The gaimz!

[Kelranox]

So, I'm a big gamer

and as such, I need a beastly PC. Granted, the laptop I have right now isn't INSANE or even moderately insane, but it's a far cry from what I've had in the past. The games on the horizon that I'm considering primarily are Skyrim and Old Republic. Now, I could probably run both on this laptop as it is, sub-optimally. However, I want this to change.

I'm looking to spend around $800-$900 or so. Ideally, I'm not looking for anything flashy, so that'd be why I chose a cheap case. Also, given that I have a beastly video card selected, I figured I didn't need an expensive processor. At any rate, I'm torn between two possible builds. Any suggestions on which I should go with?

Motherboard

Asus M4A79XTD EVO Motherboard ($99.99)

CPU

AMD Athlon II X2 250 Regor 3.0 GHz Dual-Core ($60.99)

RAM

Corsair XMS3 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 RAM ($44.99)

Video Card

Radeon HD 6850 1GB Crossfire ($164.99)

Hard Drive

Western Digital Caviar Black 500 GB ($54.99)

DVD Burner

ASUS DRW-24B1ST DVD Burner ($20.99)

Case

Thermaltake V3 Black Edition Mid Tower Case ($44.99)

Power Supply

Corsair 600W ($69.99)

Keyboard

Logitech MK120 Black USB Wired Desktop Keyboard ($18.99)

Speakers

Logitech 2.1 Speaker System ($39.99)

Monitor

Samsung 22'' 1080p 1920x1080 ($149.99)

OS

Windows 7 Home Premium ($99.99)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CPU

AMD Athlon II X2 250 Regor 3.0 GHz Dual-Core ($60.99)

Motherboard

Asus ATX ($79.99)

RAM

Corsair XMS3 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 RAM ($44.99)

Video Card

Radeon HD 6850 1GB Crossfire ($164.99)

HDD

Western Digital Caviar Blue 500 GB SATA 3.0GB ($44.99)

DVD Burner

Samsung CD/DVD Burner SATA ($20.99)

PSU

Corsair 600W ($69.99)

OS

Windows 7 Home Premium ($99.99)

Monitor

Samsung 22'' 1080p 1920x1080 ($149.99)

Keyboard

Logitech MK120 Black USB Wired Desktop Keyboard ($18.99)

Speakers

Logitech 2.1 Speaker System ($39.99)

Case

Thermaltake V3 Black Edition Mid Tower Case ($44.99)

 

[salvage-this]

A few things to change.

Quad cores are the standard in gaming rigs now. So if you can get the 955 BE.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808&cm_re=955-_-19-103-808-_-Product

The RAM you posted is just fine but this will perform better

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231303

Do not go with the Asus ATX that you posted for your second build. The M4A79XTD is Socket AM3 and fits your system better despite being a tad outdated as well. (not a big deal)

The copy of Windows 7 that you posted is an upgrade version. This is the one that you need.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986

The on board audio that is on the Asus boards is just fine. The sound card that you posted will not be any better. Plus you wound need better speakers to hear the difference between the on board that comes with the Asus board and a better card. I wound just take the sound card off your list.

 

[Kelranox]

A few things to change.

Quad cores are the standard in gaming rigs now. So if you can get the 955 BE.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808&cm_re=955-_-19-103-808-_-Product

The RAM you posted is just fine but this will perform better

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231303

Do not go with the Asus ATX that you posted for your second build. The M4A79XTD is Socket AM3 and fits your system better despite being a tad outdated as well. (not a big deal)

The copy of Windows 7 that you posted is an upgrade version. This is the one that you need.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986

The on board audio that is on the Asus boards is just fine. The sound card that you posted will not be any better. Plus you wound need better speakers to hear the difference between the on board that comes with the Asus board and a better card. I wound just take the sound card off your list.

I had a quad core selected as my CPU previously, but decided to dumb down a bit because of my video card being so good.

Hm. I may look into getting the Rip Jaws over what I have selected, as long as they're far better for $10 more.

Duly noted.

Ah. Derp. Thanks for pointing that out.

With all that taken into account, sans upgrading the processors...which build would you consider I purchase? I mean, I only plan on getting one. As I can see, the second will be a bit cheaper but that doesn't always mean better.

Sound Card removed!

 

[salvage-this]

The first build I guess but I would use the Caviar blue from the second build. a faster HDD will give you better loading times in games and the OS but no gaming performance boost (in FPS).

The RAM that I posted will make for a bit snappier system but I am not too sure if there is enough of a difference to be worth it to you since you seem to have a rather tight budget already. The choice is up to you on whether or not it is worth it. I was just throwing it out there.

A dual core will be fine for most games. If you can get it in the budget I would heavily recommend the quad. Unlocked multiplier and 2 more cores will have a lot more performance and will aid your 6850 a lot more the GPU is not the only factor in how I game performs.

 

[Kelranox]

The first build I guess but I would use the Caviar blue from the second build. a faster HDD will give you better loading times in games and the OS but no gaming performance boost (in FPS).

The RAM that I posted will make for a bit snappier system but I am not too sure if there is enough of a difference to be worth it to you since you seem to have a rather tight budget already. The choice is up to you on whether or not it is worth it. I was just throwing it out there.

A dual core will be fine for most games. If you can get it in the budget I would heavily recommend the quad. Unlocked multiplier and 2 more cores will have a lot more performance and will aid your 6850 a lot more the GPU is not the only factor in how I game performs.

It'll end up being $888.01. Thanks for the input, I'll specifically be using this desktop for gaming and my current laptop as a social networking computer. So, it won't be bogged down with much else.