Best Cheap Gaming Build?

[phanbuey]

Originally Posted by T4C Fantasy

lol out of 34 reviews 1 confirms anything spark related, its reliable every psu has problems from some people read the reviews of bigger name brands youll find things too

combine my setup and it will be much more than a 4% differance i just did it seperately ^^ i mean placing all items together for those discounts

its 5% i thought your monitor was $174... so $46 instead of $40
180+795 = 975
yours is 929, like you said, so 46/929 = 5%



Point is ... the best gaming rigs are the ones with the most video card power. If you really want the best gaming at 1080P on modern titles, sacrifice everything to the videocard. Buy the cheapest case, get a super cheap oc-able processor (like a used AMD 950 or something), cheapo cooling, one hard drive and a DVD if you want to get fancy... then clock it as high as it will go and game.

[T4C Fantasy]

Originally Posted by erocker

I would never condemn my hardware or anyone else's hardware to the utter trash PSU. Regardless of the 34 reviews, it's made out of junk.

i like how everyone thinks its trash when theyve never owned this model. its reviews you can count on.

[Ravenas]

Originally Posted by entropy13

Intel Core i3-2120 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz LGA 1155 65... - $125

AMD FX-4100 Zambezi 3.6GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor FD4100WMGUSBX

109.99$ +10$ off instant rebate so 99.99$


MSI 760GM-P21 (FX) AM3+ AMD 760G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard 49.99$

ASRock N68C-GS FX AM3+ NVIDIA GeForce 7025 / nForce 630a Micro ATX AMD Motherboard 44.99$ but less ram 8gb max

GIGABYTE GA-M68MT-S2 AM3+ NVIDIA GeForce 7025/nForce 630a chipset Micro ATX AMD Motherboard $49.99


AMD owns your intel budget build.

[phanbuey]

^^ yeah my "rat rod" would be AMD too - the older gen AMD chips are money. Except the 2120 actually beats the zambesi in games lol.

At this point you're sacrificing alot of speed for not that much in savings tho...

[Ravenas]

Originally Posted by phanbuey

^^ yeah my "rat rod" would be AMD too - the older gen AMD chips are money. Except the 2120 actually beats the zambesi in games lol.

I like your build however I think he would be spending too much on a graphics card with that build. The motherboard is a little more expensive than I would spend on a budget build as well.

They may be faster but not enough to pay 25$ more.

[brandonwh64]

Originally Posted by T4C Fantasy

i like how everyone thinks its trash when theyve never owned this model. its reviews you can count on.

I have owned two and both died within 6 months of each other. one was a 400W and the other was a 600W

When it goes hope it doesn't take the rest with it.

[T4C Fantasy]

Originally Posted by phanbuey

^^ yeah my "rat rod" would be AMD too - the older gen AMD chips are money. Except the 2120 actually beats the zambesi in games lol.

At this point you're sacrificing alot of speed for not that much in savings tho...
http://img.techpowerup.org/120615/RatRod.jpg

i revised my selection

[newtekie1]

Originally Posted by T4C Fantasy

i like how everyone thinks its trash when theyve never owned this model. its reviews you can count on.

There are not legit reviews on it, newegg reviews are complete crap.

What I can go on is is experience as well as a few clues that the PSU is crap. Those clues are pretty obvious when you have experience.

The two 12v rails are only capable of 588w. That is only ~80% of the total rated power. Now, this alone isn't a dead give away of a poor power supply. The CX series from Corsair is right about the same 80%. However, add that the Aprevia isn't 80+ certified and that ~80% number becomes concerning. See, power supplies like the CX series from Corsair are purposely underrated, so that when they are tested they are actually under loaded and score better efficiency numbers. When you push a PSU to its absolute limits, the efficiency tanks. That means that when you push the Corsair units past their official limits, they will handle it(to a point obviously). When you push the Aprevia past its limits, it will likely die. I've personally seen the CX430 pull 33A from the 12v rail without a problem, and when it went over 33A the power supply gracefully turned off due to a proper OCP circuit. Not only did the PSU not kill any components it didn't kill itself. It fired right back up. I can't say I've ever seen an Aprevia unit do that.

Another major clue that the Aprevia unit is crap is the fact that it has no PFC. No PFC means that they cut corners making the unit. Massive cost cutting corners, because PFC is not that expensive to implement. The fact that there is no PFC is a very good indicator that there is also probably no proper OCP circuit, so when things start to go wrong, there is nothing stopping the dying power supply from taking the rest of the system with it. It also means that every power surge the Aprevia sees will be passed right along to all the components in the PC, not good.

