How to build a cheap gaming PC...

August 8, 2005 10:13 PM

I want to build a cheap gaming PC that can handle any modern game, yet not cost me a fortune.

I'm not looking for blow-your-mind FPS, just something I can run at 1024x768 and get smooth, comfortable play. I've been a Mac user for the past three years, so I'm not up to spec on PC components -- from what I understand, I can go with a below average processor as long as I have a good video card and enough RAM. I'd also like a relatively small case, but nothing too fancy/expensive. I've got all the peripherals, and will be hooking it up to a television (assuming the video card allows), so i'm just concerned with the essentials. I'm also considering installing Windows Media Center for movie watching/DVRing purposes -- are there any drawbacks to performance as far as gaming is concerned that come with a Media Center installation? A video card that supports video input would be ideal for DVRing, but if that takes the price over the top, i'd consider adding that functionality down the road. I've got an external HD, so the internal need only be large enough to handle basic operations and store game data. Basically, what do you recommend for: cases, CPUs, video cards, HDs, and any other factors/suggestions/resources I should consider for building this barebones gaming box? Is ~$300 a reasonable figure to shoot for?

posted by jruckman to computers & internet (24 comments total)

I am not an expert but what you want to do with this machine is well... rather resource intensive... recording video and playing it back smoothly takes a decent amount of resources as does proper game support.. I dont believe 300 will do it.. Though others on the board can give better more exact imput.
posted by crewshell at 10:24 PM on August 8, 2005

crewshell: recording video is last on my list of priorities -- gaming and cost come first. if the box can be made into a cheap DVR for a minimal additional investment, then all the better.
posted by jruckman at 10:27 PM on August 8, 2005

oh oh -- and good, cheap cooling, suggestions for that as well?
posted by jruckman at 10:34 PM on August 8, 2005

Ouch. Ok, well $300 American is better than my initial skeptical whistle (at the idea of a gaming system for $300 Canadian), but the video card is going to cost you - the same as a console system. You sure you don't want to go that route?

Yes, a slower processor is acceptable if you have the video card and RAM. You're looking at 512MB for sure (1GB would not be a waste) but you're not going to be able to go Corsair on your budget so one of the standard brands will have to do. There were some good threads asking about cheap video cards. I think the 32MB GeForce came out on top -- but price the 64 -- it may not be crazy these days. DO check specs, though. Higher end models do not always have better performance, and the really high end ones (you're not likely to get into) can have compatibility problems, too.

Don't skimp on fans. You can also get a cooling kit for your video card -- but can't speak to its effectiveness, and if you stick to 64MB or less, you're probably not going in for a world of overheating -- unless you're sitting in a boiling non-AC apartment and so starting from a much higher room temp.

Oh hey, you can spend something like $10 to get a trial membership to Consumer Reports online and check out ALL the components you want. I would definitely recommend going that route.
posted by dreamsign at 10:41 PM on August 8, 2005

Eek. Sorry, glanced back at your question. ANY modern game? Then 32MB video is out.
posted by dreamsign at 10:42 PM on August 8, 2005

I think you need to be more specific about the games you want to play. You said it wasn't "blow your mind FPS", but is FPS still a consideration? FPS are the most resouce intensive. I bet you could build a decent gaming rig for $500, but $300 is really pushing it.

The current best bang-for-the-buck parts (IMHO) are:
- AMD 64 3000+ CPU (socket 939) ($150)
- GeForce 6600GT-based video card ($150)
- 2x512MB RAM kit ($80)
- Any decent motherboard (like Abit AV8) ($100)
- Quality Antec case with 380W power supply ($70)

You can dig up a hard drive somewhere, like you said the external is big enough for anything beyond the OS.

What I just specified adds up to $550 and it's a actually a really fast machine. If you spend less than this, you'll have a significantly slower machine (less value) but it might suit your needs for not-mind-blowing games. Like I said, I think you need to be more specific...

