CAGputer - building your own cheap gaming PC

arbiter

arbiter

CAGiversary!
This is a work in progress, so feel free to propose changes.

I have friends at work ask me what it would take to build a decent gaming computer without breaking the bank. I started thinking about it and figured some CAG's might be able to use the same info.

So I sat down today and priced out the cheapest gaming PC that I think would be reliable and powerful enough to play most of the games out today with decent graphic settings, and be upgradeable for all the future eye candy.

I do have to give credit to Extremetech and Tomshardware articles, but they're both a bit dated, and did leave out some parts. (Like the OS and case)
The $500 gaming machine(Tom's Hardware)
The $800 gaming PC. (Extremetech)

Here is the list I came up with. All part numbers and prices are from Newegg.com:


CAGputer - version1.0:

Albatron K8SLi Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813170147 $69.99
(expandibility: Supports SLi graphics and Athlon X2 dual cores)


AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Venice 2000MHz HT Socket 939 Processor Model ADA3000BPBOX - Retail
Item #: N82E16819103537 $113.00
(This is a retail box, so you get the 3-year warranty and a stock cpu cooler in the box. This is just a basic single core cpu that's fast enough for gaming. If you have the cash or need more power later look at a faster Athlon64, or an X2 dual core)

CORSAIR ValueSelect 1GB 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered System Memory Model VS1GB400C3 - Retail
Item #: N82E16820145505 $78.99
(1GB in matched 512mb DIMMS for dual channel memory support with the motherboard)

ASUS EN6600/TD/128 Geforce 6600 128MB DDR PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814121180 $78.99
(this should give you decent DX9 gaming on the cheap. Add a second for SLi or replace with a better card in the future. If you have the cash, check out a 6600GT or 6800GT instead)

SAMSUNG Combo Drive Black IDE Model SH-M522C/BEBN - OEM
Item #: N82E16827151086 $24.99
(The bare minimum, burn CD-R's, read CD & DVD's, if you have the cash get a $35 DVDRW instead)

HITACHI Deskstar 7K80 HDS728080PLA380(0A30356) 80GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Item #: N82E16822145082 $46
(7200 RPM SATA on the cheap. You'll want for more space eventually, get another drive then)

Rosewill R103A Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 350W Power Supply - Retail
Item #: N82E16811147010 $29.99
(Not fancy, but it'll do the job. The power supply probably would need upgraded for an SLi setup. If you want something flashy, check out the Aspire X-Dreamer II or a good Antec case)

Microsoft Windows XP Home With SP2 - OEM
Item #: N82E16837102059 $84.99
(if you are a student, go to your university and see if you qualify to purchase an academic copy of XP instead. I know students in our area can get XP Pro for around $35 through the campus bookstore)

We'll assume you have a keyboard / mouse / monitor handy that you can use for this build.

So you're talking just over $525 + shipping and your time to build this.
Hope this helps...feel free to post if you have suggestions or questions.

(disclaimer: advice in this post is based on my own experience. Building a PC is not for everyone. Do your own research before building or buying. This list is what I believe will work, and should work, but I have no way to guarantuee performance or compatibility without building this machine myself...so YMMV.)
 
Great post! Ive been thinking about building a new PC and this list is just what I need! Thanks for the work you put into this.

ps-Mods, how about making this a sticky?
 
Not to take away from your work but , there's a article in this month's Maximum PC about building a $1000 PC that can play Prey at 50 fps .

Just FYI for all interested .
 
Not a problem. If you have $1k to spend, it's even better. My goal here is just the cheapest machine possible with a good upgrade path.

I thought about seeing what I could come up with using a Socket 754/AGP setup, but there would be no upgrade path. Might be cheaper though.
 
[quote name='urzishra14']i'm no computer expert.. but how hard is it to put together any soldering or anything[/QUOTE]
Computers are pretty easy to put together. The hard part is deciding what parts you want to put in it. Also, there's no soldering. Most of the parts are color coded or used connectors or sockets that only accept a part one way.
 
[quote name='urzishra14']i'm no computer expert.. but how hard is it to put together any soldering or anything[/QUOTE]


It's like building one of those $4 Lego sets. You build it once w/ the instruction, and the next time you can probably build the computer without it. It's just a matter of hands on experience. Like the guy above said, getting all the right parts is actually the hardest part.
 
