Returning to pc gaming

BigDools · 7 Apr 2014 at 22:06

Hi all I used to use this site a lot about 10 year ago so I'm hoping everyone's still friendly

I'm looking to get back into pc gaming since I've seen my younger brother playing arma 2 and dayz standalone and had ago myself. Some recommendations would be good ,I've got some old gear like :-
Antec 900 gaming case
Corsair 620w atx modular sli compliant psu
I'm just wondering if I could save some money using the above as a starting point ?

BigDools · 7 Apr 2014 at 22:32

Thanks for the reply I should have said I'm ok for screen/keyboard/mouse etc those can be updated in time my screen samsung sm 206bw 20" another dated item but it will do for now.
I've also got :-
Noctua nhu12p CPU cooler socket am2/lga775
Samsung spinpoint 160gb Sata 2 hd
Samsung DVD rw
Window vista home 64 bit

Would the cooler be any good ? I know the hd is a little dated but keeping in mind this pc will only run games like arma etc It should be ok ? I was against using vista but I read that an up to date vista sp2 is as good as 7 is this wrong .

Please be brutally honest I can take it

Thanks

BigDools · 8 Apr 2014 at 06:25

some great specs there thanks for that .

im still trying to work on budget i was thinking as cheap as possible to play arma 3 and dayz standalone as im not heavy into pc gaming . but now that im looking im starting to get the bug i might have to slap myself a few times. i need to have a good think t be more helpful haha . just a quick question regarding gfx cards ive noticed you have gone for ati is this the prefered option right now or is this just down to budget ive used both ndvidia and ati in the past and im ok with both

BigDools · 9 Apr 2014 at 10:40

Been thinking about budget and £800 is my max .

Going to reuse :-
Antec 900 gaming case
Corsair 620w atx modular sli compliant psu
Samsung spinpoint 160gb Sata 2 hd
Window vista home 64 bit (i have the dvd) may upgrade what is the best os atm?

so i will need gfx/ram/mobo/cpu/cooler/SSD and possible os depending on price and if its really worth it .

Based on this what would you go for ?

Regards

BigDools · 9 Apr 2014 at 11:48

It has been in my current pc sitting in a cupboard , not long before I put it away it was replaced under warranty so it's pretty much not had much use . It's running is there anyway I can check voltages or anything just to check the numbers are right ?

BigDools · 10 Apr 2014 at 13:27

YOUR BASKET
1 x Sapphire Radeon R9 280X Dual-X OC 3072MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Card £239.99
1 x Intel Core i5-4670K 3.40GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £167.99
1 x Samsung 250GB SSD 840 EVO SATA 6Gb/s Basic - (MZ-7TE250BW) £119.99
1 x Gigabyte Z87X-D3H Intel Z87 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £99.95
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02733) £73.99
1 x TeamGroup Vulcan ORANGE 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLAD38G2400HC11CDC01) £55.99
1 x Thermalright HR-02 Macho CPU Cooler £39.98
1 x OcUK 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £19.99
Total : £827.47 (includes shipping : £8.00).

Anyone heard anything bad about the mobo listed^ ive seen a mixed review on a few sites , anything worth changing or have i missed anything will that cpu cooler come with paste ? hope im not being ott just to play abit of dayz and arma3 haha

Thanks

BigDools · 11 Apr 2014 at 07:15

cmndr_andi said:
Aye, the R9 290 is a fantastic card - especially with one of the good custom coolers (like this one).

However, it is £100 more expensive. If the OP can afford this extra then he should absolutely get it, but if he can't then I wouldn't suggest sacrificing other components to afford the 290.

Plus the R9 280X is still a really nice card that can power through any game at 1080p and make it look amazing (speaking as a guy with a HD 7970).

ive been tempted by that R9 280X but my original concerns were my Antec 900 case im just concerned about the space and if everything will fit , its an old case but i like it and would rather not spend more money on another one ..... if it would fit though i think i could wait until i have more funds and get the r9 280x .

BigDools · 1 Jun 2014 at 20:29

Hi,

This will probably get revived over the next few months as I decided to wait for the new boards and cpu's I'm tempted to go with:-

Sapphire Radeon R9 290X Tri-X 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (11226-03-40G)
Gigabyte Z97X-SOC Force Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard **Overclockers UK Exclusive**

Total : £564.54

Can anyone give me any ideas on memory I'm going with a black and orange theme so keeping that in mind what do you suggest ? I read a great review on the gfx card that stulid done but I might go for a cheaper gfx in the end

BigDools · 17 Jun 2014 at 18:49

YOUR BASKET
1 x Sapphire Radeon R9 290 Tri-X OC 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (11227-00-40G) £329.99
1 x Intel Core i5-4670K 3.40GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £173.99
1 x Gigabyte Z97X-Gaming 5 Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £119.99
1 x Samsung 250GB SSD 840 EVO SATA 6Gb/s Basic - (MZ-7TE250BW) £114.98
1 x Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614) £74.99
1 x Kingston HyperX 8GB (2x4GB) PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit - Black/Red (HX24C11BRK2/8-OC) £67.99
2 x Corsair AF120 Quiet Edition Low Noise High Airflow - Dual Pack (CO-9050002-WW) £22 (£44.00)
Total : £935.52 (includes shipping : £8.00).

Hi all,

after the above posts here is what i went with , i have hit a slight problem but not a huge one as mentioned in above posts im using my trusty Corsair HX 620 psu (cmpsu-620hxuk) but i have misplaced most of the cables ive just been putting bits together and got to fitting my gfx card and realised i don't have a 8 pin PCIe cable so im now stuck. with the 290x you have to fit a 4 pin and a 8 pin . im now thinking of just buying a new set of psu cables maybe red braided can anyone give me any recommendations?

thanks

BigDools · 17 Jun 2014 at 18:59

YOUR BASKET
1 x BitFenix Alchemy Cable Bundle - Red £21.95
Total : £24.92 (includes shipping : £2.48).

im thinking these would be a start but the website does not state the length of the cables

BigDools · 17 Jun 2014 at 19:06

do you know if they have support in the uk ?

BigDools · 20 Jun 2014 at 08:29

YOUR BASKET
1 x Seasonic M12II EVO Edition 850W '80 Plus Bronze' Fully Modular Power Supply £89.99
Total : £99.59 (includes shipping : £8.00).

Decided to just get a new psu this should be fine to run the above specs ? might add another R9 290 later in the year will it be fine for 2x 290s?