Wanting to buy or build a gaming PC

o0LuNeStA0o

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Hello all :D. As you can probably tell, I'm new to this site, so hopefully this is the correct area for this type of question (I'm rather certain that it is). I decided to make an account and ask a question because it seems that every time I look for a PC related question I somehow end up at this site one way or another. So I figured you guys would be the perfect people to ask!

I'd love to get into PC gaming but I don't want to drop a lot of money into. Reasonable right? I recently decided to purchase an HD monitor (Asus VE228H) to finally get away from the SDTV I had been using for my PS3. And since I use it solely for gaming, I'm completely satisfied with my purchase. Now, I want to be able to play PC games. I'm not really as interested in the whole "PC has better graphics than consoles" argument (Though, I agree). However, more of the fact that you can just do so much more with games like Fallout and Skyrim. But that being said, I want to be able to play current and future releases rather easily.

I personally don't really know much about choosing a PC for gaming or building one myself. I asked a friend about it and pretty much his only advice was: "look for something with at least an Intel I5 processor and at least an Nvidia 560 or Radeon 6670 card. At least 8GB of ram". I've read that it's better to build the PC yourself because you get to choose what you want and so on?

So with all that being said, I would LOVE to be able to spend less than $500. As long as it wouldn't be something that I'd have to upgrade frequently. I'd pay more, but I would highly prefer it to be under $500.

Sorry for the big wall of text. Thanks in advance.
 
To build a PC from scratch using decent components, with only $500 is going to be very difficult. That's why consoles exist, because PC gaming is quite expensive to get into.

Pre-built computers are an option at this price point, but are not generally of high quality or performance, and when they are, much more expensive than an equivalent custom.

Can you give a full list of what resources you have available? For instance if you have a relatively modern PC already, that's a HDD and optical at least, maybe even RAM. A spare copy of Windows will save you $100.
 

o0LuNeStA0o

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That's what I figured. lol.

As far as what I currently have, not much really. As far as relevant for gaming. Like, the laptop I'm using right now is a rather old crappy laptop that I hate. The processor on it is 1.70GHz and only has like 960mb of RAM. So...yea. -_-.

I'd like to add that I don't NEED to buy it really soon. If it would be cheaper in the long run to just build it, I'd be perfectly fine with buying parts here and there over time. As far as a spare copy of Windows, sadly the answer is no.

I seen this: http://www.wethegamerz.com/2012/03/04/build-a-sweet-gaming-computer-for-under-500/

Any opinions on that? To be honest it seems like the most expensive part of building one is the Graphics Card. To me at least.
 
Saw Diablotek PSU, no.
When you have to start compromising on a build, the PSU is not the place to start. Lets just say that a $30 PSU is not to be trusted.

Here's what I would recommend on a tight budget, no GPU, you will have to add that in when you have the cash.

CPU: Intel i3 2120. $125
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115077
Would normally recommend the Phenom II on this kind of rig, but its lack of integrated graphics will turn this machine into an expensive brick until you add a GPU.

Mobo: AsRock Z77 Pro3. $95
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157297

RAM: G.Skill Ares 8GB 1600Mhz CL9 1.5v. $40
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231544

PSU: XFX Core 550W, 80+ Bronze. $75
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207013&Tpk=XFX%20550W

HDD: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200RPM. $80
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit OEM. $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986
This is an OEM copy, cant use the product key on another rig. Essentially only good for use on this motherboard.

Case: Zalman Z9+. $55
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811235027

Optical: Lite-On 18x. $20
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106276

Total: $590 (Before Shipping, rebates and promo's)
Its over-budget, but thats about the minimum I would consider a gaming rig to be. Slap in a decent (so ~HD7850) GPU and you would have yourself a decent gaming rig. Its fairly upgradable as well, that board will modern processors quite well, PSU can handle a large GPU, case is very good for the price. Only downfall is no Crossfire/SLI, but at this point a single powerful graphics card will be better than two weaker ones in tandem.
 
You could go with vitornobs link and change out the gpu in that to a 7750 (which is equal to double the performance of the 6670 that your friend listed.)

(not trying to bash your friend but the 6670 and 560 are in two totally different leagues)

That should drop the price down about 70 bucks or so. If you are looking to play skyrim with mods, no problems there. if you are looking to play skyrim with all the visual mods... ehhh you might have some troubles. I am using a 6870 with the mods listed at the bottom of this thread (the top ones are lite versions of very demanding texture mods, the rest are misc texture changer stuff.) http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/366313-33-best-card-play-skyrim

Though that being said. You could just upgrade down the line since the socket on the mobo from the 500 dollar build will accept other higher end models, such as an i5 (before you ask, the pentium chip listed in that build performs similarly to an i3 just without L3 cache.)
 

o0LuNeStA0o

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Thanks for all the responses so far! They've been rather fast too. :D

Hmm. A bit over $600 will be fine for me. Like I said, I don't need to buy it like tomorrow or anything lol. If it takes awhile to finally get a gaming PC I'm fine with that. However, I just don't want to spend $600 and then have to drop more money to upgrade that a few months after buying it in the first place. You know? But I'd much rather spend up to say $650 or $700 instead of one for <$500 if I would just have to keep upgrading the latter and spend more money in the long run.
 

