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Mad Cow! Holiday Computer building (1 Viewer)

Drifter

Drifter

Footballguy
Cow - New Egg's November sales emails have inspired me and now I'm ready to start putting together a gaming rig over this holiday season. I'd like to start this thread for MC, or any others who watch these markets closely, to post can't miss component deals for those looking to build or upgrade their systems.

I'm really talking stupid good deals here. I'm willing to spend the next two months drawing this out to build my machine utilizing the best opportunities that the holiday sales present.

 
'Drifter said:
Let's start with this one -

ASUS VE247H Black 23.6" 2ms Full HD HDMI LED BackLight LCD Monitor w/Speakers 300 cd/m2 10,000,000:1 (ASCR) -$160 Good or we can do better?
Click to expand...
I don't watch the markets like Mad Cow does, except when I'm putting together a PC. I got this bad boy in March for $179 after looking for deals for weeks -- probably not as good a monitor, but with an extra inch of real estate:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824262007

So $160 seems like a pretty good deal to me for what you linked. I don't think there's much more room for LCD TVs and monitors to drop much further in price like they have over the last decade.

ETA: here's the pricewatch page for LCDs in that size range: http://www.pricewatch.com/gallery/monitors/lcd_24in

 
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Just really quickly though, if this is over a couple of months, the very last thing we buy is the video card. The next gen stuff should be out very soon

 
:blackdot:

I need a new PC as well, but I have no idea what modern specs I should aim for. It would like it to run Starcraft 2 without dying on a 4v4 map.

Monitor size/resolution ?

Video card ?

Min 8GB Ram ?

Min 1 TB HD ?

OS - 64 bit, or is it a few years away before it's common?

etc.

 
'Ashem said:
:blackdot:I need a new PC as well, but I have no idea what modern specs I should aim for. It would like it to run Starcraft 2 without dying on a 4v4 map.Monitor size/resolution ?Video card ?Min 8GB Ram ?Min 1 TB HD ?OS - 64 bit, or is it a few years away before it's common?etc.
Click to expand...
I'd say no less than a 24" monitor.Intel Core 5 Processor at least.Go with a GTX 570 or comparable ATI Card. If possible, go with two in SLI or Crossfire, respectively.8GB of RAM should more than be enough.I'd defiantly get an SSD (120gb are pretty affordable right now), at least for the OS. You can get a regular mechanical drive for the other games and programs if you want.64-bit OS, definitely.Edit: I suppose I should have asked you what your budget was first. :) that really will be the determining factor on what you should get.
 
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:blackdot:

I've been contemplating playing Skyrim on my PC rather than buying it for PS3. My PC needs a serious upgrade to do that, though, as I'm barely near the min. specs.

I'm thinking an i3 system will get me into the right ballpark at a reasonable price and allow an easy major upgrade into an i7 down the road when those prices drop. Good tip on the video card.

 
'Dragons said:
:blackdot:I've been contemplating playing Skyrim on my PC rather than buying it for PS3. My PC needs a serious upgrade to do that, though, as I'm barely near the min. specs.I'm thinking an i3 system will get me into the right ballpark at a reasonable price and allow an easy major upgrade into an i7 down the road when those prices drop. Good tip on the video card.
Click to expand...
Define "reasonable"? What price ranges are you looking in? Do you want to build it yourself or buy one premade (Dell, HP, etc...)? DO NOT buy from Best Buy, Circuit City, etc...
 
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'MaxThreshold said:
'Dragons said:
:blackdot:I've been contemplating playing Skyrim on my PC rather than buying it for PS3. My PC needs a serious upgrade to do that, though, as I'm barely near the min. specs.I'm thinking an i3 system will get me into the right ballpark at a reasonable price and allow an easy major upgrade into an i7 down the road when those prices drop. Good tip on the video card.
Click to expand...
Define "reasonable"? What price ranges are you looking in? Do you want to build it yourself or buy one premade (Dell, HP, etc...)? DO NOT buy from Best Buy, Circuit City, etc...
Click to expand...
Definitely build it myself. I have been building my own for 15 years now, I just can't keep up with the latest and value technologies anymore.Reasonable for me is probably $300-400. I'd love to get a system I could play Skyrim on for $200, but I don't think that's feasible. I need mb, processor, ram and vid card at the minimum and probably a SATA boot drive (current boot drive is IDE). I'm thinking I might as well go SSD with the current pricing issues with regular hard drives, but that takes out almost $100 of my budget. Fortunately DDR3 RAM seems to be cheaper than dirt.
 
