# Budgetpc, strong enough for new/decent games?



## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

[accidently posted in wrong forum earlier]
Alright guys; :wave:
How about this:

Case: Ace Ecco 420 Midi Tower Black Fans
Power supply: Silver Power SP-SS500 500W PSU ATX 12V V2.2, 80 Plus, Standard, 1x 6pin+1x 6+2pin PCIe, 6× SATA, 120mm Fan
CPU:- AMD Athlon II X2 250, 3,0Ghz, AM3, 2MB, 65W, Boxed
RAM: Kingston ValueR. DDR3 1333MHz 4GB, CL9, Kit w/two matched ValueRAM 2GB DDR3
Motherboard:MSI GF615M-P33, Socket-AM3, m-ATX, GeForce 6150se, DDR3,SATAII, GbLAN, PCI-Ex16
Graphic CardXFX Radeon HD 5670 1GB GDDR5 PCI-Express 2.0, DVI-I, native-HDMI, DisplayPort, 775MHz
Harddrive:Western Digital Caviar SE16 500GB SATA2 16MB 7200RPM

And Im installing Windows 7 Ultimate (64bit to enjoy every GB of the RAM).


Total Price: *640 USD/495 EUROS*.:tongue:


Do you guys think I will be able to play games like:
Modern warfare 1/2?:4-dontkno
system requirements:
Processor: Intel Pentium 4 3.2 GHz or AMD Athlon 64 3200+ processor or better supported
Memory: 1 GB RAM
Graphics: 256 MB NVIDIA GeForce 6600GT or better or ATI Radeon 1600XT or better
DirectX: Microsoft DirectX(R) 9.0c
Hard Drive: 12GB of free hard drive space

or maybe other games 
like Bad Company 2,:4-dontkno
system requirements:
Processor: Core 2 DUO @ 2 GHz
Memory: 2 GB
Hard Drive: 15 GB for Digital Version, 10 GB for Disc Version
Video Memory: 256 MB (NVIDIA GeForce 7800GT/ATI X1900)
Sound Card: DirectX Compatible
DirectX: 9.0c

*The thing is that, ive checked reviews of e.g the graphic card, and its been good but you can never be sure it will be the same with the processor, ram etc that You have yourself.*

Any help or advice is extremely appreciated!


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## Elvenleader3 (Jan 1, 2010)

You might want to see about getting the ATI Radeon HD 4850. It is the same as the 5770 except it doesn't have Directx 11. I don't really know to much about the PSU but I'll have to get back to you on that(or if someone else posts about it).


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

Yep get the 4850, I have both the 4850 and 5770 and they preform the same. I would get a different PSU though like an Antec or Corsair.

Antec 550W

Corsair 550W

I would get the Antec why its on sale.


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

llacrossedude7 said:


> Yep get the 4850, I have both the 4850 and 5770 and they preform the same. I would get a different PSU though like an Antec or Corsair.
> 
> Antec 550W
> 
> ...


agree'd id question that power supply as well.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

Thanks for the replies guys.

*elevenleader13* If theres no difference whats the reason for changing it? Price?

*llacrossedude7* Do you mean both simultaneously through crossfire? (I thought it required them to be the same series.. e.g 4xxx + 4xxx = OK.
Besides that, whats the difference and why should I get the 4580, unless its better at performance/pricewise?

Oh and the power supply, is it too weak?


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## Elvenleader3 (Jan 1, 2010)

Hamada90 said:


> *elvenleader3* If theres no difference whats the reason for changing it? Price?


Well you said that you were getting the 5670, which isn't as good as the 4850.

The 4850 has double the amount of streaming processes that the 5670 does.


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

Yep, get one 4850 and you will be good to go. It's $99 which is $20 cheaper than the 5670 and much much much better.


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

It's not that the power supply is to weak, it's that the power supply is a generic brand which most likely does not use high end Japanese compositors and transistors, which Antec and Corsair both use.


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## koala (Mar 27, 2005)

The Silver Power SP-SS500 500W is made by SeaSonic (one of the best manufacturers, who also make the Corsair PSUs). You should be ok with it.

Antec are lower quality than SeaSonic/Corsair. They used to be good, but their quality has dropped over the last couple of years.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

koala said:


> The Silver Power SP-SS500 500W is made by SeaSonic (one of the best manufacturers, who also make the Corsair PSUs). You should be ok with it.
> 
> Antec are lower quality than SeaSonic/Corsair. They used to be good, but their quality has dropped over the last couple of years.


Ahh, thank you for that awesome answer, yeah I dont know too much about power suppliers but after doing some research that was actually the only thing going through my mind, that the antec one seemed a bit too old, just like the ones im using in my older PC.





elvenleader3 said:


> Well you said that you were getting the 5670, which isn't as good as the 4850.
> 
> The 4850 has double the amount of streaming processes that the 5670 does.


Ohh, I see... imma do some research to make sure its atleast 20% better then.