Also, using a TV as a display is going to hurt if you have to read text at all.
posted by knave at 10:49 PM on August 8, 2005

Dude, have you thought about picking up a 2nd hand machine? If you have a Buy&Sell type mag in your city, you'll notice people practically giving away computers that were mid-to-high range last year (or asking for too much and will shortly learn they can't get it).

Profit from the ridiculous depreciation.
posted by dreamsign at 10:58 PM on August 8, 2005

My attempt at piecing together a more budget machine:

- Sempron 2600 CPU (socket 754) ($65)
- Cheaper motherboard ($80)
- 512MB of RAM (single channel) ($40)
- Cheapo case w/crappy power supply ($40)
- Geforce 6600 (non GT) video card ($100)

This is a little rougher, because I haven't really built such a machine myself, but it should be an "adequate" performer, and it totals $325. But you can expect the power supply to die in a year or so, because the cheap ones are worth what you pay for them.

Anyone else have thoughts on this one?

On preview: dreamsign's idea is a good one, too.
posted by knave at 10:59 PM on August 8, 2005

Why not get a PSTwo?
posted by b1tr0t at 11:00 PM on August 8, 2005

clarification: FPS=frames per second, not first person shooter. I'm mainly interested loading up an MMORPG or two in my spare time, while also having the hardware necessary to play with misc new games as they come available. i'll go above $300 if it means having something that won't crap out w/ cheap parts, but definately no more than ~$500, and preferrably something less. i'm scoping around for old systems i can upgrade too -- newspapers, ebay, and college surplus auctions -- i like that idea dreamsign. any more suggestions for good components?
posted by jruckman at 11:05 PM on August 8, 2005

i'm steering away from a console for the time being due to the possiblilty of adding a real honest-to-goodness computer CRT at some point, and having access to the wide range of PC games available. also, it should perform on par/better than the current consoles, and i don't want to go for an XBox 360 untill the price drops a little and games begin to better harness its power. (BTW, I got to see some 360 gameplay demoed @ SIGGRAPH and it looks excellent! -- smoother than I expected)
posted by jruckman at 11:10 PM on August 8, 2005

Mmm, you're in the U.S., so that means you could also go the Dell refurbished route. They can get some wacky high-end machines that they need to get rid of due to their no-questions-money-back guarantee. They check, part, then rebuild the system, and depending on how idiosyncratic it really is, sell it for a fraction of what it would have cost (but it's been awhile since I checked it out, so that fraction may be getting larger).

A local 2nd-hand mag would probably still be better, but if you want the combo of new+cheap(er), that might be worth checking out.
posted by dreamsign at 11:33 PM on August 8, 2005

Arstechnica has a short series of articles on putting together game systems that don't break the bank (as long as you don't got for the "God Box")
posted by slater at 12:04 AM on August 9, 2005

I second the notion of second-hand purchase. You will not be able to put together a new gaming system for $300 total. I got a PC off of ebay for 330 plus S&H. Specs:

AMD Athlon 2500+ (runs at about 1.9 Ghz)
512 MB 400Mhz RAM
128MB GeForce5200 FX AGP 8x
Nice fancy case

This CPU and video card were probably top of the line about two years ago, but they are still playing most games reasonably well. I've been playing GTA:SA, Brothers-in-Arms, Rome:Total War and others that have fairly nice graphics and give a decent FPS.

Now, keep in mind, I had to troll ebay for a month before I found a person desperate enough for cash to sell this system for this price. You will have to be patient if you go this route.

And if, you're not familiar with ebay, get familiar first. You don't want to get ripped off. Buy from someone with good feedback.
posted by poppo at 4:29 AM on August 9, 2005

Also, I just looked back on my ebay account's "watch" page. these are some of the items i was watching during my month of PC hunting. here are some auctions and their final prices:

SHUTTLE XPC SN41G2 ATHLON 2400+/512MB RAM/80 GB/CD-RW
$300.00

Shuttle SN41G2 2.5ghz Athlon XP 512mb WinXP Pro
$399.00

AMD 2500+, 512 ram, Radeon 9600 pro, 80gb.........NR!!!
$270.00

Computer - HP Compaq Presario 2.1Ghz 512MB RAM
$195.87

You just have to really stick to it, be careful, put research into what you're going after.
posted by poppo at 4:37 AM on August 9, 2005

And here is a decent looking system. It's at $232.50 at the moment with a day or so to go.

