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Gaming Build Spec Check

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  • 11-08-2011 12:37am
    #1
    Redisle
    Registered Users Posts: 1,849 ✭✭✭


    Going to build a nice machine for myself. Last build was an old AMD64 system many years ago that was killed by a bad PSU also many years ago :rolleyes:. Been using a C2D laptop since so time for an upgrade. Been going through various threads/sites and have come up with this. Not 100% about everything yet but Im getting there.

    Here's what Im thinking:
    http://img200.imageshack.us/img200/1553/screenshot2qf.png

    Im not sure about the mobo and the graphics. I'm also currently looking into getting a 2600K from someone working in Intel instead of the 2500K but il see how that works out. Regarding the motherboard I kind of want to go Z68 since it would be a shame to lose the QuickSync by going P67. I may not use it very often but it would be a very cool feature to try out at least. Problem is the one I have in the basket is the only cheapish one there and connectors are somewhat lacking, have to look into it some more.

    Regarding graphics what I have there would already be a bit more than I want to spend on a GPU. Im not much of a PC gamer at the moment (mostly because it's not a nice experience on the laptop) but I would like to be able to play most modern games reasonably well. I have actually never experienced AA/AF etc so might be nice to give those a go. Is there really huge visual differences with game video quality settings?

    As an example of what I am used to I managed to struggle though Batman Arkham Asylum on my laptop w/8600M GT at low settings/resolution with all the fancy stuff off. Not a nice experience. Would it be much better visually with a good card? And Id guess it must be nice to actually run a game at a screens native res too. (Not something I have ever done on the laptop seeing as the screen is 1920x1200 :rolleyes:)

    My current monitor is an old LG 20" 1680x1050 but I will most likely be upgrading to something 24" @ 1920x1080. Could I reasonably expect to run most games at native res with that card?

    Please comment/discuss/suggest away!


Comments

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    #2
    Tea_Bag
    Registered Users Posts: 4,983 ✭✭✭Tea_Bag


    build looks fine, and its a good GPU that should see it well.

    im more interested in that laptop tbh cause of the impressive screen resolution :o

    EDIT: just had a look at that motherboard, and tbh, its something id spend a little more on. no room for crossfire or SLI means it wont be nearly as future proof. (PSU should be able to take 6870's Crossfired, but someone else should back me up on that) can you afford to spend an extra €60 on its bigger brother, the extreme4? you can go cheaper and get the same specs from a gigabyte board, but im not one for recommending them.


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    #3
    Redisle
    Registered Users Posts: 1,849 ✭✭✭Redisle


    I'm not sure I want to spend ~150 on a mainboard tbh. I'm actively researching most of the options at the moment so Il have to decide if it would be worth it. I don't currently have any plans to crossfire. Doubt I would ever need to really but I guess it would be a nice option.

    Regarding the laptop it's just an old Inspiron 1720. Got it years ago when the dell outlet was still running. 1920x1200 is okay on a 17" screen but Ive actually seen a few machines in work (Latitudes IIRC) with 1920x1200 on a 15" laptop which imo is insane. Very hard to see anything.

    Oh yeah I also need a CPU cooler, something like this or this?


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    #4
    Tea_Bag
    Registered Users Posts: 4,983 ✭✭✭Tea_Bag


    the idea of crossfire is that in the future when games start to struggle all you'll need to do is buy another gpu (which should be cheap at that stage cause it'll be 'dated') to give it a new lease of life. no big upgrade nessesary.

    the arctic freezer 7 is regarded to be the best in the low budget range, but It's not much better than the stock cooler apparently, just quieter. next one up would be the skythe mugen rev2 but its twice the price (and a ***** to install) but its very good cooler and can compete with most of the more expensive ones.


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    #5
    Serephucus
    Registered Users Posts: 7,180 ✭✭✭Serephucus


    RE: graphics. To give you an idea, this is Crysis at lowest settings, and this is at max. You might not see as big an improvement in most games, but usually it's fairly similar.

    You could run pretty much any game you wanted with that card at 19x10, but it won't be at max. Medium, broadly speaking, if you're lucky.


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