Budget System Builder’s Guide February 2011
by Zach Throckmorton on February 14, 2011 12:00 AM ESTGPU Upgrades
Our basic builds use integrated graphics, but if you actually want to play games you'll want something more. In the budget range, there are four excellent offerings, three from AMD (formerly ATI) and one from NVIDIA. For performance data, we'll once more refer to Bench, this time using our GPU 2010 and GPU 2011 suites. The CPUs in GPU Bench are much faster than what we're recommending, but once you start increasing detail levels and resolution you'll usually become GPU limited.
The XFX HD-567X-ZNF3 Radeon HD 5670 1GB is an excellent video card that does not require an additional 6-pin PCIe power connector. It’ll set you back $95, but currently has a $30 mail in rebate. This card is capable of playing all available titles, though newer games will have to be set to lower resolutions and settings. The reigning budget gamers' choice is the Radeon HD 5770, which can play just about every title at high resolution with at least some settings set to high. The HIS H577FK1GD is $130 (plus a $30 rebate), which is an exceptional value. It also runs very cool, especially at idle.
The NVIDIA GTX 460 outperforms the Radeon HD 5770 by a bit, but unfortunately pulls substantially more juice. MSI’s N460GTX Cyclone 768D5/OC is available for $150 (minus a $20 rebate) and is a compelling product at this price point. Finally, the Radeon HD 5850 represents the top of the budget-conscious builder’s choices. The Diamond 5850PE51G will set you back $185, plus there's a $20 rebate. It's generally faster than the GTX 460, with similar power requirements.
PSU Upgrades
It should be noted that all of the above video cards are compatible with the AMD and Intel platforms, though pairing the 5770, 460GTX, or 5850 with a quad- or hex-core CPU will likely require a beefier power supply than the Earthwatts 380W. The Antec Earthwatts 500W is $50 after rebate (and sometimes less) and is our recommended step up from the Earthwatts 380W. Note that we're linking the old Earthwatts and not the newer EA-500D; you drop from 80 Plus Bronze to just plain 80 Plus, but you also save $25 and it's still a good PSU.
SSD Upgrades
SSDs offer multiple advantages over mechanical hard drives. First and most noticeably, they’re much faster. Everything from load times of both operating systems and applications, to application installations/patches, to level load times in games, to system power consumption is better with an SSD. Unfortunately, they remain expensive and have relatively small capacities. Generally, pairing an SSD with a high capacity storage mechanical disk provides the best of both worlds, though this is not always necessary.
Multiple manufacturers offer appealing SSDs; the two top controllers of late are from SandForce and Intel, though the Crucial C300, Indilinx, and even Toshiba controllers also have merit. The next year will bring us Intel’s third generation SSDs, and second generation parts from SandForce, Crucial, and Indilinx. For now, the Intel G2 drives are widely considered more reliable than non-Intel offerings—though this might simply be due to the tendency of tinkerers and tweakers to go with non-Intel SSDs!
For the budget conscious, the 40GB Intel SSD is a bit less than $100, while the Intel 80GB SSD checks in around $170. Note the 80GB version has substantially higher write speeds, but writes are not nearly as important as reads for an OS/app drive. OCZ’s Vertex 2 line includes SSDs of numerous capacities, with the 60GB model going for $105 after $15 rebate, and the 120GB drive coming in at just $177 (after $30 rebate). Corsair’s Force line also earns praise from users, and like OCZ, their SSDs are available at many capacities under $200, but are typically slightly more expensive than the OCZ drives. The good news is that even the "slow" SSDs are still substantially faster than even the fastest desktop HDDs (outside of the sequential write metric).
Other Storage Upgrades
While 500GB mechanical drives are cheap at $40 (or less), higher capacity drives are available for not much more. Samsung’s Spinpoint F3 1TB 7200RPM can sometimes be found for $60 or less, and is a forum favorite at AnandTech because of its performance. Another option is Hitachi’s 1TB 7200RPM, currently available for a mere $55. The advent of very high density platters for mechanical hard drives has allowed manufacturers to start marketing "green drives", mechanical hard drives that spin at less than the established mainstream 7200RPM but don’t suffer a crippling performance loss. These green drives run cooler and use less electricity than 7200RPM drives and make for great, cheap mass storage solutions. 1TB green drives usually hover around $60 (and can be found on sale for less), with 2TB green drives often available at $80. Whether you go with Seagate, Samsung, or Western Digital is really a matter of personal preference and price. Finally, if you're looking for Blu-ray support, you can swap out the DVDRW and get a BRD combo drive starting at $60—only $40 more than our stock DVDRW.
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GeorgeH - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
A GTX 460 (the most power hungry card recommended in the article) needs ~12A of 12V under a heavy gaming load. An Athlon II X2 250 (the more power hungry CPU of the two builds) needs ~4A of 12V at 100% load.That's 16A total for the two most power hungry items. Factor in that the EA-380D actually has two 17A 12V rails for 34A of available 12V power, and the entire system will probably never go over 60% load on the 12V rails even with a "mainstream" GPU.
