I want to join the PC Elite...what next?

[Wolfram23]

I've recently started saving up money with my new job and intend to become a PC gamer. As I look at the custom built PC's on www.cyberpowerpc.com I realize I don't know what exactly I need.

Money won't be an issue, and I have a monitor, I just need to know what the's most important part of making a gaming PC? What are the red herrings? What do I need to spend more money on, and what do I need to back off on. Basically, I just don't want to rip myself off by buying a bunch of upgrades I won't need. I'm new to all this fancy top of the line equipment, I need a pro to guide me and set me on the path of the righteous man.

At this point I want a rig that will play titles at max settings flawlessly, including the most graphically intensive games on the market...Help me out guys. Help me build a gaming behemoth.

My recommendation is head to Tomshardware forums and check out their Systems topic, there are a TON of builds in there for any budget as well as very knowledgeable system builders who help a lot.

If you want some recommendations, IMO:
CPU: i5 2500k
RAM: 6-8gb ~1600mhz CL8 for performance
Motherboard: Avoid MSI. Asus is a great brand. Also it would benefit you to get a board with the NF200 chip for crossfire/SLI (it effectively doubles the PCIe bandwidth)
GPU: If you want to max games at 1080p, you'll need at least crossfire 6870s or SLI 560s, if not more. And if you want to do multimonitors I would highly recommend at least CF 6950 2gb models (or SLI 560 2gb models from Palit - but the 6950s would be better).
PSU: Corsair 750 or 850, or an Antec equivalent. OCZ is alright too. CoolMaster is a bit worse but their top end PSUs are decent enough.
Case: This should be something you like, but make sure it has at least 3 fans (usually 2 intake 1 or 2 exhaust). I like the Antec 902 or HAF 932.
You should also consider a CPU heatsink. Best bang for your buck is the Hyper 212 Plus, but there's defintely better available.

That would be a sick PC. Oh also here's a sweet look at a $2000 performance PC on Tom's Hardware... you can see for yourself how kickass it is: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/intel-sandy-bridge-build-a-pc-overclocking,2876.html

 

[MrTub]

My $600 PC can run every game I've come across at max settings.

(Try to) play Crysis on max settings. Then go to your room and think about what you said.

I did.
Building your own PC is far cheaper and I've beaten the top PC taxing games on max settings.

May I ask what resolution you are using?

 

[ZombieGenesis]

Wolfram, are you seriously suggesting Sandybridge and SLI 560's as the minimum for max gaming on a 1080p scale?

You can do just as well running on an i3 and a single GTX460! At considerably cheaper price (with only a small drop in FPS for certain games).

I've moved from a GTX 470/i5 build to a Sandybridge / AMD6970 and it really didn't make much of a difference at all- better processing on dual monitors is really all I can boast above my old build, and CPU intensive games like GTA IV and Oblivion.

What would I recommend getting at this point?

i5 760
GTX 560 (or 470 if you want similar performance at lower prices)

I often wonder if this is where the 'PC gaming is a millionares club' thing comes from.

 

[Arcanist]

Garbage PCs are garbage. Grab all your parts off of newegg and build it yourself.

I wholeheartedly approve of this quote.

It's much easier than most people think to put together a custom rig. Just look for a tutorial online, and go from there.

 

[MrTub]

Wolfram, are you seriously suggesting Sandybridge and SLI 560's as the minimum for max gaming on a 1080p scale?

You can do just as well running on an i3 and a single GTX460! At considerably cheaper price (with only a small drop in FPS for certain games).

I've moved from a GTX 470/i5 build to a Sandybridge / AMD6970 and it really didn't make much of a difference at all- better processing on dual monitors is really all I can boast above my old build, and CPU intensive games like GTA IV and Oblivion.

What would I recommend getting at this point?

i5 760
GTX 560 (or 470 if you want similar performance at lower prices)

I often wonder if this is where the 'PC gaming is a millionares club' thing comes from.

