New Gaming PC

So I'm Upgrading my PC ... Again ..current one bugs out now and then

I am not too savvy with all the computer upgrades available but I have been doing Research

Correct me if I'm wrong ...

I decided on this with the following upgrades

I am buying a PC rather than building one 'myself' (or using a friend !)

My computer from tigerDirect

Win7 Pro 64 Bit
AMD Phenom II X4 955 3.2GHz Quad Core Processor
8GB DDR3 PC3-10600 1333MHz Memory (4GB x 2 )
NO GRAPHICS CARD ..

Using this one ..
Graphics Card

My thoughts !

AM3 vs i5 : For Gaming the AM3 phenom would be sufficient ..more $$ for Graphics Card
8 GB ram would be sufficient for most needs on Win 7 64 Bit Pro
The graphics card would be as UBER as I can find and MSI motherboard should sync with MSI card well enough

Or course power is 550 Watt and Hard Drive is 1 TB

Total cost minus the Graphics card = $643 USD
NB : an intel i5 based PC with the same spec would be = $733 USD
Intel i5 system seen here

I can always buy the graphics card later when the money comes in ...

No I don't ever plan to play Crysis on MAX or even SF4 etc
Just the games that are for PC but not available for a Console
I have a PS3 and a Wii
The witcher 2 put my PC to shame
So I want a PC that can handle most games .. and I'll buy the console title if its too slow

What are your thoughts ?
PS :I'm no AMD fan over intel ... but I do prefer Nvidia vs ATI Radeon ..hence the graphics card
And I know about SLI .... did it once and decided I didn't need the hassle of dual cards

Edited by JUS_SAURON, 03 October 2011 - 02:21 AM.

Don't get an MSI. Based on experience, they're just not quite as solid. Gigabyte and EVGA are better choices (Intel or AMD). I don't normally recommend AMD, but it should work fine.
However, I recommend two drives. One for the OS and one for storage/games. If you're going to use a traditional drive, fragging the shit out of the files is a sure way to quickly slow your computer's speed. The best way to keep the speed is to keep files written or removed from the OS at a minimum, using a faster drive like a 10K RPM Raptor or using a solid state drive. I recommend the solid state option because speed never decreases and they're really fast, but it's an expensive option to have any usable amount of space.

Thanks ..

I'm going over options and decided on Gigabyte H55M-USB3 Motherboard
And an Intel Core i3-540 3.06GHZ 4M LGA1156 Processor .. to keep costs down

And buy the best Graphics card available ... in my country .. for easy support/returns
ZOTAC GeForce GTX 570 1280MB 320-bit

I hope this system is more stable than my last one

Nothing wrong with a dual core. I rock a Core 2 Duo from the previous generation and it handles everything I throw at it without shrugging so your i3 will only perform even better than mine does. Rock solid choice there.

As for video card, I would stick with the GTX400 generation for now, or wait until later for the GTX600 series to be released since you always want to skip certain generations. The GTX500 series is the generation to skip. I currently rock a GTX460 and it handles literally everything at max, or near max, without skipping a beat. I maxed Borderlands @ 1920x1080 and my 460 handles it like a champion. Hell, I maxed MW2 and it plays great.

However, you may want to wait for the next round of AMD GPUs too. There's going to be an intense nVidia vs. AMD GPU war in the coming months and you'll want to wait to see what will give you the best bang for your buck rather than spending it now. It is your money in the end, but you'll get a much better card for the same price if you hold off for a few months.

Maxing out MW2 isn't very impressive even at that resolution.

Edited by Spartan184, 13 October 2011 - 03:52 AM.

I agree. I can max out MW2, no problem. World at War as well, even in Nazi Zombies. However, I have to keep GTA IV at medium settings, with 1920x1080 res. (To be able to play at maximum speed anyway.)

Edited by Ganon, 17 October 2011 - 03:22 AM.