Recommended Gaming PC

[SurlyPlatypus]

Hello Everyone,

My current PC has become unstable. I'm kicking around upgrading the MB, CPU, and Video Card. I have 4 GB of DDR2 now and am open to upgrading that as well however could keep it if it would make sense.

This is my hope gaming machine, primarily FPS, battlefield and other games.

I usually upgrade my video card every 2 years and replace my whole PC every 4 years.

I do like to overclock the CPU.

Recommendations on a new gaming platform?

I'm not interested in the top of the line components, but ones that would allow me to run all games for the next 2 years at 1990 x 1440 resolutions single 19 inch monitor.

Thoughts?

[johnnymossville]

If you aren't interested in the top of the line components, for a gaming PC, save money on the the CPU and MB, and spend it on a good graphics card. From what I've seen in reviews here and around the web, the graphics card has far more of an effect on FPS than the CPU does.

[Budwise]

None of the new stuff uses DDR2 so unless you want to invest in skt 775 (which is dead) then you'll have to get new memory. It sounds like you're on a budget and in which case id suggest an i5 with a solid motherboard (Gigabyte or Asus) and 4GB of DDR3 1600 which can be had for around $100. For a Video card id suggest an HD 5850. The rest of your hardware should be fine.

[Forin]

hello,

This is not a best time for changing socket. I would wait for Sandy bridge, find the cause for instability and fix it,
upgrade:
Video: BFG GeForce 8800GTS 640MB

Hello Everyone,

My current PC has become unstable. I'm kicking around upgrading the MB, CPU, and Video Card. I have 4 GB of DDR2 now and am open to upgrading that as well however could keep it if it would make sense.

This is my hope gaming machine, primarily FPS, battlefield and other games.

I usually upgrade my video card every 2 years and replace my whole PC every 4 years.

I do like to overclock the CPU.

Recommendations on a new gaming platform?

I'm not interested in the top of the line components, but ones that would allow me to run all games for the next 2 years at 1990 x 1440 resolutions single 19 inch monitor.

Thoughts?

[SurlyPlatypus]

What do you think about this, on NewEgg:

i5-750 Build


1 XFX HD-585X-ZAFC Radeon HD 5850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity
Model #:HD-585X-ZAFC
Item #:N82E16814150477
Return Policy:VGA Replacement Only Return Policy
In Stock
$309.99

1 CORSAIR DOMINATOR-GT 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMT4GX3M2A1600C7
Model #:CMT4GX3M2A1600C7
Item #:N82E16820145287
Return Policy:Memory Standard Return Policy
In Stock
$215.99

1 ASUS P7P55 LX LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard
Model #:P7P55 LX
Item #:N82E16813131604
Return Policy:Standard Return Policy
In Stock
$119.99

1 Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I5750
Model #:BX80605I5750
Item #:N82E16819115215
Return Policy:CPU Replacement Only Return Policy
In Stock
$199.99

Subtotal: $845.96

[Rise]

hello,

This is not a best time for changing socket. I would wait for Sandy bridge, find the cause for instability and fix it,
upgrade:
Video: BFG GeForce 8800GTS 640MB

sandybridge is a year and a half away, at best - why should he wait that long?

---

that i5 build doesn't seem to hot, i'm not sure where you are buying that processor from but you can get much much much better processors if you happen to be by a microcenter. alternatively, AMD makes some really good bang for the buck processors @ the price you're looking for, you might want to check out as an alternative.

everything else looks fine to me though.

edit: didn't realize this was posted in the intel subforum the i5 will work.

[Forin]

Q4 2010

sandybridge is a year and a half away, at best - why should he wait that long?

---

[cowpuppy]

but you can get much much much better processors if you happen to be by a microcenter.

Totally agree for the 200.00 I5 from the egg, you can get a I7 930 and a good value board is the Gigabyte X58A-UD3R for 200.00 and you get all the goodies USB3/SATA3. I would pair this up with some DDR1600 8-8-8-24 timings along with a 5850 you would be set for a few years and if that starts to lag in a year or so pick up another 5850 to pick up the slack.

There is a thread on the Giga X58A-UD3R check it out you wont be disappointed.

