Optimum Budget Aces High System

[Stalwart]

My old Dell works great for everything I do, except for playing Aces High.
Since the overhaul of the graphics system, I've had to turn all the eye candy off, just to maintain 30-40 FPS.

I want new equipment to exploit the capabilities of current Aces High software.
I don't want to pay for expensive cutting edge technology that does not help Aces High performance.
I don't want to pay for expensive aging technology that's already approaching end of life or becoming scarce.

You custom spec builders out there:
What, if anything, have you got, for $500 - $800 to make Aces High run smooth and look pretty again?

[Slash27]

I think Maximum PC put out an article about a smoking fast PC for like $650? Let me Google.

[Slash27]

Couldn't find it but this isn't a bad place to start.

http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/Gamer_Xtreme_1000/

[cattb]

Something else you could look at
http://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/index.php/topic,300362.0.html

IMO, I prefer Western Digital at this time as apposed to Seagate, also I would look at the Nvidia 460 fermi versus the 5770. I say this due to  the price of the 460  coming down and not because the 5770 is a bad card.

[ozrocker]

Couldn't find it but this isn't a bad place to start.

http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/Gamer_Xtreme_1000/

I bought a nice setup for 758.00 from them. I'm pleased.
The only issue I had was kind of a weak power supply.
I added more Ram, but PS that came with system was maxing out.
Changed to a 1000 watt PS, all continues to work well after 2 years now.

                                                                                   <S> Oz

[Stalwart]

Thanks for the ideas and responses.  If I didn't have to buy Christmas for the kids, I'd by Christmas for me right now.  I'll probably wait until January.

[phatzo]

You could always give the kids a second hand Dell for Christmas.

[GreenEagle43]

newegg and tiger direct always run specials for 400 to 600 dollor dual core bear bone PCs. just go onto there sites and become a member.they will send you specials all the time.
http://www.newegg.com/

http://www.tigerdirect.com/

[TilDeath]

newegg and tiger direct always run specials for 400 to 600 dollor dual core bear bone PCs. just go onto there sites and become a member.they will send you specials all the time.
http://www.newegg.com/

http://www.tigerdirect.com/

Most of the parts offered on the bare bones are not something you would want to use even in a budget build.  Mostly the PSU's (most important part in a build) included may have 80+ certs but the power is not a reliable, consistent and constant level.  This is especially true if it is of single rail design.  NewEgg tends to use Rosewill (Their house brand) and G.Skill (memory you can find no where but NewEgg in the US, but still not a house brand, yet) memory often in these specials.  I bought G.Skill 2000MHz because of price and to use as an option on my builds.  I now have a nice fan and 3 DD3 2000MHz paper weights.  They were RMA'd 5 times inside of a year because of not being able to come even close to the rated speed, each time replaced with "new" and still would not run at posted specs or went bad at no longer then 4 months (one RMA took 2 1/2 months for an RMA number).  I can not speak about their lower MHz memory but if the fast stuff is a representation, I would not trust it.

TD

[guncrasher]

I like looking at the barebones specials and mostly you save 40 to 50 bucks for some components you wouldn't buy separately, which I think its a waste of money.  I would rather buy each individually and buy the best I can afford.  If i cant afford it right now, I can always wait a month or two.

semp

[Tigger29]

My squad had a fellow squaddie who had a ten year old computer and was dealing with hard times, so we built him a new computer as his old one would hardly run Aces High, and disconnect him every time he hit the VOX button.  Here is the parts list for the system itself, which came to just under $438 with shipping.  His system averages about 120-130FPS (vsync off for testing) and this is sliders maxed, hires pack, all options on, 1920X1080 resolution, and self shadows (smoothed) at 1024.  The only thing turned off is other planes' shadows.  This is also running Win XP Home.  

For a cheaper processor, it actually keeps up pretty well.  I got him a quality motherboard and a reliable power supply.  The only thing I may have done differently if I had to do it again would be the case.. it's definitely cheap but it does hold everything together (and had a surprising amount of room for cable management).  If you have headphones plugged in the front jack and plug in a USB device in the front jack, then you get a lot of sound interference, but other than that it works fine.

Keep in mind the prices may have changed but it should give you an idea:

Rosewill FB-01 Black ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, come with 1x 80mm Fan
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147090
$17.99 Free Shipping

SeaSonic S12II 520 Bronze 520W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151094
$59.99 + $9.65 Shipping

Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST3250318AS 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148451
$34.99 Free Shipping

Link Depot FAN-80-BK 80mm Case Fan
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835104002
$3.49 Free Shipping

ASUS Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM SATA 24X DVD Burner - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204
$18.99 Free Shipping

GIGABYTE GV-R577UD-1GD Radeon HD 5770 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125309
$139.99 + $7.56 Shipping (Not Including $20 Mail In Rebate)

AMD Athlon II X2 260 Regor 3.2GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor ADX260OCGMBOX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103873
$67.99 Free Shipping

ASUS M4N68T-M AM3 NVIDIA Geforce 7025/nForce 630a Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131626
$49.99 Free Shipping

Mushkin Enhanced Essentials 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model 996586
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146748
$59.99 Free Shipping

[ENIGMAFA]

I always look at the " sharky extreme " web site before buying hardware just to compare and see what is out there.

[Ghosth]

I would be extremely wary of anything from Tiger Direct or similar discount house.

You get what you pay for!

When your talking about your main AH desktop, you really don't want to skimp more than necessary.

You can still build a LOT of system for 6-800$ with good components if your a careful shopper and you take the time to really do the research.

[Tigger29]

I would be extremely wary of anything from Tiger Direct or similar discount house.

You get what you pay for!

When your talking about your main AH desktop, you really don't want to skimp more than necessary.

You can still build a LOT of system for 6-800$ with good components if your a careful shopper and you take the time to really do the research.

Have you ever purchased from TigerDirect.com?  I've used Amazon, Newegg, and TigerDirect on several occasions and never had a problem.  I'm sure there are some not-so-reputable websites out there, but TigerDirect is definitely not one of them.  Even years ago ComputerGeeks.com was a good one to use but I can't vouch for it nowadays as it's been a long time.

The example I posted above can definitely be improved upon, but I still maintain that it is the best you're going to do with a sub $500 build.  Obviously if you can spend $100-$200 more you can get a LOT better, but if you have a strict budget that shows that it can be done.

[cattb]

 I buy from Newegg myself. On occasion they will come up with some good combo deals. (IMO) I would stay away from the barebone kits.
 The downfall of course if you were to get something bad, the item will have to be mailed back unlike the brick and mortar store where it can be taken back in person.
 In my case, there is not a big choice of brick and mortar stores to choose from where I live since I live in a smaller community.
 Of course a person must due their due diligence and check for compatibility with computer parts.