By the way do *You /Anyone else here* know hot to crossfire connect two graphic cards? 
Do they have to be the same series, ive looked around on the net but I cant find areal good answer, im getting different results eachtime.

To crossfire, I need exactly what, a motherboard that can support it.
And 2+ graphic cards that support crossfire too,
a crossfire cable I guess..
along with that, if lets say i bought another 5670 1GB, will I have to get another/stronger power supplier? how do I know how much to increase it by, 50w?


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## koala (Mar 27, 2005)

Crossfire is not worth it, better to go for a single card. You'll only get a 20-30% performance increase (depending on the game and what graphics settings you use), and you'll have to get a stronger PSU to cope with the extra power requirements and increased system temperatures - 650W minimum, 750W or higher preferable.

If the computer you're looking at buying is fixed spec and you can't change individual components for better ones, don't buy it. Either look for a pre-built computer that is more suitable for your needs or build your own.

The HD5670 is an entry level gaming card that supports the latest DirectX 11, but there are older, cheaper DirectX 9/10 cards that give better performance, like the HD4850/4890. DX11 is not fully supported by the games industry yet, so I would give it another year for more DX11 games to become available, unless you want to increase your budget and go for one of the better DX11 cards like the HD5770/5870 and a Corsair 750W PSU.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

koala said:


> Crossfire is not worth it, better to go for a single card. You'll only get a 20-30% performance increase (depending on the game and what graphics settings you use), and you'll have to get a stronger PSU to cope with the extra power requirements and increased system temperatures - 650W minimum, 750W or higher preferable.
> 
> If the computer you're looking at buying is fixed spec and you can't change individual components for better ones, don't buy it. Either look for a pre-built computer that is more suitable for your needs or build your own.
> 
> The HD5670 is an entry level gaming card that supports the latest DirectX 11, but there are older, cheaper DirectX 9/10 cards that give better performance, like the HD4850/4890. DX11 is not fully supported by the games industry yet, so I would give it another year for more DX11 games to become available, unless you want to increase your budget and go for one of the better DX11 cards like the HD5770/5870 and a Corsair 750W PSU.


Your answers are top quality buddy, appreciate it.
Wow, so only a boost of 20-30%? Silly me was expecting atleast 60%+..and 750+ PSU, wow, yeah you convinced me haha.
At the moment these are all single parts, ill buy the package and have it shipped to me and I'll assemble every each part by part that you see on the list above.
I rather not go above the budget unless its not too much, but considering the posts above about cheaper older graphic cards that are stronger I think ill go with that, *4850* sounds like a good idea.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

llacrossedude7 said:


> Yep, get one 4850 and you will be good to go. It's $99 which is $20 cheaper than the 5670 and much much much better.


You we're talking about "*Gigabyte Radeon HD 4850 1GB*" right? or was it the 
*XFX Radeon HD 4850 512MB "xXx"*


Because on the sites ive been looking at the Gigabyte radeon 4850 1GB(!) costs a bit more than the 5670.
There is the radeon hd 4850 512mb (!) though, its a bit cheaper yeah, but is it really better than the 5670 too?

[crap, I doubleposted, pretty sure thats not allowed; sorry]


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

You will not see a huge boost in performance between the 512Gb and 1Gb.

The newer Antec PSU are some of the best on the market, but the one I showed you was the '08 model. I have one of the new 750W and it put out more power,amps, and has better capacitors and transistors than the Corsair 750W.

Though if you want to crossfire your 4850 in the future they have to have the same amount of memory, brand and speed does not matter. Note if you get a cheaper board the second lane will most likely only run at x8 not x16. The board you currently have selected only hase one PCIE slot meaning you can't crossfire anyway. 

Check out jonnyguru.com for power supply reviews


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

Ahhh.....thank you for clearing that mess up haha.

So you personally, what cheap good/old/new graphic card would you recommend for me, except the 5670^^


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## koala (Mar 27, 2005)

512mb and 1gb cards of the same model card perform exactly the same. The clock speeds aren't affected. The extra memory just allows you to increase some of the texture settings and screen resolution.

The 1gb HD5670 costs about $85 and the 512mb version is about $70. In that price range you could get a 1gb HD4850. Or if you want to spend a bit more for a faster card, the 1gb HD4870 is usually about $120, but is on offer for $100 at newegg. (HD4xxx cards are DirectX 10). Hang on for some more suggestions from llacrossedude7. There are plenty of good cards in your price range.

A good quality 550W PSU with over 40A/+12V would be ok for these cards, but if you shop around you can get a good 650W for the same price.

Gigabyte HD4850 512mb - $90 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125238

Sapphire Vapor-X (better cooling than standard models) HD4850 1gb - $85 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102834

Asus HD48*7*0 1gb - $100 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121376

Corsair 650W - $70 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

Here are some more product I would recommend 

Power Supplies
Antec TruePower New 650W - $99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371021

I also recommend the Corsair TX650W - $89 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005&cm_re=corsair_650w-_-17-139-005-_-Product

Video Cards
XFX 4850 1Gb - $129 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150351

XFX 4870 1Gb - $139 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150436

Sapphire 5770 1Gb - $144 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102873

I personally own the Sapphire 5770(reference model), XFX 4850, and the 750W version of the Antec TruePower New. I would highly recommend them all.

