|
Answer» I'm getting a new computer soon and was wondering when they have computer systems for the "Serious Gamer" what sort of games qualify as needing that system to play well?
What are the specs of your PC you intend to get, first of all? I was going to say "But will it run Crysis" but do NOTE that Crysis (1 and 2) run perfectly fine @ 1280x1024 on a mid end dual core PC, 2 GB of RAM, and a 8800 GT, which is just a run of the mill PC. To put that in perspective the latest entry-level card of AMD, the HD 6670, equals its performance and doesn't require PCI-E 6 pin power.
What games do you want to play, on what resolution, and on which quality settings? Do you plan to game on dual monitors? I cannot tell you what games the system can play if I don't know the system in question.
Perhaps we can help you build a computer that has a higher price/performance ratio...Well I don't play like Crysis, Call Of Duty or shooter type games like that.
I'm more into RPG games like Torchlight. I would like to play The Witcher on my
new computer which does play on my lap top.
Below is the specs for the computer I plan to buy:
Item # 766219
Manufacturer # QW839AA#ABA
processor brand AMD
processor model A8 Quad-Core
memory 8 GB
hard drive capacity 1000 GB
optical drive DVD±RW/DVD-RAM/DVD±R Double Layer
operating system Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
processor speed 2.5 GHz
frontside bus speed 4.0 GT/s
memory speed PC3-10600
memory type DDR3 SDRAM
maximum memory capacity 8 GB
wireless connectivity 802.11b/g/n; Bluetooth
network connectivity 10/100/1000 Ethernet
modem no modem
ports 6 USB 2.0; 1 Ethernet; 1 DVI-D; 1 VGA 15-pin D-sub
memory card reader yes
video graphics AMD Radeon HD 6550D integrated graphics with up to 4089MB shared memory
audio hardware integrated audio, 6 speaker configurable
peripherals included USB keyboard; optical mouse
warranty length 1-year limited
model name Pavilion p7-1225
brand name HP
manufacturer Hewlett-Packard
The CPU part of the AMD A8 APU scores decently (bests the i5-2300), but the HD 6550D is somewhere between a HD 6450 and a HD 5570/6570. Not good for games. HP marketed that as a "Serious gamer" system? BAH.
I don't even think it will play The Witcher at decent resolutions...http://gamesystemrequirements.com/games.php?id=36 (7900 GTX)...
It will play Torchlight just fine, though. http://www.torchlightgame.com/faq/ (Intel GMA 950) Now that.. are some low minimum requirements.
Since you don't play shooters but play RPGs which do require slightly better graphics to render all the characters on the screen, I suggest you upgrade your graphics card to a slightly more beefier one, but one that doesn't require an external power supply.
http://www.amd.com/us/products/technologies/dual-graphics/pages/dual-graphics.aspx
If you get a HD 6670, you can combine that power with the built-in HD 6550D you have to form a HD 6690D2.
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c03186697&tmp_track_link=ot_faqs/top_issues/en_us/c03186697/loc:2&cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en&product=5230179#N352
You can upgrade-the motherboard has a PCI-E x16 slot.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102952
Sapphire Radeon HD 6670 $69.99
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-6570-radeon-hd-6670-turks,2925-6.htmlWhat about the below build: (price $990.21)
HP Pavilion HPE h8m customizable Desktop PC
A5U01AV#ABA
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium [64-bit]
AMD FX-6100 six-core processor [3.3GHz, 6MB L2/8MB L3 Cache]
8GB DDR3-1333MHz SDRAM [2 DIMMs]
1TB 7200 rpm SATA hard drive
Microsoft(R) Office Starter: reduced-functionality Word & Excel w/ ads. No PowerPoint or Outlook
SAVE $30 on Norton Internet Security(TM) 2012 - 15 month
1GB DDR5 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti [2 DVI, mini-HDMI. VGA adapter]
600W Power supply
SuperMulti DVD Burner
Integrated Ethernet port, No wireless LAN
15-in-1 memory card reader, 2 USB 2.0 (front), audio, 2 USB (top rear-facing)
No TV Tuner
Beats Audio (tm) -- integrated studio quality sound
Premium HP keyboard and optical mouse
Only draw back is that I have to have it shipped from HP.The AMD Bulldozer series does not provide optimal performance in gaming because it was designed for applications that support multiple threads.
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/amd-fx-8120-6100-4100_6.html
Absolutely abysmal. Even the i3-2120 outruns it by a fair margin. In some cases it is slower than the Pentium G860. Not good.
For that price tag you could get:
i5 2500K ($224.99)
http://cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i5-2500K+%40+3.30GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072
Best price-performance ratio now.
ECS H61H2-M2(1.0) LGA 1155 Intel H61 HDMI Micro ATX motherboard ($69.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813135288
CORSAIR Builder Series CX600 V2 600W Power supply ($69.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139028
HIS AMD Radeon HD 6850 ($139.99)
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=Radeon+HD+6850
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161384
Best price-performance ratio as of now and performs far better than the GTX 550 Ti included with the above HP PC.
