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Thinking of Buying
MavadoKenyen
Member Posts: 104
in Hardware
So I've been looking into buying a new desktop seeing as my crappy Dell is about 10 years old almost.
I know it has no onboard gpu but I plan to put my nvidia gtx 550ti in it.
Please let me know if this is a good buy, or if there are other options. I'm just looking to get something I can have capabilities of upgrading over time as needed. Don't have a huge budget right now for a new one.
Comments
So that computer is the worst thing you have ever seen, it's actually not that bad at all. And this website is horrid? So why even come here.
That PC is not bad. I'm using an Acer AM3910 with i3 processor, same graphics card, 6GB ram and almost every game I play can be run at Max settings. That PC is Killer compared to mine. But I also agree, if you can build it from scratch, it's much better and you tend to save enough for 1 or 2 games. So if you don't mind building it from scratch, a custom built PC is the way to go.
Did not see the PSU Wattage, Besides that, the PC is not so bad....so it SHOULD be upgraded....
I figured it's probably a cheap junk case that basically can't handle a gaming system. But I wanted to get a better look at it, so I clicked the "more views" button. It offered a second picture that was exactly the same as the first one, except with the words "ships next business day" added. Which isn't quite as funny as the "Energy efficiency: no" that I saw listed on one power supply, but it's still amusing.
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Anyway, for the original poster, you're going about this all wrong. Look at the system specs. There's only one component in the entire machine that they tell you what it is, namely, the processor. You know why that is? Because basically everything else in the entire system is cheap junk.
If you wanted to upgrade that to an $800 gaming computer, you'd keep the processor, the optical drive, and probably the memory, and replace every single other part in the entire machine. And then you'd have to buy a new OS license, too, since the one it comes with is tied to the motherboard. Hopefully you can see the futility of paying $800 for something that would cost an additional $500 or so and a lot of do-it-yourself work to upgrade to a respectable $800 gaming computer.
The ideal situation when getting a new computer is to build your own. If you can't build your own, then I'd question what you'd do with a prebuilt even if you bought it. Plugging things into USB, ethernet, and DVI ports on the back of the case isn't any easier than plugging things into SATA ports and DDR3 slots inside the case. I guess some internal components do require the use of a screwdriver, but that's not really that hard, is it?
If the problem is that you don't know what parts to pick, then you can get help with that here. It's a lot easier to make a list of parts for a nice gaming computer than to find a prebuilt that is a nice gaming computer. The latter is looking for a needle in a haystack that probably doesn't actually contain a needle.
If you can't or won't assemble parts yourself, then the next best thing is getting a computer built to order from a site that will let you pick the exact parts. There are a lot of sites that will let you pick something nice for a higher end gaming computer, but few offer a selection suitable to a budget model. AVA Direct is the only site I'm aware of in the US that offers some good budget configurations. $800 is enough that you may or may not be able to get something reasonable from Cyber Power PC or iBuyPower.
If you're running games at max settings on Intel integrated graphics, then either you're playing games with extremely low graphical requirements or you don't understand the concept of max settings. Or high settings. Or medium settings.
Rather than buying a ridiculous configuration and then replacing half of the parts, don't you think it would make more sense to buy the right parts the first time?
I would not buy that, for the simple fact that they don't tell you what all the parts are.
Sure, it may have an i7 2600, but it's on an H67 motherboard (not good), with (probably) no-branded hardware (motherboard, power supply, RAM, hard drive), and for $800 (the price on the web site), you could do a whole lot better.
I appreciate your help a lot. I am watching videos from Newegg on putting everything together and what not and it it surprisingly easy. I am pretty sure picking the parts is the only part I would have trouble with.
Sadly my college's CS program only taught us programming, nothing about hardware and actualy practical things.
Quizzical is really good at building people pc's. Or some other people here too. I'm sure if you put down a base price they could give you some links to each part. I would but I'm not too great at selecting parts that work well together.
If you'd like, I could pick out parts for you for an $800 gaming computer. Or some other budget, if you prefer a different budget.
As others have already said about the only good thing with that system is the chip. You could argue the memory is impressive but first of all memory isn't expensive to begin with. Second what are you thinking you may need 16GB for? Seriously before you buy that just ask for help with a GOOD sound build around that price range. I just built my son a PC Saturday morning and I'm a mum. If i can do it you can do it or at the very least consider it an option before purchasing that machine.
P.S. Quizzical has just given a great offer of help. I'd accept it!
the poster formerly known as melangel :P
If you don't want to build one yourself, this CyberPower http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/saved/1E3NA1 , it would fit your budget, it's their cheapest PC (normally $679) with an upgraded card and powersupply (you may even want to upgrade the powersupply a bit more). But for $795, you'll get the 560 evga card instead of the 550. In the long run I think you'll be happier with this unit. Just for fun you might want to price out parts on NewEgg. Its a fun way to blow a few hours and you can educate yourself on whats out there. Building your own is easy and there's lots of people that will help you here and other places on the web.
have fun!
You'd still have to replace the power supply, and that pushes you way over $800. Also, on an $800 budget, there's no real reason not to get a quad core processor.
Actually, do you already have a GeForce GTX 550 Ti? And if so, then what else do you have in it? You might be able to upgrade the old computer or salvage parts from it.
If you instead mean that you're planning on getting a GeForce GTX 550 Ti, then don't, unless you've found an unusually good deal. Or at least, don't pay significantly over $100 before rebates for one. The GeForce GTX 550 Ti is simply too expensive to build for the level of performance that it gives, so it's almost never a decent value for the money.