This is what I had setup on Newegg a few days ago, but didn't pull the trigger when I realized my HDD problem (IDE). I think a rebate expires on the memory, because that looks expensive right now.

XFX HD-685X-ZCFC Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

Item #: N82E16814150573

$30.00 Mail-in Rebate

$159.99

Patriot Gamer 2 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model PGD38G1600ELK

Item #: N82E16820220558

$49.99

Intel Core i3-2120 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000 BX80623I32120

ASRock Z68 PRO3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

-$25.00 Instant

-$12.00 Combo

$217.98

Subtotal: $427.96

 
'MaxThreshold said:
I'd say no less than a 24" monitor.
Click to expand...
I work with two hard core gamers and they insist on two monitors.We always order from geeks. There's not a big difference in price for size of the monitors therehttp://www.geeks.com/products.asp?cat=MON20-30 bucks from 19 to 24 inches.We tend to buy refurbished junk and wave a magic wand over them to make a decent computer so, really can't recommend much of any quality here.LED lights cost next to nothing and for whatever silly reason, they do look cool when ya add them to a gaming computer. Wire+LED might cost ya $1http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=939PL&cat=CAS&cpc=APMI do know they just got this case recently for a friendhttp://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=SGC-2000-KKN1-GP-R&cat=CASThink it was 40 bucks then, 50 now. It's impressive in person. This gaming stuff is new to me, but you can tell they put a ton of thought and effort into that case.Usually they order a case that IIRC is named Shark. It's blue with some chrome on it. Can't find it now at geeks. I wanna say it's usually 20 bucks.
 
if your goal is to play Skyrim, from what I've read you won't need a top end rig. it's designed for consoles, so 2009'ish PC technology will play it just as well at highest settings.

 
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I posted my pc in the battlefield thread I just built/bought, cant find it on my phone right now, its playing bf3 withno issues. I just need a bigger monitor, my 20" feels small but its not that old

The pc is low to mid range

 
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'MaxThreshold said:
'Ashem said:
:blackdot:I need a new PC as well, but I have no idea what modern specs I should aim for. It would like it to run Starcraft 2 without dying on a 4v4 map.Monitor size/resolution ?Video card ?Min 8GB Ram ?Min 1 TB HD ?OS - 64 bit, or is it a few years away before it's common?etc.
Click to expand...
I'd say no less than a 24" monitor.Intel Core 5 Processor at least.Go with a GTX 570 or comparable ATI Card. If possible, go with two in SLI or Crossfire, respectively.8GB of RAM should more than be enough.I'd defiantly get an SSD (120gb are pretty affordable right now), at least for the OS. You can get a regular mechanical drive for the other games and programs if you want.64-bit OS, definitely.Edit: I suppose I should have asked you what your budget was first. :) that really will be the determining factor on what you should get.
Click to expand...
Starcraft 2 doesn't really require this much horsepower if that's the main game you are concerned about running
 
I think we could configure 2 value deals here - one Intel Sandy Bridge that would cost a bit more, one AMD for a bit less as well. LCD's I would wait just a bit. There are reports saying that TVs and LCDs might go on sale for as much as 40% off retail this holiday.

 
'Mad Cow said:
I think we could configure 2 value deals here - one Intel Sandy Bridge that would cost a bit more, one AMD for a bit less as well. LCD's I would wait just a bit. There are reports saying that TVs and LCDs might go on sale for as much as 40% off retail this holiday.
Click to expand...
From what I see out there, Sandy Bridge is really the best place to be right now and AMD isn't even close. This would be one of those cases where the extra money is worth it just for the added futureproofing.
 
