Upgrade Advice

[MutenJoshi]

Hi

I've got 2 computers, one desktop and one laptop (Razer Blade 15 - base model - I think 2018 but specs below). I am looking to get an ultra wide monitor for gaming (preferably on ultra details) but I would also like to get a HTC Vive down the line. Optionally, 4K gaming too since that'll be the standard.

Does anyone know much about the Razer Core external GPU dock? If I was to invest in one of them and get a better external GPU, could I run VR from my laptop or would my CPU etc be too poor?

Although my specs for my desktop are below, I'm expecting it to be well below par since it was a custom build 6 years ago. If it needs minor adjustments then great but would I be better starting a new build? This is obviously assuming my laptop isn't up to the job.

Long story short, would just an external GPU be sufficient on my laptop with the Razer Core or is the other hardware too weak for ultrawide gaming and VR? If a desktop is needed, what upgrades would I need to look at? Would I need to start a new desktop build from scratch? With any of the options, what would I need to spend roughly?

What would be the best way to go?

Laptop Specs:

CPU - i7-8750H
RAM - 16 GB DDR4-2666 MHz
GPU - GeForce GTX 1060
Storage - 128 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD

Desktop Specs:

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K @ 3.40GHz, 4 Cores
RAM: Corsair CMX8GX3M2A1600C9 XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600 Mhz
SSD: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB
HDD: 1TB
GPU: ASUS GTX670-DC2OG-2GD5 VGA - 2GB
Motherboard: MSI Z87-G45-GAMING MOBO

 

[LuckyBenski]

In my opinion the laptop should be at a decent spec to try VR gaming now. Certainly a GTX 970 was workable when VR came along, and the 1060 is similar. One caveat is that the laptop thermal and power limits (i.e. how hot it gets and if it's limited by being laptop parts) might hold it back.

You haven't mentioned which resolution ultrawide - 2560x1080 should be fine on your GPU. 3440 x 1440 might be a stretch as that's considerably more pixels - also depends on desired framerate.

In my opinion the eGPU is only a solution if you absolutely DEMAND portability. There's a serious price premium - like £250 - just for the enclosure. That could be the difference between a 2070 and a 2080 in desktop graphics. For the price of a dock and graphics card you could probably upgrade your desktop CPU/board/RAM and graphics too.

That said, your CPU and RAM in both machines look ok for now - why not buy the screen you want and try the laptop. If that doesn't satisfy you, buy a graphics card for the desktop. See how you like performance then. The key message is buy the things you know you want first, then gauge performance. If you buy an eGPU and find the laptop still can't keep up, that'd be a shame.

 

[MutenJoshi]

In my opinion the laptop should be at a decent spec to try VR gaming now. Certainly a GTX 970 was workable when VR came along, and the 1060 is similar. One caveat is that the laptop thermal and power limits (i.e. how hot it gets and if it's limited by being laptop parts) might hold it back.

You haven't mentioned which resolution ultrawide - 2560x1080 should be fine on your GPU. 3440 x 1440 might be a stretch as that's considerably more pixels - also depends on desired framerate.

In my opinion the eGPU is only a solution if you absolutely DEMAND portability. There's a serious price premium - like £250 - just for the enclosure. That could be the difference between a 2070 and a 2080 in desktop graphics. For the price of a dock and graphics card you could probably upgrade your desktop CPU/board/RAM and graphics too.

That said, your CPU and RAM in both machines look ok for now - why not buy the screen you want and try the laptop. If that doesn't satisfy you, buy a graphics card for the desktop. See how you like performance then. The key message is buy the things you know you want first, then gauge performance. If you buy an eGPU and find the laptop still can't keep up, that'd be a shame.

Thanks very much for your reply, really appreciate it. I guess I need to do as you say and, instead of second guessing what I need in future, buy VR and the monitor and work out what I need then.

