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NOTE: Prices outdated because of Thailand floods, expect to pay 50+ dollars more for everything.
So, I figured it'd be useful to have a thread with some template builds so that this can be used as a reference, saving everyone time. There will be links to each product but keep in mind that prices and offers change so this should only be used as a general guideline. Every build will include a suggested resolution. For convenience I'll also only refer to newegg prices with this and you'll likely get a better deal if you look for better offers in other places as well. No OS included. Budgets are slightly flexible.
By the way, this is a guideline only and I take zero responsibility if something doesn't work.
~300$ budget(Enough to run SC2 with 60+ FPS with all lowest settings in 1920x1080 and lower, cheapest "REAL" gaming build you can find, also includes a game):
+ Show Spoiler +
~400$ budget(The build recommended for SC2, it can run it on high/ultra npnp and you experience major diminishing returns going beyond this):
+ Show Spoiler +
~500$ budget:
+ Show Spoiler +
~600$ budget(This pretty much is all you need to run SC2 1v1 smoothly with everything maxed in 1080p if that's all you're concerned of):
+ Show Spoiler +
Special addition, 662.91$:
The cheapest solution for running SC2 in 1920x1080 with everything maxed at 60+fps(as in 200 supply armies in 4v4, you don't need this much for normal gameplay)
+ Show Spoiler +
~700$ budget:
+ Show Spoiler +
~800$ budget: (After this point, performance for SC2 in 1080p won't really increase as it's CPU-capped and this is the best gaming CPU. So if SC2 maxed in 1080p is all you want to play, there's no point in going higher than this.)
+ Show Spoiler +
~900$ budget
+ Show Spoiler +
~1000$ budget:
+ Show Spoiler +
~1000$ budget, alternative single Graphics Card build:
+ Show Spoiler +
~1250$ budget:
+ Show Spoiler +
~1400$ budget:
+ Show Spoiler +
~1750$ budget:
+ Show Spoiler +
OPTIONAL:
+ Show Spoiler +SSD: + Show Spoiler +An SSD is going to be used as your OS drive and it's going to store your operating system and also the games and programs that you most commonly use. This gives your programs a lightning-fast startup time and is going to feel much more convenient. Your computer will also be ready to go on the desktop about 10-20 seconds after you turn the power on. However, an SSD won't offer any real-world improvements in gaming FPS or the sort(A few exceptions, like texture loading in WoW), so they're by default not included in any of the builds. However, if you value convenience and fast search / startup times, getting a SSD might be worth it. Currently, I will only recommend the Crucial m4 SSD as it is more reliable than the SandForces and has the best price-performance ratio in my opinion. The two SSD sizes that I would recommend would be 64gb if you have just a few games / programs that you use often, and the 128gb version if you play more games / use many programs often and have some larger games like WoW. 64gb one will cost 106.99$: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148441128 gb one will cost 197.99$: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148442Remember to check other sites for better pricing. If you do go with the SSD, remember that a 7200rpm HDD is no longer completely necessary as it's just going to be your storage drive. Because of this, if you want some more storage room, feel free to replace the 7200RPM drive with a lower RPM drive with a larger capability, here would be a good choice for 2TB at 79.99$: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148681If you don't need the extra space, you can use the 1TB drive in the original build. i7 2600K: + Show Spoiler +Despite offering little to no performance increase over an i5 2500k in gaming, this processor is still going to be a good choice if you indeed have a use for it. Good situations to invest the additional ~95$ into this would be if you need the hyperthreading or the extra cache size. Situations like these would be if you do a lot of photoshop, video encoding, video editing, rendering, and so on. It might also marginally improve your ability to stream, but it's a waste to spend the 95$ for just that, as the difference is marginal at best. These can be had for 314.99$ and they'll replace the 2500k, rest of the build can remain intact: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070A larger secondary HDD for storage: + Show Spoiler +
rest later
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This is a fantastic idea. This should keep a lot of the "New Computer Build" threads down... even the ones I make. Lol 
So what price points are you looking to make a build with?
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On October 05 2011 01:17 PolSC2 wrote:This is a fantastic idea. This should keep a lot of the "New Computer Build" threads down... even the ones I make. Lol So what price points are you looking to make a build with?
Unfortunately, it won't do much, if the current cases of existing threads being ignored are any indication. Worth a shot though.
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Well, thing is you can do some general builds, but people's need will be different, and msot will need a few tweeks so ...
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On October 05 2011 01:17 PolSC2 wrote:This is a fantastic idea. This should keep a lot of the "New Computer Build" threads down... even the ones I make. Lol So what price points are you looking to make a build with?
every hundred from 400 to 1000, from 1000 in 250 increments, from 2000 in 500 increments until I have a build that runs eyefinity with 1440p monitors above 60 fps
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Isn't 430W way too low for a 6850 or 6870? Also 6870 requires 2 x 6 pin PCI-E connector while the one you listed only has one.
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On October 05 2011 01:49 calvinL wrote:
Isn't 430W way too low for a 6850 or 6870? Also 6870 requires 2 x 6 pin PCI-E connector while the one you listed only has one.
oh that's an excellent point! (and please keep pointing out mistakes out I semi-rush these)
sure sucks paying 15 extra for useless watts just because the PSU doesn't have the connections it should
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ohhh case just got a upgrade...
I'm calling those ever so popular shikyo crossfire 6870s and a 690ii case at 900$ lol
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This kind of makes sense to an extent for budget builds, but once you get into the $700-800+ range, you have a bit more room for preferences.
Also, it kind of gives the impression that "Hey you have X amount of money, spend it Y build." Even if it's for no reason.
Hopefully, people are smart enough that they can differentiate between a cookie cutter build and one that will suite their specific needs, if unique.
To truly make this thread viable, in my opinion, you would need a lot more meat. Not just builds at various budgets. For example, suggesting a resolution is kind of like, what? The first two builds can definitely play at 1080p for SC2 at decent settings, but not something like Crysis 2 even at 720p decently.
So perhaps you can include examples of some games that it can play at what resolution instead of giving one general one.
Maybe you can also give some other information about it's capabilities (and maybe about what they shouldn't expect out of it), such as Streaming: Yes/No (or decent @ 720p); Some editing, graphic work: Yes/No; etc.
Finally, I don't see why you're choosing to suggest 8GB over just upgrading the CPU.
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neither of the first builds have trouble playing crysis at 720p and yes there will be much more than just the builds for the budgets
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I can't believe I bought a dell...
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They will have trouble unless you tone down the settings and don't have high expectations in framerates.
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On October 05 2011 03:42 jacosajh wrote:
They will have trouble unless you tone down the settings and don't have high expectations in framerates.
Nobody has high expectations in framerates with a 4-500 dollar build.
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On October 05 2011 03:42 jacosajh wrote:
They will have trouble unless you tone down the settings and don't have high expectations in framerates.
you really buy a 400$ computer to play on enthusiast settings? cmon
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Is that what I said?
I can pretty much say the same. And you buy a $400 computer to play Crysis 2?
So really you're missing the point. Like I said, giving a general resolution recommendation doesn't make sense.
Even as your own post implies, you need to have EXPECTATIONS of your system. The only expectation your builds implies that it can do ANYTHING at the recommended resolution.
This is a SC2 forum, so most people will be looking to play SC2. Since those first two systems will run 1080p fine on SC2, it's kind of misleading to say "recommended resolution: X" without giving a disclaimer that it won't do so with other games.
What happens if someone just randomly searches for computer builds and happens on your thread. He's going to think OMG I can get a $400 computer that will play Crysis 2 on 1600x900 WOWOWOWOW 1337sauce!
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the 400$ computer runs crysis 2 fine, it also runs crysis 1 fine in 1680x1050 though you might not be able to have everything on gamer quality if you want 60 fps. Crysis maxed isn't exactly the norm by which I'd recommend. And yes, even the 400$ computer will run Crysis in 720p totally fine even with gamer quality. And yes, that will run SC2 in 1080p in medium or higher but it's more of a CPU-limited game anyway so the 400$ build might not be an ideal choice. Also, the first build is significantly outclassed by the second one, the 500$ build has absolutely no problems running anything in 1680x1050 unless you mess around with anti-aliasing. I'm not sure how my recommendations are incorrect? Do you want me to add 1080p on low into the options of the 400$ build?
According to benchmarks the GTS 450 runs Crysis: Warhead at 30fps with Gamer quality and 2x MSAA in 1680x1050 which imo is more than you should even expect from 400$ don't you think?
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Going to keep this short since obviously you're already made up your mind.
Crysis 2 actually takes advantage of quad-core. A lot of those benchmarks are using quad-core. My 2500k/GTX 460 still cries at Crysis @ 720p (ok that's exaggeration), but remember that it's not just about the fps you get in benchmarks. The wide range of experiences you get in an actual game can mean even a lowly, but playable 25 fps = not playable in a lot of scenarios you want to... you know... play in. Like when someone is unloading grenades and crap on you... instead of just looking at how pretty the terrain is.
Yes, Crysis shouldn't be the "standard" that you judge system builds. But everyone has an expectation, and that's why cookie-cutter builds have issues. Because everyone has a different needs and expectations.
How many times do you see someone going, I have $1000 to spend; I want to be able to play SC2 on atleast medium? Or I have $500 to spend and I want to stream SC2 on high settings? etc. etc. a lot of times, people's expectations, what they can afford, and what they need/want aren't aligned.
Which is why it's important to be able to address expectations as well as needs/wants.
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Would be nice if you have the time to write down a brief explanation for each part and why it rivals the rest in it's price range. Thanks.
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so how does that work? why does the 500$ build have a 6870 and a PSU with only one 6pin cable? is that enough?
Though it's true, I shall change my build a little.
okay changed 500$ build, removed 600$ build as obsolete.
It's nice that my 1k build is better than theirs though.
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You can use a 6-pin adapter which comes with the graphics card.
I still don't like their $500 build. I'd rather get H61 + i3 2100. It performs better.
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/289?vs=88
The Phenom II X4 955 is overclockable, but would need an aftermarket heatsink, which they didn't include.
And if you need really need quad-core that bad, you swap the 6870 for a 6850. That added with the savings of a CPU cooler can get you an i5 2300 instead.
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+ Show Spoiler +On October 05 2011 05:50 Shikyo wrote:so how does that work? why does the 500$ build have a 6870 and a PSU with only one 6pin cable? is that enough? Though it's true, I shall change my build a little. okay changed 500$ build, removed 600$ build as obsolete. It's nice that my 1k build is better than theirs though.
if you read further, they said that the gpu came with 2 power adapters, one of which they used
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Tomshardware is terrible, I don't know why they still have readers.
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^ I agree. They have some useful information, but trying to get it is like mining for gold, but even harder.
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On October 05 2011 06:03 poopman wrote:+ Show Spoiler +On October 05 2011 05:50 Shikyo wrote:so how does that work? why does the 500$ build have a 6870 and a PSU with only one 6pin cable? is that enough? Though it's true, I shall change my build a little. okay changed 500$ build, removed 600$ build as obsolete. It's nice that my 1k build is better than theirs though. if you read further, they said that the gpu came with 2 power adapters, one of which they used
do all GPUs come with those or just some brands? o.O That'd mean I could cut 10$ from like 4 of those builds.
On October 05 2011 06:03 jacosajh wrote:You can use a 6-pin adapter which comes with the graphics card. I still don't like their $500 build. I'd rather get H61 + i3 2100. It performs better. http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/289?vs=88The Phenom II X4 955 is overclockable, but would need an aftermarket heatsink, which they didn't include. And if you need really need quad-core that bad, you swap the 6870 for a 6850. That added with the savings of a CPU cooler can get you an i5 2300 instead. They overclocked with the stock cooler it seems. Anyway what I find hilarious is that pretty much all of the performance increase in comparison to their last build is because of the better GPU and the overclocked AMD processor functions worse / at same level and consumes over double the power.
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Most GPUs come with adapters...
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On October 05 2011 06:14 skyR wrote:
Most GPUs come with adapters...
mine didn't so <_>
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Even ones with only 1 6-pin requirement usually comes with them like the GTS 450 and HD 5770.
You can overclock with the stock cooler because you probably aren't going to get to the same level as prime95 playing a video game. So it's pretty safe.
Still, they overclocked it to basically a Phenom II X4 980, which is still worse than the i3 2100.
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/362?vs=289
And yes, at much more power consumption.
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Will all of those run starcraft fluently? I mean like which fps can i expect on lowest grafics ? I am really new to the PC world :/ used to use macs but its just not working for me with starcraft and a mac :D Would be really nice if any of you could help me with the PC I am hopping to build that runs starcraft. PM if you were so kind 
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Depends on your resolution.
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Any opinions on the latest 2 builds? Any good way to spend 1500$ instead of 1400$? Probably should get a better case, but as HAF X feels so overpriced wonder which one would be a good choice.
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I thought this (below) was a pretty decent guide for budgeting a computer. It also gives a bit of detail on the parts and how to go about choosing them. It usually gets updated about once a month.
+ Show Spoiler + (it's big)
Aside from some of the AMD recommendations, it's not bad. Of course, tailored advice is ideal to target different resolutions/expectations/uses.
I'd like to see some mention of SSDs, I'd much rather have an SSD over CFX/SLI, as it would be more beneficial even if it doesn't add FPS. The vast majority of users don't have anything bigger than 1900x1080 or 1900x1200 and don't play eyefinity, making CFX/SLI a waste in the $800-1000 range where you started to suggest it.
If you really want to have this guide (we already have the build thread, which may be better because prices/sales change faster than the OP can be updated) then you should explain parts to help people choose based on their setup (resolution, streaming, desire to OC).
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My OP is incomplete.
Btw my 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000 are all better and the first build of his that comes to the level of my 1230$ build is his 1360$ build, also he doesn't include CPU coolers and he uses overclocking mobos with locked GPUs not to mention AMD boards and CPUs -> I dunno why you linked that
Btw most of that info is in the Computer Build Resources-thread so I don't get why it should be here as well.
