Budget Intel Gaming build with HD 7850

[9fathomdeep]

Hello Guys, am New to TomsHardware and this is my first post. I am seeking a gaming Rig that would allow me to play Battlefield 3, Ghost Recon Future Soldier, Splinter Cell Conviction/Blacklist, Fifa/Pes 2012 and similar games yet to be released. I have made some studies and market surveys myself and have decided to purchase the HD 7850 which is supposed to be the Hot Cake at the moment. I am indeed aware that a rig with i5 2500k along with a z77 board topped with HD 7850 is the right choice for me. But due to the budget issues I am in a fix which CPU and board to opt for. My friends say that an i3 2120 + hd 7850 would be a bottleneck combination. The questions I would like to put forward are as follows:

1) How is the combination i3 2120 + HD 7850 ?? Will it be a Bottleneck ?? My friends say that the forthcoming games require quad cores and thus i3 2120 + HD 7850 is a BAD COMBINATION .. 🙁

2) Is it ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY to opt for an Overclocking Processor even if I am having a card like HD 7850 ???

3) Which CHEAP YET BEST MOTHERBOARD Chipset to opt for if am not looking for Overclocking my CPU ?? I myself found that B75 Chipsets are cheap and satisfactory. Will the B75 Board support OVERCLOCKING the CPU in case i opt for an i5 2500k in the near future ???

Am truly kinda depressed and worried as am not being able to fix up my mind and make my purchases. This rig is going to be my First Gaming Built and I wanna get a big smile across my face getting the most out of it.

Am sure you guys will definitely help me find a way out..

Thanks a lot in advance !! :|

 

[simon12]

1st I am assuming you will be gaming at 1920 x 1080 as you don't say at lower resolutions the CPU becomes more important at higher the GPU.
1 It will only be a bottleneck in BF3 on large multiplayer maps many games can use 4 cores but other than BF3 I know of none that need it.
2 No you don't need to overclock but if you are getting an i5 its worth it.
3 sorry don't know.
I suggest you find the money for the i5 and a good board or just get the i3 and lower your settings in BF3. I don't think the i3 will seriously disappoint.

 

[mocchan]

1) The Intel Core i3 2120 paired with a Radeon HD7850 is a perfect match, it will NOT bottleneck. Some benches have shown an i3 paired with an HD7950 and they both performed well.

2) Most games nowadays still utilise only 2-3 cores, the i3 will have a long life ahead of it (2-3 years IMO). Games are just starting to utilise more than 2-3 cores; Battlefield 3's frostbite engine is a great example.

3) The cheapest and best motherboard IMO is the ASRock H77M. It will NOT support overclocking, but it will support 1600Mhz RAM, unlike the B75 counterpart which is known to have issues.

4) If you're in the building stages of your rig, can you list your location, budget, and screen resolution? If you list those, I'll be more than happy to make you a parts list.

 

[bctande1]

Give us your budget, and I'll make a rig.

 

[Pailin]

I do not think you can claim 2 core 2-3 year life anymore. I mean sure it will run games with reduced settings - after all the designers don't want to alienate their potential markets

But I am seeing more and more Recommended specs for upcoming games this and next year that want 4 cores with support coming for more in some even.

Things are Finally after many years heading for games designed from the ground up to have good multi-threaded support.


But saying all that, buy the i3 now and upgrade later if you feel the need and maybe then have more money for a better chip too ^^

 

[mocchan]

Yes, that's true about Dual Core support; BF3 is known to eliminate one of their story-line characters if you only have two cores enabled, whereas a Quad Core CPU would show all characters the developers would have liked you to see.

However, I'm still confident an i3 would last another two years at max, due to how well the CPU can handle modern titles. They would perform better with a Quad Core, that's a given, however if you were looking for something that would work, and would still output reasonable performance, the i3 is still there to back you up.

Though yes, I would agree buying an i3 and upgrading later is a very nice option, would save you some money at first as well considering the price point of the chip

 

[9fathomdeep]

1st I am assuming you will be gaming at 1920 x 1080 as you don't say at lower resolutions the CPU becomes more important at higher the GPU.
1 It will only be a bottleneck in BF3 on large multiplayer maps many games can use 4 cores but other than BF3 I know of none that need it.
2 No you don't need to overclock but if you are getting an i5 its worth it.
3 sorry don't know.
I suggest you find the money for the i5 and a good board or just get the i3 and lower your settings in BF3. I don't think the i3 will seriously disappoint.

Thanks a lot for your reply..

I won't be playing Battlefield 3 in the MULTIPLAYER mode too often .. However if I manage to save some extra bucks for the i5, would it be sufficient if I afford any of these nonOCing Processors: i5 2400/2500/3450/3550 ???

Some of my online friends (who generally tend to recommend high end configs) say that the 3450/3550 aren't much good in Gaming .. IS THAT SO ???

Should I then just try to grab a nonOC 2400/2500 for my Job along with the HD 7850 ??

 

[9fathomdeep]

Give us your budget, and I'll make a rig.

Thanks a lot for helping me out !

My first priority is to grab the HD 7850 .. It is I guess the best product I can afford at the moment.. I will get the Gskill RipjawsX Ram along with a 500GB HDD.. Next I'll be focusing on a budget Processor and Motherboard .. I'll be playing games at 1080p so require a budget LED too...

