System Summaries
The two systems that we have put together cover quite a range in options. Even if you have little interest in gaming, there are still several upgrades from the gaming system that might interest you. There really is no "perfect" computer configuration, especially when it comes to such things as the case, hard drive and optical drives. From the parts and advice listed in this article, you should have a reasonable selection of components and information that will help you put together a good budget system.
Here are the final configurations as listed in this Guide. Remember that you will still need to purchase the Operating System, keyboard, and mouse. We have included shipping costs in all of the prices; other than tax (and the aforementioned components), this is the maximum price that you should have to pay. You can also see the impact on price of some further options below the base configurations.
Budget Office Summary
| Hardware |
Component |
Price |
| CPU & Cooling |
AMD Sempron 2400+ (Socket A) - retail |
$65 |
| Motherboard |
Shuttle AN35N-Ultra |
$58 |
| Memory |
1x256 MB Corsair Value Select CL2.5 |
$43 |
| Video Card |
Celestica Radeon 9200SE 64MB |
$35 |
| Hard Drive |
Seagate 80 GB 7200 RPM 8MB PATA |
$67 |
| Optical Drive |
Lite-On 52x32x52x CD-RW |
$28 |
| Computer Case & Power Supply |
Antec SLK1650B w/350W |
$73 |
| Display |
Samsung 793DF-T/T 17" |
$139 |
| Speakers |
Altec Lansing 220 |
$16 |
| Bottom Line |
$524 |
Budget Gaming Summary
| Hardware |
Component |
Price |
| CPU & Cooling |
AMD Sempron 3100+ (Socket 754) - retail |
$120 |
| Motherboard |
Chaintech VNF-250 |
$77 |
| Memory |
1x512 MB Corsair Value Select CL2.5 |
$70 |
| Video Card |
Connect3D ATI Radeon 9800 Pro 128MB, 256-bit |
$195 |
| Hard Drive |
Seagate 160 GB 7200 RPM 8MB SATA |
$108 |
| Optical Drive |
Lite-On CD-RW/DVD Combo |
$45 |
| Computer Case & Power Supply |
Antec SLK1650B w/350W |
$73 |
| Display |
NEC FE770 17" |
$149 |
| Speakers |
Logitech Z-640 5.1 Speakers |
$56 |
| Bottom Line |
$899 |
Additional Alternatives
| Hardware |
Component |
Price |
| Office Memory Upgrade (Dual-channel) |
1x256 MB Corsair Value Select CL2.5 |
+$43 |
| Gaming Memory Upgrade |
1x512 MB Corsair Value Select CL2.5 |
+$70 |
| Gaming Hard Drive Downgrade |
Seagate 80 GB 7200 RPM 8MB SATA |
-$37 |
| Gaming Hard Drive Downgrade |
Seagate 120 GB 7200 RPM 8MB SATA |
-$24 |
| Office Hard Drive Upgrade |
Seagate 120 GB 7200 RPM 8MB PATA |
+$23 |
| Office Hard Drive Upgrade |
Seagate 160 GB 7200 RPM 8MB PATA |
+$33 |
| Power Supply Upgrade |
Antec True430 430W |
+$70 |
| Display |
NEC FE991SB 19" |
+$115 |
If you feel that we really missed a great recommendation, sound off in the comments section. Remember, though, that this is simply our opinion on what we would build given the budget constraints, if we were to go out and purchase a new system right now. The prices which we list were found either in our
RealTime Pricing Engine, or via
PriceWatch. Just remember that if you use PriceWatch, you may want to do a little background checking on the reseller before ordering - spending your money on a new computer only to wait two or more weeks for the parts to arrive is not very fun. For some parts like the graphics card and motherboard, you might want to wait and see what happens in the next month or two. If you cannot wait, though, you will not be disappointed with either of these systems. We think that both provide a lot of power for their targeted market at a tremendous value.
