu on it:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...&SID=u00000687

Use the EMCKFHJ22 promocode for $25 off again.

Then buy the i5 2500k stand alone.

Its about $20 more expensive, but you do get better motherboard +RAM. I think its a good investment.

Edit: its only $5 more expensive; and you get more value. I think you should definitely do it then.

 

[Kenmitch]

Surely you mean $424.73...It comes out to be $25 more expensive but you do get a better motherboard and RAM. I'd say that's a good idea.

Typo'd it winds up being $467.36 shipped for us CA'ers

The items he selected came out to $449.21 after a $20 mail in rebate on his memory which winds up being less out of his pocket now!

 

[Mnaircckel]

Actually it is about $50 more. Unless I'm doing something wrong, I double checked. Added together you save more because the other memory has $20 rebate... I also don't think I will be buying it today so I'm not sure the $25 rebate applies.

Also the first motherboard with the cpu combo got better reviews so that makes me wanna go with that...

I think I'm sticking with the combo I posted that was $755, for now.

Anyway, I assume all those parts are compatible.

Another question, once I get all the parts will it be relatively easy for me to set it up?

 

[aphelion02]

It should be fairly simple. Just read the instructions that come with the mb carefully. You could also use this site as an resource .

 

[mfenn]

So we are looking at:

Dvd Drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827136236

Antec 300 Case:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129042

1Tb Hard Drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822152185

SAPPHIRE 100282XTREME Radeon HD 5850 Xtreme 1GB:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102932

650w power supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817207007

8GB ram:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145315

Cpu Cooler:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835233029

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) & MSI P67A-C43 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...t=Combo.635170

The Total Is:
$755 after MIR. 839 Before. Add Os for about 70.. I still stay under. Everything look good to you guys?

Everything there should be compatible. I would probably spend a bit more on the GPU, but the 5850 will be fine at 1680x1050 for now. You'll probably have to start lowering the details in about a year or if you upgrade your monitor to 1080P.

 

[Mnaircckel]

That's fine with me if I have to upgrade some parts and a year in a half or something, I'm sure the price of current higher-end graphics cards will be much lower by then.

Thanks guys, I think I'm going to go ahead and order tomorrow. If anyone spots any problems with compatibility or with a certain part you think is bad or something you think I should add, please post it!


Also, I'll probably be posting a new thread(Or just continuing this one if it's in the right section) and getting some help building by rigs when the parts arrive.

 

[mfenn]

Yeah, just keep updating this thread. We'll be glad to help.