# Budget gaming PC in the UK



## v-zero (Aug 11, 2007)

UPDATE!!!
I fiddled around in my head and settled on what I think is a much better alternative (for gaming):

CPU: AMD 4000+ X2 (Brisbane) (with default retail fan)

MOBO: Asrock AM2 AliveXfire

RAM: 2GB DDR2-667 Value Ram

GFX: 2x Sapphire 2600xt 256mb gddr3 in crossfire

HDD: 160GB SATA HDD

OPTICAL: NEC DVD-RW (18x)

PSU: 400w Silver Power PSU

CASE: Coolermaster Black Centurion 534

Original:

Well I was sitting here doing very little, watching TV and thinking I should do something, so I decided to see what kind of gaming PC I could build on a low budget. I fiddled around for a while, and decided that I would settle on this:

CPU: Intel E2140 (with default retail fan)

MOBO: EVGA 650i Ultra 

RAM: 2GB DDR2-667 Value Ram

GFX: Radeon x1950 pro 512mb (Gecube)

HDD: 160GB SATA HDD

OPTICAL: NEC DVD-RW (18x)

PSU: 500w Arctic Power PSU

CASE: Coolermaster Black Centurion 534

In total at www.ebuyer.co.uk this comes to £352 including delivery, which I think is a bargain! I chose the components with the budget conscious overclocker in mind. The E2140 can easily go to 2.8ghz or more, and the x1950 pro 512mb is plenty fast for mid-resolution gaming... Anyway, I'm thinking about building one since I got rid of my 8800GTX, and this entire PC costs about the same price as an 8800GTX.

Opinions please, what do you guys think of it?


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## kwchang007 (Aug 11, 2007)

Cool, but aftermarket cooler instead of stock HSF.


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## v-zero (Aug 11, 2007)

kwchang007 said:


> Cool, but aftermarket cooler instead of stock HSF.



Unneeded... Adds cost and the E2140 is a cool-runner.


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## mullered07 (Aug 11, 2007)

holy schizzle ma nizzle, thats a damn good price for a decent gaming rig mate, cant wait until my new build but im thinking about getting a 8800gts for my current before then


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## newconroer (Aug 11, 2007)

Good eye for prices mate.

Though if you do ever decide to go back to a beefier video card, that PSU isn't going to like it ;/

Consider spending a bit more and getting something heavier.

Silverstone offers a 560W 38amp (12v) tier 1 PSU for about 70-80 GBP. 

I don't know if EBuyer has them, http://www.candccentral.co.uk/acatalog/Silverstone_ST56ZF_Zeus_560W_PSU.html

72 GBP including VAT.


GL!


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## kwchang007 (Aug 11, 2007)

v-zero said:


> Unneeded... Adds cost and the E2140 is a cool-runner.



mmm I guess depending on what speed you want to get it to.


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## mullered07 (Aug 11, 2007)

ive used the arctic power psu he has listed for my father in laws build with a e6600 and x8800gts and theres no problems there whatsoever


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## newconroer (Aug 11, 2007)

Yes, people get away with it(although they still wonder why they get lots of BSODs), but there's no point in running the PSU to it's witt's end, when you could spend another twenty or thirty pounds and pickup something a lot more sturdy.


Go ahead and throw in two LCS and overclock your father in law's build and see what happens


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## v-zero (Aug 11, 2007)

Ah. The mythology that surrounds good and bad PSUs irritates me. You do not have to spend much to get a good PSU, you simply need to know what you're looking for. I chose that PSU because I have used them before, and they have been rock solid in all the tests I have put them through. The rails were good, and the weight of the PSU suggests it packs a suitably potent cooling system, and  quality inner circuitry. I never over-spend on a PSU, or under-spend, and I have never encountered problems with the PSUs I choose.


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## HookeyStreet (Aug 11, 2007)

v-zero said:


> Well I was sitting here doing very little, watching TV and thinking I should do something, so I decided to see what kind of gaming PC I could build on a low budget. I fiddled around for a while, and decided that I would settle on this:
> 
> CPU: Intel E2140 (with default retail fan)
> 
> ...



My current rig was put together as a budget gamer, it cost only £400 (with an X1950GT)  But Ive recently added a soundcard, better GFX card and an extra HDD.