TidusJames

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It will be almost impossible to get a good gaming pc, that doesnt require upgrading anytime soon, and can handle current as well as future games with an issue for only 500$, seeing as a 560TI will cost you at least 300 in itself. Almost 100, if not more, for a HD worth having (at least a TB), unless you want an old, out of date mobo, at least 150, processor... meh 120 LOWEND, (cheaping here alot), ram... 8 gb ~50 case... can get a decent case for 60-80 PSU ~50-70

Case 70
mobo 150
Ram 80
560 300
HD 100
Processor 150
Total 780 Now keep in mind, this is cheaping in a few areas.... and when i say that i mean older parts, that have been around longer, and will not have the same length of time before they are considered discontinued.

I have my own build ~4800 in, trust me, 500.... aint nothing, thats actually.... like black friday deals cheap, you WILL NOT be able to get that right now
 

o0LuNeStA0o

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Hmmm. $700 is pretty reasonable for me. I know you're not going to get the best performance for $700 lol. But as long as it gets the job done without looking like complete crap. I'll be fine. I mean I played my PS3 on an SDTV for about 4-5 years and just recently felt the need to upgrade. I mean, I knew the graphics could be MUCH better, but it didn't bother me. Until I started played games like Skyrim that aren't necessarily made to be played on SDTv's and would cut words out and stuff like that.
 

TidusJames

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Im not following HALF of your decisions :eek:
The CPU... DUAL core? really? that wont last, not if he wants to do any sort of multitasking...

AsRock? 95$ mobo? yeah, needs upgrad in two months, assuredly. thats old, and wont last competatively.

Ram, kinda hard to f that up, good job, but a 550... that will NEVER support a high end grapics, nor will it support even low end SLI, much less any sort of future expansion

a case is a case is a case, unless you are going HIGH end, cooling wont really be an issue no matter what
 

TidusJames

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an i3 performs onpar with a phenom 2. I am using an athlon 2 x3 with a 6870, I can max skyrim with a few hundred graphics mods (2x AA/AF and view distance at 13 instead of 15) at a stable 30fps minimum.

I have had my 60 dollar ASRock board for about a year and a few months now. so shut it if your just gonna troll.

Oh and a case is not a case is not a case. Not all low end cases are equal. take a look at some dell cases and tell me thats adequate cooling.

(side note, he would probably be better off going with the 500 dollar build at this point. better gpu than a 7750.) Could probably upgrade it to a 7850 while still being under budget. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161405

Edit: Oh and I am using a EA500D 500w antec unit. You could shove 2x 680s on a 550w and still be in good shape buddy.
 
i3, because getting a quad core at that price means AMD, which dont have integrated on their CPU's. Neither Phenom (Black editions, which are the only available) or Bulldozers have integrated graphics. I guess now that I have added a GPU to the build you could get a Phenom II 965 without issue. But may as well stick with Intel for the upgradability, unless you have faith that PileDriver will be a big leap forward for AMD CPU's.

How so? A Z77 motherboard will perform similarly to any other Z77 mobo. Granted you cant Crossfire/SLI properly on it, but at this budget that isnt feasible anyway.

550W is plenty, if the supply actually output's ~550W on the 12v rail.
12v x 44Amps = 528W of power through the 12v (responsible for the GPU, mobo/RAM and CPU).
CPU has a max draw of 65W, cant overclock it so that wont change.
GPU's draw is tiny, but we'l choose worst case scenario where you have a 200W card on it.
Mobo/RAM will draw 30W at most, if anything much less.

Total draw: 295W (worst case scenario with a 200W graphics card, dont even think a 680 will pull that much). So you have 233W of headroom left. The other rails will be fine without looking.
Plenty of power.

Might as well get a case that will last a build or two. Cheaper in the long run to get a good one.
 

TidusJames

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HA, a single MSI 560TI 2GB edition can run skyrim, maxed, with mods, at an easy 60FPS

Say what you want, but even a low level i5 would be better.... that you would even toy with the idea of an AMD shows how little you know :(

yes, you may have spent 60 on it, but i can assure you, that your north and south bridge hold you back... well, maybe not you... nothing to hold back :/

seriously, a bidget pc will ALWAYS need upgrade, specially with THAT kind of budgeting choices. there are certain places where you can skimp, others that you cant...
 

TidusJames

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HA, a single MSI 560TI 2GB edition can run skyrim, maxed, with mods, at an easy 60FPS

Say what you want, but even a low level i5 would be better.... that you would even toy with the idea of an AMD shows how little you know :(

yes, you may have spent 60 on it, but i can assure you, that your north and south bridge hold you back... well, maybe not you... nothing to hold back :/

seriously, a bidget pc will ALWAYS need upgrade, specially with THAT kind of budgeting choices. there are certain places where you can skimp, others that you cant...
 


