$69 Gaming PC
Linus Tech Tips
·Linus Tech Tips
·2018-05-06
·
1,669 words · ~8 min read
0:00
We've seen all the comments.
0:02
Linus, please, focus on budget parts for a change.
0:07
Something we can afford.
0:09
We've heard your cries.
0:11
In fact, here at Linus Media Group,
0:12
we take your concerns very seriously.
0:15
So here it is, my friends,
0:16
the build on the tightest budget yet.
0:20
Bask now in the glory of the $69 gaming PC.
0:26
The be quiet! Pure Base 600 features a versatile design,
0:38
noise insulation, and optimization
0:41
for different liquid-cooled radiator configurations.
0:45
Learn more at the link below.
0:48
Okay, so I guess before moving forward,
0:50
we should give credit, or rather,
0:53
absolve ourselves of credit for this build
0:56
where credit is due.
0:58
A little while ago,
0:59
while perusing the PC Master Race subreddit,
1:02
we stumbled across a thread
1:04
where a user wanted to build a gaming PC
1:07
for under $100.
1:09
And Anonymous really came through for him or her,
1:13
specking out probably one of the most astonishing PCs
1:16
we've ever seen for a mere $69.
1:22
Disclaimer, if you actually need to build a gaming PC
1:24
for under $100, it is possible.
1:26
Get an old Dell Optiplex or something
1:28
and throw a used video card in it.
1:29
I can guarantee that'll be a better experience
1:31
than what we're about to see.
1:32
But come on, maybe that's been done
1:35
a thousand times on YouTube already.
1:37
And we were far more interested in finding out
1:40
just what kind of gaming experience could be had
1:44
for exactly $69.
1:48
So then, the backbone of any PC is the power supply,
1:53
which is why we recommend
1:55
the incredible DiabloTech DA Series 250 watt
1:59
to always be in close proximity to one another.
2:02
So let's take a look at one of these.
2:06
RAM, we've got covered by this one gig stick
2:09
of Kingston DDR2 running at a rapid 667 million hertz.
2:15
This will occupy all of the one memory slots
2:19
in our VIA VB7001, which by the way,
2:23
is still more memory slots than a Razer Blade 2017.
2:28
Now for our motherboard, we did end up with a slightly
2:32
different than the original post,
2:34
but it has the same basic features
2:36
and most importantly, processor.
2:39
The VIA C7 is the heart of our build.
2:44
A small, low power, single core CPU from 2007.
2:51
Running at a whopping 1.5 gigahertz
2:54
with VIA Unichrome onboard graphics
2:57
with support for the latest DirectX API.
3:01
If by latest, you mean DX8.
3:05
Even at the time, this was far from a powerful solution.
3:09
And 10 years later, it hasn't exactly aged like fine wine.
3:14
So let's get this party started, shall we?
3:18
We started with plan A,
3:20
building up the machine in the only case we could afford.
3:23
So the cardboard box that the motherboard shipped in
3:27
and installing our operating system
3:29
on the only boot drive we could afford.
3:31
A USB boot drive.
3:33
But we were quickly foiled by trash Windows XP booting support.
3:37
So we moved on to plan B.
3:40
Puppy Linux.
3:42
Only one small problem with that,
3:44
we couldn't even get the machine to post
3:47
with the single-sided stick of memory
3:51
that we got for the build.
3:52
So fortunately, this dank AF OCZ gold XTC memory
3:58
that we had lying around to the rescue.
4:02
And more problems.
4:04
Steam wouldn't run due to
4:06
minimum requirements issues on Linux.
4:10
So we caved, grabbed a hard drive
4:13
and a CD drive off the shelf
4:16
and began to install Windows
4:19
only to have disaster strike.
4:22
All of this excitement was actually too much
4:27
for the venerable C7 on our original board.
4:31
And during the Windows XP install,
4:33
the poor thing died.
4:35
Never to post again.
4:37
So a month later,
4:39
we have our second board from China
4:41
that quite frankly looks a fair bit rougher.
4:45
And the fact that it came without a CMOS battery
4:47
didn't lend much credence to the
4:50
tested working claims.
4:53
But who knows, maybe we'll get lucky today.
4:56
This time, we aren't taking any chances
4:59
with the Windows install.
5:00
So we completely broke the price limit
5:03
and connected the whole thing to an SSD
5:06
in order to speed up the process.
5:09
Where did you find PS2 keyboard in mines?
5:12
Plug this in, flip the switch.
5:15
You wanna do the honors?
5:16
Yeah, there we go.
5:18
All right.
5:19
It's alive!
5:23
There it is.
5:26
We got the post screen.
5:29
Let's keep this right here between us.
5:30
That way it's equidistant
5:33
and either of us can grab it easily.
5:35
Oh, that beautiful Windows XP boot screen.
5:38
Okay.
5:41
Wow.
5:42
What the hell is this?
5:44
Are you really young enough
5:46
that you don't even know
5:48
how to change the position to at least...
5:51
I mean, if you're gonna make it scary,
5:53
you gotta make it full scary.
5:56
What game first?
5:57
Should we start with the synthetic benchmark?
6:00
No, that's probably good for last
6:02
because it might break it.
6:04
Cool.
6:05
Rainbow Six, maybe?
6:06
Rainbow Six?
6:07
Oh, wow.
6:08
I went to just start typing Rainbow Six.
6:09
I forgot how the old start menu worked.