'Anonymous Internet User said:
'Mad Cow said:
I think we could configure 2 value deals here - one Intel Sandy Bridge that would cost a bit more, one AMD for a bit less as well. LCD's I would wait just a bit. There are reports saying that TVs and LCDs might go on sale for as much as 40% off retail this holiday.
Click to expand...
From what I see out there, Sandy Bridge is really the best place to be right now and AMD isn't even close. This would be one of those cases where the extra money is worth it just for the added futureproofing.
Click to expand...
That's my feeling and everyone one of my builds have been AMD.But, on the other hand, by the time I get around to upgrading (usually every 3 years), I'm starting over every time. If I go with an i3 now, will I really just be able to plop in a socket 1155 i7 in a couple years?
 
'Dragons said:
Is this SSD worth jumping on?

http://www.newegg.co...-_-20227725-L0J
Click to expand...
I don't think so. I LOVE newegg and get almost all of my parts their exclusively as they always seem to be the lowest price and have the best deals. However, I pay VERY close attention to the reviews and typically I will only get something with 4 stars or more, unless there are only a few ratings available (but never below 3 stars). This one already has 154 reviews in at 3 stars - too risky for me. If it only had like 10 or less reviews I might risk it.Also, I think if you hold off just one more week you'll find newegg offering better deals for Black Friday or Cyber Monday. While the Agility 3 is a great price, the reviews are a deal breaker for me.

I have the 120GB Vertex 3 and this one rocks but it might be too pricey just for the OS. The 60gb version can be had for 88.00 after rebate (yeah, rebates suck).

 
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'Dragons said:
'Anonymous Internet User said:
'Mad Cow said:
I think we could configure 2 value deals here - one Intel Sandy Bridge that would cost a bit more, one AMD for a bit less as well. LCD's I would wait just a bit. There are reports saying that TVs and LCDs might go on sale for as much as 40% off retail this holiday.
Click to expand...
From what I see out there, Sandy Bridge is really the best place to be right now and AMD isn't even close. This would be one of those cases where the extra money is worth it just for the added futureproofing.
Click to expand...
That's my feeling and everyone one of my builds have been AMD.But, on the other hand, by the time I get around to upgrading (usually every 3 years), I'm starting over every time. If I go with an i3 now, will I really just be able to plop in a socket 1155 i7 in a couple years?
Click to expand...
yes. However, by that time I'm sure Intel will have something more powerful out. If you can resist that urge than the Core I7 would be fine if you wanted to upgrade later on. But keep in mind if this is primarily for video games its the upgrade of the video card that will provide you the gaming power. Nowadays, the CPU doesn't factor in that much anymore.
 
Dragon - Do you have any shopping toolbars like priceblink or invisible hand or whatever? they can do a lot of the "shopping" for you by comparing other online sites to find the best deal.

 
'MaxThreshold said:
'Dragons said:
'Anonymous Internet User said:
'Mad Cow said:
I think we could configure 2 value deals here - one Intel Sandy Bridge that would cost a bit more, one AMD for a bit less as well. LCD's I would wait just a bit. There are reports saying that TVs and LCDs might go on sale for as much as 40% off retail this holiday.
Click to expand...
From what I see out there, Sandy Bridge is really the best place to be right now and AMD isn't even close. This would be one of those cases where the extra money is worth it just for the added futureproofing.
Click to expand...
That's my feeling and everyone one of my builds have been AMD.But, on the other hand, by the time I get around to upgrading (usually every 3 years), I'm starting over every time. If I go with an i3 now, will I really just be able to plop in a socket 1155 i7 in a couple years?
Click to expand...
yes. However, by that time I'm sure Intel will have something more powerful out. If you can resist that urge than the Core I7 would be fine if you wanted to upgrade later on. But keep in mind if this is primarily for video games its the upgrade of the video card that will provide you the gaming power. Nowadays, the CPU doesn't factor in that much anymore.
Click to expand...
I know I can plop in an i7, but my question is will it be worthwhile in 2-3 years? I guess you're right that processor is less important these days, but will I need PCI Express 6.0 motherboard to use the latest video cards and a SATA IX hard drive?
 
'MaxThreshold said:
Dragon - Do you have any shopping toolbars like priceblink or invisible hand or whatever? they can do a lot of the "shopping" for you by comparing other online sites to find the best deal.
Click to expand...
I don't use any toolbars, but I check dealighted.com multiple times a day. I think the spirit of this thread isn't just to find the best price on components right now, but over the holiday season to analyze and jump on deals on different components as they pop up.
 
