Are you the kind of gamer that scoffs at the Value Gaming Guide's $1000 budget and still have a bit more scratch to spend than our $2500 High End Gaming Guide requires? Well, have we got the system for you! The Extreme Gaming PC Buyer's Guide hearkens back to the grand old days of Sharky Extreme Buying Guides, where money was seemingly no object and the sky was literally the limit in terms of hardware. This time, we've got a cool $4000 to spend on a killer gaming PC, and we aim to make every last penny count.
In this particular buyer's guide, we try and live up to the name Extreme and take things a quantum leap past even our High-End recommendations. Although the world is seemingly our oyster with $4000 in hand, there are still a few limitations to what we can buy (sorry, no 35" plasma screens) and we still need to make the available budget work for us. Some choices may be dubbed extraneous or downright wasteful by some, but where's the fun if you can't live a little? So strap yourselves in, check your bank account at the door, and get ready to see what we deem to be "the best of the best".
Current Cost of Case: $186
Current Cost of Power Supply: $70
Monts on List: New
If it ain't broke why fix it? The Lian Li PC-68USB system case sports an incredible combination of looks, performance and expandability. The sleek aluminum housing is sure to catch your eye and internal cooling is also top-notch. Even though its size is rather standard, the internal expansion options are quite robust. With four external 5.25," three external 3.5", and three internal 3.5" bays, you'll have to work hard to fill this puppy up with peripherals. As is to be expected in a high-end case, the motherboard tray slides out to allow easy access and installation.
In terms of extra amenities, the Lian Li PC-68USB features quad-USB ports right on the front of the case, and is easily light enough to carry to your local LAN party. The aluminum housing also aids in heat dissipation, and looks pretty nifty to boot. The only issue for many buyers is the relatively high price, but we're betting that the Lian Li PC-68 fits right our Extreme Gaming PC to a "T".
The Lian Li PC-68 cases regularly ship without a standard PSU, so we're going whole-hog and selecting an Antec PP-412X 400W power supply. This unit is fully Pentium 4 ATX 2.03 certified, as well as being backward compatible with the Athlon as well. Having a 400W PSU means never having to say you're sorry and literally being able to run your PC and still jump-start your car at the same time. The price difference between 350W and 400W is negligible, and you can load one of these for bear and still have a lot of extra juice to go around.