First time builder, need advice

powerist · 06-24-2009, 04:03 PM

So my friend and I, both highschoolers, have long been interested in PC gaming, but have never been able to start playing for different reasons. I can't because I run Mac OS X on a laptop and simply don't have the space to dual boot. He can't because his PC is too old and slow to run PC games. So we decided to pool our resources and build a machine that we could both use. I went down to the local computer parts store and got an itemized list of products they carry that could be used to build a base-level gaming PC that my friend and I can upgrade over time. Here's what I was told:

10-bay ATX case - $39.99
M61PME Socket AM2+ - $69.99
Athlon 64x2 7750 dual core CPU - $74.99
Geforce 9400 GT 512MB PCI-E video card - $54.99
2GB DDR2 RAM - $29.99 (x2)
500GB SATA HDD - $59.99
CD-RW Combo optical drive - $6.99
Thermal Paste - $4.99

TOTAL (after tax) - $401.4

Now, we really don't need a fast-spinning optical drive or anything special since we really only need it for the occasional CD and to install the OS, and the OS isn't included on this list because we have a copy of Windows XP ready that we're just going to update to a Windows 7 RC operating system. So my question is, does this sound like A: a good baseline gaming PC and B: a good bargain price-wise? Our max budget is between 500-600 dollars, so this seems to fit into our price range really nicely. Thoughts?

**wrench97** · 06-25-2009, 01:07 PM

You seem to short a power supply, if it comes in the case for $40 it'll be junk a decent case is over $40, the 9400 is a very weak video card may play online games ok but nothing like Cyrsis, A $7 DVD burner is awful cheap.
As is the ram, I think your looking at a major headache here a decent gaming rig will run $600-$800.

**wrench97** · 06-25-2009, 01:07 PM

You seem to short a power supply, if it comes in the case for $40 it'll be junk a decent case is over $40, the 9400 is a very weak video card may play online games ok but nothing like Cyrsis, A $7 DVD burner is awful cheap.
As is the ram, I think your looking at a major headache here a decent gaming rig will run $600-$800.

06-24-2009, 04:03 PM	#1 (permalink)
powerist Registered User Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1 OS: OS X 10.5	First time builder, need advice So my friend and I, both highschoolers, have long been interested in PC gaming, but have never been able to start playing for different reasons. I can't because I run Mac OS X on a laptop and simply don't have the space to dual boot. He can't because his PC is too old and slow to run PC games. So we decided to pool our resources and build a machine that we could both use. I went down to the local computer parts store and got an itemized list of products they carry that could be used to build a base-level gaming PC that my friend and I can upgrade over time. Here's what I was told: 10-bay ATX case - $39.99 M61PME Socket AM2+ - $69.99 Athlon 64x2 7750 dual core CPU - $74.99 Geforce 9400 GT 512MB PCI-E video card - $54.99 2GB DDR2 RAM - $29.99 (x2) 500GB SATA HDD - $59.99 CD-RW Combo optical drive - $6.99 Thermal Paste - $4.99 TOTAL (after tax) - $401.4 Now, we really don't need a fast-spinning optical drive or anything special since we really only need it for the occasional CD and to install the OS, and the OS isn't included on this list because we have a copy of Windows XP ready that we're just going to update to a Windows 7 RC operating system. So my question is, does this sound like A: a good baseline gaming PC and B: a good bargain price-wise? Our max budget is between 500-600 dollars, so this seems to fit into our price range really nicely. Thoughts?

06-25-2009, 01:07 PM	#2 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 17,945 OS: Win7	Re: First time builder, need advice You seem to short a power supply, if it comes in the case for $40 it'll be junk a decent case is over $40, the 9400 is a very weak video card may play online games ok but nothing like Cyrsis, A $7 DVD burner is awful cheap. As is the ram, I think your looking at a major headache here a decent gaming rig will run $600-$800. __________________ Power Supply and Selection

06-25-2009, 01:07 PM	#3 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 17,945 OS: Win7	Re: First time builder, need advice You seem to short a power supply, if it comes in the case for $40 it'll be junk a decent case is over $40, the 9400 is a very weak video card may play online games ok but nothing like Cyrsis, A $7 DVD burner is awful cheap. As is the ram, I think your looking at a major headache here a decent gaming rig will run $600-$800. __________________ Power Supply and Selection