Gaming Pc

ussjtrunks

I'm looking around at the mo for a gaming pc
I have no knowledge of building a pc so Id rather have one bought from like dell etc, I have a budget of €1500 and I'd like the pc to have hdmi and be easily upgradeable with a new grapics card maybe in a years time

what would ye recommend, I was looking at this http://ireland.dell.com/ie/en/home/Desktops/alienware-aurora/pd.aspx?refid=alienware-aurora&s=dhs&cs=iedhs1 but I have no idea how good the grapics card / processer are.

leninbenjamin

ussjtrunks wrote: »

I have no knowledge of building a pc

We all had no knowledge at some point. It's fairly easy and can save you lots when it comes to high end builds. I'd do a bit of research on it if i were you before ruling it out entirely. This series of video's on youtube isn't a bad place to start.

ussjtrunks wrote: »

what would ye recommend, I was looking at this http://ireland.dell.com/ie/en/home/Desktops/alienware-aurora/pd.aspx?refid=alienware-aurora&s=dhs&cs=iedhs1 but I have no idea how good the grapics card / processer are.

Dell are great for cheap and cheerful, but their high end stuff is very over priced. That graphics card isn't weak, but it isn't particularly strong either. I see overclockers.co.uk will spec a similar machine for about €1100 (and they are known for being dear enough themselves).

Farcear

ussjtrunks wrote: »

I'm looking around at the mo for a gaming pc
I have no knowledge of building a pc so Id rather have one bought from like dell etc, I have a budget of €1500 and I'd like the pc to have hdmi and be easily upgradeable with a new grapics card maybe in a years time

If you go the build-it-yourself route, for €1,500 you can get yourself an awesome machine including a 22/24" HD monitor.

As the previous poster said, the problem with Dell is that they are not great for high-end machines. They add about a €300 price premium above what you would pay if you just built it yourself.

Solitaire

Farcear wrote: »

As the previous poster said, the problem with Dell is that they are not great for high-end machines. They add about a €300 price premium above what you would pay if you just built it yourself.

For the base build. Then add another €300 for a decent video card. And another €300 for a decent warranty :P

LB has the right idea; if you want to play games on a PC the OEM situation is dire enough to make learning how to put together a PC (not a particularly difficult task) a very wise course of action. €1500 can buy you a killer rig, or an average OEM-built one. Your choice.

DECEiFER

http://www.hardwareversand.de
(http://www3.hardwareversand.de/pcconfigurator.jsp?lid=2 for the PC Configurator English language page)

You can build a custom PC there, for less than you'd pay in Ireland. Their site has a system builder wizard and you can pick out the various parts that you'll need. It limits your choices, like for example, if you choose an i7 CPU, the motherboard choices will only show the supported boards that have Socket 1336 for the i7. They'll also build it for you, at a fee of €20. That option will appear at the end of the wizard once you've finalized your choices.

lmimmfn

i agree with the rest, it really is handy enough to build your own rig, especially if you get recommendations for parts and that they are compatible here etc.

Its great experience to build your own, and really satisfying

Dell charge a fortune in comparison to what you can build yourself, besides if you break anything you can just RMA it, i blew 2 mobos overclocking before( POS mobos ), 1 after the other, lol, got them replaced no problem.

Farcear

lmimmfn wrote: »

i agree with the rest, it really is handy enough to build your own rig, especially if you get recommendations for parts and that they are compatible here etc.

Its great experience to build your own, and really satisfying

Dell charge a fortune in comparison to what you can build yourself, besides if you break anything you can just RMA it, i blew 2 mobos overclocking before( POS mobos ), 1 after the other, lol, got them replaced no problem.

I was under the impression overclocking voided the warranty...

lmimmfn

Farcear wrote: »

I was under the impression overclocking voided the warranty...

yes if you buy prebuilt, no if you build your own as you can just RMA, unless you really destroy things where its obvious you were overclocking. Ive also RMA'd a CPU( related to issues with those POS mobos that i blew ).

Effluo

hardwareversand.de would be a great option for you.
They build it for you for only 10 or 20 euro not to mention they have some of the best prices in europe!

You'll get way more for your money.

I'd spec a build for you but i'm wrecked.

DECEiFER

Farcear wrote: »

I was under the impression overclocking voided the warranty...

Unless your components have properly visible burn marks, then you should be OK. Just don't tell anyone.

DECEiFER

I've done a build mock-up for you, ussjtrunks.

Here's what you can get for just over €1,500 on Hardwareversand. It's also inclusive of the €20 they charge to build it for you, but exclusive of shipping.