(NOTE) Jonnyguru.com does not have reviews for the Corsair 650W or the Antec 650W, but their 750W equivalents he did review. In this case I would go with the Antec it's a little bit more stable and has better power output. Really it will only come down to "do I want to spend $10 more for the Antec"

Antec TruePower New 750W review. http://jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=140

Corsair TX750W review. http://jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=73


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

Thanks alot for your replies guys, ill start look into them a bit deeper soon, trying to find the GPU that gives me the best FPS for around 90-120$~, so juding by your posts that would either be *Sapphire Vapor-X HD4850 (512/1GB)*, i doubt ill go for the Sapphire 5770 or 4870, but maybe *Asus HD4870*.

Hm, well considering Im going to buy a 19" monitor too, with a native res. with 1280x1024 (maybe, forgot.) I think a *512mb* is all that I really need, since you wont see me play with 1920x1080 or something.



About the graphic cards and PSU's now, I was talking to this random guy, and he mentioned something about, sometimes when changing graphic card, you need to get a better PSU to keep up with it, and to do that you _MIGHT_ need to change the motherboard.. now motherboards arent really my thing, anyone with good experience of the motherboard I listed on the top? Will that be fine?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The Nforce 430 is not a PCIe x16 2.0 board, and it's a pretty old chipset, for a new board I would look for 2.0 PCIe spec and a AMD chipset like the 770> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007625%20600007943%20600008296%20600008395&IsNodeId=1&bop=And&CompareItemList=22|13-131-603^13-131-603-TS%2C13-128-431^13-128-431-TS


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

Here is another motherboard to consider

MSI 870A-G54 - $99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130275


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Asus and Gigabyte are 2 top tier boards MSI support is awful.


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

MSI is one of the best in my opinion. I've never had any problems with their support and they make some of the best AMD boards out there.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

If you like them that's fine, but the Hardware Team does not recommend MSI boards too many of us have had problems with them in the past.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

Thank you guys for both of those posts.
Those motherboards arent bad at all, ill look into that deeper later on.
The one you sent llacrossedude7 caught my eye..

One question though, what will I have to change concerning the parts above?

I mean will all the parts i plan on getting work with those motherboards, they should, right?


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

Oh, and I missed the 2nd page on this page haha;

So, after hearing what wrench have to say.. i think ill go with the one he mentioned I guess.
I wont have any problems attaching the other components im buying right?


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## Tumbleweed36 (May 14, 2005)

wrench97 said:


> If you like them that's fine, but the Hardware Team does not recommend MSI boards too many of us have had problems with them in the past.


Agreed and the same for the Antec Power supplies, we simply DO NOT recommend them anymore, not nearly the quality as Seasonic or Corsair.


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

No you wont have any problems. Really it's what ever you feel like buying, personally I love MSI they make a great product and I've never had trouble with their customer service. Asus and Gigabyte also make some great products. My advice is just read the reviews and see what suites you the best.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

That sounds perfect buddy, will do!
Time for some heavy-butt researching..

Thanks alot for all your posts guys.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

Ah, glad I have somewhere to turn...
What is the big difference between(copy pasting from an internet-store):
*XFX Radeon HD 4850 512MB "xXx" -Demo* Price: *$123 USD*
and
*XFX Radeon HD 4850 512MB GDDR3 -Demo* Price: *$115 USD*

Only 8 Dollars difference, which one should I get and whats the difference?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The HD4850 would be my choice.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

Haha yeah exactly, but the two that I listed above Are actually both 4850, but whats the difference between "xXx" and the other? =/


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Give us a link


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

XXX is factory overclocked, don't waste your money overclock it yourself.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

llacrossedude7 said:


> XXX is factory overclocked, don't waste your money overclock it yourself.


It's only $8 though, but alright heh; I dont have any experience in overclocking though even though ive read about it alot!


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

It only takes 1 click to overclock its so easy.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

llacrossedude7 said:


> It only takes 1 click to overclock its so easy.


Oh yeah? What kind of software is used, I think I know a bit about it..

Ah well when i get my stuff im sure going to come back here and talk to you guys.. Ive been dealing with an old computer for years but during that time ive done tons of reading and researching etc, so im not completely lost haha, so thats cool.. but ill make sure I come back here in a week (when I receive it). Hopefully you guys will teach me a thing or two about pushing the PC a bit!


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## llacrossedude7 (Jul 31, 2009)

ATI driver software "Catalyst Control Center" has a built in overclocking feature. MSI afterburner is also really good.


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## Hamada90 (Aug 21, 2010)

llacrossedude7 said:


> ATI driver software "Catalyst Control Center" has a built in overclocking feature. MSI afterburner is also really good.


Oh yeah, thats the software I was thinking of... Afterburner.
*Writes it to the list of software I need to get*:grin:


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