Future proofing and upgrading rig, Free Beer Inside!

[D4ng3r]

Heya, I am a student currently in the process of upgrading my computer to play the games coming out nowadays. I, for too long, have been lagging behind the computer scene, always having to play my games on the lowest settings. TIME FOR THAT TO CHANGE! I am looking for cost effectiveness, but on the other hand making sure I spend enough to keep this rig running for several years competitively. I have installed ram, disc drives, video cards and a couple other things before, but never a full case from scratch.


1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.

70% Gaming (cod4, cod5, farcry2, etc...) , 10% photoshop, 20% multimedia/internet


2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread

My budget... excluding things I already have, looking at $450 tops including shipping and tax... (if it goes over by $20-40 for a much better item, then so be it...)

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.

C.A.N.A.D.A!

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc, etc, etc, you get the picture.

My preference is the stuff that works, for a price that works.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.

Yes, Yes I do intend on using my current parts (or already purchased for this project):

PSU: Corsair vx450
GFX: HD 4850
DISC: 2x dvd rw drives
MONITOR: 17" monitor (lol.. Can't justify spending $200+ on an extra 2 or 3 inches)
PERIF: G5 Mouse & generic Acer keyboard
HDD: 1x 160gig, 1x 500gig
Win xp

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.

Quite a bit of research, I have a couple people that are computer smart and reccomended the vx450 as well as the 4850.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

I would like to overclock. There's a first time for everything!

8. WHEN do you plan to build it?

In a month. I want to get it from 1 source preferably (DC=free shipping and good prices = win)

*I would rather get less expensive ram without a MIR, I hate those things, and the squeeze for money is NOW, not in 3 months. Suggestions that would work with an OC? If you can find me a case with the same reputation as the Antec 300, at the same price, but with a window, I will love you forever. I plan on going CF with my gfx card within the next two years.

Here is a list of what I have settled on from multiple opinions (I needed a mouse pad too. ):

******I Subbed in this ram: Mushkin 996603 HP PC2-6400 2GB 2X1GB DDR2-800 CL4-4-4-12 240PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit - DirectCanada

It will save me $25. How does it look?

[misterlarry]

Looks like a pretty good low cost build to me. Welcome to HWC! Now, where's the beer? lol

[3.0charlie]

Looking good! Make sure you select the OCZ Vendetta II.

Where's the beer?

[Cptn Vortex]

I didnt look at what you were looking for, but....wheres the beer?

Actually you have picked great parts. P5Q Pro and E7200 will make you happy indeed. Thats also a good case. Wise choice.

[D4ng3r]

I wasn't expecting you guys to agree with me o.o

Charlie, I am a bit confused at my own cpu fan choice. Does the one I selected come with a fan, or is the OCZ Vendetta II the fan you are talking about? I tried to look up the vendetta II on newegg and DC, couldn't find it. Either way, I wanted a lower-cost freezer for my cpu (with the ocing I will be doing...). Are there any other recommendations if I chose the fanless block there?

The beer got lost...in the mail...

[misterd]

You'll like your mobo/cpu combo, i have one testing @ 378x9 or 3.4Ghz right now (1/2 multi's = bleh) - again I think you've got a great combo picked out.

[Squeetard]

Get a quad core. your 30% photoshop and multimedia will love you for it. Not to mention Far Cry 2 is maxing out on quad cores. You said future proof. I bet Fallout 3 uses more than 2 cores also.

[misterlarry]

Originally Posted by Squeetard

Get a quad core. your 30% photoshop and multimedia will love you for it. Not to mention Far Cry 2 is maxing out on quad cores. You said future proof. I bet Fallout 3 uses more than 2 cores also.

I hope not or there'll be an E8400 FS in a hurry.

[3.0charlie]

Originally Posted by D4ng3r

I wasn't expecting you guys to agree with me o.o

Charlie, I am a bit confused at my own cpu fan choice. Does the one I selected come with a fan, or is the OCZ Vendetta II the fan you are talking about? I tried to look up the vendetta II on newegg and DC, couldn't find it. Either way, I wanted a lower-cost freezer for my cpu (with the ocing I will be doing...). Are there any other recommendations if I chose the fanless block there?

The beer got lost...in the mail...

The beer got lost where? Now be careful, most of us are old farts which would jump on a case of 24 like wolves on a lost sheep...

The HSF is this one: NCIX.com - Buy OCZ Vendetta 2 Triple Heatpipe CPU Heatsink AM2 LGA775 S939 S940 S754 120MM Fan 800-1500RPM 20-32DBA - OCZTVEND2 In Canada..

[3.0charlie]

Originally Posted by Squeetard

Get a quad core. your 30% photoshop and multimedia will love you for it. Not to mention Far Cry 2 is maxing out on quad cores. You said future proof. I bet Fallout 3 uses more than 2 cores also.

He can't Sqee. Over his budget.