First ever gaming PC - need a little help

SammiiDoogles

SammiiDoogles

SammiiDoogles

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21 Dec 2010
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Hey everyone,
I've been looking around and this seems the best place to go for help regarding my little problem.

Basically, I've always used laptops, the thing is they don't last very long. The laptop I have now I got last christmas because the one I got the christmas before broke. Now this christmas the one I got last christmas is on its way out so I've decided instead of constantly wasting £500 a year on laptops I'm going to just get myself a decent gaming PC.

Now the thing is, I know little to nothing about computer hardware, anything I know is what I've read up on since my laptop started to break (battery screwed up, not going to keep replacing batteries, would just prefer a desktop now).

So, I've had a look around at some computers and parts and this computer here seemed good:
[Removed link]

From what I've read, a good and affordable graphics card would be the GeForce GTX 470 (I want to be able to run games with PhysX so I guess that means nvidia cards only right?) but looking at the motherboard on that computer (Biostar N68S3 Motherboard) I don't think it would take one. Could anyone clarify that for me?

If it doesn't take that graphics card (or a better one at a similar price if someone can suggest one) then should I get a new motherboard and stick with the rest or just choose a different computer? I've never done anything like this before so I don't feel like building from the ground up entirely first time, I'd rather get a decent pre built thing and then add parts to it as I go along, I just need to know the computer can take those parts.

Alternatively, if that computer isn't that great - would anyone help me find a gaming computer with similar specs for around £500-600 (I can probably stretch a little bit, but not a lot). I'll want it to play games such as Mass Effect, Splinter Cell Conviction (basically games I can't get on my PS3) and some others like Batman: Arkham Asylum, Just Cause 2 etc.

Thanks in advance for any replies, if this post is a case of 'tldr' then let me know and I can try and break it down haha :D
 
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well first of all, what budget are u looking at, including a decent gpu ?

also, do u need a full system, or just the base unit, ie do u need monitor/keyboard/mouse/etc

how about something like this

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-210-OK&groupid=43&catid=1444&subcat=

simlar spec to what u posted, but made with quality parts that u'll easily be able to upgrade in the future.
also you have the option to add in the 460 or 470, depending on your budget

the problem with pre built systems like that, is that they dont really give u the full spec, theres a lot of "Quality", "Branded" etc, but no mention of what brand they actually are.

also, the PSU has no wattage, so no idea if it'll be able to power a high end gpu either.
if you check the updates u can upgrade to the Corsair VX550 at the cost of £70, which is the same price you can get the Corsair TX650 seperatly for, almost certaintly means the current PSU is very cheap
 
slipperydave said:
highly unlikely you'll get many replies, other than "remove the link to a competitor's site" and/or "why don't you buy it from here".
Click to expand...

Really? Hmm, well I was only using that as a starting point - as I said in my post I think that computer will probably be inadaquete so I need help finding a new PC, I don't mind where it's from :P If when someone's helping me they can find me one from here then I'm welcome to it.
 
first of, delete the link, you'll get banned otherwise

2nd, you dont need a nvidia card to play games advertised with Physx, more than that Physx is a gimmick, only a small handful of games properly use it, so it's a waste more than a boon ;)

3rd, for 500-600 you can buy a much better system than that bucket offered in your link lol

like this> http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-033-OP&groupid=43&catid=1444&subcat=

you'd get more for your money if you built yourself, also, you dont say if you need a monitor, peripherals? 600 tops including a monitor will be pretty tight for a gaming system
 
Thanks for the replies,
I've removed the link now - sorry about that, I was unaware.

Anyway, as for the budget - I'd say around £600 but I can probably stretch it a hundred or two at the very most. I'd like a monitor, nothing huge though - probably just around 22".
So basically around £600 (including windows 7) but possibly £700 if it includes a screen.

Is this still a bit tight? I really don't know much about the price of parts and whatnot...
 
ok heres my suggestion, i'm pretty sure the only way to beat this would be buying 2nd hand, or wait for Stulid to spec ;) guys a beast haha

Budget600poundbuild.png
 
Seraph said:
ok heres my suggestion, i'm pretty sure the only way to beat this would be buying 2nd hand, or wait for Stulid to spec ;) guys a beast haha

Budget600poundbuild.png
Click to expand...