Alright I've taken up enough of your thread-space for today
posted by poppo at 4:40 AM on August 9, 2005

$300 sounds way too low for what you want. I put a computer together a few years ago with similar criteria and spent about $700.

I suggest that you spend sometime looking around the websites of gaming machine companies (e.g. Alienware, Voodoo, and Falcon) to see what they are using, then trying to get the same parts for a lot less.

I also like the ars technica guides. Their machines might be a bit too good for you but they'll get you up to speed on what's good and bad.

Finally, I have found that this company has great prices and great service. (I've ordered from them and so have a few friends. My machine has run flawlessly for two years. One friend got a bum power supply, which they replaced right away at no cost to him.)
posted by oddman at 7:00 AM on August 9, 2005

Having played more MMORPGs than I should....

Depending on what game(s) you're playing, you can get away with varying ages/qualities of parts. You might want to nose around the technical forums of the games you're planning to play and see what people manage to pull off.

Also: I strongly advise against skimping on amount of RAM -- as in, buy more if you end up with a secondhand machine with 512 or less. I've had 1GB for a couple of years now and do infinitely less bitching about playability based on that alone.
posted by gnomeloaf at 7:28 AM on August 9, 2005

'Course, keep in mind that all the home-built pc pricing is for components only... XP, assuming you want to run it legally, will set you back another $89 of so...
posted by ph00dz at 7:50 AM on August 9, 2005

poppo: thanks, I'm very familar w/ ebay -- thanks for the specs and prices, i'm interested to see what happens with the current system.

(all): 1 GB of RAM is what I was going to use -- RAM for older compters is so cheap it'd be a shame to go w/ anything less.

$300 is low for something like this I suppose, but thats the challenge/fun -- thanks for everyone's suggestions. I'm still open to more if anyone has ideas...
posted by jruckman at 8:43 AM on August 9, 2005

512MB vs 1Gig: on the PC I mentioned above, I fully intended to purchase an additional 512MB after getting it, but it runs very nicely as-is. FYI
posted by poppo at 9:00 AM on August 9, 2005

Stick with a good motherboard brand. I recently put together a machine (to be a Solaris server) and learned cheapest isn't necessarily the best value. So avoid chaintech motherboards; I was unable to install any OS (Solaris, Windows, or Linux). I bought an Asus to to replace the chaintech. Abit is also good.

A MB and CPU bundle is going to be cheaper than buying separately. This looks like a fantastic deal. So you'll need a case, 512 more RAM, video, and HD.
posted by 6550 at 9:58 AM on August 9, 2005

Cheap HD from CompUSA so if you have one near you, go pick it up.

All the stuff I've linked to has rebates so only get the stuff if you are willing to send them in. Also, be aware that you probably couldn't add a second 512 of the same brand and size RAM that's in the bundle from tigerdirect and get the rebate on the second.
posted by 6550 at 10:09 AM on August 9, 2005

The total for the stuff I've linked to is $200. You still need video card, case, 512 more memory, and CD or DVD drive if you don't have one.

I have a generic 48X CD drive. It's not a burner and has a quirk in that the drive doesn't stay open. So you have to catch the tray as it comes out, hold it and stick your cd in, then let go. You can have it if you want, absolutely free. Email me and I'll send it priority mail.

I'm not up on the latest video cards but this thread has good info, I think. Maybe a GeForce 6600 or Radeon 9800 Pro. Radeon 9600 Pro or 9700 Pro for a little lower end. Search on ebay and you can find some pretty good deals or go to pricewatch. Be a little careful on either site with sellers with little feedback or not fantastic feedback.
posted by 6550 at 10:26 AM on August 9, 2005