Hey everyone!
So site traffic has been increasing steadily.
I want everyone reading this to know that I'm appreciative, and to understand that this site is a work in progress.
Some sections aren't yet finished (servers and media editing PCs, specifically, but recommended products too) and other parts of the site will under go some changes, especially the charts. With new CPUs and GPUs being introduced every month, information on this site will get updated accordingly.
With that said, please remember to bookmark the site so that you get up to date info for your PCs, and if you like the site, please leave me some feedback (comments or emails appreciated. Twitter and Facebook on the way soon). And if you really like the site, please spread the word.
This is my labor of love, and I hope it shows.
- Wes
P.S. Black Friday is almost over. I hope everyone got some good deals. If not, there's always Cyber Monday!
Friday, November 23, 2012
Welcome!
Welcome to the site!
My name is Wes, and my hobby is computers.
You might be saying to yourself, "Computers? That's not a hobby! It's a category of general purpose mechanical or digital devices that carry out mathematical and logical operations based upon an external input or a preset and predefined program and/or algorithm!" You know... computers.
And you're right. Computers themselves are not a hobby. Computer programming is a hobby. Building computers is a hobby. Computer modding is a hobby. So on and so forth. I do all of that. So my hobby is computers. Deal with it. I'm into it all.
I'm also cheaper than Chinese toothpaste.
So how do I reconcile the two? Easy. I'm frugal. I build computers on the cheap, and save money over time by planning ahead. I build my own computers, each one designed for a specific purpose, and each one balanced to squeeze as much performance out as possible within the budget.
Head on over to any popular computer forum and you'll encounter hundreds, maybe thousands, of posts asking, "What's the best PC for me?" And the answer is usually the same: "What's your intent and purpose with the PC, and what's your budget?"
After answering hundreds of these posts myself, and finding that I was repeating the same answers over and over, I thought it to be prudent if I consolidated all of it under one blog.
With that, welcome, to Budget PCs!
So head on over to one of the many sections, and get started on your own computer!
- Wes
P.S. Feel free to leave comments or questions.
My name is Wes, and my hobby is computers.
You might be saying to yourself, "Computers? That's not a hobby! It's a category of general purpose mechanical or digital devices that carry out mathematical and logical operations based upon an external input or a preset and predefined program and/or algorithm!" You know... computers.
And you're right. Computers themselves are not a hobby. Computer programming is a hobby. Building computers is a hobby. Computer modding is a hobby. So on and so forth. I do all of that. So my hobby is computers. Deal with it. I'm into it all.
I'm also cheaper than Chinese toothpaste.
So how do I reconcile the two? Easy. I'm frugal. I build computers on the cheap, and save money over time by planning ahead. I build my own computers, each one designed for a specific purpose, and each one balanced to squeeze as much performance out as possible within the budget.
Head on over to any popular computer forum and you'll encounter hundreds, maybe thousands, of posts asking, "What's the best PC for me?" And the answer is usually the same: "What's your intent and purpose with the PC, and what's your budget?"
After answering hundreds of these posts myself, and finding that I was repeating the same answers over and over, I thought it to be prudent if I consolidated all of it under one blog.
With that, welcome, to Budget PCs!
So head on over to one of the many sections, and get started on your own computer!
- Wes
P.S. Feel free to leave comments or questions.
Nov 2012 - $400 Server
Description: This mini-ITX server/NAS is a good fit for the individual or small family. The case's footprint is rather small, but supports 6 full sized hard drives (five 3.5" bay + one 5.25" bay). A fanless motherboard keeps the build very quiet, and the low-power integrated C-60 dual-core CPU provides plenty of power for file serving needs. The motherboard supports up to 6 SATA III devices, and has 12 (6 internal, 6 external) USB 2.0 ports, meaning you could potentially have 16TB of high speed storage and 32 TB of medium speed storage connected to this at once if you were using nothing but 3TB drives (assuming 3TB drives eventually have their problems worked out). Of course, for this low-budget build, we will only be adding 4 TB of hard drive space, which you can expand on later on. A gigE NIC means great networking speeds. An efficient power supply will keep your monthly electric bill down, and the lack of any other peripheral means that power consumption and heat generation is at a minimum.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $386 | --- | $386 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| RAM | G.Skill 4GB 1600MHz | $18 | --- | Newegg |
| Hard Drive | 2 x WD Caviar Green 2 TB Refurb | $180 | --- | Newegg |
| Case | Bitfenix Prodigy | $80 | --- | Newegg |
| Power Supply | Antec EA-380D | $28 | --- | Amazon Warehouse |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Motherboard + CPU | ASUS C60M1-I | AMD C-60 APU | $80 | --- | Newegg |
Case: Replaces the case with a slightly smaller one. The case has less hard drive bays, so expansion is impacted, but if you feel that 4 hard drives would be enough, the CM Elite 120 would be a good fit for you. You'll also save quite a nice chunk of change with this cases, so that can either be saved up, or can go towards a small SSD or HDD boot drive.
