1393 posts shown.
Pfft, $350 for that thing? Are they out of their minds? That’s basically $800! You could build an entire budget gaming rig for that kind of money. If you’ve actually got that much to burn, we can help you put something decent together right here.
frozenpanther said:I didn't realize the 9800 and GTS 250 were such low-quality, weak cards... so I ended up finding a GTX 460 for that price instead. $100 I see on YouTube that it can run everything on High or Medium settings without a hitch. Now I'm just sitting here wondering if my motherboard actually supports this card—it's a Gigabyte GA-ME61-S2L, or something like that, I think I blanked on the exact model... 😉 ... so if you could just toss over some other decent graphs for... $83 I'm looking at the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460, since I don't really know my way around hardware that well. If it sells out on eBay in the next couple of weeks, I might miss my chance... I'm away from home right now, so I can't have anything shipped to the house because there's nobody there to pick it up.😉.
You can pair just about any GPU with a more "modern" motherboard. As long as there's a PCI-E x16 slot, you're good to go—and honestly, every motherboard being sold today has one. You don't really need to stress about compatibility between the board and the card. Plus, that NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 is going to be a perfect match for your build in terms of price and performance. It’s definitely a solid deal. 🙂 So... This is it.
crimsonstag84 said:LG monitor 22MP47D-P
Genius Gaming KB-G200 keyboard, USB
Genius X-G300 gaming mouse, USB
KINGSTON ValueRAM DDR3 SDRAM Non-ECC (8GB,1600MHz(PC3-12800),Unbuffered) CL11
Zalman mid tower case black, ZAL-Z3
Seagate HDD desktop Barracuda 7200 ST1000DM003 (3.5",1TB,64MB,SATA III-600)
Intel CPU desktop Core i3-4170 (3.7GHz, 3MB, LGA1150) box
MSI R9 380 2GD5T OC, GDDR5, DX12
Thermaltake TR2 450 w Bronze power supply
MSI H81M-E33 total motherboard
Total: $2011 center
Nice, but why not an FX 6300?
EDIT: Nvm, didn't see the other posts 😬 Why on earth would an FX 6300 be $167 more expensive?
cosmichawk51 said:Why wouldn't you just go with more RAM? And instead of an Intel build, why not grab some AMD? AMD is way cheaper, and the specs are basically identical. You could then get a different motherboard to match the socket and maybe even squeeze in some better hardware elsewhere.
I love the enthusiasm you have for learning how to build rigs, really, but before you start handing out "advice," maybe spend some more time reading through threads, studying builds, and checking out reviews on various tech sites. Because honestly, what you're saying is just nonsense.
Intel option:
1 x ASRock H97-PRO4, s1150, Intel ® H97, 4 x DDR3, 1 x PCI Express
1 x Intel Core i5-4460 (3.20GHz,1MB,6MB,84 W,1150) Box
2 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Kingston, 1866MHz, CL10, HyperX Fury, HX318C10F
1 x Gigabyte GTX970 WF3 OC 4GB GDDR5, GV-N970WF3OC, 256 bit,
1 x HDD Seagate 1TB, Serial ATA III, 7200 rpm, ST1000DM003
1 x SCYTHE katana 3 SCKTN-3000I White Box, 775/1155/1156/1366
1 x Zalman Z3 mid tower case. 192(W)x465(H)x430(D)mm. MB standard
1 x LG 22MP47D-P IPS, 21,5", 16:9, 1920 x 1080 resolution, 250 cd/m2, 5.000.000:1
1 x Napajanje FORTRON 550W Raider, RA550, 12cm ventilator
$2656
You don't really need to go out and buy a beefy aftermarket cooler; the case already comes with three fans, and the CPU will handle itself just fine on the stock cooler, let alone with the katana. Since you aren't planning on overclocking and the i5 fits your budget perfectly, there’s no real reason to look at any AMD FX 8 xxx combos. The only thing I feel is missing from this budget build is an SSD, but since you mentioned you didn't want one, I left it out. Otherwise, you could always squeeze one in by picking a slightly cheaper motherboard or a more budget-friendly power supply, just so you know. 😉
Betty Ramirez6 said:Well, clearly I mentioned I was looking for an expert opinion, which is my polite way of admitting I have absolutely no clue what I'm doing. If I actually knew the answer, I wouldn't be asking people on a forum, would I?
So, I guess there's nothing left to do... just keep grinding and saving up for a real PC.
It sounded way too simple, man. 😵 Definitely, if you actually want to game, upgrading a laptop isn't really an option—don't even bother. It would be nice, but let's face it, 99% of laptops just aren't built for that. 🙂
Betty Ramirez6 said:I’ve got this one specific wish in my head, but honestly, I’m sitting here wondering if it’s even remotely doable or if I’m just dreaming, so maybe I should go find some actual expert to weigh in on this mess. Basically, I’m lugging around this laptop with an i3 processor, 6 GB of RAM, and an integrated Intel HD 4000 graphics card 😵. Now, the thing is, how am I even supposed to tell if this i3 processor is built right into the board? And more importantly—is it actually a smart move to rip out the processor and the RAM, go out, and drop cash on a whole new motherboard and a dedicated graphics card? Or am I just throwing money into a black hole?
The processor is integrated? 🤣 What on earth are you thinking? 🙂 The processor is soldered onto the motherboard just like any other, period. As for the laptop, forget about it—it's just a standard notebook that isn't built for major upgrades. You might be able to swap the RAM or the hard drive, but that's about it. You can't just swap out the graphics card or the motherboard to get better gaming performance.
silentwolf53 said:Won't the GPU be too much for this CPU? I don't want to tell the guy to pick something up just to have it end up being a total mismatch—I'm not looking to take the blame if it turns out to be useless...
