Like I said, stop giving people bad habits and tell them either spend more money for non-crap or wait and save up for it. There is no sense in telling someone to buy crap, then replace crap in a year for more crap.
Lol you seriously think a Xeon 3110 @ 4ghz and a 8800GT are crap? Gimmee a break.
The only think that seems relevant in your post is that IF you think you may want to go SLI or add a couple of more harddrives in the future, then you should get a bigger power supply (and a SLI capable motherboard). This I agree with.
But I have no intention of doing either, and the fact is that the vast majority of gamers have one hard drive and don't use SLI. Most people would upgrade by replacing the video card and/or cpu, and for that, the system I specced out is easily upgradeable.
If you would have read my post, you would have seen that I was specifically responding to you about your choice of power supply. Nowhere in any of my posts will you find me saying anything about the CPU or GPU being crap.
I then responded to your response. It is my belief by telling people to buy a junk power supply, you are doing a diservice to them in the present and future. I save money and I buy new parts over time. Over the last six months I have been building a computer and just because I don't have a huge wad of cash doesn't mean I'm going to make poor decisions that are going to cost me money in the immediate future. I mean, everything you listed was of pretty decent value to your mid-level gamer. But, then you see a sore thumb sticking out with that power supply. What happens if that gamer decides he wants to go with the gusto and gets a 9800gx2? That card almost takes 200 watts alone to power. That power supply inhibits your ability to make significant upgrades. Is it really that hard to wait for your next paycheck and get yourself a nice 700W modular PSU?
Lastly, I would like to include that you should never assume. People may or may not have a keyboard, mouse, and monitor that they would like to move to the next computer they buy. A somewhat intelligent person can look at a list and knock off the things that they don't need. But, by listing them in the first place, it at least gives them an idea of what is a good option if they did want to replace those items.
BAM! DX10 PC that will max AoC(or close) Telling someone that they gotta get sli and Vista for Dx10 is kinda retarded because both of these things are negligible imo. The difference isnt even that noticeable with current DX10 games. Crysis is the exception but most of the features can be enabled in dx9 by editing the .cfg files. I wouldnt ever buy sli unless I had extra money to trow away. As for the OS I had this friend one time that told me he found a free copy of vista on the internet somehow. AMAZING! Also a e8400/q6600 is gonna be future proof for a while. If that 8800 isn't cutting it down the road when games like Alan Wake come out just get a 9800gtx
If this was directed at my post, I may have fumbled over my meaning. I didn't suggest that you absolutely have to have SLI, but having a mobo that supports it wouldn't harm anything, and more often than not, that motherboard is probably better for gaming than one that doesn't support SLI.
I forgot to mention that getting a Dx10 card for a Dx10 game and running it on XP is stupid. Now, I do understand that there really aren't any fully optimized Dx10 games out there, so it may not be a big deal yet.
You are obviously misinformed, motherboards have little or no effect on gmaing performance when choosing a motherboard you mainly are looking for overclocking potential and generally sli boards are more expensive.
By your logic if Im running xp I should go and buy a 7900 instead of a 8xxx series card? I dont think so.
BAM! DX10 PC that will max AoC(or close) Telling someone that they gotta get sli and Vista for Dx10 is kinda retarded because both of these things are negligible imo. The difference isnt even that noticeable with current DX10 games. Crysis is the exception but most of the features can be enabled in dx9 by editing the .cfg files. I wouldnt ever buy sli unless I had extra money to trow away. As for the OS I had this friend one time that told me he found a free copy of vista on the internet somehow. AMAZING! Also a e8400/q6600 is gonna be future proof for a while. If that 8800 isn't cutting it down the road when games like Alan Wake come out just get a 9800gtx
If this was directed at my post, I may have fumbled over my meaning. I didn't suggest that you absolutely have to have SLI, but having a mobo that supports it wouldn't harm anything, and more often than not, that motherboard is probably better for gaming than one that doesn't support SLI.
I forgot to mention that getting a Dx10 card for a Dx10 game and running it on XP is stupid. Now, I do understand that there really aren't any fully optimized Dx10 games out there, so it may not be a big deal yet.
You are obviously misinformed, motherboards have little or no effect on gmaing performance when choosing a motherboard you mainly are looking for overclocking potential and generally sli boards are more expensive.
By your logic if Im running xp I should go and buy a 7900 instead of a 8xxx series card? I dont think so.