EDIT: Okay although his builds are bad he has some decent info there that might or might not be useful
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On October 05 2011 11:31 Molybdenum wrote:I thought this (below) was a pretty decent guide for budgeting a computer. It also gives a bit of detail on the parts and how to go about choosing them. It usually gets updated about once a month. + Show Spoiler + (it's big) Aside from some of the AMD recommendations, it's not bad. Of course, tailored advice is ideal to target different resolutions/expectations/uses. I'd like to see some mention of SSDs, I'd much rather have an SSD over CFX/SLI, as it would be more beneficial even if it doesn't add FPS. The vast majority of users don't have anything bigger than 1900x1080 or 1900x1200 and don't play eyefinity, making CFX/SLI a waste in the $800-1000 range where you started to suggest it. If you really want to have this guide (we already have the build thread, which may be better because prices/sales change faster than the OP can be updated) then you should explain parts to help people choose based on their setup (resolution, streaming, desire to OC).
That chart is silly, it doesn't reccommend an H61 for anything....
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On October 05 2011 11:58 CharlieBrownsc wrote:Show nested quote +On October 05 2011 11:31 Molybdenum wrote:I thought this (below) was a pretty decent guide for budgeting a computer. It also gives a bit of detail on the parts and how to go about choosing them. It usually gets updated about once a month. + Show Spoiler + (it's big) Aside from some of the AMD recommendations, it's not bad. Of course, tailored advice is ideal to target different resolutions/expectations/uses. I'd like to see some mention of SSDs, I'd much rather have an SSD over CFX/SLI, as it would be more beneficial even if it doesn't add FPS. The vast majority of users don't have anything bigger than 1900x1080 or 1900x1200 and don't play eyefinity, making CFX/SLI a waste in the $800-1000 range where you started to suggest it. If you really want to have this guide (we already have the build thread, which may be better because prices/sales change faster than the OP can be updated) then you should explain parts to help people choose based on their setup (resolution, streaming, desire to OC). That chart is silly, it doesn't reccommend an H61 for anything....
"This guide only recommends gaming mobos, not cheaper office / home usage mobos" -> recommends a Z68 board with a pentium 630.
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Why post an incomplete post... The first few replies to an incomplete thread will be obsolete when it's 'finished'. Most of the info in this thread can be found in the Comp. build resource thread, especially by reading the last few pages.
That guide is a month old, it's due for the new version, so the pricing is bound to be a little out of date. Some of the advice is a little wonky, but then again, I find CFX/SLI on a $700 budget to be strange. Part of intel's sandy bridge line was released on the day the guide was published, maybe in the next version he'll take a look at the low end SB pentiums and H61 as an option.
Probably the best part is the actual explanation of the parts, which yours has none of. Explaining parts is key as it can help make a more intelligent decision and allow for switching out of parts based on availability/pricing/needs.
Frankly, the computer resource build thread covers all of this information. There were a few guides like this before (a laughable budget guide by b-something88 and a rather nice sandy bridge guide by a176 in the early SB days) but neither of them stood up the the comp. resource thread.
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For the 500 price one, IF you dual monitor I would suggest the I3-2105/2125 because of the hd3000 graphics, your gaming monitor would be on the 6870 and the second monitor on the Hd3000 albeit you would need a mobo that works with it...
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On October 05 2011 12:39 iTzSnypah wrote:
For the 500 price one, IF you dual monitor I would suggest the I3-2105/2125 because of the hd3000 graphics, your gaming monitor would be on the 6870 and the second monitor on the Hd3000 albeit you would need a mobo that works with it...
Uh... that's not how it works. If you were doing Eyefinity with two monitors (you shouldn't), you wouldn't (shouldn't) be using a single 6870...
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You should probably add dates for the builds so if you don't update for some while people know at what time they were most relevant.
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On October 05 2011 12:39 iTzSnypah wrote:
For the 500 price one, IF you dual monitor I would suggest the I3-2105/2125 because of the hd3000 graphics, your gaming monitor would be on the 6870 and the second monitor on the Hd3000 albeit you would need a mobo that works with it...
I don't think I could recommend going with dual-monitor if you're on a 500$ budget. Especially if I'd need to first add 10$ to the cost of the CPU and then get amore expensive mobo. Might include it in the alternative options but that's not a priority atm.
Also I'll try to keep these up-to-date the best I can.
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for the 1000 and the 1250; can they run on ultra settings with no lag in 4v4s?
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On October 06 2011 03:22 roLangela wrote:
for the 1000 and the 1250; can they run on ultra settings with no lag in 4v4s?
nothing can
but to reiterate on that point, it's because they're CPU-limited. If you just want to play SC2 in 1080p the 800$ build should give just about identical performance to the 1750 build.
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nothing can give you lag? or nothing in the build can give it no lag therefore there is some lag? and you're saying the 800$ build can run ultra settings no prob? Sorry. i apologize for my noobness in computers.
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On October 06 2011 03:32 roLangela wrote:
nothing can give you lag? or nothing in the build can give it no lag therefore there is some lag? and you're saying the 800$ build can run ultra settings no prob? Sorry. i apologize for my noobness in computers.
every build will have lag in 4v4 in maxed games, just isn't possible to run that except maybe if you overclock to 8ghz with liquid helium but I doubt you have that laying around.
Oh with that being said, both i5 2400 and 2500k should still run 4v4s just fine and will only experience lag in extreme maxed army scenarios which pretty much never happen, also you can just tune some CPU settings down from ultra to high and be set so it's not like they're laggy processors...
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On October 06 2011 03:36 Shikyo wrote:Show nested quote +On October 06 2011 03:32 roLangela wrote:
nothing can give you lag? or nothing in the build can give it no lag therefore there is some lag? and you're saying the 800$ build can run ultra settings no prob? Sorry. i apologize for my noobness in computers. every build will have lag in 4v4 in maxed games, just isn't possible to run that except maybe if you overclock to 8ghz with liquid helium but I doubt you have that laying around.
^^ LOL LOL true true. another question, the $800 can run games such as crisis 2,bf3, dotA2; all in maxed settings as well without any problems?
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Well. Assuming you use 1080p if you use excessive anti-aliasing Crysis might not run at a smooth 60 fps and also I've heard BF3 is very tough on the GPU so that might not be possible to be maxed either.
The main difference between the 800 and 900$ builds is that the 900$ build uses one notch better graphics card which will improve performance by around 10-20% depending on the game so it might be worth considering, but I still think that the 800$ build is the cost-efficiency sweetspot and that the 1000$ is the second sweetspot and that actually can deal with pretty much every game maxed in 1080p but you're going to have to deal with crossfiring.
I'm going to go to the shower now and I'll try to also add an alternative 1000$ build that will use a GTX 580 instead of utilizing crossfire.
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Is the $800 build running SC2 in top settings overclocked?
I have no experience with overclocking but want to build a good comp at that resolution for SC2, D3. Then again it would be probably be worth it to go i2500k in case I want to learn in the future. If it is stock speed I might go with something like that or the $900 build.
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the processor is the exact same in the builds from 800$ onward and none of the GPUs have any problems with SC2 on ultra in 1080p.
To be honest though, if all you want to do is run SC2 1v1 with ultra settings you can just go with the 600$ build as that GPU can handle SC2 ultra just fine and the processor still is enough.
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What is cross firing? and the $1000 can run bf3 maxed?
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Hey guys; has anyone built the $600 build? How compatable is it with games other than SC2? How well can it run SC2? I am looking at buying the components and putting it together. Does anyone have any inpuot for the $600 build that a computer illiterate person can gauge it's use? Thanks guys!
~Jitsu
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Unless BF3 is more demanding than Crysis:Warhead it should be fine...
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I got basicly the same build but with a phenom2 x6 1090t and it will run all games fine (i play crysis 2 1080p at 30 fps with a min of 20 very rarely)
and the phenom is a not nearly as good as the i5
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Thanks for your help. Im going to go with the $1000 build to run BF3 and SC2 and much more games! thanks for helping out a nub <33
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The card I have there is 10 dollars less and has a higher overclock and longer warranty so I don't know what you'd swap it for, the better cooler? It's a subjective decision that I couldn't answer.
On October 06 2011 04:50 roLangela wrote:
Thanks for your help. Im going to go with the $1000 build to run BF3 and SC2 and much more games! thanks for helping out a nub <33
Btw for a nub crossfirex might not be the ideal setup so you might want to consider a single 580 or 570 or 6950 or 6970, there might be driver hassle to begin with with BF3 and it's going to be more sensitive to being cooled properly, then again the performance should be better in the end if you can get everything to function properly.
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So I changed some builds, added the cheapest 2500k build that gives you a balance of CPU and GPU-bottlenecking so that you don't overspend if SC2 is the only game you're concerned of maxing, a 300$ build that still runs SC2 in 1080p on low settings at 60+ fps, and some more changes.
Anything I've overlooked? Thoughts?
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On October 06 2011 04:50 Shikyo wrote:The card I have there is 10 dollars less and has a higher overclock and longer warranty so I don't know what you'd swap it for, the better cooler? It's a subjective decision that I couldn't answer. Show nested quote +On October 06 2011 04:50 roLangela wrote:
Thanks for your help. Im going to go with the $1000 build to run BF3 and SC2 and much more games! thanks for helping out a nub <33 Btw for a nub crossfirex might not be the ideal setup so you might want to consider a single 580 or 570 or 6950 or 6970, there might be driver hassle to begin with with BF3 and it's going to be more sensitive to being cooled properly, then again the performance should be better in the end if you can get everything to function properly.
Okay. So the new $1k build you posted is better for a nub;; due to it not having crossfire?
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just glancing at the $1000 build, I think an ASRock P67 Pro3 would be a better motherboard for that budget. It is around the same price, and iirc, it offers 10 power phases and a non crippled overclocking bios
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which build can run BF3 on max setting on 1920x1080? (i know nothing about computer)
nvm i read page 3.... thank for info.. btw your math is wrong for the 1750$ build... 499.99$ x 2 = 899.98$ ?
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entirely max out with any fps problems or anything, 900 and up will do, if just max out with AA and sometimes going "low" on fps (understand 30), the 700/800 would be enough
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On October 06 2011 18:35 Jaw wrote:
which build can run BF3 on max setting on 1920x1080? (i know nothing about computer)
nvm i read page 3.... thank for info.. btw your math is wrong for the 1750$ build... 499.99$ x 2 = 899.98$ ?
Depends on what you call "running", someone is fine with 30-40fps, for me its running fine if fps is constantly over 60fps even in biggest fights. At 1080p, GTX580 sli would do that.
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On October 06 2011 19:03 FinBenton wrote:Show nested quote +On October 06 2011 18:35 Jaw wrote:
which build can run BF3 on max setting on 1920x1080? (i know nothing about computer)
nvm i read page 3.... thank for info.. btw your math is wrong for the 1750$ build... 499.99$ x 2 = 899.98$ ? Depends on what you call "running", someone is fine with 30-40fps, for me its running fine if fps is constantly over 60fps even in biggest fights. At 1080p, GTX580 sli would do that.
It also depends what you call "max settings." Some settings just take an obscene amount of costly hardware (a gazzillion aa and af etc) for minimum gain.
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On October 06 2011 19:03 FinBenton wrote:Show nested quote +On October 06 2011 18:35 Jaw wrote:
which build can run BF3 on max setting on 1920x1080? (i know nothing about computer)
nvm i read page 3.... thank for info.. btw your math is wrong for the 1750$ build... 499.99$ x 2 = 899.98$ ? Depends on what you call "running", someone is fine with 30-40fps, for me its running fine if fps is constantly over 60fps even in biggest fights. At 1080p, GTX580 sli would do that.
580sli is such a waste, you get almost same performance with 6950 crossfire because of how mediocre SLi scaling with the big cards is.
it wasn't a math fail, just a typo, overall price's the same
On October 06 2011 13:43 iREight wrote:
just glancing at the $1000 build, I think an ASRock P67 Pro3 would be a better motherboard for that budget. It is around the same price, and iirc, it offers 10 power phases and a non crippled overclocking bios
But it's not B3? o.O
though how severely crippled is the bios
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Dude every board in the retail channel is a B3 revision... why the hell would it not be a B3 revision?
The MSI P67 G series of boards is basically a watered down GD board aka budget SLI board. I don't believe the BIOS would be as crippled as the C series of boards.
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On October 07 2011 04:34 skyR wrote:
Dude every board in the retail channel is a B3 revision... why the hell would it not be a B3 revision?
The MSI P67 G series of boards is basically a watered down GD board aka budget SLI board. I don't believe the BIOS would be as crippled as the C series of boards.
okay well I'll just change them
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Whats with the xigmatek psu's in a lot of those builds. Isn't that model some cheap generic HEC psu? (didnt read a review, so not sure)
Just pick something that fits the build and has a good price in general. There will allways be better deals, so advising 600W where 400-450W is needed is rather odd and confusing to me.
Anything with a 6950, and an i5 2500k or lower will run fine on an xfx core 450W(or something along those lines).
Anyway, this would have been a lot more usefull for europe since the prices are far more stable (no MIR).
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That PSU supposedly has no problems except with discrete sound cards etc. because its -12v voltage regulation is bad, and the reason I chose it is because it's cheap and has good connections and good efficiency and a good price. If I could be certain that every single GPU comes with the SATA - 6pin or 8pin adapters I definitely would alter the PSU recommendations.
Btw that one mobo you mentioned seems overpriced and from what I've googled it seems like the 90$ MSI board overclocks just fine, at least I haven't found complaints so
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What is the cheapest price range in which one would be able to stream/cast games?
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sounds good, maybe in the future add in budgets and/or prices ranges for people looking to stream too? For example if I want a good sc2 comp i'll spend the 600, but what about a 720 or 1080 stream?
love the builds though :D
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On October 09 2011 03:17 phiinix wrote:
sounds good, maybe in the future add in budgets and/or prices ranges for people looking to stream too? For example if I want a good sc2 comp i'll spend the 600, but what about a 720 or 1080 stream?
love the builds though :D
Well then it'd be the 800$ build as it's the best CPU and streaming is relatively CPU-intense. Though as the builds are suggested for SC2 they're going to have quite good CPUs by default and in reality, even the i5 2400 is going to stream very effortlessly at 720p, probably 1080p as well unless you go crazy with the bitrates.
Might need to change some things about the builds and I guess I'll add an optional section now...