| Substitutions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Case | CM Elite 120 | $50 | $10 | Newegg |
| SSD | Samsung 830 64GB | $63 | --- | Amazon |
| Hard Drive | WD Caviar Blue 500GB Refurb | $50 | --- | Newegg |
Power Supply: Replace the power supply with a PicoPSU. The PicoPSU has no fan and is powered by a power-brick (AC-DC adapter). It's also 90% efficient at most power levels, meaning you get more power from each watt drawn from the wall. The PicoPSU will require a series of adapters and brackets to work, all of which are included below. It should be compatible with either of the cases above. The 120W PicoPSU below maxes out at 102W using the provided adapter, which should be enough for the motherboard, CPU, and 6 hard drives to all be running at full load, and still have power to spare. However, if you feel like you need more power, 150W and 160W versions are available as well.
| Substitutions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Power Supply | PicoPSU 120W + 102W Adapter | $55 | --- | Mini-Box |
| Power Supply | PicoPSU 150W + 150W Adapter | $70 | --- | Mini-Box |
| Power Supply | PicoPSU 160W + 192W Adapter | $76 | --- | Mini-Box |
| Bracket | Rear Power Jack Bracket | $1 | --- | Mini-Box |
| Adapter | (2) MOLEX to 2x SATA | $6 | --- | Newegg |
| Adapter | MOLEX Splitter | $4 | --- | Newegg |
Expansion: Expansion is simple with the Prodigy. Simply buy some more hard drives (matching ones, if you are implementing RAID) and add them to the case bays. If you need to add a 6th hard drive, use a 3.5" to 5.25" bay adapter, and add the hard drive to the 5.25" optical drive bay of the case. With 6 hard drives, you'll have used up all the internal SATA ports on the motherboard.
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Nov 2012 - $300 Office
Description: The $300 office PC entry is an upgrade from the entry-level $200 nettop. You get an upgraded CPU, upgraded storage, and more expansion options. Unfortunately, the mini-ITX tower, while not huge, is still larger than the $200 nettop build, so you will have to take this into consideration. Otherwise, this is a respectable CPU capable of every mundane task you can think of for a computer, and then some. A Seagate hybrid SSD+HDD drive provides faster and plentiful storage for this machine.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $291 | $15 | $275 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| CPU | Intel G540 | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| Hard Drive | Seagate Momentus XT 750GB | $130 | --- | Newegg |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Case + Power Supply | HEC ITX200B | Integrated PSU | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| Motherboard + RAM | ECS H61H2-I3 | Crucial 4GB DDR3 1600MHz | $61 | $15 | Newegg |
This build came in a little under budget. If you can spare it, it any of the upgrades below would be a good investment.
SSD: Replace the hybrid drive with a medium-capacity SSD.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Kingston HyperX 3K 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Sandisk Extreme 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 180GB | $100 | --- | Newegg |
CPU: Upgrade the CPU to a faster Pentium series.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Intel Pentium G630 | $65 | --- | Newegg |
| Intel Pentium G860 | $75 | --- | Newegg |
ODD: Invest in an external USB optical disk drive.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| ASUS USB 2.0 DVD-Burner | $30 | $5 | Newegg |
Nov 2012 - $200 Office
Description: This entry level nettop is a step up from the standard Intel Atom found in netbooks. Capable of all the basic computing tasks, it also has a nice GPU built in, meaning you get a good browsing experience with streaming video playback. However, the small size means that there is absolutely no room for expansions. There are three upgradable parts: the hard drive, the RAM, and the wifi card. Apart from that, everything is integrated into the system and motherboard and cannot be altered.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $208 | --- | $208 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Barebone System | FoxConn A45 | $140 | --- | Newegg |
| RAM | G.Skill 4GB DDR3 | $18 | --- | Newegg |
| Hard Drive | WD Scorpio Blue 320GB | $50 | --- | Amazon |
SSD: There are a small number of ~$50 (used and refurbished) SSDs floating around between 60GB and 80GB. Any of these would make a good substitute for the hard drive, assuming you don't need the space of a large hard drive. Of course, you'll have to hunt these SSDs down yourself. Try to get an Intel X25-G2 or 300 series, Crucial C300 or M4. Any of those are a safe bet. Otherwise, try to look up the SSD model and find reviews for it.
