[Before I purchase] Budget Gaming Rig

Ollie1132 said:
Just edit them out and no harm done :)
Click to expand...

Done.

As for the list above. The i3 (very good processor) is a good £20 more expensive than the Phenom x4, and if I overclock the AMD to 3.8ghz then i'll be getting the same gaming results as the i3, but with the safety of a quad core for 2012+ games.

My biggest worry is my CPU not being able to run games well, even if I have the correct specs for them simply because they are designed for quad cores and up. After being a laptop user for so long this is a constant nightmare and one i'd rather avoid.
So frustrating having above recommended system requirements for loads of games, but the games no being configured for use on intergrated graphics. Therefore, runs like a 3 legged dog with a limp. Damn laptops.

Also heard really bad things about Cooler Master psu's, so for my own sake i'm avoiding them. OCZ are highly recommended to me by numerous gamers so i'll take their word for it, and pay extra for peace of mind.

Also i'd like to make a note regarding the above list, cutting down on the GPU to slightly raise the CPU is backwards for gaming.

I'd sooner pay £20 more for the HD6870 than for the i3.

That said, I very much appreciate the time and effort put into the list. I've been umming and arring over setups for weeks now and i'm loving seeing all the options for gaming rigs you can legitimately create for sub-£500.

Seems to be a good market for budget rigs at the moment.

One thing I can agree with though, is yes, I would rather be on the 1155 socket. BUT, AMD has 2-3 years to come up with SOMETHING in the region of an i5/i7 (in performance) that doesn't have costs through the roof.

If they can't, then i'll be swapping out the Mobo with the Cpu.

-=-=-=-

EDIT

How does one share a shopping cart?
 
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The i3 is a dual core but performs as well as AMDs X4s (i provided the link). The AMD CPU uses more power than sandybridge nevermind Ivybridge, overclocking makes this even worse. Overclocking the AMD will help it's media encoding performance but the quicksync tech on the intel chip I think you'll find is a better option.

The 6850 can be overclocked too remember. I'd take a nvidia 460 over the 6870 myself for the added cuda support, HBAO lighting and i prefer the nvidia drivers. I spec'd the 6850 as it was a good budget gaming card for the price, the Z77 mobos MVP will help boost FPS further....you don't get that on the AM3+ mobo.

I'm not anti AMD, my HTPC is the phenom II 555BE (yes it unlocked to an X4). I currently run it as a dual core alongside an OC'd 460 and it plays BF3 on high-ultra settings just fine on my 42 inch 3DTV. I can OC the CPU to 4ghz if i want extra oompf. I'm reusing it because i already owned it.....I wouldn't buy into AMD over intel now.
 
Oh for sure, I have no doubts whatsoever that the i3 is the better cpu right now.

But it is a dual core, and 2012 games are the start of games being based on quad cores, therefore favouring quad cores.

And as I can't afford an Intel Quad core, the next best thing is the Athlon x4.
 
YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3450 3.10GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £149.99
1 x MSI HD 6850 OC 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £83.99
1 x Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKX) £57.98
1 x Gigabyte H61MA-D3V Intel H61 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £47.99
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £41.99
1 x Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (BLS2CP4G3D1609DS1S00CEU) £41.99
1 x BitFenix Merc Beta Gaming Case - Black £31.99
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
Total : £488.00 (includes shipping : £11.75).



Not far off my price on the last spec but this has a quadcore IB processor. You seem to have found some good prices elsewhere so it is possible to get an intel quadcore.
 
honosuseri said:
YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3450 3.10GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £149.99
1 x MSI HD 6850 OC 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £83.99
1 x Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKX) £57.98
1 x Gigabyte H61MA-D3V Intel H61 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £47.99
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £41.99
1 x Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (BLS2CP4G3D1609DS1S00CEU) £41.99
1 x BitFenix Merc Beta Gaming Case - Black £31.99
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
Total : £488.00 (includes shipping : £11.75).



Not far off my price on the last spec but this has a quadcore IB processor. You seem to have found some good prices elsewhere so it is possible to get an intel quadcore.
Click to expand...

Maybe with some tweaking that might get under budget, thanks for the list.

One last night before money arrives to toy with an i5 list then I suppose.
 
CorrodedTemplar said:
Oh for sure, I have no doubts whatsoever that the i3 is the better cpu right now.

But it is a dual core, and 2012 games are the start of games being based on quad cores, therefore favouring quad cores.

And as I can't afford an Intel Quad core, the next best thing is the Athlon x4.
Click to expand...

Bare in mind the i3 also has hyperthreading, which helps with multi-threaded applications (e.g. future games designed for quad cores).

Also, see here for sharing baskets:
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18371076

Would you consider second hand? You should be able to pick up a 2500K for a reasonable price.
 
No I won't consider second hand. This is the first time in 6 years i've had a chance to really spend triple digits on anything, i'm owning something new! lol.

Thank you for the info on sharing baskets :)

Good point on the hyperthreading.

It's going to be a long night tonight deciding on i3 sandybridge or Athlon x4. Both have comparable gaming figures, but the i3 is better outside of games.
 
CorrodedTemplar said:
No I won't consider second hand. This is the first time in 6 years i've had a chance to really spend triple digits on anything, i'm owning something new! lol.

Thank you for the info on sharing baskets :)

Good point on the hyperthreading.

It's going to be a long night tonight deciding on i3 sandybridge or Athlon x4. Both have comparable gaming figures, but the i3 is better outside of games.
Click to expand...

Yeah I see the dilemma. However, you saying " i'm owning something new", wouldn't that sway you to the i3? Better performance per clock, more efficient and newer :p

I very much approve of reading a ton of reviews - I always do before buying anything!
 
If I went to the i3, I'd probably convince myself to go for an i5 quad core.

At which point my missus doesn't get that new engagement ring as the extra £££'s disappear on CPUs haha.

I think its a matter of "settle for decent, or spoil yourself". Your avatar is very convincing.
 
CorrodedTemplar said:
If I went to the i3, I'd probably convince myself to go for an i5 quad core.

At which point my missus doesn't get that new engagement ring as the extra £££'s disappear on CPUs haha.

I think its a matter of "settle for decent, or spoil yourself". Your avatar is very convincing.
Click to expand...

Haha! This is always the problem... " but this much better thing is only slightly more..." and before you know it you spend twice as much :p

Any closer to a decision? So many choices!
 
Its 11.19pm, Yesterday I had to peel myself from reviews at well past 1am.

The night of deciding is still young, and the funds are still safely locked out of reach, i'm glad I can't access them until after "the sleep of sense".

I can see me going for the more affordable AMD package.. But I am prone to "**** it" moments of stupidity.
 
**** it moments are the best... I got drunk and upset over something ended up coming home and adding my PC in my sig to my shopping basket and ordered it... haven't regretted it since xD
 
Haha yeah I saw that in another of your posts.

The biggest "**** it" problem is.. £400 extra cash is sitting there waiting to pay off some debt before I move out.

Now that really would be a dangerous move xD
 
Building is so fun :) I can't wait to get out of university... somewhat tempted to apply to OCUk when I do... whilst looking for a games programming job xD
 
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