So, the Aprevia might be a diamond in the rough, but all my experience tells me it isn't, and I wouldn't be willing to risk my ~$1000 build to PSU with all the problems I've listed, especially when there are so much better units for only a little bit more. I mean, if you are going into the $1000 range, don't put a $40 PSU in it, seriously. Get something good like a TX650 if you must, yes it is $70, but you'll be damn sure it isn't going to go pop and take your $1000 rig with it. In the big picture, the extra $30 is nothing.

Now, after all of that, my suggestion for a cheap quality gaming system:

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 95W Q... - $100-$10 = $90 <-Promo Code: HARDOCPX613B
ASUS M5A99X EVO AM3+ AMD 990X SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 A... - $135-$20 = $115 <-Mail-In
Refurbished: EVGA HD SuperClocked 012-P3-1573-RX G... - $270-$40.50 = $229.50 <-Promo Code: Ref15
PNY XLR8 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 160... - $43
Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKX 500GB 7200 ... - $75
CORSAIR Builder Series CX500 V2 500W ATX12V v2.3 8... - $60-$10-$6=$44 <-Mail-In and Promo Code: CorsairPSU612
Rosewill R218-P-BK Black SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower ... - $30-$4.50=$35.50 <-Promo Code: RWCASE1506
COOLER MASTER Hyper TX3 RR-910-HTX3-G1 "Heatpipe D... - $20

Total for PC: $650

Refurbished: HP DEBRANDED TSS-23X11 LED Black 23" ... - $125

Total for PC w/ 1080p LED Monitor: $777

Note: I could make this cheaper. I didn't go bottom of the barrel on the Motherboard because consider upgrade possibility as well as overclocking ability. This board, processor, heatsink, and RAM should be good for an easy 3.8GHz overclock. And before anyone asks, yes I have complete confidence that the CX500 V2 will handle the GTX570.

[Ravenas]

The best video cards for the money in my opinion:

XFX 6850 Video Card HD685XZCFC (Worth more in my opinion for the lifetime warranty) $134.99

or

PowerColor ATI Radeon HD6850 1 GB DDR5 2DVI/HDMI/DisplayPort PCI-Express Video Card AX6850 1 GBD5-DH $139.99

[erocker]

Originally Posted by T4C Fantasy

i like how everyone thinks its trash when theyve never owned this model. its reviews you can count on.

Going by the components used inside the unit explained in an actual review. It is pretty close to trash.

[T4C Fantasy]

Originally Posted by newtekie1

There are not legit reviews on it, newegg reviews are complete crap.

What I can go on is is experience as well as a few clues that the PSU is crap. Those clues are pretty obvious when you have experience.

The two 12v rails are only capable of 588w. That is only ~80% of the total rated power. Now, this alone isn't a dead give away of a poor power supply. The CX series from Corsair is right about the same 80%. However, add that the Aprevia isn't 80+ certified and that ~80% number becomes concerning. See, power supplies like the CX series from Corsair are purposely underrated, so that when they are tested they are actually under loaded and score better efficiency numbers. When you push a PSU to its absolute limits, the efficiency tanks. That means that when you push the Corsair units past their official limits, they will handle it(to a point obviously). When you push the Aprevia past its limits, it will likely die. I've personally seen the CX430 pull 33A from the 12v rail without a problem, and when it went over 33A the power supply gracefully turned off due to a proper OCP circuit. Not only did the PSU not kill any components it didn't kill itself. It fired right back up. I can't say I've ever seen an Aprevia unit do that.

Another major clue that the Aprevia unit is crap is the fact that it has no PFC. No PFC means that they cut corners making the unit. Massive cost cutting corners, because PFC is not that expensive to implement. The fact that there is no PFC is a very good indicator that there is also probably no proper OCP circuit, so when things start to go wrong, there is nothing stopping the dying power supply from taking the rest of the system with it. It also means that every power surge the Aprevia sees will be passed right along to all the components in the PC, not good.

So, the Aprevia might be a diamond in the rough, but all my experience tells me it isn't, and I wouldn't be willing to risk my ~$1000 build to PSU with all the problems I've listed, especially when there are so much better units for only a little bit more. I mean, if you are going into the $1000 range, don't put a $40 PSU in it, seriously. Get something good like a TX650 if you must, yes it is $70, but you'll be damn sure it isn't going to go pop and take your $1000 rig with it. In the big picture, the extra $30 is nothing.

thanks for your explaination

[phanbuey]

Originally Posted by Ravenas

The best video card for the money in my opinion:

XFX 6850 Video Card HD685XZCFC

If you can pick up something used:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...n=&s=&v=glance

But still... not enough power for 1080P $/performance its a linear scale to the 480 IMO (crunching some numbers right now).