Cause people see dells computer - Just now for 2500$ you can get your own super awesome duper computer. And then they think it will cost you 2500$ to get a decent computer.

 

[Sneaklemming]

If money is no issue, get a nice big second HD and 3D Monitor.

2 Monitors is GODLIKE. Well no... 3 Monitors is Godlike, but 2 is on the road to godliness.

Make sure aside from the powerhouse stuff that you take the time to get a nice sound system and/or a good headset. Making sure your mouse is good is definitely worth it. (I recommend Razor or logitech mice, theyre both quality brands; but the choice is personal.) Don't skimp on the mice and headset, they really improve the quality of your games. If you want to be in the true PC elite, you want every luxury. That's the point.

Other people have covered the essentials, but yeh you want good stuff aside from the rig too.

If money really is no worry, then a good chair goes a loooong way.


edit- oh yeh and build your first one yourself. You wont regret it.

 

[Wolfram23]

Wolfram, are you seriously suggesting Sandybridge and SLI 560's as the minimum for max gaming on a 1080p scale?

You can do just as well running on an i3 and a single GTX460! At considerably cheaper price (with only a small drop in FPS for certain games).

I've moved from a GTX 470/i5 build to a Sandybridge / AMD6970 and it really didn't make much of a difference at all- better processing on dual monitors is really all I can boast above my old build, and CPU intensive games like GTA IV and Oblivion.

What would I recommend getting at this point?

i5 760
GTX 560 (or 470 if you want similar performance at lower prices)

I often wonder if this is where the 'PC gaming is a millionares club' thing comes from.

SB isn't that expensive, and anything less than a 2500 isn't a quad core. No point in not getting a quad at this time because more and more games are utilizing it (recently DA2 and Crysis 2 use a lot of CPU). And a i5 2500 is basically the exact same price as the i5 760.

As for maxing games at 1080p. Yes, that's exactly what I'm suggesting. OP wants to max out games, a 460 is not up to that. I'm talking Very High/Ultra details, 4xAA or more, everything cranked. I have done my own benchmarking between single and CF 5850s, which are more powerful than a 460, and I have them overclocked from 700 core/1000 mem to 870/1200. Check it:

Spoiler: Click here for my results

When someone wants to build a PC to max games and says "budget isn't an issue" I would never ever tell him to skimp out and buy an AMD X4 and a 460 because "it's good enough". Yeah, they can play these games at good enough FPS at high(ish) settings... but that's not what he's asking as far as I'm concerned. He wants to max shit? He's gotta go big.

You say you upgraded from a 470 to a 6970? Ok but that's not much of an upgrade so I'm not surprised you didn't notice a big difference. You should have just added a second 470. As for the CPU upgrade, again... you didn't really upgrade much. SB is clock for clock a little faster than a 750 but it's not a big difference unless you do a lot of video encoding.

 

[MrTub]

And btw what does people mean when they want to max out games? Cause with a single monitor you cannot max out a game.. the absolute highest settings is 3x 2560 x 1600 screens running in 7680x1600 resolution with 3D on. And for that you need some insane hardware..

 

[SirDoom]

Every part is just as important as the last.

The last time I built a computer, it was pretty close to top of the line for the time. It had one of the best processors available, one of the best graphics cards, and a good 8GB of RAM. I thought I got everything I needed taken care of.

However, I skimped on the power supply, thinking it wasn't necessary to get the best of the best for a part so trivial. I got one mid-range one ,thinking it would be fine. As it turns out, the rig was pushing that thing to the max, and combined with a case that didn't get enough ventilation, the thing would overheat and shut down after about 15 minutes of any serious gaming.

 

[Wolfram23]

And btw what does people mean when they want to max out games? Cause with a single monitor you cannot max out a game.. the absolute highest settings is 3x 2560 x 1440 screens running in 7680x1440 resolution with 3D on. And for that you need some insane hardware..