You aren't making sense. The better board you have, the better performance you will get. Not only the better overclocking capabilities, but outright stock performance will be better. Otherwise, why do we continue to develop new motherboards? By your logic, we should all have the same motherboard, because none of them are better than the other.
You didn't read past the first sentence in the second paragraph. Good job.
Try this. It costs roughly $1,000 and does not include a sound card, mouse, keyboard, monitor, speakers or after market fans. This is in my opinion a pretty solid budget PC, what others consider budget may be completely different. keep in mind, these parts are made by pretty reputable companies. So, you could fish around and get some of these things a little cheaper with a different brand name.
However, like I said, this doesn't include anything that you may be able to move from your old PC to your new PC. Also understand that I do not believe my build to be the best or only option. It is simply an 'option'.
If anyone is genuinely interested in suggestions, PM me and I will lead you in the right direction.
Yep, not bad compared to what I just posted. Move a little money around and it would come out to about the same price.
My beef with pre-mades is from the brand names. You never know what you'll get until you open up the case to see a lot of good brands or a bunch of knockoff crap. BTW, forget about SLI with that board. Only one PCI-E x16 slot.
BAM! DX10 PC that will max AoC(or close) Telling someone that they gotta get sli and Vista for Dx10 is kinda retarded because both of these things are negligible imo. The difference isnt even that noticeable with current DX10 games. Crysis is the exception but most of the features can be enabled in dx9 by editing the .cfg files. I wouldnt ever buy sli unless I had extra money to trow away. As for the OS I had this friend one time that told me he found a free copy of vista on the internet somehow. AMAZING! Also a e8400/q6600 is gonna be future proof for a while. If that 8800 isn't cutting it down the road when games like Alan Wake come out just get a 9800gtx
If this was directed at my post, I may have fumbled over my meaning. I didn't suggest that you absolutely have to have SLI, but having a mobo that supports it wouldn't harm anything, and more often than not, that motherboard is probably better for gaming than one that doesn't support SLI.
I forgot to mention that getting a Dx10 card for a Dx10 game and running it on XP is stupid. Now, I do understand that there really aren't any fully optimized Dx10 games out there, so it may not be a big deal yet.
You are obviously misinformed, motherboards have little or no effect on gmaing performance when choosing a motherboard you mainly are looking for overclocking potential and generally sli boards are more expensive.
By your logic if Im running xp I should go and buy a 7900 instead of a 8xxx series card? I dont think so.
You aren't making sense. The better board you have, the better performance you will get. Not only the better overclocking capabilities, but outright stock performance will be better. Otherwise, why do we continue to develop new motherboards? By your logic, we should all have the same motherboard, because none of them are better than the other.
You didn't read past the first sentence in the second paragraph. Good job.
If 20 more fps is worth spending a extra $500 bucks for bigger monitor, better mobo, and another video card In a game you were already gettin a decent framerate in then sure go ahead. I'll keep my single video card and $80 DS3L that will produce the same clock as you and go buy some rounds with some friends later. But yea you'll be gettin 90fps in Bioshock and I'll only be gettin 70 darn...
Yep, not bad compared to what I just posted. Move a little money around and it would come out to about the same price.
My beef with pre-mades is from the brand names. You never know what you'll get until you open up the case to see a lot of good brands or a bunch of knockoff crap. BTW, forget about SLI with that board. Only one PCI-E x16 slot.
I know the MB is Asus, not sure about the video card. I went on to the Ibuypower website and did a build of a computer with this for $1,168.00 and thats with a 3 year limited warantee and lifetime tech support.
True, it might only be 20 frames per second. However, for that extra $500, it might mean Dx10 instead of Dx9. It might mean a 50% higher resolution. It could also mean faster response time on your monitor. The more I see, the sharper the picture, the better the colors, the more Immersive it feels.. those are all things that are included.
This is only my opinion. My opinion of what a good budget PC isn't the same as everyone elses opinion. I have a serious problem looking at a game at low settings. I can't stand playing a game at 20-30 frames. Graphics, to me, is just as important as gameplay. Heck, even the faster speeds my Raptor X drive gives me will make me never go back to a 7,200 RPM drive. My standards for a PC may be higher, and that is no one's fault, it's just how I like to do things.
I posted a pretty decent $1000 budget PC in a previous thread.
Go buy rounds, I'll save more money by getting a 12-pack and staying in with my girl.
I'm sorry, but as a system builder myself, I laugh and cry at people who buy from comp companies.
