PC Gamers!!!!!!!!!!! I need your advice.

[Baconmonster723]

So I have my desktop pretty much set up and ready to go. It's sitting at a nice price right now and I'm looking into upgrading a few items before I have it shipped out. These are the current specs.

Case: NZXT Hades Gaming Case with Dual 200MM Fan and Tri-Temperature Display
Internal USB Extension Module: None
Neon Light Upgrade: None
Extra Case Fan Upgrade: Maximum 120MM Case Cooling Fans for your selected case
Noise Reduction Technology: None
Power Supply Upgrade: 420 Watts Standard Case Power Supply
CPU: Intel® Core? i3-530 2.93 GHz 4M L3 Cache LGA1156
Venom Boost Fast And Efficient Factory Overclocking: No Overclocking
Cooling Fan: Asetek LCLC 120 Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator & Fan (Extreme Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA)
Motherboard: [CrossFireX] GigaByte GA-H55M-UD2H Intel H55 Chipset CrossFireX Support DDR3 LGA1156 Ultra Durable?3 mATX w/ Onboard Graphic, HDMI, DVI, Display Port(Digital Display Output), 7.1 HD Audio, GbLAN, USB2.0, SATA-II, 2 Gen2 PCIe & 2 PCI
Memory: 4GB (2GBx2) DDR3/1600MHz Dual Channel Memory Module (A-Data Gaming Series with Heat Spreader)
Freebies: None
Video Card: ATI Radeon HD 5670 1GB DDR5 16X PCIe Video Card [DirectX 11 Support] (Major Brand Powered by ATI)
Video Card 2: None
Video Card 3: None
Dedicated PHYSX Card: None
Multiple Video Card Settings: Non-SLI/Non-CrossFireX Mode Supports Multiple Monitors
LCD Monitor: None
2nd Monitor: None
Hard Drive: Single Hard Drive (750GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD )
Data Hard Drive: None
Hard Drive Cooling Fan: None
USB Portable Drive: None
Optical Drive: LG 22X DVD±/±RW + CD-R/RW Dual Layer Drive (BLACK COLOR)
Optical Drive 2: None
Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
Speakers: Logitech S120 2.0 Stereo Speaker Set (Black Color)
Network: Onboard Gigabit LAN Network
Modem: None
Keyboard: Xtreme Gear (Black Color) Multimedia/Internet USB Keyboard
Mouse: XtremeGear Optical USB 3 Buttons Gaming Mouse
Gaming Gear: None
Extra Thermal Display: None
Wireless 802.11B/G Network Card: None
External Wireless Network Card: None
Wireless 802.11 B/G/N Access Point: None
Flash Media Reader/Writer: INTERNAL 12in1 Flash Media Reader/Writer (BLACK COLOR)
Power Protection: None
IEEE1394 Card: None
USB Port: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
Operating System: None - FORMAT HARD DRIVE ONLY
Media Center Remote Control & TV Tuner: None
Office Suite: None
Ultra Care Option: None
Service: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT
Rush Service: NO; READY TO SHIP IN 5~10 BUSINESS DAYS

This is the first PC I have custom built and I have a buddy reviewing it right now. However, I figured there are more experienced individuals among the lovely people on the Escapist, might as well ask them.

So pretty much, I am a casual PC gamer, I happen to have some expendable income so I decided to buy a gaming desktop to run the newer games. I don't really need this to be a monster computer that puts all computers to shame, I just need it to be a computer that is capable of running newer games at a fairly high level without hiccups. Soooooo...

1. Do you see anything missing that is just a glaring oversight on my part?
2. Would you recommend upgrading anything as it sits right now.
3. Any other advice would be awesome.

Thank you for you help and I appreciate any feedback that is given.

 

[Who Dares Wins]

Oh you're a casual gamer, with 4GB DDR3, and a 1GB Video Card, and all that other shit, yes I'd say you're pretty casual.

 

[Zacharine]

Lots and lots of useless information there.

Let's see.... an Intel® Core? i3-530 is a dual core, right?

You'll be better served with a quad, if you have the budget for all that.