For the love of PC's don't buy from Cyberpower without combing through their forums. Read what the customers have to say about the PC's they've gotten from Cyberpower before buying one. Same company owns both Cyberpower and iBuypower so .... just be wary and read my friend read lol. Many of the loyal customers will tell you straight up chances are high that you aren't going to get a good rig the first 2 or 3 shippings. It takes shipping it back and forth multiple times to get it working right some times many more if they can get it working right at all. Do NOT get it engraved, if you get it engraved even if it doesn't work you're stuck with it.
Do NOT get water cooling or if you do make sure you check it over thoroughly before using it.
Your better off building one on your own even if your doing so with tutorials and vids off the net. It's cheaper, better, and in the end you know a great deal more about how your rig works in the end.
I currently own the 550 in my desktop I am running right now. I am pretty sold now on looking into parts now.
Seeing as I know jack squat about mobo's, I am intending on getting one for an intel chip, aiming at an i7 although if there are better reasons not to, please let me know. My price range I am aiming for is to stay under one thousand USD. I believe I am competent enough to assemble it and such, only downfall being getting a new OS and such.
You can get an OEM or System Builders copy of windows 7 for about $100 or less depending on the deal going on.
With a budget rig an i7 may not be the most feasable. You should probably look into the i5 or i3 to save some cash. Processor is important but not the most important thing when it comes to gaming. Mobo's aren't that hard to pick out either. Look on newegg, first figure out the processor you want and find a mobo with that socket. Look for features you need/want and look at reviews. Even if you don't buy from newegg the reviews there are worth checking out. You can get an idea of what the flaws or complications with said Mobo are.
I always start with my processor and build from there. For me it ensures everything meshes well with far greater ease than from any other starting point.
Cyber Power PC gives you the option to get something nice, or to load it up with cheap junk parts. If you pick nice parts all around, then I'm skeptical that they'd be so inept as to be unable to get it to work. If you pick cheap junk parts (e.g., a "standard" power supply), and then have all sorts of problems, you got what you paid for. I suspect that that's where a lot of the horror stories come from.
If you've got a GeForce GTX 550 Ti in the old computer, then that's not a very old card. If you're taking the video card out, then I take it that you don't need the old computer to remain functional. You might have other parts you could salvage from it. What else do you have in it?
The reason not to get a Core i7 processor is the price tag. For gaming purposes, there isn't much reason to get one. A Core i7-2700K offers three advantages over a Core i5-2500K
1) It has 8 MB of L3 cache, rather than 6 MB. In real programs, this might make a 1% performance difference, if that.
2) It has hyperthreading, which can provide a performance boost as high as 30% in programs that scale flawlessly to eight cores. In programs that don't scale to more than four cores, such as essentially all games, Windows won't use hyperthreading, because the only possible effects of using it is to reduce performance, not to increase it.
3) It has a higher stock clock speed. If you overclock the processor yourself, this doesn't matter at all. If you want a Core i7-2700K on the cheap for gaming purposes, you buy a Core i5-2500K, go into the BIOS, change the multiplier from 33 to 35, and you're done. There's no need to tweak voltage, and it's pretty much guaranteed to be a stable overclock.
For gaming purposes, none of those matter. The Core i5-2500K, on the other hand, has only one advantage: it's $120 cheaper. And that matters.
If you wanted to spend $3000 excluding peripherals on a gaming computer, you could start by getting everything that matters, and then go around fishing for ways to spend the rest of the money. Maybe you get a ~480 GB SSD, for example. Maybe you get some fancy case fans with a switch that lets you adjust the light patterns. Maybe you get a Core i7 processor. It's one of those ways to spend more money that doesn't really matter, so it's about that priority tier.
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You should also stop to consider whether you want to buy a Sandy Bridge processor right now or wait for Ivy Bridge. Rumors say that Ivy Bridge launches on April 29, so that's only two weeks away. At stock speeds, it will be about 10% faster than Sandy Bridge for the same price tag. We don't know how well it will overclock as compared to Sandy Bridge, however.
I'm not using the IG....I have the same GTX 550 Ti graphics card as the OP....Wasn't clear enough lol sorry about that.
Some games will run at max settings on a GeForce GTX 550 Ti, but many won't. Or perhaps rather, nearly all games will nominally run at max settings, but many are demanding enough that it's a lot smarter to turn some settings down a ways and boost your frame rate.
It's not that the GeForce GTX 550 Ti is a bad card. It's just not that powerful of a card, either. For comparison, it's roughly competitive with a Radeon HD 7750, which is the lowest end card in AMD's current generation.
And more to the point, it's not the sort of card that you'd get in a new computer on a $1000 budget excluding peripherals. You could easily fit a Radeon HD 6870 with nearly double the performance in that budget.
But if you already have the card, you don't necessarily need to replace it immediately. You could just assemble the new computer with it, and keep in mind that you might end up needing to replace the video card sooner rather than later. Or depending on what games you play, it might be 2 or 3 years before you pick up a game where you really want a faster video card. There's no need to replace the card until that happens.
dont buy that PC ! custom build one yourself
here are some good value graphics cards for their price
<$150: dont even bother, just run integrated graphics and buy one when you need/have money to get one
~$150+ : hd 6870
~$210+: gtx 560ti
~$250+: gtx 560ti 448 core( or hd 7850 if you want a quieter, cooler and lower power card)
i really dont think it is worth spending more on a gfx card unless you really want to play BF3 on max settings. due to all pc games being console ports these days you dont really need high end gfx cards.
Sadly no, it's the rush job on the build. They slap it together and ship it out. Many complain about not even getting the better parts that they ordered, others complain about shotty workmanship all together, the complaints vary and they are numerous.
Again though, I'm not asking you to take my word for it I am simply asking that you view their own forums before buying from them.