Build Advice (Tax Time 2009)

[Flux]

I'm here again, asking for build advice. I should be getting some tax money back and need to get the best computer parts for my budget. I'm mainly getting a new computer in order to play the newest games. My budget is $1,000.

Got any advice?

Here are the details:

I need the following:

• Power Supply (I don't plan on SLI or Crossfire...but who knows what the future holds)
• Motherboard (needs to fit a ATX case)
• Processor (open to dual or quad core - needs to be retail, I need the fan)
• Video Card (DX 10+, latest pixel shader, etc.)
• RAM (thinking I need/want at least 4 GB)
• Hard Drive(s) (I'm thinking I want 1 TB total whether it be 2 500 GB drives or a single TB drive)
• Speakers (Optional - I'm thinking 2.1 will be fine...)

I have the following:

• Case (ATX)
• DVD-ROM
• DVD+RW
• 19" LCD (I kinda want to do dual monitors, but I'm not sure I can justify the price...)
• Mouse
• Headset
• Vista Ultimate (I'll upgrade to Windows 7 when it comes out)

I'd appreciate your suggestions!

[martini161]

if you can stretch your budget a little bit, you can get a great core i7 rig from newegg for 1150 (1070 after rebates) shipped:
Gigabyte UD4P Mobo: 260 w/ $20 MIR
Core i7 920: 290
6gb DDR3 1333 corsair: 155
Nvidia 260 core 16: 230 w/ $30 MIR
Hitachi (they seem to be fine now, i use them in both my rigs) 1tb HD: $88
Corsair 750TX: 120 w/ $20 MIR
get a great rig for only $70 over budget after rebates. amazing what you can get for 1000 nowadays...

[ibleet]

If it were me and I had your budget, I would avoid I7 altogether and build as follows:

Gigabyte P45 UD3R - $105 after MIR
E8400 - $160
AC Freezer 7 Pro - $22
4Gb DDR2800 latency 4 Ram - $25 after MIR
EVGA GeForce GTX 260 - $199 after MIR
WD 640GB 32MB Cache - $70
Corsair 520HX, 620HX or 750TX - $100

Total after MIR's < $700

This will be a fine gamer and easily within your budget. You could upgrade to a quad core cpu, 2 HD in raid, or both if you choose, and still be under budget.

I budget build a lot, and I think it is smart to wait until i7 prices drop a bit more, but of course, its your choice.

[Digerati]

Personally, since I got my system about a year ago, I am waiting for a really good price drop on i7 or a new generation of processors from the series. I'm quite happy with my current system, anyways.

[haaaam]

there's really no need at all for i core 7 gaming wise unless you need the best money can but and that being said most game engines will barely support hyper threading/ multiple core cpus. That doesn't mean that there aren't games that don't but majority says you will be more than fine with the dual core and later get a get a quad which is still socket 775 that should be drastically cheaper when you need it. Ibleets build is a really good example of what a 'budget' system actually passes as and coming in at 700 leaves you room to upgrade to a 22" monitor. I would personally prefer a 24" (ive had my 22" for 3 years plus now) but the price difference between the 2 sizes is usually just a little stupid to end up going 24"

[XstollieX]

The biggest advantage to going with the I7 platform is future proofing. A year or two from now you may not be able to get the 775 chips as easily. I would imagine that 1366 chips will be much more available. But thats just my 2cents. Also what type of system are you coming from?

[Mad_Goku]

Really it's up to you whether you want Core i7 now or want to wait. But my suggestion is unless you need a machine now, wait a few months to see if i7 prices drop. If you can afford to wait your better off. Or look for deals like they recently had on the motherboard and memory for $250 (http://forums.legitreviews.com/about19731.html).

If you don't plan on upgrading for a while, I would go i7 or even wait until prices come down a bit to build it. You'll be "futureproofing" as xstolliex said.

[martini161]

like stolie said, going i7 now will future proof you for quite awhile. and looking at your sig, you look like someone who does like to take thier time between upgrades, so i believe i7 would be best for you

[Flux]

I'm thinking future-proofing is the way to go. Like martini161 mentioned, it will be a while before I get another computer. So far, I'm leaning towards stretching my budget a bit and going for the i7. Since you all have been making suggestions, I've been looking at the various hardware that was mentioned. I also looked at some i7 920 vs. E8400 articles.

I appreciate all the advice. I may end up going with martini161's suggestions. Does anyone have an opinion about the other the parts (other than the processor) martini161 mentioned?

[InspectahACE]

All in all..it looks like a very nice setup you will have there..Me,personally, I'm not a big fan of Gigabyte..my first and last time with them wasn't very kosher..does NOT mean its a bad board..I was cheap and spent $100 on it so i got dealt with on it lol..I would stick with a 650 or 750 watt power supply in the name of future-proofing..I know the tx-750 is $119.99(before rebate if any) on newegg. the 650 Corsair psu is around $99.99 I believe..other than that..that rig of yours is gonna be sound as a pound(Austin Powers )

[ibleet]

I personally think that "future proofing" is a myth now more than ever. Whether you build with the E8400, or go the i7 route, there is a good chance that either way, as fast as technology is moving, both builds will be obsolete to some degree, within a short period of time.

Just from a gaming perspective alone, the rig in my sig is not exactly state of the art like when I first built it...BUT, it still runs every game on the market at high settings...I don't have the best video card available, I don't have a quad core cpu, and I don't have multiple GPU's, and my rig still tears up the latest games. I find myself in wonderment at people who pay the price for SLI, tri-SLI, or even quad SLI...what games are they running that require that technology?

As far as Gigabyte goes, I have 3 Gigabyte boards that were all under $100, that I purchased over a year ago, and all are still flawless in their performance.

I think sometimes when people ask questions in a forum like this, they already know the answer they want to hear. If you want the latest and greatest, be prepared to pay for it and just go for it. It may hold you over for slightly longer, but in the end you have to be satisfied that you got the most bang for you buck.

So in conclusion, as long as my current rigs can play games at suitable frame rates, I am not upgrading...I have no desire to "keep up with the Jones'". Rant over...

[Mad_Goku]

The biggest part of the future proofing that he's doing though is for upgrading. By buying core i7 components now, upgrading later won't be so bad. If he were to buy the other setup that may hold him over for about a year maybe more in playing current games...but then when it does get time to have to do a little more he would have to basically build a whole new machine. It would be a completely different story if i7 was the same socket as the e8400.

775 has lasted quite some time and I expect 1366 to as well so when it's time to upgrade again he will just be able to buy a new processor. Things have changed from old when it seemed like every 6 months a new socket comes out and if you want to upgrade you basically had to rebuild all of the core components.

This is why I recommend i7. Saving $300 on a build now may not save him in the long run. Plus he can cut that $300 down by bargain hunting for sales. I am sure we'll see i7 deals coming around again soon.

[Flux]

I ordered my parts. I went with the i7. Any suggestions on what version of Vista? 32 or 64 bit?

[Mad_Goku]

if you're going with vista might as well go 64bit.

[InspectahACE]

if you're going with vista might as well go 64bit.

Agreed..especially if you're getting more than 3GB ram