AMD rig for the girlfriend, never bought AMD before so help needed

[mjpd1983]

Hey guys,

Building the gf a new PC since I bought her The Sims 2 and she's now obsessed with it and wont get off my rig :)

I've built many Intel gaming rigs in the past but this time I think I will be going AMD as she will ONLY be using it for browsing the web and playing Sims games or games of the same graphical thirst.

Since I have had no personal experience with AMD CPU's/MOBO's I would love some help from those who have (i'm not an Intel fanboy but have just always needed the extra thump in some areas)

I will post below the answers to the questions in the guideline sticky for new builds.

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing. = The Sims 2, Internet browsing, small apps like MS Office etc.

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread = 600 would be nice

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from. = Australia Perth local PC store

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. = I myself prefer Intel for CPU but I have owned both ATI and NVIDIA so whatever is cheapest and does the job

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are. = I will be using an old 22" Samsung monitor for her at 1680x1050

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads. = I've read a lot in the past, I am no rookie at PC builds but just an AMD rookie :)

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds. = No, she will be using it stock

8. WHEN do you plan to build it? = ASAP, tomorrow even

So there we have it, I thank all in advance for the suggestions as It will be interesting to learn about the AMD side of things.

Also the shop I will be buying from (as it is right near my house and I need to build this asap so no online buying) is PLE Computers, here is the link if any of you need to see prices or stock Welcome to PLE Computers Online

Many thanks in advance fellas

Cheers

[dma0991]

AMD Athlon II X4 640 $99
Gigabyte 880GM-USB3 $115
XFX HD5670 1GB $114
Kingston Value RAM 2GBx2 $50
Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB $64
LiteON DVD-RW 24x $39
Gigabyte Superb 460W $29
Antec Three Hundred $65


The total is $575 but I am not too sure about the quality of that PSU and would rather get the Antec Truepower 550W instead but the price difference is just too much. The HD5670 is not a very power demanding card and should be able to play The Sims 2 at high till maximum settings.

[mjpd1983]

Much appreciated, that's a good price

This is giving me the upgrade itch as well, might have to grab another 580 while I'm there because I'm playing through metro atm for the first time, would be nice to have it completely maxed :)

Thanks again for the AMD selections

Cheers

[upcoast604]

Based on the pricing, you could look into future shop, staples, walmart etc if any of that is around.

If it were me I'd buy on line, wait for the parts, build it myself and save about $100.

The dvd drive alone is double what a nice sony optiarc is.

[slippy]

The rig in my signature runs Sims 3 for my wife well, so you could use that as a guideline.

[jcmaz]

CPU: AMD Athlon II dual core or tri core ($50+, depending on model. Generally, it is about 10-15 more for tri core)
MOBO: 880G mobo w/ IGP (can be found under $70)
RAM: Any 4GB DDR3 RAM is ok tbh. I'd stick w/ the bigger brands such as G.Skill, Corsair, or Kingston.
Seagate 7200.12 or WD Blue 500GB hard drive (<$45)
Any DVD drive will do ( I mean, when was the last time you used your DVD drive?)
PSU: Seasonic 400W, Cosair Builder Series 430W, Antec Earthwatts 380W, 430W ~ $50
Case: Case is quite personal. Get whatever your girlfriend fancies :) ~$70

Total is approximately $400, given the CPU is $75. Now add whatever GPU you like!

Btw, how graphically intensive is Sims2?

[_dangtx_]

why no try an i3,1155 or 1156,and perhaps something more bang per bucker like a used 250/260 card? :)

[dma0991]

Originally Posted by jcmaz

Btw, how graphically intensive is Sims2?

By current standards of graphical performance The Sims 2 is not demanding at all.

If The Sims 2 can make your GF hog your computer I can't imagine what The Sims 3 + all expansions will do to your GF. I played The Sims 3 + all expansions and I forgot what The Sims 2 was all about.

[upcoast604]

Ncix has a GTS250 aka 9800gtx+ for $80 but i'd shoot for a slightly better card around $100.
Am3 mobos go for as little as $55-65.
Gskill DDR3 2x2GB $40-44.
400w sparkle or seasonic or even a CX430 $30-40
X3 or x4 propus core goes from $70ish-104 at the 3.2ghz
500GB seagate or WD $35-39.
CD/DVD burner $16-20
Low end of the scale $331+case+tx and you should look for free shipping wich is not hard to get.

Australia, oops sorry I should've read better.

[mjpd1983]

Thanks for all the AMD advice guys, I appreciate it

Has anyone had any experience with the INTEL CORE i3 540 3.06GHz 4MB

I haven't tested any of the i3's before