Nov 2012 - $400 HTPC
Description: This month's $400 HTPC is powered by an AMD A6-3650 quad-core in an ASRock A75 mini-ITX motherboard. The CPU upgrade is throw in for good measure, even though an A4-3400 dual-core would be sufficient. The price difference between the two is neglible. The motherboard comes with USB 3.0, gigE, and HDMI standard for maximum connectivity. The HDD has been doubled from 500GB in the $200 build to 1TB in this build, and an SSD is included standard in this build. It's a small powerhouse of a computer capable of light gaming on top of playing just about any media you would want it to. The mini-ITX case is slightly larger than the $200 build's case, but provides a substantially larger amount of room for expansion, including four 3.5" hard drive bays, as well as room for a full-sized dual-slot graphics card. If you wanted to build an HTPC/gaming PC/file server, this is where you want to start.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $394 | $10 | $384 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| RAM | Crucial 4GB 1600MHz | $19 | --- | Newegg |
| Power Supply | Antec EA-380D | $28 | --- | Amazon Warehouse |
| Hard Drive | WD Caviar Blue 1TB | $85 | --- | Newegg |
| SSD | Crucial M4 64GB | $66 | --- | Amazon |
| Case | CM Elite 120 | $50 | $10 | Newegg |
| Optical Drive | LITE-ON DVD Burner | $16 | --- | Newegg |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Motherboard + CPU | ASRock A75M-ITX | AMD A6-3650 | $130 | --- | Newegg |
The following modifications are for changing the HTPC into a multi-purpose machine.
Gaming: To turn this little PC into a gaming rig, simply add any of the following graphics cards and, if needed, replace the power supply. This will break the budget. These are upgrades, not substitutions. Also, although you may upgrade to practically any grphics card you want, remember that you only have a mid-range CPU in this machine. Thus, you can quickly reach a bottleneck. Any of the graphics cards below will provide a good gaming experience, and balance the machine out well.
| Gaming Upgrades | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Power Supply | Link |
| SAPPHIRE HD 6670 | $65 | $15 | --- | Newegg |
| MSI HD 7770 GHz ed | $100 | $30 | --- | Newegg |
| EVGA GTX 650 Ti | $140 | --- | CX430 @ Newegg | Newegg |
| Gigabyte HD 7850 | $170 | $20 | RD500 @ Newegg | Newegg |
File server: To turn this HTPC into a file server, you would want to maximize the storage. To do this, you can do a multitude of things. The easiest would be to increase the capacity of the single hard drive that is already included in the build from a 1TB drive to a 2TB or 3TB drive. Additionally, you could add a second hard drive. You could also remove the SSD and/or DVD-drive and replace each with another hard drive. With 4 3TB hard drives, you would have 12TB of physical storage.
You can implement RAID 0 for a speed boost, but realistically, that wouldn't be necessary. In a home server, the bottleneck would most likely be your network and not the hard drive read speed. You also double the risk of losing your data because of the data striping with RAID 0.
If your files are extremely important (family photos and videos, work documents, etc...), I would recommend using the built-in RAID 1 or RAID 10 on the motherboard. RAID 1 mirrors a pair of hard drives, effectively cutting their capacity in half, but increasing data redundancy. If one of the drives fail, the other remains with the same data intact, giving you time to replace the other drive. RAID 10 is a combination of RAID 1 and RAID 0. The data is striped, and then mirrored. RAID 10 is preferable because it provides a speed boost, as well as redundancy.
