As a person living on a budget I'm looking to get a new machine pieced together and get some really good bang for the buck.
I currently have an OCZ Stealth Xstream 600W PSU, which I'm hoping will be usable still for a current build.
I'd need the following to get started:
CPU
Mobo
RAM
HDD
GPU
I can worry about a monitor later, and I think my current case COULD work still (but it's something that, if it's cheap enough I'd be able to replace).
Can I do that whole shebang for roughly $400 and have something that will run current gen games at a passable frame rate?
600W will be fine; I'm running an i7 950 at >3.8GHz, HD6970, SSD, HDD, and 12 gigs on an MSI BigBang X-Power with a Corsair HX620. Any newer system is likely to be much more efficient on power than this (i7 1336 seems to have been the peak for draw.)
Mechwarrior: Living Legends, the only reason I bought Crysis: Warhead.
Last time I tried installing Living Legends there was a problem installing it with the Steam version of Warhead. That was some time ago though (possibly last year).
Unfortunately yes, I can verify that my TV doesn't pass through 5.1. It was a sad day in my apartment. If I had to move up to mini-ITX to satisfy my optical audio request, are there any options you would hands-down recommend over the others in the E350 family? I think I might be interested in this little enclosure.
I'm looking at getting this to base my replacement HTPC off of Snark
the plan is for this box to become my media server/htpc/central backup for all PC's in the house. hence why I went with the micro-ATX AMD E-350 motherboard.
Because it's a generation old. Still a great gaming GPU.
I was just surprised to see it priced that low - I've always seen them for $200+ still, even with their age.
So picking up a second for Crossfire action would be a smart move at that price? I'm having trouble finding comparison charts using 'modern' cards as well.
Having looked at the new AMD integrated CPU+GPU stuff (and the excellent article from Icrontic), I have to wonder if that's not a viable platform on the cheap. I haven't really looked at prices yet...but how realistic is it?
HTPC build of mine is 470 euro - SSD, 8GB of RAM, case, and external PSU with the GA-E350N-USB3. Looking forward to testing it out this week, hopefully.
Having looked at the new AMD integrated CPU+GPU stuff (and the excellent article from Icrontic), I have to wonder if that's not a viable platform on the cheap. I haven't really looked at prices yet...but how realistic is it?
Well, it depends on what you plan to do with it. The top-end APU costs $140, and a good motherboard can be found for $99 or less. The test system can be built for under $500.
Having looked at the new AMD integrated CPU+GPU stuff (and the excellent article from Icrontic), I have to wonder if that's not a viable platform on the cheap. I haven't really looked at prices yet...but how realistic is it?
If you have a 1680x1050 monitor, and have never been inclined to turn on AA or AF, it's good. This is the majority of notebook users, or people who are accustomed to very tight budgets and mid-range settings. If you expect more, it's not for you.
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KwitkoSheriff of Banning (Retired)By the thing near the stuffIcrontian
If you have a 1680x1050 monitor, and have never been inclined to turn on AA or AF, it's good. This is the majority of notebook users, or people who are accustomed to very tight budgets and mid-range settings. If you expect more, it's not for you.
I've never had a 1680x1050 monitor...ever. I'm still using a 17" 1280x1048, and even at those resolutions I can't turn on AA or AF with the current machine.
Edit for more info:
I certainly would like one of those, and I've seen rigs that run at those resolutions and they're beautiful, I'll just never have the budget to go wholesale into that space. For me, dropping more than $150 on a component is out of the question. Even if I saved up for the next 6 months, I'd be lucky to have $500 to spend on a rig.
That's the issue I'm faced with more than anything, moving into the performance side of hardware is just not going to happen in the next 3-5 years unless I plan on using a machine that would have been top of the line in '06-'07 well into 2015.
Even something like the Radeon 6850/70 or the GeForce 560 will put you into aa/af territory at 1080p on many games.
Which is great...if I can do what basically turns into a full rebuild with one of those. Like I said, I don't have much to work with money wise and never will. If I can save up $30/mo it's a major accomplishment.
I can't imagine languishing with a 2007 era machine until I have enough money for a full overhaul.
As an aside to the actual point of this thread, I think I can safely say this is the primary reason I got out of the whole "enthusiast" part of computers. It's simply impossible to stay in the game without spending a decent amount of money every 2-3 years. Sure, you can read and read about the newest parts and what they do, but its completely unfulfilling. Unlike most other hobbies, being a PC enthusiast requires an inordinate amount of time and money to even stay tangentially involved.
Comments
I currently have an OCZ Stealth Xstream 600W PSU, which I'm hoping will be usable still for a current build.
I'd need the following to get started:
CPU
Mobo
RAM
HDD
GPU
I can worry about a monitor later, and I think my current case COULD work still (but it's something that, if it's cheap enough I'd be able to replace).