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On October 07 2011 05:06 Madoga wrote:
Whats with the xigmatek psu's in a lot of those builds. Isn't that model some cheap generic HEC psu? (didnt read a review, so not sure)
Just pick something that fits the build and has a good price in general. There will allways be better deals, so advising 600W where 400-450W is needed is rather odd and confusing to me.
Anything with a 6950, and an i5 2500k or lower will run fine on an xfx core 450W(or something along those lines).
Anyway, this would have been a lot more usefull for europe since the prices are far more stable (no MIR).
Yeah I think that Xigmatek PSU (NRP-PC602) is a cheap HEC model. Al the NRP_Px02 are HEC I think. I'd choose something else for most of the builds, but I doubt these are disastrously poor.
OklahomaWolf didn't like much the PC502:
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=158
Here the voltage regulation of the PC602 doesn't look nearly as poor (no scope shots so poor ripple/noise above cannot be confirmed):
http://www.hardwareheaven.com/reviews/957/pg1/xigmatek-nrp-pc602-600w-psu-review-introduction.html
Good efficiency and caps, but maybe poor performance?
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On October 09 2011 03:43 Myrmidon wrote:Show nested quote +On October 07 2011 05:06 Madoga wrote:
Whats with the xigmatek psu's in a lot of those builds. Isn't that model some cheap generic HEC psu? (didnt read a review, so not sure)
Just pick something that fits the build and has a good price in general. There will allways be better deals, so advising 600W where 400-450W is needed is rather odd and confusing to me.
Anything with a 6950, and an i5 2500k or lower will run fine on an xfx core 450W(or something along those lines).
Anyway, this would have been a lot more usefull for europe since the prices are far more stable (no MIR).
Yeah I think that Xigmatek PSU (NRP-PC602) is a cheap HEC model. Al the NRP_Px02 are HEC I think. I'd choose something else for most of the builds, but I doubt these are disastrously poor. OklahomaWolf didn't like much the PC502: http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=158Here the voltage regulation of the PC602 doesn't look nearly as poor (no scope shots so poor ripple/noise above cannot be confirmed): http://www.hardwareheaven.com/reviews/957/pg1/xigmatek-nrp-pc602-600w-psu-review-introduction.htmlGood efficiency and caps, but maybe poor performance?
If I get the confirmation from anyone that every graphics card will ship with the necessary SATA to PCIe adapters I'll happily change it =P Unless you know of a cheaper / same price PSU with 2 PCIE connectors
molex yeah sure <_<
I know it can be confirmed but these builds are just guidelines and I won't exactly recommend a specific graphics card model in them
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You mean molex... and this can be confirmed just by looking at reviews or pictures.
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Uh, almost every single graphics card that needs it comes with adapters. There are a few models that don't, but you can just check newegg pictures of the product you're considering. They will show the adapters that come in the box.
For example, I checked some of the ones you linked, and the HIS HD 6850 comes with one, the HIS HD 6870 comes with two, the XFX HD 6790 does not come with one, the Gigabyte GTX 560 Ti comes with two, and the Sapphire HD 6970 comes with two.
Prices change all the time, so I'm sure these may not end up cheaper, but sometimes they will be.
Antec Neo Eco (Seasonic S12II) 520W has two ($55):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371030
Silverstone Strider Essential 400W (Sirtec I think) has two ($49):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256060
Corsair CX500 V2 (CWT DSAII) has two ($60):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027
Rosewill Green Series 530W (ATNG, see the hardwaresecrets review of 630W) has two ($50):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182199
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Thanks alot, that'll help!
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For the 1K budget; i read the reviews for the mobo and they say that its difficult to insert two graphics card due to it having a weird placement.
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On October 12 2011 04:24 roLangela wrote:
For the 1K budget; i read the reviews for the mobo and they say that its difficult to insert two graphics card due to it having a weird placement.
+ Show Spoiler +
Nevermind, wrong build.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130583
How is that awkward placement? That's how it's supposed to be done, you can get air in between them... an entire empty slot between them, and one of each other slot available even with multiple dual-slot cards.
It's near perfect, unless the motherboard itself has flawed spacing.
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Nice initiative! Even though the details may be discussed (as always) I think the builds are good for anyone buying around now.
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What is the nvidia card comparable to Radeon HD 6870 1GB used in the 500 and 600 USD builds?
I'm going for the asus/intel/nvidia combo and not quite sure what to get. An gtx 550?
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The Nvidia equivalent to the 6870 is a GTX 560.
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On October 12 2011 07:35 s.a.y wrote:
What is the nvidia card comparable to Radeon HD 6870 1GB used in the 500 and 600 USD builds?
I'm going for the asus/intel/nvidia combo and not quite sure what to get. An gtx 550?
Nothing, properly. A 470, sort of, but those were never in a good place, and, for some unfathomable reason, are rather rare now. Maybe one of the non -Ti GTX 560s, but those are all over the damn place because of a lack of a physical reference. Why do you want nVidia so badly? Is it the (often) slightly worse multi-GPU scaling, the more expensive multi-GPU configurations, or the (usually) worse power draw and noise?
The best reasons are either better price/performance (not every price point), or to get EVGA for either the warranty or one of their non-reference coolers.
And I'm as close to an EVGA fanboy as you can be without telling other people to buy it when they don't have a use.
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On October 12 2011 07:41 JingleHell wrote:Show nested quote +On October 12 2011 07:35 s.a.y wrote:
What is the nvidia card comparable to Radeon HD 6870 1GB used in the 500 and 600 USD builds?
I'm going for the asus/intel/nvidia combo and not quite sure what to get. An gtx 550? Nothing, properly. A 470, sort of, but those were never in a good place, and, for some unfathomable reason, are rather rare now. Maybe one of the non -Ti GTX 560s, but those are all over the damn place because of a lack of a physical reference. Why do you want nVidia so badly? Is it the (often) slightly worse multi-GPU scaling, the more expensive multi-GPU configurations, or the (usually) worse power draw and noise? The best reasons are either better price/performance (not every price point), or to get EVGA for either the warranty or one of their non-reference coolers. And I'm as close to an EVGA fanboy as you can be without telling other people to buy it when they don't have a use.
12 years of experience with ATI drivers make me wanna throw away their cards instantly.
And nvidia is the only alternative (and i like their drivers)
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On October 12 2011 04:35 JingleHell wrote:Show nested quote +On October 12 2011 04:24 roLangela wrote:
For the 1K budget; i read the reviews for the mobo and they say that its difficult to insert two graphics card due to it having a weird placement. + Show Spoiler +Nevermind, wrong build. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130583How is that awkward placement? That's how it's supposed to be done, you can get air in between them... an entire empty slot between them, and one of each other slot available even with multiple dual-slot cards. It's near perfect, unless the motherboard itself has flawed spacing.
Im talking about the SATA ports.its placed horribly. a second graphics card will block them.
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On October 13 2011 04:21 roLangela wrote:Show nested quote +On October 12 2011 04:35 JingleHell wrote:On October 12 2011 04:24 roLangela wrote:
For the 1K budget; i read the reviews for the mobo and they say that its difficult to insert two graphics card due to it having a weird placement. + Show Spoiler +Nevermind, wrong build. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130583How is that awkward placement? That's how it's supposed to be done, you can get air in between them... an entire empty slot between them, and one of each other slot available even with multiple dual-slot cards. It's near perfect, unless the motherboard itself has flawed spacing. Im talking about the SATA ports.its placed horribly. a second graphics card will block them.
Fair enough, the 3Gb/s ports are kind of awkward. But both of the cables that come with the board have a right angle head at one end. Should negate the issue until you need to add or remove drives later.
You pay less than premium board rates, you get less than a premium board. It's not great, but it should be functional.
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On October 12 2011 07:45 s.a.y wrote:Show nested quote +On October 12 2011 07:41 JingleHell wrote:On October 12 2011 07:35 s.a.y wrote:
What is the nvidia card comparable to Radeon HD 6870 1GB used in the 500 and 600 USD builds?
I'm going for the asus/intel/nvidia combo and not quite sure what to get. An gtx 550? Nothing, properly. A 470, sort of, but those were never in a good place, and, for some unfathomable reason, are rather rare now. Maybe one of the non -Ti GTX 560s, but those are all over the damn place because of a lack of a physical reference. Why do you want nVidia so badly? Is it the (often) slightly worse multi-GPU scaling, the more expensive multi-GPU configurations, or the (usually) worse power draw and noise? The best reasons are either better price/performance (not every price point), or to get EVGA for either the warranty or one of their non-reference coolers. And I'm as close to an EVGA fanboy as you can be without telling other people to buy it when they don't have a use. 12 years of experience with ATI drivers make me wanna throw away their cards instantly. And nvidia is the only alternative (and i like their drivers)
GTX 560 but it's a little bit overpriced, might make up for it with the fact that it overclocks very well though. I guess you don't mind paying the 10-15$ extra for the brand?
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Very usefull thread, thank you! Used it to build my new gaming rig!!!!!!
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Love this thread Shikyo, all super helpful and oddly enough reminded me that my computer at present is enough to do what I need so there is no real want of an upgrade atm. But I am glad to know I have this thread bookmarked and in the future when I have more money will be buying something that you list. Its funny how every other tech forum I go to everyone's boasting of there 2K+ rig and nobody really lists builds that get the job done like this one does. Oddly your thread put my "go big or go home" mentality to rest and reassured me that in the future I won't need to mortgage a home just to purchase a nice gaming computer. Well done.
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Read the whole OP, well done.
My build is very similar to the 800 build and it runs sc2 1080p on ultra and streams without a hitch.
Some changes, 6gb ram/not this-gen SB/nvidia 460SE (it was cheap)/microATX motherboard (more expensive than the one listed)
I was wondering why my setup cost ~300$ more, and it's because no monitors are included in these builds?
Would recommend samsung syncmaster 23" to anyone, btw. <3
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There is no not this gen SB, i understand you mean old gen i3/i5/i7 ? which are lynfield and bloomfield i think. Those are more expensive then SB and not as good, that's all there is to it.
Also RAM did cost a lot until not long ago, prices went down a lot.
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Looking to buy a monitor with the 1k build. Any suggestions?
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Thanks for the reply! can the first two run it in 1920x1200? Sorry. noob with monitors. lol.
edit: resolution i mean
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On October 13 2011 16:41 RaLakedaimon wrote:Love this thread Shikyo, all super helpful and oddly enough reminded me that my computer at present is enough to do what I need so there is no real want of an upgrade atm. But I am glad to know I have this thread bookmarked and in the future when I have more money will be buying something that you list. Its funny how every other tech forum I go to everyone's boasting of there 2K+ rig and nobody really lists builds that get the job done like this one does. Oddly your thread put my "go big or go home" mentality to rest and reassured me that in the future I won't need to mortgage a home just to purchase a nice gaming computer. Well done.
Oh thanks alot =)
On October 14 2011 21:03 roLangela wrote:Thanks for the reply! can the first two run it in 1920x1200? Sorry. noob with monitors. lol. edit: resolution i mean
I've barely ever seen native 1920x1200 monitors, why is it essential to run that instead of 1080p?
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meh. a little overkill eh? i googled some 1900x1200 monitors.. they are hell expensive. Plus is there much difference with the 1080 and the 1200?
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The 2TB HDDs youre recommending look quite a lot like CPUs. Thats no good for storage as far as I know.
The difference between 1920x1080 and 1920x1200 is on most monitors about an extra inch both up and down. Even though it is nice its not really worth the money tho, and youd probably be better off spending it on a better graphics card or something. If you happen to already have a 1920x1200 monitor the performance isnt going to be that noticable, 5-10 fps at most, but I doubt it would be even that much.
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Why do you want a quadcore? The whole point of those builds is to have the parts be in harmony, not to overkill the CPU.
Not to mention that a 6770 would be far more intelligent than a GTS450 for that price.
Of course you can go for a 500gb HDD for every build and get a worse PSU if you want.
The 400$ build plays SC2 better than your 500$ build and btw that build cant play SC2 on ultra at 60+ fps dont lie.
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On October 15 2011 01:02 Shikyo wrote:
Why do you want a quadcore? The whole point of those builds is to have the parts be in harmony, not to overkill the CPU.
Not to mention that a 6770 would be far more intelligent than a GTS450 for that price.
Of course you can go for a 500gb HDD for every build and get a worse PSU if you want.
The 400$ build plays SC2 better than your 500$ build and btw that build cant play SC2 on ultra at 60+ fps dont lie.
60+ FPS at what 800v800 battles? my GeForce 9800 GTX plays SC2 on ultra at 60 FPS (Albeit 1v1) with no problems and its old gen tech. people don't need overkill GPU cards. Quad-Core > Dual-Core especially since the I3 2100 and the I5-2300 Don't support Hyper-threading.
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i3 has hyperthreading.
A GPU has little to nothing to do with large scale battles in SC2.
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On October 15 2011 01:49 skyR wrote:
i3 has hyperthreading.
A GPU has little to nothing to do with large scale battles in SC2.
Luls i was thinking of the I5-2400 and not the I3-2100...
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On October 15 2011 01:47 iTzSnypah wrote:Show nested quote +On October 15 2011 01:02 Shikyo wrote:
Why do you want a quadcore? The whole point of those builds is to have the parts be in harmony, not to overkill the CPU.
Not to mention that a 6770 would be far more intelligent than a GTS450 for that price.
Of course you can go for a 500gb HDD for every build and get a worse PSU if you want.
The 400$ build plays SC2 better than your 500$ build and btw that build cant play SC2 on ultra at 60+ fps dont lie. 60+ FPS at what 800v800 battles? my GeForce 9800 GTX plays SC2 on ultra at 60 FPS (Albeit 1v1) with no problems and its old gen tech. people don't need overkill GPU cards. Quad-Core > Dual-Core especially since the I3 2100 and the I5-2300 Don't support Hyper-threading.
Yeah... but you don't need overkill CPUs either. also i3 2100 supports hyperthreading and if you want to just play SC2 you can just go for the 300$ or 400$ build as I said
Also I kinda doubt your 9800 GTX can run it that well
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will the $1750 build allow me to stream 1080p + sc2 at extreme w/ over 100 fps at all times?
*edit, will it be able to do all this with 3 screen displays?
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On October 16 2011 05:16 skyR wrote:
No.
Is there any system out there that will allow this kind of power?
