Planning a New Gaming Desktop PC?

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Fire488

Limp Gawd
Joined
Sep 14, 2007
Messages
438
I plan on building this for PC gaming and only gaming (mainly ArmA 2/3). I will use my current PC for my home/ office work with minor upgrades.My current PC specs are listed in my profile and that is what is causing some uncertainty for me. I have looked at the new hardware that has recently come out (over the last year) and when i compare for example the processor to my current one it seems like mine is not far off the mark. Even my motherboard still performs very well in tests when compared to the newer motherboards. Now I know my GTX 580 SC and my crucial SSD C300 SSD drive have become dated and may be the biggest bottleneck in my current build, but this PC will be 4 years old this January! It must need to be updated right?
Anyway, I have always been a glutton for the newest and baddest hardware out there when I build a rig. I know its expensive and results will be negligible compared to a machine costing much less, but I just have to have it if you know what I mean.
So I log onto Newegg and Amazon ( Through [H] of course) and see the new i7 5xxx processors that use the 2011 v3 socket, DDR 4 RAM! This excites me. Something new and fast! Then i read the reviews on systems with this set up and although it is very fast it is not that much faster than what i have and will yield slightly better results for gaming which is what this rig is being built for in the first place. LOL.

So after all that I am starting to think that maybe a light upgrade may be in order....New Samsung 550 Pro, nVidia GTX 980xx vid card....I don't know, but that just may turn my current machine into the beast it once was...Or i can do nothing and wait until games catch up with the hardware...

what do ya'll think?
 
Oh darn it I see there is a section for PC Gaming and Hardware that I should have used for this post. Could a moderator move it there plz?
 
Here goes:
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? Etc
Strictly PC Gaming

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
My budget is not an issue right now, but I’ll go with $5,000.00 to start.

3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
Monroe Township, N.J., USA

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
Well this is the reason I am here I think, but for starters I will say that I want Intel, EVGA nVidia, and everything else is a shot in the dark, but I’ll try:
A) Mid Tower case with very good air cooling
B) Intel i7 Processor 4/6/8 core
C) EVGA nVidia vid card
D) 1200 watt min power supply, Platinum Rated
E) 512GB min SSD drive
F) 2 more 2TB HDD’s
G) 16 GB DDR3/4 RAM Min
H) ASUS mobo 1150/2011v3 socket
I) 3x30” UHD Gaming Monitor
J) Sound Card/Headsets (I want top quality here)

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
No parts will be reused.

6) Will you be overclocking?
I do like to dabble so yes.

7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
I would like 3 x 30” Gaming monitors with Ultra High Resolution and at least 120Hz.

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Feb of 2015 when I retire! Wahoo!

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.
I would rather SLI just in case I go that route and as for RAID I will be using an SSD so that is not important. SATA 6Gb and not sure what else.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
I do have a copy of Windows 8.1 Pro 64bit (Windows 10 when available)

Thanks for all the help!
 
Fire488 said:
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Feb of 2015 when I retire! Wahoo!
Click to expand...
Congratulations!

Unfortunately, this also means that you're planning the PC build a bit too early. Our hardware recommendations can change within a month and sometimes even within a week. So if you want an up-to-date build list, your best bet would be to wait until you're 1 to 2 weeks away from buying the parts and ask for advice then.
 
Fire488 said:
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
I would like 3 x 30” Gaming monitors with Ultra High Resolution and at least 120Hz.
Click to expand...

It's not a good idea to pursue three 4K monitors, despite the fact that you can afford to.

You need to choose between having a monitor with an UHD (4K) resolution or one with a 120Hz refresh rate. Today's 4K monitors currently have a maximum refresh rate of 60Hz, but there are several 4K monitors available that run at 30Hz.

The closest thing to a "gaming" 4K monitor that's available right now is the Asus PB287Q, which has some flaws that may or may not be deal-breakers for you. For starters, it's only a 28" monitor, not 30", and it only has a 60Hz refresh rate, not 120Hz. The PB287Q also uses a TN panel that's great for gaming (it has a 1ms GTG response time) but has a narrower viewing angle and worse color accuracy (than most IPS panel monitors).

