As with our Econobox, we have a few alternative component suggestions for our mid-range build, should you wish to move up or down in price and capabilities a little bit.
| Component | Item | Price |
| Processor | AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Black Edition | $94.99 |
| Motherboard | Gigabyte GA-M57SLI-S4 | $89.99 |
| Graphics | Diamond Radeon HD 3850 | $169.99 |
| Storage | Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 500GB | $119.99 |
Processor
We have a smoking fast Intel dual-core chip as our primary reccommendation, but our alternative is "only" AMD's Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Black Edition. Why the slower chip? Simply put, the 5000+ Black Edition offers much better value than AMD's faster dual-core models for folks who aren't afraid to get their hands a little dirty. The 5000+ Black Edition runs at a default clock speed of 2.6GHz, but it has an unlocked multiplier, which lets you overclock without stressing the rest of the system. Want to bump this chip from 2.6GHz to 3GHz? Just change the multiplier from 13 to 15. It's as simple as that—although, as always with overclocking, your mileage may vary.
Motherboard
The Abit KN9 SLI we've featured as an alternative AMD motherboard in past system guides has gone out of stock, so we've replaced it with Gigabyte's GA-M57SLI-S4. The Gigabyte has the same chipset—Nvidia's nForce 570 SLI—and similar features, but it's actually available, and Gigabyte claims it has full support for AMD's new Phenom processors. Phenom may not be a particularly attractive choice at the moment, but if you're going to go with an AMD system, there's no sense limiting your upgrade path.
Graphics
After selecting several Nvidia graphics cards, we're mixing things up a little bit with our Grand Experiment alternatives. Like the Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Black Edition above, Diamond's Radeon HD 3850 is a smart alternative to our main choice for folks who want to cut costs without sacrificing too much performance. Based on what we've seen in our tests, this particular model performs similarly to a stock-clocked Radeon HD 3870, and it's not a huge step down from the 8800 GT in most games. You may not be able to play at quite the same settings or at the same resolutions, but you will save $65, and that's a decent tradeoff for some.
Storage
We're again suggesting a Seagate hard drive as an alternative for folks who really want a five-year warranty. Do keep in mind that the Barracuda 7200.11 500GB costs a few bucks more than the Western Digital drive in our main recommendations, and that it's slower and louder overall.