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On October 16 2011 05:21 skyR wrote:
No there isn't.
This seems unlikely.....
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Okay. Go build a core i7 990x configuration with CrossfireX 6990s and come back with the results.
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On October 16 2011 05:27 skyR wrote:
Okay. Go build a core i7 990x configuration with CrossfireX 6990s and come back with the results.
What's the closest i can get without spending $7000+?
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A core i7 3930k CrossfireX 6990 configuration? You're going to have to be more specific as to your budget...
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Shikyo - + Show Spoiler +will the $1750 build allow me to stream 1080p + sc2 at extreme w/ over 100 fps at all times?
*edit, will it be able to do all this with 3 screen displays?
I would like have to have a setup that can do this, if possible. What in my budget ($2-$7k) will get me closest to this result?
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will you be running eyefinity 5760x1080 or just 1920x1080 for the SC2 and 2 monitors for other things?
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With $7000, you should easily be able to afford a core i7 3960x.
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Honestly I still think a computer with 4 seperate Xeons would fit better for that budget.
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no eyefinity, just sc2 on 1 screen and 2 other screens for other stuff.
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Maybe buy a setup that can run sc2 on extreme maintaining 100 + fps and have a 2nd comp with a i5 2500k overclocked that can run the stream?
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On October 16 2011 05:49 RaKooNs wrote:
no eyefinity, just sc2 on 1 screen and 2 other screens for other stuff.
What I don't understand is that you could get an entire computer for 700-750$ that actually could run SC2 at over 60 FPS for the entirity of a 1v1 and at 100+ fps for plenty of the time WHILE streaming, but you're willing to spend 6000 more for the 40 extra FPS at all times.
Seems like very poor value for money. I suggest you wait until ivybridge and save 6000$
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First off this is a great thread, and as I am considering building an affordable PC in the near future, I greatly appreciate it.
Now, considering the 663$ and the 800$ builds since that would be around my price range, could you discuss the benefits of the upgrades (the better video card etc.)?
Also if cooling / noise was a concern, what would you recommend for additional cooling fans or heat sinks?
As a little background, I built my last PC in early 2005 for about 1200$ and have only upgraded the video card / psu since to be able to run SC2. So a real computer upgrade is definitely in order.
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If noise is a problem then first of all you want to specifically select quiet CPU coolers and a silent case like Fractal Design Define R3 or Shinobi with the noiseblockers, and then you also want a graphics card with a quiet fan and an efficient cooler and also an SSD with 5400 rpm drives for storage would be advisable.
Improvements are basically more comfortable use with better case, larger HDD, more RAM, better graphics card so basically the 800$ build would be much more comfortable and so on without being as bare-cut with just performance in mind. They're just examples so there might still be unnecessary stuff but I tried to make them so that they would still waste quite little money on useless things.
If you want, I could give you a quiet example build if you tell me what you're looking to do with it and what the budget is
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OK sounds great.
I think my budget would be around 800$. I would be looking to play D3 and SC2 mainly, and would like a reasonable ability to play upcoming games on medium or so without a problem.
As far as noise goes, I'm not sure what good benchmarks to compare are, my current PC is just rather noisy and running a bit hot for my taste, so I would be looking for a rather quiet and rather cool machine.
I even looked into mineral oil cooled PC's for kicks, but I'm not sure I could toss a bunch of money for nice components into a machine that might only work for a little while.
Also what monitors / TV's would you recommend pairing this computer with?
Appreciate any feedback.
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On October 16 2011 05:59 Shikyo wrote:Show nested quote +On October 16 2011 05:49 RaKooNs wrote:
no eyefinity, just sc2 on 1 screen and 2 other screens for other stuff. What I don't understand is that you could get an entire computer for 700-750$ that actually could run SC2 at over 60 FPS for the entirity of a 1v1 and at 100+ fps for plenty of the time WHILE streaming, but you're willing to spend 6000 more for the 40 extra FPS at all times. Seems like very poor value for money. I suggest you wait until ivybridge and save 6000$
I can easily tell the difference between 60 fps and 100 fps, i have a very good rig and can only play at low settings because of this attention to detail, i find it incredibly frustrating when my clicks / commands are not instant. I also would like this kind of smoothness with extreme, i guess the "streaming at 1080p" is not completely necessary... But i have a pretty much unlimited budget and it could be worth it for me to get this. despite spending a lot more, i will follow your advice and wait until ivybridge.
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On October 16 2011 06:48 SiLeNtDeViL wrote:
OK sounds great.
I think my budget would be around 800$. I would be looking to play D3 and SC2 mainly, and would like a reasonable ability to play upcoming games on medium or so without a problem.
As far as noise goes, I'm not sure what good benchmarks to compare are, my current PC is just rather noisy and running a bit hot for my taste, so I would be looking for a rather quiet and rather cool machine.
I even looked into mineral oil cooled PC's for kicks, but I'm not sure I could toss a bunch of money for nice components into a machine that might only work for a little while.
Also what monitors / TV's would you recommend pairing this computer with?
Appreciate any feedback.
Well a 23-24" 1080p monitor would probably be recommended
Actually I'm not sure what to get as the case because USA has such lame, poor selection of budget silent cases it seems. -.- P183 is 130$ and that's way over your budget and there's no Shinobi or Define R3. hmhm
On October 16 2011 06:51 RaKooNs wrote:Show nested quote +On October 16 2011 05:59 Shikyo wrote:On October 16 2011 05:49 RaKooNs wrote:
no eyefinity, just sc2 on 1 screen and 2 other screens for other stuff. What I don't understand is that you could get an entire computer for 700-750$ that actually could run SC2 at over 60 FPS for the entirity of a 1v1 and at 100+ fps for plenty of the time WHILE streaming, but you're willing to spend 6000 more for the 40 extra FPS at all times. Seems like very poor value for money. I suggest you wait until ivybridge and save 6000$ I can easily tell the difference between 60 fps and 100 fps, i have a very good rig and can only play at low settings because of this attention to detail, i find it incredibly frustrating when my clicks / commands are not instant. I also would like this kind of smoothness with extreme, i guess the "streaming at 1080p" is not completely necessary... But i have a pretty much unlimited budget and it could be worth it for me to get this. despite spending a lot more, i will follow your advice and wait until ivybridge.
Just overclock a 2500k or 2600k and turn some ultra CPU settings down to like high, you'll easily break 100 FPS and probably won't even notice the settings are missing.
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5930 Posts
Budget and quiet don't go together that's why. Someone has to pay for the thick steel and polycarbonate material. You get what you pay for, and in the case of the Define R3, you get a case that borrows a lot of ideas from Antec's Performance One series, and goes cheap on a lot of the materials all round.
Americans can buy the Define R3 on Newegg for $110. When its only $20 cheaper than the P183, I'm not sure why you wouldn't pick the Antec. It nets you better construction, better door design and better hard drive grommits.
Shinobi is a v. bad idea if you are going to have mechanical hard disks in there . I shouldn't need to say why.
Quiet computing is just this in a nutshell:
- Thick construction to dampen sound
- Good hard drive mounting systems that minimize contact with metal (so gooey silicon grommits in Antec cases are great)
- Low number of holes for sound to escape from
Any case with these features can be "quiet". What's important is how much noise the parts inside make. If you are going SLI, no case (Silverstone RV02-E/FT02 do it better) is going to make that quiet, for instance.
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Whats the difference between the BIOSTAR H61MLC and the H61MGC, besides the $5 price difference?
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Judging from the specifications the H61MGC seems to have an dvi connector and a different Ethernet controller. Otherwise they seem to be the same.
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While watching mlg it seems to be taking up memory on my ssd, it keeps on eating up more and more, how do i change it to the overwrite thing? How do i also change the location of this so i can use put it on my harddrive
Oooo i found it.
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Compatibility question for the 663$: it appears that the MSI motherboard is a PCI 2.0 express and the PowerColor AX6870 is a PCI 2.1 express. Wouldn't this be a problem? Is there another graphics card you would recommend besides the gigabite one, since it sounds like that one can have lots of problems.
How does the EVGA 01G-P3-1561-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB stack up do you think?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130604
Its a bit more than the gigabite, but not too much.
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2.1 and 2.0 are backwards and forward compatible. You can pick any GTX 560 Ti you want, that particular EVGA model offers lifetime warranty.
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This thread needs some more love, great writeup with great help.
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this is awesome :DDD finally i can build my own computer :D
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i really don't like the supercheap motherboards, some of them have very old NICs and SATA controllers are generally outdated. some have issues with newer hardware and also have bad responses to SSD drives if you want them.
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I recently built an i7 sandybridge system for about $900 usd and I was wondering why the i5. Is it just cost so you can spend more on other components?
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On October 26 2011 22:42 thane wrote:
I recently built an i7 sandybridge system for about $900 usd and I was wondering why the i5. Is it just cost so you can spend more on other components?
Mainly because the i7 have little to no benefit over the i5 when it comes to gaming so it's an unneccesary cost for a lot of people. It certainly have it uses for video editing, streaming (I've heard) and such but the price difference between an i5-2500k and a i7-2600k is hard to justify if it's a pure gaming build. This is mainly from the fact that most of todays games don't utilize more than 2 cores or 4 at most. So to you question, yes, spending it on a better gpu, a ssd or something of the kind would probably give you better performance for the money.
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On October 26 2011 22:52 nam nam wrote:Show nested quote +On October 26 2011 22:42 thane wrote:
I recently built an i7 sandybridge system for about $900 usd and I was wondering why the i5. Is it just cost so you can spend more on other components? Mainly because the i7 have little to no benefit over the i5 when it comes to gaming so it's an unneccesary cost for a lot of people. It certainly have it uses for video editing, streaming (I've heard) and such but the price difference between an i5-2500k and a i7-2600k is hard to justify if it's a pure gaming build. This is mainly from the fact that most of todays games don't utilize more than 2 cores or 4 at most. So to you question, yes, spending it on a better gpu, a ssd or something of the kind would probably give you better performance for the money.
Thats what I figured I havent actually built it I should have said priced it out. I want to stream with it though so I figured the 2600k would be better for that.
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Awsome thread, would love to see this being maintained and updated in the future :D
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whoa. im supporting this 100%. i hope you keep these updated
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Definitely using this, is the $662 build as good as it's supposed to be?
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On October 27 2011 07:06 SLenDeRlol wrote:
Definitely using this, is the $662 build as good as it's supposed to be?
if you overclock, ya
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Great guide, wish I saw this a month ago when I started buying things. Would love to see streaming capabilities added - which builds can also stream (with FRAPS, probably) at what resolutions and how well.
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thanks alot i just got some money and want to build a pc and just letting you know most of your prices are off due to prices chaning like the 661 price is really 725 now, and you 800 is over 900 hundred your cheapest is not 380
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On October 30 2011 17:35 hYdrA-MeNo wrote:
thanks alot i just got some money and want to build a pc and just letting you know most of your prices are off due to prices chaning like the 661 price is really 725 now, and you 800 is over 900 hundred your cheapest is not 380
yeah the hard drive changes basically up the price of everything by at least 50
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Since i sure u build or look at the prices often when do they normally go down? im guessing since chirsmas is close the prices are up do they tend to fall in the new years?
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It's because of the floods in Thailand and they're supposed to go down in maybe 3 months
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Thanks man this thread and the other about parts help me alot. Now lets hope i dont fry my boards when i get them :DD
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On October 30 2011 18:14 Shikyo wrote:
It's because of the floods in Thailand and they're supposed to go down in maybe 3 months
3 months? i heard that it will be higher than normal for like... at least half a year... I hope not
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Hi, I've been looking at the $400 which is about all I can stretch too at this time, can anyone tell me what can I expect in terms of performance with it, I want to play starcraft 2, diablo 3, league of legends, world of warcraft, eve online and maybe skyrim, what sort of graphics will run smoothly with it? I really don't want to have to have everything on low settings to play smoothly but I understand $400 isn't going to get me ultra graphics so how good is it going to be?
EDIT: http://www.ukgamingcomputers.co.uk/hemera-custom-gaming-pc-p-99.html
I've looked at this one as well, is this better than the $400 build?
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On November 07 2011 01:54 Boxxer wrote:
Hi, I've been looking at the $400 which is about all I can stretch too at this time, can anyone tell me what can I expect in terms of performance with it, I want to play starcraft 2, diablo 3, league of legends, world of warcraft, eve online and maybe skyrim, what sort of graphics will run smoothly with it? I really don't want to have to have everything on low settings to play smoothly but I understand $400 isn't going to get me ultra graphics so how good is it going to be?
High settings maybe on some of those games, by getting some of the absolute cheapest stuff where possible.
You'll take the $400 build in the OP or similar, but the hard drive cost will be much higher. So the HD 6850 will need to be downgraded to a HD 6770 or similar, around $100.
edit: UK prices...will be different obviously. Please specify location first.
As a result, what you linked has a worse CPU and GPU about half as good as around a HD 6770. Also 2GB of RAM is low. So it's much worse.
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This is a pretty helpful thread! Sure i'm not the first person to be saying that though. I've been meaning to upgrade my computer for some time now. What would be the minimal requirement for a tower to be able to run sc2 smoothly while streaming? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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I live in the UK and have been trying to find the items listed in the $400 build, I cant use newegg from the UK and just can't find anywhere where I can buy these parts, does anyone know of a website for the UK that I can use to buy the items off please?
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On November 07 2011 02:42 Boxxer wrote:
I live in the UK and have been trying to find the items listed in the $400 build, I cant use newegg from the UK and just can't find anywhere where I can buy these parts, does anyone know of a website for the UK that I can use to buy the items off please?
overclockers.co.uk
aria.co.uk
ebuyer.com
scan.co.uk
(amazon.co.uk)
edit: forgot dabs.com
Those are the most common. Actually with 400 pounds, you can get more than 400 USD worth of parts. Just good luck finding a hard drive now.
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On November 07 2011 02:35 ZergRaptor wrote:
This is a pretty helpful thread! Sure i'm not the first person to be saying that though. I've been meaning to upgrade my computer for some time now. What would be the minimal requirement for a tower to be able to run sc2 smoothly while streaming? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
i5 2400, but for graphics card it depends on the resolution you're looking to play at and on the quality as well. For ultra in 1080p, 6850 would probably be recommended. For low, something like 5570 is plenty.