(stolen from bigmoneygrip @ sd) you can get this antec case from fry's for $24.99 AR:

http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=92650

the retail price is $89.95!

[quote name='antec']We believe that you shouldn’t have to empty your wallet in order to build your dream computer. That’s why our SLK2650-BQE boasts an array of features usually limited to more expensive cases. Like an ultraquiet 350 Watt SmartPower2.0 power supply. Eight drive bays for maximum expandability. A low-speed 120mm fan for remarkably quiet cooling. And it’s backed by our unbeatable 3-year warranty. So grab one today![/quote]

:hot:
 
Yes, that is a good quiet Antec case. We used to use them on the computers we built at my day job. That's a screaming deal on them. Normally they're about $60ish w/ the 350 watt power supply.

As for building your first PC. I find the best way is to get someone who really knows their stuff to walk you through it. Pay a geek friend in pizza or beer to supervise you. :) I've shown a couple of my friends how to do it, and they're all pretty proficient now, they're at least comfortable opening the case and changing out a card or drive cable.

My tips for newbies:
Be careful putting in the ATX backplane cover...they tend to be sharp...you can easily cut yourself. I like to line them up and then tap them in gently with the handle of a screwdriver instead of my fingers.

Make sure you count your motherboard standoffs, if you put an extra in, or forget one, you can short out the motherboard. I usually lay the motherboard in the case and dot each mounting hole with a Sharpie marker.
Then I take the board out and mark the holes clearly, and mount the standoffs.

Don't use a powered screwdriver on the motherboard. You can easily overtighten a screw and crack the board, but more often you can slip off a screw and drag the head of the driver across something delicate. Save the power driver for the drive bays and case.

Cool tip I learned from work, don't unbundle cables until you're done. Leave any fan/power/drive cables tied up with their rubber bands or twist ties until you're ready to connect them, then just feed out the exact length you need plus a little slack. Next ziptie the bundled end, and connect the cable. If you keep them all bundled tightly until you put the ziptie on, it'll look nicer than if you try to gather them back up afterward.
 
For those of you guys who have held off this long to buy a PC, I'd advise you to wait a little longer (if you can). Windows Vista is future of PC gaming, like it or not. It will introduce Direct X 10 and in addition to that, Windows Live - essentially an extension of Xbox Live.

It is scheduled to release January of '07, so what you guys should do is start setting cash aside now for making your big investment early next year.

Also a couple tips I have not yet seen mentioned:
  • Buy the best / most up-to-date motherboard as possible. The motherboard is essentially the backbone of your entire PC. You do not want to have to swap out motherboard's when you make computer upgrades the following year.
  • Don't forget to purchase round IDE cables for your hard drives, cd/dvd drives, floppy drives. By doing so, and avoiding standard IDE flat cables, you will drastically improve you're PC's airflow.
 
There is one part I have to recommend and that is the UPS. If you're putting money into a computer, you should pick one of these up. You can keep the machine running for a few minutes if the power goes out and it also has surge protection. My family's had the APC ones for a long time and had the best experience with them. You can usually find them on sale for $50 or less.

Also don't get a super cheap power supply.
 
[quote name='erehwon']There is one part I have to recommend and that is the UPS. If you're putting money into a computer, you should pick one of these up. You can keep the machine running for a few minutes if the power goes out and it also has surge protection. My family's had the APC ones for a long time and had the best experience with them. You can usually find them on sale for $50 or less.

Also don't get a super cheap power supply.[/quote]

UPS?
 
[quote name='cyrix`']If you know computers well you can easily make a really good PC for 500 or less.[/quote]

see...i used to think that, i got everything together except for monitor and mouse for 450 bucks

Athlon 64 3000+
1GB Cosair Ram
160GB Hard Drive
Aspire Dreamer II Case
Windows Home Upgrade
Solidburn DVD +/- RW
Flopply Drive

I thought i was good, then i got a 20.1 BenQ widescreen and a x1800xt... which in total cost more than the system itself! and pushed tht total to 1100
 
[quote name='Americanpierg']UPS?[/QUOTE]

An Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) is a device that sits between a power supply (e.g. a wall outlet) and a device (e.g. a computer) to prevent undesired features of the power source (outages, sags, surges, bad harmonics, etc.) from the supply from adversely affecting the performance of the device.

While I personally have never owned one, it does seem like a wise investment.
 
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