600$ Machine to run Minecraft Client/Server on far/fancy

[Prosper]

I am simply aiming at a machine that will have very good fps at playing Minecraft with full graphics and far render distance. I also hope to be able to host a small server if at all possible with the following build I put together.

This is my 3rd attempt at a build and I finally managed to get it at around 500$ so that would fit my budget now.

MBD : ASUS M4N68T-M V2 AM3 NVIDIA Geforce 7025/nForce 630a Micro ATX AMD Motherboard -- 50.99$

CPU : AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 -- 114.99$

GPU : EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR GeForce GTX 550 Ti -- 139.99$

RAM : CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Profile Desktop Memory Model CML8GX3M2A1600C9 -- 52.99$

HDD : Western Digital Caviar Blue WD3200AAKX 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive -- 39.99$

BOX : RAIDMAX Altas ATX-295WBP Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 500W Power Supply --59.99$

DVD : ASUS 24X DVD Burner - Bulk 24X -- 19.99$


TOTAL : 541.60CAD (including tx and shipping)

My main concern is, I am not very familiar with balancing the parts so that one doesn't bottleneck the other. If this build would be physicaly possible and that you have suggestions at balancing it so that I can still get the best possible for 500$ please do so.

Other concerns :

- I've selected some of the parts especially for the system to be as silent as possible.
- Would you think the cooling is adequate since I'm not planning to overclock anything ?

[HeroicHero]

This is actually a pretty great build. The graphics card is really overkill if you're only going to be playing minecraft. But there aren't any bottlenecks that I can see. All these parts are pretty much on the same tier. But since you're getting a phenom II Black Edition, you mind as well overclock it a bit and get the extra performance out of it. :P

Depending on the temperature in your region, stock cooling coming with the CPU may or may not suffice if you're going to be leaving this computer running 24/7. Also, stock cooling tends to be a lot louder than after market stuff. I see about a 10 degree Celsius difference between stock and aftermarket cooling when my CPU is at full load.

Yeah. My input on that.

[Seifer]

You don't need 8 gigs or ram. 4 should be fine. That should be much cheaper.

Look into Sandy Ridge CPU's. Even if you don't go for one of those, which are disgustingly efficient and powerful for even the low end priced ones, get an Intel, not AMD.

Don't forget your keyboard/mouse/Monitor.

[Freeforall]

My friend bought a computer for $600 that could play it with smooth 50-60 FPS with a 256x256 texture pack. Can't recall the name, but it had a red and black case with 12GB RAM.

[Prosper]

Thanks to both of you for the feedback. I placed the order 2 days ago with some few changes.

I decided to search for combo deals to get the best possible deal for my money.

Ended up getting a better motherboard
- Phenom II 4x 970 3.5ghz BE
- Better Computer box + Powersupply (Rosewill with 4 silent fans)
- 2x4gb G.Skill 1333mhz (mobo not compatible with 1600)
- The other parts are the same as above.

Total of 624$ taxes and shipping included.

I figured paying a bit more for a better box and motherboard would be a wise thing.

Keyboard/mouse/monitor I already had so im not purchasing another. Now lets hope I can mount al that together and that no parts are DOA :s

[ARTgames]

Please report back with performance tests!

[Prosper]

@ARTgames, I was planning to do that, as soon as I get the computer up and running on Linux Mint 11 . Hoping it will recognize all my hardware without too much fiddling.

@Seifer, I originaly was looking at Intel processors and even the top Phenom II x6 1100T on the benchmarks was equivalent to some good i5 intel processor. Since Minecraft doesnt handle multi cores I just wanted one with adequate clock speed for cheapest price possible. So I went with best cost efficient 4x I could get.

But you are right on that, Intel processors are best quality purchase. Also I prefered 8GB ram only for future Server hosting or Multi-Virtual machine purposes.

[Freeforall]

The computer my friend got was a gateway fx6803 for $600. Is that worth it?

[Prosper]

The computer my friend got was a gateway fx6803 for $600. Is that worth it?

Probably, although I doubt 2.8ghz - 9gb RAM - Seemingly no dedicated graphics card, is balanced ?

EDIT : Never mind I found it on newegg and ya its well worth it sorry.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883113143

If it hadn't been out of stock, it could have been a better hassle free option.

[Freeforall]

Yeah, that's the one my friend has. I really want one of these things. I also wish I could upgrade my internet. My max download speed on bittorrent is around 350kb/s.

[Prosper]

Took me 5 hours to build the computer. I hope I have not plugged anything wrong or touched anything I shouldn't have. I kept grounding myself every min or so. There were 2 scary parts :

- I had to press pretty hard on the CPU cooler mount to have it click into place, supposedly that is normal.
- After I was done mounting everything, I realised I forgot to mount the small I/O Panel shield !! I had to undo part of my work, unscrew the mother board, carefully move it a bit off, insert the panel shield, carefully place mobo back and rescrew.

Now the sad part is that the ram i ordered is the only thing still shipping. I need to wait for that to come in, hopefully by next monday to put it in and then do the dreadful first power on :(. I will let you guys know how it works out.

[ARTgames]

Hey do you have the right ram laying around? Try that out now! :D

[Prosper]

Finally got the RAM and finished installing it. I'm currently posting from my new computer that I have built :). Everything runs smooth and cool. I have installed Linux Mint 11.

On top settings minecraft singleplayer full screen runs anywhere between 100-200 fps and the lowest I've seen was 85 fps while running jumping towards an undiscovered area. I'm very happy so far my 4x fans keeps everything under 30 degrees celcius.

This was a good buy !

[Freeforall]

Very nice! I have another computer with a dual core processor at 3GHz and 4GB RAM, but it lags HORRIBLY on minecraft. Not sure why... I thought it was a nice computer when we bought it. It was $2,000.