As such you also know that you have knowledge about thing that one can't assume that everyone has. May I call it being a expert in the field.
The wife of a buddy of mine had her parents buy her a new computer for her college gift. He was like "Well, they said its great for gaming over the phone!". Two weeks later, it arrives and the following happens: ...[Alot of things happened, edit.]... In the end, my bud ends up spending $350 on a computer that was a gift for his wife from her parents. Not to mention countless hours troubleshooting. The computer alone cost her parents $1,199. So, essentially a $1,549 computer could have been built EXACTLY from newegg.com for only $600, and would have been working perfectly within 2hours. From starters they would not have had the knowledge, obviously, to buy the specific part buy themself either if they could not order a correct (for them) configuration from a manufacturer. To those of you crying about "experience" about building computers. One day I just decided "I want to make my own", and researched on google and asked around. It didn't take me more than a month to learn how to do it myself. If they'd google it they would/may have had the knowledge to order parts and also knowledge on what the confiuration from Dell would be to make them a good computer.
Therefore, to help people who WANT to learn how to build their own and know what they can do with computers, I'll be making a VERY noob friendly builder's guide WITH pictures soon on a free forum site and then I'll link it here. Expect it in a couple days, or when I find some time to put i together . I'm quite shure that is not any problem, putting a PC togheter is pretty basic. Well ignore those that hangs a nonfitting PSU outside the box(sorry can't get the correct word) and have the box open even when the system is on passive cooling. A problem still can be if we go from this pretty basic stuff is to get things that actually do work togheter. In my experience you will often get a system that runs good and are stable, all parts are working togheter, when you order from a PC manufacturer. With order parts you can see this "glitches" that makes a system in some way (minor or major) having problems, may it be degrade in assumed performance may it be that it just do not work.
With glitches I can refer to me running a homebuilt system where a pretty basic thing like a retail DVD program did not show copyprotected DVD movies on a specific DVD player. It worked out with running a different set of IDE drivers for the mainbord. I'm shure you also with your experience have been noticing the same things. But I guess for you it's no problem as you with the knowledge you have can work it out and may even before hand know what to do. That is not common knowledge and initially not that easy to google. With a system from a manufacturer I'm quite shure by the end of the day it's less of a problem. Let's skip the obvious monday ex here. -Faded
For me I'm quite confident this system will run it pretty good. And is cheaper I gues then the OP's suggestion.
When building my first computer, I made several mistakes.. some seven years ago. It cost me a little money in the short term but I kept on chuggin'. Ultimately, it's not very common to have everything work perfectly. Whether it's as simple as the wrong drivers, missing drivers, or as bas as partial or complete incompatibility. Even computer manufacturing companies aren't impervious to making bad computers. My girlfriends mother purchased a computer a while back from a company that will not be named, it is a big one though. As soon as she hooked it up, it ran like garbage. Now, keep in mind this was several years ago, but it still happens even today.
So, they can screw up and you can screw up. But, if you can learn, you'll screw up less and less. You won't have to hope that the pre-made that you're buying is going to run without a hiccup if you obtain enough knowledge, or in most cases, do research and have some sort of logic. My girlfriend just built her computer with my help and it hasn't had a single issue. It's not hard to learn, you just have to be willing. In fact, there is a nice little general building tutorial on the Nvidia website. It illustrates with video, what to install and how to install it. Obviously it doesn't have everything, but it's a nice guide to start your experience with.
you don't really need to be able to build your own pc anymore, just don't bloody buy shit from Harvey Norman and the like, auspcmarket.com for example will cut the price in half, im serious in half.
its a difficult balancing act for developers of mmos , you want your game to look next generation without alienating a vast amount of your user base because it wont run on a mid range pc . inspite of what most people think in these forums , the vast majority of mmo players are not hard core gamers , most of them have a pc they brought for something else and happen to play an mmo on the side . the success or faliure of age of conan depends on how well it will run on your average pc . i m afraidt the average pc still has only 1 gb of ram , even though this is relativly easy to upgrade i still doubt the vast majoirty of casual pc users would not have a clue how to do it . personally i think aoc s success on the pc will be limited by its specs .maybe it ll have more success on the xbox360 at the end of the day .
its a difficult balancing act for developers of mmos , you want your game to look next generation without alienating a vast amount of your user base because it wont run on a mid range pc . inspite of what most people think in these forums , the vast majority of mmo players are not hard core gamers , most of them have a pc they brought for something else and happen to play an mmo on the side . the success or faliure of age of conan depends on how well it will run on your average pc . i m afraidt the average pc still has only 1 gb of ram , even though this is relativly easy to upgrade i still doubt the vast majoirty of casual pc users would not have a clue how to do it . personally i think aoc s success on the pc will be limited by its specs .maybe it ll have more success on the xbox360 at the end of the day .