The GPU , ATI Radeon HD 5670 (1GB) is more than sufficient. In fact, you may wish to buy a cheaper one and invest more in the CPU. Balance is more important that huge overperformance of a single component.

Memory is fine, 4Gb of DDR3 1600MHz will suffice for years to come, no problems.

Power supply - Go For A Known High-Quality Brand! the PSU is the most overlooked and yet the most critical part of a PC, a short circuit/malfunction can breake a multitude of other components. See manufacturers like Corsair for more info, investing an extra 40?/$ into a high-quality PSU is more than worth it.

As a side note, downgrade the GPU and upgrade the CPU, and the build will murder Crysis on max graphic settings. This is not a casual gaming computer, this is a hardcore numbercruncher that will make your eyes weep form the graphical awesomeness it can provide.

Also, going for a crossfire motherboard is useless unless you really plan to use two cards at some point, crossfire/SLI capable boards cost more than standard ones.

 

[dommyuk]

Oh you're a casual gamer, with 4GB DDR3, and a 1GB Video Card, and all that other shit, yes I'd say you're pretty casual.

When you have 'expendable income' and you can't upgrade consoles, why not get an awesome PC?

 

[WrongSprite]

The more exclamation marks you use, the more people will help!

Useless. Actually contribute, or get reported.

OT: The main thing you could do with changing is the dual core to a quad core, if you think you can afford it. It'd bring it more into line with the other stuff then. Other bits can be easily upgraded aswell, the CPU is very important.

 

[Who Dares Wins]

Oh you're a casual gamer, with 4GB DDR3, and a 1GB Video Card, and all that other shit, yes I'd say you're pretty casual.

When you have 'expendable income' and you can't upgrade consoles, why not get an awesome PC?

This reminded me of L4D2 and New Super Mario Bros. ZP review. When he was talking about 4 controllers and the little guy had a golden hat and a HDTV. xD

 

[Orcus The Ultimate]

Buy a toaster!

hahahahaha, nice one! he should have bought an Alienware computer...

 

[Destal]

That ATI card isn't the greatest, it's not bad, but it certainly isn't the best. 4 gig of ram should be just fine. The core i3 is okay, although that is only a 2 core processor that is recognized as 4 because of hyper threading.

As I said before, if you have more room in the budget I'd highly recommend splurging a little more on the graphics card. Bumping up to a 5770 or a GTX260 would be a huge upgrade.

 

[Destal]

Lots and lots of useless information there.

Let's see.... an Intel® Core? i3-530 is a dual core, right?

You'll be better served with a quad, if you have the budget for all that.

The GPU , ATI Radeon HD 5670 (1GB) is more than sufficient. In fact, you may wish to buy a cheaper one and invest more in the CPU. Balance is more important that huge overperformance of a single component.

Memory is fine, 4Gb of DDR3 1600MHz will suffice for years to come, no problems.

Power supply - Go For A Known High-Quality Brand! the PSU is the most overlooked and yet the most critical part of a PC, a short circuit/malfunction can breake a multitude of other components. See manufacturers like Corsair for more info, investing an extra 40?/$ into a high-quality PSU is more than worth it.

As a side note, downgrade the GPU and upgrade the CPU, and the build will murder Crysis on max graphic settings. This is not a casual gaming computer, this is a hardcore numbercruncher that will make your eyes weep form the graphical awesomeness it can provide.

Also, going for a crossfire motherboard is useless unless you really plan to use two cards at some point, crossfire/SLI capable boards cost more than standard ones.

The CPU has very little to do with gaming, the core i3 is far more than sufficient for that purpose. The nice thing about the core I series is that it eliminates the north and south bridge so it also works faster.

The core i3 can run similar speeds to the core 2 quad because the i3 hyper threads.

 

[Croaker42]

Others have said it and I can only say it again. You need to go quad core. ATM I am suffering through the BF:BC2 BETA due to the fact that the engine was built around multicore processing. (Such as that of a console.)

I also agree with Sak Sak in that going with a high end PSU is the smartest thing you could do. (No less than a 550wat)

Also..... dont forget to purchase win7. its a great OS and you will eventually need DX11.