[bt_medic04]

whats your budget?

[Kemtech]

I got my new comp in a few months ago:

i5-750 Great Cheap Proc.
EVGA P55 SLI
8G's Corsair Dominator
850HX Corsair PSU
Around $1k
BFG 8800GTX 2nd one died lack of space between PCI-e Slots :-(

I kept the stock cooling on the CPU and pushed it to 3.4 easily and highs around 78C which i thought was ok. I got the HK 3.0 block on it now and its awesome. Whilst Benchin with FMark Vantage.

I dont recommend this MB if your going to run SLi, bad experience poor 8800 R.I.P.

[Rise]

Q4 2010

source? Everything I've seen says 2h of 2011. I was looking as recently as... 2 days ago. There's even a thread in the news forum that shows the roadmap saying 2h 2011.

edit: thread: http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...d.php?t=249726.
specifically: http://img109.imageshack.us/img109/5731/67129986.jpg

i guess he may be going the mainstream route (i was talking the xtreme setup) but we're still talking Q1/Q2 2011

[SurlyPlatypus]

whats your budget?

Good question I guess... $850 or less.

[bt_medic04]

ok, now what are you planning on reusing?

[SurlyPlatypus]

ok, now what are you planning on reusing?

Well moving to the i5 or i7 would mean replacing the CPU, MB, RAM at a minimum. It probably makes sense to replace the video card because it will bottle neck there for sure if I don't.

So would like to reuse everything except for the CPU, MB, RAM and Video Card.

It would be a bonus to not have to replace the CPU cooler, it is a LGA775 cooler so I'm not sure if the new MB's would fit it.

[zanzabar]

dont get an xfx card they use the crappy pcb and charge extra for the downgrade. go with an asus CU or a refrence card like a vishon tec. also for your price range i would go amd

[bt_medic04]

ok so heres what i would do with $850 if i needed to replace my motherboard, cpu, ram and video card

evga P55 SLI
i have the FTW which is one wrung higher up the product ladder. the differences between the two are minimal and unless you are planning on doing hardcore benching, the non FTW version is fine for an every day runner. plus it has mounting holes for LGA775 so you could reuse your tuniq tower, just be aware that it will be slightly rotated from normal.

i5 750
the best gaming cpu at this price range right now. contrary to popular belief, you dont need anything more for a competent gaming machine as most of the time the bottleneck is the video card. plus you can get more meaningful gains by overclocking a "slower" cpu and putting the money saved toward the graphics budget.

4GB G-Skill ripjaws 1600
wont set any world speed records in Spi, but wont hold you back while gaming. again, savings goes towards the video card budget

XFX HD5850
sure, it might have stock overclocking limits and no voltage control that some people (read: benchers looking for world records) find that they need, however it has more than enough power for games in stock trim, plus has a no questions asked double lifetime warranty. just register the card when you get it and you are good to go.

total cost at the egg at the time of this writing is $802.83 shipped. that leaves you with about $50 if you need to replace your dvd drive with a SATA one since the motherboard doesnt have an ATA port

[SurlyPlatypus]

That does sound like the right options.

Great note on the DVD, your right, my DVD is ATA, nice call.

I'm going to order this stuff today I think.

Thanks much for the input.

[David-Duc]

A Gaming machine with an i3 530 will run as fast as the i5 750 does while staying cooler and easier to overclock with even lower cost. An OCed i3 @ 4.0Ghz with HT enabled is enough for games in the next 2 years. Spend the money on the video card - some thing like the HD5870 or GTX480.

[bt_medic04]

A Gaming machine with an i3 530 will run as fast as the i5 750 does while staying cooler and easier to overclock with even lower cost. An OCed i3 @ 4.0Ghz with HT enabled is enough for games in the next 2 years. Spend the money on the video card - some thing like the HD5870 or GTX480.

i debated that option (i myself have an i3 530 that does 4.4ghz @ 1.35v) but more and more games are taking advantage of quadcores. also, dont forget that the i5 750 can turbo up to 3.2ghz if only 1 or 2 cores are being pushed which is faster than a stock clocked i3 530. even putting a mild overclock to the 3.6ghz range on an i5 750 is more than enough to keep a hungry gpu fed