[Ravenas]

The thing I don't like about the card is the length. Most budget builds don't have large cases and that is a very LARGE card length wise.

The xfx card is an extremely compact card.

Great card here with good used price of $130

XFX AMD Radeon HD 6870 900M 1 GB DDR5 DUAL MINIDP HDMI DUAL DVI PCI-E Video Card (HD687AZHFC) [/QUOTE]

Originally Posted by phanbuey

But still... not enough power for 1080P $/performance its a linear scale to the 480 IMO (crunching some numbers right now).

1080p and budget build don't go together imo

[T4C Fantasy]

Originally Posted by phanbuey

If you can pick up something used:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...n=&s=&v=glance

But still... not enough power for 1080P $/performance its a linear scale to the 480 IMO (crunching some numbers right now).

i removed the psu with a certified one and it comes with the same case i picked

[Ravenas]

Originally Posted by T4C Fantasy

i removed the psu with a certified one and it comes with the same case i picked

Never use PSUs included in a case...

[T4C Fantasy]

Originally Posted by Ravenas

The thing I don't like about the card is the length. Most budget builds don't have large cases and that is a very LARGE card length wise.

The xfx card is an extremely compact card.

Great card here with good used price of $130

XFX AMD Radeon HD 6870 900M 1 GB DDR5 DUAL MINIDP HDMI DUAL DVI PCI-E Video Card (HD687AZHFC)

1080p and budget build don't go together imo [/QUOTE]

thats a lie.. my brother gets steady 30FPS on Shift 2 with a HD6770

[Ravenas]

Originally Posted by T4C Fantasy

thats a lie.. my brother gets steady 30FPS on Shift 2 with a HD6770

I don't think a 6770 can completely tackle starcraft 2 in 1080p. Or world of warcraft for that matter.

Those are low quality graphics games btw.

No stedy at least.

[T4C Fantasy]

Originally Posted by Ravenas

Never use PSUs included in a case...

Originally Posted by Ravenas

thats a lie.. my brother gets steady 30FPS on Shift 2 with a HD6770

I don't think a 6770 can completely tackle starcraft 2 in 1080p. Or world of warcraft for that matter.

Those are low quality graphics games btw.[/QUOTE]

it definetly can since shift 2 is one of the best by far racing game for the pc *graphics wise*, and yes i have forza 4 and gt5 for 360 and ps3, and there are no other pc racing games including iracing that have better graphics then gt5 or forza 4

[phanbuey]

Under $500 ($465ish) with rebates and 2 good free games... (deus ex and Dirt 3)

[T4C Fantasy]

Originally Posted by Ravenas

Never use PSUs included in a case...

bull dookie.... read my pc specs.... uses case psu lol and its under ful lload almost 24/7

[JrRacinFan]

Off topic : this thread is on fire with how much flaming is going on.

On topic

Good inexpensive gaming CPU; shoot for an fx6200, 960t or i3 2100 series and base around that with your psu and gpu being you next choices.

[Ravenas]

Originally Posted by T4C Fantasy

bull dookie.... read my pc specs.... uses case psu lol and its under ful lload almost 24/7

If you are going to ask people what to use I don't think you should argue with them when they give you advice. FYI...

Anyhow good luck with your build!

[T4C Fantasy]

Originally Posted by phanbuey

Under $500 ($465ish) with rebates and 2 good free games... (deus ex and Dirt 3)

http://img.techpowerup.org/120615/ratrod2.jpg

i like it but the cooling in the case sucks, pay the extra 10 for the one i had without the combo psu

[Outback Bronze]

Id consider going a 7850 on this cheap build if i could source one for around $200. 2gb vram, low power and can overclock quite well. I hope i didnt add to the bonfire.

[T4C Fantasy]

Originally Posted by Outback Bronze

Id consider going a 7850 on this cheap build if i could source one for around $200. 2gb vram, low power and can overclock quite well. I hope i didnt add to the bonfire.

nah no more flaming, i was just wondering why everyone would cal lit trash when theres no evidence from "overall" reviews that it was trash, however i found my answer....

off topic... but why did my folding badge dissapear?