[soju]

CASE: Thermaltake LANBOX Lite VF6000BWS Black SECC Japanese steel Gaming Cube Computer Case ($90)
MOBO: GIGABYTE GA-G31M-ES2L LGA 775 Intel G31 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard ($53)
CPU: Intel Pentium E5200 Wolfdale 2.5GHz 2MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor ($70)
GPU: HIS Hightech H485QT512P Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported IceQ4 Turbo Video Card ($135)
PSU: OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ500MXSP 500W ATX12V V2.2 / EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply compatible with core i7 ($60)
RAM: OCZ SLI-Ready Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory ($40)
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive ($70)
DVD: Sony Optiarc Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD/CD Rewritable Drive ($28)
OS: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders ($80)

TOTAL ~$630
TAX+S/H= $90
GRAND TOTAL: $700

So that's pretty much everything sans the monitor, wireless card and keyboard/mouse. The total including rebates and combo discounts, tax, and shipping turns out to be around $700. (Way over my initial budget) The overall "theme" was small-form-factor (based on the Micro-ATX case) and quietness with budget in mind. I'll be using this to do some light gaming (WoW and Source games... all on highest settings hopefully) and regular student-esque stuff. I eventually plan on hooking a 32'' 1080p HDTV to use as my main monitor.

So far, the only thing about this setup thats irking me is the GPU. I think it's a bit overkill to use the 4850 for the gaming that I mentioned above. Anyone have any other (budget-priced, best bang for buck) GPU's that would put out? (Keep in mind this is a Micro-ATX, so size does matter, I think) Not quite sure if all the pieces will fit together either, so if anyone can confirm whether or not it'll fit/be compatible, that'll be great.

I'm pretty much firm on the case, CPU (cheap, cool, and OC-able) and the DVD drive (quiet). Feel free to criticize, or replace the stuff.

[WeEzY]

what are the prices for the parts? its a solid build but for $700, you could do alittle better. do you plan to overclock? if you do, i would get the S1283 heatsink. amazing cooling for its price. also, dont forget to buy thermal paste. OCZ Freeze all the way. dont really like the look of that case and pricey. PSU seems like it cost around $70. go with the 400w corsair psu. and so on....

the 4830 is probaly your best bet for a gpu.
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 4830 512MB - $75 AR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814102822

[soju]

what are the prices for the parts? its a solid build but for $700, you could do alittle better. do you plan to overclock? if you do, i would get the S1283 heatsink. amazing cooling for its price. also, dont forget to buy thermal paste. OCZ Freeze all the way. dont really like the look of that case and pricey. PSU seems like it cost around $70. go with the 400w corsair psu. and so on....

the 4830 is probaly your best bet for a gpu.
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 4830 512MB - $75 AR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814102822

Price updated in original post... I don't have any experience with overclocking, so I don't plan on doing much of it... I've considered that Sapphire, but reading the reviews, it seems like its as loud as a jet-fighter.

[WeEzY]

some things to make the build cheaper. i dont own the 4830 but i doubt its that bad. maybe alittle noise under alot of stress but i doubt you can hear it over the game noise. overclocking isnt hard to do. the e5200 is a beast at it. you can probaly get to 3.5ghz easy even with that mobo. you dont need the cooling/paste if you dont plan to overclock.

CPU/GPU - E5200 + HD4830 $135 AR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDet...st=Combo.178062

Cooling - S1283 $27 AR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16835233003

PSU - Corsair 400W $40 AR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16817139008

RAM - Corsair 4GB $20 AR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16817139008

Thermal Paste - OCZ Freeze $6
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...pk=ocz%20freeze

total comes out to $549 before shippinng. that included your hdd, dvd, os, case, mobo. not too fond of the case myself but its your choice

[AzizOnDeck]

I'd love to see the setup when you get it up and the pc itself =D

[soju]

Well, I hope youre happy Weezy.... haha. I bit on that 4830. How would it look on a 32'' 1080p HDTV though I'm wondering.... thoughts?

