Good Computer?

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noah98
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby noah98 » October 1st, 2017, 10:00 am

If you are trying to save money, I have a radical suggestion that may work for you.

Alienware made Steam machines to compete with gaming consoles and they didn’t catch on. Right now they are really cheap on Amazon. You can get an i7 with 8 gigs of ram and an Nvidia graphics card for $470. They run on Steam OS (Linux), but you can easily buy and install Windows 10. Or, you could even install an older version of Windows like 7 or 8 if you have it already.

Disadvantages: The graphics card can’t be ugraded. Limited upgrades for processor.

Advantages: Cheap! Ram can easily be upgraded. Processor can be upgraded, but you probably won’t need more than an i7 for a long, long time. It’s easy to install an ssd or a bigger hard drive. It comes in a small, attractive case. It plays games remarkably well!

I have an older model Alienware Alpha i5. The only thing I upgraded was the hard drive (installed a 1 tb Samsung SSD). It is blazing fast and plays games better than expected. If you tweak your settings, you can get results that rival most console games. Most games can run 1080p, medium to high settings. I play Witcher 3, Mortal Kombat XL, Killer Instinct, Skyrim Special Edition, Dragon Age Inquisition, Rocket League, Rise of the Tomb Raider etc. at 60 fps 1080p. Also, tons of indie games and emulators. The Dolphin Wii emulator plays Gamecube and wii games in 1080p flawlessly.

Just an idea. I love mine! You could probably buy the system, an ssd hard drive, and Windows 10 and still hit your $600 price point if you shop around.

DaHeckIzDat
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby DaHeckIzDat » October 20th, 2017, 11:22 am


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Stalvern
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby Stalvern » October 20th, 2017, 5:40 pm

I mentioned earlier that I'm not especially knowledgeable about current gaming hardware, but even I know that buying a CyberPower machine is basically Russian roulette.

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ptdebate
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby ptdebate » October 21st, 2017, 8:37 am

DaHeckIzDat wrote:All right, I've saved up my money and I think this is the setup I want. Not too expensive, but hopefully good enough to handle what I need. What do you guys think?

https://www.walmart.com/ip/CYBERPOWERPC-Gamer-Ultra-GUA4600W-Gaming-Desktop-PC-AMD-Vishera-FX-6300-Processor-8GB-Memory-1TB-Hard-Drive-Windows-10-Home-Monitor-Included/55349089

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Sceptre-24-LED-Full-HD-1080p-Monitor-E248W-1920-Black/40718688


It's not specifically because this is a Cyber Power PC that you should avoid this one like the plague. It's because the graphics are terrible. The CPU is okay, but r7-240 graphics are not going to produce the results you need for even the most basic titles.

For reference, look at this benchmark comparison. The GTX 950 is the low-end Nvidia card from four years ago. Please, do not buy this rig.

CyberpowerPC-GUA3100A-Review-gfx-comparison.png
CyberpowerPC-GUA3100A-Review-gfx-comparison.png (16.22 KiB) Viewed 2434 times


If this fits your budget, take a look at noah98's suggestion above. I think you'll find that the Alienware box costs about the same, and will work much better.

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ptdebate
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby ptdebate » October 21st, 2017, 8:45 am

If you do/already did get this PC, however, definitely buy a graphics card. My recommendation for maximal value out of money spent would be the GTX 1050 Ti.

If you get Overwatch for PC, let's play together sometime! I believe you've tried the console version. Believe me when I say that the PC version is far superior. It's a night-and-day difference.

DaHeckIzDat
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby DaHeckIzDat » October 21st, 2017, 9:57 am

ptdebate wrote:If you do/already did get this PC, however, definitely buy a graphics card. My recommendation for maximal value out of money spent would be the GTX 1050 Ti.

If you get Overwatch for PC, let's play together sometime! I believe you've tried the console version. Believe me when I say that the PC version is far superior. It's a night-and-day difference.


Yeah, I ended up buying this one before you posted your comment. I ran it past a friend of mine who's a real computer whiz, and he said a rig like this should be capable of running Fallout 4 if I wanted. The graphics may be a little lackluster, but it should run all right which is what's my main concern right now. As for games, right now I know for sure that I'm going to get Guild Wars 2 (my friend already agreed to make a party with me) and Player Unknown Battlegrounds. Overwatch might go on that list too, but I suck at shooters no matter what platform they're on lol.

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ptdebate
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby ptdebate » October 21st, 2017, 2:32 pm

DaHeckIzDat wrote:Yeah, I ended up buying this one before you posted your comment. I ran it past a friend of mine who's a real computer whiz, and he said a rig like this should be capable of running Fallout 4 if I wanted. The graphics may be a little lackluster, but it should run all right which is what's my main concern right now. As for games, right now I know for sure that I'm going to get Guild Wars 2 (my friend already agreed to make a party with me) and Player Unknown Battlegrounds.


Well, one thing you WILL get from this PC is the capacity for upgrades. Definitely consider that 1050 Ti if you see a good deal on one (should be around $130). For that relatively low price, you'd see about a sixfold increase in graphical power. Anyway, congrats on being a PC owner.

DaHeckIzDat wrote:Overwatch might go on that list too, but I suck at shooters no matter what platform they're on lol.


Definitely consider it! I need more people to play with. And Overwatch can be a shooter if that's the kind of character you play, but there are also great melee characters. I do not consider myself to be great at shooters, but I am really good with my chosen character in Overwatch.

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ptdebate
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby ptdebate » October 21st, 2017, 2:43 pm

DaHeckIzDat wrote: As for games, right now I know for sure that I'm going to get Guild Wars 2 (my friend already agreed to make a party with me) and Player Unknown Battlegrounds.


By the way - and this is just because I consider you a friend and don't want you to waste your money - you'll want to upgrade the GPU before getting PUBG. Guild Wars is fine, but this is approximately what PUBG is gonna look like:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Mu49R7i-EU

By the way - and I think this is an important point - I don't think you wasted your money on the Cyberpower PC, especially considering everything it includes. Really it has all the key components of a good build, with only one missing link.

DaHeckIzDat
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby DaHeckIzDat » October 21st, 2017, 4:47 pm

That's strange. I would have figured a massive open world filled with thousands of players would be harder on the machine than a small (relatively speaking) map with only 100 people on it.

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ptdebate
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Re: Good Computer?

Postby ptdebate » October 21st, 2017, 6:26 pm

DaHeckIzDat wrote:That's strange. I would have figured a massive open world filled with thousands of players would be harder on the machine than a small (relatively speaking) map with only 100 people on it.


Harder on the CPU? Yes. But if you have the FX-6300 (which is what I understand from the link you provided), you're set for a 5 year old MMO. You can probably run FF14 at low settings as well.

PUBG will not run on this PC, and it's because of the GPU. I'm just trying to offer advice, which is what you asked for right? You need a better GPU to run that game. Fallout 4 will run, technically speaking, but at a framerate so low it will be nauseating to play. The minimum spec for that game is a 550 Ti. The card in this PC is about 3 tiers lower than that.

Ultimately, you're gonna find out when you get the machine home and start trying to run these games. I'm just trying to help you not waste money on games you can't run.


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