It is all too easy to discredit AMD but their newer chips are not bad and have great value. To say that you have to go Intel is silly. Keep in mind that on my home rig here I have an Intel i7 950 overclocked, at my office at work an i5 750 OC'd, and a ton of AMD's for my 2 oldest kids and the other 3 office systems. That said, for almost any gaming, you will not notice the difference between the 2. It really all comes down to the L2 cache anymore with games.

 
Football is over now and I'm ready to get into a bit more gaming especially over the holidays. I know I need to upgrade/replace but not sure if I should keep certain things or just build new.

 
The two I like the best depending on your needs (i.e. video editing) are the i7 2600k and i5 2500k.

If you plan to OC, the AMD FX-8150 and 8120 have the highest price/performance.

 
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I've got an I5 2500K in the system i built a few months ago. Overclocked to 4.5 Ghz without even a hiccup. Using this cooler which is an insanely good deal at $70, let alone the current $35 with the rebate.

RAM and HD's are insanely cheap right now. If you're looking to build a barebones gaming rig, you can get by cheap by not getting an SSD, going with a cheaper case (although get one with plenty of room and solid construction) and holding out for a deal on a 600Watt non-modular power supply (although, again, i recommend not skimping with a bargain brand. Corsair and Coolermaster are all I've used)

A lot of people like to buy bargain/mid-level Motherboards (I know mad cow typically leans this way) but you can spend some money here if you really want. I've got this one and its rock solid. Easy installation and plenty of features/ports.

The big money item is always the video card. If you're looking to play newer and future FPS games at 60 frames per second, you'll need to spend some money. If you are playing stuff that isn't as graphic intense, and/or you're ok with medium settings for now, you can find some good deals.

All that being said, I basically spared no expense on the computer I just built (other than saving some money by going with a lesser known manufacturer on my video card) and spent way more money than I was hoping to :bag:

 
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'cstu said:
The two I like the best depending on your needs (i.e. video editing) are the i7 2600k and i5 2500k.If you plan to OC, the AMD FX-8150 and 8120 have the highest price/performance.
Click to expand...
I have the I7 2600k overclocked to 4.4 GHZ on my beast. :thumbup:
 
'TLEF316 said:
I've got an I5 2500K in the system i built a few months ago. Overclocked to 4.5 Ghz without even a hiccup. Using this cooler which is an insanely good deal at $70, let alone the current $35 with the rebate.

RAM and HD's are insanely cheap right now. If you're looking to build a barebones gaming rig, you can get by cheap by not getting an SSD, going with a cheaper case (although get one with plenty of room and solid construction) and holding out for a deal on a 600Watt non-modular power supply (although, again, i recommend not skimping with a bargain brand. Corsair and Coolermaster are all I've used)

A lot of people like to buy bargain/mid-level Motherboards (I know mad cow typically leans this way) but you can spend some money here if you really want. I've got this one and its rock solid. Easy installation and plenty of features/ports.

The big money item is always the video card. If you're looking to play newer and future FPS games at 60 frames per second, you'll need to spend some money. If you are playing stuff that isn't as graphic intense, and/or you're ok with medium settings for now, you can find some good deals.

All that being said, I basically spared no expense on the computer I just built (other than saving some money by going with a lesser known manufacturer on my video card) and spent way more money than I was hoping to :bag:
Click to expand...
Great post.
 
Drifter, do you have a Microcenter nearby? They have recently taken the lead in CPU/Mobo combo deals (even better than Fry's).

Add this Core i5 2500K CPU to your cart, and then add this Gigabyte Z68 mobo.

Adds up to $220AR + tax + gas (store pickup only). Just the CPU at NewEgg is $215, so the Microcenter deal is close to getting the mobo for free.

I'm about to build a new HTPC and I'm holding out for another Microcenter Core i3 combo deal, but if I were buying a gaming rig, the above would already be in my house.

I think an SSD is definitely worth the expenditure, and I echo those that noted Corsair PSUs are worthwhile.

