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Okay, so I know nothing about computers, But i have two alternatives... buy one from best buy, or get one built. A friend of mine put together a PC on newegg that ill post here.
I only play SC2, my goal is to stream, run sc2 on high, and music,programs,etc
no other games, or no future intent to purchase any games as i only play sc2
it wont be used for anything more.
ALTERNATIVE A) THE BEST BUY COMP
Click Link to see specs
the comp is no longer selling as refurbished at bestbuy stores near me
ALTERNATIVE B) The BUILT PC
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL
Item #:N82E16820231277
$49.99
OCZ Fatal1ty OCZ550FTY 550W ATX12V v2.2 / EPS12V SLI Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
Item #:N82E16817341022
$69.99
ASUS M4A79XTD EVO AM3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard
Item #:N82E16813131402
$118.00
SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100283VX-2L Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity
Item #:N82E16814102898
$129.99
Thermaltake V3 Black Edition VL80001W2Z Black Computer Case With Side Panel Window
Item #:N82E16811133094
$39.99
Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" SATA 6.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #:N82E16822136769
$39.99
SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner Black EIDE/ATAPI Model SH-S222A
$19.99
AMD Phenom II X6 1090T Black Edition Thuban 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Six-Core Desktop Processor HDT90ZFBGRBOX
Item #:N82E16819103849
$199.99
Grand Total: $668.92
so its eitehr 799 or 668... but i get a warranty and i can return it at bestbuy if i dont like it, i also get the comfort of not having to build it (i wouldnt be able to and have to get someone else to), and i dont have to wait for parts to ship, etc
the 668 price includes rebates on all parts... itll be closer to 700-800 without rebates (rebates will be a hassle as well)
my question is: is the built PC that much better then the bestbuy pc for what i want ? just streaming and high graphics, and running youtube and shit at the same time...
will the best buy pc be capable to do this easily ?
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HD 5450 on the Best Buy computer isn't going to run anything more than low settings, while alternative B will do what you want.
Also, you can get a slightly better computer than alternative B for slightly less money by picking better components on newegg.
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Is there anything you'd recommend I change?
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newegg.ca? If you're in Canada, NCIX is usually better. Or are you buying from US newegg.com?
edit: sorry, I just noticed that. Usually when people say newegg, I assume US.
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general rule: A self build pc is always much cheaper and got at least the power of a complete set (which costs 200-300$ more) if not even more.
The system ur friend put together is fine for starcraft 2 I think. I'm not so much into AMD cpu's so..
I would consider a better gpu. (Geforce 550 ti, 560 ti, HD6850)
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On April 10 2011 16:56 Troopi25 wrote:
general rule: A self build pc is always much cheaper and got at least the power of a complete set (which costs 200-300$ more) if not even more.
The system ur friend put together is fine for starcraft 2 I think. I'm not so much into AMD cpu's so..
I would consider a better gpu. (Geforce 550 ti, 560 ti, HD6850)
A couple hundred isn't the main decider for me, I just wanted to know if the bestbuy can run sc2 on high graphics and streaminggg
I don't mind paying 100-200 for convinience 
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You could do better by using www.ncix.com, pricematch using www.shopbot.ca, and paying them $50 to assemble it.
NCIX has stores located in both Ontario (Markham & Scarborough) and BC (Vancouver, Richmond, Langley, etc) so you could pick up / easily return to them as well if you live in those areas.
You are able to build a PC yourself, it's like assembling lego pieces. You're just refusing to do it because you're lazy.
The Bestbuy PC is terrible. a 5450 will struggle even at low settings in 1v1.
Here's a configuration that I recommended not to long ago to another person on this forums. It is better in every aspect to the bestbuy PC and the PC your friend recommended:
+ Show Spoiler +
If you need to lower the price further, you could easily shave $100 off your total by dropping down to a core i3 2100 and a gts 450 / gtx 550 / radeon 6790 / radeon 5770. With these changes, this configuration would still outperform both of those that you listed.
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On April 10 2011 17:01 skyR wrote:You could do better by using www.ncix.com, pricematch using www.shopbot.ca, and paying them $50 to assemble it. NCIX has stores located in both Ontario (Markham & Scarborough) and BC (Vancouver, Richmond, Langley, etc) so you could pick up / easily return to them as well if you live in those areas. You are able to build a PC yourself, it's like assembling lego pieces. You're just refusing to do it because you're lazy. The Bestbuy PC is terrible. a 5450 will struggle even at low settings in 1v1. Here's a configuration that I recommended not to long ago to another person on this forums. It is better in every aspect to the bestbuy PC and the PC your friend recommended: + Show Spoiler +If you need to lower the price further, you could easily shave $100 off your total by dropping down to a core i3 2100 and a gts 450 / gtx 550 / radeon 6790 / radeon 5770. With these changes, this configuration would still outperform both of those that you listed.
