

Looking for a new PC build, need advice.

#13D_ShadoPosted 5/30/2012 5:48:48 PM
A bit of background: I know some basics about hardware, but probably not as much as you guys (Well, not for direct application at least). 3 years ago I got a gaming laptop - yes, I know, ">gaming >laptop pick one", but it actually worked quite well for me. Pretty much everything was playable in 720p, and many games were actually maxed (Mass Effect series, for example). However, I want to get something top of the line next (within the year), that can completely MAX everything out here now. A desktop, of course.

1. What sort of specs am I looking for? The Radeon 7800+ cards, or something else? Are all i7s equal?
2. What kind of motherboard and PSU am I looking for?
3. Are default fans acceptable?

BTW I'm planning to use ecollegepc for the build.
#2Snuckie7Posted 5/30/2012 5:54:47 PM
1. Everything depends on your definition of max. No practical system can run every game at it's absolute highest settings. However, the starting point for the high end performance you're looking for is probably the GTX 670. As for the cpu you won't need more than a i5-3570K in most cases. Get the i7-3770K if you really want that little extra performance.

2. Any decent mobo and psu will suffice. The Asrock z77 Extreme 4 comes to mind. Any decent 600W psu works.

3. Default fans are fine unless you plan to OC.
#33D_Shado(Topic Creator)Posted 5/30/2012 6:12:58 PM

The performance I'm looking for is running Crysis on Very High, 60 FPS, 1080P. Is this still an absurd notion, or do standard 2012 gaming configurations do that? My old specs:

Core 2 Duo P8600
Mobility Radeon 4850
4 GB RAM (and only 3 GB is ever used)

Basically I want to feel a generational leap, like from PS2 to PS3 or something. Also, for mobos: what exactly do the listed specs mean? I wouldn't want to end up getting one that doesn't support more than 4 GB of RAM, or can't use a wireless adapter, etc.
#4MaKhaosPosted 5/30/2012 6:17:34 PM
Here's a guide to give you some ideas and a place to start.
#5PolarisPosted 5/30/2012 6:32:33 PM
MaKhaos posted...

Great link, but just to add if the target game is Crysis that game happens to favor the AMD GPUs (7970), even though the nVidia GPUs (680) are generally faster at most other games. I'm not sure if the 680 can meet the OP's benchmark but the 7970 can, and is also slightly cheaper.
#6AjaxTheBeastPosted 5/30/2012 6:36:51 PM
You should just get the essential stuff from ecollege such as the case, motherboard, etc. things you, yourself will have trouble putting in. You can save some money buying your gpu, ram, etc. seperately and installing yourself.
\/\/\/ Guy below me has no idea what he's talking about \/\/\/