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## v-zero (Aug 11, 2007)

Yeh, I've decided my gaming PC's are no longer gonna cost loads - I will spend more on my multimedia PC... Encoding etc is far more CPU intensive.

I recently had a mates E2160 on this 650i mobo at 3.2ghz, prime stable for 72 hours, and that kicked the ass off an e6400 I had at 2.95ghz in a lot of apps.


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## cdawall (Aug 11, 2007)

toss in an 8600GTS they outperform the 1950 once you oc them plus you can get a second one when you get the money

let me rephrase that they _slaughter_ the X1950PRO. the GTS even beats the 7950GT in all but *1* test

PROOF
http://hwbot.org/hardware.compare.do?type=gpu&id=1083_1&id=1035_1&id=1036_1&id=1082_1


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## v-zero (Aug 11, 2007)

cdawall said:


> toss in an 8600GTS they outperform the 1950 once you oc them plus you can get a second one when you get the money
> 
> let me rephrase that they _slaughter_ the X1950PRO. the GTS even beats the 7950GT in all but *1* test
> 
> ...



It's not SLi so there will be no two of them, though you could stump up 10 quid more and get the (inferior) p5n-e sli from ASUS.

And when you want to say one thing's quicker than the other, don't you dare show me 3Dmark scores! I have used both, overclocked both, and know damn well that the 8600gts sucks cohones.


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## cdawall (Aug 11, 2007)

v-zero said:


> It's not SLi so there will be no two of them, though you could stump up 10 quid more and get the (inferior) p5n-e sli from ASUS.



oh ha i thought you had a 650i SLi not ultra my bad


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## choppy (Aug 11, 2007)

its a BUDGET rig cdawall, which would mean sub £100 gfx cards. possibly an x1950gt @ £80 and cheaper case (cm elite 330 cost £25 ), were looking at an even cheaper rig with exceptional performance.. dont mind if i do!

btw isnt ebuyer infamous for its incredibly poor customer service, scan tends to be cheaper than most add on top of that some outstanding after sales service which money cant buy really


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## cdawall (Aug 12, 2007)

choppy said:


> its a BUDGET rig cdawall, which would mean sub £100 gfx cards. possibly an x1950gt @ £80 and cheaper case (cm elite 330 cost £25 ), were looking at an even cheaper rig with exceptional performance.. dont mind if i do!



http://www.ebuyer.com:80/UK/product/127242

£111.85 inc VAT not exactly killing the budget there  esp. considering the additional performance he would get out of them/it


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## v-zero (Aug 12, 2007)

The 512mb x1950 pro costs 85 pounds! And, the 8600gts is an inferior, slower GPU... I don't like to skimp too much on cases because I value my ears too much to use few fast fans...

As for Ebuyer. I have bought from them countless times, had only one problem - quickly resolved. Scan is good, but Ebuyer tend to be the cheapest. If you want bad, try OCuK!


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## cdawall (Aug 12, 2007)

v-zero said:


> And, the 8600gts is an inferior, slower GPU



how so? it outperformed the X1950PRO 512mb in _EVERY_ test

here is a review with real games 

http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTMyNCwxLCxoZW50aHVzaWFzdA==

again the 8600GTS outperforms the X1950*PRO* if you were looking at the XT or XTX then yes the card would be much better but the PRO is not there the 8600GTS beats it and allows DX10 gameplay win win in my eyes


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## mitsirfishi (Aug 12, 2007)

no one knows about dx10 yet and its capibilities  so wait for the next gen of dx10 cards and games to actually come out but you can get a x1950pro from www.overclockers.co.uk for 70quid and dosh some ddr800 ram and might be able to sneak a ds3 or something which is overclockable in there


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## v-zero (Aug 12, 2007)

The 650i is a better overclocking board than the DS3. People fall so behind....

Also, whilst I respect you for showing the evidence for your suggestions cdawall, I can't help but find that HardOCP article dubious (I do love HardOCP though). They didn't over clock the x1950, and in reviews such as this: http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?id=2237&cid=3&pg=7 , the 8600gts loses almost every test. Anyway, I will build this PC and get both graphics cards, then compare performance. That'll be in a week's time though...