EDIT: OK, so I did a re-think and managed to skim on some non-essential performance bits that, which brough the price up. In doing so, I was able to give you TWO video cards to work in Crossfire, and all at a lesser total than my first mock-up. All I sacrificed was the case, monitor, and the keyboard. I went from an Antec Twelve Hundred to an Antec Nine Hundred. The monitor I originally chose was a TV also (23"), so I managed to get that down to a 22" standalone monitor. They keyboard isn't a G15 anymore, but if you don't need a G15, then it's just a waste of money anyhow. I kept the CPU and I kept the higher performance RAM, and all the other high-performance essentials.






Both builds included speakers; "Logitech X230 2.1 System" on the first, "Creative Inspire A300" on the second.

The DVD Writer on both builds is the same, but is not clear from the spec shots I have posted. It's SATA and goes under, "LG GH22NS50 bare schwarz".

lmimmfn

DECEiFER wrote: »

I've done a build mock-up for you, ussjtrunks.

Here's what you can get for just over €1,500 on Hardwareversand. It's also inclusive of the €20 they charge to build it for you, but exclusive of shipping

Id actually recommend a 5770 for 147Euro rather than a 4890 for the simple fact its DX11 and at a later stage( when theyre cheaper ) can add 1 more and that crossfire setup would be faster than a 5870. Upto OP though, 4890 is still a great card.

DECEiFER

lmimmfn wrote: »

Id actually recommend a 5770 for 147Euro rather than a 4890 for the simple fact its DX11 and at a later stage( when theyre cheaper ) can add 1 more and that crossfire setup would be faster than a 5870. Upto OP though, 4890 is still a great card.

Good point, and since it's up to the OP, I made another modification to my mock-up with the 5770 in there. Well, two of them. I modified my previous post to include a second mock-up with two 4890's, and I explained where I found the extra leeway in the budget to do it without it costing more.


Here's the third mock-up with the two 5770 cards. They cost less than the 4890's, so I was able to give you a Logitech G11 keyboard this time. The G15 would cost ~€20 more than the G11, if you're interested.






My previous posts explains some of the items there that might be unclear in the spec shots.

leninbenjamin

lmimmfn wrote: »

Id actually recommend a 5770 for 147Euro rather than a 4890 for the simple fact its DX11 and at a later stage( when theyre cheaper ) can add 1 more and that crossfire setup would be faster than a 5870. Upto OP though, 4890 is still a great card.

and there are like 3 DX11 games out. And not even 10 confirmed for next year. Pissing money down the drain imo...

DECEiFER

leninbenjamin wrote: »

and there are like 3 DX11 games out. And not even 10 confirmed for next year. Pissing money down the drain imo...

The standard 5770's available were cheaper than the factory overclocked 4890's I chose. I'd probably get the 4890's, though. They are a better card, outside of the almost non-existent DX11 realm.

lmimmfn

leninbenjamin wrote: »

and there are like 3 DX11 games out. And not even 10 confirmed for next year. Pissing money down the drain imo...

completely disagree, why buy the top of the range cpu & mobo and have your gfx running on last years technology?

I for one wouldnt be impressed if someone recommended an i7 rig, i spend 1500euro on it, only to find my core 2 mates are getting better gfx.
Again though, its not my monet and its entirely upto the OP but the crossfire option is the way to go with 5770's.

I got a 5850 because i want something thats future proof, the same reason i went i7. It'll at least be 2 years before we get a enw DX version. DX10 was a dud, dx11 will do a lot better for the simple fact that its available on Win7 & Vista whereas DX10 required a vista upgrade. Not only that from the DX11 benchmarks already available for Dirt 2, DX11 is nothing like DX10, Dire 2 ~ 1680x1200 with AA nad AF( cant remember the settings averages, i think it was 4xAA and 8xAF on ultra settings ) between 45-50FPS on a 5870, compare that with the 33FPS that we got with lost planet and 8800GTX's( which cost 400-450euro on release ).