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JarredWalton - Monday, October 11, 2004 - link
52 - ??? If you have such a high-end graphics card, are you actually thinking about pairing it with a budget systesm? Anyway, yes, it should work, unless it's an AGP Pro graphics card and your motherboard doesn't have a Pro slot. A 550W PSU should be sufficient, regardless. Anyway, you ought to look into getting an Opteron, Athlon 64, or Pentium 4 to go with that card. :pnurazlanshah - Sunday, October 10, 2004 - link
can i use 3DLabs Wildcat Realizm 200 8x AGP 512MB G-DDR3 ($1500) with my NF2 8xagp motherboard even if i have 550w power supply?MasterFlash - Friday, October 8, 2004 - link
Nice article. I like your choice of components. My comp is similar to your recommendations: Antec SLQ-3700, Biostar MN7CD Pro mobo, Athlon XP 2500+, 2x512Mb DDR400 Crucial RAM, ATI Radeon 9800 Pro, 160Gb Seagate HDD, Toshiba DVD drive, generic 19" CRT.JarredWalton - Friday, October 8, 2004 - link
#49 - Foxconn and CasEdge have been suggested in our past budget guides, so I wanted to branch out a bit. :) I'm not too keen on their look, either, but that's just me.Bulldog66209 - Friday, October 8, 2004 - link
I've found that Foxconn/Supercase/CasEdge toolless cases offer good value, are easy to work with, and many are available with truly usable 400 watt power supplies. The local Micro-Center recently had a CasEdge TU-155 on sale for $31. The included power supply rated as capable of supplying 28 amps of 3.3V, 40 amps of 5V, and 17 amps at 12V at a nominal 400 watts. This compares favorably to the Antec which, although only rated at 350 watts, provides 28 , 35, and 16 amps.spartacvs - Friday, October 8, 2004 - link
To #41What the hell do you put on those HD? I have a 40Gb: few games, few applications, few videos, few mp3 and some small softwares (k9, avant browser, etc). It's only 2/3 full. And when it's 3/4 full, it just mean it's time for a little cleanup. Sure you can easily overload 2 x 120 Gb but your need are certainly not what most of the peoples needs.
mino - Friday, October 8, 2004 - link
#45 Nicely said.I completely agree,
It just seems to me it's very important to explicitly say what you mentioned here in your post.
It's beacause there is a HUGE amount of people who save those $20 or so, just because they have no idea what the result may be. The worst(not rare) case is, when such a person is a white-box builder...
Other than that I forgot to mention in my previous post that this guide is MUCH better then last one(not saying that was bad).
Keep good work Jarred.
And one suggestion for case to consider - since I think for value machine reliability is FAR more important than look - I recommend this YeongYang Cetus YY-5601 as an alternative with PSU I mentioned before.
We have been buying only these cases for a year now on and they ones of the best in $50-60 range.
they're available for inastance here http://store.yahoo.com/directron/yy5601.html
Ivo - Friday, October 8, 2004 - link
The review is very nice and useful but several additional aspects could be addressed too:1. The Video/Audio performance for 'Home entertainment' (without gaming - for older buyers :-).
2. The Cool & Quite (Eco) features of the components and systems.
3. The micro-ATX SFF systems (not barebones) for LAN-parties, Home-PCs etc.
4. The LCD-displays.
5. The long-term price (future software compatibility) of the systems.
In that sense, possibly, only systems with Athlon64 CPUs (with good cooler) are really interesting.
JarredWalton - Thursday, October 7, 2004 - link
Regarding several of the case comments, that's pretty much what I had in mind. I've built quite a few PCs for friends, family, and even myself. The downsides to the cheaper cases often more than outweigh the $20 or so you might save. Heck, if it were me, I would even try to get up to the SLK-3700 or Sonata cases by Antec (although oddly enough I prefer the 3700 over the Sonata - other than the PSU, of course). They're *so* much nicer to work with than a lot of the other sub-$100 cases.Really, cases are a personal choice. What I often consider gawdy or ugly, some people think is "l33t". Conversely, what I think is simple and elegant others will say is boring and dull. Buy what makes you happy, but if you get a cheap, generic PSU and it fails after a few months, don't say we didn't warn you!
Anyway, thanks to all for the kind comments. I'll look at including some other miscellaneous recommendations in the future. I do have to say that after reading Kris' MythTV articles, I've been itching to build a TiVo-esque PC. I just keep repeating to myselft, "You do NOT need another PC... you do NOT need another PC..." Heheh.
Neurorelay - Thursday, October 7, 2004 - link
Whoops, I see the 6600...okay, mistook the number. :)