On November 07 2011 02:56 Myrmidon wrote:Show nested quote +On November 07 2011 02:42 Boxxer wrote:
I live in the UK and have been trying to find the items listed in the $400 build, I cant use newegg from the UK and just can't find anywhere where I can buy these parts, does anyone know of a website for the UK that I can use to buy the items off please? overclockers.co.uk aria.co.uk ebuyer.com scan.co.uk (amazon.co.uk) edit: forgot dabs.com Those are the most common. Actually with 400 pounds, you can get more than 400 USD worth of parts. Just good luck finding a hard drive now.
For 400£, this is a true winner atm, get it until they alter the prices due to hard drive situation:
http://www.aria.co.uk/Systems/Gaming Range/Gladiator/Gladiator IBIS Deluxe Intel Core i3-2100 @ 3.10GHz DDR3 Gaming PC w/ FREE Steam Voucher DiRT 3! ?productId=46328
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What cost build would i have to go for to play in 1080p on high/ medium with high fps while streaming? in 1v1s, and massive customs like marine arena kind of games?
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On November 07 2011 05:08 Shikyo wrote:Show nested quote +On November 07 2011 02:35 ZergRaptor wrote:
This is a pretty helpful thread! Sure i'm not the first person to be saying that though. I've been meaning to upgrade my computer for some time now. What would be the minimal requirement for a tower to be able to run sc2 smoothly while streaming? Any help would be greatly appreciated. i5 2400, but for graphics card it depends on the resolution you're looking to play at and on the quality as well. For ultra in 1080p, 6850 would probably be recommended. For low, something like 5570 is plenty. Show nested quote +On November 07 2011 02:56 Myrmidon wrote:On November 07 2011 02:42 Boxxer wrote:
I live in the UK and have been trying to find the items listed in the $400 build, I cant use newegg from the UK and just can't find anywhere where I can buy these parts, does anyone know of a website for the UK that I can use to buy the items off please? overclockers.co.uk aria.co.uk ebuyer.com scan.co.uk (amazon.co.uk) edit: forgot dabs.com Those are the most common. Actually with 400 pounds, you can get more than 400 USD worth of parts. Just good luck finding a hard drive now. For 400£, this is a true winner atm, get it until they alter the prices due to hard drive situation: http://www.aria.co.uk/Systems/Gaming Range/Gladiator/Gladiator IBIS Deluxe Intel Core i3-2100 @ 3.10GHz DDR3 Gaming PC w/ FREE Steam Voucher DiRT 3! ?productId=46328
I've spent a long time trying to replicate the $400 build buying in UK and the cheapest I could get everything for was £400 so I don't think the budget list works for people in the UK 
Is there a cheaper version of that link? I really can't spend as much as £400 and with my lack of knowledge about PC specs building one is out of the question for me now, I feel like I can't find good enough deals for building one to be worth it so I need a ready made one I think (don't need monitor or OS).
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On November 07 2011 06:06 Boxxer wrote:Show nested quote +On November 07 2011 05:08 Shikyo wrote:On November 07 2011 02:35 ZergRaptor wrote:
This is a pretty helpful thread! Sure i'm not the first person to be saying that though. I've been meaning to upgrade my computer for some time now. What would be the minimal requirement for a tower to be able to run sc2 smoothly while streaming? Any help would be greatly appreciated. i5 2400, but for graphics card it depends on the resolution you're looking to play at and on the quality as well. For ultra in 1080p, 6850 would probably be recommended. For low, something like 5570 is plenty. On November 07 2011 02:56 Myrmidon wrote:On November 07 2011 02:42 Boxxer wrote:
I live in the UK and have been trying to find the items listed in the $400 build, I cant use newegg from the UK and just can't find anywhere where I can buy these parts, does anyone know of a website for the UK that I can use to buy the items off please? overclockers.co.uk aria.co.uk ebuyer.com scan.co.uk (amazon.co.uk) edit: forgot dabs.com Those are the most common. Actually with 400 pounds, you can get more than 400 USD worth of parts. Just good luck finding a hard drive now. For 400£, this is a true winner atm, get it until they alter the prices due to hard drive situation: http://www.aria.co.uk/Systems/Gaming Range/Gladiator/Gladiator IBIS Deluxe Intel Core i3-2100 @ 3.10GHz DDR3 Gaming PC w/ FREE Steam Voucher DiRT 3! ?productId=46328 I've spent a long time trying to replicate the $400 build buying in UK and the cheapest I could get everything for was £400 so I don't think the budget list works for people in the UK Is there a cheaper version of that link? I really can't spend as much as £400 and with my lack of knowledge about PC specs building one is out of the question for me now, I feel like I can't find good enough deals for building one to be worth it so I need a ready made one I think (don't need monitor or OS).
Can't spend 400£ on a computer? wtf
Then you just can't buy a computer, simple as that. No one can magically make them cost less than they're worth.
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That's why I'm asking for a cheaper downgraded version?
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On November 07 2011 06:10 Boxxer wrote:
That's why I'm asking for a cheaper downgraded version?
In that case you won't be able to play sc2 on this "downgraded version"
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On November 07 2011 06:10 Boxxer wrote:
That's why I'm asking for a cheaper downgraded version?
Don't you realize it's a super deal because it's an outdated build that doesn't yet account for the new hard drive prices?
Sure you could go for the Fusion build of the site for 350£ but that's significantly weaker and the upgrade is worth 50£. Just save up more money.
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k well thanks for the no help...sorry i asked for it.
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On November 07 2011 05:08 Shikyo wrote:Show nested quote +On November 07 2011 02:35 ZergRaptor wrote:
This is a pretty helpful thread! Sure i'm not the first person to be saying that though. I've been meaning to upgrade my computer for some time now. What would be the minimal requirement for a tower to be able to run sc2 smoothly while streaming? Any help would be greatly appreciated. i5 2400, but for graphics card it depends on the resolution you're looking to play at and on the quality as well. For ultra in 1080p, 6850 would probably be recommended. For low, something like 5570 is plenty. Show nested quote +On November 07 2011 02:56 Myrmidon wrote:On November 07 2011 02:42 Boxxer wrote:
I live in the UK and have been trying to find the items listed in the $400 build, I cant use newegg from the UK and just can't find anywhere where I can buy these parts, does anyone know of a website for the UK that I can use to buy the items off please? overclockers.co.uk aria.co.uk ebuyer.com scan.co.uk (amazon.co.uk) edit: forgot dabs.com Those are the most common. Actually with 400 pounds, you can get more than 400 USD worth of parts. Just good luck finding a hard drive now. For 400£, this is a true winner atm, get it until they alter the prices due to hard drive situation: http://www.aria.co.uk/Systems/Gaming Range/Gladiator/Gladiator IBIS Deluxe Intel Core i3-2100 @ 3.10GHz DDR3 Gaming PC w/ FREE Steam Voucher DiRT 3! ?productId=46328
Excellent! This information has been very helpful, thank you.
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[QUOTE]On November 07 2011 06:31 Boxxer wrote:
[QUOTE]On November 07 2011 06:23 Shikyo wrote:
[QUOTE]On November 07 2011 06:10 Boxxer wrote:
That's why I'm asking for a cheaper downgraded version?[/QUOTE]
Don't you realize it's a super deal because it's an outdated build that doesn't yet account for the new hard drive prices?
Sure you could go for the Fusion build of the site for 350£ but that's significantly weaker and the upgrade is worth 50£. Just save up more money. [/QUOTE]
My next payday is a month, i need a pc before then so £300 is my limit, i have nobody to lend more off, i dont realise it's a super deal because pc specs makes as much sense to me as chinese. I'm just trying to find the best deal I can afford and ill have to upgrade some other time. I was hoping you guys could find me the best way to spend what I have.
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At £300 you should also look for used systems or something on clearance. If you won't assemble yourself, the only way to get something somewhat reasonable is find a deal without an OS.
I'd recommend the below unless somebody can find better (I didn't spend too long looking):
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-265-OK
-> change to GT 430
-> change to no OS
So Athlon II X2 250 (worse than other Pentiums previously mentioned), GT 430, 4GB DDR3 RAM, WD Caviar Blue 500GB, optical drive, mATX mobo and case, "500W" power supply. Price as configured is £263.96, good especially since the hard drive costs a lot more these days. Motherboard is dead weight if you want to upgrade to something significantly better.
It should still handle many newer games on low to medium settings. Some will suffer some because of the CPU, like SC2 in large battles, and the GT 430 is considered to be more of a HTPC card than a higher-power gaming card. But for the price, it's hard to do better I think.
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On November 07 2011 07:07 Myrmidon wrote:At £300 you should also look for used systems or something on clearance. If you won't assemble yourself, the only way to get something somewhat reasonable is find a deal without an OS. I'd recommend the below unless somebody can find better (I didn't spend too long looking): http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-265-OK-> change to GT 430 -> change to no OS So Athlon II X2 250 (worse than other Pentiums previously mentioned), GT 430, 4GB DDR3 RAM, WD Caviar Blue 500GB, optical drive, mATX mobo and case, "500W" power supply. Price as configured is £263.96, good especially since the hard drive costs a lot more these days. Motherboard is dead weight if you want to upgrade to something significantly better. It should still handle many newer games on low to medium settings. Some will suffer some because of the CPU, like SC2 in large battles, and the GT 430 is considered to be more of a HTPC card than a higher-power gaming card. But for the price, it's hard to do better I think.
I can get hold of an OS so don't need to buy one really, I read the reviews below and 1 guy fitted a radeon 5670, do you think it would be wise to buy it without the OS for £209 and find a proper gaming graphics card for £90? or would it be better just to stick with the GT430?
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Ok thanks, if I could I would buy the better one I would but unfortunately I can't Thanks for the link
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The Llano build is worse (worse CPU and worse GPU, a bit lower power consumption which is the advantage, and higher price).
Yes you can just get the Athlon II X2 build without graphics card and spend on a £90 graphics card of your choice. That would give you a better value. I recommend taking the HD 6770 for £80:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-264-AS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=
I didn't find details on the power supply, but so long as it can handle 250W (half of 500W as it says), it should be okay. I think the graphics card should be able to fit in a case like that, as it's just a HD 6770, though it's hard to estimate sizes just based on pictures.
Athlon II X2 is still going to be a problem in some games, so the HD 6770 may be somewhat but not totally to waste. But a lot of cheap configs for a while have like Athlon II X2/X3 and HD 5750/5770 or similar.
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Ok thanks, I'm going to do this
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"~300$ budget(Enough to run SC2 with 60+ FPS with all lowest settings in 1920x1080 and lower" is this supposedly 60 fps on lowest in 1v1 or 4v4? because at the 662$ build you mention 4v4's.
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On November 08 2011 23:15 Assaulter wrote:
"~300$ budget(Enough to run SC2 with 60+ FPS with all lowest settings in 1920x1080 and lower" is this supposedly 60 fps on lowest in 1v1 or 4v4? because at the 662$ build you mention 4v4's.
662$ is for ultra
300$ is for low. It should be fine for even 4v4s on low though you might want to upgrade the processor a little bit.
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If im looking for a computer to dual monitor play starcraft and watch tv which of these is your recommendation
im at school and trying to be inconspicuous or id clean this up a bit sorry 8 )
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On November 12 2011 05:23 BurningLight wrote:
If im looking for a computer to dual monitor play starcraft and watch tv which of these is your recommendation
im at school and trying to be inconspicuous or id clean this up a bit sorry 8 )
resolution? If it's 1080p something like 2500k with like asrock P67/Z68 pro3, 4-8gb ram, 400+w quality psu, 6790/6850, cheap case, hdd and dvd drive and a cooler like hyper 212+. However you should be totally fine with a 2100-2130 as well if you don't think you need the 4 cores. If you don't want to OC and want 4 cores i5 2400 is usually best value and you'll also get a cheap H61 mobo and don't need the extra cooler.
Just assign the first 2 cores to SC2 and the others to the TV and it should be np. both graphcis cards are good for ultra at 60 fps, 6790 is cheaper at like 130$ and slightly worse, 6850 is costier at like 150$ and slightly better. Depends on if you want to play other games as well that would be more demanding etc.
If you don't need ultra, you'll be fine for medium with GT 240 that's like 40$ and for high 6670 or so that's like 75$.
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I'm sorry let me be as clear as possible. I am okay playing SC2 in low graphics with minor slow down issues and i don't need great graphics for streaming. but i want a dependable computer cheapish. I'm likely to use old monitors. I'm a bit of a dweeb and don't really know anything about the inside of my computer but I hear this is the only way to be cost effective. I am completely willing to listen to anything you guys say.
what do you think best suits my needs?
Were you saying that my only concern is a graphics card?
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Well, where do you live? That kind of would affect the part choices, but if you're all right with playing in low graphics I believe that your best choice would be i3 2100-2130(whichever has best value at your store of choice) and just a 6670 or perhaps 6750 or 6770 depending on prices. I wouldn't buy the bare minimum for just SC as it's possible that in a few years you're going to want to play something else and at the lowest graphics card pricepoints, few dollars go a long way. Also 4gb ram should be enough but feel free to buy 8gb
This kind of a setup should be around 120$ CPU 50$ mobo 40$ case 20$ drive 70$ graphics card 20$ ram, 35-50$ for PSU depending on offers(get a minimum of 350W with 80+ rating and to be sure, post your PSU suggestion here so we can tell you if its ok) and for HDD... good luck finding an affordable one. Hopefully it'll stay under 100$.
Though actually, a Pentium G840 or even a G620 processor would probably be enough for you and that would save you another 50$+
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On November 12 2011 06:44 Shikyo wrote:
Well, where do you live? That kind of would affect the part choices, but if you're all right with playing in low graphics I believe that your best choice would be i3 2100-2130(whichever has best value at your store of choice) and just a 6670 or perhaps 6750 or 6770 depending on prices. I wouldn't buy the bare minimum for just SC as it's possible that in a few years you're going to want to play something else and at the lowest graphics card pricepoints, few dollars go a long way. Also 4gb ram should be enough but feel free to buy 8gb
This kind of a setup should be around 120$ CPU 50$ mobo 40$ case 20$ drive 70$ graphics card 20$ ram, 35-50$ for PSU depending on offers(get a minimum of 350W with 80+ rating and to be sure, post your PSU suggestion here so we can tell you if its ok) and for HDD... good luck finding and affordable one. Hopefully it'll stay under 100$.
