The 2008 PC Builder's Bible

Find the best parts. Learn to build a rig from scratch and overclock it to kingdom come. PC Gamer shows you how

Words: PC Gamer staff

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nForce 780i SLI 775 A1
Manufacturer: EVGA
Chipset: NVIDIA nForce 780i
CPU Support: Intel Pentium, Pentium EE, Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Extreme
Memory Support: DDR2 533/800/1066/1333 MHz
PCI Slots: 3 PCIe x16, 1 PCIe x1, 2 PCI
Notable features: Triple SLI support, 6 SATA ports with support for RAID 0, RAID 0+1, RAID 5; integrated 7.1 channel audio, 10 USB 2.0 ports (6 external, 4 internal), 2 Firewire ports (1 external, 1 internal)
Price: $260
www.evga.com

Rampage Formula
Manufacturer: ASUS
Chipset: Intel X48
CPU Support: Intel Pentium, Pentium EE, Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Extreme
Memory Support: DDR2 667/800/1066/1200 MHz
PCI Slots: 2 PCIe x16, 3 PCIe x1, 2 PCI
Notable features: Crossfi re support, 6 SATA 3Gb/s ports, Dual Gigabit LAN controllers, SupremeFX II Audio Card, 12 USB ports (6 external, 6 internal), 2 Firewire ports (1 external, 1 internal), External LCD post device
Price: $300
www.asus.com

Striker II Extreme
Manufacturer: ASUS
Chipset: NVIDIA nForce 790i Ultra SLI
CPU Support: Intel Pentium, Pentium EE, Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Extreme
Memory Support: DDR3 800/1066/1333/1600 MHz
PCI Slots: 2 PCIe 2.0 x16, 1 PCIe x16, 2 PCIe x1, 2 PCI
Notable features: Triple SLI support, 6 SATA 3Gb/s ports, Dual Gigabit LAN controllers, SupremeFX II Audio Card, 10 USB ports (6 external, 4 internal), 2 Firewire ports (1 external, 1 internal), External LCD post device
Price: $300
www.asus.com

Learn more about motherboards for AMD CPUs – Socket AM2
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20 Comments

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Cryose - 1 year 1 month ago

Cool. Too bad I bought the actual magazine for ten bucks a month ago.

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solidsnake_5552000 - 1 year 1 month ago

excellent article guys. Congratulations!!

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anything5767 - 1 year 1 month ago

Time to remember not to buy the builders bible next time.

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Alcyones - 1 year 1 month ago

Thanks!

I'm positive this is gonna help me in the future.

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Dibbz - 1 year 1 month ago

nicely done!

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Life - 1 year 1 month ago

Very cool

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Halo freak22 - 1 year 1 month ago

aswome totaly sweet

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JimMcDosh - 1 year 1 month ago

Excellent resource guide indeed. Very nice.

Jiff
www.anonweb.net.tc

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hellawaitsyou - 1 year 1 month ago

Is there a PDF version of this?

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HypherionWing - 1 year 1 month ago

I have a good rig using the Antec 900, but i dont particularly reccommend the 900 if your going for a bit of a crazy powerful build, which i unfortunately did.

The space in it is incredibly deceptive, any psu above 600w you have to CRAM everything right in there. ;)

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burningmunkey - 1 year 1 month ago

I would seriously love to have this on PDF! Is there any way?

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HyBriDFuRy - 1 year 1 month ago

I use the Intel Core 2 Quad core Q6600, it's still good isn't it? I bought it on newegg because it was a freakin' awesome deal for $200 and I overlocked this from default "2.4ghz" to what I now have "2.8ghz".

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invinciblechunk - 1 year 1 month ago

Wow, a section on LCD monitors that doesn't even mention input lag! The Dell 2707WFP is one of the worst gaming screens you can possibly pick! Its input lag is over 40ms, and newer firmware revisions are even worse. If you care about games at all, learn about the difference between TN, PVA and IPS panels, and learn about input lag.

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Lucretiel - 1 year 30 days ago

Tip of my hat to you guys, well done. My one annoyance is that there aren't any posted prices for accessories, just "Gamer with a budget" or "Deep pockets." Useful nonetheless.

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adrenaguy - 1 year 24 days ago

THANKYOU SO MUCH! this guide is going to be so helpful when i can get the money to build a sweet-ass computer, thanks again GR!

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dirt1996 - 1 year 5 days ago

You can get all the stuff listed above at newegg.com for half the prices listed for EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!

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dahudge8 - 11 months 29 days ago

here's the deal guys. I just downloaded the left 4 dead demo and it runs kind of choppy on my laptop. sometimes there's lag in combat intensive areas and sometimes there's lag when I'm just walking around. I was wondering if a new graphics card would remedy this? if so, can you even put new graphics cards into a laptop? I'd love to get an answer to this before I go by a nvida 8800.
Thanks!

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dirt1996 - 11 months 22 days ago

I was going to build it, but it doesnt help w/ the BIOs or anything else, and if this is the first rig youve built(like me) then this is impossible.

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glitchhunterLM4 - 9 months 24 days ago

i think its good that you teach people how to build a PC... but you should tell them about placing the standoffs...

LINUX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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f2468l - 7 months 30 days ago

hi i just bought core 2 duo intel E7300 2.66 on a P5QL ASUS i had assumed alot more speed from this setup or did i goof up when i listned to the vendor feedback please
thanks

m

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