SteelCity1981 - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
Wow how far off you are. do you acutally think the GT 460 only needs 12a? I got an ocean front land in AZ i'd like to sell you. The minuim for a GT 460 is 24amp yes that's right 24amp on a 12v single rail Anything lower then that and you are basicly risking your gpu to short. When you facotry in the entire system and you are facvotoring in the total usage 12amp is not even close to enough.aylafan - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
The minimum for a GT 460 isn't 24A on a "single" +12V rail. You can have multiple +12V rails for a combined 24A or more, etc.Also, the EA-380D PSU has two +12V rails.
+12V1 = 17A; +12V2 = 15A
Just take the total Watts for the +12V rails and divide it by 12 to get the combined Amps on the PSU.
336/12 = 28A
Please, post a link of a better PSU with similar Amps and 82% or higher efficiency at this price. Otherwise, everything you have said has no real merit.
SteelCity1981 - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
FSP Group SAGA+ 400R 400W ATX12V Power SupplyWasn't that hard. Not only does it have an 80% and above efficiency rate, but it also hase higher watts and a higher 12v dual rail for around the same price.
aylafan - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
FSP Group SAGA+ 400R 400W ATX12V Power Supplyhttp://www.fspgroupusa.com/saga-400r/p/409.html
You call +12V1 = 10A; +12V2 = 13A and only combined 23A better than the EA-380D PSU? You have to be joking me.
You do know that Newegg.com has the wrong specs right? Even the photo of the PSU specs contradicts with the listed specs on their page.
Apparently, you didn't research hard enough. You lost credibility once again...
GeorgeH - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
Do I think a GTX 460 needs only 12A of 12V? Absolutely - because I'm referencing experiments, not random values pulled from thin air:http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/nvi...
Running Crysis, the 460 drew 11.7A of 12V. Running OCCT, it drew 11.2A of 12V.
Again, educate thyself.
ckryan - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
Great job, Zach. I like the cut of your jib. You buying guide has some of the most sensible budget picks around. One item, the Earthwatts 380D, is my favorite budget PSU. It hits the sweet spot for a budget build. While it does eat a chunk of a budget build up, I think it's the finest budget PSU out there. You have to spend a hefty sum more to get something better. Apparently, some people haven't read Martin Kaffei's review on Anandtech.SteelCity1981 wrote:
"Well that 380w Earthwatts is a cheap PSU. 17a on a single 12v rail. You can't get much cheaper then that. Good luck trying to put in a mainstream GPU in there without having to buy another PSU. I wouldn't even put in a Radeon 5670 or GT 440 let alone anything higher grade with that PSU."
Say What?
The Earthwatts 380w might be inexpensive, but calling it cheap is just ridiculous. It is eighty + BRONZE. It has 17a and 15a 12v rails. It is fairly quiet. It's probably as much PSU as most people need. I built a system for a friend using the 380D to power a Phenom II X3 @ 3.1Ghz AND a GTX 470. At stock clocks and voltage, the CPU and GPU loads under Furmark and Prime95 were reading under 318w AT THE WALL. Factor in the efficiency of the 380w (Read the AnandTech 380D review -- about 84%) and the system was only using about 267w. Running Prime95 and Furmark together is something that just doesn't occur under normal circumstances. Actual gaming power draw was between 220w and 280w. Again, at the wall, measured with a P3 Kill-A-Watt. Granted, you wouldn't necessarily want to run a GTX470 and a X58 platform off the 380D, but a dual- or triple core @stock? Money.
I't doesn't come with a power cable unless you buy it in an Antec case. The spaghetti mess of connectors is difficult to wrangle. But all things considered, it's a good value at the $40 point. It's easy to find it cheaper with a combo, included in an Antec case, or on sale. I say, don't dis it ' till you've tried it. Or just understand what the hell you're talking about. Telling people about how you wouldn't want to power a "Radeon 5670 or GT 440" with this PSU just spreads more wrong information.
SteelCity1981 - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
Really? Go show me on this picture where you see dual 12v rails? because I sure the hell couldn't see it on the sticker.So by saying the Earthwatts isn't cheap is like saying a Ford Fiesta isn't cheap either right? LOL There is a reason why it's marked the way it is in price, because it is cheap. Apparently you know little about psu's that or you are a fan of Earthwatts to understand that these psu's are priced this low for a reason. Any true enthusiast will tell you that these PSU's are cheap and to make an argument other wise, you'd get laughed out of the building.
So you make an argument about the watts. Well news flash the watts isn't' nearly as important as the amps. Everyone that's truly knowledgeable about PSU's understands that the amps are the most important factor in a PSU especially when it comes to high powered hardware in the psu. Let me give you an example. A 500w psu with only 16amps on single 12v rail is actually worse then a 400w psu that carries a 24amp single 12v rail. Why? Simple. The voltage rail supplies power to the most demanding components including the processor, drives, cooling fans and graphics cards. All of these items draw a lot of current and as a result you want to make sure that you purchase a unit that supplies enough power to the +12V rail. Which clearly shows an Earthwatt psu 17amp 12v isn't truly enough amps for any decnet mainstream gpu especially if you want to upgrade to better hardware in the future, you're going to need a much better psu. Again there is a reason why Eathwatts are priced where they are.
GeorgeH - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
The picture on this page clearly shows 17A+15A of 12V:http://www.anandtech.com/show/3902/antec-earthwatt...
The specs on the Antec page claim 17A+17A of 12V:
http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MjI...
Educate thyself.
SteelCity1981 - Monday, February 14, 2011 - link
educate myself you are the one saying 380w are fine LOL