Help me build a PC

[Methodus]

I have long fallen behind on computer tech info, and has been just as long since I have updated my pc. This will be used mostly for gaming

I'm still running an old:

AMD 64 X2 5000+ 2.60Ghz AM2 940
4gb ddr2 PC-6400
ATI HD 4770 pci-e card
Don't even remember the mobo im using (some no name board i think)

Anyways its pretty old, and Im looking at my options of putting a new one together. Can you help me gather parts for a new tower in the price range of 400-600$. I know its not going to be top of the line nor does it need be (room for later upgrades would be nice).

I do not need an OS, Monitor, keyboard etc. Hell if budget gets tight I really dont even need a HD. Just a new case and the innards. If you can suggest items piece by piece or even a barebone kit + the extras needed that fall within my price range that would be awesome.

Thanks in advance for your time and help

[fredalbob]

It's very easy to build a nice gaming computer within that range.
I'll list all the parts from Tigerdirect and you can see if they have them at a local frys or just order them.

Apevia X-DMR3-NW-BK/450 X-DREAMER3 Mid Tower Case - ATX, mATX, 450W PSU, Black at TigerDirect.com - Extremely nice case, for a low price. Cooling efficient with front USB - $65 (10 dollar rebate will lower it to 55)

ASUS M4A785-M Motherboard and AMD Phenom X4 9750 Quad Core Processor Bundle at TigerDirect.com - Offbrands are crap. Asus has always been nice to me with motherboards and they are usually reasonably cheap. It's better to get an older quad processor than a newer duo processor. Runs better and it's cheaper. - $130

Western Digital WD5000AADS Caviar Green Hard Drive - 500GB, SATA-3G, 32MB, Intellipower at TigerDirect.com - This is where most people go wrong, they think... A hard drive is a hard drive that just holds stuff. WRONG, a hard drive has assigned speeds set to it too besides the RPM it runs at. For gaming purposes you always want a hard drive with at least a 32MB Cache and usually 500GB space. - $45

Sony Optiarc SON-AD-7261S-0B 24x DVDRW Drive - DVD±R 24x, DVD-RW 6x, DVD+RW 8x, DVD-R DL 12x, DVD+R9: 12x, DVD-RAM 12x, CD-R 48x, CD-RW 32x SATA, Lightscribe, Black (OEM) at TigerDirect.com - Always get a trusted name in your CD/DVD RW/Burner. Offbrands usually will break very easily. $25

Cooler Master RS700-AMBAD3-US Silent Pro M 700W Power Supply - ATX, Modular, 700 Watt, 80+ Bronze Certified, SLI Ready, 135mm Ultra Silent Fan at TigerDirect.com - Cooler Master is the king of power supplies. Always 500W+ in a gaming computer. $90

ATI 100-505606 FirePro V4800 Workstation Video Card - 1GB DDR5, PCI-Express 2.0, DVI, Dual Display Port at TigerDirect.com - ATI is the best you can get when it comes to performance graphics cards. Nvidia is all about quality and no performance. A strain on a Nvidia card can cause it to malfunction very easily. While performing video optimization tests on my brand new Nvidia card it overheated and took back and exchanged it for an ATI with no problems after that. $160

Case - $65
Motherboard + CPU - $130
Hard Drive - $45
CD/DVD Burner - $25
700W Cooler Master Power Supply - $90
ATI FirePro V4800 Video Card - $160
Total: $515
ETA W/ Shipping: $530
Keep in mind, tigerdirect only charges tax in FL, IL, NC, TX, GA, SD and ID

Hope this helps!

[2dgreengiant]

EVGA 01G-P3-1366-TR GeForce GTX 460 SE Video Card - 1GB GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0, Dual DVI, Mini HDMI 1.4, DirectX 11 at TigerDirect.com

far better gfx card for the same price Iv'e used nvidia since AGP went out of fashion and I have found them to be perfect even in sli

[Methodus]

Thanks alot for the all the suggestions/links.

+rep for the help

[1337pyro]

i can recommend sony optiarc its quite fast and got no errors....

if you can afford it, you should buy a SSD(to install OS and games/programs) additionaly to a harddrive(for music,videos,pics and documents)
for example OCZ OCZSSD2-2VTXE120G Vertex 2 Solid State Drive - 120GB, 2.5, SATA II at TigerDirect.com

[Methodus]

Any suggestions on RAM?

For example should I go with...lets say, 8gb of ddr2 800mhz or should i go with 4gb of 1066mhz?

Is this any good
RAM: Patriot PGS24G6400ELK Gamer Series

Im looking at around 140$ I can spend on RAM

[Phygar]

800 MHz is really slow imo, but the amount you need vs. the frequency depends on what you do. For gaming, you probably want pretty fast memory, and a decent amount, but if you're more of a media/design person you probably want a larger quantity.

[Methodus]

So between here and my guild forums. Taking suggestions changing parts in and out I have went over my budget by a bit but w/e.

Mobo: ASUS P8P67 LGA

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge

Case: Thermaltake V3 Black Edition Mid Tower Case

HD: Western Digital WD5001AALS Caviar Black Hard Drive

PSU: COOLER MASTER GX

VC: ASUS EAH6850

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB