Sign in with
Sign up | Sign in
Your question

Build my own PC (medium gaming) or buy iBuypower-Walmart.

Tags:
  • Gaming
  • Systems
  • Product
Last response: in Systems
Share
March 14, 2013 4:48:18 AM

Here's the deal. I'm a long time fan of the game Sim City and since they've finally come out with a new game I'd like to play it! Unfortunately, I don't have a computer that both runs it smoothly and displays the graphics to it's full potential. So I've come with two options..

Option 1:
1- Buy a ibuypower from Wal-mart. Comes out to $533 before tax
Case
(iBUYPOWER XION Echo Gaming Chassis, Blue)
Motherboard & Processor
(AMD FX-4100 Processor with Motherboard)
Operating System
(Microsoft Windows 8 64-Bit OEM)
Memory
(4 x 2GB = 8GB DDR3-1333 Gaming Grade Memory Module)
Hard Drive
(500GB 7200RPM Hard Disk Drive)
Graphics Card (Add $53)
(AMD Radeon HD 7750 1GB GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 Graphics Card)
Next available upgrade would be AMD Radeon HD7770 1GB GDDR5 (+$80)
Optical Drive
(24X DVD+/-RW DL Optical Drive)

2- Build my own PC for the very first time

**Please note I'm not a big gamer. The most i've played is Sim City and The Sim 3, so I don't need anything above and beyond for tons of games.

Build my own portion(sticky):

Approximate Purchase Date: Ready to start buying ASAP
Budget Range: Max $600
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming
Are you buying a monitor: No
Do you need to buy OS: Yes
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg
Location: Long Island, NY
Parts Preferences: No preference
Overclocking: ?
SLI or Crossfire: ?
Your Monitor Resolution: Samsung SyncMaster P2770's 16:9 aspect ratio supports a "Full HD" 1,920x1,080-pixel native resolution
Additional Comments: Only for Sim City 2013. I want to be able to play the game to it's full potential. Both smoothly and with great graphics.

I'm a complete newbie to this!

More about : build medium gaming buy ibuypower walmart

a b 4 Gaming
March 14, 2013 5:20:53 AM

Be fully aware that everyone here will be biased toward building it yourself, not many here will suggest you buy a rig off the shelf.
You can definitely make better than that iBuypower rig on that budget.

I'l admit budget rigs aren't my specialty, no doubt someone will show up and somehow cram a 7870 in :D .
You can save $30 if you can buy from multiple stores, but this is the price if you buy solely from Newegg.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 PRO3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($82.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($66.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Zalman Z9 Plus ATX Mid Tower Case ($45.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $635.47
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-14 08:19 EDT-0400)
m
0
l
March 14, 2013 5:28:06 AM

I'm open to shopping at other places! I wouldn't mind building my own rig either, I watched the tutorial
on Newegg and it seems like a nice project!

Ill take any advice on what to buy where! My main thing is I'm so unsure on what is good and worth what!
m
0
l
Related resources
a b 4 Gaming
March 14, 2013 5:45:39 AM

And the way to learn what is good or not is too lurk more :lol: .
Start reading through others threads and you'l start to pick up knowledge of what are the components too look for and what makes a good build. Also have a look at NCIX Tech Tips on Youtube, a great resource where I learnt a lot of what I know, they have a video on near everything. And if they dont, chances are the hosts private channel Linus Tech Tips will.
m
0
l
a b 4 Gaming
March 14, 2013 5:50:42 AM

Beh162 said:
I'm open to shopping at other places! I wouldn't mind building my own rig either, I watched the tutorial
on Newegg and it seems like a nice project!

Ill take any advice on what to buy where! My main thing is I'm so unsure on what is good and worth what!

I am a first time builder. Built mine a year ago and it was the best decision. I did some reading and youtube videos. It is easy to do and tomshardware is a good start. So, browse the site and ask the community. It's quite helpful.

Side note, you could make a $500 rig that will smoke that Walmart rig.
m
0
l
!