I derived a couple Intel i7 860 2.8 GHz builds, so take a look and see what you think. The prices in both could be lowered a tad if you were to choose a cheaper computer case, different power supply, less than 4GB RAM, different/less than 500GB hard drive, or a cheaper video card than the Radeon HD 4870. I chose these components because I believe that they can act as a solid baseline for purchasing a build that includes a processor like the Intel i7. The Radeon HD 4870 has a max resolution of 2560 x 1600, and can most likely play allot of games at pretty high settings, so if something like this is of no concern to you, by all means go for a cheaper card like the Radeon HD 4850.
Build 1: $788 @ Amazon
1. Processor: Intel Core i7 860 Processor 2.80 GHz 8 MB LGA1156 CPU I7-860BOX
2. Power Supply Unit (P.S.U): Corsair CMPSU-650TX 650-Watt TX Series 80 Plus Certified Power Supply compatible with Intel Core i7 and Core i5
3. Computer Case: Cooler Master Elite 341 m-ATX Mini Tower Case Black – (RC-341C-KKN1-GP)
4. A MotherBoard: Gigabyte GA-P55M – UD2 Ultra Durable 3 Motherboard
6. Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200 500 GB 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s 16MB Cache 3.5 Inch Internal Hard Drive ST3500418AS-Bare Drive
7. DVD – Drive: LG Electronics 24X SATA DVD+/-RW Internal Drive GH24NS50 (Black)
8. Video Graphics Card: Asus ATI Radeon HD4870 1 GB DDR5 2DVI PCI-Express Video Card EAH4870/2DI/1GD5
Build 2: $799 @ Newegg
1. Processor:
Intel Core i7-860 2.8GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor
2. Power Supply Unit (P.S.U):
CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
3. A Computer Case:
APEX TX-381-C Black Computer Case
4. A MotherBoard:
GIGABYTE GA-P55-USB3 ATX Intel Motherboard
5. RAM:
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory
6. Hard Drive:
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB 3.5″ SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
7. DVD – Drive:
ASUS 24X DVD Burner – Bulk Black SATA Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS
8. Video Graphics Card:
XFX Radeon HD 4870 HD-487A-ZWFC Video Card
Comments 0
This is not one of the best builds I have seen:P
I think anyone would be better of getting a 5770 for startes over the dated 4870 and alsothe psu is more than overkill.Even a quality 450w psu would run this system and the 650w corsair tx is just too much.You’d be better off investing the money you’ll save that way on a better mobo.Anyways I think you should take a look at my builds in my site and comment for yourself.Also your site has a great format so congrats for that:)
Author
Hey John thanks for the input I appreciate it, and I’ll take a look at your site. As the power supply may be a tad overkill, it leaves room. 450w however, would be a a little low as you would need at minimum between 500-550w for this machine. As for the 5770 over the 4870 they are rather comparable and the 4870 is a tad cheaper. Check out the benchmark comparison here: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/172?vs=176