I am from India.. Calcutta precisely.. It would be great if i can gift myself a complete INTEL rig within 40k - 50k. That I think is like $800 - $1000 USD (considering $1 = Rs. 50)

 

[9fathomdeep]

1) The Intel Core i3 2120 paired with a Radeon HD7850 is a perfect match, it will NOT bottleneck. Some benches have shown an i3 paired with an HD7950 and they both performed well.

2) Most games nowadays still utilise only 2-3 cores, the i3 will have a long life ahead of it (2-3 years IMO). Games are just starting to utilise more than 2-3 cores; Battlefield 3's frostbite engine is a great example.

3) The cheapest and best motherboard IMO is the ASRock H77M. It will NOT support overclocking, but it will support 1600Mhz RAM, unlike the B75 counterpart which is known to have issues.

4) If you're in the building stages of your rig, can you list your location, budget, and screen resolution? If you list those, I'll be more than happy to make you a parts list.

Thanks a lot for your help !

1) I never thought i3 2120 and HD 7850 would be a perfect match .. You simply have no idea how my friends disappoint me putting forward the bottleneck issues .. I know nothing would have been best if I can afford an i5 2500k + hd 7850 + z77 board + 212 evo .. But even when am in a tight budget am trying my best to comfortably afford the hd 7850 and be happy with it...

2) Am not havng plans to play Battlefield 3 heavily in the MULTIPLAYER MODE .. So I just wonder whether the i3 2120 + hd 7850 allow me to play Battlefield 3 in Hgh/Ultra Settings in 1080p ..

3) I didn't find the board you mentioned in Stores here in India .. However found a Gigabyte H77 Board.. Is this a good board to invest .. ? http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4143#sp

4) Am from India .. Calcutta precisely.. I will be playing games at 1080p and thus require a Full HD LED as well that is affordable in my budget.. It would be great if my INTEL rig is built within 40k - 50k INR.. That would be I guess like $800 - $1000 USD considering $1 = Rs. 50 INR ..

 

[9fathomdeep]

I do not think you can claim 2 core 2-3 year life anymore. I mean sure it will run games with reduced settings - after all the designers don't want to alienate their potential markets

But I am seeing more and more Recommended specs for upcoming games this and next year that want 4 cores with support coming for more in some even.

Things are Finally after many years heading for games designed from the ground up to have good multi-threaded support.


But saying all that, buy the i3 now and upgrade later if you feel the need and maybe then have more money for a better chip too ^^

Thanks for your help !

If i3 2120 + hd 7850 is not a bottleneck combination I would prefer opting for it due to the financial constraints am having at the moment. Yet, I would like to grab a non OC i5 CPU as soon as my budget permits.

1) Will i3 2120 + hd 7850 allow me to play games like Battlefield 3 (NOT IN MULTIPLAYER MODE) in High/Ultra in 1080p comfortably ??

2) As I would like to upgrade to an i5 non OC CPU in the near future, which motherboard to opt for the i3 2120 + hd 7850 at the moment ?? I won't have to change the motherboard when I'll be opting for an i5 then..

 

[mohit9206]

i3 2120 alongwith H77 mobo and HD7850 is a very good combination. go for it

 

[mocchan]

Thanks a lot for your help !

1) I never thought i3 2120 and HD 7850 would be a perfect match .. You simply have no idea how my friends disappoint me putting forward the bottleneck issues .. I know nothing would have been best if I can afford an i5 2500k + hd 7850 + z77 board + 212 evo .. But even when am in a tight budget am trying my best to comfortably afford the hd 7850 and be happy with it...

2) Am not havng plans to play Battlefield 3 heavily in the MULTIPLAYER MODE .. So I just wonder whether the i3 2120 + hd 7850 allow me to play Battlefield 3 in Hgh/Ultra Settings in 1080p ..

3) I didn't find the board you mentioned in Stores here in India .. However found a Gigabyte H77 Board.. Is this a good board to invest .. ? http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4143#sp

4) Am from India .. Calcutta precisely.. I will be playing games at 1080p and thus require a Full HD LED as well that is affordable in my budget.. It would be great if my INTEL rig is built within 40k - 50k INR.. That would be I guess like $800 - $1000 USD considering $1 = Rs. 50 INR ..

Oh yes, that board is actually pretty decent, so you shouldn't have any problems.

Also to answer your question on your previous post, yes, an i3 2120 + HD7850 combination will allow you to play BF3 comfortably. You could most likely max the game out

 

[9fathomdeep]

Thanks a ton !! Now when the CPU + MOTHERBOARD + GPU is confirmed would like to move on to the next parts as well..

1) Will the Seasonic 520W be sufficient for my rig ?? This PSU is pretty cheap here and some of my friends recommend the product on a budget built.

2) I would require a Full HD LED as well.. Which one to opt for ??

 

[mocchan]

Thanks a ton !! Now when the CPU + MOTHERBOARD + GPU is confirmed would like to move on to the next parts as well..

1) Will the Seasonic 520W be sufficient for my rig ?? This PSU is pretty cheap here and some of my friends recommend the product on a budget built.

2) I would require a Full HD LED as well.. Which one to opt for ??

Yes, the Seasonic PSU is MORE than enough for you, it is also one of the most reliable PSU's you can purchase, so definitely get that.

And yes, Full HD LED is probably the best option to get when it comes to Monitors nowadays, you also have to factor in the type of panel, but that's a bit complex so I won't get into it.