Why that mobo seems a weird choice? was it solely based on price?
Also why bother with 64bit if you aren't going to utilise more than 4 GB of ram
I mean according to that site its a saving of only $5 but still seems worth it if you dont need 64 bit.
Also damn your stuff is cheap compared to australia
more on topic: Personally I feel that it is always best to buy parts than a pre-made PC even if you can't build it yourself. You can always pay like as someone else has said to get it built for you or you could learn how to build one. It's so easy it can take a decent amount of time but its useful to know how to do it.
Only real draw back from doing it yourself is that if you don't focus on cable management box can become a complete mess
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A 64-bit operating system is necessary for anyone that is getting a modern discrete graphics card. A 32-bit operating system cannot utilize more than 4GB of memory. This memory includes the graphics card memory, system RAM, and headspace for other components / operating system.
How is the motherboard a weird choice? The core i5 2400 has a locked multiplier so there is no reason to get a more expensive P67. Asrock has one of the most feature-fledged H67 board at a very affordable price. There is the option of getting a less expensive H61 board if he feels like giving up SATA3 and USB3.
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Well 716$ is a lot less then what I thought I'd be paying, that coupled with the rebates makes a really cheap purchase imo
Thanks so far for all the feedback guys
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Note of warning: some of those deals are over (though you can find reasonable replacements). Also, you're going to want a quad-core i5-2x00 and not a dual-core i3-2100 for streaming your games.
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Personally I would just build it myself, even though I won't actually save that money. I'd just spend it on better stuff such as Case, PSU and GPU.
Case and a Modular PSU is really important for me because I am into cable mangement. As in hiding cables in the back panel or tieing them down. It's good because it doesn't block air flow, attract dusts, and very easy to clean or add additional hardwares.
Might not be so big of deal, but dusty heat sinks reduces performances, and it's hard to clean with all those cables laying around.
There won't be any cable mangement on those pre-built pc, and you'd have to pay extra to get that done in computer shops.
For me building PC is fun, I also learn alot in the process.
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On April 10 2011 17:16 skyR wrote:
A 64-bit operating system is necessary for anyone that is getting a modern discrete graphics card. A 32-bit operating system cannot utilize more than 4GB of memory. This memory includes the graphics card memory, system RAM, and headspace for other components / operating system.
I agree with the 64-bits operating system. Ram is so cheap now days I don't see any reason on holding back. Even you might not need it now, you might want to in a year.
64-bits is really well supported now days compare to few years ago. Now days I never run into any problems because I am using a 64 bit OS. All I see is a lots of missing potential if you go for 32-bits.
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So is it concrete that the best buy computer can't handle high graphics and streaming/youtube simultaneously?
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High grahpics and 5450 doesn't go together.
Edit: Lets put it this way, you'd most likely be disappointed with the grahpics performance of your new PC.
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For starcraft, a Radeon 4800 should handle maxed details with problems. Too often I have bough a newest card just to get games that make use of its power 2 years later.
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If you're just going to play sc2 and nothing else, than go w/ intel cpu and nvidia gpu. both made for blizzard games.
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On April 10 2011 18:10 NaYeBo wrote:
So is it concrete that the best buy computer can't handle high graphics and streaming/youtube simultaneously?
See HD 5450 performance here (note: 6450 is what's highlighted):
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4263/amds-radeon-hd-6450-uvd3-meets-htpc/11
It can't do medium settings smoothly, even at a low screen resolution of 1280x1024.
Phenom II X6 1045T is a bad value compared to a Core i5-2300/2400/2500, but it should play SC2 and be able to stream in most game situations (the new Core i5 would do better at that). It's the HD 5450 that's terrible for any modern 3D gaming.
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I just want to say Skyr's suggestion is great and you really should look into it. The i5 2400 is extremely good, even at the level of older i7s... Which is thousands of times better than the prebuilt PC. Along with the 5850, which is a great GPU, you won't have trouble running Ultra settings or streaming as long as your Internet connection allows it. Also he found some real bargains for the other things.
And yes, like stated several times, the AMD CPU that comes with the best buy computer us crap. It's not even for playing games but more like surfing the web. You'll be getting lag 15 minutes into the game IMHO. Hope it helps
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Third skyR's suggested build. I recently built a computer using a modified version of it (just to shave down prices), and it's working fantastically. I'm able to hit 140 fps on ultra/extreme with extremely cool temperatures on CPU and GPU. If I needed to build another though, it would definitely be skyR's build. And yea, you don't really need a P-series motherboard because the Intel Sandy Bridge processors can't be overclocked.
EDIT: I have mixed feelings about building computers though. This was my first build and I had some issues getting the damn thing to work. But if you have the patience to follow through, it is one of the most rewarding feelings you can get to build your first computer.
TL:DR Building a computer makes you feel like a badass.
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EPT
