Aerodamus
Thread Starter
- Joined
- Jun 10, 2010
- Messages
- 37
For quite some time I have been wanting to build a new desktop gaming computer so I could play games like The Elder Scrolls series, Fallout series, Just Cause 2, GTA, and other such games the way they were meant to be played. Ever since I got into playing video games back when I was 7 or 8, I have always been on consoles. Until this March, I never even had a computer that was capable of playing much at all.
This cruddy laptop only cost me $299, but it can play a lot of decent games on medium settings. I got it for my birthday in March from a combination of family members. We've never really had a lot of money to throw around on recreational things, but times have changed somewhat. I graduated high school in May, and since June I have been working at FedEx. The first $2,500 I made I didn't even keep a cent of it. I gave it all to my mom to help out with the family, but FedEx's peak season finally ended last Friday, and I made quite a bit of money.
I figure it's finally time to treat myself to the dream PC that I have always wanted. My budget is loosely based on about $1,200, but I do not want to spend that much at all if I don't have to, but I will spend a bit more if it means avoiding corner-cutting performance in favor of price.
WHAT I AM LOOKING FOR IN A DESKTOP PC:
-Be able to play Skyrim on Ultra (maxed out) settings
-Be able to use some texture and graphics mods (like 2k textures and ENB stuff) on top of that
-Have a smooth, non-choppy gaming experience without annoying screen tear, etc.
-Maintain a minimum FPS of about 60 on a screen resolution of 1080x1920 and 120Hz refresh rate
-Cost as far under $1,200 as possible without cutting corners in performance and quality
I have never really been in the computer world, as I have not been able to afford to, but I do read up on computer hardware quite a bit, because I find it really enjoyable. I know I would be a computer enthusiast who builds computers just for the sake of building and benchmarking them, but frankly, I don't have money like that do blow. Anyway, those are my minimum performance demands that I will go with, and I will not be cutting corners.
My question is this: Can I get performance like that for under $1,200? Because I sure as hell want to try if it is possible. Money doesn't grow on trees, ya know? I don't know much about building computers myself, so I considered websites like www.ecollegepc.com and www.ibuypower.com. What do you guys think of websites like that? Or would I be better off building it on my own?
The thing is, I could really use some help, and I have no idea where to start. So far this is what I have been able to come up with:
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813157293
CPU: Intel Core i5 3570K http://www.newegg.co...N82E16819116504
Heatsink/Fan: Freezer 7 PRO Rev. 2 http://www.newegg.co...0PRO%20Rev.%202
GPU: 2GB GeForce GTX 680 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=14-130-771
RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820233240
HDD: SAMSUNG Spinpoint 1TB 7200 HDD http://www.newegg.co...N82E16822152185
Case: COOLER MASTER Storm Sniper http://www.newegg.co...0Sniper%20Black
PSU: CORSAIR TX Series 650W http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817139005
Disc Drive: ASUS 24X DVD Burner http://www.newegg.co...N82E16827135204
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium http://www.newegg.co...N82E16832116986
Total cost: $1,265
So far, that seems like the absolute best rig that is physically possible on a $1,200 budget. But I am no tech expert. Is there anything you guys would change about this rig? The main thing to keep in mind is that my main game is Skyrim. I am looking to build this rig specifically for Skyrim. I heard that the GTX cards are better for Skyrim than the Radeon HD cards, which is why I went with this build.
This cruddy laptop only cost me $299, but it can play a lot of decent games on medium settings. I got it for my birthday in March from a combination of family members. We've never really had a lot of money to throw around on recreational things, but times have changed somewhat. I graduated high school in May, and since June I have been working at FedEx. The first $2,500 I made I didn't even keep a cent of it. I gave it all to my mom to help out with the family, but FedEx's peak season finally ended last Friday, and I made quite a bit of money.
I figure it's finally time to treat myself to the dream PC that I have always wanted. My budget is loosely based on about $1,200, but I do not want to spend that much at all if I don't have to, but I will spend a bit more if it means avoiding corner-cutting performance in favor of price.
WHAT I AM LOOKING FOR IN A DESKTOP PC:
-Be able to play Skyrim on Ultra (maxed out) settings
-Be able to use some texture and graphics mods (like 2k textures and ENB stuff) on top of that
-Have a smooth, non-choppy gaming experience without annoying screen tear, etc.
-Maintain a minimum FPS of about 60 on a screen resolution of 1080x1920 and 120Hz refresh rate
-Cost as far under $1,200 as possible without cutting corners in performance and quality
I have never really been in the computer world, as I have not been able to afford to, but I do read up on computer hardware quite a bit, because I find it really enjoyable. I know I would be a computer enthusiast who builds computers just for the sake of building and benchmarking them, but frankly, I don't have money like that do blow. Anyway, those are my minimum performance demands that I will go with, and I will not be cutting corners.
My question is this: Can I get performance like that for under $1,200? Because I sure as hell want to try if it is possible. Money doesn't grow on trees, ya know? I don't know much about building computers myself, so I considered websites like www.ecollegepc.com and www.ibuypower.com. What do you guys think of websites like that? Or would I be better off building it on my own?
The thing is, I could really use some help, and I have no idea where to start. So far this is what I have been able to come up with:
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813157293
CPU: Intel Core i5 3570K http://www.newegg.co...N82E16819116504
Heatsink/Fan: Freezer 7 PRO Rev. 2 http://www.newegg.co...0PRO%20Rev.%202
GPU: 2GB GeForce GTX 680 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=14-130-771
RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820233240
HDD: SAMSUNG Spinpoint 1TB 7200 HDD http://www.newegg.co...N82E16822152185
Case: COOLER MASTER Storm Sniper http://www.newegg.co...0Sniper%20Black
PSU: CORSAIR TX Series 650W http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817139005
Disc Drive: ASUS 24X DVD Burner http://www.newegg.co...N82E16827135204
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium http://www.newegg.co...N82E16832116986
Total cost: $1,265
So far, that seems like the absolute best rig that is physically possible on a $1,200 budget. But I am no tech expert. Is there anything you guys would change about this rig? The main thing to keep in mind is that my main game is Skyrim. I am looking to build this rig specifically for Skyrim. I heard that the GTX cards are better for Skyrim than the Radeon HD cards, which is why I went with this build.