GoTeamVenture

Getting into PC gaming

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Well, that one will certainly work. But they again neither list mainboard, nor power supply and even if they are on par with the rest it's very much too expensive. I'm not familiar with US prices, but I'd be surprised if you couldn't get it  at least 150 dollars cheaper.

 

I'll look around and see if I can find a better price.

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Well, that one will certainly work. But they again neither list mainboard, nor power supply and even if they are on par with the rest it's very much too expensive. I'm not familiar with US prices, but I'd be surprised if you couldn't get it  at least 150 dollars cheaper.

 

I looked at a lot of the i5 computers on Newegg and these seem to be comparable:

 

The HD, RAM, GPU and CPU are about the same. It's $50 cheaper: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227441

 

The HD, RAM, and CPU are about the same. It has a GTX 650 rather than 660. It also includes a small SSD in addition to the larger HD and is about $200 cheaper: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883258005

 

This is pretty similar except it has an AMD GPU that I think might be a slight step down? It's also only $50 cheaper: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229381

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The AMD Radeon 7850 is comparable to the GTX 660. The 660 may benchmark slightly higher and get better power consumption, but I wouldn't pay $50 extra for that when in real terms there is little to no difference between them. The GTX 650 is a big step down from the GTX 660. That said, both will be more than enough to handle 1080p gaming with reasonable expectations as to performance. The GTX 660 would be more futureproof.

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The first: CPU is better and only needed for overclocking. That in turn is not possible with the very old and feature starved mainboard included. Makes this a very odd combination.

The second: Same very powerful CPU, again mainboard not really suitable for the CPU but at least from this generation. The GPU is a good deal less powerful than the GTX 660. Better power supply at least.

The third: Same CPU and board combination as second. GPU is alright, but a bit weaker and cheaper than the 660.

 

To be honest, I would not buy any of these systems. They all cut corners somewhere and you're still paying a premium. Thing is, if you are sure you don't want to pick your own parts and build it yourself that's probably unavoidable and at the end of the day, all those 3 + the one from dell will certainly do the job.

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I am in a similar boat and will likely build a living room PC.

 

PC cases are still terrible looking, though!  What can I get that won't look embarrassing in the living room?

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The define R4 is amazing. Cheap and very little dust and noise. 

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I have an Antec Sonata II and I think it's appropriately restrained and tasteful. 

 

I have exactly the same case, and I would agree with your assessment of it!

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I've got an Antec p190 P190_q.jpg

 

Antecs are quite good at being restrained and tasteful.

 

That Refine R4 is something else though. Really nice looking, might go that way next time I build a PC.

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That Refine R4 is something else though. Really nice looking, might go that way next time I build a PC.

 

I have been very happy with that case. It is quiet and cleverly designed. And like n00js, it is actually quite cheap as well.

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Well, just thinking about new computer stuff by reading this thread clearly had an effect on me, as I finally pulled the trigger on a video card upgrade (albeit a small one). I'm going from a GTX 560 Ti 1GB to a Radeon 7870 2GB for only $210 AR. An admittedly small upgrade, but with news that next-gen GPUs in the price range I'm interested in are about a year away I decided that I should go ahead and get the most out of this generation of hardware. Not only that, but the upgrade lets me put my old card into my girlfriend's PC (a significant upgrade to her Radeon 5770) and I get Bioshock Infinite + Tomb Raider download codes for free. Not too shabby!

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Hello all, I had a quick question...

 

I am shopping for parts and I know nothing about brands. I'm probably getting a GTX 650 Ti Boost, but I could save a few dollars by getting the Asus card (on Amazon, no picture of a box or anything) though I already had shortlisted an EVGA card. Is EVGA a better brand? Do I have to care about this kind of thing, at all? Is there any risk that compatibility with motherboards would be different across brands of the same card?

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The main difference between the card enclosure brands is size, energy usage, and heat management. They should all fit into your average (recent model) mobo slot (but it's always good to double check). The biggest compatibility issue is usually your PSU. You want to make sure the voltage is high enough and it has the right cables for your particular card. The card should have voltage requirements on its description page and the PSU should display its max capacity.

 

I have the ASUS 660Ti and it's great. I had an EVGA GTX 470 before and it was decent if slightly loud. They're both fine enclosure brands, I'm definitely a big fan of ASUS as my current card tends to be quiet as a mouse.

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Cheers man! Appreciate the advice. I'm a complete novice, obviously. I think I'm good to go with my PSU voltage, but I didn't even think to check the cables. Thanks also for the tips on the brands.

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Cheers again. Completely new to this. Basically scrounging together the best PC I can. I think I'm doing okay, though it's funny how little things escalate.

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I had an EVGA GTX 470 before and it was decent if slightly loud.

 

No 470 was not loud, it was a basic design flaw.

 

But yeah, the main difference between vendors is the heatsink. Some companies use the stock heatsink, which tends to be better, but others use their own solution. You mostly just have to comb reviews on NewEgg or somewhere to find out what is what and if it is better.

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Cheers again. Looking forward to this. I haven't had a PC that could run a contemporary game at impressive levels since the early 1990s. This is not an exaggeration.

 

This shifting console landscape seemed as good a time as any to make the jump. That and I've been playing games on my PC more than anything else for well over a year.

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That logical increments seems like a pretty rad site, never heard of it before. It definitely gives a solid guide for someone who doesn't know much about building a PC. For actual pricing at the moment you'll be buying your parts, I'd recommend PC Part Picker. It has some good comparative pricing tools in there as well as good side-by-side comparison of important specs, so you can figure if you should buy whatever component of whatever brand from whatever retailer. I saved $20 here and there finding out that Newegg had a rebate on a PSU that Amazon didn't have, and vice versa -

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/

 

Also, one other point I'd like to make is that you should try to get the 2GB version of the 650Ti Boost (or 7850, if price sways you toward AMD). That extra VRAM could really make the difference in running some next-gen games that take advantage of bigger VRAM pools on next-gen consoles.

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Thanks mate, I heard Sean Vanaman mention PC Parts Picker offhand on a recent-ish cast and I've been looking. The big help for me has actually been the option to only include parts that are compatible with each other when building the list. I'll still have to double-check of course (it took me a while today to figure out that the 3.0 PCI-E x 16 on the card I want will work on the motherboard with 2.0 PCI-E x 16 that I can afford, for example) but it's a huge help.

 

The kicker is that I'm a little bit tied into Amazon because I'm availing of a fair bit of Amazon credit. I'll still be a hundred dollars (ish) short though, so I may make a strategic decision as to what component I may get from New Egg after all.

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