Nov 2012 - $200 HTPC
Description: This little machine is powered by an Intel Celeron G540. The lack of a low-priced AMD mini-ITX motherboard at any of the major retailers takes AMD out of the running, or else I would recommend the A4-3400 APU for the same price as the G540. However, do see the variations below if you want an AMD setup. HDMI output allows you to connect directly to an HDTV or projector. Intel HD Graphics is just sufficient enough for video playback and streaming, but certainly not for anything but the most casual gaming. 4GB of RAM is par for the course, and the mini-ITX case is small and compact.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $212 | $15 | $197 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| CPU | Intel G540 | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| Hard Drive | WD Caviar Blue 500GB | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| Optical Drive | LITE-ON DVD Burner | $16 | --- | Newegg |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Motherboard + RAM | ECS H61H2-I3 | Crucial 4GB DDR3 1600MHz | $61 | $15 | Newegg |
| Case + Power Supply | Apex MI-008 | Integrated PSU | $35 | --- | Newegg |
HDD: These refurbished RE2 drives from Newegg make a great alternative to the Caviar Blue. For just $5 more, you get 50% more capacity, and maybe even more speed. However, being refurbs, they won't be as well-stocked.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| WD RE2 750GB | $55 | --- | Newegg |
SSD: If you have a file server from which you can stream all your movies and, thus, have no need for much local storage, then going with one of these SSDs can provide a nice speed boost for your setup.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Crucial M4 64GB | $66 | --- | Amazon |
| Samsung 830 64GB | $63 | --- | Amazon |
AMD: If you have a preference towards AMD, this build will be equal, if not, better than the one above. The one caveat is that it will be in a substantially larger case due to there not being any decent AMD mini-ITX motherboards around. Also, the motherboard included does not have HDMI, so you will have to use an HDMI-to-DVI adapter to get video and audio to an HDTV.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $205 | $15 | $190 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Hard Drive | WD Caviar Blue 500GB | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| Optical Drive | LITE-ON DVD Burner | $16 | --- | Newegg |
| HDMI-DVI Adapter | Generic Adapter | $4 | --- | Amazon |
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Nov 2012 - $1250 Gaming PC
Description: Still powered by a Core i5-2500k, this mid-sized desktop is only for the most serious gamer. With a pair of Crossfired 7950s, this machine is capable of resolutions still not yet amongst common consumers. It's pretty much as good as money can buy for current games. HD? Piece of cake. Anti-aliasing? Check. Anisotropic filtering? Got it. 3 Monitors? No problem. 2 games at the same time? Sure, why not? This machine has so much power you will find yourself throwing everything but the kitchen sink at it just to see if it will slow down.
Note: MicroCenter has these CPUs on sale at ridiculous prices. If you have a store nearby, I'd recommend you get your CPU and motherboard there for even more savings (easily $100 less than other retailers).
Expect excellent performance with multiple HD monitors at high settings.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $1240 | --- | $1240 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Motherboard | GIGABYTE GA-Z77X-UP4 | $185 | --- | Newegg |
| RAM | G.Skill 8GB DDR3 1600MHz | $25 | --- | Newegg |
| Power Supply | Rosewill XTreme 850W | $100 | --- | Newegg |
| SSD | Kingston HyperX 3K 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Case | NZXT GAMMA | $35 | --- | Amazon |
| Graphics | 2 x Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 | $530 | --- | Amazon Warehouse |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| CPU + Cooler | Intel Core i5-2500k | Corsair H60 | $265 | --- | Newegg |
SSD: I'd recommend keeping the Kingston 3K drives since they are some of the top-rated and fastest around. But, if you absolutely want to substitue it, feel free.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Sandisk Extreme 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Crucial M4 128GB | $103 | --- | Amazon |
| Samsung 830 128GB | $99 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 180GB | $100 | --- | Newegg |
Nov 2012 - $1000 Gaming PC
Description: A little uneventful... this is the exact same thing as the $750 PC, but with an updated graphics card and an SSD instead of an HDD. Still, it's a monstrous machine, only for those who consider themselves hardcore gamers.
Note: MicroCenter has these CPUs on sale at ridiculous prices. If you have a store nearby, I'd recommend you get your CPU and motherboard there for even more savings (easily $100 less than other retailers).
