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Basically, I need a new desktop computer, and I haven't been paying any attention to anything about hardware. My budget is about 700 dollars max. I'll be using this computer for gaming and don't want to upgrade it for about 4-5 years. Whoever makes me the specs that I use will receive a character in my comic when I revive it!

Do you need a monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers, OS, etc.?

4-5 years? At under 700 dollars, that is not feasible. At about a thousand dollars, you can have a modern computer that can play games and will likely be able to keep up with gaming for three years? Maybe a bit longer, but at under seven hundred and 4-5 years, I think that that is ridiculous.

I will come up with a better list soon. Links to buy the components are provided.

• Processor- AMD Phenom II X3 720
• Motherboard- Gigabyte MA790XT-UD4P
• Storage/ Memory- TEAM Xtreem Low Voltage 4GB (2048x2) DDR3 1600 MHZ RAM CL7
• Graphics Card- ATI Radeon HD 5750
• Hard Disk- Samsung 500GB Sata 2 16MB
• Sound Source- Onboard
• CD/ DVD-RW Driver- Samsung 22X DVD-RW Writer
• Power Source- High Power 460watt High Performance
• Housing- Cooler Master SE-335-KWN1

All these will cost you about 760$. I know it's more than you can afford, but you can build a very good gaming PC with it.

However, if you need a gaming keyboard, monitor and mouse, I would recommend you these;

• Key Board- Logitech Compact Keyboard K300
• Mouse- Gigabyte GM-M6880 Laser Gaming Mouse Black USB 5 Button 800/1600DPI
• Monitor (19´´) - HP 2009M 20-Inch HD LCD Monitor

But if you buy these, it will cost you a lot more. I also disagree with Slappy.

http://www.destructoid.com/my-guide-to- ... 2820.phtml

I'd reccomend getting a better processor and an nvidia card instead of ATI.

Eitherway I'll do a build and put it in the thread when I'm done but that's there for now.

@Tunco: The graphics card sucks (I've had bad experiences with that particular model), the power supply isn't big enough, and you need a heatsink for that processor.

Second of all, people who bitch about ATI cards are haters. Both cards are great, go for whatever one you can get cheaper.

SlappyMcGee wrote:4-5 years? At under 700 dollars, that is not feasible. At about a thousand dollars, you can have a modern computer that can play games and will likely be able to keep up with gaming for three years? Maybe a bit longer, but at under seven hundred and 4-5 years, I think that that is ridiculous.

I don't really need great graphics to play a game, I usually just play with just medium settings, so I don't need a great computer, just one that will the games.

In five years, a computer that can play something on high settings now might be playing something on low settings then. If you are shooting for medium now, you're going to find modern games unplayable in five years.

SlappyMcGee wrote:In five years, a computer that can play something on high settings now might be playing something on low settings then. If you are shooting for medium now, you're going to find modern games unplayable in five years.

If he chooses good parts that provide lots of upgrade options, he should be fine. Tunco: I don't like that build. At all.

DVD Burner: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6827106289
HD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6822152181
Case + PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6811147117
GFX: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814127477
RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820231277
Mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813130257
Processor: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819115215
Heatsink: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835106139
Thermal Paste: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835100007
SATA Cable (2x): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6812123185

Total is $682 or so without shipping. BTW I chose these parts with upgrade ability in mind... there will be more LGA1156 processors out in the future you can upgrade in a few years, as well as RAM... GFX card is always easy to upgrade.

SlappyMcGee wrote:@Tunco: The graphics card sucks (I've had bad experiences with that particular model), the power supply isn't big enough, and you need a heatsink for that processor.

You've already got your hands on a 5750 o_O? It has only been out for a month. (For about the same money, I'd get a 4850 though).
Powersupply would have been alright actually, although overpriced from amazon. And the processor comes with a heatsink.

I like Numbers' build above me, except for the Rosewill power supply >_>
I'd also replace the graphics card for this one -> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... -_-Product (I realize it is a little more expensive, but its a pretty big step up).

Edit: better idea
Drop the processor down to this Core i3
Scratch that case, find some cheap one you like.
This power supply
And go with the graphics in the top part of my post.
Oh, and drop the CPU fan. Helpful, but not essential (the processor comes with one, and unless you are maxing it out a lot or overclocking, the stock fan is sufficient)

I'm so used to building computers for people on the PCGuide I just automatically throw in a 3rd party heatsink... also, I've had bad experiences with stock heatsinks, clippings breaking, bearings loose, etc.

