$340 Gaming PC that can Max 95% of games.

[Wheelchair]

Asus M5A78L mATX Motherboard $55

AMD Athlon IIX2 255 Dual Core CPU 3.1GHz $58

AMD Radeon RAM 2GB $9

Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 500GB HDD $39

Antec Basiq VP450 450W PSU $34

Apex VORTEX Midtower Case $29

XFX Radeon HD 6770 1GB GPU $112

TOTAL: $342.92

Now, It's a GREAT starter PC. That is the BARE minimum you need for a gaming PC. You may have noticed that I didn't include a DVD drive, this is because you can install windows via a USB - OR - you can take one from another PC/Old PC in the house. Many services are going digital anyways so it's just a logical factor to save money.

For another $40, you can get a quad-core phenom which is fantastic, another $15 will get you a Hyper 212 Cooler to cool that sucker, but then the prices starts going up. Like I said it's bare minimum. Also, You could upgrade from 2GB of ram to 4GB for an extra $9 but I've gamed with 1GB for a month (3 sticks died) and I honestly would have never noticed the difference.

Tell me your opinions!

Disclaimer

AMD RAM - It's not bad, I believe it's manufactured by Kingston but feel free to correct me. I've used it in about 4 builds now and have not had any problems!

Case - I built 2 systems with it, it's actually pretty nice for $29!

PSU - Yes, that PSU can power the GPU... Probably 2 GPU's.

[Crazyeyesreaper]

id be looking at 5770s over 6770s there the same card but depending on location 5770 is cheaper, in my area a 5770 can save $10-15 over a 6770 in general. slips you down to $330 should be just enough room to squeeze a Quadcore in there, I say this because a Dual Core just dosent cut it for Frostbite based games, aka Bad Company 2 and soon to be BF3,

but pricing fluctuates between Canada and USA, i noticed 2 months ago Canada had cheaper prices on alot of parts, now the USA is cheaper. seems to change over time.

Biggest issue i see is OS, you need windows, and preferably a 64bit OEM version which puts the price up to $450 give or take, still under $500 tho which kinda proves the point you dont need to be rich to have a nice gaming rig.

All that said yea the above is a great place to start, to judge what you need, and where you want to improve upon, but at this point, i would seriously look at cheaper, BLACK SOCKET AM3 motherboards, since the black socket boards support Bulldozer, and as such offer an upgrade path in the future to a far faster system.
http://www.overclock.net/pc-games/65...e-vs-quad.html

[Wheelchair]

Biggest issue i see is OS, you need windows, and preferably a 64bit OEM version which puts the price up to $450 give or take, still under $500 tho which kinda proves the point you dont need to be rich to have a nice gaming rig.

http://www.overclock.net/pc-games/65...e-vs-quad.html

Well, the OS is a variable because it can be found for free in alot of places, many IT students can get it for free (I got my Professional Edition from my school). Windows is very easy to get free without piracy, but it is definitely an arguable variable.

[Bolkonsky]

id be looking at 5770s over 6770s there the same card but depending on location 5770 is cheaper, in my area a 5770 can save $10-15 over a 6770 in general. slips you down to $330 should be just enough room to squeeze a Quadcore in there, I say this because a Dual Core just dosent cut it for Frostbite based games, aka Bad Company 2 and soon to be BF3,

I'd honestly go with a GTS 450 over a 5770, it's close to the same performance (even better in some games) and slightly cheaper.

As for dual core, my 2.93 e6500 can run BFBC2 with absolutely no problem.

Yeah but you have to play at a lower res with that system....

No, because a third of the money goes into the graphics card which is what makes this system good. The GPU is about 90% of what makes the screen pretty, the RAM and CPU won't affect games nearly as much.

[Top-Tier-Tech]

No, because a third of the money goes into the graphics card which is what makes this system good. The GPU is about 90% of what makes the screen pretty, the RAM and CPU won't affect games nearly as much.

LOL?

So what if a third of the money goes into the GPU, you still have to play at lower resolutions to max many modern games out. A 6770 is NOT that powerful. I have a 5770 (equivalent to 6770) in my eyefinity business computer and that little guy is by no means good enough to max out games without lowering the single screen's res.

[Devilmaypoop]

LOL?

So what if a third of the money goes into the GPU, you still have to play at lower resolutions to max many modern games out. A 6770 is NOT that powerful. I have a 5770 (equivalent to 6770) in my eyefinity business computer and that little guy is by no means good enough to max out games without lowering the single screen's res.

5770 is powerful. When I had it, I could play any games maxed out at 1680x1050. Performance was good too.

[Top-Tier-Tech]

5770 is powerful. When I had it, I could play any games maxed out at 1680x1050. Performance was good too.

Won't do ETW, NTW, S2TW, Crysis, Crysis Warhead, Dragon Age 2, Metro 2033, Crysis 2, Witcher 2... There's more those are just games I can think of quickly.

The problem with your reasoning is that "maxed out" to you doesn't actually mean maxed out.

[Bolkonsky]

LOL?

So what if a third of the money goes into the GPU, you still have to play at lower resolutions to max many modern games out. A 6770 is NOT that powerful. I have a 5770 (equivalent to 6770) in my eyefinity business computer and that little guy is by no means good enough to max out games without lowering the single screen's res.

Lower resolution? 1400x900 and 1366x768 are my two computers, and I can max out Battlefield Bad Company 2 and ArmA II with a GTS 450 and a HD 5650. If this is your PC budget, I doubt you'll be playing on a 1080i screen.