Expect excellent 2560x1600 performance at high settings, and great performance with multiple HD monitors at med-high settings.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $1005 | $30 | $975 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Motherboard | BIOSTAR TZ77B | $90 | $20 | Newegg |
| RAM | G.Skill 8GB DDR3 1600MHz | $25 | --- | Newegg |
| Power Supply | OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W | $75 | $10 | Newegg |
| SSD | Kingston HyperX 3K 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Case | NZXT GAMMA | $35 | --- | Amazon |
| Graphics | Sapphire HD 7970 3GB GHz ed | $470 | --- | Newegg |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| CPU + Cooler | Intel Core i5-2500k | XIGMATEK Gaia SD1283 | $210 | --- | Newegg |
SSD: Any of these SSDs will make a good substitute, but the Kingston 3K drives are some of the top-rated and fastest around.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Sandisk Extreme 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Crucial M4 128GB | $103 | --- | Amazon |
| Samsung 830 128GB | $99 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 180GB | $100 | --- | Newegg |
Nov 2012 - $750 Gaming PC
Description: Powered by a Core i5-2500k, this mid-sized desktop has officially entered enthusiast territory. Go ahead and give yourself a pat on the back. Go ahead, no one will care if it looks weird... Of course, this powerhouse CPU means you get the best gaming performance avaiable out of a mid-priced CPU. Non-gaming performance is also excellent, thanks to the quad-core design of the chip. The K series CPUs from Intel are also overclockable, meaning that you get an automatic extension on the life of you machine. A year or two from now, if you decide you need more power, go in the BIOS, bump up the multiplier to 40 or so, and you get a nice 4.9 GHz quad core CPU in less than 30 seconds. RAM is 8GB, upgradable to more. A beefy 600W power supply provides plenty of clean efficient power for this machine. Since this PC is overclockable, a high-performance CPU cooler is included in the build. The 7950 is factory-overclocked a nice 100MHz to give an out-of-the-box boost to gaming performance.
Note: MicroCenter has these CPUs on sale at ridiculous prices. If you have a store nearby, I'd recommend you get your CPU and motherboard there for even more savings (easily $100 less than other retailers).
Expect excellent 2560x1600 performance out of most games at high settings and good performance with multiple HD monitors at medium settings.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $770 | $30 | $740 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Motherboard | BIOSTAR TZ77B | $90 | $20 | Newegg |
| RAM | G.Skill 8GB DDR3 1600MHz | $25 | --- | Newegg |
| Power Supply | OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W | $75 | $10 | Newegg |
| Hard Drive | WD Caviar Black 500GB | $70 | --- | Newegg |
| Case | NZXT GAMMA | $35 | --- | Amazon |
| Graphics | Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 | $265 | --- | Amazon Warehouse |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| CPU + Cooler | Intel Core i5-2500k | XIGMATEK Gaia SD1283 | $210 | --- | Newegg |
SSD: Budget-friendly SSD substitutions remain the same as from the $300 and $500 builds. 60GB should be able to hold your OS, basic applications, and 3 - 6 full games. If you're willing to go slightly over budget, $90-$100 will get you a 90GB or 120GB SSD.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Crucial M4 64GB | $66 | --- | Amazon |
| Samsung 830 64GB | $63 | --- | Amazon |
| Kingston HyperX 3K 90GB | $88 | --- | Amazon |
| Kingston HyperX 3K 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Sandisk Extreme 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 180GB | $100 | --- | Newegg |
Nov 2012 - $500 Gaming PC
Description: A mid-sized desktop. A core i3 powers this machine, meaning you get a dual core with quad core gaming power thanks to Intel's Hyper-Threading technology. Gaming performance is equivalent to an AMD Phenom II x4 900 series CPU. Non-gaming performance is about on par with other dual-cores. RAM is a standard 8GB, easily upgradable to more. Motherboard supports USB 3.0, as well as x16/x4 Crossfire (which you probably won't want to use anyways). A beefy 480W power supply provides clean power for this machine. You also get a nice bump in graphics performance with the HD 7850 and a nice boost from the Caviar Black hard drive.
