Help With New PC Please!! :)

[Guest]

Hello all, I have a few questions on a HP desktop I am planning on purchasing. I am a novice as far as computers go, and need some help. I am planning on using the desktop for moderate amounts of gaming, playing games like Battlefield 3 and Skyrim.

The model I am planning on getting is the HP Pavilion HPE h8-1330z Desktop http://www.shopping.hp.com/en_US/h [...] Desktop-PC

Will the graphic cards available be enough to play on high settings, or should I upgrade to 2gb?
I was planning on upgrading the PSU to 460w, would that be enough?
Are there any other desktops in a similar price range that are much better?

(My parents don't trust me with building a PC, so that is not an option.)

Thanks!

 

[ScrewySqrl]

looking up the H8-1330z, most of the GPUs are not great. the 7770 is passable, but your best bet would be teh $369 7970 for high end gaming.

what's your final maximum price range?

 

[ScrewySqrl]

al alternative might be this laptop, with a trinity 4-core:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834214893

Its better than the bulldozer chip, and its 1600x900 resolution 17" screen will be perfect for medium and high resolution gaming

 

[moornix]

+1 Xtera.

With google, I found the desktop. The 7570 won't play BF3 at high, not even the 2 GB version. Have you considered getting a configuration from CyberPowerPC or iBuypower?

Newegg has some free xbox 360s on Pre-built combos as well where you could just replace the GPUs with better ones and sell the ones that come with the PC.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229322
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227414

 

[megamanx00]

Yeah sounds like you should go with either CyberPowerPC or iBuyPower. I'd go with this option for it's 7870.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229340

You can go directly to their websites, but I don't think they have that nice xbox combo . If you really want to go with that HP though I'd say get a Radeon 7870 and a good 500-600W PSU. For a 460W PSU go with the 7850.

 

[Augray37]

I can't seem to open your link, but i think i found the model you were looking at on their website. Firstly, what resolution will you be playing on? this makes a big difference as to whether or not you will be able to play BF3 or skyrim at high settings. Also, having a 2GB card will provide little to no improvement over a comparable 1GB card unless you plan to play on multiple monitors, which brings me to my next point. Most of the cards available on the website, except the HD 7950 (@1080p) or HD 7770 (at 720p), will most likely not be able to play BF3 and Skyrim at high settings. These cards are more like productivity cards rather than gaming cards, and they will have a hard time pushing games like BF3. What attracts you to this particular desktop?

After looking at the options available on the HP website, here's what i think i would do...I would get this computer...

http://www.shopping.hp.com/en_US/home-office/-/products/Desktops/HP-Pavilion/A7F22AV?HP-Pavilion-p7-1380t-Desktop-PC

...with the 600W power supply option. Next, I would buy a graphics card separately, something like this...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161406

that puts you at $800 for the computer and the graphics card, which is $200 cheaper than your build would have been even with the less powerful HD 7700 option installed. would your parents be cool with that?

 

[jimmy_dog]

Why don't you just go to cyberpowerpc.com? Its a home-built computer but they build it for you.

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the help. The desktop you selected seems fine also, but will installing the separate graphics card be easy? Again, I am very new to all of this. Also, is a quad core processor powerful enough?

 

[Guest]

looking up the H8-1330z, most of the GPUs are not great. the 7770 is passable, but your best bet would be teh $369 7970 for high end gaming.

what's your final maximum price range?

My final price range is about $1000 with monitor, so around $800 for the computer itself.

 

[Guest]

Why don't you just go to cyberpowerpc.com? Its a home-built computer but they build it for you.

I was looking at cyberpowerpc, however I have heard some mixed reviews as far as customer service and reliability of their products go. What are your thoughts?

 

[Guest]

I can't seem to open your link, but i think i found the model you were looking at on their website. Firstly, what resolution will you be playing on? this makes a big difference as to whether or not you will be able to play BF3 or skyrim at high settings. Also, having a 2GB card will provide little to no improvement over a comparable 1GB card unless you plan to play on multiple monitors, which brings me to my next point. Most of the cards available on the website, except the HD 7950 (@1080p) or HD 7770 (at 720p), will most likely not be able to play BF3 and Skyrim at high settings. These cards are more like productivity cards rather than gaming cards, and they will have a hard time pushing games like BF3. What attracts you to this particular desktop?