HAHA! yes call me out on my budget build. a 560ti sits in between a 6870 and a 6950, are you seriously saying that "that" small of a jump would provide me with +30fps at minimum? shows what you know. You're "opinion" on my needs of an upgrade are idiotic, I do not NEED an upgrade, did you not just hear me. I cam play it maxed out with a few graphic enhancing mods. I don't need anything more out of my pc except to play game reliably on atleast medium settings.

It does me good, go troll somewhere else.

bwahaha, I like the part where you said "hurr durr i5 bettah thun i3/athlon" even a monkey can figure that one out genius.

Do you also base a pc on how well it can play BF3 even though it might be used for high end media encoding/video editing?
 


Please stop before you embarrass yourself further.

Of course a 560Ti is better, look heres proof.
http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-560-ti-review/18
But thats why it costs ~$60 more than a HD6870. If price were no object, I would have 3xHD7970 Ghz editions, but that is quite expensive.
And the card you suggested has 2GB of VRAM. That's easily another $100 on top of the cards normal price, I'l just assume you didn't realize that ok?

Of course an i5 is better, which why is why it cost $100 more than an i3. Have fun trying to include it on a budget build.
AMD has hit bad times recently with its Bulldozer architecture, but they have been very competitive until now. Look back to when quad cores were being introduced and you will see AMD dominance, Intel tried strapping two dual cores together and failed miserably. Your fan-boyism isn't appreciated.

A lack of any good reasoning and an insult is your defense?

Well where do you skimp? All your idea's so far will require about $160, I'd like to see where you could skimp on my build to come up with that kind of cash.

EDIT:
Yeah sorry about that OP, occasionaly we get these kinds of people who think they know everything and give bad/unrealistic advice. Usually a good pummeling of pure reason forces them to face the fact they don't know much. He also seems to have made the account just to reply on this thread, thats a brand new account with no post history except here.
 

o0LuNeStA0o

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Hmmmm. This guy is annoying -_-.

"I don't need anything more out of my pc except to play game reliably on atleast medium settings." That right there is exactly how I feel. I don't need to play every game on high settings and stuff like that. As long as I can play on medium (or at least NOT the lowest setting) easily I'm more than happy.
 

o0LuNeStA0o

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Meh. It's fine. I figured the trolls come out at some point. And of course it would be on my topic lol. I had no intentions of listening to him whatsoever. Kind of because it being a new and account, but mostly for his high levels of douche-baggery

But basically like you said, if everyone could afford to spend over $3,000 on a gaming pc, then it wouldn't be a problem. And plus, it's also more of the fact that I don't WANT to spend that much on a gaming pc. I just want something that gets by easily and is reasonable.
 
The build as it stands should be good for medium settings, In BF3 the HD7750 gets ~24FPS on High Detail, 4x Anti-Aliasing at 1080p. So tweaking some settings should yield you decent performance.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-7770-7750-benchmark,3135-6.html
Maybe even overclock that card for some extra performance, AMD cards typically overclock well. Though that card may have stability issues with overclocking due to its lack of auxiliary power.

Your FPS may drop during busy online play, as then the CPU may become a bottleneck due to (as Tidus did point out) it only being a dual core. But should be generally fine for med settings. (That's BF3 though, if its a less intensive game you could get high settings).
 

o0LuNeStA0o

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Hmmm. Ok. That's not bad. BF3 is rather demanding though eh? But I don't foresee myself using it BF3, having already purchased it for PS3 and premium. But kinda bored with the game to the point that I probably will have lost interest in it by the time all the DLC is out.

I'm not really sure if I'm wanting to use it for online play. Mostly RPG games and the such. Although, I must say, "DayZ" (I think that's the correct title) is really interesting. Or at least my friend makes it seems so lol.
 
Thanks for standing up for me guys, really appreciate that :)

@op yeah I can attest that most games will play very well with a 7750 + i3 there are a few exceptions and its really down to bad coding or omg eye bleeding graphic settings that you wouldn't notice unless under a microscope and are few an' far between. games such as metro 2033, crysis, GTA 4 (horrible coding), and uh a few others I can't really remember off the top of my head.

For almost any game though atleast medium should be expected (again except gta 4), or if its something like saints row the 3rd, high wouldn't be a stretch.

Edit: I gotta say though, playing Just cause 2 is a lot easier on pc for me than on console (grapple hooking was a nightmare for me on my friends xbox)
 
BF3 is up there for demanding games. Other contenders are Crysis 2, Metro 2033 (its AA will rape your VRAM) and Witcher 2's Ubersampling.

Not sure how intensive DayZ or ArmaII (what its based on) is, but if you can get decent settings in BF3, I imagine other FPS' should be fine.