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## mitsirfishi (Aug 12, 2007)

ds3 averages atleast 450fsb with systems on ds3's ive used and overclocked on stock cooling plenty of head room for a e2140 which are 8x multi and more options to play with they only run at 800fsb so no worries and higher voltage which 450x8=3.6ghz which would be more than plenty doubt the cpu would reach that unless got a good stepping and week


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## cdawall (Aug 12, 2007)

v-zero said:


> The 650i is a better overclocking board than the DS3. People fall so behind....
> 
> Also, whilst I respect you for showing the evidence for your suggestions cdawall, I can't help but find that HardOCP article dubious (I do love HardOCP though). They didn't over clock the x1950, and in reviews such as this: http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?id=2237&cid=3&pg=7 , the 8600gts loses almost every test. Anyway, I will build this PC and get both graphics cards, then compare performance. That'll be in a week's time though...



see thats what i get for not reading thru you're correct they didnt oc the X1950 your source seems more legit in comparo

as for the comparison your doing...wish i had the dough to do that 



mitsirfishi said:


> ds3 averages atleast 450fsb with systems on ds3's ive used and overclocked on stock cooling plenty of head room for a e2140 which are 8x multi and more options to play with they only run at 800fsb so no worries and higher voltage which 450x8=3.6ghz which would be more than plenty doubt the cpu would reach that unless got a good stepping and week



http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=2964&p=12

509mhz FSb=better than DS3


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## Grings (Aug 12, 2007)

i just put a system together for a friend with the xfx 650i ultra,he got it for £46 from scan (today only offers) and have to say its a cool little board (it looks exactly the same as the evga), with these low priced boards even the value sectors gone intels way now

oh and gtx's are under £300 now


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## v-zero (Aug 12, 2007)

And the XFX and EVGA 650i boards can hit 450+ too. The DS3 is a waste of money... The XFX 650i can be had for 50 bob from specialtech.co.uk


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## mitsirfishi (Aug 12, 2007)

fair enough ive had a bad experiance with some nforce based boards  but in general solid didnt think the nf650 was capible of such things  just make sure he has a psu with 8pin connector


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## v-zero (Aug 12, 2007)

cdawall said:


> see thats what i get for not reading thru you're correct they didnt oc the X1950 your source seems more legit in comparo
> 
> as for the comparison your doing...wish i had the dough to do that



I really love HardOCP, it's just that's the first time I've seen the 8600gts beat an x1950 pro 512mb... So it's now a harder decision. And nice find on the high fsb  .


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## mitsirfishi (Aug 12, 2007)

and with the newer bios the ds3 does actually push the 500fsb barrier  
http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=2902&p=2


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## v-zero (Aug 12, 2007)

mitsirfishi said:


> fair enough ive had a bad experiance with some nforce based boards  but in general solid didnt think the nf650 was capible of such things  just make sure he has a psu with 8pin connector



It doesn't take an 8-pin connector (in my memory at least).


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## mitsirfishi (Aug 12, 2007)

well looking at that evga board which hits a nice 500fsb solid it had a 8pin connector to it


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## Grings (Aug 12, 2007)

the xfx had an 8 pin in all the pictures on the box etc, but actually only has a 4 pin, seems a pretty cool board so far (its sat here running orthos at the moment, does 400 fsb no sweat)


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## cdawall (Aug 12, 2007)

mitsirfishi said:


> and with the newer bios the ds3 does actually push the 500fsb barrier
> http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=2902&p=2



see only issue with that is

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188017&Tpk=evga+650i+ultra

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128012

$80USD vs $110USD

you get the same performance y spend extra on the DS3?


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## mitsirfishi (Aug 12, 2007)

you pay for the quality of the board and the better capacitors ect ect im not saying the evga board is bad because its good value for money but i would rather spend the extra $30 which is £16 which isnt a hassle


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## Grings (Aug 12, 2007)

looking at this other review http://www.techwarelabs.com/reviews/motherboard/evgai650/ it seems they come with a 4pin psu too (the one at [H] had an 8 pin) and yup, theyre exactly the same as the xfx, must be built by(for) nvidia


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## v-zero (Aug 12, 2007)

mitsirfishi said:


> you pay for the quality of the board and the better capacitors ect ect im not saying the evga board is bad because its good value for money but i would rather spend the extra $30 which is £16 which isnt a hassle



Yet the EVGA and XFX use jap caps and seriously good components. Stop trying, there are no advantages to the DS3. And the XFX and EVGA don't have 8-pin inputs. The 965P is just too old, let it go. Sixteen quid is a lot when you're budgeting.