Maybe not, maybe so. I don't think the graphics will determine if it's successful. Sure, it may drive some people away because of the graphics. It may also attract some people because of the graphics. Ultimately, if you have produced a killer product, people will buy it. Even if that means buying a brand new graphics card and a couple gigs of RAM. The graphics however, shouldn't derail the game. If anything, it will be the actual gameplay that hinders the financial aspect of AoC.
I think there is one hurdle in the way. It's the combat system. If most of the people have a lot of trouble with learning it, or believe that the auto-attack style is vastly superior, then I think you'll see the game fail. You can't tout a major game mechanic, have it fail, and keep your customers.
since we are puttng in price points ill add mine, but mine is about 6 months prior so prices may be cheaper lot cheaper
5600+ X2 (2.8ghz each core but easily overclocks to 2.94ghz on air and runs stable) ~$300
2gb PC6400 DDR2 XMS2 Corsair ~$180
LeadTek 8800 GTS 640mb ~ $380 (discontinued but the 8800 GT is a bit faster and cheaper now)
500 watt Earth watts Antec $80
1x 74gb Raptor X 10k RPM WD HD ~$150
1x 150 GB Raptor X 10k RPM WD HD ~ $225
X-fi Extreme gamer ~$120
ZALMAN 9700 LED 120MM FAN Heating tubes Copper heatsink ~$55
so as you can see I got a pretty snazzy system for not too much green. just remember you get out what you put in. you dont have to buy a $2k+ system to really decent gaming power. SO take the total I paid and probably chop off approximately $300 given the price depreciation of those given components or the equivelant.
3.4ghz Phenom II X4 965, 8GB PC12800 DDR3 GSKILL, EVGA 560GTX 2GB OC, 640GB HD SATA II, BFG 1000WATT PSU. MSI NF980-G65 TRI-SLI MOBO.
It is not difficult to build a computer, I built my first one in 11th grade and 4 more since then. You plug stuff in where it fits and follow the instructions =/
It is not difficult to build a computer, I built my first one in 11th grade and 4 more since then. You plug stuff in where it fits and follow the instructions =/
A lot of people have problems finding the hole to stick things into.
Comments
The only think that seems relevant in your post is that IF you think you may want to go SLI or add a couple of more harddrives in the future, then you should get a bigger power supply (and a SLI capable motherboard). This I agree with.
But I have no intention of doing either, and the fact is that the vast majority of gamers have one hard drive and don't use SLI. Most people would upgrade by replacing the video card and/or cpu, and for that, the system I specced out is easily upgradeable.
If you would have read my post, you would have seen that I was specifically responding to you about your choice of power supply. Nowhere in any of my posts will you find me saying anything about the CPU or GPU being crap.I then responded to your response. It is my belief by telling people to buy a junk power supply, you are doing a diservice to them in the present and future. I save money and I buy new parts over time. Over the last six months I have been building a computer and just because I don't have a huge wad of cash doesn't mean I'm going to make poor decisions that are going to cost me money in the immediate future. I mean, everything you listed was of pretty decent value to your mid-level gamer. But, then you see a sore thumb sticking out with that power supply. What happens if that gamer decides he wants to go with the gusto and gets a 9800gx2? That card almost takes 200 watts alone to power. That power supply inhibits your ability to make significant upgrades. Is it really that hard to wait for your next paycheck and get yourself a nice 700W modular PSU?
Lastly, I would like to include that you should never assume. People may or may not have a keyboard, mouse, and monitor that they would like to move to the next computer they buy. A somewhat intelligent person can look at a list and knock off the things that they don't need. But, by listing them in the first place, it at least gives them an idea of what is a good option if they did want to replace those items.
I forgot to mention that getting a Dx10 card for a Dx10 game and running it on XP is stupid. Now, I do understand that there really aren't any fully optimized Dx10 games out there, so it may not be a big deal yet.
You are obviously misinformed, motherboards have little or no effect on gmaing performance when choosing a motherboard you mainly are looking for overclocking potential and generally sli boards are more expensive.By your logic if Im running xp I should go and buy a 7900 instead of a 8xxx series card? I dont think so.
