PC for around £900?

[TomBcfc]

Hi,

I'm after a PC which will last me a while and be pretty decent for gaming too. I don't want to play high end games like battlefield as I use my console for that. I am only interested in games like Football Manager, Left 4 Dead and other older more indie games I suppose. Also I'd like it to be quick when using it for general use.

I have this spec in mind:

COOLERMASTER CM STORM ENFORCER - GAMING ENTHUSIAST CASE
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3570 (3.4GHz) 6MB Cache
ASUS® P8Z77-V: PCI-E 3.0 READY, WIFI, SLI, CROSSFIREX
8GB SAMSUNG DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 4GB)
2GB AMD RADEON™ HD7870 - DVI,HDMI,2 mDP - DX® 11, Eyefinity 4 Capable
1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE INTEL CPU COOLER (£19)


Any suggestions about how i can get the most for my £900 ish budget?

 

[keynes]

You could downgrade the motherboard to P8Z77-V LX and still have the option to crossfire depending on your psu.

 

[Grimezy]

You could downgrade the motherboard to P8Z77-V LX and still have the option to crossfire depending on your psu.

I agree.

To be honest, if you only plan on playing basic games like FM, L4D, etc I doubt you'd even need to spend that much. You're probably only £100 away from being able to play battlefield on high. I'm pretty sure my brother plays FM2012 on his i3, intel hd 3000 graphics laptop really smoothly.

As for the build, if you're happy to spend that much then it looks like a pretty good build. I just think for an extra £100 or so you could whack a GTX 670 in it and play pretty much all games on Ultra/High. It'd be pretty much identical to the one I've ordered if you do (which is why I'm slightly biased ).

It'll probably even replace your console if you're willing to spend 900-1000 on it.

 

[TomBcfc]

My friends are all on console so I'm not really after a replacement gaming machine, but I would like it to perform for a good few years running the games I do play on it. Yeah i know about the GTX 670 but I just cant afford it lol, cant get carried away. I'd Imagine the card ive chosen is decent for what i can pay?

I chose that motherboard as it has WIFI already built in so i wouldnt need the PCE Card.

 

[vanthus]

Your spec is very good and well balanced for what you want to do.

 

[slake]

Case
COOLERMASTER CM STORM ENFORCER - GAMING ENTHUSIAST CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3570 (3.4GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® P8Z77-V LX: USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs, ATI®CrossFireX
Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (2 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 650 Ti - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
1TB VELOCIRAPTOR WD1000DHTZ, SATA 6-Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (10,000rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W ENTHUSIAST SERIES™ TX650 V2-80 PLUS® BRONZE (£69)
Processor Cooling
SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE INTEL CPU COOLER (£19)

£929.00

I would consider the Velociraptor HDD as it'll load FM a lot quicker, I play a lot of FM so I know how much it takes up.

 

[TomBcfc]

I would like a better graphics card than the GTX 650 Ti though and i cant afford to have the 7870 and velociraptor.

Wouldn't the caviar black be adequate enough to play FM on?

 

[vanthus]

A caviar black will be fine.

 

[slake]

There's no real need for the 7870 if you're not going to be playing the graphic demanding games.

I have a Radeon HD 5770 now, and I can play Left 4 Dead 1/2 fine and it can also handle BF3 on medium.

Also Football Manager isn't really a graphics demanding game.

The 650ti would be able to handle BF3 on decent settings along with L4D.

 

[Frank100]

A point about the 650ti. It's a great card for performance per watt and it's pitched at a very decent price, but it can't be SLI'd and in most tests in comes in just below the older 560ti performance-wise. If you want to go for Nvidia and you possibly can manage it the 660 offers much better performance. There is a fair price jump but I didn't want you to buy a 650ti with intention of adding a second card later and finding you couldn't.

The 560ti isn't being made any more so it's a case of what stock's left now. I personally wouldn't buy one because it's more costly than the 650ti and it uses just over twice the amount of power at idle and full load. It's also noisier.

Can you stretch to a 660?

 

[Frank100]

Sorry please disregard my previous post. I got your post confused with another. FM will run fine on a 650ti.

 

[TomBcfc]

You mean the 660 or the 660 Ti? because i could manage the 660 but the 660Ti is a bit pricey. Im not planning on SLI'ing by the way.

I could save money on the case i suppose because i have chosen a £79 one. Any suggestions for a good case which is a little cheaper?

 

[keynes]

Coolermaster haf 912, for the type of games you mentioned the HD 7870 will be a good choice. I'd still suggest downgrading the motherboard to the P8Z77-V LX if you don't plant to SLI, it will be cheaper to add a wireless card but a pair of home plugs should give you a more reliable Internet connection.

 

[TomBcfc]

Ok ill choose that case. I never have an issue with wireless as I am literally 2 metres away from my router lol.

 

[vanthus]

I would suggest something like this,I included homeplugs but if you don't want that you can change it to a wireless card.
PCS MAELSTROM T900 BLACK GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3570 (3.4GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® P8Z77-V LX: USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs, ATI®CrossFireX
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 4GB)
Graphics Card
2GB AMD RADEON™ HD7870 - DVI,HDMI,2 mDP - DX® 11, Eyefinity 4 Capable
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W ENTHUSIAST SERIES™ TX650 V2-80 PLUS® BRONZE (£69)
Processor Cooling
SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE INTEL CPU COOLER (£19)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
2 x HomePlug 200Mbps - Turn any Electrical Socket into a Network (£38)
USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
FREE Microsoft® Office Starter 2010 (Limited functionality Word & Excel)
Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 9 to 11 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £872.00 including VAT and delivery.

Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/intel-ivy-bridge-pc/Ex0YYAnTfD/

 

[TomBcfc]

Thanks for that suggestion above.

I have settled on this build:

COOLERMASTER HAF 912 PLUS MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3570 (3.4GHz) 6MB Cache
ASUS® P8Z77-V: PCI-E 3.0 READY, WIFI, SLI, CROSSFIREX
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (2 x 4GB KIT)
2GB AMD RADEON™ HD7870 - DVI,HDMI,2 mDP - DX® 11, Eyefinity 4 Capable
1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
CORSAIR 650W ENTHUSIAST SERIES™ TX650 V2-80 PLUS® BRONZE (£69)
SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE INTEL CPU COOLER (£19)

Chosen a 650W as it gives me the chance to upgrade the graphics card later if i fancy..

Seem alright for my budget?

 

[keynes]

Seem alright for my budget?

Pretty good for around £900.

 

[TomBcfc]

Looking for a case with USB 3.0 slots and ive seen this one:

COOLERMASTER CM STORM ENFORCER

Would it be possible to ask PCS to put the hard drive in the lower slot so the hard drive case can be taken out (and improve airflow throughout the system from that front fan)?

 

[Wake]

Get the 7850 and clock it