Nah Eyefinity supports 3x 2560x1600 monitors or even 6x 1920x1080

 

[MrTub]

And btw what does people mean when they want to max out games? Cause with a single monitor you cannot max out a game.. the absolute highest settings is 3x 2560 x 1440 screens running in 7680x1440 resolution with 3D on. And for that you need some insane hardware..

Nah Eyefinity supports 3x 2560x1600 monitors or even 6x 1920x1080

Yeah but then you do not have 3d.. And you can run 9x monitors in eyefinity (probably more)

and my bad about resol. thought x1440 was the highest, changed to 1600 now

 

[mrhateful]

You sir made my day

Also if you want to start your path to become a real gamer you must first realize that motherboard come in(mainly) two different types a ati type and intel type. Also make sure that the processor use the same socket as the socket on your motherboard.

for instance intels new socket is called 1155. Make sure that if you buy a processor that the socket matches that on the motherboard otherwise your cpu wont fit.

Now last thing: The way I normally scout for new gear is by checking what is popular right now(there is always such an option on NewEgg atleast) and then I search the product name on different review sites to see what they have to say or if there is something that is better and cheaper

The very last thing:
NEVER EVER buy things because they say that it has some new technologi. For instance DONT fall into the SLI(two graphic cards) trap as I did.

Ohh yeah and the very very last thing:
People always say you need way bigger power supply then you in reality need, 500Watt is more than enough for a standard/better pc.

 

[MrTub]

You sir made my day

Also if you want to start your path to become a real gamer you must first realize that motherboard come in(mainly) two different types a ati type and intel type. Also make sure that the processor use the same socket as the socket on your motherboard.

for instance intels new socket is called LGA1366. Make sure that if you buy a processor that the socket matches that on the motherboard otherwise your cpu wont fit.

Now last thing: The way I normally scout for new gear is by checking what is popular right now(there is always such an option on NewEgg atleast) and then I search the product name on different review sites to see what they have to say or if there is something that is better and cheaper

The very last thing:
NEVER EVER buy things because they say that it has some new technologi. For instance DONT fall into the SLI(two graphic cards) trap as I did.

Ohh yeah and the very very last thing:
People always say you need way bigger power supply then you in reality need, 500Watt is more than enough for a standard/better pc.

The latest socket that have been released is 1155(Intel) And i would never recommend 500w for a gaming pc since nearly all gaming cards has recommended 600w or more and imo it's better to buy more then you need atm since if you want to add another card you do not need to buy another PSU. And whats wrong with Sli?

 

[Xanadu84]

In my experience, 600 dollars is a good amount of money to spend, 1,000 is for if you really, really want to splurge, and there's no real reason to spend more then 1200. $600 should give you everything you need, more then 12 and you enter the realm of absurd diminishing returns. To have longevity, get the best processor possible: RAM and video cards can be replaced with remarkable ease even if you are computer illiterate, and you can easily stay current in terms of muscle by upgrading your rig, but replacing a processor is something you don't want to do. Get an acceptable amount of RAM (4 gigs is probably good) of the best speed you can manage, but remember that unless you need all that RAM for a game right away, RAM drops in price very quickly. I will be called crazy for recommending that you don't go too crazy on the video card, but there is a reason I say this. People always overestimate how powerful a computer you need, and focus on constantly, "Outdated" hardware. Truth is you can save your money, spend much, much less of a video card, and then just upgrade sooner.

This is just my experience with gaming PCS, I am not an expert, and someone who knows more actual facts should be listened to before me.

 

[mrhateful]

The latest socket that have been released is 1155(Intel) And i would never recommend 500w for a gaming pc since nearly all gaming cards has recommended 600w or more and imo it's better to buy more then you need atm since if you want to add another card you do not need to buy another PSU. And whats wrong with Sli?

About the socket should have written one of their newest, honestly was just using it as an example since I am running amd anyway. I have changed it now so no one else will start crying over such a pointless thing.
However on to your more important points:
Yes the good old buy more than you need argument, honestly never buy more than you need because in 6 month everything has been upgraded so much that you will have to buy new stuff anyway.