[WeEzY]

haha i always have my way. yea the 4830 should be able to handle your 32' 1080p tv. as long as the resoultion isnt above 1900x1200 it should run like a pro. some results from ppl that have overclocked their e5200. get the most bang for buck

http://www.overclock.net/intel-cpus/390358...ing-thread.html

[soju]

haha i always have my way. yea the 4830 should be able to handle your 32' 1080p tv. as long as the resoultion isnt above 1900x1200 it should run like a pro. [/url]

just one more thing Weezy... I decided to downgrade that screen to any 21''-24''+ monitor that supports 1080p. I need something that can connect to both the computer and the PS3 at the same time (one or the other... I just don't want to be swapping cables in and out). Got any recommendations? I've scene the Haans.G 28'' for about $320, but people have been stating that either it's a good investment or the worst... I look to spend under $200 for this 21''-24'' monitor that meets the requirements mentioned above.

[WeEzY]

do you need it right now? because im looking to buy a monitor with the same requirements too. just waiting for something cheap to pop up

btw, what parts did you buy?

[soju]

I pretty much bought everything in my first post except I bought that Sapphire 4830 at $75 and bumped up the PSU to a 700W for $10 more (same OCZ model). Unnecessary to bump up the PSU, but oh well... I haven't bought any of the cooling stuff, but I might consider it after I build everything up because I won't know how much space I'll have.

Well, Newegg friggin shipped all that crap yesterday so it looks like it'll be here come Monday or Tuesday so I'll need to have a monitor ASAP. So I think narrowed the monitor down... here are my picks:

Samsung TOC: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16824001280
ASUS VK266H: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16824236046
another ASUS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16824236047

I'm leaning towards the Samsung. I know this is over the $200 budget, but it's hard to find a decent +24'' with 1080p. The Asus's are one inch bigger than the Samsung and $10-$20 cheaper, however the Samsung can double as a t.v. and has 2-HDMI ports. Yeah... It looks like I'm going with the Samsung.

Let me know what you decide on.

[WeEzY]

between those three, i would pick the samsung too. $10-20 is nothing when you get a better lcd. i mostly likely will get a dell. i know they arent the best but its enough for me. im building a new system too btw

[soju]

between those three, i would pick the samsung too. $10-20 is nothing when you get a better lcd. i mostly likely will get a dell. i know they arent the best but its enough for me. im building a new system too btw

seems like Samsung has a massive input lag when playing any FPS's.... looks like its back to the drawing board...

[tommy ;D !]

5ms is pretty normal with TN panels. 2ms response time is only done with a software boost that doesn't even do much, is much more of a marketing gimmick.

[dot1q]

just one more thing Weezy... I decided to downgrade that screen to any 21''-24''+ monitor that supports 1080p. I need something that can connect to both the computer and the PS3 at the same time (one or the other... I just don't want to be swapping cables in and out). Got any recommendations? I've scene the Haans.G 28'' for about $320, but people have been stating that either it's a good investment or the worst... I look to spend under $200 for this 21''-24'' monitor that meets the requirements mentioned above.

You're not downgrading by any means. A 32 inch 1080p TV would be horrible as a monitor at normal viewing distances for a computer monitor. Everything would look pixelated. You gotta love the TV manufacturers for marketing HD 1080p like it has any relevance to a real computer monitor (ie.. 40-50 inch 1080P HD~!!! is so much cheaper than a 30 inch computer monitor). What makes it worse is that "monitor" manufacturers have to abide by the same crap and market real monitors as "HD capable/ready". Blah....

True story from one friend of mine to another... "you're dumb for buying the 30 inch Apple cinema.. it isn't even HD..... my 32 inch "HD" TV owns it and it was considerably cheaper and I get 2 extra inches~!!!"... dumb... Consumer manipulation rules.

21" can be slightly lower but usually higher than 1080p resolution. Depends on model/brand. 24" is always higher than 1080p resolution.

[WeEzY]

^lol. you get what you pay for. apple makes very high quality products so it will pretty much be better than mostly everything but its always overpriced. and 1080p does have relevance to monitors...

http://www.pcconnection.com/IPA/Shop/Produ...;SourceID=k1971

if you dont mind having no s-video, get this. rebranded hp W2408. pretty badass considering this is a $300+ model

[tommy ;D !]

That's actually not true when it comes with monitors. Mostly ever brand just takes some companies panels and stick their housing on it. Only difference is the connectivity and extras that is included.

And yeah that W2408 is a good choice since it has both D-sub for the computer and a HDMI for the PS3.