ADATA XPG Gaming Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 ($47.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211457
Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache HDD ($124.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy SE 7.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface Sound Card ($29.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102003
Samsung Supermulti DVD burner ($15.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151244
Sentey Extreme Division GS-6400W - ARVINA White Steel SECC Chassis 1mm / Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case with Card Reader ($99.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811322046
GIGABYTE GK-K6800 Glossy Black USB Wired Standard Professional Multimedia Keyboard and Mouse ($18.98)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.819017
Win7 Home Premium ($189.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116716
OR
Win7 Home Premium System Builder's license ($99.99)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986
If you wanted to I guess it would be legal to get a Microsoft System Builder's version of the OS;
http://oem.microsoft.com/public/worldwide/licensing/opccomm_retail_and_coem.pdf
Quote To distribute OEM System Builder software, you must be a System Builder and accept the
System Builder License. “System Builder” means an original equipment manufacturer, an
assembler, a refurbisher, or a software preinstaller that sells the Customer System(s) to a
third-party. OEM software may ONLY be DISTRIBUTED with a fully assembled computer system. If I build this system I am an assembler, no?
Total cost: $1032.88 if Win7 retail edition/ $942.88 if Win7 System builder edition and will run all modern games at high. Has all the FEATURES of the HP system above and a nice-looking case. For Office applications you have the ad-free Openoffice. For antivirus/anti-malware/anti-spyware you have http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2388652,00.asp the best free antivirus applications of 2012.Here's a build that's on sale at Best Buy for $899.99 (its a ASUS)
1 year
Warranty Terms - Labor
1 year limited
Product Height
15.7"
Product Width
6.7"
Product Weight
18.1 lbs.
Product Depth
16"
Gaming Series
Yes
Processor Brand
Intel®
Processor
Intel® 2nd Generation Core™ i7
Processor Speed
3.4GHz (Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz)
Cache Memory
8MB on die Level 3
System Memory (RAM)
8GB
System Memory (RAM) Expandable To
16GB
Type of Memory (RAM)
DDR3
Hard Drive Type
SATA (7200 rpm)
Hard Drive Size
750GB
Graphics
NVIDIA GT 520
Video Memory
2GB
Audio
High-definition with 8-channel (7.1) support
Speakers
None
Network Card
Built-in 10/100/1000 Ethernet LAN (RJ-45 connector)
Wireless Networking
None
Recordable DVD Drive
Yes, double-layer DVD±RW/CD-RW
Recordable DVD Drive Speeds
8x DVD+R DL; 8x DVD-R DL; 16x8x16 DVD+RW; 16x6x16 DVD-RW; 5x DVD-RAM; 48x32x48 CD-RW
Direct-Disc Labeling
No
Digital Media Reader or Slots
Yes, digital media card reader
Available Expansion Bays
External: 1 (5.25"); Internal: 1 (3.5")
Available Expansion Slots
2 PCI
USB 2.0 Ports
10 (4 front, 6 rear)
Keyboard Description
USB gaming
Other Control Devices (mouse, etc.)
USB mouse
Operating System Platform
Windows
Operating System
Windows 7 Home Premium
System Version
64-bit
Software Included
Adobe Reader
ENERGY STAR Qualified
No
Best Buy PC App
Yes
HDMI Output
Yes
Blu-ray Player
No
Graphics Chip
NVIDIA
Drive Capacity
750GB
UPC
886227055562The GT 520 is rock bottom in terms of discrete graphics performance http://videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html (even the Intel HD graphics in some mobile processors outrun it...) which is far WORSE than even the aging 7900 GTX that is recommended for The Witcher.
The "2 GB of graphics RAM!!!!11!1one1!" is nothing more than a marketing gimmick.
First of all... http://www.nvidia.com/page/turbocache.html a portion of that RAM comes from your system, and second, such a weak graphics card won't be able to fully utilize that amount of RAM.
However, we should not overlook the fact that it comes with an i7-2600(not unlocked) processor and comes with a decent motherboard from the Asus H61 series too.
Say we upgraded our aforementioned custom-built PC to a i7-2600, which costs $299.99. $1107.88 if using Win7 Retail Edition, $1017.88 if using Win7 OEM Sys-builder's edition. Quite Reasonable.
Now as for the Asus PC: $899.99+ HIS AMD Radeon HD 6850 ($139.99) + CORSAIR Builder Series CX600 V2 600W Power supply ($69.99)=$1109.99 with an OEM version of Windows. Over budget, meh. Note that it has a 750 GB HDD, whereas the custom-built has a 1000 GB one.
So now its your decision. You can have the experience of building your own PC, and get a nice-looking (perhaps even a little flashy, lol) uncramped gamer case (The Asus chassis uses the Micro-ATX form factor, and I would be slightly concerned about overheating...) or you can get a compact little unobtrusive Asus case. With a smaller hard drive.
The minimum graphics card I would opt for is a HD 5850/GTX 460/560 that will give you a measure of future-proofing.
http://www.dell.com/us/p/alienware-x51/fs I normally don't recommend Alienware computers, but the X51 with the i5-2320, GTX 555, 1 TB HDD, 6 GB RAM seems particularly appropriate for our budget... ($949.99) and has WiFi N too... but I wouldn't get the GT 545 version.It should be noted that The Witcher was optimized rather poorly, so even on a decent system, it still may not run very smoothly.
|
