PC Build Challenge!

[berty6294]

My friend had asked me to build him a gaming PC for under $650, so I took it as a challenge.

I came up with ...

Qty.	Product Description	Savings	Total Price
1	Microsoft Windows 8 Professional 64-bit (Full Version) Item #:N82E16832416552 Return Policy: Software Standard Return Policy		$139.99
1	CyberLink PowerDVD 12 Standard Item #:N82E16832117022 Return Policy: Software Standard Return Policy		$49.99 $19.99
1	Seagate Barracuda ST500DM002 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive Item #:N82E16822148767 Return Policy: Standard Return Policy		$59.99
1	G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Item #:N82E16820231277 Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy		$39.99 $38.99
1	Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz LGA 1155 Dual-Core Desktop Processor Item #:N82E16819116775 Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy		$129.99
1	NZXT GAMMA Classic Series GAMA-001BK Black Computer Case Item #:N82E16811146061 Return Policy: Standard Return Policy		$49.99 $29.99
1	COOLER MASTER i600 RS600-ACAAB1-US 600W Power Supply New 4th Gen CPU Certified Haswell Ready Item #:N82E16817171083 Return Policy: Standard Return Policy		$69.99 $54.99
1	ASUS 24X DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Item #:N82E16827135204 Return Policy: Standard Return Policy		$19.99 $18.99
1	ASRock Z75 Pro3 ATX Intel Motherboard Item #:N82E16813157304 Return Policy: Standard Return Policy		$84.99
1	MSI GeForce GT 640 N640GT-MD1GD3 Video Card Item #:N82E16814127686 Return Policy: VGA Standard Return Policy		$79.99
Grand Total:	$637.91

(PowerDVD comes with Windows 8, I would never buy it lol)

Can you do better? I'm trying my best for him, any suggestions are welcome!

 

[palandri]

Bigger power supply 600 watt and go with 4GB of RAM on 2 sticks. I'd drop the Cyberlink software.

 

[berty6294]

Bigger power supply 600 watt and go with 4GB on RAM on 2 sticks.

4GB total or 4GB each? and yeah ive been looking for more power, but im trying to keep it budget.. ill keep looking.

Is it bad to choose i3? ive got an ivy bridge i5 in one of my PCs and its nice, but idk if the i3 is going to be a big difference..

EDIT: I updated the list, this good you think?

 

[Laura Knotek]

I'd probably go for i7 processor and 8 GB RAM (plus a bigger power supply).

 

[palandri]

4GB total or 4GB each? and yeah ive been looking for more power, but im trying to keep it budget.. ill keep looking.

Is it bad to choose i3? ive got an ivy bridge i5 in one of my PCs and its nice, but idk if the i3 is going to be a big difference..

4GB total should be fine unless he's a gamer, then I'd go with 8GB on two sticks. I normally go with Corsair or Kingston, but I've read good things about G Skill
Power supply, something like this: SeaSonic SS-660XP2 660W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS PLATINUM Certified Full Modular Active PFC Power Supply - Newegg.com

The i3 is low end. I have an i7, but you're dealing with a budget.

 

[brianLTE]

New Egg has some awesome DIY builds.

Newegg.com - ASUS P8Z77-V LK Z77 Motherboard, Intel Core i5-3570 Quad-Core Processor, G.Skill DDR3 16GB Memory, Seagate 2TB HDD, Rosewill ATX Mid Tower w/500W PSU, Rosewill CPU Cooler SuperCombo, https://forums.windowscentral.com/e...aspx%3FMsgCode%3D419%26ID%3D24&token=Gpx0eKJf

 

[Laura Knotek]

4GB total should be fine unless he's a gamer, then I'd go with 8GB on two sticks. I normally go with Corsair or Kingston, but I've read good things about G Skill
Power supply, something like this: SeaSonic SS-660XP2 660W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS PLATINUM Certified Full Modular Active PFC Power Supply - Newegg.com

The i3 is low end. I have an i7, but you're dealing with a budget.

i3 would not be sufficient for gaming.

 

[Laura Knotek]

New Egg has some awesome DIY builds.

Newegg.com - ASUS P8Z77-V LK Z77 Motherboard, Intel Core i5-3570 Quad-Core Processor, G.Skill DDR3 16GB Memory, Seagate 2TB HDD, Rosewill ATX Mid Tower w/500W PSU, Rosewill CPU Cooler SuperCombo, Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

I like Newegg.com for hardware.

Another place you might want to check is TigerDirect.com.

 

[berty6294]

Oh I would love for him to have an i7! That Seasonic PS might break budget a bit. I think I have to ask him to increase his budget for this...

 

[palandri]

New Egg has some awesome DIY builds.

Newegg.com - ASUS P8Z77-V LK Z77 Motherboard, Intel Core i5-3570 Quad-Core Processor, G.Skill DDR3 16GB Memory, Seagate 2TB HDD, Rosewill ATX Mid Tower w/500W PSU, Rosewill CPU Cooler SuperCombo, Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

That's a good deal for sure. I just don't know enough about Rosewill. Are their cases flimsy so cards pop out when you lift it? On board video would be ok if he's not gaming.

 

[brianLTE]

That's a good deal for sure. I just don't know enough about Rosewill. Are their cases flimsy so cards pop out when you lift it? On board video would be ok if he's not gaming.

That's a great point about the casing. Not too sure. You might have to increase the budget or you'll end up gutting it sooner than investing a bit more now.

 

[berty6294]

that's a wicked deal!! I might just do that! (although no OS included )


ive never been a fan of Rosewill, I typically avoid them tbh but this isn't my PC so mehhh. If I don't like it when I get it, ill send it back

 

[brianLTE]

Best of luck! Let us know how it goes.

 

[berty6294]

actually, with a graphics card and OS that will set me way over budget

 

[Laura Knotek]

actually, with a graphics card and OS that will set me way over budget

Unfortunately, you get what you pay for. It would be better to spend more money now than to get something cheap and then realize it needs to be upgraded.

 

[berty6294]

Unfortunately, you get what you pay for. It would be better to spend more money now than to get something cheap and then realize it needs to be upgraded.

im going to try to explain that to him...

HOWEVER

This might be perfect!

Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

 

[Laura Knotek]

im going to try to explain that to him...

HOWEVER

This might be perfect!

Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

That looks good.

 

[Keith Wallace]

That's a good deal for sure. I just don't know enough about Rosewill. Are their cases flimsy so cards pop out when you lift it? On board video would be ok if he's not gaming.

I've got a Rosewill Blackhawk myself (Rosewill BLACKHAWK Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, come with Five Fans, window side panel, top HDD dock - Retail - Newegg.com). It's a great case, with 6 USB ports (4 2.0, 2 3.0) in the front, 5 fans (2 front, 1 each top, left, and rear; mount for a right-side fans, if you want), and there is some nice cable management stuff going on in there (allows you to tuck the cables into the right side of the case to run them to things like the DVD drive and the HDD). I can't speak for the brand as a whole, but the Blackhawk's awesome.

 

[Keith Wallace]

I'd probably go for i7 processor and 8 GB RAM (plus a bigger power supply).

The i7 alone (assuming you go Ivy Bridge) will eat up almost half of the $650 budget (Newegg lists the i7 at $305 for the low-end version; the K series is $325).

 

[Keith Wallace]

im going to try to explain that to him...

HOWEVER

This might be perfect!

Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

That'd be pretty tough to beat, I agree. $88 off in discounts is a big chunk.