Won't do ETW, NTW, S2TW, Crysis, Crysis Warhead, Dragon Age 2, Metro 2033, Crysis 2, Witcher 2... There's more those are just games I can think of quickly.

My 450, which is about the same, can max out ETW, NTW, S2TW, Crysis, Warhead, and DA2. And those are the only ones that I've tried, I haven't tried the others on it except the Witcher 2 which barely counts because of the ubersampling.

[Top-Tier-Tech]

Lower resolution? 1400x900 and 1366x768 are my two computers, and I can max out Battlefield Bad Company 2 and ArmA II with a GTS 450 and a HD 5650. If this is your PC budget, I doubt you'll be playing on a 1080i screen.

Most screens 21.5"+ have a native resolution of 1920x1080 (this is 1080p not i) and can be purchased for about $120. You have to spend $100 on a 19" screen so the 21.5" full HD monitor is the best value by far even for someone on a budget.

A screen running at 1400x900 has a little bit more than half the number of pixels found in a full HD screen which is why you can max games out so much easier. Not only are there fewer pixels but you lose so much visibility, it's like looking though the world with a cardboard box that is open on both ends stuck over your head Same goes for viewing webpages.

[Crazyeyesreaper]

well no one around here has a college that does,'

in my area there is no college that will give you free Windows OS, you might get it cheaper aka $40 for Home Premium $65 for Pro, but not free,

most people i deal with have to buy there OS either OEM or Retail, usually OEM for obvious reasons, i would say Linux is an option but for gaming... it really isnt lol to bad to, i like Linux, nice an sexy and its easy on a system.

[Jaketh]

I dont care how many builds you say you've used that RAM in, i would never trust RAM thats only 10 bucks. Also that Athlon would be a massive bottleneck for any strategy game especially total war games where even Phenom x4's cause lag. Itll play source games maxed but source games are not 95% of the game market

[Devilmaypoop]

I dont care how many builds you say you've used that RAM in, i would never trust RAM thats only 10 bucks. Also that Athlon would be a massive bottleneck for any strategy game especially total war games where even Phenom x4's cause lag. Itll play source games maxed but source games are not 95% of the game market

That RAM is decent.

TOTAL: $342.92

Saw that? I don't think so.

TOTAL: $342.92

See it now?

TOTAL: $342.92

How about now?

You won't be getting anything even comparable to the bang for the buck this system is. And no strategy game will lag, I've played almost all recent RTS games on the market on a Athlon I 5600+ 2.9ghz, maxed.

[Leo4444]

Good job and dont forget that pc is upgradable and better than the consoles and I wouldnt include windows 7 price either. Its easy to get free.

[Top-Tier-Tech]

Yeah but you have to play at a lower res with that system....

[Wheelchair]

Yeah but you have to play at a lower res with that system....

Uhm... It's $342 - What do you expect? It could handle 1680x1050 no problem!

[Top-Tier-Tech]

I wouldn't be so much worried about your PSU powering the system as frying everything when it craps out.

It's happened to me before when I've cheaped out on power supplies.

Don't cheap out on the one part of your computer that can destroy every other part.

Couldn't agree more

I would never recommend a cheap PSU to anyone regardless of their budget, it's too big of a liability.

Uhm... It's $342 - What do you expect?

To me "maxed out" means absolutely every reasonable setting (obviously we don't need 32x AA or anything) set the the maximum setting at full HD resolution.

[snuggans]

To me "maxed out" means absolutely every reasonable setting (obviously we don't need 32x AA or anything) set the the maximum setting at full HD resolution.

same here. the thread title is a bit exaggerated, and it would be a stretch to say that a 450W PSU can supply power to all of that plus 2 GPUs. mouse, keyboard, monitor are conveniently left out. don't mean to be a debbie downer but i'd like to shed a little light on this.

[the_mango55]

I wouldn't be so much worried about your PSU powering the system as frying everything when it craps out. It's happened to me before when I've cheaped out on power supplies. Don't cheap out on the one part of your computer that can destroy every other part.

You might also need a mouse and keyboard.

I've also never seen Windows free, where can you get free windows legally? I can get Windows 7 for 30 bucks with a student discount, it's the cheapest I've seen it.

Also I assume by "Max out 95% of games" you mean 95% of every game ever made, and not 95% of current games. Or maybe you're including facebook games in your percentage

[Dewy]

I've also never seen Windows free, where can you get free windows legally? I can get Windows 7 for 30 bucks with a student discount, it's the cheapest I've seen it.

You can it free legally from Microsoft, it's called dream spark.

EDIT: Just checked and can't find any info about Windows 7, I could swear they used to also include windows OS as well as tools.

[Crazyeyesreaper]

how about we solve the problem and say High Settings

there always Low Medium High and then Extreme or Very High, this system wont do Max but it will be a respectable low end gaming rig

its something id hook up to say a 720p 30 inch tv and just use for mid range gaming,

stuff such as,

Oblivion, Fallout 3, FEAR, GRID, Half Life 2, Portal ETC, would be a nice HTPC / Light gaming rig,

but yea, i would just spend the extra $40 needed for a quadcore and 4 gigs ram regardless, the price jump and longevity provided by those 2 small parts increases would be worth it,

I also feel Windows OS should be included, since not everyone has a student discount, and the only way to get windows Free legit, is to edit a motherboards bios to contain an OEM systems code string so you can use OEM license off of a junk OEM rig, which is much easier said then done lol

But yea $500 is the base line i use,

$100 buys a person windows leaving $400 for parts
add in shipping usually $25 leaves $375 roughly where this build sits the extra money from 340- to 375 allows for a quadcore and 4gigs ram