Budget Gaming PC

[JinJin]

Hey fellow Canucks, first time poster here. I'm looking at building a decent desktop for my little brother. I want it to be able to play the next gen games decently with flexibility for upgrade if need be. I've compiled a setup from Ncix.

Intel i3 2100 - $126
Zalman Z9 Tower Case - $49.99
ASUS P8H67-M LX REV3.0 mATX H67 Mobo - $89.98
XFX Radeon 6870 900mhz 1GB - $169.99
G.SKILL F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL Ripjaws PC3-12800 4GB 2X2GB DDR3-1600 CL9-9-9-24 Core i5 1.5V Memory Kit - $34.99
LG DVDRW - $21.15
Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 7200.12 1TB SATA 32MB Cache 3.5IN Internal Hard Drive OEM - $55.98
Coolermaster Extreme Power Plus 600W ATX 12V V2.3 Silent Power Supply 20/24PIN 120MM Fan - $54.99
Asus sound card - $20.96
Assembly - $50
Prices not PM nor factored in MIR yet

Total Pre-tax - $640.07

What do you guys think? is the i3 and the HD 6870 a good combination or will the i3 bottleneck it? should I switch to a Phenom? possibly better PSU? I'd like to keep this under $700 pre-tax. Thanks in advance guys.

[_dangtx_]

well,look at the 912 as well for case.

try to squeeze a 6950 in there, go with a builder series from corsair vs the cm.

sacriice some hdd space if need be and go with a 500gb black,speedier.

go with the onboard sound,its pretty good.

assemble it yourself and save the cash towards gpu upgrade.

and welcoem aboard!

[Chalaska]

Drop the sound card, you won't need it.

Drop the assembly, do it yourself.

Take that $70, and upgrade to a 6950

[JinJin]

Thanks for the response guys, took your recommendations and price match saved me some money which allowed me to upgrade to the 6950.

[_dangtx_]

whohooo..


youll see what a difference your build with a 6950 makes vs your frend's 6850 :)

[jcmaz]

I'd drop the Coolermaster PSU for a better quality one.