Hello,
I need help with building a gaming PC. My budget is around 1300. But I don't really know how to start. I want the PC to run games like Battlefield 3 or Crysis and able to run photoshop also.
Starting out, I was thinking of getting Intel Core i7-2600. Is it good enough?
Also, the motherboard, that one I have very little knowledge on it also. I was thinking at least must have USB 3.0 and HDMI support (Future-proof a bit). I read somewhere around the web that Asus makes good motherboard. Should get that one a not?
Then the RAM. RAM I was thinking to get 8gb. Good enough?
Then the GPU. GPU I have quite a conumdrum. Don't know get Nvidia or AMD one. All I one is a GPU that can support graphically intensive games and also DX 11. Don't really need one with 3D support. I'm learning towards getting GeForce graphic card. But I go the website see which GPU to get I also blur.
Storage I initially thinking about getting SSD. But SSD I found out quite expensive. Now leaning towards getting Hybrid-Drive. Trying my best to avoid HDD due to past experience. But currently I also not sure of the difference between HDD and Hybrid-Drive. Thinking at least must have more than 250GB.
Optical Drive that one i getting DVD one so I think that one no problem bah.
The Housing unit, I heard that one can get quite cheap. But again, I not sure of the full details and how it would affect the PC in general.
Power Supply, that one I also blur not sure what it is too.
Then the last one, Sound Card. I hear nowadays don't need to get sound card one. The motherboard will come with a decently good one. But I also heard the Asus Xonar DG or DX quite cheap and is worth the investment.
That's all the concern I have. I might have miss out a couple of things, so please help me point out. Sorry for my lack of knowledge ah~
Thanks in advance also.
Gotcha.
Hit me with an email; machtechnology(at)hotmail.sg
I'll answer your queries there.
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Hi :D I'm gonna presume your budget does not involve monitor, mice, keyboard, speaker, etc, and only for the computer :)
First, CPU. i7-2600 is a very good CPU, but if you got the money to invest, get a i7-2600k instead. K-series allow you to overclock the CPU to higher rates, making it more future proof. But for gaming and basic photoshop, i5-2500k is more than sufficient. I would save that money and invest on a better GPU instead.
Motherboard (mobo).ASUS, along with MSI, are amongst the top, if not the top already, on producing gaming computer components. ASUS, i recommend Asus P8Z68-V-LE. MSI, i recommend MSI Z68A-G55 (GEN3). They have good number of PCI and PCI-E slots for possible XFire/SLI (dual GPU).
For RAM, 8 GB is good for heavy gaming and moderate photoshop. For professional photoshop, maybe 12GB? Well, if you have the money to spare, get one that is made for gaming, for example the G-Skill Ripjaws or the Corsair Vengence. Otherwise, a basic RAM will do :)
Now GPU. Between Geforce and AMD, i prefer Geforce. I personally love the MSI N560GTX-Ti 2GB DDR5 Twin Frozr II OC :D. Great price point for a decent performance GPU. If you wanna go AMD, perhaps the Sapphire HD6870 Flex 1GB DDR3 will get your attention? :D The Geforce GPU i recommended is more expensive though.
For Storage, its personal preference really. But i would get a 1TB storage if i were you. 500GB at the minimum.
Now, the housing unit, or chassis. First, it affects the general aesthetics of your computer, very impt for computer enthusiast like me :D Also, you need to take into account the airflow the case provides, if you are not going liquid-cool your components. Next, the number of available space and slots it has for future upgrades. I would recommend the CM HAF (HIGH AIR FLOW) Series. The cheapest is HAF 912 at around $139, the most expensive is HAF-X around $250-$300. But if you dun want your case to be super outstanding, the Fractal Design case are superb as well.
Power Supply Unit (PSU). Well, this is possibly the one component you should not save money on. It supplys power to all the components in your computer. For now, a 650W is sufficiently good for the components i have mentioned before. But perhaps you can get a 750W or even a 850W so that you can upgrade your computer more easily in the future, say, 3-7years down the road maybe?
Sound card, again personal preference. But, I would get that next time and save money for now. Its not that hard to self instal it anyways.
Well, i'm not really good with giving advice about this kinda things, might leave out a few things here and there. Hope it helps!
