Cheapo BF3 Build

Stav_13 · 30 Nov 2011 at 10:40

Hi All,

I have been for the last couple of months trying to build a new PC from fixing others and finding FOC kit from people. This is all being done for BF3 and so far I have;

ASUS Motherboard with Q6600 (which is running around 3.2) with artic cooler
Kingston 4 GB DDR2 2 x 2 Gb 1066 MHz PC2 8500
Standard PSU and 500GB Maxtor HDD

I have an old 2600xt card running at the moment but from looking into BF3 this card wont work. I have a nice 17" TFT screen so wont be running any stupid sized resolutions but would like to get the graphics up to a decent level (Medium) can someone let me know what sort of GFX card I would be looking at?

So far I have only spent £10 (in petrol) to get all of the above so don't really want to spend any more than £150 in total which includes the game so £110 max!

Thanks

Stav

Cupra · 30 Nov 2011 at 10:51

a gtx 460 second hand would sort you out but it would need to be 1gb then you would need to find the rest of the parts free

Buchanan0204 · 30 Nov 2011 at 12:15

You will need to make sure the PSU is capable of running a powerful card? What's it rated for? What make is it?

A £100> card isn't a great idea with a cheapo PSU.

Loke · 30 Nov 2011 at 12:16

I second the PSU message, get a decent PSU, as someone who once had an el cheapo PSU blow up during a LAN weekend I know how painful it can be!

Buchanan0204 · 30 Nov 2011 at 12:20

What about the case?

mp260767 · 30 Nov 2011 at 12:43

as per Buchanan any details on the psu make/model etc.

graphics card wise have a look at the 6770 or 6850.

Stav_13 · 30 Nov 2011 at 14:35

not sure on the make but does have a 6 pin though, i used it for my 2900xtx ages ago. Pretty sure its over 500W.

Case wise I'm not decided, either go down the local tip ..... always see them there or it will sit somewhere with a cake keeper around it with some holes

until I can find something to house it.

Buchanan0204 · 30 Nov 2011 at 14:41

Stav_13 said:
not sure on the make but does have a 6 pin though, i used it for my 2900xtx ages ago. Pretty sure its over 500W.

Case wise I'm not decided, either go down the local tip ..... always see them there or it will sit somewhere with a cake keeper around it with some holes until I can find something to house it.

You can get cheap cases for less than 20 quid delivered. Surely that would be better than using something that's rusted and scrapped.

Pohly · 30 Nov 2011 at 16:02

OcUK ATI Radeon HD 6850 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
£99.95
(£83.29)

OcUK Flamingo FM-12A Midi Tower Case - Black/Blue
£21.98
(£18.32)

Sub Total : £101.61
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
FREE SHIPPING (DPD Next Day)
(This can be changed during checkout)
Shipping : FREE
VAT is being charged at 20.00%
VAT : £20.32
Total : £121.93

you should be able to find bf3 for £30 so that gives you £120. the case is nothing fance but nice and cheap

a 6850 should be able to run bf3 on med/high settings on a 17" monitor

you can get the case with red or blue fans (both are the same price)

or you can spend an extra tenner and get this one comes with more fans
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-057-OP

Stav_13 · 30 Nov 2011 at 19:11

Well, i have just sourced;

5 x Akasa AK-183-L2B Amber Ultra Quiet 120mm Fan - 3 pin
1 x Zalaman 5 channel Fan controller
1 x DL DVD writer
1 x HP ML110 case which was hit in a ram raid (slightly bent but will bend back)

Also got my dremel out :cool:

and going to make some holes for the 120mm fans

£ spent tonight = £0.00

Im looking at either a GTX 460 second hand or a 6850 new ...... little unsure but cant fingure out if i can flash a 6850 to a 6870 ... is it possible?

I think that if I flash it it'll void the warranty so i might as well hold out and find a good priced GTX 460? what do you guys think?

Cheers for the advice so far .... how i miss this forum!

Stav

Stav_13 · 30 Nov 2011 at 19:12

Pohly said:
OcUK ATI Radeon HD 6850 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
£99.95
(£83.29)

OcUK Flamingo FM-12A Midi Tower Case - Black/Blue
£21.98
(£18.32)

Sub Total : £101.61
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
FREE SHIPPING (DPD Next Day)
(This can be changed during checkout)
Shipping : FREE
VAT is being charged at 20.00%
VAT : £20.32
Total : £121.93

you should be able to find bf3 for £30 so that gives you £120. the case is nothing fance but nice and cheap a 6850 should be able to run bf3 on med/high settings on a 17" monitor

you can get the case with red or blue fans (both are the same price)

or you can spend an extra tenner and get this one comes with more fans
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-057-OP

been there done that .... not a fan of colours, after a H2O setup with UV and full on lighting im now a bit more grown up and fancy quiet and sleek lol how boring eh!

Stav

Pohly · 30 Nov 2011 at 20:23

Stav_13 said:
been there done that .... not a fan of colours, after a H2O setup with UV and full on lighting im now a bit more grown up and fancy quiet and sleek lol how boring eh!

Stav

I'm the same I just choice that one because it was the cheapest

And as with your post about unlocking a 6850 im not sure you can but you could easily oc it to near 6870 levels

as you can see the 6850 tends to perform slightly better than a 460 so i would only get the 460 if you can find one <£80 if not i would get the 6850 it uses a lot less power toohttp://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/291?vs=313

Stav_13 · 1 Dec 2011 at 08:32

Well just checked the PSU and its a seasonic s-12 500 watt, looks like it has two seperate rails, each have 6-pin and 8-pin connectors.

Any ideas?

mp260767 · 1 Dec 2011 at 10:03

that will be fine, decent psu's.

i'd go for which ever one of the 460/6850 you can find thats the cheapest.

Stav_13 · 1 Dec 2011 at 16:46

Ok,

cheers for the help