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## Grings (Aug 12, 2007)

this one im building has samxxon caps, which according to (former?) member trodas are some of the best (check some of his posts)

and if you want an intel chipset, surely a p35 would make more sense, and abit have one for £65 or so which is reportedly very good http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=605521


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## v-zero (Aug 17, 2007)

UPDATE:

Well I got hold of all those components, except I changed graphics cards (added 10 quid to the price). It's all just sitting on a bench being tested at the moment, but I think I have found my optimal overclocks:

CPU: E2140 @ 3ghz, 1.44v, stock cooler, dual-orthos (prime, blend and small FFT's) stable.

GFX: Galaxy 8600gt coolermaster special edition @ 760 core and 1200 memory (2400mhz ddr). Got this from china for 95 pounds. It has a pci-e power in and is essentially a nice-clocking 8600gts, but is much cheaper than buying an actual 8600gts.

Memory: 2GB DDR2-800 (managed to find it cheap so it didn't cost more - just value stuff).

The rest is completely as described earlier, and it's all gone together very nicely... I ran 3dmark06 with all the current overclocks and got a score of 6576. What I'm really looking forwards too is seeing how it plays Bioshock.

Anyway, I think I've managed to pull out a pretty smart rig here considering the cost - and it didn't take long to get it to this point...


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## cdawall (Aug 17, 2007)

looks nice


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## InnocentCriminal (Aug 17, 2007)

What was the grand total of the rig then V?


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## v-zero (Aug 17, 2007)

It came to 364 Pounds with no OS - pretty sweet eh?


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## InnocentCriminal (Aug 17, 2007)

HEH HEH! Yeah - fair play! Bioshock FTW!


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## mullered07 (Aug 17, 2007)

v nice man you have a rig comparable to mine but mine still costs over 600 (exc monitor speakers etc) on ebuyer


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## v-zero (Aug 17, 2007)

mullered07 said:


> v nice man you have a rig comparable to mine but mine still costs over 600 (exc monitor speakers etc) on ebuyer



Yes, the power of google, ebuyer and overcocking.  Your 8600 has better core speed than mine though... Still, I think they will be roughly the same. The E2140 will do 3.4ghz but I don't like too much voltage on the stock cooler... Very happy, may sell it on but I'll decide that later. Just worked out I can build one around an 8800GTS 320mb for 440 pounds too.


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## HookeyStreet (Aug 17, 2007)

v-zero said:


> Well I was sitting here doing very little, watching TV and thinking I should do something, so I decided to see what kind of gaming PC I could build on a low budget. I fiddled around for a while, and decided that I would settle on this:
> 
> CPU: Intel E2140 (with default retail fan)
> 
> ...



What about getting a cheaper mobo and adding an 8800GTS 320 instead of the X1950Pro 

I know this may compromise the overclock a little bit, but the performance gain on the 8800 would be worth it 

PS: why DDR667? DDR800 is soooo cheap right now 

PPS: eBuyer is the best m8


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## Grings (Aug 18, 2007)

ebuyers the best, but scan has the best mobo deal at the moment http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=594521 its the xfx one, but is exactly the same as the evga (nvidia reference, and quite possibly built too), its been in their today only for £45 a few times too


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## HookeyStreet (Aug 18, 2007)

Grings said:


> ebuyers the best, but scan has the best mobo deal at the moment http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=594521 its the xfx one, but is exactly the same as the evga (nvidia reference, and quite possibly built too), its been in their today only for £45 a few times too



Thats a VERY nice mobo for a very small price.....I wouldnt mind one, I bet it allows for some great overclocking


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## Grings (Aug 18, 2007)

i built a friend a rig with one last w/end, done 475 fsb (probably more, but i didnt want to kill a brand new rig)


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## HookeyStreet (Aug 18, 2007)

Grings said:


> i built a friend a rig with one last w/end, done 475 fsb (probably more, but i didnt want to kill a brand new rig)



Nice......what CPU was you using?