You could try porting over your old HDD, if you have one...
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would it be cheaper for me to order the parts online or will shipping kill me should i find parts locally . I live in Kansas US
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On November 12 2011 07:28 BurningLight wrote:
would it be cheaper for me to order the parts online or will shipping kill me should i find parts locally . I live in Kansas US
It'll be less expensive to order online. Many components on Newegg have free shipping and all orders over $50 and under 200lb at NCIX is free shipping.
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wats hdd how old is too old
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Nice work you've done. I will have to say, however, although you did a good job hitting certain price points with good parts, your builds just don't seem very optimal to me. For example, if i choose to place a 2500k in a build, I will always make sure parts that i surround with it are adequate for overclocking, sure some don't' want to mess with that, but then why get the 2500k. I compared your 1K build to the one i just built for my buddy, and it blows yours out of the water. Again you hit the pricepoints well but the build just doesn't seem proper for that money you're spending, I'll grab all the pieces I used so I can show you, but i left it at work, will edit soon.
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On November 12 2011 11:33 deadmau wrote:
Nice work you've done. I will have to say, however, although you did a good job hitting certain price points with good parts, your builds just don't seem very optimal to me. For example, if i choose to place a 2500k in a build, I will always make sure parts that i surround with it are adequate for overclocking, sure some don't' want to mess with that, but then why get the 2500k. I compared your 1K build to the one i just built for my buddy, and it blows yours out of the water. Again you hit the pricepoints well but the build just doesn't seem proper for that money you're spending, I'll grab all the pieces I used so I can show you, but i left it at work, will edit soon.
Please do. I would be interested to see what you did differently.
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would you rather get the 2 radeon 6950 2gb cards, or 2 MSI 560 gtx twin frozr ii 2gb cards?
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Thank you so much for putting this list together! I really appreciate it.
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Thank you for posting this, this is great for me. Thank you again.
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On November 12 2011 11:33 deadmau wrote:
Nice work you've done. I will have to say, however, although you did a good job hitting certain price points with good parts, your builds just don't seem very optimal to me. For example, if i choose to place a 2500k in a build, I will always make sure parts that i surround with it are adequate for overclocking, sure some don't' want to mess with that, but then why get the 2500k. I compared your 1K build to the one i just built for my buddy, and it blows yours out of the water. Again you hit the pricepoints well but the build just doesn't seem proper for that money you're spending, I'll grab all the pieces I used so I can show you, but i left it at work, will edit soon.
Oh, what was your build?
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5930 Posts
Can I ask why you recommend Biostar motherboards for some of the cheaper builds?
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My friend and I are having fun decomposing and analyzing your builds... very interesting combos you got going on here! Thanks! (My friend doesn't seem to like MSI motherboards and prefers NVDIAs, and thinks that buying a separate heat-sink for the processor is useless unless I play 12 hours a day, is that true if I play only 6 hours on max resolution and high settings?)
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The configurations with an aftermarket heatsink are paired with a core i5 2500k. An individual who thinks an aftermarket heatsink is useless for overclocking is not very bright...
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So would i actually have to build the computer myself. If i dont have to....how much do you think it would be to have someone put it together for me. I actually dont have a good enough computer to run SCII on and i would like to purchase one.
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Hello I need some feedback on a laptop my parents want to buy me. I am going to college next year and they want a laptop for me, but I also want to be able to play games that are coming out in the future such as HotS and Guild Wars 2 without much FPS issues. Currently I play SC2 WoL with 5 FPS in 1v1 fights and it's horrid. Anyways the computer specs are as follows..
Intel Core i5 processor
6 GB Memory
640 GB Hard Drive
and the name goes something like HP g6s (forgot the rest).
I don't feel like this is anywhere up-to-par with what I would want, which is ideally between 30 to 60 FPS in 1v1 SC2, and if this is the case is there any better deals with a laptop budget of $500-$900?
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the motherboards are probably inferior to asrock pro3, dunno about biostar mobos but I have heard they work fine so why not recommend them .-. I'll update this when new cards come out probably
It's maybe 50$ that you pay ncix or whatever it was, no idea how it works in the US. I'd just build the computer myself.
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On November 22 2011 11:07 Sovano wrote:+ Show Spoiler +Hello I need some feedback on a laptop my parents want to buy me. I am going to college next year and they want a laptop for me, but I also want to be able to play games that are coming out in the future such as HotS and Guild Wars 2 without much FPS issues. Currently I play SC2 WoL with 5 FPS in 1v1 fights and it's horrid. Anyways the computer specs are as follows..
Intel Core i5 processor
6 GB Memory
640 GB Hard Drive
and the name goes something like HP g6s (forgot the rest).
I don't feel like this is anywhere up-to-par with what I would want, which is ideally between 30 to 60 FPS in 1v1 SC2, and if this is the case is there any better deals with a laptop budget of $500-$900?
Yes you would have to build the configuration yourself. You'll need to find a company or individual whose willing to assemble and than ask regarding their price...
On November 22 2011 11:07 Sovano wrote:+ Show Spoiler +Hello I need some feedback on a laptop my parents want to buy me. I am going to college next year and they want a laptop for me, but I also want to be able to play games that are coming out in the future such as HotS and Guild Wars 2 without much FPS issues. Currently I play SC2 WoL with 5 FPS in 1v1 fights and it's horrid. Anyways the computer specs are as follows..
Intel Core i5 processor
6 GB Memory
640 GB Hard Drive
and the name goes something like HP g6s (forgot the rest).
I don't feel like this is anywhere up-to-par with what I would want, which is ideally between 30 to 60 FPS in 1v1 SC2, and if this is the case is there any better deals with a laptop budget of $500-$900?
This isn't enough information...
There are various core i5 models.
You didn't even specify a resolution.
You didn't even specify a graphics card.
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oh and also what company should i go with....HP or Dell? im not to smart when it comes to the computers and such...
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newegg or ncix
those you listed dont even sell parts
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no i meant to just buy a full computer...i dont have the mental capacity and knowledge to assemble a computer...
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Could you please give me some feedback on this build? It is similar to what we discussed a while back, with some different pieces based on the deals of cyber monday. Mainly will I notice a difference between i5 2500 vs 2500k? Or 520W psu vs 500W modular? Or which case would you suggest? Appreciate it.
Motherboard:
MSI P67S-C43 (B3)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130576
67$ after mail in rebate
Processor:
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072
225$
or
(Intel Core i5-2500 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000 ...
Model #:BX80623I52500
Item #:N82E16819115073
195$)
CPU Cooler:
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065
16$ after mail in rebate
Graphics Card:
EVGA 01G-P3-1561-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130604
230.00$ after mail in rebate + batman arkham city free game
COOLER MASTER Storm Scout SGC-2000-KKN1-GP Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Model #:SGC-2000-KKN1-GP
Item #:N82E16811119196
60$ with rebate
or
(Cooler Master HAF 912
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233
59.99$)
OCZ ModXStream Pro 500W Modular High Performance Power Supply compatible with Intel Sandybridge Core i3 i5 i7 and AMD Phenom
Model #:OCZ500MXSP
Item #:N82E16817341016
30$ with rebate
or
(Antec Neo Eco 520W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371030
54.99$)
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL
Model #:F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL
Item #:N82E16820231428
30$
LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM
Model #:iHAS124-04
Item #:N82E16827106289
18$
67+225 (or 195)+16+230+60+30+30+18 = 676 + HD(140) = 816 (or 786) (with other cpu)
Hard Drive:
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 1 TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s with NCQ 32MB Cache 3.5 Inch Internal Bare Drive ST31000524AS
Buy new: $138.95 from amazon
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2500k has an unlocked multiplier which allows you to overclock and it has HD3000. If you aren't using the IGP and are not overclocking, the performance is identical between the 2500k and 2500. But since you obviously seem to be overclocking as you have a P67 motherboard selected and an aftermarket heatsink selected as well. Get the core i5 2500k for $200 from NCIX: http://us.ncix.com/products/?sku=57962&promoid=1055
The Antec Neo Eco 520C is out of stock but it is the better power supply of the two you listed. If you want a semi-modular unit, I'd get the Antec Truepower New 550 for $60 over at NCIX: http://us.ncix.com/products/?sku=36262&promoid=1055
Storm and HAF cases are very similar. The Storm series just never took off for whatever reason. If you want the HAF 912, get it from NCIX for $50: http://us.ncix.com/products/?sku=55583&promoid=1055
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Honestly I wasn't planning on overclocking, but if the build suits it I might change my mind. Thanks for the advice. Should be an impressive machine compared to what I have been using.
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On November 29 2011 06:02 SiLeNtDeViL wrote:
Honestly I wasn't planning on overclocking, but if the build suits it I might change my mind. Thanks for the advice. Should be an impressive machine compared to what I have been using.
If you're not going to be overclocking, you can save some money and get a simpler motherboard.
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Thanks for this awesome thread. I really don't have that much knowledge building rigs and this was a big help.
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After the test boot, how do you turn it off? do i just short the power the same way i turned it on?
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Im planning on Building a new PC for Christmas, and was looking for help with a build. My budget is about $1000 give or take $100, and trying to order a specified PC from the OP on a Canadian website (ncix.ca) it's upwards of $1200 which is just out of my reach. So im looking for other suggestions, preferably from newegg.ca, ncix, or tigerdirect.
Im wanting to play new games on high-ultra, not looking for max.
I have a 1920x1080 1080p monitor. I'd prefer Nvidia, I've had my eye on the 560 ti for a while. And I want a i5 2500k cpu, from what I've read it seems to be a popular choice. The rest is fair game, thanks in advanced. Prices in CAN pretty please :D
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As a fairly tech-illiterate dude on a full-time student/part-time job budget, I'm curious about how the $300 build will run games that are more graphically intensive than SC2. Assuming I'm not a graphics whore (medium is nice, I'm fine with low though) and am willing to play at pretty low (probably like 1400x900, don't know for sure yet as I need to buy a monitor as well) am I going to be able to run something like SWTOR or DotA2 (Diablo 3 is also something I'd like to run, but I assume the system specs and optimization of that are going to change a fair amount before release)?
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On December 08 2011 07:45 Rawr__ wrote:
Im planning on Building a new PC for Christmas, and was looking for help with a build. My budget is about $1000 give or take $100, and trying to order a specified PC from the OP on a Canadian website (ncix.ca) it's upwards of $1200 which is just out of my reach. So im looking for other suggestions, preferably from newegg.ca, ncix, or tigerdirect.
Im wanting to play new games on high-ultra, not looking for max.
I have a 1920x1080 1080p monitor. I'd prefer Nvidia, I've had my eye on the 560 ti for a while. And I want a i5 2500k cpu, from what I've read it seems to be a popular choice. The rest is fair game, thanks in advanced. Prices in CAN pretty please :D
Part list permalink / Part price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.69 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus 76.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ NCIX)
Motherboard: Biostar TZ68A+RCH ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Memory: Kingston HyperX 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($35.99 @ NCIX)
Hard Drive: Crucial M4 64GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($115.72 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 560 Ti 1GB Video Card ($219.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Case: Lian-Li PC-7B PLUS II ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Power Supply: Antec 550W ATX12V Power Supply ($68.99 @ Buy.com Canada)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-B123L/RSBP Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer ($56.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $966.32
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated 2011-12-12 22:29 EST-0500)
and
http://canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=15_810&item_id=010671 500GB WD HDD
so total price is around 1041.31
You can probably save money on mobo, case and psu
hdd prices are really high so that's another problem
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Shikyo, could you please give me some advice?
I'm planning to build a computer in the pricerange of 600-700€ and I have a few questions..
Firstly, will it work well to just build the 800$ computer in your suggestion and I just buy the things from Finland?
Some of the prices seem pretty drastically different,
http://www.verkkokauppa.com/fi/product/26565/cvrdc/Intel-Core-i5-2500K-3-3-GHz-LGA1155-suoritin-boxed has the i5 2500K for 209€ which is like 275usd compared to 220, is it better to just order some stuff online?
If you could suggest Finnish stores I can buy stuff from that'd be great. Thanks.
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Why are you buying from Finland? That's the most expensive place in like the whole europe. What's wrong with germany? Also you can't compare the prices like that, at least Finnish prices all include a 23% tax whereas american prices don't have any tax included.
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On December 16 2011 19:35 Shikyo wrote:
Why are you buying from Finland? That's the most expensive place in like the whole europe. What's wrong with germany? Also you can't compare the prices like that, at least Finnish prices all include a 23% tax whereas american prices don't have any tax included.
My brother and father live there and I visit them often. And in Estonia the prices are even more expensive.
Is Germany(/UK/etc) price + shipping cheaper than Finland + no shipping?
I kinda know comparing prices like that is a bit wrong but I just need to find out what would be the best possibility in my price range.
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Hi, I'm looking for a build around the 700~ prince range including a 20-24inch monitor (24 preferably) and ill probably be buying from newegg.ca since I assume they have pretty good prices for canada.
Is the 600$~ build from the OP still pretty reasonable, or is there something with better bang for buck out there? Any idea what the best (i suppose best means best for least money lol) 24~ inch monitors are that I can get?
Thanks!
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Newegg sucks. Buy from a Canadian retailer such as NCIX.
24" TN monitors for ~$100 will be abundant on boxing day.
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5930 Posts
Its not $600 anymore, its more like $700 thanks to the floods in Thailand. Its the cheapest you're going to get but you're also getting a rock bottom chassis and motherboard. Personally I would never suggest a Biostar motherboard since they're in class as ECS.
As for 23"/24" monitors, just get the cheapest big brand monitor (Asus, Acer, Samsung) that was released fairly recently and has the ports you need. All of these low end monitors are all really similar so you won't be able to tell a difference. Since you don't want to spend more money on your desktop, this is really the only advice you need to pick out a decent TN monitor.
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Hey guys hope you can help me. Do you think I can play diablo 3 with a 400-500 $ system without laggs? Won't play any newer games than sc2, dota2 and d3 in the next years anyway, but my momentary used system doesnt quite cut it anymore. :/ I don't want to stream + I don't need the highest graphic settings or anythin just play without any problems caused by the system.
