Suggestions For A Gaming Rig For A Friend

[mazakman]

I got a buddy at work that asked me to suggest some parts (processor, motherboard, memory and video card) for a gaming tower for around $1000 CDN.

I figure that an Intel E8400 ($300) with an ATI 3870 ($230) would be good but not sure what motherboard and ram to suggest. He's not an overclocker so I don't see the need for any high end memory or motherboard but don't want him to get anything crappy either.

 

Would anyone have any suggestions?

 

Thanks.

[kendellrt]

I got a buddy at work that asked me to suggest some parts (processor, motherboard, memory and video card) for a gaming tower for around $1000 CDN.

I figure that an Intel E8400 ($300) with an ATI 3870 ($230) would be good but not sure what motherboard and ram to suggest. He's not an overclocker so I don't see the need for any high end memory or motherboard but don't want him to get anything crappy either.

 

Would anyone have any suggestions?

 

Thanks.

 

The RAM that I have doesn't overclock at all, but it is great for what it is rated for. It's cheap, too! Linky Goodness

[mazakman]

Thanks but he'll probably want to get it locally in the Montreal area.

 

In the link I'm pasting click on "Memoire" in the selection to see what is available, he'll most probably get something from there.

 

http://www.cipc.com/particulier/produits/

[ccokeman]

Getting any of the X38 boards out there would be fine if he is not going to overclock. Abit, Gigiabyte and Asus all make decent boards for about $200. Performance on the P35 boards is still there as well and can be had in the $140 to $170 range.

 

I have tried the IP-35Pro from Abit(p35) ,THe Foxconn MARs (P35), the IX38 QUad GT from Abit(X38) and a couple of the Asus P5K series and all perform close to each other at stock settings. It all comes down to feature set on the board. The Gigabyte P35 and X38 and X48 boards have done well in our testing as well.

 

For memory 4 gigabytes of DDR2 is ridiculously priced now. $130 for the set of Mushkin Redline XP2 8000 modules I just reviewed. If he only needs 2 gigs then the pricing is even better.

[mazakman]

Thanks Frank.

I was thinking that this board (because of the price) would suit him well: http://www.cipc.com/particulier/produits/8167/

Do you think it's any good?

 

Is any of the Corsair memory any good? It's availlable locally and I have to stress local as he doesn't want to do any online shopping.

 

Stability is what he's basically looking for and his kids aren't teenagers so he shouldn't be looking for an upgrade for at least a year or two. Hopefully they won't grow into extreme overclockers for his sake.

[davidst]

I suggest, keep in mind, prices on this site are a <_< LOT <_< higher than newegg

zipzoomfly or clubit etc. etc.

 

video 8800gt/9600gt

 

http://www.cipc.com/particulier/produits/8498/

http://www.cipc.com/particulier/produits/8521/

 

mb

gigabyte ga-p35-ds3l

could not find on the site

look at this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813128059

 

 

only thing that they have-close

http://www.cipc.com/particulier/produits/8167/

 

 

 

mem

 

http://www.cipc.com/particulier/produits/7018/

 

http://www.cipc.com/particulier/produits/8177/

 

 

cpu e8400

http://www.cipc.com/particulier/produits/8402/

[ccokeman]

the 2x1gb cas 4 twinX2048 would not be bad. There is also a set of OCZ reapers for $135 that would be pretty good. The p5k should be fine for him. It may need a bios update depending on when it was manufactured. Looks pretty solid so far. Dependin on what games he is playing your friend may be better off with an 8800GT for around the same price or lower.

[mazakman]

I agree about the prices davidst, I don't know of any local retailers with the buying power that Newegg has but it is his decision to buy from local retailers. I chose CIPC as a reference for the Montreal area. I'll have a look at some other places here to see if any of them carry Gigabyte and also compare pricing.

 

The EVGA 8800GT they carry looks interesting... I'll add that to the list and discuss it with him along with the OCZ reapers. I'm not all that sure about what games he's playing but it's probably more for his kids as we all know how demanding they can be.

 

Thanks for the help guys.