9 replies to this topic

[Brizna]

My current rig is this:

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 640
MB: Asus M5A78L
GPU: AMD Radeon HD 6770
RAM: 4Gb DDR3 1333

It's always been a bit tight for MWO but it was a great purchase at the time (5 years ago), it does run MWO at 20 to 30 fps most of the time on 768p resolution and minimum specs. Anyway I'm looking for something better but after some preliminary scouting of the current market with my budget (600$) well I can improve my system but the difference isn't going to be that huge. I mean, it's not like I will be able to run MWO on max setings at 60+ fps and I think the new system (under that budget) is not going to live so long as my old trusty work horse I mentioned before.

So my question is two fold is it worth to sink that budget into a new rig now or is there something new that will become available soon which makes waiting a bit a better option? It's not like I can't play the game after all, what I would like is being able to turn on most of those graphic options so I can enjoy more the visual experience of molten metal while I get some extra fps in those hot moments, deeping occasionally bellow 20 fps is very bad, specially since it tends to happens when you need them most, when there is the most FX going on the screen.

[xWiredx]

Maybe a lower-end Z170/H170-type motherboard and a Skylake-based i3 would be cheap enough to also give you some budget left for a new mid-range GPU? Assuming the HDD(s) (plus OS) and case are salvagable...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6300 3.8GHz Dual-Core Processor ($155.83 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus H170-PLUS D3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($79.05 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 960 4GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.98 @ NCIX US)
Total: $574.84
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-30 01:54 EST-0500

This would be a pretty decent upgrade from your current system.

[Oderint dum Metuant]

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/zJsWFT
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker....FT/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Micro Center)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus H170-PLUS D3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($79.05 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 960 4GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.98 @ NCIX US)
Total: $608.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-30 02:57 EST-0500

You could find 8.99 from the PSU if you really had too.

Edited by DV McKenna, 29 November 2015 - 11:58 PM.

[Goose]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($159.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI Z97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($68.20 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($46.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card ($289.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $565.07
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-30 03:03 EST-0500

Base Total: $638.86
Promo Discounts: -$43.79
Mail-in Rebates: -$30.00
Total: $565.07

I'm being wildly optimistic 'bout you PSU and case, and nether the mobo nor RAM can clame to be "future-proof," but a nice big card, and four cores, means something …

[Dragoon20005]

here is the possible suggestion of the build

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($109.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus Z170-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($36.55 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($77.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 380 4GB PCS+ Video Card ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master N400 ATX Mid Tower Case ($47.60 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Cooler Master VSM 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $597.10
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-30 22:01 EST-0500

i saw this 380 for sale so i grab it

way better than GTX960 in most games

the board is ready to let you install a i5 or i7 CPU when you have enough budget and able to OC the i7 as this is a Z series board.

I go for single stick of RAM since dual channel does not affect gaming

and you can add 1 more 8GB stick to get 16GB of Dual Channel RAM

I only got a SSD since you might be able to use the HDD

Edited by Dragoon20005, 30 November 2015 - 07:05 PM.

[Brizna]

Thanks for your answers but I was looking for an informative explanation rather than a full build, though that's useful too.

What's the main difference between an I3-6100 and i5, and then from i5-4460 and i5-6600?
Is an i7 necessary??
And is AMD completely out of the question? Bear in mind I am intending to get a budget gamin PC, I am not looking to play with three screens or 4000 p resolution.

And in terms of a gaming PC wouldn't a good GPU be more important than the CPU for most games?

Edited by Brizna, 01 December 2015 - 09:09 AM.

[Goose]

… Intels' "I[blank]" system was supposed to be more exacting in it's description then it turned out: I3 means dual-core with Hyperthreading, I5 mean quad with-out, and i7 should be quad with … But there have been enough exceptions, if only for the parallel laptop models, so you should always check … And there are plenty of i7s', across all it's generations, with moar than four cores.

The first number after the hyphen speaks to the generation of the core(s). The three numbers after that are this vague "bigger is better" system: I thought I once saw two different i5s, with the same Hz and cache sizes', thus I couldn't figure out what the extra model, and it's $50 premium, was for …

I like having Hyperthreading on my systems, but your budget won't allow it's ~$100 premium.

AMD is pretty much for guys whom overclock for overclockings' sake: Claims of making the game work "just fine" with less then four modules are never offered with proof; And once you pay to cool a FX-8370E so it can go 4.3GHz, what haven't you spent?

It's true that "most" games don't need gobs of CPU … But we are an exception, and the "exception list" is growing: Something shipped this year refuses to be installed on mere dual-cores, and hear-tell MMOs have always disliked smaller CPU.

You, Sir, need to think about your non-cash resources for this build, seeing as you budget is so low: Is the PSU recyclable? The OS? Is your current case for computers that need cooling, or is it really an EZ-Bake Oven?

Edited by Goose, 04 December 2015 - 06:21 AM.

[Brizna]

Thanks goose, very informative.

Dragon20005 recommended a build that start with a humble i3 but is easily upgradeable to an i7. Seams like that could be a good starting point for a system with long life span?

Btw: Why doesn' dual channel affect gaming?

[Dragoon20005]

Brizna, on 01 December 2015 - 01:31 PM, said:

Thanks goose, very informative.

Dragon20005 recommended a build that start with a humble i3 but is easily upgradeable to an i7. Seams like that could be a good starting point for a system with long life span?

Btw: Why doesn' dual channel affect gaming?

dual channel is useful with applications like video rendering or photo processing which uses RAM as caching

Dual Channel in a nut shell is getting double the bandwidth to allow CPU to access the RAM faster

http://www.hardwares...rchitectures/3/

but the reason why i say Dual Channel does not affect gaming is because benchmarks have shown Dual Channel only add a few fps vs single channel. If some game hardly and gains from going dual channel.



with the Skylake platform, the upgrade path will be easier since we are moving towards DDR4 RAM.

[Brizna]

Since the last patch that changed the HUD my ancient rig is running the game with no issues at 40+ fps after I increased some graphic detail toggles so I think I will wait some time before I sink money in a new one. Thanks all who posted in the thread, it was informative and I will keep it in mind.