Look, it can't really be "too powerful." Sure, it could be overkill, but that's not a bad thing at all. The processor just won't be able to fully utilize the graphics card, so you won't be squeezing out every bit of performance, but hey, whatever level of power you actually get out of it is still fine... 🙂
Alexander Moore67 said:He’s already got a killer cooler for it to run at 4460... lol
Yeah, you're right.. 🕺 I didn't even realize we were talking about liquid cooling. But honestly, if everything else is top-tier, there's no point in getting anything less than high-end. Though, I don't know, any i5 feels pretty pointless compared to a 4460 when it comes to gaming anyway.🤷
Ryan Gonzalez4 said:Here is my current setup:
CPU Cooler: Corsair Hydro Series
Memory: Corsair DDR3 1600MHz 16GB (4x4GB), Vengeance, Buffered, 9-9-9-24, CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9
Graphic card: EVGA GTX 970
PS: Corsair TX 950W
SSD: Samsung EVO 850 500GB
HDD: 1TB Western Digital 7200 RPM
HDD: 500GB Western Digital 7200 RPM
Case: NZXT Phantom 410
I'm looking for the best motherboard and CPU combo for this build. I was checking out something like this:
+
Or maybe any other Z97 from ASUS, Gigabyte, etc. What are your experiences with these? I'd want to overclock the CPU right away.
Look, you're going to throw way too much money at a combo that won't actually give you much of an edge in gaming. There's basically zero difference between that high-end setup and just running an i5 4460 on a decent H97 or B85 board. If you really want to overclock, then sure, go for it—but honestly, the smartest move for your wallet would be to grab a standard 4460 and a solid H97 motherboard. You could spend that extra cash on beer every day for a long time instead. 🙂
quietpilot23 said:and here’s a photo of the power supply label...
I can't make heads or tails of this sticker, but if you're saying it shows 20A on the 12V rail, that works out to about 240W.
But looking at the official specs they have online, it says 140W max. How does 12V times 13A equal 140W? That should be 156W—it feels like even they aren't quite sure what this unit can actually deliver. 😁
I know we aren't supposed to be talking about the PSU right now, but we'll figure out the power issue eventually. 😁
Like analogtiger19 mentioned, they basically slapped the same sticker on every single unit in that entire series. 🤣 You'll notice that for the 500W Power Supply model, the +12V rail is listed at 20A. So, just like you said, that's 240W. 🙂 Just keep it as is, don't bother swapping it!
quietpilot23 said:
Yeah, that's not really what you said it was at first 🙂 This one actually has a bit more amperage on the 12V rail. 20A is still pretty decent compared to those 13A ones 🤣
crimsonstag84 said:That 300W rating is there for a reason. 😛 The combined output of the 12V, 3.3V, and 5V rails hits about 300W, with the 12V rail specifically providing 156W to power the CPU and GPU.
Then why on earth are they advertising it as a Microsoft 500W unit when the label clearly says 300W?! I know companies can be shady about these things, but this is just blatant.
crimsonstag84 said:Here are the specs for that Microsoft unit 😬
🤣
I'm not sure if that's even the right model. It says 300W Power Supply, but this one is labeled as "500W." If it really is what it says, you're only getting 150W on the 12V rail. That's going to be cutting it way too close...
Kyle Martin67 said:Does this look alright?
LG GH24NSC0 with Zalman Z3, AMD FX-6300, Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P, and Kingston HyperX Fury
Zalman Z3 mid tower
AMD FX-6300
Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P
Kingston HyperX Fury, 1866MHz, 4GB
Toshiba DT01ACA100, 1TB HDD
AOC LED 21.5" E2250SWDAK, VGA, DVI
AMD Radeon R9 270 with Fortron PSU
EVGA 500W 80 Plus, active
Zalman CNPS10X CPU cooler.
I'd prefer the Z3 case—since the ports are on the top—but the motherboard doesn't have USB 3.0 support even though the case does.
You picked the absolute worst monitor with a TN panel. You can get a better setup with the Samsung Flatron; just swap out the Z1 Z3 and you're good to go.
Go, go, go! That Linkworld lpk12-30e 500 w from $43 🤣... I wouldn't bet on it even if it had a 750Ti inside, no matter how little power it pulls 🙂
crimsonstag84 said:The PSU isn't going to hold up 😛 And that XFXica is loud
Wait, what kind of power supply are they running and what's the actual build? I can't seem to find the original thread. Sure, it might be louder, but honestly, I'd gladly trade a little extra noise for higher FPSa. But hey, that's just my take... 🙂
Man, THIS is even better than the 750Ti, provided that an extra $3.25 doesn't completely ruin the deal 🙂
Honestly, when I saw the price tag on the $533 GTX 950, I was floored. Was anyone actually crazy enough to drop that kind of cash on this card? It’s basically just a glorified MOBA machine. Come on, I can't believe people are actually falling for this...
Kimberly Gomez34 said:You’re going to need a decent cooler if you want your PC to stay functional rather than melting under pressure.
The FX 6300 is basically just a $50 budget-friendly alternative to the FX 8300; it’s a bit of a shame to settle for the lesser chip, but if your wallet is feeling the squeeze, it’ll get the job done.
EDIT
Honestly, your best bet is to grab a GTX 960 instead of the R9 280 and stick with that Chieftec power supply.
For sure, the 960 barely pulls any power considering how much punch it packs, so even a Chieftec will handle it—even though that specific series isn't exactly top-tier. You'll save about $50, which gives you enough breathing room to pick up a better cooler instead.🙂