So, i want to build a gaming computer for $700 or less.

Here is what i was looking at,

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129042

EVGA 896-P3-1257-AR GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 Superclocked Edition 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130433

SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache IDE 22X DVD±R DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827151175

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822152181

case-$54.95
gpu-$169.99 after $30.00 Mail-In Rebate
optical drive-$29.99
hard drive-$54.99

Not sure about the os, 32 bit is fine if i can afford ddr3 ram.
Not sure on what cpu i would need, i would like intel if i can afford it.
Not sure what watt psu to get.
Dont know much about mother boards

Thank you for the help, if you want to suggest a different computer, go ahead.
I prefer newegg.com

I take it this won't be a high performance PC. You will probably get a good gaming PC for around $700 to $800. Anyway, here's an idea.

Case: Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - A good mid ATX case, if you're wanting to use Crossfire or SLI, you may want to consider a Full ATX case given their added depth and thermal tolerances. $54

Motherboard: ASUS M4A77TD Pro AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - To save money, I chose AMD. This motherboard uses AMD's newest AM3 processor, DDR3 RAM, and can Crossfire with other ATI cards. $89 (Before $10 mail-in rebate)

GPU: XFX HD-487A-ZWFC Radeon HD 4870 1GB - To save cash, I suggest this card since it equals the GTX 260 in terms of performance at a lower price. $144

Power Supply: CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W - This will provide more than enough power for a single or dual graphics card setup. $99 (Before $20 mail-in rebate)

CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition Callisto 3.1GHz - Your budget does not allow for a very high end quad-core CPU, but this is one of the better dual core CPU's on the market. For a gaming PC, I suggest using a processor with a clock speed of 2.8GHz. or higher. If you want to spend some more cash on the CPU, you can get the AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz, AMD Phenom II X4 945 Deneb 3.0GHz, or the AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz. $102

RAM: OCZ Gold 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1066 - The motherboard takes DDR3 memory and this will do. Remember, you need a 64-bit operating system to use 4GB or more of memory. $69

Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Green WD5000AADS 500GB - I prefer WD over Samsung. $55

Optical Drive: Sony Optiarc 24X DVD/CD Rewritable Drive Black SATA Model AD-7240S-0B - This will read and write to most optical media. $32

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit - Your 64-bit OS. $99

Grand Total: $748 (Before Rebates)

that set up looks great, thank you very much

What do you think about Antec - EarthWatts 650-Watt ATX CPU Power Supply http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?sk...d=1204331807576 instead to save $30 because i have a $50 gift card to there and get the AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz instead with the extra?

also what kind of games will this be able to run and at what quality?

and, does the os for system builders really mean anything?

The Antec will work fine, the main differences between the two units are the number of connectors. If you're not planning on installing several hard drives and graphics cards, than the connectors don't pose a problem. You can go for the Phenom II X3 and overclock it easily since it is an unlocked Black Edition processor. The dual core CPU I suggested is, hardware wise, a quad core CPU. AMD just chose to turn off two cores, same thing with a triple core CPU, AMD simply turned off one core. Most games that have been released within the last couple of years or so can handle dual core setups easily, since they've been coded with that technology in mind. Games that can take quad cores are fewer since they are relatively new and more difficult to code for. Personally, I would go for a quad core CPU and reduce the power of the graphics card until I had the money to buy a top-of-the-line card like the Radeon HD5870. This is because, in my opinion, removing and installing a new CPU is more intensive than a graphics card, especially if you're unfamiliar with building a PC. With some games, they are CPU or GPU bound, relying on one or the other more, however, the CPU has to be fast enough to send data to the GPU to avoid a bottleneck. With Windows there are two different kinds of copies of the OS, retail and OEM. Retail copies are uncommon and come in boxes like most off-the-shelf software. If you or anyone has purchased an upgrade edition of Windows, then it came in retail packaging. Full retail copies of the operating system are available, but they cost a premium. OEM copies are what most people have. These editions of Windows are installed by OEM's, like Dell or HP, and cost less since they are subsidized by those companies and they provide any end-user support. Newegg, TigerDirect, and other retailers get OEM copies in under a license agreement with Microsoft. They can sell them to end users with the understanding that the user will provide any support if needed. Part of the agreement also stipulates that they are to be sold to system builders who, in turn, sell them to others. However, there are various exclusions in the agreement so anyone can buy the OEM copy without reselling the PC. There is no difference, software wise, between the retail and OEM copies. Only the license is different. OEM copies are tied to the motherboard and cannot be moved to another, different motherboard. Retail copies can be moved from PC to PC.

Cheers for that post explained alot to me aswell


Edit: Edited to remove unnecessary quote. ~ tg