Possible budget gaming PC build?

A 5850 is already outdated by the 6850, and the USB 3.0 ports won't be used if you buy that case except at the rear. You do know the AMD 965 CPU is over $50 cheaper in MSY right?

ratman said:

Now that I have found the following to be good:

CPU - Intel Core i5 760 CPU - $211.00
MOBO - Gigabyte GA-P55-USB3 - $155.00
RAM - 2 x 2Gb DDR3 1333 Corsair Memory - $56.00
GPU - ATI Radeon HD 5850 - $289.00
Hard Drive - 1000Gb 1Tb Seagate SATA2 32Mb - $63.00
Optical Drive - Benq Black 24X SATA DVD Writer - $34.00
PSU - ANTEC TRUEPOWER NEW 650W - $145.00
Case - Antec VSK-2000 ATX Black - $69.00
OS - Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit DVD OEM - $108.00
Total of $1130

How will can I be sure that the long video card I will use (the ATI Radeon HD 5850) will fit? Is there any way of knowing before I buy it?

Also, the case has two front panel USB 2.0 ports. Does that mean that the USB 3 functionality on the MOBO is wasted?

That build looks fantastic mate.

Good CPU (It's pretty much a 930 without HT or a triple channel memory controller [which IMO = pretty useless in everyday stuff/gaming]).

Excellent Motherboard/RAM/PSU (Antec is top notch).

What I'd change is the Video card. The HD 5850, while a great solid card, is "somewhat" old, in fact, for that kind of money, you could probably get a HD 6870 or a GTX 470 (much better choices).

ratman said:

Now that I have found the following to be good:

Also, the case has two front panel USB 2.0 ports. Does that mean that the USB 3 functionality on the MOBO is wasted?

The front panel is not where the motherboard goes. The motherboard is usually at the back and you will get USB 3 there.

SlackerITGuy said:

What I'd change is the Video card. The HD 5850, while a great solid card, is "somewhat" old, in fact, for that kind of money, you could probably get a HD 6870 or a GTX 470 (much better choices).

The price of a 5850 is still cheaper than a 470/6870 here in Aus (Roughly $100)

Stock availability for the 6870 is also still a bit of an issue. A newer card would be preferable, but it's up to ratman how far he can extend his budget.

The same applies to the RAM. For decent 1600mhz+, regardless of Brand it ranges from double to triple the amount of the value Kingston.

As for card dimensions:

5850
24.13 cm X 12 cm X 4 cm

6870

10.3 x 4.4 x 1.5 inches (about 26 cm)

(for comparison of a potential future Large card upgrade)

5970
30.5 cm x 10 cm x 3.3 cm

That case will fit a 5850/6870 - may be pushing it for 'mega long' cards


Ratman, where are you sourcing your parts from? PCCG, MSY etc?

Fumz said:

parabellum said:

A 5850 is already outdated by the 6850

... *sigh*

ATI Radeon HD 6800: Generation Next?. Page 13 - X-bit labs

ratman,

You should probably check the link before you just accept that the newer 6850 is better than a 5850; dependent on the games you like to play, you'll be glad you did. You're going to find the 6000 series is often outclassed by the 5000 series.

Here's more of the 6000's: here the 6870 outpaces the 5870 in only a couple games. Natural Born Winner: Nvidia GeForce GTX 580 Review . Page 7 - X-bit labs

The 5870 is less than 10% faster then the 6870 and the 6870's tessellation is far superior as it has more ALU's then the 5870 - over 20% more. The 6850 also matches or exceeds said 5850.

ratman said:

Yay, another Aussie!

Probably mostly from netplus.com.au, it is my local PC store (just down the road) and lots of the parts are cheapest there, disregarding shipping.

Some from PLE computers, also down the road from me.

I looked at PCCG and there were cheap parts there but the shipping complicated things a bit too much. I could get parts at PCCG if it were cheaper though.

Any suggestions as to the best place to get them from?

MSY. I always get parts from them. Don't judge them from their parts list.