Marest's Sample Builds

[Drunkenvalley]

Feeding my graphics cards via molex to me is very... harry. -.-

[BicycleMafioso]

Feeding my graphics cards via molex to me is very... harry. -.-

You lose a little efficiency, as one does with any kind of adapter or extension cables to the PSU, but it's not inherently worse, apart from looks.

[dahawk]

Budget Gaming 550
MoBo: MSI H67A-G43 (B3) – $79.99
CPU: Intel i3 2120 – $124.99
RAM: G.Skill 1600MHz 2x4GB – $39.99
GPU: ASUS Radeon 6850 – $149.99
HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 500GB – $79.99
PSU: Antec VP-450W – $37.99 Review
Case: NZXT Gamma Classic – $39.99 Review

currently buying parts to build this tower got an update that the motherboard was out of stock my question is what would be a good second choice for a motherboard for this tower i alrleady have everthing but the video card below is the replacemeant video card i will be using for this tower

XFX HD-685X-ZCFC Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

[DeltrusDisc]

How about this little guy? Should be better than the H67 series, and slightly cheaper.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157303

[PrufrocknRoll]

Hello all.

First, let me say that this thread has been incredibly helpful. I'm putting together my first PC ever, and it can be a little intimidating.

Now for my question:

I'm planning to base my build on the Budget Gaming 650 system. However, I'm trying to shave a few $$ off here and there. Waiting on deals for a decent HD and RAM is easy enough. I've substituted in the Budget Gaming 550 case to save ~$10, and now I'm wondering about the 650 system's motherboard.

Does anyone have a recommendation for a slightly cheaper motherboard to use in the system? I've looked at its specs, and it appears to have more features than I would need (e.g., on/off play, asrock omg). I'm not sure if those are driving up the price point, or if they're just par for the course nowadays. Keep in mind that this is just me being a little cheap, and not financial necessity, so if I should suck it up and pay $90 for a motherboard, I will.

[Deleted]

ASRock H77M - $75 (+shipping)

Comparison: H77 Pro4-M vs ASRock H77M

If you happen to have a MicroCenter near you could get a deal for a better CPU and motherboard combo.

[Xuvial]

Regarding the MSI board listed in the budget 550 build, I noticed something seriously off about the feedback. If what all those people are saying is true (ships with outdated bios for LGA1155, DOA's everywhere, etc) I would feel a hell of a lot safer recommending this:

Asus P8H61-M LX PLus - $79
Same price. You lose the onboard video but gain...well, a functional board made by Asus dammit!

[Jentroz]

Are SteelSeries mice any good or they in the same category as Razer? I tried the Sensei at Blizzcon and I nearly stopped breathing because of how well it glided, but I would like some more opinions before I purchase one of their mice.

[Xuvial]

I consider a mouse "good" if it has a reputation to back it up - which only happens if a LOT of people buy it and give back positive reviews - which will only happen if the mouse comes at a great price and proves it's durability and functionality. So going by that chain of events, for me Steelseries isn't quite there (yet).

[steelkin]

Hello Marest i was wondering if you plan on updating these builds with the ivy bridge cpu's and when that would be happening.

[DeltrusDisc]

There are two Ivy Bridge-based builds, he still wanted to leave a couple Sandy-based ones there due to cost and all, so I don't think he'll be editing it again too soon.

[Deleted]

Too bad we didn't see an IvyBridge i3-3220 etc. release as expected, Not sure when it is though. Last I checked September was mentioned.

[Deleted]

Hello Marest i was wondering if you plan on updating these builds with the ivy bridge cpu's and when that would be happening.

I plan to upgrade the builds this week.

I'll most likely let the 3570k slip into some of the lower-end builds too at this point and phase out the 2500k even more.

And... I'm working on a new side-project. Note sure when I will have time to finish it but here is a small teaser:

[Deleted]

Looking forward to the builds as my pc just died today and looking to build my first pc on my own.

[DeltrusDisc]

Looking forward to the builds as my pc just died today and looking to build my first pc on my own.

What kind of budget are you looking at?

[Deleted]

What kind of budget are you looking at?

1300-1500 With an SSD for the OS

[DeltrusDisc]

Do you need any of the following?

Keyboard
mouse
computer case
OS itself (i.e. Windows 7 key)
monitor
speakers/headphones/mic

[Deleted]

Do you need any of the following?

Keyboard
mouse
computer case
OS itself (i.e. Windows 7 key)
monitor
speakers/headphones/mic

Only thing i need listed above is a Case

[DeltrusDisc]

Alright, be back in a few.

oh btw, do you live in the US? Can you check if you have a www.microcenter.com near you?

[Deleted]

Alright, be back in a few.

oh btw, do you live in the US? Can you check if you have a www.microcenter.com near you?

He has a topic here In case you hadn't noticed yet.