Can I do that whole shebang for roughly $400 and have something that will run current gen games at a passable frame rate?
600W will be fine; I'm running an i7 950 at >3.8GHz, HD6970, SSD, HDD, and 12 gigs on an MSI BigBang X-Power with a Corsair HX620. Any newer system is likely to be much more efficient on power than this (i7 1336 seems to have been the peak for draw.)
Feel free to abuse the estimator I use: http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp
Never liked Starcraft. Mechwarrior, supcom 1&2, red alert, age of empires, they're all great IMO.
I'm looking at getting this to base my replacement HTPC off of Snark
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813500066
It has both HDMI and optical audio out... just thought I'd throw it out there.
DESCRIPTION PRICE QTY TOTAL
Gigabyte GA-E350N-USB3 AMD Fusion Mini-ITX Board €113.85 €113.85
4GB DDR3 1333 DIMM for Selected DDR3 Mini-ITX Boards €40.25 €80.50
M350 Universal Mini-ITX Enclosure €34.50 €34.50
80W AC Universal Adapter 12V 6.6A & Euro Plug €28.75 €28.75
picoPSU-90 12V DC-DC ATX power supply €40.25 €40.25
2nd Hard Drive/Fan Mounting Bracket for M350 €4.03 €4.03
Fractal Design 40mm Silent Series Cooling Fan for M350 Chassis €6.33 €6.33
Throw in a 30-60GB SSD and donezo. 500-euro HTPC in a nice small case.
Any thoughts? This is from mini-itx.com right now, since they look like a great resource and are in close proximity.
http://www.amazon.com/Sapphire-Radeon-PCI-Express-Graphics-100282XTREME/dp/tech-data/B004W75ATI/ref=de_a_smtd
$145 ASUS E35M1-M PRO Fusion AMD E-350 APU
$25 G.SKILL Value Series 4GB DDR3-1333
1x WD Raptor 150GB OS/Boot Drive (already owned)
$320 4x SAMSUNG EcoGreen F4 HD204UI 2TB
610w PCP&C PSU (already owned)
1x PCIe eSATA card (already owned)
4x 1.5TB HDD in eSATA external enclosure raid5 (already owned)
$69 SATA Internal Blu-ray Drive
the plan is for this box to become my media server/htpc/central backup for all PC's in the house. hence why I went with the micro-ATX AMD E-350 motherboard.
Ahhh, I forgot about that. That's right, there's an awesome-looking MW out there. How was the gameplay?
I was just surprised to see it priced that low - I've always seen them for $200+ still, even with their age.
So picking up a second for Crossfire action would be a smart move at that price? I'm having trouble finding comparison charts using 'modern' cards as well.
Edit: AnandTech has a great tool
EG:say 5850 2GB Superclocked Gigabyte and 5850 1GB XFX Reference
just wondering
I was concerned about this, too. I'll have 'mismatched' cards once this one arrives - good to read I'll be okay though.
No, but I have heard that BIOS differences occasionally (and I do mean <i>rarely</i>) causes problems.
If you have a 1680x1050 monitor, and have never been inclined to turn on AA or AF, it's good. This is the majority of notebook users, or people who are accustomed to very tight budgets and mid-range settings. If you expect more, it's not for you.
you could get one of these
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007623%20600110408&IsNodeId=1&name=AMD%20E-350%20APU
for $99 and would make a perfect HTPC
compared to the $230 needed for this
http://tech.icrontic.com/articles//introducing-the-amd-llano-apu-and-socket-fm1/
I've never had a 1680x1050 monitor...ever. I'm still using a 17" 1280x1048, and even at those resolutions I can't turn on AA or AF with the current machine.
Edit for more info:
I certainly would like one of those, and I've seen rigs that run at those resolutions and they're beautiful, I'll just never have the budget to go wholesale into that space. For me, dropping more than $150 on a component is out of the question. Even if I saved up for the next 6 months, I'd be lucky to have $500 to spend on a rig.
That's the issue I'm faced with more than anything, moving into the performance side of hardware is just not going to happen in the next 3-5 years unless I plan on using a machine that would have been top of the line in '06-'07 well into 2015.
Which is great...if I can do what basically turns into a full rebuild with one of those. Like I said, I don't have much to work with money wise and never will. If I can save up $30/mo it's a major accomplishment.
I can't imagine languishing with a 2007 era machine until I have enough money for a full overhaul.
As an aside to the actual point of this thread, I think I can safely say this is the primary reason I got out of the whole "enthusiast" part of computers. It's simply impossible to stay in the game without spending a decent amount of money every 2-3 years. Sure, you can read and read about the newest parts and what they do, but its completely unfulfilling. Unlike most other hobbies, being a PC enthusiast requires an inordinate amount of time and money to even stay tangentially involved.