Here is a build i would suggest you. It would allow you to run Battlefield 3, Crysis and most latest games out there on highest settings possible with x4 anti-aliasing with a good FPS of around 50. But it is gonna bust you budget by, say $150.
MOBO: Asus P8Z68-V-L
CPU: i5-2500k
Storage: Hitachi 1TB 32MB
RAM: G-Skill RipJawX 1600MHz CL
GPU: MSI N560GTX-Ti 2GB DDR5 Twin Frozr II OC
Chassis: CM HAF 912 (Advance)
PSU: CM Silent PRO M 700W Modular 80+
I dunno the exact price, but it would total up to be around $1450, $1480 if you include a basic optical drive.
But if you really cannot afford the increase in budget and stuck at S$1300, you can drop the mobo and get the Asus P8P67-B3 or the MSI P67A-G45-B3. Be reminded though, these mobo uses the P67 chipset, meaning it NEED a GPU to run. So if your GPU spoil, you cant use your comp. The Z68 chipset, the one i recommended, allow you to use the onboard intel graphic, so if your GPU spoil you still have a computer to use.
You can also change the PSU to the OCZ Modxstream-Pro 700 Watts. This allow you to probably cut down the cost by a good $100. Again, i can't be sure of the prices, but it definitely can't be too far off.
Hope my post was of some help. Cheers ^^
CM Silent Pro = overpriced and overhyped.
OCZ ModXStream = Crap.
Get the FSP Aurum 400 @ $95.
Hahas, i agree OCZ ModxStream sux. CM Silent Pro, it is worth the money, especially since it is modular. That is where the price difference comes in.
Are you seriously suggesting a 400W PSU to accompany those specs? LOLS o.o
At least suggest the FSP Aurum 700w lols. But the price would then still be around the same as the CM Silent Pro 750W. Just pointing out.
@SBS7484P
I've already sent you an email. :)
@Sincrohel
Thanks so much for the information, it has been very informative.
For me, due to past experiences, I would really want to future-proof my computer a bit. So an i7 Chip is really a requirement for me. I'm not really into the whole overclocking thing. So I would rather save the money to go for the normal i7-2600
For GPU, GeForce is really a bit too much. So I think i'll get an AMD one. Found out AMD not as bad as I thought. So yeah.
Your explanation about the Chasis was very informative. I think the I would go for the 139 one. Save a bit.
Storage for myself, 500 GB is more than enough for me. But my question still remains, HDD or Hybrid-Drive and whats the difference?
PSU still a bit blur. what is the difference between a low watt and a high watt one?
Thanks so much again! :)
Hahas no problem :D
Hmm well, if you're not overclocking then yeah, the i7-2600 would be a great choice then :)
Yeap, AMD really isn't as bad as what most people think. And the price is not overkill like Geforce, though generally Geforce GPU are better. Afterall, they are more expensive.
About the chassis, it comes with 2 pre-installed fans, one intake fan at the front, one output fan at the back. And the case has support for maximum 6 120mm fan. So up to you if you want to buy some more fans and install them into the case.
As for Storage, well, supposedly Hybrid-Drive are faster and consumes less power. But there are a few issues, like for small data transfer ( less than 2GB) its quite slow. Reduced lifespan becoz of how Hybrid Drive works (too complicated, not gonna explain here lols). And there aren't alot of software out there for Hybrid Drive. That means if the Drive experience failure, its very hard to recover lost data as most recovery software is based on HDD. Personally, I dun see the need of wasting that few extra money for Hybrid Drive. The performance isn't that much of a jump anyway.
Hmm, how to explai PSU.. Well, in short, it draws electrical energy from the main power supply from your house, and then supply the maximum amount of watt to your computer. For example, a 750W PSU will supply a maximum of 750W to your whole computer, including your monitor, keyboard blablabla. I reckon most GPU on market requires your PSU to be minimum 500w, so that is can supply just enough power to power the GPU and also every single other components of your computer. 650W is to be safe, and 750W is really, for future proofing.
Well, imagine you have only a 350W PSU, and you are powering a Geforce NVidea GTX570, 8GB of ram and all that good stuff. The PSU cannot supply enough power to feed the whole system. What happens then? If you are lucky, usually only the CPU, GPU or the PSU will explode literally. Bad case scenerio, your mobo is fried (you can smell the melting metal. Personal experience ^^"). Worst case scenario, your whole computer explodes.
