Hey everyone!

Just thought I'd muster up a conversation about building a budget gaming rig using an e8400 + HD4870.

Trying to keep the build around 700-800 dollars (reusing parts like DVD burner, LCD, mouse, OS, speakers etc.)

I've looked around this forum for a similar build and most people are content paying tons of extra money for a MOBO because they want the option of SLI or CF in the future. I'm not sure why people still do this, as the next generation cards usually beat or match last gen DUAL gpu's. Especially for budget gaming, single GPU seems the way to go.

Anyways, just looking for advice on putting together the essentials. CPU, MOBO, RAM, PSU, and OS.

CPU: probably going to buy an e8400. I like it's price/ performance. I'm not convinced of quad yet either, meh.

MOBO: Need help. I do NOT require two PCIE x16 slots, just one that supports a single Radeon 4870.

RAM: Probably just going to go to ncix or tigerdirect and buy the fastest pc 6400 ram I can afford, but specific brand advice would be apprecaited. I will probably do a medium OC on the 8400. Never overclocked before, but from what I hear this chip loves it. Is there anything regarding ram speeds I should know? Should I buy pc8500? (sorry, i know im noob )

PSU: Ive got a 500 watt ULTRA... which I will probably sell for a more well-known brand (although it powers 3 hard drives, an X1950, 2 opticals, X-fi sound, and a 3700 clawhammer just great!)

OS: I've got XP right now, but Vista has me curious. I've been reading that the viata drivers are worked out now, and the performance hit in games is not as significant as it was a year ago.... SOOOO that being said... is DX10 worth the upgrade? (especially since the 4870 is a DX10 card) I don't like using TWO operating systems either haha... so no dual-booting please :|

Thats aobut it, the rest of the components are easy. I just hope I can cram all this stuff into my 4 year old case

See ya and thanks for the replies

A P45 chipset mobo is almost certainly the way to go, and I doubt that PC8500 RAM is worth it on a budget build at all (I'm actually continually less convinced that it's ever worth it, though I own 4GB of the stuff).

If you're having trouble with budget limitations, you could look at the 4850, which is also a very solid performer on almost all games at budget-PC resolutions.

ok bugget build no OS 800.00 max lets do this

E 8400 cpu cost 184.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115037

P 35 MoBo cost 89.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128337

G.Skill ram 8500 2x2gig cost 89.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231166


Hard Drive 640 GB cost 94.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822136218


Antec 300 case cost 70.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811129042

GPU 4870 cost 300.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814131113


PSU 750W cost 100.00
http://www.buy.com/prod/corsair-tx [...] 78325.html

That puts us at 934.00

We can Change the GPU and use a 4850 for 100 dollar saving.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814127359

that brings us to cost 834.00

Let see to get under 800 we can go with the E7200 CPU
cost 130.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115052

So a grand total of 780.00 for the budget build

No reason to change PSU with this build if it's working fine already.
P43 Gigabyte motherboard has the PCIex16 2.0 socket $116
http://www.ncix.com/products/index [...] e=Gigabyte
E8400 $220
http://www.ncix.com/products/index [...] ture=Intel
Corsair DDR2 800 RAM 2X2 GB 4-4-4-12 $105 after rebate, but rebates end soon.
http://www.ncix.com/products/index [...] re=CORSAIR
Windows Vista home premium 64 bit OS $116
http://www.ncix.com/products/index [...] =Microsoft
HD4870 $309
http://www.ncix.com/products/index [...] re=Diamond
$866 after rebates, before shipping and taxes
if wanted a Corsair 450w - 550w PSU

You could knock a chunk off the above system by going with a P31/P35 motherboard with a PCIex16 1.0 socket. Knock a bit more off by shopping around for RAM probably. good luck

you can use vista
i use it for more than half a year now and havent had a single problem. even without SP1 it is useable. with SP1 it's just faster in games. very fast, to say the least
if you play modern games, imo vista is a must. since you have a very fast system, vista is ideal to really use that speed
you might overclock your 8400 to something like 3,6 though. trust me, you wont regret it, you will see the difference. and 3,6 is like the barrier where power usage and heat isnt yet exponentially over the roof and your chip wont be damage on the long time run
if you really wanna push it, you can put it to at least 4,2, and it will still last at least 3, 4 years on you (when a core2 design dualcore will be useless anyway)
have fun!

Vista is generally a little bit slower than XP, but the performance difference is quite negligible as long as you have at least 2GB RAM. Vista can actually be faster at some things, like Folding@Home, but that isn't applicable to you.

Add this mobo to HoustonSerenity's list (his link goes to the E8400):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128337

even in iran e8400 have lower cost than 220$.
you are kidding" dirtmounta in "? isn't it?

Yea I can get an E8400 for $193 in Australia. Last month they were $250. The E8500 is still $340+

Don't blame me for Canadian dollars. There's no way in the world i'd possibly suggest that he have a friend in the States order it for him and then ship it across National boundaries mislabeled as low cost agricultural parts.

I find it hard to believe that is the cheapest you can get. Australia is always more expensive. This is quite surprising.

Sorry about that MoBo hyper link fixed now

BTW randomizer love that kitty pic

Here you go at www.tigerdirect.ca e8400 retail for $200
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applicat [...] CatId=2398
maybe better prices all around there

The NXZT Tempest an alternative to the Antec 300. Its $100 and has pretty good air flow from what I hear.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] %2btempest

Also, you should reuse the Xfi you have, assuming it is a real Xfi (big in size, just like the fatality editions of today). Benchmarks never reflect sound but even the good on board of today's high end boards still do not have the raw processing power of an Xfi. When playing a game with a huge population around youy (WoW's capital cities, 64 FPS servers, ETC) then on boards can get a bit overloaded. Since you allready have it, use it

And that 750W PSU is overkill IMO. This case is a nice Antec as well, with an Anteck 500W PSU. PSUs from companies like Antec, Enermax and other reputible suppliers are more than strong enough for your build. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811129024

I LOVE my Antec 180/182 series case, but they are more pricey and larger. Sometimes you catch them on sale for about $80 though. Roomy and very very quiet...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817171016 550 W coolermaster, $45 after a $15 MIB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817371007 500W antec, likely the same or similar as the one in the case above. $60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817341012 OCZ 500, $40 after a MIB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817341010 OCZ 600, $60 after a MIB. Good if you insist on >500.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817341010 Cooler Master 500, $60 after a MIB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817128011 680W ultra high effenciency. if you pay the electric bill the extra cost could pay for itself over time...

Dont go to cheap though. Generic PSUs can cause you headaches that you wont believe...

i think united state is more expansive than my country!
i got e8400 only for 173 $.i'm coufused now .what hell is this ?

...falling US dollar?

May I suggest (for future reference) that you put $US, $AUS or $CAN, lol it's getting confusing.

*Edit* ShopBot is an extremly good website to find canadian pricing:

http://www.shopbot.ca/default.asp? [...] ion=search
http://www.shopbot.ca/default.asp? [...] ion=search
etc...