As the title suggests I am looking for a gaming pc for my brother. I usualy just build my own, but he isnt as picky as I am, so buying from a company (dell, alienware) what ever doesnt matter to him. I prefer building my own, but eh... to each their own. He already has a really nice monitor, keyboard / mouse, speakers etc so all he will be needing is the tower. I think he told me the most he is willing to spend is $1200, but he is looking for something around the $1k range. He plays mostly FPS games, so he would need it to play BF3 on good settings, the way he told me is "if I can run battlefield 3 on great settings I can run pretty much everything for a while". So any suggestions would be appreciated, thanks guys / gals.
Case 1 x NZXT Alpha Gaming Case-Black Case Lighting None iBUYPOWER Labs - Noise Reduction None iBUYPOWER Labs - Internal Expansion None Processor 1 x AMD FX-8120 CPU (8x 3.10GHz/8MB L2 Cache) Processor Cooling 1 x Liquid CPU Cooling System [AMD]-[Free Upgrade] Standard 120mm Fan Memory 1 x 8 GB [2 GB X4] DDR3-1800 Memory Module-Corsair or Major Brand Video Card 1 x AMD Radeon HD 7850 - 2GB-Single Card Video Card Brand 1 x Major Brand Powered by AMD or NVIDIA Motherboard 1 x Gigabyte GA-970A-D3 -- AMD 970 Motherboard USB / SATA Interface 1 x Motherboard default USB / SATA Interface Power Supply 1 x 750 Watt - Thermaltake TR2 TRX-750M-Free Upgrade to 850 Watt W0319RU ($20 Savings) Primary Hard Drive 1 x 1 TB HARD DRIVE -- 32M Cache, 7200 RPM, 6.0Gb/s-Single Drive Data Hard Drive None Optical Drive 1 x 24X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive-Black 2nd Optical Drive None Flash Media Reader / Writer 1 x 12-In-1 Internal Flash Media Card Reader/Writer-Black Meter Display None USB Expansion None Sound Card 1 x 3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard Network Card 1 x Onboard LAN Network (Gb or 10/100) Operating System 1 x None- Pre-formatted Hard Drive Only Keyboard 1 x iBUYPOWER USB Keyboard Mouse 1 x iBUYPOWER Internet Mouse Monitor None 2nd Monitor None Speaker System 1 x iBUYPOWER 2.1 Channel Stereo Super Bass Subwoofer Speaker System Video Camera None Case Engraving Service None Warranty 1 x 3 Year Standard Warranty Service Rush Service 1 x Rush Service Fee (not shipping fee)-No Rush Service, Estimate Ship Out in 5~10 Business Days Subtotal $1,093.00
I guess what I am getting at, is a complete computer package. Something which will be a good gaming rig for a few years minimum, around the 1k$ range, and something which can be easily upgraded if he sees fit.
Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352016 ($106) or http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139008 ($85 after promo+rebate) PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182072 ($99 sale) Mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131828 ($89 sale) CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072 ($220) RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820313080 x2 ($70 after promo) Vid: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102986 ($260) HD1: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226247 ($70 sale) HD2: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136533 ($140 sale) Optical: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...D_Burners_&_Media-_-Featured-_-27-136-247 ($17) So that's like $1060 and it needs a few fans and/or liquid cooling depending on how you want to set it up. There's more RAM and a SSD OS drive in this rig so you're going to be screaming at speeds way faster than without those two. Plus I think the Core i5 is supposedly better than the AMD FX-8120 but both are formidable CPUs.
I can get an I-5 Processor from iBUYPOWER, and its actually 50$ cheaper. I can get this one. Intel® Core™ i5-2550K Processor (4x 3.40GHz/6MB L3 Cache) - Intel Core i5-2550K Would that be better then the AMD 8 core processor?
Is this setup better. I took away the AMD cpu, and went for lower clocked ram, but more of it. Case 1 x ARC CS-501 Gaming Case-Black Case Lighting None iBUYPOWER Labs - Noise Reduction None iBUYPOWER Labs - Internal Expansion None Processor 1 x Intel® Core™ i5-2550K Processor (4x 3.40GHz/6MB L3 Cache)-[FREE - Limted time] Core i5-2550K w/ Intel Performance Tuning Protection iBUYPOWER PowerDrive None Processor Cooling 1 x Liquid CPU Cooling System [SOCKET-1155]-[Free Upgrade] Standard 120mm Fan Memory 1 x 16 GB [4 GB X4] DDR3-1600 Memory Module-Corsair or Major Brand Video Card 1 x AMD Radeon HD 7850 - 2GB-Single Card Video Card Brand 1 x Major Brand Powered by AMD or NVIDIA Motherboard 1 x Gigabyte GA-Z68AP-D3 Intel Smart Response Technology None Power Supply 1 x 700 Watt - Standard Primary Hard Drive 1 x 1 TB HARD DRIVE -- 32M Cache, 7200 RPM, 6.0Gb/s-Single Drive Data Hard Drive None Optical Drive 1 x 24X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive-Black 2nd Optical Drive None Flash Media Reader / Writer None Meter Display None USB Expansion None Sound Card 1 x 3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard Network Card 1 x Onboard LAN Network (Gb or 10/100) Operating System 1 x None- Pre-formatted Hard Drive Only Keyboard 1 x iBUYPOWER USB Keyboard Mouse 1 x iBUYPOWER Internet Mouse Monitor None 2nd Monitor None Speaker System None Video Camera None Case Engraving Service None Warranty 1 x 3 Year Standard Warranty Service Rush Service 1 x Rush Service Fee (not shipping fee)-No Rush Service, Estimate Ship Out in 5~10 Business Days Subtotal $1,048.00
The i5 2550k is considered the same thing as the i5 2500k, just without integrated graphics so it can overclock slightly higher. If it is cheaper it is the better choice. I would also recommend a SSD HD to go along with your rig. Also if your PSU isn't at least 80 Plus Certified you may be running at low efficiency power ratings and introducing unstable power output to your components.