I forgot to mention that getting a Dx10 card for a Dx10 game and running it on XP is stupid. Now, I do understand that there really aren't any fully optimized Dx10 games out there, so it may not be a big deal yet.
You are obviously misinformed, motherboards have little or no effect on gmaing performance when choosing a motherboard you mainly are looking for overclocking potential and generally sli boards are more expensive.By your logic if Im running xp I should go and buy a 7900 instead of a 8xxx series card? I dont think so.
You aren't making sense. The better board you have, the better performance you will get. Not only the better overclocking capabilities, but outright stock performance will be better. Otherwise, why do we continue to develop new motherboards? By your logic, we should all have the same motherboard, because none of them are better than the other.You didn't read past the first sentence in the second paragraph. Good job.
Here is a decent computer for $1059 on new eggs site. They have an AMD duel core 6400+ one for $1200 that's SLI'd with 2 8800 GT's.
Try this. It costs roughly $1,000 and does not include a sound card, mouse, keyboard, monitor, speakers or after market fans. This is in my opinion a pretty solid budget PC, what others consider budget may be completely different. keep in mind, these parts are made by pretty reputable companies. So, you could fish around and get some of these things a little cheaper with a different brand name.
Here
However, like I said, this doesn't include anything that you may be able to move from your old PC to your new PC. Also understand that I do not believe my build to be the best or only option. It is simply an 'option'.
If anyone is genuinely interested in suggestions, PM me and I will lead you in the right direction.
Yep, not bad compared to what I just posted. Move a little money around and it would come out to about the same price.
My beef with pre-mades is from the brand names. You never know what you'll get until you open up the case to see a lot of good brands or a bunch of knockoff crap. BTW, forget about SLI with that board. Only one PCI-E x16 slot.
I forgot to mention that getting a Dx10 card for a Dx10 game and running it on XP is stupid. Now, I do understand that there really aren't any fully optimized Dx10 games out there, so it may not be a big deal yet.
You are obviously misinformed, motherboards have little or no effect on gmaing performance when choosing a motherboard you mainly are looking for overclocking potential and generally sli boards are more expensive.By your logic if Im running xp I should go and buy a 7900 instead of a 8xxx series card? I dont think so.
You aren't making sense. The better board you have, the better performance you will get. Not only the better overclocking capabilities, but outright stock performance will be better. Otherwise, why do we continue to develop new motherboards? By your logic, we should all have the same motherboard, because none of them are better than the other.You didn't read past the first sentence in the second paragraph. Good job.
If 20 more fps is worth spending a extra $500 bucks for bigger monitor, better mobo, and another video card In a game you were already gettin a decent framerate in then sure go ahead. I'll keep my single video card and $80 DS3L that will produce the same clock as you and go buy some rounds with some friends later. But yea you'll be gettin 90fps in Bioshock and I'll only be gettin 70 darn...
Yep, not bad compared to what I just posted. Move a little money around and it would come out to about the same price.
My beef with pre-mades is from the brand names. You never know what you'll get until you open up the case to see a lot of good brands or a bunch of knockoff crap. BTW, forget about SLI with that board. Only one PCI-E x16 slot.
I know the MB is Asus, not sure about the video card. I went on to the Ibuypower website and did a build of a computer with this for $1,168.00 and thats with a 3 year limited warantee and lifetime tech support.True, it might only be 20 frames per second. However, for that extra $500, it might mean Dx10 instead of Dx9. It might mean a 50% higher resolution. It could also mean faster response time on your monitor. The more I see, the sharper the picture, the better the colors, the more Immersive it feels.. those are all things that are included.
This is only my opinion. My opinion of what a good budget PC isn't the same as everyone elses opinion. I have a serious problem looking at a game at low settings. I can't stand playing a game at 20-30 frames. Graphics, to me, is just as important as gameplay. Heck, even the faster speeds my Raptor X drive gives me will make me never go back to a 7,200 RPM drive. My standards for a PC may be higher, and that is no one's fault, it's just how I like to do things.
I posted a pretty decent $1000 budget PC in a previous thread.
Go buy rounds, I'll save more money by getting a 12-pack and staying in with my girl.
And I might get lucky =P
Looking for opinions on this build:
secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/Wishlist/PublicWishDetail.asp
Thanks.
I need a new computer to play AoC so ...
Seems my computer will have no problems running this game at very high according to systemrequirementslab.
