Is a $1000 Gaming Rig possible?

General Outline:

DVD Burner + 250GB SATA 3.0Gbps Hard Drive -> $100
Cheap Case + decent PSU -> $100
E6300 Core2Duo -> $180
Socket T Motherboard -> $70-$150
2GB 533Mhz DDR2 RAM -> $200
Midrange Graphics Card -> $200
19" LCD Monitor @1280x1024 -> $180
Basic keyboard/mouse/2.1 speakers -> $40

Total: $1150

Now that's above budget, but there are places to cut corners. Look for deals with rebates. For instance, the Antec Sonata II w/450W Smartpower Powersupply is only about $60 w/MIR right now. The eVGA GeForce 7900GS is only $165 after MIR. Maybe you don't need to overclock much, so you could go with a ~$70 motherboard and slightly cheaper RAM (or lower to 1GB if necessary). The point is, you can easily get this to $1000 and have a good, upgradeable mid-range gaming system. One thing to not overlook is shipping costs. You can easily spend $50 to ship the parts. It -might- be worth buying the heavy items (monitor, case, speakers) locally if it's cheaper than paying the shipping.

If you plan to overclock then you can't skimp as much on the mobo/ram and you'll also need a better cooling setup.

Here is a good bang-per-buck build I did recently for a buddy, wanted some OC potential so all he needs is a good CPU (and maybe GPU) heatsink when the stock ones can't cut it down the road...

Intel Core 2 Duo E63000 $182 shipped
GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 $144 shipped
OCZ Gold 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 $235 shipped w/ $30 MIR
BFG GeForce 7950 GT 512M $270 w/ $10 MIR
COOLER MASTER Centurion RC-531-KKN1 $40 shipped
Sunbeam NUUO SUNNU550-US-BK 550W $84 shipped
SAMSUNG Black 18X DVD+/-RW $36 shipped
Seagate Barracuda ST3320620AS 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB SATA 3.0Gb/s OEM $95 shipped

$1086 including shipping, w/ $40 in MIR

Hope it gives you some ideas, if you cripple the PSU / GPU / HDD you can easily budget in a monitor.

>> Re: Is a $1000 Gaming Rig possible?

sure if you're into pacman and doom 1.

heck yes, i got my pc for 600 something.. and thats condisdering i got riped off with the case.

Thanks so much everyone. This is all great information. I think I might wait a week or so and see if Sharky's comes out with a new Value Gaming PC buyers guide as the last one was in September. Great ideas and suggestions though, it's been a big help and given me something to chew on.

Ya'll are all going about this the wrong way.. here...

I got a friend who can sell you a Glock for a very decent price.



He'll even throw in a box of bullets for free if he likes you. Then, you find the richest nerdiest kid you know, and ask him, I'll trade you my uber cool gun for your geeky PC...

If he says yes, you get a nice PC... if he says no, you shoot him and take his PC anyways... win-win situation!

You only give the very best advice, Dough

i recommend the Seagate 7200.10 Hard Drives, very fast and cheap also 350G for less than $100 and performs close to the WD raptors

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822148140

the 7900 GS isn't as powerful as i thought mine would be, even over clocked
i believe the Sapphire XT1950Pro is around $200 and performs a little better, and with DX 10 around the corner, maybe even go with the EVGA 7900GS for $165 as mentioned earlier

buying a Core 2 duo 6300 + after market cooler, will give you slightly better speeds as a 6400 will with stock cooler, as THG recommends the E6400, its work the step up for the extra multiplier and the stock cooler OC's quite well

im still in the land of Dvd drive and 48x cd rom so no advice there

and memory, at least 2 gigs recommended

hope this helps

thats why you load it with blanks.

thats why you load it with blanks.

Touche!

I prefer the "word" PWNED!

Don't forget, you'll need an opperating system too. Budget another $80 at least. Look for one w/ the upgrade coupon for Vista.

Little sad No comments about the BETTER cheaper computer. AMD. It's NOT the cpu that's a gamer computer, it's the VIDEO. Get a AMD computer saving well over $100US and invest it into the VIDEO. That would be the TRUE cheap gaming machine. Ignore Intel wanna be employees. Intel is if you don't really care how much you spend and need power for other applications (Not games).

hhmmmm...(clears his throat) fanboi (cough*cough*cough*needs tylenol*coughs*)

Yep, my bad...

Don't forget the extra cost of the motherboard for that CPU over a 939. I do agree, however, that it's worth the stretch if at all possible.

Someone making a "Gaming Rig".

To the OP- I got my comp (A64 3200, 1g ram, x800xl, gigabyte mb, dvdrw, 160gig, raidmax case/psu, floppy, win xp) for under $500 shipped off ebay one year ago when the x800xl was selling for $300 new. Half of the parts were new. If you invest some time, you can find some really good deals. I ended up making good money per hour off the time I spent shopping. If you want to game a lot, I also would lean more toward an AMD with stronger video- your CPU won't help much if you can only afford a 7600GT. Balancing the CPU, video, and upgradability of your MB will be tricky if you want to stay on budget. Next year, however, there will be a lot of new technologies, and maybe you can sell this comp for $500 and then get something really spiffy. PM me if you like; finding solutions is my specialty, though I'm not the techiest person on this forum.

I just remembered something- if you get an LCD monitor, it'll have a native resolution, probably 1280x1024 unless you get a widescreen. That means you need a video card that can run the games you want, at the details you want, at that resolution, since turning it down to 1024x768 just looks nasty. Most people here already know this, but if you happen to be new to LCDs, it's something to keep in mind. More reason to spend more on the video than CPU, IMHO.

Well, I see there are Socket T MBs for less than $80, but I don't know much about the new chipsets, so let's start with that. Add in $183 for a 6300 and you're at $263.

Here is a DFI Lanparty with a 3400+ CPU. If you add in $10 for a cheapo HSF, it comes in at $205- a $58 savings.

Here is a Foxconn MB with a SiS chipset (I dunno anything about them) with the same 3400+ CPU and a 6200 video card for, with cheapo HSF and after MIR, $167- a $96 savings. The 6200 could be kept as spare, given as a present, or sold on eBay for at least $30. This would bring total savings to $126, give or take.

I'm sure there are better bargains to be had- I didn't spend a lot of time on this. And just because I link something doesn't mean I'm saying it's THE thing to buy. But when you're trying to get a solid gaming rig for cheap, you've gotta cut some corners...which corners they are depends on the individual. And my upgrade plan was listed- to sell the thing after a year when the prices from the upcoming new tasty stuff have come down to the realm of mortals (DX10, quad core, DDR3, Vista, etc). I just think right now is a poor time to grab the new gear if you're on a tight budget- we're right at the point where you pay a premium for new gear but also get to beta test it for the manufacturers. If anyone disagrees, please don't come behind me with a micrometer and a slide rule- make your own recommendation and let the OP make his own decision.

Oh, and if you're really only after games, remember the consoles. Remember that the PS3 has a Blu-Ray player, that the Wii has a new control design that no PC can match, and that the Xbox 360 is available NOW.