Ok looks like you got it in the bag for around $1100 or so then. Hope that includes shipping as I included that in my pricing with the SSD and Caviar Black. If you have any future questions you know where to ask.
the Intel processors are better. However, if your brother does not plan on overclocking the processor himself, the 4.2GHz AMD processor would be on equal footing since it runs so fast. Your latest build from iBuyPower looks good, or you can look into this one: http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/saved/1E3PD1 It is very similar but would be a tiny bit better IMO because I configured it with a 20% overclock so the processor should come running at 5GHz. In addition it has better cooling because I chose a high end closed-loop water cooler with 240mm radiator. It also comes with a 3 year warranty and life-time tech support. Here is the full listing of parts and price: If your bro plans on overclocking the processor himself then Id go with an Intel 2550K processor, since it can also run upwards of 4.6GHz pretty easily and at that speed would be better than a 5GHz AMD quad core. But if he does not plan on doing that himself, then you would be comparing an Intel 3.8GHz processor vs an AMD 5GHz processor and the AMD would win in 90% of situations.
I heard from a friend who is a network admin, that if I choose an AMD chipset, I should also get the Radeon, as they are both owned by the same company, they will work better together. And vice versa for INTEL chipsets. He said to not mix an Intel chip with an amd radeon card, is this right?
I decided on this setup. It came to 1044$ and that includes shipping. And after I spoke with him, he said he preferred AMD cpu's as that is what he had always dealt with in the past. http://www.ibuypower.com/Store/Special-B/w/113295 Case 1 x NZXT Lexa-S Gaming Case-Black w/ Blue Light Case Lighting 0 x None- iBUYPOWER Labs - Noise Reduction 0 x None- iBUYPOWER Labs - Internal Expansion 0 x None- Processor 1 x AMD FX-8120 CPU (8x 3.10GHz/8MB L2 Cache)- Processor Cooling 1 x Liquid CPU Cooling System [AMD]-[Free Upgrade] Standard 120mm Fan Memory 1 x 8 GB [2 GB X4] DDR3-1800 Memory Module-Corsair or Major Brand Video Card 1 x AMD Radeon HD 7850 - 2GB-Single Card Video Card Brand 1 x Major Brand Powered by AMD or NVIDIA- Free Stuff 1 x [Free Game Download] - Total War: Shogun 2-Free with purchase of AMD video card Motherboard 1 x ASUS M5A97 -- AMD 970- Motherboard USB / SATA Interface 1 x Motherboard default USB / SATA Interface- Power Supply 1 x 800 Watt - Standard- Primary Hard Drive 1 x 1 TB HARD DRIVE -- 32M Cache, 7200 RPM, 6.0Gb/s-Single Drive Data Hard Drive 0 x None- Optical Drive 1 x 24X Sony Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive-Black 2nd Optical Drive 0 x None- Flash Media Reader / Writer 1 x 12-In-1 Internal Flash Media Card Reader/Writer-Black Meter Display 0 x None- USB Expansion 0 x None- Sound Card 1 x 3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard- Network Card 1 x Onboard LAN Network (Gb or 10/100)- Operating System 1 x None- Pre-formatted Hard Drive Only- Keyboard 1 x iBUYPOWER USB Keyboard- Mouse 1 x iBUYPOWER Internet Mouse- Monitor 0 x None- 2nd Monitor 0 x None- Speaker System 1 x iBUYPOWER 2.1 Channel Stereo Super Bass Subwoofer Speaker System- Video Camera 0 x None- Case Engraving Service 0 x None- Warranty 1 x 3 Year Standard Warranty Service- Rush Service 1 x Rush Service Fee (not shipping fee)-No Rush Service, Estimate Ship Out in 5~10 Business Days Subtotal* $1066.00 (plus tax & shipping)
Nope that is completely wrong. If possible, you should add a 20-30% factory overclock on that CPU from iBuyPower. They really need to run at the highest MHz possible to get good performance in games.
So would I be better enigma, to get an I5 / 7 pocessor, and stick with that radeon card instead of getting that 8core amd?
Well we bought the pc, we changed the CPU to the Intel I7 2600k , and changed the GPU to the GTX 580. The total came to $1200, but I felt this gave him the best bang for the buck. Does that sound better now?
Yes that is a MUCH better computer. The 8-core AMD processors dont really start getting good unless they run well above 4GHz