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A $500 setup should be able to run D3 fine. Without any lag is always hard to promise for games, even with expensive builds, but for most situations the $500 option in this thread is well above the minimum requirements for D3 and should be satisfactory.
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The $600 budget you have listed in the OP is scary similar to the one Tom's Hardware just did for their System Builder Marathon today:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i5-overclock-performance-gaming,3097.html
They used the same CPU, case, DVD burner, and video card (HIS vs Sapphire though). They used a different brand of H61 motherboard which was slightly more expensive but went with a smaller and cheaper Antec power supply. They used an identical set of RAM with the same price but from a different brand.
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I'm looking to build a computer that will allow me to stream SC2 in about 720p quality. I generally like to play on low settings, if that counts for anything. Is the midway between the $600 and $700 build able to do such a thing? Is the difference in quality between the midway build and the $700 build extremely noticeable in general application? (Streaming, gaming)
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On December 23 2011 07:38 LeWoVoc wrote:
I'm looking to build a computer that will allow me to stream SC2 in about 720p quality. I generally like to play on low settings, if that counts for anything. Is the midway between the $600 and $700 build able to do such a thing? Is the difference in quality between the midway build and the $700 build extremely noticeable in general application? (Streaming, gaming)
You can take the $600 build or similar and replace the graphics card (HD 6870, around $165) with a much lower end model like a HD 5570 (around $55), and you'll be good to go for that. You can also downgrade the power supply, but there's not much to save there since quality supplies of any wattage rarely sell under $40.
For what you want to do you really just want a modern quad core, a Core i5-2xxx, to be able to handle the A/V encoding for streaming while playing a demanding game. Low graphics settings mean less graphics computation ability is needed, so that's why the graphics card can be downgraded so much.
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Thanks a bunch for the quick reply. Could you recommend a case for the $660 build? The one recommended appears to be out of production.
EDIT: I need to learn to google. Still curious about a case.
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hey quick question, i want to start to stream and im wondering about which cpu wud b best for that job. from lookin online and reading ur review/builds the Core i5 2500k comes up alot. Is this better than a 6core phenom ll at the same price?
specifiacaly for streaming?
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2500k is far better than a Phenom II X6.
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On December 23 2011 08:11 LeWoVoc wrote:
Thanks a bunch for the quick reply. Could you recommend a case for the $660 build? The one recommended appears to be out of production.
EDIT: I need to learn to google. Still curious about a case.
By the way, the builds in the OP are in no way frequently updated. Do look for alternatives that do the exact same thing, since prices shift around and what used to be priced lower is not necessarily at the same position.
Power supply, since you don't need a mid-high end graphics card:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139026
As for the case, I'd personally want to avoid the really cheap stuff that may not fit together well, have cheap and noisy fans, cause noisy vibrations with hard drives installed, have poor power on switches, and so on. You may not care about those things though. You can look at $30-40 computer cases and sort them by reviews and see what looks okay I guess. Since Xigmatek Asgard II is no longer available for $30 but rather $40, I'd look elsewhere.
If you don't mind the looks, the Cooler Master HAF 912 is quite popular and only at $50 now. It was a popular option when it was selling for $60, much less $50.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233
On December 23 2011 11:50 Wi)nD wrote:
hey quick question, i want to start to stream and im wondering about which cpu wud b best for that job. from lookin online and reading ur review/builds the Core i5 2500k comes up alot. Is this better than a 6core phenom ll at the same price?
specifiacaly for streaming?
For streaming, after overclocking, it's pretty close (aside from using a lot less power), unless maybe someday the encoders can make use of the AVX instruction set, after which the i5-2500k would have a significant advantage. For pretty much everything else, the i5-2500k is a lot better. Actually, for faster encoding and encoding with poorer encoders, the i5-2500k would have more of an advantage. The only time the Phenom II X6 doesn't get trounced is if you can keep all 6 cores 100% busy.
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I was looking for adjustments to the $300 one on /r/buildapc, and they suggested this:
Part list permalink:
Part price breakdown by merchant:
CPU: AMD A8-3850 2.9GHz Quad-Core Processor ($145.10 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-A55M-DS2 Micro ATX FM1 Motherboard ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Hard Drive: Seagate SV35.5 500GB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.67 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 6670 1GB Video Card ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Xigmatek Asgard II Black/Silver ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec 350W ATX12V Power Supply ($29.40 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Acer G185HAb 18.5" Monitor ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $453.11
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated 2011-12-22 22:31 EST-0500)
Thoughts on this vs the one in the OP, and in general how it'll perform on the monitor listed in games like SC2 and TOR? Thanks.
Edit: the main thing adjusted was the processor, which was upgraded for a price bump-up and a slower hard drive, but obviously the shift from Intel to AMD changes things too, right?
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That's a stupid build. Getting a discrete graphics card defeats the whole purpose in selecting the APU.
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In regards to the APU, the guy who suggested it stated:
"The 6550D that is built in to the APU will run in crossfire with the 6670. It will provide a substantial boost in performance."
I have no idea about the validity of this statement, of course.
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Support in games for that hybrid Crossfire between the integrated and discrete graphics is even worse than for normal Crossfire, and the boost (when it works) is hardly substantial. It's just not a good idea, considering the price.
Those prices are all after rebate btw.
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Ya he's an idiot. The APU alone is $145 and the IGP is going to be bottlenecked by the 1333MHz memory. A core i3 2100 or similar costs about $30 less and is better in gaming. With the $30, you can get a Radeon HD6770 which is significantly better.
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Ok, thanks guys. So, something like this:
Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3bRd
Part price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3bRd/by_merchant
CPU: Intel Core i3-2100 3.1GHz Dual-Core Processor ($99.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Biostar H61MLC Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($58.67 @ Mwave)
Memory: Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Hard Drive: Seagate SV35.5 500GB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.67 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 6770 1GB Video Card ($94.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Xigmatek Asgard II Black/Silver ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec 350W ATX12V Power Supply ($29.40 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Acer G185HAb 18.5" Monitor ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $446.68
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated 2011-12-22 22:46 EST-0500)
All of these rebates totally terrify me, btw. Just hoping I can actually get most of them >_>
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On a side note, you could also get an Athlon II X4 (same CPU performance as the A8-3850) and AM3 motherboard, saving like $60. That could be used to get a better graphics card such as a HD 6770 and have plenty left over. Compared to the A8-3850 + HD 6670, it would only lose in power consumption.
The i3-2100 or other LGA 1155 choice is the better option for gaming and most use though.
edit: I'd strongly recommend you not get the Antec Basiq BP350, since that's not very good. The cheapest power supply of any quality is the Corsair CX430 V2 for $45 - $10 MIR, unfortunately.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139026
If you really need to scrape, consider a socket LGA 1155 Pentium or Celeron, or maybe run without a case if necessary.
edit2: I'm also not thrilled about using a 5900rpm hard drive as the system drive. If you don't mind the OS and all programs booting up slower than for a normal 7200rpm model, then it's okay though.
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I'm fine with slow boot up - I've been PC gaming on absolute trash machines for like ~5 years now (4ish of WoW [yes there are actually machines that exist that struggle to run WoW] and now SC2 since it came out) so I'm really kind of just looking for the bare essentials that would allow me to play Star Wars, hopefully at 60 FPS and hopefully at native resolution. *sobs dramatically* So if I just switch out the PSU in that build with the Antec one, I'll be good to go? Thanks again for being so helpful, Myrmidon and skyR
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The Antec Basiq is the poorer one. Actually, there's some decent Antec Basiq models; that is not one of them. The okay one is the Corsair CX V2.
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Oh, yeah, sorry, that's what I meant. Typed without thinking. Common problem. So:
Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3bSp
Part price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3bSp/by_merchant
CPU: Intel Core i3-2100 3.1GHz Dual-Core Processor ($99.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Biostar H61MLC Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($58.67 @ Mwave)
Memory: Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Hard Drive: Seagate SV35.5 500GB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.67 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 6770 1GB Video Card ($94.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Xigmatek Asgard II Black/Silver ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair 430W ATX12V Power Supply ($34.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-222AB DVD/CD Writer ($22.98 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Acer G185HAb 18.5" Monitor ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $475.25
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated 2011-12-22 23:10 EST-0500)
+ my crappy mouse/keyboard + an absolutely, completely legal copy of Windows 7 + Newegg computer building videos + friends who have built recently = a solid, compatible comp that can run those 4 games at a playable framerate on low?
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Alright, saving money always sounds good, thanks skyR.
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Ok so I just got $700 for a new computer. I have Win 7 and new periphreals (2 22' 1920x1080 HD monitors and 6gv2 keyboard :DDD ) so I was wondering if there is any way to improve upon the $660 build. I definitely don't need more than 500 gig on a HDD because I only play a couple games and I don't store alot of stuff on my computer.
I of course want to play SC2 and I have Skyrim next to me waiting for a new computer to be put on, I guess its also worthy to mention I'm going to be buying this tomorrow or the next day from a comp usa next to my house (unless thats extremely ill advised). Thanks anyone that helps! :D
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On December 27 2011 12:29 SLenDeRlol wrote:
Ok so I just got $700 for a new computer. I have Win 7 and new periphreals (2 22' 1920x1080 HD monitors and 6gv2 keyboard :DDD ) so I was wondering if there is any way to improve upon the $660 build. I definitely don't need more than 500 gig on a HDD because I only play a couple games and I don't store alot of stuff on my computer.
I of course want to play SC2 and I have Skyrim next to me waiting for a new computer to be put on, I guess its also worthy to mention I'm going to be buying this tomorrow or the next day from a comp usa next to my house (unless thats extremely ill advised). Thanks anyone that helps! :D
You can bump the 6870 to a 560ti or 6950. More or less anyway. That would be the first avenue of improvement for that build.
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One last question as I'm ordering the parts for my build in page 12:
CPU: Intel Core i3-2100 3.1GHz Dual-Core Processor ($99.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Biostar H61MLC Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($58.67 @ Mwave)
Memory: Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 6770 1GB Video Card ($94.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair 430W ATX12V Power Supply ($34.99 @ NCIX US)
The power supply wound up being cheaper at Newegg, leaving me short for free shipping at NCIX. I figure I can just get the optical drive there instead (even if it's overpaying a little, as skyR pointed out, still cheaper than having to pay for shipping on a case). I have no idea about optical drive compatibility and none of the ones on NCIX are exactly like the ones listed on PCPartPicker, so can someone please look at them and give me the cheapest one that's compatible? Thanks again.
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Hey I have a question on the prices. On the hard drives the prices listed are low, but when I click on the link they are higher. When I did my first computer build I got a 1tb for 70 dollars and now they are 120 dollars. Can someone tell me why the change in prices?
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Well just about ready to order. This is what I have so far.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/zyC6m.jpg)
Everything look ok? I know I will need a proper heatsink to overclock it but thats not urgent. I can wait to have it up and running before I do that. Already have my own hard drive and license for XP but will probably upgrade to windows 7 very quickly.
Thanks again guys.
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On December 27 2011 19:29 SilentVico wrote:
Hey I have a question on the prices. On the hard drives the prices listed are low, but when I click on the link they are higher. When I did my first computer build I got a 1tb for 70 dollars and now they are 120 dollars. Can someone tell me why the change in prices?
Flooding in Thailand. Please read the news maybe once a year... -.-
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On December 27 2011 19:29 jimthelege wrote:Well just about ready to order. This is what I have so far. Everything look ok? I know I will need a proper heatsink to overclock it but thats not urgent. I can wait to have it up and running before I do that. Already have my own hard drive and license for XP but will probably upgrade to windows 7 very quickly. Thanks again guys.
Looks good but RAM is so cheap so if I were you I would by 8gb
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On December 27 2011 19:29 jimthelege wrote:+ Show Spoiler +Well just about ready to order. This is what I have so far. Everything look ok? I know I will need a proper heatsink to overclock it but thats not urgent. I can wait to have it up and running before I do that. Already have my own hard drive and license for XP but will probably upgrade to windows 7 very quickly. Thanks again guys.
I'm pretty sure the Arctic Power is utter shit so you definitely do not want that as a power supply for such a configuration.
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On December 27 2011 17:29 skyR wrote:
$16:
But aren't you getting the GPU from NCIX as well? That component alone puts you over $50 for free shipping.
GPU was on sale for cheaper at Newegg, you pointed that out yourself 
And in general, just so I can better understand this, what is there to look at when looking at optical drive compatibility?
Thanks again for all the help.
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Get Sata.
IDE is being phased out. Some newer boards dont have any IDE slots at all.
Thats about it, even bargain bin optical drives work.
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On December 27 2011 19:29 jimthelege wrote:Well just about ready to order. This is what I have so far. Everything look ok? I know I will need a proper heatsink to overclock it but thats not urgent. I can wait to have it up and running before I do that. Already have my own hard drive and license for XP but will probably upgrade to windows 7 very quickly. Thanks again guys.
power supply and case are both shit, ram is overpriced
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Thanks for all you help guys. Have changed the RAM and power supply so hopefully I'm ready to order.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/1sats.jpg)
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I'm curious, what would I need to play / stream SC2 on anywhere from Low to High Settings in 1080p at a 1280x1024 resolution? I want to keep the resolution modest because I don't think I'll enjoy playing SC2 on a larger monitor (due to larger eye travel distance to check supply and such).
How many corners can I cut on the $800 build due to the smaller resolution? Would an i5 2400 suffice, since I don't plan on overclocking? Can I choose a cheaper graphics card, and if so, what would you recommend? Is the additional cooling fan necessary, given I do not plan on overclocking?
Thanks for the help in advance. =)
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On December 31 2011 11:31 HyTex wrote:
I'm curious, what would I need to play / stream SC2 on anywhere from Low to High Settings in 1080p at a 1280x1024 resolution? I want to keep the resolution modest because I don't think I'll enjoy playing SC2 on a larger monitor (due to larger eye travel distance to check supply and such).
How many corners can I cut on the $800 build due to the smaller resolution? Would an i5 2400 suffice, since I don't plan on overclocking? Can I choose a cheaper graphics card, and if so, what would you recommend? Is the additional cooling fan necessary, given I do not plan on overclocking?
