I think the GTS 360 ~ GTS 250 ~ 9800GTX

So yeah, it should be able to run SC2 at highest settings. May get a bit choppy and you will have to check for heat.

http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-reviews/30321-nvidia-geforce-gtx-470-review-32.html

for any of those few people who could be considering the GTX 470!!

Also, in response to the GTX 470, some HD 5850 prices have subsided back to around $300! Great news

StayFrosty

Canada743 Posts

March 31 2010 03:43 GMT

#602

Do you suggest I play at medium settings with that machine in order to reduce high temperatures?

FragKrag

United States11563 Posts

March 31 2010 03:46 GMT

#603

dunno

I just know that laptop GPUs get hot :p

StayFrosty

Canada743 Posts

March 31 2010 04:01 GMT

#604

Yea thats the only thing making me second guess about getting a gaming laptop...

StayFrosty

Canada743 Posts

March 31 2010 04:40 GMT

#605

Fragkrag, do you know if using a external monitor on a laptop will generate less heat opposed to the built in monitor?

FragKrag

United States11563 Posts

March 31 2010 04:47 GMT

#606

It's not about the LCD creating the heat, it's about the GPU itself. That GTS 360M has 96 processors and they all generate quite a bit of heat. Laptops are horribly inefficient at dissipating that heat

xBillehx

United States1289 Posts

March 31 2010 05:00 GMT

#607

Okay I posted back in this thread before buying my new PC and it helped quite a bit so it's my turn to give back.

My specs:
Resolution: 1680x1050
CPU: Intel Core i3 530 2.93GHz
GPU: Geforce 9800 GT
RAM: 4GB DDR3
Setting:Defaulted everything to Ultra.

It runs fine and I never lag out. Had to drop creep with over 400 overlords to get a noticeable FPS drop.

FragKrag

United States11563 Posts

March 31 2010 05:02 GMT

#608

haha the first specs in quite a while. Thanks Billeh :D

StayFrosty

Canada743 Posts

March 31 2010 11:33 GMT

#609

FragKrag, I'm sorry for being an asshole and asking so many questions, but I have been looking at desktops as an alternative. What do you think of the following build, and what settings do you think I can play on?

Intel Core i5 750 Quad Core Processor Lynnfield LGA1156 2.66GHZ 8MB Cache Retail Box
ASUS P7P55D-E Pro LGA1156 P55 DDR3 2PCI-E16 3PCI-E1 2PCI SLI CrossFireX USB3.0 SATA 6GB Motherboard
G.SKILL F3-12800CL7D-4GBRH Ripjaws PC3-12800 4GB 2X2GB DDR3-1600 CL7-7-7-24 Core i5 Memory Kit
GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 576MHZ 896MB GDDR3 1.998GHZ PCI-E Dual DVI-I

DanceDance

226 Posts

March 31 2010 12:50 GMT

#610

StayFrosty probably ultra settings, with maybe one or two settings at high.

KOFgokuon

United States14911 Posts

March 31 2010 14:44 GMT

#611

wat
you can play everything on ultra, esp if you play 1650x1080 or lower, and probably at 1920x1080

FragKrag

United States11563 Posts

March 31 2010 15:04 GMT

#612

StayFrosty I don't understand that build unless you are trying to go for a crossfire build. The P7P55D 'pro' series includes 3 pcie slots that are designed for CrossFire/SLI. If you don't need them, just go for a P7P55D-E board and save yourself some money.

Also I'm not very sure why you chose to buy the GTX 260.

KOFgokuon

United States14911 Posts

March 31 2010 15:15 GMT

#613

yea if you want to get that line of boards for the usb 3.0 capability, then just get the non pro version

smileyyy

Germany1816 Posts

March 31 2010 15:43 GMT

#614

Frosty Why Intel ? Its too expensive and you wont ever need an I5 750 for SC2 o.q. Why Nvidias old GTX 260 ?
Get an Amd Cpu + Motherboard and spent the money that you will save on a better Gpu.

My advice: AMD Athlon II X3 435 or AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition. You dont need more than 2 Cores for SC2 :o. If you really want a Quadcore for whatever reason get a Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-770TA-UD3

Gpu: PowerColor Radeon HD 5770

Ram: 4GB G.Skill 1333MHz CL7

PSU: Enermax PRO82+ 525W

FragKrag

United States11563 Posts

March 31 2010 22:25 GMT

#615

The idea here is that Intel's quadcore performs extremely well, and will continue to perform well until it is outshadowed by 6cores/8cores which won't become mainstream until 2011 at the earliest. AMD is trying to pump out their six cores, but those are just Phenom IIs with two extra cores slapped onto them.

The GTX 260 however, I do not quite understand. It is power hungry, and hot, but only provides a bit more performance than the 5770 which is around $50-60 cheaper.

MeSaber

Sweden1235 Posts

April 04 2010 21:30 GMT

#616

Make this stickied?

anderoo

Canada1876 Posts

April 05 2010 21:05 GMT

#617

Would I be able to play on Low with a decent frame rate with this notebook?
I think the process and RAM will be fine, but laptop graphics are just extremely confusing to me, even with the chart the OP posted. (Ideally I'd like 35-45fps, on lowest settings, I've played on 25fps on a different computer and it wasn't THAT choppy)

1 PC Laptop
CPU: AMD Athlon2 Dual Core M320 2.1GHz
GPU: ATI Radeon 4100 Integrated
RAM: 4GB DDR3

StayFrosty

Canada743 Posts

April 05 2010 22:09 GMT

#618

On April 06 2010 06:05 anderoo wrote:
Would I be able to play on Low with a decent frame rate with this notebook?
I think the process and RAM will be fine, but laptop graphics are just extremely confusing to me, even with the chart the OP posted. (Ideally I'd like 35-45fps, on lowest settings, I've played on 25fps on a different computer and it wasn't THAT choppy)

1 PC Laptop
CPU: AMD Athlon2 Dual Core M320 2.1GHz
GPU: ATI Radeon 4100 Integrated
RAM: 4GB DDR3

With an integrated GPU, I doubt you'll get 10 fps even at the lowest settings.

anderoo

Canada1876 Posts

April 05 2010 22:18 GMT

#619

you can definitely get more than that on integrated, my friend has a 3 year old laptop with integrated intel graphics and 2.5GB of RAM but a 2.5GHz processor and he's able to play on low with about 30fps... somehow....

BentoBox

Canada303 Posts

April 05 2010 23:00 GMT

#620

Hm

AMD PHENOM(TM) II X3 720 2.833 GHZ
3.998GB DDR3
ATI RADEON HD 4850 1GB GDDR3
1980x1080

Every setting maxed, steady 40~50 fps

Lag free since '93

I might get around to unlocking that 4th core if I feel stupid one day

You really don't need much to play most games nowadays. I really don't understand people shooting for i9s & co. strictly for gaming purposes, but to each their own...