Lastly SLI is the worst crap ever, first you can only use one screen. That means that every time you want to use SLI you have to turn of your second screen and if you don't you just wasted a lot of money on a worthless graphic card, secondly SLI works well in some games however most games SLI has no support so either it feels like your using one graphic card or it keeps crashing/bugging. It is in my opinion not worth the headache or the gain, compared to the price.

 

[barbzilla]

As most people have already said, build your own. It is not very complex and it is well worth the effort. I spent around $900 on parts when I built my own (not including OS and Monitor) and I can play crysis on max with only the occasional stutter (if I upgrade my CPU it would be gone all together). Some people are not comfortable building their own PC and I understand that, but don't buy from these bargain basement stores like cyberpowerpc. Save up a chunk of change and buy one from Falcon Northwest. As far as gaming PC's go FNW is the best company out there, but expect to drop a shinny penny on it.

 

[MrTub]

The latest socket that have been released is 1155(Intel) And i would never recommend 500w for a gaming pc since nearly all gaming cards has recommended 600w or more and imo it's better to buy more then you need atm since if you want to add another card you do not need to buy another PSU. And whats wrong with Sli?

About the socket should have written one of their newest, honestly was just using it as an example since I am running amd anyway. I have changed it now so no one else will start crying over such a pointless thing.
However on to your more important points:
Yes the good old buy more than you need argument, honestly never buy more than you need because in 6 month everything has been upgraded so much that you will have to buy new stuff anyway.

Lastly SLI is the worst crap ever, first you can only use one screen. That means that every time you want to use SLI you have to turn of your second screen and if you don't you just wasted a lot of money on a worthless graphic card, secondly SLI works well in some games however most games SLI has no support so either it feels like your using one graphic card or it keeps crashing/bugging. It is in my opinion not worth the headache or the gain, compared to the price.

I must ask have u even used Sli? Cause I have only found one game that didnt support sli that has been released the last 3-4yrs and one was the Crysis 2 demo (Fixed with an update) And wtf are you talking about you only can use one screen? and I have had Sli for 4 month and it has never crashed and I have never heard of a system crashing cause of SLI unless you do not have the PSU to handle it and since the scaling on SLI/CF atm is around 90% it often Cheaper and better to go CF/SLI and the reason Im saying you should get more Watt then you need is cause if you want to add another Card which is great performance for the price you do not need to buy a new PSU.

 

[Wolfram23]

Yes the good old buy more than you need argument, honestly never buy more than you need because in 6 month everything has been upgraded so much that you will have to buy new stuff anyway.

Lastly SLI is the worst crap ever, first you can only use one screen. That means that every time you want to use SLI you have to turn of your second screen and if you don't you just wasted a lot of money on a worthless graphic card, secondly SLI works well in some games however most games SLI has no support so either it feels like your using one graphic card or it keeps crashing/bugging. It is in my opinion not worth the headache or the gain, compared to the price.

I disagree with both of those points. First off you're talking about a PSU. Buy a good one with headroom and you'll have the ability to upgrade your PC many times over without changing that part. Also, if we're talking about other components, if you buy something overpowered now then yes sure in a year it's no longer top notch but it's performance hasn't diminished and it should still perform admirably for some time, but if you buy the minimum now then you always have to keep upgrading to just get by.

As for SLI... ok first off you need SLI to use more than 2 monitors. And it does support 2 monitors in games and whatever else but obviously it's dumb to only use 2 since you'll have the monitor bezels right down the center of your vision. Thirdly SLI and Crossfire (I use Crossfire) are both usually going to give you better performance per dollar than getting one more powerful card (at least at the top end of the scale) and also they are supported by almost all games released for the last 3 or 4 years and more, except for some very limited examples like Minecraft that really doesn't need it anyway.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

First Rule of the PC Elite is you don't post about the PC Elite.
Second Rule is covered in the EULA.