what's a good light gamer build nowadays?

[pinktank]

Been out of the scene too long, what's a good light gaming build these days?

Cpu ~75
Gpu ~120
Mobo ~75
Ram 2x2 or just a 2 stick to upgrade later if need be


I have the rest.

 

[kalvinj]

yeah that looks about right nice cheap amd cpu nvida gpu and asus or giga-byte mobo 1x2 ram?

 

[pinktank]

which cpu though, I was thinking maybe an x2 4000+ or something along that lines but people say go intel with the e2160, gpu 9600gt and mobo I dont know

 

[chinaman1472]

Definitely invest in the 9600GT. The 8800GS would be the cheaper option, but the 9600GT definitely outweighs in price/performance.
Gigabyte P35-DS3L or Abit IP35-E are about $90. There are some cheaper options around.
E2160 is a great chip. Easy to overclock and get an extra 500-1000MHz out of it.

 

[Gaurav Duggal]

Abit IP35E $90
Pentium E2160 $70
2X1GB 800mhz Kingston Value RAM $40
Nvidia 8800GS $129 = $99 after rebates

Prices from Newegg

 

[pinktank]

How much does the new processors gain from dual channel? If I leave a 2gb stick in there and update if necessary, would that be ok n performance

 

[jterrell]

abit ip35e or gigabyte ds3l 90ish but Abit is 65 AR.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813127031

pent e2160 70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16819116036

2x2 GB ram (better to go with 2 dimms now so know it will match). pc6400 ram is likely going to go up not down.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820231122

palit 9600 gt 110 bucks AR.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814261002

thats a budget gamer that can handle a lot for you imho.

you'll be able to move up on that mobo to 8 gb ram is you ever want and to much much better pci-x vid cards as well as the obvious cpu upgrade at soem point. no reason it can not remain a budget gamer for a long time.

 

[Solarium]

Would this be a better deal for CPU and Mobo combined?
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=2169286&enterthread=y

 

[Solarium]

Also, why did you recommend the E2160, the lowest model of the Allendale's, would it not be worth it to go to the 2200's or the 2220's?

 

[BladeVenom]

Originally posted by: pinktank
How much does the new processors gain from dual channel? If I leave a 2gb stick in there and update if necessary, would that be ok n performance

Dual channel only gives about a 3% to 4% performance increase on average.

 

[heyheybooboo]

Originally posted by: Solarium
Also, why did you recommend the E2160, the lowest model of the Allendale's, would it not be worth it to go to the 2200's or the 2220's?

The e2200 with the 11x multi works for me but some folks feel like the e2160 can clock higher ...

BIOSTAR A770 A2+ AMD 770 $68
HT 3.0, PCIe 2.0 x16

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5400+ 2.8GHz Brisbane 65W $78
Egg combo with the CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 = $132 for the cpu/ram - $40 rebate = $92

XFX GeForce 8800GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCIe 2.0 $206
($176 AR)


Total cash up front: $406
Cost After Rebates: $336


Yeah. You can save some $$$ up front with that model palit 9600gt but I'm a ""if it looks too good to be true it probably is ..."" kinda guy.... If you want to spend $115 on a graphics card try the EVGA GeForce 8800GTS 320MB 320-bit GDDR3
$145 minus $30 rebate = $115 (free shipping with promo code EMCAEABDE) - make sure your PSU is around 450w

I imagine the EVGA card also comes with 90-day trade-up (for the 8800gt ) ....

 

[BladeVenom]

The 8800GS is also a great deal. Only $99 after $30 rebate, and free shipping.