PC Buyer's Guide for Gaming Enthusiasts -- January 2012 - Page 3

Sound Card: Integrated
Current Price: $0
Logitech Speaker System Z523
Current Price: $70

The integrated sound options offered by the two recommended motherboards continue to make sense for this build, as does sticking with the Logitech Z523 2.1 channel speaker system, most recently available for $70.

Mouse: Logitech G9x Wired Laser Gaming Mouse
Current Price: $65
Keyboard: Microsoft Sidewinder X4 Keyboard
Current Price: $50

For our mouse and keyboard recommendations, we're once again going with the Logitech G9x gaming mouse and the Microsoft Sidewinder X4 wired keyboard, available for $65 and $50, respectively.

OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64-bit 1-pack for System Builders
Current price: $140

And finally, Windows 7 Professional 64-bit remains our pick as the best option for an operating system. Its price inched slightly upwards, this time around, to $140. But it remains the obvious choice for this enthusiast build.

Price Roundup

AMD FX-8150 System
Case: Antec Twelve Hundred V3 Full Tower - $160
Power Supply: CORSAIR HX Series CMPSU-750HX 750W ATX12V 2.3 - $130
Processor: FX-8150 (3.6GHz) - $270
CPU Cooling: ZALMAN CNPS9700 LED 110mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler - $41
Motherboard: ASUS Crosshair V Formula (990FX) - $220
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB 2 x 4GB kit (CMZ8GX3M2A1600C8) - $80
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB (WD1002FAEX) - $155
SSD: Crucial RealSSD C300 (CT064M4SSD2) - $107 + $9 for Bay Converter
Optical Drive: LITE-ON iHBS112 12x BDR 2x BD-RE SATA - $96
Video Card: ASUS ENGTX560 GeForce GTX 560 - $200
Monitor: ASUS VE247H Black 23.6"- $189
Sound Card: Integrated - $0
Speakers: Logitech Speaker System Z523 - $70
Mouse: Logitech G9x Wired Laser Gaming Mouse - $65
Keyboard: Microsoft Sidewinder X4 Keyboard - $50
Operating System: Windows 7 Professional 64-bit - $140
Total Price: $1982

Intel Core i7 System
Case: Antec Twelve Hundred V3 Full Tower - $160
Power Supply: CORSAIR HX Series CMPSU-750HX 750W ATX12V 2.3 - $130
Processor: Core i7-2600K (3.4GHz) - $315
CPU Cooling: ZALMAN CNPS9700 LED 110mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler - $41
Motherboard: MSI P67A-GD65 (P67) - $170
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB 2 x 4GB kit (CMZ8GX3M2A1600C8) - $80
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB (WD1002FAEX) - $155
SSD: Crucial RealSSD C300 (CT064M4SSD2) - $107 + $9 for Bay Converter
Optical Drive: LITE-ON iHBS112 12x BDR 2x BD-RE SATA - $96
Video Card: ASUS ENGTX560 GeForce GTX 560 - $200
Monitor: ASUS VE247H Black 23.6"- $189
Sound Card: Integrated - $0
Speakers: Logitech Speaker System Z523 - $70
Mouse: Logitech G9x Wired Laser Gaming Mouse - $65
Keyboard: Microsoft Sidewinder X4 Keyboard - $50
Operating System: Windows 7 Professional 64-bit - $140
Total Price: $1977

Closing Remarks

Hard drive prices are slowly settling back down, making it easier to stay within budget in this build. And while you'll want to make adjustments to meet your needs, we're confident that these builds will more meet the needs of most PC enthusiasts and gamers.