Gaming Rig help

[shapeshifter]

Hey guys need help with building a gaming rig for around 400 to 500 dollars.(only the cpu and case and stuff ofcourse as I have mouse keyboard monitor etc).I am confused because of-intel i3 2100 vs amd x4 or x6 or something, whether I should get sandy bridge or wait for ivy bridge etc.I just want a pc which can play games like gta 4 and some of the future games.I'm also thinking of getting a 4gb ram and 1gb graphic card (suggestions open for models) and wd 500 gb hdd.I am looking for a build which plays most of the good games well (casual gaming) and ofcourse day to day tasks as well.thanks and hope I framed it right coz its my first post here.

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[shapeshifter]

sorry mods about the other post.some bug prevented me from seeing the other thread.

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[Suprgamr232]

You're budget is a bit small, but I think I can help seeing how I built my gaming rig for a little less than $400.

First off, if you're from the US that is, check out Neweggs DIY deals. Sometimes they'll have some great ones around, I got an Intel I3-2100, 4GB of RAM, 1TB HDD, 600W PSU, case and motherboard for like $300. While looking, I recommend sticking with Intel for your CPU as AMDs tend to overheat and IMO aren't worth the money. The Intel I3 and up is what you'll want for gaming. Next, RAM. Really at this point in time nothing really uses over 4GB of RAM, so only go with more if you have leftover money to spend. HDD is rather simple, as long as you stay away from Seagate you'll be fine. 1TB would be fine for any gamer. GPU really depends on personal preference. Right now I've got a NVIDIA GeForce 440 with 512MB of GDDR5 RAM in my PC and it runs everything I've thrown at it quite smoothly. GeForce 400+ should run most games on medium-high settings, and you should be able to find the 440 for around $75. If you go ATI/AMD, go for the Radeon 6000 series +. I believe the 6670 sells for around $75 as well, so if you're strapped for cash go for that. As for a case, as long as it fits your motherboard form factor anything would be fine. You should ALWAYS choose your motherboard AFTER your CPU, so just go for anything that works with the CPU you choose. Make sure you stick with the well-known brands, and see if you can find something with USB 3.0 slots as well if you can because...well, why not? As for PSU, 600W+ should be fine for what you need.

Hope I helped!

[shapeshifter]

thanks I decided to wait a week and will get wd 1tb and what's with seagate in general?

[Suprgamr232]

Just bad manufacturing. Most of my Seagate drives have failed within the first few months. heck, a 1TB drive I got in the DIY bundle from Newegg is failing already and I got this rig in September.

[TheRazgriz]

If you live near a Microcenter i would go there. They are generaly running a combo deal on the i5/i7 and a decent mobo. When i went there i got an i5 2500k a Gigabyte Z68X UD3H B3 and some ram for under 400 after tax.


Also the x4 and x6 refers to AMD CPU and how many cores they have.

[shapeshifter]

Is amd phenom 2 x4 better or is i3 better for 150dollars for 2.5ghz to 3ghz.btw I'm not in America so no newegg micro centre etc pls.And will these two processors be able to play gta 4 etc with a 2gb or 4gb ram and nvidia graphic card for 150 dollars with 1gb graphics.pls recommend a good proven build because I rarely upgrade or buy a new pc.thanks

[garrei]

hmmm I dont know if i can help you... I built my rig for $2500... soooo if you want info on more high end parts, then i can help i guess.

[kthx0r]

hmmm I dont know if i can help you... I built my rig for $2500... soooo if you want info on more high end parts, then i can help i guess.

Did you actually build your rig? What's in it? That's a bit much.

[Wamphyri2b]

Similar to Garrei, the PC's I build tend to cost a *tad* more than $400. Plus I tend to build more high-end video encoding/editing machines than gaming rigs. When I do build Gaming machines I generally go with the video card choices or similar to what suprgmer232 suggested. Also do as he suggested and stay away from anything branded Seagate, unless you want to replace it in a few months. I almost always recommend putting half the maximum ram your motherboard can hold to start, but you don't have the budget for that so yeah 4GB would be great to start for you.
I would greatly disagree that AMD cpu's are anything but great. AMD cpu's go in about 80% of the machines I build and the only overheating complaints I get are from people who don't know how to use a can of air duster. I have a AMD Phenom x4 in my PC, they are great for encoding systems but I wouldn't really recommend them for a gaming pc. I have no experience with i3 cpu's, since nobody has ever asked for less than an i5 in any build I've done. If you go AMD, I would recommend spending $10 dollars more and getting a AMD FX-6xxx or $25 more and getting a AMD FX-8xxx series processor. These are the best processors I've had the pleasure of installing for a video encoding or gaming pc so far and the O.C. options are incredible. If your only options are Phenom IIx4 or i3 though, I would go with the i3 from what's "on paper". It's true that you probably don't need more than a 600watt PSU, but I always suggest 50 to 100 watts more than you need. Why? Because while not having enough power causes bad performance, it causes a much greater strain on your CPU and makes overheating a bigger issue than overclocking ever will. That is a simple fact of computing: not enough power->cpu strain->overheating->cpu damage/failure. I would really suggest upping your budget to around $600, but you should still be able to build a decent gamer with what your planning.