 

[Tethalaki]

Power Supply Upgrade: 420 Watts Standard Case Power Supply

CPU: Intel® Core? i3-530 2.93 GHz 4M L3 Cache LGA1156

Operating System: None - FORMAT HARD DRIVE ONLY

These are the three things that are glaring obvious to me.

Get a better PSU, 420 is not a lot, it -may- run that setup fine though if you plan on upgrading in the future you'll more then likely have to buy a new PSU wasting money.

The CPU, I'd aim for an i5 at least for gaming, some games can be CPU heavy, plus if you do any multimedia projects or the like a better CPU will help - plus games can only get better support for multi-core processors in the future.

No Operating System? I assume you've got a box at home to install onto your new HDD then - if not, get Windows 7 (Home edition should be fine) and make sure it's 64 bit.

 

[gilthanan]

Lots and lots of useless information there.

Let's see.... an Intel® Core? i3-530 is a dual core, right?

You'll be better served with a quad, if you have the budget for all that.

The GPU , ATI Radeon HD 5670 (1GB) is more than sufficient. In fact, you may wish to buy a cheaper one and invest more in the CPU. Balance is more important that huge overperformance of a single component.

Memory is fine, 4Gb of DDR3 1600MHz will suffice for years to come, no problems.

Power supply - Go For A Known High-Quality Brand! the PSU is the most overlooked and yet the most critical part of a PC, a short circuit/malfunction can breake a multitude of other components. See manufacturers like Corsair for more info, investing an extra 40?/$ into a high-quality PSU is more than worth it.

As a side note, downgrade the GPU and upgrade the CPU, and the build will murder Crysis on max graphic settings. This is not a casual gaming computer, this is a hardcore numbercruncher that will make your eyes weep form the graphical awesomeness it can provide.

Also, going for a crossfire motherboard is useless unless you really plan to use two cards at some point, crossfire/SLI capable boards cost more than standard ones.

The CPU has very little to do with gaming, the core i3 is far more than sufficient for that purpose. The nice thing about the core I series is that it eliminates the north and south bridge so it also works faster.

The core i3 can run similar speeds to the core 2 quad because the i3 hyper threads.

The CPU has little to do with gaming? Are you on crack? It's fundamental for gaming. Although Sak Sak is right on many points, Destal is somewhat right, your GPU does shift some of the processing off of your CPU, but only GRAPHIC processing. However your need a strong CPU for all the other necessary processing that takes place. Your I3 will be sufficient for that purpose though, and that is a strong GPU that will last you for a while.

Otherwise it looked fine, but get a bigger power supply. 430 watts will severely limit your ability to upgrade later on. I wouldn't get anything smaller than 500. The power supply is an often overlooked feature of a PC, but very important, especially if it's being used for gaming.

This system should last you though for a good 3 years of top end gaming, and probably quite a bit longer than that.

 

[Aurora219]

So I have my desktop pretty much set up and ready to go. It's sitting at a nice price right now and I'm looking into upgrading a few items before I have it shipped out. These are the current specs.


Power Supply Upgrade: 420 Watts Standard Case Power Supply
CPU: Intel® Core? i3-530 2.93 GHz 4M L3 Cache LGA1156
Motherboard: GigaByte GA-H55M-UD2H Intel H55 Chipset CrossFireX Support DDR3 LGA1156 Ultra Durable?3 mATX w/ Onboard Graphic, HDMI, DVI, Display Port(Digital Display Output), 7.1 HD Audio, GbLAN, USB2.0, SATA-II, 2 Gen2 PCIe & 2 PCI
Memory: 4GB (2GBx2) DDR3/1600MHz Dual Channel Memory Module
Video Card: ATI Radeon HD 5670 1GB DDR5 16X PCIe Video Card [DirectX 11 Support)
Hard Drive: Single Hard Drive (750GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD )
Optical Drive: LG 22X DVD±/±RW + CD-R/RW Dual Layer Drive (BLACK COLOR)
Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
Operating System: None - FORMAT HARD DRIVE ONLY

Cut down to the things that actually matter. One thing jumps out at me. 420 watt PSU? I get the feeling your windows install is going to bluescreen...

