Budget Machine

Leggyweggy · 19 Dec 2011 at 15:02

Hi Guys

I need some help, I'm looking to build a budget machine for my brother for Xmas, he plays games like BF3 and CSS, Does this look alright:

AMD Bulldozer FX-4 Quad Core 4100 Black Edition 3.60Ghz (Socket AM3+) Processor - Retail **£10 CASHBACK**

Asus M5A78L-M/USB3 AMD 760G (Socket AM3+) DDR3 Motherboard

OcUK Crusade 550W Dual-Rail High Efficiency '80 Plus' Power Supply

G.Skill RipJaw 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C8 1333MHz Dual Channel Kit

OcUK Flamingo FM-12A Midi Tower Case - Black/Blue

2nd Hand 500GB SATA II (Not buying a harddrive at these costs)

GeForce GT 520 1024MB GDDR3

Any help would be much appreciated.

Liquid · 19 Dec 2011 at 15:09

You are going to have to get better video than a GT520 if you want to play games, especially BF3.

As you can see from the link below the 520 is a very poor option for gaming.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GT_520/13.html

Have a look at Bad Company 2 benches below also

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GT_520/7.html

BriT · 19 Dec 2011 at 15:13

Whats the budget? Get a better PSU like : http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-034-CS&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=1084

Leggyweggy · 19 Dec 2011 at 15:16

Liquid said:
You are going to have to get better video than a GT520 if you want to play games, especially BF3.

As you can see from the link below the 520 is a very poor option for gaming.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GT_520/13.html

Have a look at Bad Company 2 benches below also

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GT_520/7.html

What would be suitable I'm trying to keep costs as low as possible

Leggyweggy · 19 Dec 2011 at 15:17

BriT said:
Whats the budget? Get a better PSU like : http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-034-CS&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=1084

What difference would the PSU make?

Sorry, that sounds really unpolite but didn't know how to word it without sounding like a dick.

Liquid · 19 Dec 2011 at 15:20

Leggyweggy said:
What would be suitable I'm trying to keep costs as low as possible

I can appreciate that(and you are a great brother to be getting him what you are) but that GT520 is a £40 card, tbh you need to spend around £90 to £100 and get something like a GTX550. I know it's way more than you would like but the options are limited unless you look second hand.

It's a shame you do not have access to the Members Market on here as you could get some, if not all you are looking for off there. Got any mates who have got access to the MM?

Liquid · 19 Dec 2011 at 15:27

Leggyweggy said:
What difference would the PSU make?

Sorry, that sounds really unpolite but didn't know how to word it without sounding like a dick.

Not a lot other than the fact the Coolermaster is a more reputable brand, but then the CX range is Coolermaster budget and might not be any better than what you have picked anyway.

Leggyweggy · 19 Dec 2011 at 15:48

Thanks Very much, I'll probably try and get some one else to pitch in for the graphics card.

Liquid · 19 Dec 2011 at 16:43

Leggyweggy said:
Thanks Very much, I'll probably try and get some one else to pitch in for the graphics card.

I hate recommending you spend more money but tbh you want something that will do the job at the end of the day.

[WU-TANG]GZA · 19 Dec 2011 at 17:12

Liquid said:
I hate recommending you spend more money but tbh you want something that will do the job at the end of the day.

Agreed. You've not said what budget yet, so I've tried to keep costs as low as possible whilst also getting something that will play games.

I'm not sure on the motherboard - so someone else can point any failings it has etc...

AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 960T Black Edition "95W Edition" 3.00GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £103.99
(£86.66) £103.99
(£86.66)
Asus ATI Radeon HD 6770 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £89.99
(£74.99) £89.99
(£74.99)
MSI 880GMS-E35 AMD 880G (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard £51.98
(£43.32) £51.98
(£43.32)
XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £45.98
(£38.32) £45.98
(£38.32)
Cooler Master Elite 342 Case - Black £24.98
(£20.82) £24.98
(£20.82)
Corsair Vengeance Low Profile 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CML4GX3M2A1600C9) £23.99
(£19.99) £23.99
(£19.99)
Sub Total : £284.10
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £17.10
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £60.24
Total : £361.44

And an Intel spec - more expensive but it does perform better than the AMD CPU:

Intel Core i3-2100 3.10GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £95.99
(£79.99) £95.99
(£79.99)
Asus ATI Radeon HD 6770 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £89.99
(£74.99) £89.99
(£74.99)
Gigabyte Z68AP-D3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £79.98
(£66.65) £79.98
(£66.65)
XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £45.98
(£38.32) £45.98
(£38.32)
Cooler Master Elite 342 Case - Black £24.98
(£20.82) £24.98
(£20.82)
Corsair Vengeance Low Profile 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CML4GX3M2A1600C9) £23.99
(£19.99) £23.99
(£19.99)
Sub Total : £300.76
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £17.10
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £63.57
Total : £381.43

Reaper 392 · 19 Dec 2011 at 18:25

[WU-TANG]GZA, dont forget that the elite 342 is an mATX case, so you will either need to change the case or the motherboard of those builds

heres my budget gaming build recommendation:

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i3-2120 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £101.99
1 x Asus ATI Radeon HD 6770 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £89.99
1 x Cooler Master Silent Pro Modular 500W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £49.99
1 x **B Grade** MSI H67MA-E35 Intel H67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Micro-ATX Motherboard - (Sandybridge) **B3 REVISION** £44.98
1 x Cooler Master Elite 430 Windowed Case - Black £39.98
1 x Kingston HyperX Blu 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9AD3B1K2/4G) £23.99
Total : £351.44 using offer code CMdouble (includes shipping : £17.10).
check the news + deals section for info about the CMdouble offer

[WU-TANG]GZA · 19 Dec 2011 at 19:26

Reaper 392 said:
[WU-TANG]GZA, dont forget that the elite 342 is an mATX case, so you will either need to change the case or the motherboard of those builds

Very good point sir - didn't know that. Thanks

Reaper 392 · 19 Dec 2011 at 20:10

[WU-TANG]GZA;20834566 said:
Very good point sir - didn't know that. Thanks

the only reason i know it is because ive got one sitting right next to me.

Leggyweggy · 22 Dec 2011 at 15:04

Thanks for your help guys. Not sure what I'm going to go for yet. I think he may have to wait till after Xmas and see what sales there are.

Thanks again!