Well, if i missed out anything let me know. Cheers ^^
350W is unrealistic.
A good 500W power supply can run a GTX570 w/ a quad core just fine.
Note: Good.
Cards with meagre power consumption requirements like the HD6770 'recommend' a 500W power supply in anticipation that the user is going to use a 500W piece of crap.
Exhibit A: CoolerMaster eXtreme Power Plus.
Walao, I'm just showing him the difference between getting a low watt PSU and a high watt PSU. Must you really be so uptight about everything?
As I said, minimum of 500w is needed to run a computer of those specs. And yes, its good enough for current computers with quad cores processor. Barely. Is it future proof? NO. (Notice the word there? FUTURE PROOF)
I'm recommending at least 650W if he wants it to be slightly more future proof. 750W if he does decide to to SLI or Xfire for his computer.
This is turning into a very pointless debate -.-'
Do you even like Crysis and Battlefield 3.....?
That one has to be determined first....
Do you like to play them with highest settings, or maybe, just medium settings is ok for you.
That one has to be settled first also.
Why I say that....because from my own personal experience....sometimes I am disappointed, or, my hype does not match my reality, when I find that I am not interested in certain games actually, or that I cannot tell the difference between some marginal improvements.
For you my suggestion is,
- Quad Core
- 4 GB or 8 GB RAM
- Video card dont worry, the most important thing is motherboard. Just get yourself the newest video card and climb down 1, 2, or 3 rungs down. There wont be much difference, and when needed just upgrade the video card later (thats why the motherboard is more important)
- Audio can be integrated, unless if you are an audio buff. But I seldom meet computer audio buff. I am not sure why, maybe because for a good audio, it needs multiple speakers like those old uncles who spend tens of thousands of dollars for an audio setup with speakers in multiple spots. I think most computer gamer maybe use headphone. Like me I use headphone so I dont make noise. So I think it wont make much difference, so an integrated audio is Ok. (means just use motherboard audio)
Your budget of 1300 is definitely more than enough.
For simplicity, you can do this, go to any electronic or computer store, and buy their PC, or also u can buy one from Dell, HP, etc, all those, and then just replace the video card and upgrade the RAM to 4 Gb if it is lower than that.
Just make sure the casing is big enough, not slim casing.
Because slim casing make the space cramped, and some bigger video cards cannot fit.
That is all.
99% chance your PC setup can play Crysis.
Originally posted by Sincrohel:Walao, I'm just showing him the difference between getting a low watt PSU and a high watt PSU. Must you really be so uptight about everything?
As I said, minimum of 500w is needed to run a computer of those specs. And yes, its good enough for current computers with quad cores processor. Barely. Is it future proof? NO. (Notice the word there? FUTURE PROOF)
I'm recommending at least 650W if he wants it to be slightly more future proof. 750W if he does decide to to SLI or Xfire for his computer.
This is turning into a very pointless debate -.-'
Uh, hello.
The difference is not about watts.
Do you seriously think an Echo Star 680W is any better than an FSP 300W that you find inside your Acer or Lenovo prebuilt desktop?
Think again.
Whilst that FSP can probably pull beyond 300W, that Echo Crap has problems even doing 150W.
Originally posted by Sincrohel:Walao, I'm just showing him the difference between getting a low watt PSU and a high watt PSU. Must you really be so uptight about everything?
As I said, minimum of 500w is needed to run a computer of those specs. And yes, its good enough for current computers with quad cores processor. Barely. Is it future proof? NO. (Notice the word there? FUTURE PROOF)
I'm recommending at least 650W if he wants it to be slightly more future proof. 750W if he does decide to to SLI or Xfire for his computer.
This is turning into a very pointless debate -.-'
Also, nothing is future proof.
How sure are you that your next upgrade is going to use a bazillion watts?
Technology moves on a tick-tock cycle.
Tick: Innovate.
Tock: Die shrink.
This is how companies manage to make products that are continuously more powerful yet consume less power.
This is also how the HD5770 consumes half the electrical power of the HD4870 whilst retaining almost the same compute power, and with more features too.
*smacks forehead* can we get back to what the post is about and not debate here? Lols
It's fucked up.
CPU MB GFX RAM HDD prices all have come down
only for power supply prices to triple.
HDD prices are still going up.
Power supply prices are going down when someone releases the 80+ Titanium power supply.