Harsher economic times means less disposable income for some but just because you can't afford a monster of a system doesn't mean you will be left in the dark. In fact, gaming PCs have reached a point where hardware advancement is beyond that of what most software require when in comes to raw power. For example, other than a few choice games such as Crysis, the ATI Radeon HD 5800 series video cards have few troubles rendering today's games at 1920x1200 pixels and below with high/maximum detail settings.

For those looking to squeeze a bit more muscle out of their rig, an overclock on the CPU and GPU can be applied. Just be aware of the temperatures and know the limits of what your coolers can handle. Stock coolers can usually handle a modest bump but serious overclockers should consider aftermarket alternatives.

With a $1500 limit, keep in mind that some sacrifices are necessary. This means no solid state storage, Blu-ray video or high-end sound. If there's a higher-end part you want that's difficult to interchange (the motherboard for example), it might be worth it to save a few more Benjamins to avoid future headaches and hassles.

With literally thousands of parts to choose from, a computer build is a very subjective experience. What you come up with may differ from what I have on my list. The following prices are based on the Canadian Dollar with a $1500 (before taxes) maximum budget. Prices and parts are provided courtesy of Memory Express Computer Products Inc. Prices are based on the date of publish and is subject to change.

CPU

Intel Core i5 750 (2.66 GHz with 8 MB cache) - $229.99

Motherboard

Asus P7P55D LE (LGA 1156, Dual DDR3 1600 MHz, PCIe 2.0, 7.1 Audio, Gigabit LAN) - $144.99

Memory

4 GB (2 GB x 2 dual-channel) Mushkin XP3-12800 Blackline DDR3 SDRAM - $134.99

Graphics

Sapphire Radeon HD 5850 1 GB GDDR5 - $319.99

Storage

Western Digital Caviar Black 1 TB Hard Drive, SATA - $109.99

Optical

Samsung 22X SpeedPlus DVD Writer (OEM), SATA - $28.99

Audio

Motherboard on-board sound.

Case with Power Supply

Antec Sonata III Mini Tower with 500 Watt (80 Plus certified) EarthWatts PSU - $119.99

Keyboard

Logitech Classic Keyboard 200, USB - $14.99

Mouse

Razer Deathadder 3500 DPI Gaming Mouse - $59.99

Speakers

Logitech LS21 2.1 PC Stereo Speaker System - $39.99

Display

Samsung SyncMaster 2043SWX 20" Widescreen LCD (16:9/1600x900) - $149.99

Operating System

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) OEM DVD - $129.99

GRAND TOTAL - $1483.88