DECEiFER

Note that the P6T SE board does not support SLI with Nvidia, but only Crossfire X with ATI. So using multiple Nvidia cards is a no-go with it. You can get the ordinary P6T if you want to go SLI. The P6T SE support single Nividia cards alright, but just be careful for the future. If you think that in a few years to come you'll need SLI support, maybe get a board that supports it today, such as the P6T (~€28 more than the P6T SE). Just a heads-up.

ussjtrunks

I dont need an monitor as im going to be using my lcd as my monitor, just need the grapics card to support hdmi out and 1920x1080 resolution.
+ I would rather get a grapics card that was futre proof even if it costs a bit moe, and im also worried that if i buy an sli / crossfire grapics card I wont be able to upgrade to a single card easily.
oh ya and id like to be able to upgrade to a bluray drive in the future too

jonny72

ussjtrunks wrote: »

I dont need an monitor as im going to be using my lcd as my monitor, just need the grapics card to support hdmi out and 1920x1080 resolution.
+ I would rather get a grapics card that was futre proof even if it costs a bit moe, and im also worried that if i buy an sli / crossfire grapics card I wont be able to upgrade to a single card easily.
oh ya and id like to be able to upgrade to a bluray drive in the future too

A bluray drive is 100 euros, you can include it in your PC now.

With inexperienced builders/pc users, they honestly wouldn't feel the difference between a good 600 euro PC and a 1500 euro PC.

Building etc will save you more money but perhaps you don't want any of that hassle and just want a good pre-built ready to go PC. If so, yah I would recommend www.overclockers.co.uk for that.

However if you do want to save money and have a custom PC (the best components, blueray, best 1 tb harddrive, etc) hardwareversand will build it for you, but they will also install and activate windows for you for an extra charge, which basically means that when you receive the PC it will be ready to go.

A 1500 euro PC will be about 10% or so faster than a 1000 euro PC so bear that in mind.

ussjtrunks

A 1500 euro PC will be about 10% or so faster than a 1000 euro PC so bear that in mind.

Its gaming performance and furture proofing i want though

leninbenjamin

lmimmfn wrote: »

completely disagree, why buy the top of the range cpu & mobo and have your gfx running on last years technology?

or you can look at it as why spend top dollar on your CPU and Mobo and have a graphics card that runs 20% slower than the alternatives in you price bracket?

secondly, the rate of acceleration in graphics hardware performance is actually much higher than the CPU, so it makes more sense to factor in an upgrade the graphics card once or twice over the life of the CPU.

Buy a reference 4890 now imo (which can be had for as little as €143). Skip this generation of DX11 cards (no one ever knows how they perform) and wait til Nvidia re-enter the market in a year or two's time and DX11 actually becomes a relevant piece of technology for game developers.

ussjtrunks wrote: »

Its gaming performance and furture proofing i want though

no such thing as a future proof PC

swirlser

Dells smells


http://www.kobaltcomputers.co.uk/

You will get more for your money from Kobalt too (plus they use standard components = easily upgradable). Altho you will get even more for your money if you self-build, particularly if you buy from bargkinshmargkin.net, but there are enough ppl around to convince you of that :eek:

<--- Is a happy kobalt customer

There is such a thing as future proof*, in a year (or more) time, name a game I wont be able to shoot down in flames (without needing to touch my current rig o.O). If it is a case of not being able to play it on completely max settings, then only the latest quad-sli grand-odd solution could sort - which hardly equates to a sore loss for me...


*(limited to a couple of years)

Leman_Russ

leninbenjamin wrote: »

no such thing as a future proof PC

QFT. Even People who get one of the new cool i7s are outdated already :P

lmimmfn

leninbenjamin wrote: »

or you can look at it as why spend top dollar on your CPU and Mobo and have a graphics card that runs 20% slower than the alternatives in you price bracket?

secondly, the rate of acceleration in graphics hardware performance is actually much higher than the CPU, so it makes more sense to factor in an upgrade the graphics card once or twice over the life of the CPU.

Buy a reference 4890 now imo (which can be had for as little as €143). Skip this generation of DX11 cards (no one ever knows how they perform) and wait til Nvidia re-enter the market in a year or two's time and DX11 actually becomes a relevant piece of technology for game developers.



no such thing as a future proof PC

er, wheres the 20% performance difference? theres next to no difference

http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=394&Itemid=72&limit=1&limitstart=9
There is no direct comparison between the 5770 and an 4970 in those charts, however a 4970 is only slightly faster than a 260( 216 sp ), in most games because of TWIMTBP is loses out to a 260

And on your second point, yes, gpu's evolve quicker, hence crossfire a 5770 later. Dual gpu solutions are becoming cheaper and cheaper, you can pick up 2 8800GT's now second hand for 100euro that would destroy a 260 or 4870 in most benchmarks.

Even if the OP would prefer a DX10 card instead, an nvidia 260( 216SP ) is a much much better option than a 4970 for the following reasons:
1. Nvidia control panel is much much better than ATI's one size fits all Catalyst for configuration for different games
2. ATI's drivers are generally crap, only the recently released 9.11's fix the performance issue most were having with Shift
3. It supports physx, fair enough only a handful of games support physx but still Batman AA looks so much better with physx AND Nvidia cards have AA in that title.
4. You can overclock the shaders on nvidia cards.

