Going to buy this computer but would like a knowledgeable opinion

[DMX2]

# Case: COOLERMASTER ELITE 310 Mid Tower Case
# Lights & Illumination: NONE
# Extra Case Fan Upgrade: Default Case Fan
# Power Supply Upgrade: 600 Watts Power Supplies (CyberPower 600W Power Supply)
# CPU: (Quad-Core)Intel® Core™ 2 Quad Q8200 @ 2.33GHz 1333FSB 4MB L2 ***Overclockable S& S*** Cache 64-bit
# Cooling Fan: INTEL LGA775 CERTIFIED CPU FAN & HEATSINK
# Motherboard: (Quad-Core support) MSI P31 Neo-F V2 P31 Chipset LGA775 FSB800/1066/1333 DDR2 Mainboard
# Memory: (Req.DDR2 MainBoard)4GB (2x2GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Dual Channel Memory (Corsair Value Select and Major Brand)
# VGA Power Supply: NONE
# Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX285 1GB 16X PCI Express (Major Brand Power by NVIDIA)
# Hard Drive: Single Hard Drive (1TB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16M Cache Hard Drive)
# Hard Drive Cooler: None
# Optical Drive: (Special Price) LG 22X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (Black Color)
# Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
# Network: ONBOARD 10/100 NETWORK CARD
# Extra Thermal Display : NONE (AS SHOWN)
# Wireless 802.11B/G Network Card: NONE
# Wireless 802.11B/G Access Point: NONE
# Flash Media Reader/Writer: None
# Cable Wiring: None
# Cables: None
# Video Camera: NONE
# Power Surge Protection: None
# IEEE Card: NONE
# USB Port: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
# USB Portable Drive: NONE
# Floppy: NONE
# OS: NONE - FORMAT HARD DRIVE ONLY(NO OVERCLOCKING AVALIABLE)
# Windows 7 Upgrade Coupon: None

What i would like to know is
1. This is £650, is this a good buy?
2. What settings could i expect to run GTA4 or Crysis on, at a playable fps?
3. Will all the parts work together? I am worried about the power supply, i do not know wether 600 watts is enough to power them all.
4. Does the motherboard had to have 'Quad core support' if i am using a quad core cpu?
5. What operating system would you suggest using on it?

Thankyou for your time

 

[gkay09]

@DMX2 are you buying a pre-assembled PC or you have come up with these parts yourself ???

And as for your questions,...
1. If you assemble your own PC, you can save about £100 for the same config(Checked with this website - www.scan.co.uk)

2. It depends more on the resolution that you want to game at...you can expect playable frame-rates for resolutions upto 1920X1200 with Medium settings...
The CPU is the weak link here...and you can switch to a GTX 275 and save money as for resolutions upto 1920X1200, it has similar performance compared to the GTX 285...and with the saved cash, you can invest in a faster CPU...

3. 600W is more than suffice to run that setup...But even a high quality 550W PSU from Corsair, PCP&S, Seasonic, Silverstone can power that PC...

4. Actually the CPU that is listed is a Quad core...And Yes that mobo can support C2Q CPUs...But a P43/ P45 chipset mobo is better compared to that P31 chipset that is pretty old...

5. Vista Home Premium 64-bit with Free Win 7 upgrade coupon.

And finally I would like to say that you put the purchase on hold as intel will be launching the new i5 CPUs on September 9Th, that are pretty much in the same price range of the above CPU, but would offer far better performance...So you would want to wait till then...

 

[DMX2]

@gkay09
First of all thanks for the reply

1. Yeah, im buying it pre-built from cyberpower as i have no experience with assembling computers. Would you reccomend i make another thread here asking for help putting together pc components that i will assemble myself?
2. If i go down to a GTX275, i can afford a Q9400, what kind of perfomance increase could i expect with that?
3. The 600W is cheaper than the 550 for some reason haha
4. Would this negativley effect my performance? Because i cant afford to buy a higher model.

Thanks once again for your time

 

[gkay09]

^ You can start a new thread for requesting help for assembling computers...And also you can find so many YouTube videos and many walk-through articles for computer assembling...
But if you are really worried about the computer assembling part and about the problems that you might have to face later, then I feel that the extra money is worth for the 3-year warranty that they provide...
- Though you get good warranty with parts but you would have to deal with it...But is nothing like assembling your own PC and you can make sure that only quality parts go in...
So first decide yourself whether you are ready for it, then go ahead...

And I would suggest you wait till September 9Th...The intel CPUs are already in the retail chains...they are waiting to go for sale until the official announcement from intel...So for the same price range, you would get better performing components...

2. Going from a Q8200 to Q9400 would not give a drastic performance increase...Only in certain apps like video encoding and other intense multimedia apps would see benefit...
Games currently dont take good advantage of the 4 cores(But the GTAIV seems to perform well on Quads) but surely will in the future...

3. The 600W is cheaper than the 550W because the 550W PSU would be of high quality and the 600W of low quality...
So a High Quality 550W >> Low Quality 600W

4. Like I said, wait till September 9th...For the same price range, you would get better components...

 

[DMX2]

Right-o
Ill give it a month or so before looking again
And you never know, maybe ill have more money to spend haha
Thanks again for you help

 

[gkay09]

^ True...
Good luck buying...