The monitor is a 3840 x 1080 - 49". I'd be fine with 30 fps as it'd mainly be for single player games. I wouldn't really want to play competitively online on such a big monitor. It'd be mainly for the likes of total war, fallout, skyrim etc. If I can play next gen elder scrolls, it'd be great but that can be a future upgrade if needed.

I by no means demand portability, since I do have a desktop but it'd be ideal to be able to use the laptop on the monitor so I'm not reliant on what will soon be an old desktop.

 

[orbitalwalsh]

Hi

I've got 2 computers, one desktop and one laptop (Razer Blade 15 - base model - I think 2018 but specs below). I am looking to get an ultra wide monitor for gaming (preferably on ultra details) but I would also like to get a HTC Vive down the line. Optionally, 4K gaming too since that'll be the standard.

Does anyone know much about the Razer Core external GPU dock? If I was to invest in one of them and get a better external GPU, could I run VR from my laptop or would my CPU etc be too poor?

Although my specs for my desktop are below, I'm expecting it to be well below par since it was a custom build 6 years ago. If it needs minor adjustments then great but would I be better starting a new build? This is obviously assuming my laptop isn't up to the job.

Long story short, would just an external GPU be sufficient on my laptop with the Razer Core or is the other hardware too weak for ultrawide gaming and VR? If a desktop is needed, what upgrades would I need to look at? Would I need to start a new desktop build from scratch? With any of the options, what would I need to spend roughly?

What would be the best way to go?

Laptop Specs:

CPU - i7-8750H
RAM - 16 GB DDR4-2666 MHz
GPU - GeForce GTX 1060
Storage - 128 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD

Desktop Specs:

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K @ 3.40GHz, 4 Cores
RAM: Corsair CMX8GX3M2A1600C9 XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600 Mhz
SSD: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB
HDD: 1TB
GPU: ASUS GTX670-DC2OG-2GD5 VGA - 2GB
Motherboard: MSI Z87-G45-GAMING MOBO

Gigabyte do gaming boxes, pricing isn't to bad as box gets a slight bundle discount

AORUS RTX 2070 GAMING BOX

they were about £600 - todays prices thats £400 RTX 2070 + £200 for the eGPU box . With the sizing of it though you'd be left to being ITX/smaller versions of stand Alone GPUs at a later point

 

[LuckyBenski]

Gigabyte do gaming boxes, pricing isn't to bad as box gets a slight bundle discount

AORUS RTX 2070 GAMING BOX

they were about £600 - todays prices thats £400 RTX 2070 + £200 for the eGPU box . With the sizing of it though you'd be left to being ITX/smaller versions of stand Alone GPUs at a later point

That's a great point - if you DO get along with the eGPU concept, you can upgrade the card on the setup easily

3840x1080 is... Double wide?! Ultrawide is usually 21:9, 3840x1080 is 32:9 so very very wide aspect ratio. Don't know how game compatibility tends to be on that ratio. Gives you options I guess.

 

[MutenJoshi]

That's a great point - if you DO get along with the eGPU concept, you can upgrade the card on the setup easily

3840x1080 is... Double wide?! Ultrawide is usually 21:9, 3840x1080 is 32:9 so very very wide aspect ratio. Don't know how game compatibility tends to be on that ratio. Gives you options I guess.

Well the more I've been thinking about it, the more I think the cost (£750) for the monitor might be a bit silly for me. I currently only have a 24" monitor so guessing a normal ultra wide would still be a big jump for me? Could you recommend a decent ultra wide monitor? I'd be fine with 1080. I'd probably look to spend (ideally) no more than £500 but preferably less. If its the equivalent height of a 27", I could then look to add side monitors in the future. I was looking at the Samsung CHG90 initially.

 

[LuckyBenski]

Well the height of a 27" 16:9 monitor is 13.2". This correlates to a 21:9 monitor size of 33.5"

Handy calculator here:

http://screen-size.info

Can't recommend monitors as I tend to buy second hand so I'm not too knowledgeable