The Econobox
Because speed doesn't have to cost a fortune

Instead of being the cheapest possible combination of parts, the Econobox is an affordable gaming and general-use system. You won't find too many fancy extras here, but we've tried to select a balanced mix of peppy, reliable components with headroom for future upgrades.

Processor
The Econobox has been an Intel stronghold for over a year and a half, owing to the overall dominance of Intel's dual-core CPUs. With the Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition, though, AMD has restored much of its former glory in this part of the market. This $100 processor outruns dual-core Pentiums out of the box, has an unlocked upper multiplier that allows for near-effortless overclocking, and doesn't draw much more power than the next best thing from Intel.

Not only that, but AMD's Socket AM3 platform provides a better upgrade path than Intel's LGA775. Whereas Intel will move to a different mainstream socket in the very near future, AMD plans to stick with Socket AM3 at least through 2010. Popping in a cheap and quick quad-core CPU next year should be a piece of cake.

If you're lucky, you might be able to get that quad-core upgrade without spending another dime. The Phenom II X2 550 is actually based on the same silicon as quad-core Phenom IIs, with two cores disabled. Our recommended motherboard includes a feature that lets you re-enable those cores pretty easily. The cores might not necessarily work at the chip's stock 3.1GHz clock speed (or at all), but the possibility of getting a quad-core Phenom II for just over $100 certainly pads the X2 550's list of advantages.

Motherboard
We picked Gigabyte's MA770T-UD3P for four reasons: it's very cheap, it has a robust assortment of ports and connectors, it has positive user reviews on Newegg so far, and it's one of the very few boards with that nifty core unlocking feature we just talked about. Gigabyte also makes core unlocking possible on the MA770-UD3 2.0 and MA770-US3 2.0, but we couldn't find either one listed online. (While Newegg sells an MA770-UD3 with no mention of a revision number, customers report receiving the 1.0 revision as late as June 2.)

We should note that the MA770T-UD3P only takes DDR3 memory. That would certainly have been a deal-breaker a few months ago, when DDR3 RAM still carried a hefty price premium compared to DDR2. Today, though, that premium is only around $10-15. DDR3 is slowly taking over the market, and DDR2 prices are likely to rise as demand wanes. That makes the UD3P's DDR3 exclusivity an advantage looking forward.

Memory
DDR3 is finally affordable enough for our entry-level build. We hunted for the cheapest 4GB DDR3-1066 dual-channel kit from a big name-brand company with lifetime warranty coverage, and we found this Crucial offering. Again, stepping down to DDR2 would only save us around $10-15, and DDR3 has a brighter future ahead of it.

By the way, you'll need a 64-bit operating system to take full advantage of all this memory. 32-bit OS's do have enough address space for 4GB of RAM, but that figure is an upper limit for all memory in a system, including video RAM. In practice, that means 32-bit versions of Windows will only let you use 3 to 3.5GB of actual system memory—and they'll normally restrict each application's RAM budget to 2GB.

Workarounds do exist for 32-bit Windows, but Microsoft says they can hurt compatibility; it advises that folks run a 64-bit version of Windows instead. Since Vista x64 is more than mature enough these days, you might as well run that. Check out our OS section on the second-to-last page of the guide for more details.

Graphics
A Radeon HD 4850 with lifetime warranty coverage was unheard of last year, but now, you can get one for $110. Heck, this XFX model has a double-lifetime warranty (provided you register online within 30 days) plus a nice dual-slot cooler that exhausts hot air out the back of a case.

Our latest round of mainstream GPU benchmarks shows that the 4850 has enough brawn to run games like Far Cry 2 at 1680x1050 with antialiasing enabled. Some titles, like Left 4 Dead, are even playable at 2560x1600 with 4X AA.

Storage
Western Digital has three 640GB hard drives priced at around $70, and we think the Caviar Black model is the one best suited for a system drive. Not only does it have a 32MB buffer, a full 7,200-RPM spindle speed, and the same noise level ratings as the slower SE16 model, but WD also covers the Black with a five-year warranty. We haven't seen another 640GB hard drive with specifications quite as good or warranty coverage quite as long. (Seagate no longer covers bare drives with a five-year warranty.)

For our optical storage option, Samsung's SH-S223Q still fits in just fine here. The Serial ATA interface should make it reasonably future-proof, and we like the combination of positive user reviews and low pricing.

Enclosure and power
Antec looks to have retired the original NSK 4480 we used to recommend, but Newegg now stocks the NSK 4480B II. This newer enclosure has a slightly different look, but as far as we can tell, it includes the same 380W, 80%-efficient power supply and delivers the same features. Newegg does charge slightly more for the new model, but considering the dearth of PC case bundles with quality PSUs, we don't mind the price hike too much.

You might find cheaper cases out there, but we don't think you'll be able to save a whole lot by going with lower-quality components. Besides, bargain-bin power supplies generally have inflated specifications. A cheap PSU can also jeopardize system stability, damage sensitive components over time, and potentially even flame out in spectacular fashion—taking system components with it in the process.