Expect excellent 1080p performance out of most games at high settings, good performance at 2560x1600 at medium settings.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $525 | $35 | $490 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| CPU | Intel Core i3-2100 | $120 | --- | Newegg |
| RAM | G.Skill 8GB DDR3 1600MHz | $25 | --- | Newegg |
| Power Supply | Rosewill Stallion RD500-2DB | $40 | --- | Newegg |
| Hard Drive | WD Caviar Black 500GB | $70 | --- | Newegg |
| Graphics | XFX Radeon HD 7850 | $170 | $20 | Newegg |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Motherboard + Case | MSI Z77A-G41 | Rosewill Blackbone | $100 | $15 | Newegg |
SSD: With the lack of quality, > 64GB capacity SSDs at the $70 price point, the budget-friendly SSD substitutions remain the same as from the $300 build. Keep the same configuration above, but replace the WD Caviar Black HDD with a 60GB SSD. 60GB should be able to hold your OS, basic applications, and 3 - 6 full games. At the slightly-over-budget $90-$100 price point, 90GB and 120GB SSDs become available. There's even a crazy clearance deal for Intel 180GB SSDs. But be quick, they'll run out soon.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Crucial M4 64GB | $66 | --- | Amazon |
| Samsung 830 64GB | $63 | --- | Amazon |
| Kingston HyperX 3K 90GB | $88 | --- | Amazon |
| Kingston HyperX 3K 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Sandisk Extreme 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 120GB | $100 | --- | Amazon |
| Intel 330 180GB | $100 | --- | Newegg |
Nov 2012 - $300 Gaming PC
Description: A Micro-ATX desktop in a mid-sized case. A basic configuration, the motherboard supports newer CPUs as well, meaning you have room for a future upgrade. The dual-slot graphics means you'll always be able to upgrade to a more powerful card. This board also comes with gigE, which is an improvement over the standard 10/100. All the other features are pretty much par for the course. The case has plenty of room for expansion, and plenty of vents for air circulation. The CPU is plenty powerful for basic gaming and general purpose computing. The GPU is the center of this machine. Its a powerhouse of a card, considering the price.
Expect excellent 720P performance out of most games at high settings, good performance at 1600x900 resolution at medium-high settings, and playable quality at 1080P with low-medium settings.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $293 | $20 | $273 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| CPU | Intel G540 | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| Motherboard | ASRock H61M-DGS | $45 | --- | Newegg |
| RAM | AMD 2GB DDR3 1600MHz | $10 | --- | Newegg |
| Power Supply | Antec EA-380D | $28 | --- | Amazon Warehouse |
| Hard Drive | WD Caviar Blue 500GB | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| Case | NZXT GAMMA | $35 | --- | Amazon |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Graphics + RAM | XFX HD 6750 | AMD 2GB DDR3 1333MHz | $75 | $20 | TigerDirect |
SSD: Same configuration, but replace the WD Caviar Blue HDD with a 60GB SSD for about $15 more. Less space, but more speed. 60GB should be able to hold your OS, basic applications, and 3 - 6 full games.
| Substitutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Crucial M4 64GB | $66 | --- | Amazon |
| Samsung 830 64GB | $63 | --- | Amazon |
Mini-ITX: Basically the same configuration in a much smaller case with a mini-ITX motherboard. Obviously, there is much less (oh... approximately zero) room for expansion, but the overall footprint is cut in half. Of course, you pay a small premium for the smaller footprint with an extra $20 out of pocket cost ($10 after rebates). Note that this configuration only has 4GB RAM vs 6GB, but that shouldn't make much of a difference. Consider the extra 2GB of RAM in the other configuration as an optional bonus.
| Cost Breakdown | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subtotal | MIRs | Total |
| $313 | $30 | $283 |
| Individual Parts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| CPU | Intel G540 | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| Motherboard | Foxconn H61S | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| RAM | AMD 2GB DDR3 1600MHz | $10 | --- | Newegg |
| Power Supply | Antec EA-380D | $28 | --- | Amazon Warehouse |
| Hard Drive | WD Caviar Blue 500GB | $50 | --- | Newegg |
| Case | CM Elite 120 | $50 | $10 | Newegg |
| Combos | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Part | Part | Price | MIR | Link |
| Graphics + RAM | XFX HD 6750 | AMD 2GB DDR3 1333MHz | $75 | $20 | TigerDirect |
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