6:11
Now, my friends,
6:13
this isn't Rainbow Six Vegas
6:15
or Rainbow Six some other suffix.
6:18
This is Rainbow Six OG.
6:25
Wow, look at that cut scene.
6:29
It's beautiful.
6:32
Wow, those graphics.
6:34
Wow, that fan manages to be pretty loud.
6:38
Yeah, I think the bearings are bad on this one.
6:40
Because it didn't sound like that on the other one.
6:42
That's actually running not bad.
6:47
I mean, all things considered.
6:51
Look at those animations.
6:52
It's beautiful.
6:53
The whole Rainbow Six concept
6:55
just didn't make a ton of sense to me.
6:57
Like the idea of relying on AI,
7:01
which is inherently garbage,
7:04
to complete the mission
7:05
rather than being a super soldier.
7:07
Did it just crash?
7:14
Oh, you just suck.
7:15
Okay, this game's no fun.
7:17
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4?
7:19
No, that one doesn't open.
7:21
Okay.
7:22
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 works.
7:25
All right.
7:27
Do you remember game demos?
7:29
We're running demos.
7:31
It'd be so good for our job, too,
7:33
because then we wouldn't have to buy games
7:35
to benchmark them.
7:36
Oh, wow.
7:37
This is actually running...
7:38
Okay, this is legit running pretty smoothly.
7:43
I mean, that doesn't help me much.
7:45
I even got some blood effects
7:47
when I fell down there.
7:48
He's a really good skater.
7:49
If he can take these directions.
7:51
We're playing Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2.
7:53
Yes, that was my childhood.
7:55
Okay, how do you play this game?
7:57
I think I did it on console.
8:00
Okay, okay, okay.
8:02
Whoa, he did a 360 no comply.
8:05
Oh!
8:07
Oh!
8:08
You lost all the points.
8:11
Okay, so V does something.
8:13
How do I get up speed?
8:14
It keeps beeping whenever you press a key.
8:16
Yeah, if I press too many keys,
8:18
do a thing and jump out of it.
8:20
Oh, yeah.
8:21
Oh, no!
8:22
Oh, yeah, I landed it.
8:23
Taren was good at a video game.
8:25
Yeah.
8:26
What the hell just happened?
8:29
Okay, what's next?
8:32
You installed TF2 on this?
8:34
Yeah, I could've told you that wasn't gonna happen.
8:36
Well, it has a DirectX 8 mode, though,
8:37
so I was hopeful.
8:38
Ah, well, let's find out if Quake 3 Arena will run.
8:41
All right.
8:42
Oh, okay.
8:44
Now this...
8:46
Okay, what res do you think we can run at?
8:50
800 by 600?
8:51
Should we go for it?
8:52
Might as well push to the, like, max at first.
8:55
Well, I mean...
8:58
Okay, here we go.
9:01
Yeah, no, I'm not gonna go any further than that.
9:04
Okay, here we go, here we go.
9:05
Hey, that's running not bad!
9:10
Oh, damn it!
9:16
Go away!
9:19
I haven't even managed to kill him once yet!
9:25
Oh, I'm almost dead.
9:26
If I had any shame whatsoever,
9:29
this would be really humiliating.
9:31
Okay.
9:33
Let's fire up 3DMark2001.
9:34
3DMark2001 SE.
9:36
Benchmark.
9:37
All right.
9:40
Car chase, low detail.
9:51
Okay, 14, 13 FPS.
9:55
Okay, so quantitatively,
9:57
this is not the best experience you can have with a gaming PC,
10:00
not even under $100,
10:02
but was it a blast finding a three-year-old Reddit post
10:06
that someone obviously created kind of tongue-in-cheek
10:10
to make fun of someone for not having a big enough budget
10:13
and recreate it and bring it to life?
10:15
Yeah, for sure.
10:16
But, like, it's so bad that it's almost good again.
10:18
Everything that doesn't run on it just crashes immediately.
10:21
Yeah.
10:22
So everything that does run on it is fun to do.
10:24
So there you have it, $69 gaming PC right there.
10:29
Boom, you saw it here first and last.
10:34
Skillshare is an online learning community for creators
10:40
with more than 15,000 classes available in design, business, tech, and more.
10:47
Anyone can take a class, try a project,
10:50
or even teach a class themselves.
10:54
Premium membership begins at around $10 a month
10:57
and gives you unlimited access to learning,
11:00
and you can learn from anywhere.
11:02
Download the mobile app on Android or iOS
11:05
and just tap into classes even when you're offline,
11:08
and they've got all kinds of great stuff,
11:10
even stuff that can help you professionally,
11:12
like video editing with Adobe Premiere.
11:15
The first 200 viewers to click on it
11:17
and click the link in the video description
11:19
will actually get, in addition to that low monthly rate,
11:21
a two-month free trial.
11:23
So go try it out right now.
11:26
So thanks for watching, guys.
11:27
I hope you enjoyed this video.
11:28
If you disliked it, you can hit that dislike button,
11:30
but you'll make Alex cry.
11:31
But if you liked it, hit the like button, get subscribed,
11:33
maybe consider checking out where to buy the stuff we featured.
11:36
Don't buy it.
11:37
You can buy this.
11:38
In the video description, also down there,
11:41
you'll find other cool links like our Birch store
11:44
and our community forum, which you should totally join.
11:47
See you next time.
11:48
Bye-bye.
11:49
.