Please help: trying to build rig under $1000

SSo, I'm trying to build a decent rig under $1000, but try as I might to cut corners I just can't seem to get under the wire. It's only over by a $100 or so dollars, but since the budget I was given was $1000 exactly, I need to get it at or preferably under it (my friend hasn't confirmed whether that $1000 includes taxes, let's just say for now it does, always better to be safe).

Anyway, he wants everything from scratch, i.e. nothing from his old computer is going to be used. I tried to convince him otherwise, but it's a moot point because he's already sold it.

Here are the requirements:
less than $1000
It's gonna be a gaming rig so at minimum it'll need to be able to run modern games without TOO much problem
Doesn't need to be able to run Crysis on high, but should be able to run CoD4 without stutters

Here's what I have so far (by the way, if the prices don't seem to match that's because this is on NewEgg and I'm factoring in the instant savings they sometimes offer):

[EDIT: changed Mobo, memory, PSU, and HDD, removed speakers (monitor has built-in)]

Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case $119.99

GIGABYTE LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX All Solid Capacitor Intel Motherboard$89.99

EVGA GeForce 8800GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 Video Card $204.99

CORSAIR V2.2 450W Power Supply$69.99

Intel Core 2 Duo E4500 Allendale 2.2GHz LGA 775 Dual-Core Processor$114.99

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 800 SDRAM DDR2 Dual Channel Desktop Memory $34.99

Seagate Barracuda 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive$59.99

Logitech Black Standard USB Keyboard$9.25

Hanns·G Black 19" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor$169.99

Microsoft Black 3 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Wired Optical Wheel Mouse$9.99

Pioneer 20X DVD±R DVD Burner$29.99

Microsoft Windows XP Professional With SP2C $134.99

$1,049.14

So where can I shave off about 100 bucks? I don't want to drop the 8800GT, because it's such good value for the money. I'd rather drop it somewhere else, but the question is where? Another thing is, will the RAM work in this setup? And will the 500W PSU work, or can I get away with a smaller, cheaper one? Another issue is the case, which I guess I could go with a smaller one for less money, but I don't know if the components will fit.

Two things I really wish weren't neccessary but unfortunately are: DVD burner and Windows, both of which got sold off with his old computer. You'd think he'd raise the $1000 cap to include the $300 he got for his old rig, but no. Or maybe it does already include it, I don't know.

^

Thats SDRAM you got there it wont fit in the kind of RAM slot you have so you need DDR2 memory.

a)PSU can be gotten cheaper. Some coolermaster are cheaper, but wattage is good

b)ram does not work, you need DDR2.

c)Can probably get a different board, like a gigabyte, for cheaper.

d)get a coolermaster Centurion case. The stuff will fit. Mid-size comp case is all you need.

e)thats rather expensive for an OS, might as well get vista home premium for 35 less.

First of all cut back on the damn casing.You dont have to buy such an expensive case with a tight budget.Your PC will be fine with a cheaper casing and everything will be compatable.Just buy an ATX one.

The power supply you have picked is fantastic but overpriced.Get this one.It is also a fantastic PSU and more than enough to power that rig.

That motherboard sucks.Get this one.

And well you need 2GB RAM there is absolutely no way to cheap out over here.However you didnt really cheap out as you can get 2GB 800Mhz ram for that price now.Here's one.;)

And NO get a bigger HDD,80GB is just not cutting it.Get this.It hardly costs more than the 80GB.

And atleast get 2.1 speakers and i would say get some budget gaming mouse like the A4tech X7 line.Pretty decent for their price.

Really all you have to cut down here now is the casing and i think you are just under $1000.:)

a)PSU can be gotten cheaper. Some coolermaster are cheaper, but wattage is good

b)ram does not work, you need DDR2.

c)Can probably get a different board, like a gigabyte, for cheaper.

d)get a coolermaster Centurion case. The stuff will fit. Mid-size comp case is all you need.

e)thats rather expensive for an OS, might as well get vista home premium for 35 less.

Demo24

I agree on eveything. Here is what you are doing wrong (of course this is my opinion). You are focusing on the astetics and not on the hardware. That case is overkill if you are on a budget, as is the PSU. You can get comperable boards for cheaper. Also, is he going to be OCing.