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## Grings (Aug 18, 2007)

a 4400, i lowered the multi to get that fsb, i sent him home at 3.4 (340x10) as he's a bit of a noob, so i wanted to settle on something i know is stable (and my 4400/650 has been fine like that for a few months now)


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## v-zero (Aug 18, 2007)

HookeyStreet said:


> What about getting a cheaper mobo and adding an 8800GTS 320 instead of the X1950Pro
> 
> I know this may compromise the overclock a little bit, but the performance gain on the 8800 would be worth it
> 
> ...



DDR keeps changing in price almost daily, it's getting irritating. Anyway, I wouldn't want a mobo any cheaper than that because this system has to have the processing power to last it too, and no matter how cheap the mobo was it couldn't save nearly enough money for an 8800 in that price bracket.


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## HookeyStreet (Aug 18, 2007)

Grings said:


> a 4400, i lowered the multi to get that fsb, i sent him home at 3.4 (340x10) as he's a bit of a noob, so i wanted to settle on something i know is stable (and my 4400/650 has been fine like that for a few months now)



Sweet overclock m8


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## Ketxxx (Aug 18, 2007)

DDR2-800 instead of DDR2-667. Not that there is anything wrong with the mobo, but its ugly as hell. Might wanna spend a few quid more on a mobo with the same chipset, but uses a much more eye-friendly PCB colour. For the sake of an extra £10 or so, you might want to look at a E4300 instead of the 2160, 1MB extra cache, and no doubt it will OC better.


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## choppy (Aug 19, 2007)

Ketxxx said:


> DDR2-800 instead of DDR2-667. Not that there is anything wrong with the mobo, but its ugly as hell. Might wanna spend a few quid more on a mobo with the same chipset, but uses a much more eye-friendly PCB colour. For the sake of an extra £10 or so, you might want to look at a E4300 instead of the 2160, 1MB extra cache, and no doubt it will OC better.



£10 to change pcb colour, its gonna sit enclosed in your case lol! when your on a tight budget pcb colour dont matter for shit!


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## InnocentCriminal (Aug 19, 2007)

choppy said:


> £10 to change pcb colour, its gonna sit enclosed in your case lol! when your on a tight budget pcb colour dont matter for shit!



Unless you're after a specific colour (on a tight budget) then it would matter.


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## v-zero (Sep 5, 2007)

BUMP for update to first post.


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## mullered07 (Sep 5, 2007)

v-zero said:


> BUMP for update to first post.



your going with a x2 4000+ instead of the e2140? no sense and for the price of 2x 2600xt you could get a single card that would perform same/better with the option of crossfire down the line


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## cdawall (Sep 5, 2007)

that brisbane should do well even with the default fan but i would try for an opty 1210 stock cooled those are basically gaurenteed to hit 3.2ghz as for the dual 2600XT's i think it is a good idea seeing how performance is increasing every cat update with them xfire should give the performance of a single top notch card


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## v-zero (Sep 6, 2007)

mullered07 said:


> your going with a x2 4000+ instead of the e2140? no sense and for the price of 2x 2600xt you could get a single card that would perform same/better with the option of crossfire down the line



1. The e2140 would need a more expensive board for no more gaming performance.

2. 2x 2600xt costs about 125 pounds. What card are you suggesting, considering 2600xt crossfire performs close to an 8800gts and 2900xt?

And also, the Opty 1210 is much more expensive here.


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## Grings (Sep 6, 2007)

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=594521
this is the best 775 mobo ive seen recently cheap, better than 945/via/sis gear, and if you look on the right day of the week in the today only section it can be found for £44 or so (its usually there at least once a week)


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## v-zero (Sep 6, 2007)

Grings said:


> http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=594521
> this is the best 775 mobo ive seen recently cheap, better than 945/via/sis gear, and if you look on the right day of the week in the today only section it can be found for £44 or so (its usually there at least once a week)



It is the same as the EVGA board, but that's a very good price.


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## Grings (Sep 6, 2007)

yup, exactly the same (ive seen both 'in the flesh'), standard nvidia ref design


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## cdawall (Sep 7, 2007)

v-zero said:


> 1. The e2140 would need a more expensive board for no more gaming performance.
> 
> 2. 2x 2600xt costs about 125 pounds. What card are you suggesting, considering 2600xt crossfire performs close to an 8800gts and 2900xt?
> 
> And also, the Opty 1210 is much more expensive here.



yes i forgot you are UK, US its not super expensive


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