Yeah, I help out at a computer store and the 5750's are dick. And nobody uses stock heatsinks with a fucking quad core. You'd have to be a fool. And with a 5750 and a quad core, you're going to want to go a bit bigger of a power supply than the one Tunco suggested.

Vyach's is a good build, but it still won't be a good gaming PC in five years, because that's impossible.

You won't get a good computer with fast connection and more than 700mb memory under $1000. You have to go the distance to find the best computers.

SeventhSpirit wrote:You won't get a good computer with fast connection and more than 700mb memory under $1000. You have to go the distance to find the best computers.

What? You can buy a netbook for $300 with ethernet, Windows 7, and 1GB RAM... XD

Whoops forgot to do a build. Eitherway most of the advice in the thread is pretty good. Also Slappy my PC is coming on 4 years old now and it's running fine, still not had to take a game down to low settings and this wasn't particularly high end when I bought it (Clearing out old stock). If you're not bothered about running every game at OMGPCMELTING levels of graphics it's perfectly plausible to keep a PC going for 4 or 5 years gaming wise, especially with the amount of cross platform development of mainstream games now, game specs have stayed roughly the same for the past 3 years at least and probably will for about another 2 or 3 years till a new console comes out.

Pff. I have a system from 1999 that handles games from 2005 just fine.

And I think that people who use their computers to play games at moderate graphics or to only play average looking games should just buy a console.

I don't know, but you have to get this case. You just, like, have to.

These might be nice:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDeal ... mbo.320518
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819115215
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820231229

SlappyMcGee wrote:And I think that people who use their computers to play games at moderate graphics or to only play average looking games should just buy a console.

Oh my PC still played things on high when I bought it. I'm just saying medium is still the lowest I've had to go lately.

EDIT: Oh and sometimes someone doesn't have an insane budget.

Luminaflare wrote:

SlappyMcGee wrote:And I think that people who use their computers to play games at moderate graphics or to only play average looking games should just buy a console.

Oh my PC still played things on high when I bought it. I'm just saying medium is still the lowest I've had to go lately.

EDIT: Oh and sometimes someone doesn't have an insane budget.

If you don't have a huge budget, that's all the more reason to getting a small netbook and an XBOX or, preferably, a Playstation 3. The computer, at 700$, will give you a way to play RTS', FPS' and somewhat well graphically. Instead, with that same money, you could buy a 360, a PS3, and a small netbook.

But then how are you supposed to play MechWarrior?

EDIT: That said I do have a 360 and a PS3. Really not too sure how I managed to afford that, I've not really had enough money at one time to be able to purchase either console and I don't use credit cards.

SlappyMcGee wrote:And with a 5750 and a quad core, you're going to want to go a bit bigger of a power supply than the one Tunco suggested.

This review is running with an i7-920 and 6gb RAM, and even with crossfired 5770s it still only drew 390 watts max. A single 5870 with an i7 maxed at 401 watts. (which there isn't really any reason to run dual 5870s, let alone that 2 of them would be beyond his budget without any other parts)

Unless you have a massively overclocked quad and dual graphics cards, there isn't really any reason to get more then a 500w power supply.

PSU's actually do not really go all the way up to their advertised wattage... I read on the PCGuide that good ones are between 80-90% efficient... so if you got a 400W PSU, you'd get 360-380W at max.

smartalco wrote:

SlappyMcGee wrote:And with a 5750 and a quad core, you're going to want to go a bit bigger of a power supply than the one Tunco suggested.

This review is running with an i7-920 and 6gb RAM, and even with crossfired 5770s it still only drew 390 watts max. A single 5870 with an i7 maxed at 401 watts. (which there isn't really any reason to run dual 5870s, let alone that 2 of them would be beyond his budget without any other parts)

Unless you have a massively overclocked quad and dual graphics cards, there isn't really any reason to get more then a 500w power supply.

Power supplies degenerate over time. In five years, he would be lucky if he's still pulling 400 watts from that thing.

987654321 wrote:PSU's actually do not really go all the way up to their advertised wattage... I read on the PCGuide that good ones are between 80-90% efficient... so if you got a 400W PSU, you'd get 360-380W at max.

Hmm, I may have been thinking about this backwards. I was thinking that that is how much power they can supply, its just that they can draw 1.1x to 1.25x (1/.9 to 1/.8) the amount specified from the wall. I may be backwards though.

SlappyMcGee wrote:Power supplies degenerate over time. In five years, he would be lucky if he's still pulling 400 watts from that thing.

That should still be enough, but I guess at that point it'd be cutting it close (wasn't thinking about using the thing for 5 years, a decent 500w would probably be enough to still have room for aging)