 

[Zacharine]

When I was talking about high-quality PSU, I did not mean just more power. I meant also higher quality.

The cheapest PSUs on the market are second-rate. They have higher failiure percentage, the actual power supplied degenerates far faster over the years and usually lack the in-build surge-protectors, under- and overvoltage protectors and so on. In a cheap 420W PSU, two years down the line you might be lucky to get 370W out of it. Not to mention the inherent poor performance means more generated heat and more draw on the wall socket.

Also, going for a crossfire-proof build needs far more than 4X0 Watts of power. Some high-end single GPUs can make a 4X0 wat PSU cough.

And yes, the i3-core will be sufficient for now, but will be underpowered few years down the line. Replacing a less-powerful GPU, specially when Crossfire is possibly planned, is cheaper and easier, than replacing the CPU.

Also, many modern games have high number-crunching requirements for physics and particle effects. Two, three years form now... dual core will likely nor cut it, if it is only "adequate to good" today like the i3-530 is. And while the CPU is not as important as the GPU in a gaming build, balance matters just as much if not more. Two, three years down the line, having double GPUs in Crossfire combination is of no use if the CPU is coughing up.

I still stand by my recommendations:
Remove the Crossfire board, unless you definately want a second GPU down the line.
- If Crossfire capability is retained for some reason, purchase a significantly more powerful high-quality PSU (at least +100W). Downgrade the GPU. Purchase a more powerful CPU. Prepare to buy the second identical GPU within a year, two at most.
- If Crossfire capability removed, slightly downgrade the GPU. Purchase a moderately more powerful high-quality PSU. Purchase a more powerful CPU or prepare to upgrade a few years down the line.

 

[Kinichie]

You REALLY need to upgrade that PSU. A minimum of 700-750W is required for that kind of a build to run without straining the PSU or any of the components.

The CPU has very little to do with gaming, the core i3 is far more than sufficient for that purpose. The nice thing about the core I series is that it eliminates the north and south bridge so it also works faster.

Sorry mate, you're pretty wrong here. The CPU is probably the most important part of gaming alongside your GPU. The Core i3 is pretty poor, i'm afraid. It's a dual core and also the worst of the Nehalem microarchitecture processors Intel is putting out.

 

[Assassin Xaero]

Oh you're a casual gamer, with 4GB DDR3, and a 1GB Video Card, and all that other shit, yes I'd say you're pretty casual.

Better that then some guy I know. He constantly upgrades his PC, and he only plays Starcraft, Doom (1), and Enemy Territory.

 

[Woodsey]

Oh you're a casual gamer, with 4GB DDR3, and a 1GB Video Card, and all that other shit, yes I'd say you're pretty casual.

Better that then some guy I know. He constantly upgrades his PC, and he only plays Starcraft, Doom (1), and Enemy Territory.

What?!

Wish I had the money to do that.

 

[Zacharine]

Oh you're a casual gamer, with 4GB DDR3, and a 1GB Video Card, and all that other shit, yes I'd say you're pretty casual.

Better that then some guy I know. He constantly upgrades his PC, and he only plays Starcraft, Doom (1), and Enemy Territory.

What?!

Wish I had the money to do that.

I'm thinking he uses the computer for far more than just gaming. Perhaps 3D-rendering/modelling, video editing etc. Because I personally doubt anyone would constantly upgrade their computer for no reason at all.

But then again, it's his money so who am I to say anything about a person I have no knowledge of?

 

[DevilSShadoW]

how about downgrading the GPU slightly and getting an Intel Core i5-750 @2,66GHz

 

[RYjet911]

Try to get an i5-750, definitely. If you wish to delve into the realm of overclocking you can get that to 3.8 GHz from its standard clock of 2.66.

Power supply is definitely insufficient for such a build. Something at least 600W would be better.

The rest, however, seems pretty good. Very similar to my current build. It will be almost identical if you take the two upgrades I've suggested.