Again, the choice is down to the OP.

DECEiFER

A dual-SLI Nvidia GeFore 260 setup wouldn't be a bad idea at all. Just remember that the P6T SE that I suggested doesn't support it. Find another board, or look into the ordinary P6T.

Get yourself two of these if you go the Nvidia route:
http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=27026&agid=707

dard003

Dabs.ie have a great deal on a Saphire Radeon HD 5850 graphics card, its near the top of the CG scale (See toms hardware for reviews), and its only €230ish (€100 cheaper than komplett)... HDMI output too. From my personal build experiences I would recommend a good quality case (Maybe thermaltake, they're solid)... Be aware of noise levels from your PSU too... Nothing worse than a whiney PSU inside a gaming rig... You have to make that difficult decision with Processor MOBO and RAM also...

DECEiFER

dard003 wrote: »

Dabs.ie have a great deal on a Saphire Radeon HD 5850 graphics card, its near the top of the CG scale (See toms hardware for reviews), and its only €230ish (€100 cheaper than komplett)... HDMI output too. From my personal build experiences I would recommend a good quality case (Maybe thermaltake, they're solid)... Be aware of noise levels from your PSU too... Nothing worse than a whiney PSU inside a gaming rig... You have to make that difficult decision with Processor MOBO and RAM also...

The Corsair I suggested is a good PSU. It is a fan based one, like most, but I wouldn't call it whiny. I have similar one, a Corsair TX650, and it's not a problem at all.

I don't think you can go wrong with an i7 today. They are going to play any new game flawlessly today, and new games to come very decently for quite a few years.

The 6GB kit I suggested is a high-performing kit. It has a low CAS latency, so its timings are better. Again, today, no game will challenge it. Flawless.

The Antec Nine isn't a bad case at all. It's very practical, very good looking, and it's just what an enthusiast needs to obtain decent air-flow/cooling. It's cheaper today than it was back a year ago, so I'd buy it!

ussjtrunks

Ive had nivida in my last computer so im fairly used to it at this stage,
which is best to get a sli or a single card, is there a performane difference between the two

+ I wont be buying anything till january so I had plenty off time to pick what I want

DECEiFER

ussjtrunks wrote: »

Ive had nivida in my last computer so im fairly used to it at this stage,
which is best to get a sli or a single card, is there a performane difference between the two

+ I wont be buying anything till january so I had plenty off time to pick what I want

A dual-card setup is always going to be better, where supported. But if you can get the very best single card that you can afford today, and maybe in March or June you'll buy another one, making your PC the best it can be (Your country needs YOU!).

Check out that deal on dabs.ie that dard003 mentioned:
http://www.dabs.ie/products/asus-ati-radeon-5850-hd-1gb-pci-express-2-0-hdmi-68PN.html?q=5850
(compared with the price of the same card on Komplett.ie: http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=499572)

And guess what, it's about as cheap on Hardwareversand.de. So you can use the PC Configurator to build it into your own machine.

http://www1.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=28756&agid=1004

dard003

Found myself in the position where I could not justify the core i7 upgrade (yet). I'm running an old quad core QX9750 overclocked, with an ASUS motherboard, and a measly 2gb of DDR2 ram (+8800 GTS)... Now, for the most part, frame rates are solid at the resolutions I run (Anything over 720 sees me squinting at on screen icons)... I have the rig set up as a HTPC, and plugged into the LCD telly. Nice. Just recently though, I've seen some frame rate drops (Even on old games)... So my decision on the HD 5850 was if you like the collagen injection to the rig. Temporary lift until I can replace the Processor/MOBO/RAM and go crossfire... Not cheap lads... B-Jaysus PC gaming is a foul temptress, and an expensive bi-atch at that...

DECEiFER

While the 5850's are out-of-stock at Hardwareversand, they might be back in for Jan. The 5800 series are new cards to the scene, ATI's top-of-the-line, and they support DX11. Seeing them this cheap, they'd obviously sell like hot cakes.

Check out this mock-up. Two 5850's, Crossfire, and the total of the PC is only €1,551.84. Note that I chose the P6T motherboard instead of the P6T SE, just in-case you do need the option for SLI later on down the line.

The "Samsung SH-B083L bulk" is a Blu-ray drive.






Or go for a slightly better Blu-ray drive; "LiteOn iHES106-29 Blu-ray Rom/DVD-R". The total only goes to €1,567.10.