Holiday 2011 Midrange System Buyer's Guide
by Zach Throckmorton on December 6, 2011 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Guides
- AMD
- Intel
- Sandy Bridge
- Llano
- Holiday 2011
- midrange
- NVIDIA
Final thoughts
As I discussed in the introduction, I think now is a particularly good time to spend $1000 or so on a PC that's suited for the long haul. That is, the systems outlined in this guide are likely to be more capable in 2016 than 2006's PCs are today, for a number of reasons. I also want to stress how much of an improvement to your overall computing experience an SSD yields, and unless you absolutely must spend more money on lots of storage space or a GPU, a $1000 PC without an SSD is a shame in my opinion.
The three PCs outlined in this guide represent a wide range of cost (the Intel Core i7-2600K system is fully 50% more expensive than the AMD A8-3850 rig) and capability (the Intel Core i5-2500K box is a much more capable gamer than the AMD A8-3850 setup). The fun of a midrange build is also the biggest challenge—you have to think about and identify what the PC will be used for, and then buy parts accordingly. During the holidays, it is especially useful to identify many potential purchases and then watch for ephemeral sales. Just remember to send in your rebates on time!
You might also have noticed that we skipped out on keyboards, mice, displays, and speakers for these builds. Those areas tend to move quite a bit slower than the rest of the PC market, and you can find our opinions on displays and keyboards in our Back to School Guide--not much has changed as far as recommendations. For keyboards and mice, grab what you're comfortable using; Microsoft and Logitech offerings are always a safe bet, though some users prefer fancier hardware.
You can always visit AnandTech's Hot Deals forum for tips and information on especially low component prices. And our General Hardware forum is a great resource where you can ask fellow enthusiasts for advice about which specific components are best suited for your specific needs.
Happy Holidays!
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cjmurph - Wednesday, December 7, 2011 - link
Damn auto correct.duploxxx - Wednesday, December 7, 2011 - link
Would there be ANY reason why to take the crucial which cost 110$ while at the same time for the higher end design you take an OCZ for 100$ with 20$ rebate...also for a budget Liano design there is not a single reason to buy the Asus PRO, the normal version has just a few less USB ports (not needed more) and costs again less
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...
but on the 2500 you take the cheapest mobo just to be able to squeze in the budget of the 1000$ with rebates
balance and compare designs, it's like the systems have been put together by different people
vigeeta - Wednesday, December 7, 2011 - link
is it just me .. or.. there is no video card on the 2600k system? and no price?miyomiyochan - Wednesday, December 7, 2011 - link
Ya, where is the GPU in the 2600k system?spigzone - Wednesday, December 7, 2011 - link
Your 3850 component choices are weird.A $100 computer case for a low power NON gaming dedicated computer for why? when an Antec 300 goes for $50 - HALF the price.
1866 RAM when 1333 RAM goes for HALF the price. Wtf does a Llano build need 1866 RAM for?
Why not get a 120GB SSD and wait for the prices on TB drives to drop back down?
PVitty - Tuesday, December 13, 2011 - link
Good article... I compared your build with my i5-2500K setup and it's pretty similar except for the GPU... I have a Radeon 6570. Here's my full spec list. I think I did good :)Component Amt Paid (after Rebate)
i5-2500K + Gigabyte Z68AP-D3 $238
Antec 300 Mid-Tower ATX $40
OCZ ModXStream 600W PSU $40
24x Lite-On DVD+/-RW $15
Corsair XMS3 8GB DDR3 1600Mhz $30
Gigabyte Radeon 6570 DDR3 $40
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus $22
Intel 320 Series 120GB SSD $110
Seagate Barracuda Green 2TB $80
Additional Case Fans (3) $10
Rosewill RC-103 USB Adaptor $10
Total $635
anirudhs - Wednesday, December 14, 2011 - link
I would drop the i5-2500K and go with the i3-2105 because it has HD3000. I would then drop the Radeon 6850 and go with an audio card from HT | Omega (Hope I got that right). i3-2105 and A8-3850 is perhaps a more equal comparison.