On a side note, as the guy below mentioned, you HAVE to have at least two gigs of RAM to game in Vista. I just got 800Mhz Crucial Ballisics for $34 bucks (2x1GB) so that shouldnt be a problem seeing as you already have more than that budgeted

You could shave off $134 and find other means to get XP or vista :roll:

1. Get a cheaper case, theres pretty good ones in the $60-$80 range.

2. Cheaper Power Supply

3. You need DDR2 memory.

4. Get more HDD space, you can get 250GB for like $20-$25 more.

5. Your monitor has built in Speakers.

6. Get Vista its like $30 less.

Also, take into consideration that the 8800GT has a $30 rebate making it even less, but its $204.99 base price is only effective until tomorrow (31st, where it will jump back up another $25. If you want to save a little more money on the video card, the 8800GTS 320mb is only $115 after rebate, or the 8800GS for $110 after rebate. No, it aren't as good as the 8800GT, but they are close enough considering the price difference and will certainly run COD4 without a hitch at all. All of these prices are effective on newegg until the 31st. Most of all, get: A bigger harddrive, as 80gb will fill up quickly, a cheaper case, and the apportiate ddr2 ram as stated above.TheCheat23k

The 9600GT listed above is only $120 after rebate and its much better than the 8800GS/GTS. Especially in newer titles like Crysis where its 50% faster than the GTS. And its only 5-10% slower than the 8800GT whcih costs quite a bit more,

Check out my little budget rig I plan on ordering it all comes out to $703.87 including shipping. Im sure you can upgrade a few of these parts considering your budget is $300 higher than mine.

http://secure.newegg.com/Shopping/ShoppingCart.aspx?Submit=view

yeah your going to have to make a few comprimses if you want to stay under a $1000, heres a list I put together.

Update COOLER MASTER Centurion 534 RC-534-KKN2-GP Black Aluminum & Mesh bezel / SECC Chassis ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Model #: RC-534-KKN2-GP
Item #: N82E16811119106

Return Policy:Standard Return Policy

In Stock $49.99$49.99Update GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX All Solid Capacitor Intel Motherboard - Retail
Model #: GA-P35-DS3L
Item #: N82E16813128059

Return Policy:Limited 30-Day Return Policy

In Stock $99.99 -$10.00 Instant $89.99Update HIS Hightech H385QX512NP Radeon HD 3850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported IceQ3 TurboX Video Card - Retail
Model #: H385QX512NP
Item #: N82E16814161215

Return Policy:Limited Non-Refundable 30-Day Return Policy

In Stock $179.99$179.99Update Antec earthwatts EA500 ATX12V v2.0 500W Power Supply - Retail
Model #: EA500
Item #: N82E16817371007

Return Policy:Standard Return Policy

In Stock $89.99 -$30.00 Instant $59.99Update Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80557E6750 - Retail
Model #: BX80557E6750
Item #: N82E16819115029

Return Policy:Processors (CPUs) Return Policy

In Stock $179.99$179.99Update Patriot Extreme Performance 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model PDC22G6400LLK - Retail
Model #: PDC22G6400LLK
Item #: N82E16820220144

Return Policy:Memory (Modules, USB) Return Policy

In Stock
Mail-in Rebate $57.99$57.99Update Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Model #: ST3250410AS
Item #: N82E16822148262

Return Policy:Limited 30-Day Return Policy

In Stock $69.99 -$5.00 Instant $64.99Update ASUS VW193D Black-Silver 19" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor - Retail
Model #: VW193D
Item #: N82E16824236029

Return Policy:[LCD] Limited Non-Refundable 30-Day Return Policy

In Stock $189.99 -$20.00 Instant $169.99Update LG 20X DVD±R Super Multi DVD Burner Black ATAPI / E-IDE Model GSA-H55NK - OEM
Model #: GSA-H55NK
Item #: N82E16827136117

Return Policy:Standard Return Policy

In Stock $23.99$23.99Update LG Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model GDR-H30NK - OEM
Model #: GDR-H30NK
Item #: N82E16827136126

Return Policy:Standard Return Policy

In Stock $16.99$16.99Update Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD - OEM
Model #: 66I-00788
Item #: N82E16832116204

Return Policy:Software Return Policy

In Stock $109.99 -$10.00 Instant $99.99Update Logitech X-530 70 watts RMS 5.1 Black Speaker System - OEM
Model #: 970114-1403
Item #: N82E16836121126

Return Policy:Standard Return Policy

In Stock $59.99 -$5.00 Instant $54.99Subtotal:$1,048.88

Alright this was the most balanced list I could do. Now the reason why I didn't put a 8800GT in is because of the heat problem. THe only way to stay in budget was to get a case with not alot of fans. Now the bigger cards like the 8800GT need a good amount of case cooling and room. So trying to get a 8800GT and an appropiate case for it just kills the budget. So your either going to need more money or learn to settle with ehat you got. Hell I surprised myself with how good this rig is for the budget so really this is the best you can do with it.

Anyways best of luck to your friend, hopefully everything goes smoothly.

First of all cut back on the damn casing.You dont have to buy such an expensive case with a tight budget.Your PC will be fine with a cheaper casing and everything will be compatable.Just buy an ATX one.

Musacircuit_2

I'll get to this later.

The power supply you have picked is fantastic but overpriced.Get this one.It is also a fantastic PSU and more than enough to power that rig.

Musacircuit_2

Done.

That motherboard sucks.Get this one.

Musacircuit_2

Done.

