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Question

First time buying a gaming pc, Not sure about specs.

by Jun 20, 2014 6:41PM PDT

Hi, I am quite new to the forum and I am also quite new to the gaming world of PC's.
I currently own a HP TouchSmart 610 which is giving me quite alot of grief due to the overheating issue. I have had it for 3 years but I now want to venture into a proper desktop that will allow me to run simulators, games etc.

I have been browsing eBay and have come across a few towers which range from $800 to $1,400. This is within the price range that I am currently able to pay, Only trouble is the specs. The specs of the tower is just all new to me. I am not 100% tech savy, which is why i just ended up buying an all in one pc to begin with.

The current tower that i am looking at on eBay is as follows :

3rd Generation Intel Core CPU - Ivy Bridge 22nm

Intel Core i7 3770 3.4 GHz CPU,
ASUS Motherboard,
ASUS GeForce GT610 with 1GB Ram
Dual Channel 8GB 1600MHz RAM,
1TB SATA 3 7200rpm HDD,
24x ASUS Dual Layer DVD BURNER
10/100/1000M Gigabit LAN, 6CH HD Audio,
Bluetooth v2.0,
Multi Card Reader

AU $839.00

Would this be a suitable tower for smooth gaming?
I keep getting told that 8Gb of Ram isn't enough and that i should venture into 16Gb of Ram, as well as a 4Gb or 8Gb Graphics card.
As I mentioned before this is all new to me so I do apologize if this is all wrong or a little bit stupid.

But any information or guidance would be absolutely amazing. I'd appreciate anything.

Thank you all in advance, and I am looking forward to being part of this forum.

Discussion is locked

3 Posts
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Answer
That's no gamer.
by Forum moderator Jun 21, 2014 12:51AM PDT
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Answer
The short answer is
by Jun 21, 2014 2:36AM PDT

There is no answer.
Opinions about a gaming rig will be all over the map.
It's like asking 'what car should I buy'.

Working with your budget......here's my opinion.
Cpu....high end I5.
Ram....8GB
Gpu....As high up as your wallet will allow from this list.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html

Have you considered having your local PC shop build one for you instead of taking a pot luck shot on E-bay?

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Answer
Another option
by Jun 27, 2014 7:10PM PDT

Hi Nate,
I agree with Bob (P) the machine you list isn't a gamer, the graphics card is weak and the CPU is a stock model. Look for ones with a K suffix, which can be overclocked relatively easily and safely.

I'd be inclined to go with an Intel quad core CPU, if you've seen their comparison test of 1, 2 and 4 CPU game rendering, you'll be convinced about quad cores. That said and I have to confess not to being a heavy gamer, I've heard that the top end i5 can be a better option than an 17. And I've also seen that, since you'll be using a standalone graphics card (or a pair of them) the Sandy Bridge (gen 2) can outperform an Ivy bridge because part of the Ivy bridge design improvement was to extend battery life in laptop models. Not important for a desktop.

Here's another option, which I'm basing on your quoted price for the eBay machine being in Australian Dollars. If you are in Australia, you might want to take a look at Grays Online, an auction house. Their stock changes by the day and while most of it is Auctioned (watch the auctions for a few days to see how they work) they do have some fixed price offerings - I just bought an ASUS general purpose laptop, refurbished by ASUS (but actually a brand new Win7 clearance model) with a 12 month ASUS warranty for about 30% of list.

Here's a link

http://www.graysonline.com/computers-and-electronics/computers-and-it-equipment/laptops/asus

This one for laptops but they cover desktops too. A couple of interest in this list are an ASUS Automobili Lamborghini VX7SX-SZ052V 15.6" Special Edition Notebook refurb with 12 month warranty and an ASUS Republic of Gaming G74SX-91165V 17.3 inch Gaming Powerhouse Notebook both well within your budget at the moment.

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