Amd Athlon 64 x2 5000+
2gig ram
Geforce 8600 GT 512.
so yeah, need a $2k dollar rig? Don't think so.
The speed of the mole and the power of steel is my weapon
the system requirements on the box are ALWAYS a joke, written not by the devs but by marketing people who want to sell copies.
S*D
True to an extent, I don't think the recommended specs are THAT far from what is actually needed to run on high.
True to an extent, I don't think the recommended specs are THAT far from what is actually needed to run on high.
*cough *cough ...... damn, I need to give these things up.
http://www.straightdope.com/
For me I'm quite confident this system will run it pretty good. And is cheaper I gues then the OP's suggestion.
But the final verdict I would assume to be on or around the 23rd May.
I'm so broke. I can't even pay attention.
"You have the right not to be killed"
When building my first computer, I made several mistakes.. some seven years ago. It cost me a little money in the short term but I kept on chuggin'. Ultimately, it's not very common to have everything work perfectly. Whether it's as simple as the wrong drivers, missing drivers, or as bas as partial or complete incompatibility. Even computer manufacturing companies aren't impervious to making bad computers. My girlfriends mother purchased a computer a while back from a company that will not be named, it is a big one though. As soon as she hooked it up, it ran like garbage. Now, keep in mind this was several years ago, but it still happens even today.
So, they can screw up and you can screw up. But, if you can learn, you'll screw up less and less. You won't have to hope that the pre-made that you're buying is going to run without a hiccup if you obtain enough knowledge, or in most cases, do research and have some sort of logic. My girlfriend just built her computer with my help and it hasn't had a single issue. It's not hard to learn, you just have to be willing. In fact, there is a nice little general building tutorial on the Nvidia website. It illustrates with video, what to install and how to install it. Obviously it doesn't have everything, but it's a nice guide to start your experience with.
you don't really need to be able to build your own pc anymore, just don't bloody buy shit from Harvey Norman and the like, auspcmarket.com for example will cut the price in half, im serious in half.
its a difficult balancing act for developers of mmos , you want your game to look next generation without alienating a vast amount of your user base because it wont run on a mid range pc . inspite of what most people think in these forums , the vast majority of mmo players are not hard core gamers , most of them have a pc they brought for something else and happen to play an mmo on the side . the success or faliure of age of conan depends on how well it will run on your average pc . i m afraidt the average pc still has only 1 gb of ram , even though this is relativly easy to upgrade i still doubt the vast majoirty of casual pc users would not have a clue how to do it . personally i think aoc s success on the pc will be limited by its specs .maybe it ll have more success on the xbox360 at the end of the day .
I think there is one hurdle in the way. It's the combat system. If most of the people have a lot of trouble with learning it, or believe that the auto-attack style is vastly superior, then I think you'll see the game fail. You can't tout a major game mechanic, have it fail, and keep your customers.
hahaha nice man well done!
3.4ghz Phenom II X4 965, 8GB PC12800 DDR3 GSKILL, EVGA 560GTX 2GB OC, 640GB HD SATA II, BFG 1000WATT PSU. MSI NF980-G65 TRI-SLI MOBO.
since we are puttng in price points ill add mine, but mine is about 6 months prior
so prices may be cheaper lot cheaper
5600+ X2 (2.8ghz each core but easily overclocks to 2.94ghz on air and runs stable) ~$300
2gb PC6400 DDR2 XMS2 Corsair ~$180
LeadTek 8800 GTS 640mb ~ $380 (discontinued but the 8800 GT is a bit faster and cheaper now)
500 watt Earth watts Antec $80
1x 74gb Raptor X 10k RPM WD HD ~$150
1x 150 GB Raptor X 10k RPM WD HD ~ $225
X-fi Extreme gamer ~$120
ZALMAN 9700 LED 120MM FAN Heating tubes Copper heatsink ~$55
so as you can see I got a pretty snazzy system for not too much green. just remember you get out what you put in. you dont have to buy a $2k+ system to really decent gaming power. SO take the total I paid and probably chop off approximately $300 given the price depreciation of those given components or the equivelant.
3.4ghz Phenom II X4 965, 8GB PC12800 DDR3 GSKILL, EVGA 560GTX 2GB OC, 640GB HD SATA II, BFG 1000WATT PSU. MSI NF980-G65 TRI-SLI MOBO.
It is not difficult to build a computer, I built my first one in 11th grade and 4 more since then. You plug stuff in where it fits and follow the instructions =/
LOL,
S*D