Graphic Cards and components

[cdntrooper]

Hey, I'm thinking of buying a DELL. I'm not a big gamer but I do want to play American Army. What components should i get and what Graphic card.

Pls advise.

tks

 

[Brawly44]

I think you left to much out for anyone to provide any real recommendation. For instance, what type of budget are you on? And, I am assuming that there are a couple of Dell models you're leaning towards.

From what I know of America's Army, it isn't that graphically hard on a PC - but in the future you may consider another game that's harder on a PC than America's Army. I always recommend to plan for the future. Give us some additional information cdntrooper.

 

[cdntrooper]

I guess the info I provided demonstrates my knowledge of computers...

My budget is around 2500.

I'm looking at the DELL XPS models: 435, 625 and 630.

I do want to think about the future.

I also liked playing Call of Duty and Brother in arms but my current computer is out of date..

I'm starting from scratch... I'm looking for advice on everthing from memory, hard drive, graphic cards to processor...

Any help would be greatly appreciated

tks

 

[aford10]

Ok, with that kind of a budget, you would real nice to build an i7 system.
This build comes to $2493. It doesn't include a monitor. If you need one, you can modify something or look for a different combo deal. You won't find the parts like this in a dell system.

i7 965 extreme/storm sniper combo - 1,110
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115200
asus p6t - 250
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131359
2 x gtx285 SLI - 670
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130442
WD 640G cavair black - 80
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319
Corsair 850w - 120
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139009
vista home - 100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116488
OCZ 3x2G DDR3 1600 - 140
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227408
LG dvd burner - 23
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152

 

[cdntrooper]

Thanks for the information. I'm however not certain that I want to take on my own build... or start changing components.

I can barely make a sandwish...

Any other suggestions

Tks

 

[jsc]

There was a first time for all of us here.

 

[aford10]

There was a first time for all of us here.

+1....We all started somewhere.

It's really not as hard as it may seem. The build I listed above is all compatible, so you don't have to worry about that. It's pretty easy to hook everything up. Then all you have to do is install windows and the necessary drivers. That's it, you're done.

If you run into problems as some first time builders do, we are all here to help. There are many very knowledgeable posters on here who will help you all the way through. It's much more satisfying to know you built it yourself and didn't get ripped off by a retailer. You will also end up with a much better build for your money.

 

[cdntrooper]

Thanks to both of you for your response and your confidence in my sandwish building capacities. I also appreciate the offer of guidance.

But I just want to enjoy and drive a car not build it first.

I don't get any pleasure from doing that and spending the time on it... but I can totaly understand and respect peole that do.

What is a better graphic Card NVIDIA or Radeon ? which models should I be looking at ? Should I look at 512MB or more ?

What do you think of the Killer NIC K1 Gaming network Card ?

Thanks

 

[aford10]

If you don't want to build one yourself, I can understand that too.

It's hard to say one or the other is a better video card b/c there are several different video cards by each manufacturer. If I had to pick one, I would say NVidia is better because their single gtx280 is comparable to the 4870 x2 ati cards. However, NVidia cards also cost more. I usually go for the 1Gb cards, but it's all about how much you want to spend, and what you want them to be able to do.

The NIC card is unnecessary as the mobo will have ethernet capabilities.

 

[cdntrooper]

what does mobo mean ?

 

[cdntrooper]

Ok I figured that one out...

what is your opinion of the Intel® Core™2 Q9400 (6MB,2.66GHz, 1333FSB).

Will this be enough for what I want to do... remebering that I'm not a big gamer but do wnat to think about the futur.

Thks

 

[cdntrooper]

Also do I need AGEIA® PhysX® physics accelerator

 

[aford10]

The q9400 is a pretty good quad core.

physx will help some games run better, but it's not necessary.

If you want a pc built for you, instead of going with dell, I would recommend this company.
ibuypower.com
They can build a higher end pc and you can choose what you want included. There are some i7 builds for under $1500.

 

[cdntrooper]

Tks aford 10.

I live in Canada so the exchange rate + duty and then shipping doesn't make the offer as interesting. But wow freakingly nice machines !

Here is what I put together so far:

Intel core 2 Q 9400

8GB Dual Channel DDR2 SD RAM at 800 Mhz

750GB - 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16 MB

nVidia GeForce GTX 280 - 1024MB

Sound Blaster X-FI XtremeGamer

Any opinions ?

TKS again

 

[cdntrooper]

What do you think of AMD Phenom™ X3 8750+

This is an older processor ?

 

[aford10]

Ah, ic....Here are some good canadian sites you may want to check out:
http://www.ncix.com/
http://www.directcanada.com/
http://www.newegg.ca/

I think you can drop the sound card. Onboard sound is pretty good these days.
Western digital makes a real good 32mb cache drive
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319

Thats a nice video card. You will want to keep that in mind when chosing a mobo and psu though.

I still think you could get the i7 and a x58 motherboard. You could then upgrade to the DDR3 ram.

 

[aford10]

What do you think of AMD Phenom™ X3 8750+

This is an older processor ?

I think it's a bit pricey for the performance. With the budget you mentioned, you could get much better. I think you'd be better off with the i7 920, E8500, Q9550, or the phenom II

 

[cdntrooper]

What do u mean by "Thats a nice video card. You will want to keep that in mind when chosing a mobo and psu"

What would I need to keep in mind or look for ?

Tks for all your help.

 

[aford10]

I mean, It's a very nice video card. If you were to choose that video card, you may want to find a mobo that supports SLI, to leave the option available.

The power supply (psu), is a huge factor when you choose a video card like that. You need to find one with the 6 pin connector and enough power to support that beefy video card.

 

[aford10]

For the power supply, you would want to look for something ~400w. If you have any thoughts of adding a 2nd video card, then you would want a psu ~750w. The good brands are antec, PC power & cooling, OCZ, and seasonic.

Good mobo manufacturers are Gigabyte, Asus, and EVGA. If you are getting a quad or dual core, then the p45 chipset is a good choice. If you go with the i7, then look for the x58.

 

[Jake_Barnes]

This topic has been moved from the section CPU & Components to section Graphic & Displays by Jake_Barnes

 

[cdntrooper]

Ok... I've learnt so much and considering doing my own build... But I'm not there yet.

Heres what the local shop suggetsted:

- Intel core i7 920 2.66 Ghz - LGA1366 Socket - L3 8 MB

- EVGA 896-P3-1255-AR Geforce GTX 260 Core 216 896MB 448-bit GDDR#

- MSI X58 Platinum LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel mobo

- Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST31000333AS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0 Gb/s Hard Drive

- Samsun 22x Internal SATA DVDRW

- LG W2242TQ-BF 22" widescreen LCD Monitor

- Coller MAster CM690 ATX

- PAtriot VIPER TRI 6G Kit DDR3-12800

- OCZ StealthXStream Power Supply 700XS

- MS VHP BIT DVD OEM

Do u have any thoughts on this ? It's in the price range...

Tks again !