Just getting back onto the computer building scene, I know how to put them together, and I'm slowly doing research in between work hours (which are alot), but after seeing all I've seen in regards to i5's, i7's, AMD vs Nvidia, etc, etc...I've realized I've been out of the pc building phase for way too long! That being said, I've got a small budget (About $750-800), are my hopes of building something that doesn't just nosedive in big fights (aka become unplayable) as far as a desktop goes? I was about to purchase a Lenovo Y500, but finally decided if I really wanted to do that due to "portability" I'd just screw a handle on the case. (Although I thought about putting a screen on the other side, who knows) I currently tried PS2 on my Acer Aspire V3-551-8887, and even with the crap frames, I love that little lightning! (former Gal pilot from PS1, I could wreck it in spectactular ways) Can someone enlighten me on what to dig into or research for a mid-range (if $800 is that) rig that would play decently well? I'm not asking someone to build me a rig (or am I? : but mainly a friendly (if not stern for me being meekly asking what seems like a no-brainer) helping hand. Thanks!
Don't get your knickers in a twist. $800 is more than enough to get a great rig that can handle just about anything. First you start off with the CPU and motherboard pairing. Since PS2 is your goal, you'll almost certainly need to go intel. The i5-3570K is the best price/performance chip you can get. Any quality mothrerboard with a z77 chip will do you well, but make sure it has at least an 8+1 power phase. I personally like the ASRock z77 Extreme4 as it makes for a good OCing board. As far as the next thing you should focus on is the graphics card. This depends on your price range, as ATI cards (hd xxxx) are cheaper and use less power, but are less powerful and requires the CPU to process the Phs-x in the game. This might mean less frames in big fights, which you need every last one. I Really like the GTX 650 Ti Boost edition as it gives some awesome performance at a price that won't break the bank. Ram is simple, just get 8gb (2 sticks of 4gb each) at a 1666mhz frequency. Mushkin Ram is made in Colorado, so if you can, support us manufacturing if your budget allows it. As it just so happens they make some of the best ram around. A 500w PSU should be enough to power the build reliably with a bit of extra headroom for overclocking. Make sure you don't cheap out here, get a power supply from corsair (the CX series is great) or other big name. if you get a bad psu, you risk frying everything. If you plan to overclock, get an aftermarket cooler like the hyper 212 evo or the H60. You can usually find a useful hard drive if you scavenge some parts out of old builds or stuff people donate (to you). If you're looking for something with some kick, i like the VelociRaptor HDDs or if you want something a bit larger these Hybrid Drives are really awesome at a good price. Last but not least, is the case. You can get whatever you like, but you get what you pay for. I try to look out for cases with top, front, and side fan slots in addition to cpu cutouts for easy installation of aftermarket heatsinks. anything else is a bonus. I really like the Xigmatek 381 for a cheap case and the Sentay Abbaddon for a mid-tier case with a bunch of great featutes like fan controllers and dust shrouds. Buy a few 120mm case fans too, they're not too expensive. Total comes out to about $800. This is a fantastic build by the way, once you go over these models, stuff starts to get very expensive very fast and you have the best performance around at reasonable prices, You could also save a lot of money by using a FX-8350 CPU/compatible motherboard and an HD7850 but you'll be getting significantly lower performance, especially in in planetside 2. If you;re really tight on money, you could get away with an FX-6300/compatible motherboard and an HD7790. Hope this helps!
Thank you so much, Longest. This put it all in perspective. I'll get it all rambled together in a list and ordered asap.
i5-3570K, 8GB RAM, Gigabyte GTX 660, Seasonic 500W or greater PSU, Gigabyte Z77 motherboard, Windows 7. That should be about $800. I would avoid the Corsair CX Series that he recommended, since they're CWT made. They're not terrible, but Seasonic is better than CWT. http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page541.htm Here's a list of who actually manufactures PSU's, since a lot of companies like Corsair, don't actually make a single PSU, but just rebrand them. Delta rebrands like the Antec High Current Gamer are excellent, as is pretty much everything from Seasonic. I'd also just get a Lian Li or Cooler Master case that comes with all the fans you need built in, rather than buying them separately. I'd also stay away from AMD CPU's right now.
System will be here Monday. I appreciate all the help from you guys. Hope to fight alongside (or keep you in my crosshairs).
Rosewill REDBONE U3 Black SECC Steel USB 3.0, eSATA, 3x 120mm Fans Mid Tower Computer Case ASUS Z77-A LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard EVGA 01G-P4-3656-KR GeForce GTX 650 Ti BOOST Superclocked 1GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 SLI Support Rosewill Green Series RG630-S12 630W Continuous @40°C,80 PLUS BRONZE Certified, Single 12V Rail, Active PFC "Compatible with Core i7,i5" Power Supply Intel Core i5-3470 Ivy Bridge 3.2GHz (3.6GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2500 Mushkin Enhanced Silverline 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 Western Digital WD Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s That's about it, came in around $700. I know the memory isn't 1666, but I can work on more down the road, along with a better gc. It's a start! (Arrives Monday)
That power supply makes me cringe... It is the one component in a rig, that if it dies, can (and probably will) destroy every other component in the rig. Going cheap on PSU is a bad plan.
I totally agree. It says that PSU is discontinued and made by ATNG. Never heard of ATNG, but I always recommend people Seasonic or Delta, since they're some of the best.
Although I have no personal experience with the PSU, my brother has used it twice in his builds. So don't use it or?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182200. what would be a recommended replacement?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151096 good price on a Seasonic. You pretty much can't go wrong with any Seasonic, and they make PSU's for the higher end Corsair lines(the cheap Corsairs are CWT). http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371049 excellent rebranded Delta
Man, I didn't realize just how many supposedly top-notch companies actually just re-brand their PSUs. I'll still use Corsair as I've never ran into problems before with their supplier, but I may make the switch to Seasonic for my next build. Friend uses Antec, so if Delta is is any cheaper (should be since there's no middle man anymore) I'll tell him to look those up. I'll use seasonic when i upgrade to SLI or something to see how it goes. Also, i've always wondered how Foxconn and Powercolor are still in business. Everyone knows they're garbage but people still buy them. Is it the pre-built market that uses them or something?
Pretty sure Foxconn makes the "Nvidia" branded cards that Best Buy sells, as well as tons of OEM stuff. Not sure about Power Color, however. You can't find Delta PSU's that aren't rebranded in the USA. I just configured a system for someone who has a high temperature environment requirement for his PC with the Antec I linked to. Seasonic is excellent, and what I personally use. Check the links to reviews on Jonny Guru and PCPer. They both disassemble and test the PSU's they review.
PowerColor used to be good, was unaware they went downhill, but not terribly surprised. FoxConn does boards for everything from iPhone and Android devices, to most of the stereo equipment and modems you have at home. To call them huge is an understatement. Guaranteed you have FoxConn in your home right now. Now, that doesn't mean everything they do is top-notch quality and their MoBo can be hit-and-miss. Rather stay with ASUS and Gigabyte, meself.