 
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'Zasada said:
Drifter, do you have a Microcenter nearby? They have recently taken the lead in CPU/Mobo combo deals (even better than Fry's).

Add this Core i5 2500K CPU to your cart, and then add this Gigabyte Z68 mobo.

Adds up to $220AR + tax + gas (store pickup only). Just the CPU at NewEgg is $215, so the Microcenter deal is close to getting the mobo for free.

I'm about to build a new HTPC and I'm holding out for another Microcenter Core i3 combo deal, but if I were buying a gaming rig, the above would already be in my house.

I think an SSD is definitely worth the expenditure, and I echo those that noted Corsair PSUs are worthwhile.
Click to expand...
That is a killer deal. I keep seeing great processor/mb combo deals at microcenter, but I don't have one near me. :kicksrock:
 
Newegg has the SeaSonic X650 Gold 650W 80 PLUS GOLD Modular Power Supply for $99.99 when you enter code EMCJJJE54 at checkout. Shipping is free.

And before you say "Whoa, $100 for a PSU?", it's well worth it and has a 5 year warranty.

 
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So is the idea to have a handy list of what you want and then buy those components as they go on sale? I worry about compatibility.

 
'Zasada said:
Drifter, do you have a Microcenter nearby? They have recently taken the lead in CPU/Mobo combo deals (even better than Fry's).

Add this Core i5 2500K CPU to your cart, and then add this Gigabyte Z68 mobo.

Adds up to $220AR + tax + gas (store pickup only). Just the CPU at NewEgg is $215, so the Microcenter deal is close to getting the mobo for free.

I'm about to build a new HTPC and I'm holding out for another Microcenter Core i3 combo deal, but if I were buying a gaming rig, the above would already be in my house.

I think an SSD is definitely worth the expenditure, and I echo those that noted Corsair PSUs are worthwhile.
Click to expand...
Fry's will do in-store price matches to online deals. There's some limitations but I don't buy anything at Fry's without first pricematching it...even if I save $.05...I feel like I accomplished something.
 
'Pick said:
So is the idea to have a handy list of what you want and then buy those components as they go on sale? I worry about compatibility.
Click to expand...
Persoally, what I'm looking for is picking up the best deals of the season as they come across and then pick up whatever else I didn't get after the season.For example, is that power supply, a must by at that price?
 
'Drifter said:
'Pick said:
So is the idea to have a handy list of what you want and then buy those components as they go on sale? I worry about compatibility.
Click to expand...
Persoally, what I'm looking for is picking up the best deals of the season as they come across and then pick up whatever else I didn't get after the season.For example, is that power supply, a must by at that price?
Click to expand...
Right, but I gotta make sure it matches what I want and not just buy it just cuz it's on sale, right? Nerds know the difference but I don't.
 
'Pick said:
'Drifter said:
'Pick said:
So is the idea to have a handy list of what you want and then buy those components as they go on sale? I worry about compatibility.
Click to expand...
Persoally, what I'm looking for is picking up the best deals of the season as they come across and then pick up whatever else I didn't get after the season.For example, is that power supply, a must by at that price?
Click to expand...
Right, but I gotta make sure it matches what I want and not just buy it just cuz it's on sale, right? Nerds know the difference but I don't.
Click to expand...
Compatibilty is not as much of an issue today as it was say 8 years ago. You still need to check specs for instance my power supply was only 450W and 500W was recommended for my video card.
 
'Drifter said:
'Pick said:
So is the idea to have a handy list of what you want and then buy those components as they go on sale? I worry about compatibility.
Click to expand...
Persoally, what I'm looking for is picking up the best deals of the season as they come across and then pick up whatever else I didn't get after the season.For example, is that power supply, a must by at that price?
Click to expand...
I wouldn't say it's a "must buy" but it's awfully close. I'm partial to Corsair PSUs, but Seasonic is a great manufacturer and I am going to be buying one of their fanless units for an upcoming HTPC build.Out of all components you want to be sure you focus on brand, it's the PSU. A bad one can create difficult-to-diagnose problems throughout your system, or at worst could cook every component. Shopping for "deals" on PSUs is fine, as long as the brands are limited to Corsair, Seasonic, or perhaps Cooler Master. IMHO.
 
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