Thanks for the help in advance. =)
you stream what's on your screen, so if you're playing at 1280x1024, you can't stream 1080p
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These damned floods, solid-state MAY be the way to go for the time being... thank god i just found this thread, am in desperate need of building a desktop. Currently using my basic school laptop, shit's rough. Where is the sticky for this??
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On December 31 2011 11:48 dhe95 wrote:Show nested quote +On December 31 2011 11:31 HyTex wrote:
I'm curious, what would I need to play / stream SC2 on anywhere from Low to High Settings in 1080p at a 1280x1024 resolution? I want to keep the resolution modest because I don't think I'll enjoy playing SC2 on a larger monitor (due to larger eye travel distance to check supply and such).
How many corners can I cut on the $800 build due to the smaller resolution? Would an i5 2400 suffice, since I don't plan on overclocking? Can I choose a cheaper graphics card, and if so, what would you recommend? Is the additional cooling fan necessary, given I do not plan on overclocking?
Thanks for the help in advance. =) you stream what's on your screen, so if you're playing at 1280x1024, you can't stream 1080p
This holds true even if the encoder can change the output resolution? (Adobe FMLE 3.2, for reference). I don't know much about streaming, but I want to make sure I don't end up buying a video card that is far too powerful for what I wanna use it for.
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On December 31 2011 11:31 HyTex wrote:
I'm curious, what would I need to play / stream SC2 on anywhere from Low to High Settings in 1080p at a 1280x1024 resolution? I want to keep the resolution modest because I don't think I'll enjoy playing SC2 on a larger monitor (due to larger eye travel distance to check supply and such).
How many corners can I cut on the $800 build due to the smaller resolution? Would an i5 2400 suffice, since I don't plan on overclocking? Can I choose a cheaper graphics card, and if so, what would you recommend? Is the additional cooling fan necessary, given I do not plan on overclocking?
Thanks for the help in advance. =)
For streaming in 1080p you'll probably need a 2500k...
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On January 01 2012 05:39 HyTex wrote:Show nested quote +On December 31 2011 11:48 dhe95 wrote:On December 31 2011 11:31 HyTex wrote:
I'm curious, what would I need to play / stream SC2 on anywhere from Low to High Settings in 1080p at a 1280x1024 resolution? I want to keep the resolution modest because I don't think I'll enjoy playing SC2 on a larger monitor (due to larger eye travel distance to check supply and such).
How many corners can I cut on the $800 build due to the smaller resolution? Would an i5 2400 suffice, since I don't plan on overclocking? Can I choose a cheaper graphics card, and if so, what would you recommend? Is the additional cooling fan necessary, given I do not plan on overclocking?
Thanks for the help in advance. =) you stream what's on your screen, so if you're playing at 1280x1024, you can't stream 1080p This holds true even if the encoder can change the output resolution? (Adobe FMLE 3.2, for reference). I don't know much about streaming, but I want to make sure I don't end up buying a video card that is far too powerful for what I wanna use it for.
um
if you are watching a 50s film thats really bad quality with a super mega turbo HD tv, what kind of a picture do you see?
If you are listening to a 24 kbps super low quality mp3 with a 2000$ hifi stereo set, how good is the sound quality going to be?
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On January 01 2012 05:48 Josh_rakoons wrote:Show nested quote +On December 31 2011 11:31 HyTex wrote:
I'm curious, what would I need to play / stream SC2 on anywhere from Low to High Settings in 1080p at a 1280x1024 resolution? I want to keep the resolution modest because I don't think I'll enjoy playing SC2 on a larger monitor (due to larger eye travel distance to check supply and such).
How many corners can I cut on the $800 build due to the smaller resolution? Would an i5 2400 suffice, since I don't plan on overclocking? Can I choose a cheaper graphics card, and if so, what would you recommend? Is the additional cooling fan necessary, given I do not plan on overclocking?
Thanks for the help in advance. =) For streaming in 1080p you'll probably need a 2500k...
If you read my processor choice and the succeeding sentence, you'd know I have no intentions of overclocking, so my question really becomes "Can the i5 2500 stream 1080p?". And if I absolutely must OC to stream 1080p, then I'll just stream at 720p or a lower bitrate until the technology needed becomes more affordable, which is several years down the road.
Does the 0.2GHz differential between the 2400 and 2500 really increase the performance by that much?
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I'm not sure how the above (edit: Shikyo's post) is related to the discussion.
The issue is that if you're playing at 1280x1024, your video card is rendering frames at 1280x1024. You can add black bars and upscale this to 1920x1080 in theory, but there won't be 1920x1080 worth of actual source information. With some encoders, in practice, this could possibly make the end result look nicer, but it's definitely not going to be the same as starting from 1920x1080 of actual source information (aspect ratio aside even).
edit: a Sandy Bridge quad core at i5-2500 clock speeds isn't going to handle streaming 1080p that well. Yes it will be okay in some situations, but maybe not with more action, not with more aggressive (for lower bitrate) encoding, and so on. Possibly consider a Xeon E3-1230 or i7-2600 if you absolutely won't overclock.
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no, generally i5 2400 is regarded as the best cost-to-performance ratio processor if you overclock, but afaik theres some sale atm for 2500. Either way they will probably stream 1080p allright, but you probably should look into overclocking for absolute best settings
On January 01 2012 06:31 Myrmidon wrote:
I'm not sure how the above (edit: Shikyo's post) is related to the discussion.
The issue is that if you're playing at 1280x1024, your video card is rendering frames at 1280x1024. You can add black bars and upscale this to 1920x1080 in theory, but there won't be 1920x1080 worth of actual source information. With some encoders, in practice, this could possibly make the end result look nicer, but it's definitely not going to be the same as starting from 1920x1080 of actual source information (aspect ratio aside even).
If you play at 1280x1024 and output at 1080p it doesnt magically change it into 1080p so its basically about the output being able to only be at best as good as the input o_o and no you dont need extra gpu power to do that either
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@Myrmidon: Shikyo's analogy refers to my question about using a lower bitrate or changing the resolution instead of getting a more powerful processor, if I'm reading it correctly.
The sale on the i5 2500 ends tonight. Sadly, I'm not quite done choosing parts, which means I'll most likely stick with the i5 2400 and deal with the inability to stream in 1080p (I'm getting a monitor that supports 1920x1080 in case I ever decide to upgrade or replace a part).
So, to understand correctly, if I were to input 1280x1080 and output at the 1920x1080 resolution that you normally record at for 1080p, I would end up with a much worse picture quality (due to the image being stretched in a similar manner to a photoshop image)?
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afaik you'd get the same image quality and black bars
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Yeah with 1280x1024 input and 1920x1080 output, you would just need to stretch it, which just requires some interpolation. At least if you're working with the uncompressed images then it seems like it should be an affine transformation that's reversible (without loss of quality) I think?
If you're resizing a lossy jpeg--which is encoded in blocks of a certain size I think--or something like that, then that's a lossy to lossy conversion, so quality is lost in the resizing. I don't at all work with images in practice though, so I'm just guessing.
Theoretically after upscaling, the output of the encoding process might be better in some sense than if you didn't upscale, depending on how the encoder handles it. This is a huge waste of bits though--you're much better off just streaming the native resolution using more bits in the first place.
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I'm looking to start streaming, what build would you guys recommend i look at if i'm also wanting to do that?
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just followed the 700$ dollar build, turned out awesome! went with a 3.3 GHz intel core i5 and i went with a gtx 560 graphics card instead, so i strayed from the build a little bit but thanks for the guidance!!
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I just bought the $400 build, had everything come to my place... and realized something... How on earth do I put this together? How do I install an OS? Why am I so dumb?
PLEASE HELP >.<
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Various videos on youtube will show you how to assemble a computer.
Installing an OS is as simple as putting the disk into the disk drive, setting the disk drive as first boot device, and turning the power on.
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@ShatterZer0: I'm sorry that I cant be a huge help, but if you don't know anything about building computers (like me), you should've bought it at a website where they put it together. Things you can do know is try and find guides to build a computer on the internet (cost less $$), or search for someone or some store that is willing to put it together.
Now that I'm making this post, is the 800 dollar build good enough to stream or do I need to make some changes to it?
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The $800 configuration is enough to stream but these builds are severely outdated in terms of pricing.
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On February 09 2012 01:09 skyR wrote:
The $800 configuration is enough to stream but these builds are severely outdated in terms of pricing.
So if hypothetically I were to be in the process of checking out parts for a computer, this would not be the place to look?
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These builds serve as a good starting point. Hopefully you'll learn something from looking through these builds and come up with something more recent and ask for opinions in the Computer Build Resource Thread to get it improved upon / fixed / ready for purchase. But to purchase an exact build out of the OP would be a bad idea if you care about value.
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I want a computer build that can play ANY PC game at great quality and speed. I can just keep one game on the computer at a time, that's no problem. I have an external hard drive of 1TB so storage isn't much of an issue but I don't want it to be a hassle every-so-often. Which build here would anyone here recommend so that I can play ANY game with absolutely no performance problems?
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This has been a very helpful thread... I would have had a difficult time figuring this stuff out myself. Thank you very much for all the effort you've put into this.
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Are these builds still up to date?
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They're still pretty good guides & starting points, especially at the lower price points (the higher ones need different video cards). And of course the builds work. But specials change each week, so I generally suggest posting in the Computer Build Resource Thread, filling out the survey in the OP of that thread.
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I bought the 900$ budget and I could not be any happier :D Cheers TL
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I was wondering if someone would be kind enough to update this thread with newer parts and maybe how well it would run various games. Personally, I'm not that bothered, but I think that would help out a lot of people.
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If any updating is going to happen, it should probably wait till after the ivy bridge desktop chips ship, and maybe nvidia's new GPUs, same for building a new computer.
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On March 16 2012 02:56 kollin wrote:
I was wondering if someone would be kind enough to update this thread with newer parts and maybe how well it would run various games. Personally, I'm not that bothered, but I think that would help out a lot of people.
Yes I would greatly appreciate this as well as I'm going to attempt to build my first computer in the next month and want the best bang for my buck!
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It's really hard to keep the builds perfectly up-to-date due to constantly changing pricing and parts, more specifically now with the new generation of 28nm GPU's arriving. But as was explained earlier, they are good rough guides and if you take them for that and also make a post in the Computer Build Resource Thread, you'll get good help with optimizing for whatever games/other needs you list.
If you want to see how certain parts perform, google benchmarks. This tool is very useful, for example:
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/CPU/129
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/GPU12/398
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Could someone do me a huge favor and check that all these components are compatible, I am fairly sure they are but I would like to have someone check them for me before I buy:
Coolermaster CM 690 II Advanced Case
Intel Core i5 2500K 3.3GHz Socket 1155 6MB Cache Retail Boxed Processor
Coolermaster GX 650W PSU
Gigabyte GTX 560 OC Edition 1GB GDDR5 Dual DVI Mini HDMI PCI-E Graphics Card
Asus P8Z68-V LX Socket 1155 Onboard graphics output 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard
Corsair 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1333MHz XMS3 Memory Kit CL9 1.5V unbuffered
LiteOn IHOS104 4x BD-ROM SATA Blu-Ray Drive - OEM Black
Samsung HM160HC 160GB 2.5" Hard Drive IDE 5400rpm 8MB Cache - OEM
The hard drive is small because I have a 2 TB external one, but I would still like to have one on there for certain things. Also does anyone know the best UK supplier for hardware this is my first build and am really scared of being ripped of. Very grateful for any help given.
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P8Z68-V LX is not capable of SLI.
You're also missing an aftermarket heatsink.
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On March 16 2012 08:07 skyR wrote:
P8Z68-V LX is not capable of SLI.
You're also missing an aftermarket heatsink.
Switched the motherboard with the Asus Maximus IV Gene-Z Gen 3 Z68 Socket 1155 HDMI SupremeFX X-Fi 2 8 Channel Audio mATX Motherboard.
Also is the aftermarket heatsink a necessity? I am already over budget and I dont plan on overclocking for some time.
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Well Maximus IV Extreme is pretty overkill and a waste of money if you don't intend on overclocking for some time...
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5400 rpm drive is too slow no?
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On March 16 2012 09:02 Alryk wrote:
5400 rpm drive is too slow no?
More importantly, the drive is IDE (not SATA so not compatible) and also 2.5" though I think CM690 II can mount those natively.
If it's the older Cooler Master GX650 model (not 80 plus bronze) I would avoid that too.
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On March 16 2012 09:22 Myrmidon wrote:More importantly, the drive is IDE (not SATA so not compatible) and also 2.5" though I think CM690 II can mount those natively. If it's the older Cooler Master GX650 model (not 80 plus bronze) I would avoid that too.
I am having real trouble getting the core components within budget, especially since I can't find a good UK retailer, I am going to completely overhaul this build and start again.
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Right, after gruelling consideration I think I have cracked it whilst still just about being within budget:
LG GH22NS50 22x SATA Internal DVD±RW Burner
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 Hard Disk Drive 250 GB 7200 RPM SATA 8 MB Internal
GIGABYTE GA-P67X-UD3-B3 - LGA1155 Socket - Intel P67 Chipset - ATX
PATRIOT 4 GB Single Channel DDR3-1333 PC3-10666 CL9 G Series PC Memory Module
Cooler Master Silencio 550 PC Case + GX 550 W power
GIGABYTE GeForce GTX 560 Ti OC - 1 GB GDDR5 - PCI-Express 2.0
MICROSOFT Windows 7 Home Premium
Intel Core i5 2500K - 3.3 GHz - 6 MB L3 Cache - LGA 1155 Socket
I have checked compatibility from my very limieted knowledge but would be very grateful if someone could tell me if I have made any mistakes, or if there are any obvious flaws, again this is my first build.
^^and thank you for all you help so far.
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I hate to necro this thread, but anyone want to update the original post with haswell era prices and parts? Or I mean, I could try to do that by finding similar parts.
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Please keep this thread updated! This can be an incredibly useful resource.
edit: Just found this.
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United Kingdom20294 Posts
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United Kingdom20294 Posts
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It's impossible to keep such a thread updated since prices change daily.
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Germany25657 Posts
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EPT![[image loading]](http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af150/The_FalconO6/CurrentLogicalPCBuyingGuide/Guide.png)