Because one 4K monitor has four times the resolution of a 1080p monitor, we often recommend a dual-card SLI (GTX 970) or CrossFire (R9 290) setup as the minimum for good (not great) 4K gaming at high settings. You also need to connect the monitor using one DisplayPort cable or two HDMI 1.4 cables to play games at 60Hz; one HDMI 1.4 cable can only run 4K at 30Hz. (HDMI 2 is capable of 4K gaming at 60Hz using one cable, but it hasn't been released yet.) I don't know whether a tri- or quad-GPU setup can handle two 4K monitors, or if there's any game out now that can handle resolutions greater than 4K.

I know that you want the best around, but how badly do you want 4K gaming?
 
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tiraides said:
It's not a good idea to pursue three 4K monitors, despite the fact that you can afford to.

You need to choose between having a monitor with an UHD (4K) resolution or one with a 120Hz refresh rate. Today's 4K monitors currently have a maximum refresh rate of 60Hz, but there are several 4K monitors available that run at 30Hz.

The closest thing to a "gaming" 4K monitor that's available right now is the Asus PB287Q, which has some flaws that may or may not be deal-breakers for you. For starters, it's only a 28" monitor, not 30", and it only has a 60Hz refresh rate, not 120Hz. The PB287Q also uses a TN panel that's great for gaming (it has a 1ms GTG response time) but has a narrower viewing angle and worse color accuracy (than most IPS panel monitors).

Because one 4K monitor has four times the resolution of a 1080p monitor, we often recommend a dual-card SLI (GTX 970) or CrossFire (R9 290) setup as the minimum for good (not great) 4K gaming at high settings. You also need to connect the monitor using one DisplayPort cable or two HDMI 1.4 cables to play games at 60Hz; one HDMI 1.4 cable can only run 4K at 30Hz. (HDMI 2 is capable of 4K gaming at 60Hz using one cable, but it hasn't been released yet.) I don't know whether a tri- or quad-GPU setup can handle two 4K monitors, or if there's any game out now that can handle resolutions greater than 4K.

I know that you want the best around, but how badly do you want 4K gaming?
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for the advice. I am open to do SLI if I have to although my friend tells me that the AMD 295x2 is the best card. 4k is not a priority I guess as I am more interested In fame rates and smooh game play. I need the larger monitor because my 50 year old eyes are starting to become a problem. I'm thinking the the 120 will be more important for gaming but I am not sure. What do you think and thanks again?
 
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is $5000 going to be enough? :eek:
I just priced what I paid for my garage PC just now and I didn't realize I spent as much as I did.
it was $2650, and it's not top of the line.
the 25" monitor I bought was only $240 after tax and the case was $74..
 
I bet the rig in my sig could do 4k. I would really recommend a 2011 or 2011v3 platform because you will need the pcie lanes. I am curious about the 6gb radeons as I think you will benefit from more gpu ram as well. Maybe to crank up graphical goodies 3x sli or crossfire might be needed
 
Zepher said:
is $5000 going to be enough? :eek:
I just priced what I paid for my garage PC just now and I didn't realize I spent as much as I did.
it was $2650, and it's not top of the line.
the 25" monitor I bought was only $240 after tax and the case was $74..
Click to expand...

That number was just an estimate. I may have to spend more and will if I need to. Thanks.
 
rhansen5_99 said:
I bet the rig in my sig could do 4k. I would really recommend a 2011 or 2011v3 platform because you will need the pcie lanes. I am curious about the 6gb radeons as I think you will benefit from more gpu ram as well. Maybe to crank up graphical goodies 3x sli or crossfire might be needed
Click to expand...

I am thinking that as well plus I can use more CPU cores which will be physical cores and not virtual through hyper threading. Your pc looks like a beast
 
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