After looking at the options available on the HP website, here's what i think i would do...I would get this computer...

http://www.shopping.hp.com/en_US/home-office/-/products/Desktops/HP-Pavilion/A7F22AV?HP-Pavilion-p7-1380t-Desktop-PC

...with the 600W power supply option. Next, I would buy a graphics card separately, something like this...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161406

that puts you at $800 for the computer and the graphics card, which is $200 cheaper than your build would have been even with the less powerful HD 7700 option installed. would your parents be cool with that?

This seems like a something I would want to do, but the link you sent me doesn't have an option to change the power. So instead, how about this one? http://www.shopping.hp.com/en_US/home-office/-/products/Desktops/HP-Pavilion-Elite/B4J24AV?HP-Pavilion-HPE-h8-1300z-Desktop-PC

I'd get 600w and upgrade to a new graphics card, like this one:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130625

Sound better?

 

[ScrewySqrl]

how about this model:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227408

with this monitor:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824262021

total $830

 

[Guest]

how about this model:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227408

with this monitor:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824262021

total $830

That looks good too, and seems reasonably priced. This will be able to handle bf3/skyrim with high settings? Will it also be good for internet browsing/email, music, etc.? Also, what would the warranty look like?

 

[Augray37]

This seems like a something I would want to do, but the link you sent me doesn't have an option to change the power. So instead, how about this one? http://www.shopping.hp.com/en_US/home-office/-/products/Desktops/HP-Pavilion-Elite/B4J24AV?HP-Pavilion-HPE-h8-1300z-Desktop-PC

I'd get 600w and upgrade to a new graphics card, like this one:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130625

Sound better?

oh yeah you're right, my bad

yes that sounds better, maybe, but what resolution will you be playing at? if it's 720p, then yes the 550ti will be PERFECT, but if you're going for 1080p, then you'll want something with more oomph. I have an HD 6870, and it can play ultra settings in BF3 at 720p no sweat, but it struggles with high settings at 1080p. And no adding a graphics card isn't difficult at all, just pop it in and plug in the 6/8pin PCI-E power connector(s). It's SO much cheaper than buying the ones that come in the pre-made builds.

 

[Guest]

oh yeah you're right, my bad

yes that sounds better, maybe, but what resolution will you be playing at? if it's 720p, then yes the 550ti will be PERFECT, but if you're going for 1080p, then you'll want something with more oomph. I have an HD 6870, and it can play ultra settings in BF3 at 720p no sweat, but it struggles with high settings at 1080p. And no adding a graphics card isn't difficult at all, just pop it in and plug in the 6/8pin PCI-E power connector(s). It's SO much cheaper than buying the ones that come in the pre-made builds.

Does 720 vs 1080 make a huge difference? I'm coming from console gaming, so I'll probably see a huge difference either way :lol:
I dont really want to go over $150 for a graphics card...with that in mind, is the 550ti my best bet?

 

[Augray37]

Does 720 vs 1080 make a huge difference? I'm coming from console gaming, so I'll probably see a huge difference either way :lol:
I dont really want to go over $150 for a graphics card...with that in mind, is the 550ti my best bet?

720p vs 1080p makes a bigger difference in playability than it does to the human eye, IMHO. For instance, while i don't remember the exact FPS i got, i have no problems playing BF3 in ultra detail on my 720p 22" TV/monitor with a Phenom ii X4 and HD 6870, and it looks great to me. But, when i switch over to 1080p on my main TV, I have to dial the settings back a fair bit to achieve playable frame rates. Anyway here are a couple of options that i would consider to be a little better than the 550ti in the price range your looking at...

The first one is a nicely pre-overclocked HD 7770 GHz for $135 with MIR

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102993

The second one is a little more expensive at $160 after MIR, but it is proven and gives a nice little performance boost.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102948

 

[Guest]

A problem I have seemed to encounter though is that the PSU that comes with the HP only has one 6-pin connector, but you need two for most graphics cards.

 

[ScrewySqrl]

you can use two molex pins

also, HD 7850 needs just one 6-pin