And well you need 2GB RAM there is absolutely no way to cheap out over here.However you didnt really cheap out as you can get 2GB 800Mhz ram for that price now.Here's one.;)

Musacircuit_2

Done. Also, I wanted to get him XP because I hear that Vista ... um ... kinda sucks. I suppose I COULD get him Vista; what do you guys think? Should I get him Vista or stick with XP? One thing's for sure though, it looks like XP is, ironically despite its age, more expensive :?.

And NO get a bigger HDD,80GB is just not cutting it.Get this.It hardly costs more than the 80GB.

Musacircuit_2

Done.

And atleast get 2.1 speakers and i would say get some budget gaming mouse like the A4tech X7 line.Pretty decent for their price.

Really all you have to cut down here now is the casing and i think you are just under $1000.:)

Musacircuit_2

I believe somebody mentioned that the monitor I picked had in-built speakers. There's $10 I can shave off :D. I don't think he's one of those audiophiles anyway, and besides if I absolutely had to I could later convince him to purchase a 2.1 system seperately. Right now though I just need something that works.

So now onto the biggest cost drain: the casing and the GPU. Now, here's where his two conditions really start to cause me headaches. I asked him if he wanted an 8800GT, and his response pretty much was, "Dude I don't understand all that tech stuff. I'm giving you $1,000, just make me a rig, OK? One that'll play all my games and most of the games that'll come out for the next couple of years or so."

So, basically I've got a lot of wiggle room here, but I wanna give him the best quality for the money, and as I understand it the 8800GT is the best GPU out there for its price. Isn't it practically an 8800GTX at half the price? There's just one problem; while I probably don't need that $100+ Antec case, wouldn't I need a case with at least some decent cooling for a heat monster like an 8800GT? If so can anyone suggest a good case that isn't $100+ (preferably around $50)?

By the way, just to let you know, Musacircuit_2 was right. After making the changes he suggested, cost has been brought down to a grand total of $1,049.14. I just need to cut $50 from the casing (or other various miscellaneous things) and we're home free...

Ok, so I looked around NewEgg ... what about this case?

COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 Black/Blue ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

cost: $49.99, which is more than $50 cheaper than that Antec one (which, I do agree, is a little overpriced). If I get this case, it brings me to $979.14, which is just a hair under my budget, but I'd like to know if it would cause any heat problems with the GPU.

I'd also like to mention that, while it's probably obvious, I wanna cut costs where I don't need to be spending a lot of cash (like the case) and perhaps increase spending where a little bit extra money can mean a huge boost (like gaming keyboard/mouse is slightly more expensive but probably makes a huge difference in gameplay over standard keyboard/mouse).

Other changes:

I've decided to drop XP for Vista, because it's almost $40 cheaper. That $40 could be better spent elsewhere, especially since now the rig has enough memory and hard disk space to accomidate that hog that is Vista. This further drives down the cost of this rig to $944.14. I have $55.86 remaining (the $1,000 did NOT include taxes, I asked). So now I wanna see what small upgrades I can make here. First on the list, should I "upgrade" Vista back down to XP again? Or get him a set of speakers (can I even get decent speakers for $50)? Or maybe upgrade the Keyboard & Mouse?

Ok, so I looked around NewEgg ... what about this case?

COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 Black/Blue ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

cost: $49.99, which is more than $50 cheaper than that Antec one (which, I do agree, is a little overpriced). If I get this case, it brings me to $979.14, which is just a hair under my budget, but I'd like to know if it would cause any heat problems with the GPU.

Opalescent

No you will be fine.

Ok, so I looked around NewEgg ... what about this case?

COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 Black/Blue ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

cost: $49.99, which is more than $50 cheaper than that Antec one (which, I do agree, is a little overpriced). If I get this case, it brings me to $979.14, which is just a hair under my budget, but I'd like to know if it would cause any heat problems with the GPU.

I'd also like to mention that, while it's probably obvious, I wanna cut costs where I don't need to be spending a lot of cash (like the case) and perhaps increase spending where a little bit extra money can mean a huge boost (like gaming keyboard/mouse is slightly more expensive but probably makes a huge difference in gameplay over standard keyboard/mouse).

Other changes:

I've decided to drop XP for Vista, because it's almost $40 cheaper. That $40 could be better spent elsewhere, especially since now the rig has enough memory and hard disk space to accomidate that hog that is Vista. This further drives down the cost of this rig to $944.14. I have $55.86 remaining (the $1,000 did NOT include taxes, I asked). So now I wanna see what small upgrades I can make here. First on the list, should I "upgrade" Vista back down to XP again? Or get him a set of speakers (can I even get decent speakers for $50)? Or maybe upgrade the Keyboard & Mouse?

Opalescent

Just so you know, theres no taxes, just shipping.

get a cheaper case, the antec 900 is an awesome case but if your looking for a budget build thats not the way to go.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119077 this case is 55 bucks and is vary good for the price

why does he need a keyboard, mouse, and operating system? That just ridiculous.dipper145

i hope your kidding

Maybe try this one? All you have to do is add an operating system and monitor of your choice.General_X

dude, u can shave of a lot of money by buying THIS gfx card...