Going to buy a new computer, NEED HELP

[zilven]

I'm a gamer and I was wondering if I could play today's games with these computer specs:


CPU: Z220 SFF Xeon E3 1225 3.20 GHz 8MB Cache, 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3-1600 NO ECC RAM, 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 7200 rpm, 16X DVD+-RW SuperMulti SATA, AMD FIREPRO V3900 1GB GFX, WIN 7 PROFESIONAL 64BITS

Monitor: HP ZR2240w 21.5-in LED S-IPS


I don't really know what makes a game run better, so I really need help here.


Thanks.

 

[Sunius]

That is not a gaming machine: it will run games poorly. It's probably expensive too. It's only suited for 3D design and CAD work.

What's your budget?

 

[Uther39]

I'm a gamer and I was wondering if I could play today's games with these computer specs:


CPU: Z220 SFF Xeon E3 1225 3.20 GHz 8MB Cache, 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3-1600 NO ECC RAM, 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 7200 rpm, 16X DVD+-RW SuperMulti SATA, AMD FIREPRO V3900 1GB GFX, WIN 7 PROFESIONAL 64BITS

Monitor: HP ZR2240w 21.5-in LED S-IPS


I don't really know what makes a game run better, so I really need help here.


Thanks.

Ok.

We need
Budget?
Country of Purchase?
Preferred etailer ?

 

[meat_loaf]

I'm a gamer and I was wondering if I could play today's games with these computer specs:


CPU: Z220 SFF Xeon E3 1225 3.20 GHz 8MB Cache, 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3-1600 NO ECC RAM, 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 7200 rpm, 16X DVD+-RW SuperMulti SATA, AMD FIREPRO V3900 1GB GFX, WIN 7 PROFESIONAL 64BITS

Monitor: HP ZR2240w 21.5-in LED S-IPS


I don't really know what makes a game run better, so I really need help here.


Thanks.

You could look at my rig. Under $800 CDN.

AMD Phenom II BE x4 3.2 Ghz 6Mb Cache (can be overclocked to 4.1ghz using AMD drivers) ($125)
XFX Radeon HD 6870 1Gb ($150) - for a little more you can get the 2gb version
Kingston 8Gb 1600Mhz ($60)
Corsair 600w ($80)
Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200RPM ($80)
Cooler Master Hyper 212 ($40)
MSI 870-G45 (gaming Mobo) ($50)

 

[Kamen_BG]

Hi Zilven.
The only thing you need in order to improve your gaming expiriance is a new graphics card.
The one i think you should get is the MSI N560GTX Twin Frozr II/OC
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127593&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3899435&SID=skim1402X558040X3c7193e2125775e1d784a9b8dccf2262

 

[Sunius]

^
He didn't buy the machine yet. And buying xeon for gaming would be stupid.

 

[zilven]

Ok thanks a lot! you guys definetly saved me there.

I was searching the forums and I came across this:

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/gaming-pc-overclocking-pc-building,review-32506.html

Should I build that? or I should buy what Meat-Loaf said?


Budget? preferably under 1200$
Country of Purchase? Mexico
Preferred etailer ? I don't really have one

 

[Sunius]

The one from Tom's article is much better. Though, few days ago there were some new parts that came out, so I'd suggest a few corrections. It depends on your budget of course! This one is $70 more expensive, but on top of that I added windows as well, so the price increased a little bit more:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($119.99 @ CompUSA)
Motherboard: MSI B75MA-P45 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($70.06 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Kingston Blu Red Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($74.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($199.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($32.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Antec 450W ATX12V Power Supply ($34.98 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $667.97
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-07 17:26 EDT-0400)

Does it fit in your budget? Or is it exceeding it?

 

[zilven]

Do you think I would be able to run Skyrim with that? The budget is just fine.

I would also like to ask, what makes a PC better for gaming? RAM? GHz? Dedicated video memory?

Also, isn't Intel i3 bad/old?





An expert told me to buy this, should I?

T. Video XFX ONE 2GB DDR3 HDMI DVI VGA PCI-E 2.1
CPU Intel Core i7 2600 3.40GHz, 8MB, LGA1155
Motherboard Biostar H61 DDR3 V/S/R LGA 1155
DDR3 4GB 1333Mhz Kingston
DDR3 2GB 1333Mhz Kingston
SATAIII 1TB, 7200RPM, SEGATE hard disc
TOTAL: 852.28$

 

[zilven]

bump

 

[simon12]

No get the build Sunius suggested its perfect for that budget. What makes a good gaming rig is first the graphics card (more RAM and higher speed is not always better) second the CPU but don't compromise on the graphics card. RAM 4Gb is good enough but its cheap so 8Gb will future proof it any more is overkill. Better hard drives increase loading times but don't improve gaming. Read this article for info on good graphics cards http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/gaming-graphics-card-review,review-32501.html
As a general rule you want to spend around the same amount on the graphics card as your CPU and motherboard combined. Also avoid i7s for gaming as they are no better than i5s and cost alot more.

 

[meat_loaf]

It should be fine. If my rig can run skyrim at high settings with 1920x1080 ~55fps it shouldn't be a problem

 

[meat_loaf]

Do you think I would be able to run Skyrim with that? The budget is just fine.

I would also like to ask, what makes a PC better for gaming? RAM? GHz? Dedicated video memory?

Also, isn't Intel i3 bad/old?





An expert told me to buy this, should I?

T. Video XFX ONE 2GB DDR3 HDMI DVI VGA PCI-E 2.1
CPU Intel Core i7 2600 3.40GHz, 8MB, LGA1155
Motherboard Biostar H61 DDR3 V/S/R LGA 1155
DDR3 4GB 1333Mhz Kingston
DDR3 2GB 1333Mhz Kingston
SATAIII 1TB, 7200RPM, SEGATE hard disc
TOTAL: 852.28$

If I can run skyrim on high settings at 1920x1080 it shouldnt be a problem for what you are going to decide.

 

[Sunius]

Do you think I would be able to run Skyrim with that? The budget is just fine.

I would also like to ask, what makes a PC better for gaming? RAM? GHz? Dedicated video memory?

Also, isn't Intel i3 bad/old?





An expert told me to buy this, should I?

T. Video XFX ONE 2GB DDR3 HDMI DVI VGA PCI-E 2.1
CPU Intel Core i7 2600 3.40GHz, 8MB, LGA1155
Motherboard Biostar H61 DDR3 V/S/R LGA 1155
DDR3 4GB 1333Mhz Kingston
DDR3 2GB 1333Mhz Kingston
SATAIII 1TB, 7200RPM, SEGATE hard disc
TOTAL: 852.28$

i3 isn't old or bad. That particular CPU I recommended was released 6 days ago (September 2nd).

Your expert seems not to know anything about PC gaming at all.

If you worry about i3, pick up i5 instead. But it's a bit more expensive.

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.99 @ Newegg)