I know little to nothing about hardware but that looks good to me. One thing though, on the old PC I posted it said it has 8GB of RAM and this one has 4GB. Is that a problem at all? or is 8GB just excessive and pointless?
 
8Gb for gaming is pointless the 4Gb i specced is decent top end ram, with better timings and faster running speed then the cheap unbranded tush you'd get in that other system ;)
 
if you dont want to build it yourself, then your options are more limited.

the Titan Krypt, with Windows 7, and a GTX460, would cost you £630, then an extra £100 for a 22"

u could reduce that abit by building yourself, and using slightly cheaper parts all round

AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition "125W Edition" 3.20GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £111.61
(£94.99) £111.61
(£94.99)
Asus GeForce GTX 460 Direct CU TOP 768MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £110.44
(£93.99) £110.44
(£93.99)
OcUK Cream 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black £104.99
(£89.35) £104.99
(£89.35)
Gigabyte GA-MA770T-UD3 MA770 (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard £57.99
(£49.35) £57.99
(£49.35)
Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) £52.86
(£44.99) £52.86
(£44.99)
OCZ StealthXStream 2 500W Power Supply £41.98
(£35.73) £41.98
(£35.73)
Coolermaster Elite 430 Windowed Case - Black £37.99
(£32.33) £37.99
(£32.33)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (HD502HJ) £31.98
(£27.22) £31.98
(£27.22)
LiteOn IHAS124 - DVD±RW (±R DL) / DVD-RAM drive - Serial ATA £11.74
(£9.99) £11.74
(£9.99)
Sub Total : £477.94
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £12.50
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £85.83
Total : £576.27
Click to expand...

should be enough left over to add in window 7, and keyboard/mouse if required
 
Seraph said:
8Gb for gaming is pointless the 4Gb i specced is decent top end ram, with better timings and faster running speed then the cheap unbranded tush you'd get in that other system ;)
Click to expand...

Okay sweet. For that spec you posted, would I have to build all of that myself? I've never done anything remotely like that before...
 
Haha right, I'm in a bit of a pickle now then.

How easy is it to build a computer? because by the looks of it it's a lot more cost effective and I'd get a lot more for my money. What equipment am I going to need?
 
building a computer is simple, you need some clean space, preferably static free, so a desk, not carpet, a pozidrive screwdriver, a calm cool head and non fidgity fingers, add that to about half an hour to 45 minutes and you will have a working machine ;)
 
Seraph said:
building a computer is simple, you need some clean space, preferably static free, so a desk, not carpet, a pozidrive screwdriver, a calm cool head and non fidgity fingers, add that to about half an hour to 45 minutes and you will have a working machine ;)
Click to expand...

Alright, I'll probably give it a go then - I'll have the cash early next year so I'll probably be buying the parts between now and then so if I need anything else then I'll be sure to come back as you guys have been extremely helpful.

One last question, how is the GeForce GTX 460? and the 470 comparitively?
 
Seraph said:
the 470 is beast but you would need a bigger and better psu to run it, for just over 100 quid the GTX460 is the best bang for buck bar none ;)

you can see more details here > http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/180?vs=160
Click to expand...

What do I do about a better PSU? How much would that set me back? would the GTX 460 be able to run stuff like Just Cause 2 and Batman? if so would I be able to play them with high settings?
 
SammiiDoogles said:
What do I do about a better PSU? How much would that set me back? would the GTX 460 be able to run stuff like Just Cause 2 and Batman? if so would I be able to play them with high settings?
Click to expand...

the 460 will play Just cause 2 and batman fine, i play those games on a 19" screen on high with a HD 5770 ;)
 
Seraph said:
the 460 will play Just cause 2 and batman fine, i play those games on a 19" screen on high with a HD 5770 ;)
Click to expand...

Alright sweet. Thanks for your help mate.
One last thing, whats the difference between AMD and Intel? is there much difference? A friend of mine said I should go for Intel, does it really matter? I've seen a lot of rigs using AMD so I'd assume not, right?
 
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