Building pc for some chick

S

SomethingInteresting

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She wants to play Sims 3, and I'm attempting to throw a pc together for her so that she can. I've got something assembled, but I keep getting the feeling that the rig I've thrown together is overkill. Anywho, let's cover the questions first.

1) Gaming (Sims 3 and a few titles released after it)
2) $700
3) North Georgia
4) Everything but peripherals.
5) I'll probably be using some generic 160GB hard drive and a DVD-Rom drive.
6) No.
7) 16 inch generic monitor, resolution of 1024x768
8) As soon as I pick up the parts from the store.
9) Firewire, and 6-8 USB slots.
10)Yes

Here's my current build. (w/ Prices on Newegg without shipping)
Mobo - EVGA 132-CK-NF78-TR $169.99
Video Card - EVGA 8800GT ~$100.00 (I guessed this one)
Processor - E7400 Wolfdale 2.8GHZ $119.99
Memory - GSKILL 2GB 2 x 1GB $27.99
Case - COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 $39.99
Power Supp - Haven't decided yet. If this is a good design, then I'll need a little help deciding on a power supply.

What do you think? Are there things I could skimp out on? My one true goal for this thing besides playing Sims 3, is to have a machine that will last for at least another year (as in, it will keep up well enough with the new games that are coming out).
 
Honestly, you might just want to check the FS/FT section for something better and cheaper. To start with, that mobo is way too expensive. $80 should snag you a gigabyte p35 board. For the vid card maybe an HD4770 for about the same price, ram is good, case is good, proc is good otherwise - just do the usual check for deals thing to shave off a buck or two here and there.

this was the first thing I saw (no affiliation)

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1414776 some good stuff here.

You can probably get this done between 4 and 500
 
Motherboard - GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3L - $98.99 shipped

CPU - Intel E5200 - $69.99 shipped

Memory - G.Skill 4GB 2x2GB $46.99 shipped

Case - Antec Three Hundred - $59.95 shipped

GPU - EVGA GeForce 9800 GTX+ - $129.99 shipped $10 MIR

PSU - CORSAIR CMPSU-550VX 550W - $94.99 shipped $20 MIR

Total: $500.90

Optional:

Upgrade the HDD - Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500AAJS 250GB - $47.99 shipped

Upgrade the ODD - LG DVD Burner - $22.99 shipped

Upgrade the Monitor - Acer X193W+BD - $119.99 shipped

Then making it a total of: $691.87 shipped
 
$700 can get you a lot more than you think. Observe:

$240 - AMD Phenom II X3 710 & Antec Sonata Plus 550 (with NeoPower 550 PSU) combo deal
$134 - Gigabyte GA-MA790X-UD4P & OCZ SLI-Ready Edition 2x2GB DDR2 800 combo deal
$90 - Sapphire HD4830
=====
$464 - Subtotal (not including shipping, taxes, or rebates)

Just like your rig, my build is overkill for the Sims 3... but it will last you at least a year or two and, if AMD follows through with its supposed plans, you'll be able to upgrade the processor at a later time.

Since you could afford to, I also recommend upgrading the optical drive and the hard drive.

$64 - Western Digital WD6400AAKS 640GB SATA HDD
$25 - Samsung SH-S223F SATA DVD burner

The WD6400AAKS, performance-wise, would run circles around your old 160GB HDD, and the SH-S223F uses a SATA cable, which would help with airflow and cable management. Both items also come with free shipping. Though optional, these two things will complement the above build and help you give your girlfriend something that could be used for more than just Sims 3.

fromeo85 also brought up a good point: with some of the money you'll save, you may want to consider getting her a larger monitor.
 
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My $0.02...

Even if you live under the same roof with this person and can provide hands on support for the life of this system...with $700, get a Dell or an HP online.

While you may *feel* your custom work is better than what these companies are offering, for $700 you have very little room to improve. Really and truly.

So save yourself the time and stress. She will get a warranty for at the least a year on the whole system from these companies, she'll get some free telephone support in case you aren't around AND it will arrive there in the next week very possibly, ready to go. I helped a non-technical friend do this only a month ago; quad core system with an upgraded graphics card and there was a special deal for like 30% off monitors at the time so they got a more-than-capable mid-level machine with a 24in LCD all for less than $900 after tax and shipping.
 
SomethingInteresting said:
She wants to play Sims 3, and I'm attempting to throw a pc together for her so that she can. I've got something assembled, but I keep getting the feeling that the rig I've thrown together is overkill. Anywho, let's cover the questions first.

1) Gaming (Sims 3 and a few titles released after it)
2) $700
3) North Georgia
4) Everything but peripherals.
5) I'll probably be using some generic 160GB hard drive and a DVD-Rom drive.
6) No.
7) 16 inch generic monitor, resolution of 1024x768
8) As soon as I pick up the parts from the store.
9) Firewire, and 6-8 USB slots.
10)Yes

Here's my current build. (w/ Prices on Newegg without shipping)
Mobo - EVGA 132-CK-NF78-TR $169.99
Video Card - EVGA 8800GT ~$100.00 (I guessed this one)
Processor - E7400 Wolfdale 2.8GHZ $119.99
Memory - GSKILL 2GB 2 x 1GB $27.99
Case - COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 $39.99
Power Supp - Haven't decided yet. If this is a good design, then I'll need a little help deciding on a power supply.

What do you think? Are there things I could skimp out on? My one true goal for this thing besides playing Sims 3, is to have a machine that will last for at least another year (as in, it will keep up well enough with the new games that are coming out).
Click to expand...

way overkill

as for the vid card, i built a rig for my GF last week, the 4670 i put in there plays red alert 3 @ 1920*1080 without problems, and this chick doesnt sound like she will get a kick out of sliding every slider to the max, sims 3 @ 1024*768 does not need a 8800GT

i'd probably go for a amd x2 7750, a decent 780G mobo, 2/4gb of ram and a 4670, that should run sims 3 with ease..
 
Does Sims3 even need a $100 graphics card? Wouldn't 780G onboard would be more than enough?

System Requirements
CPU Intel Pentium 4 or equivalent
2.0GHz (XP)
2.4GHz (Vista)
Memory 1 GB (XP)
1.5GB (Vista)
Hard Drive Space 6.5GB of free space and 1GB for additional content
Graphics Hardware DirectX 9.0c compliant card with 128 MB RAM (NVIDIA FX 5900/ATI 9500 or better) and support for Pixel Shader 2.0
Sound Hardware 100% DirectX 9.0c compliant card
Click to expand...
 
$700. Can put together a pretty decent build with that with a 22" lcd monitor. I know this build will be overkill for just SIMS3 but, you mention the computer to last a year and keep up with other new games that are coming out.

CPU/MOBO (Combo Deal) - Intel Core 2 E5400 (2.7ghz) + Gigabyte P43 mobo for $160
RAM - OCZ SLI-Ready Edition 4GB for $39 w/free shipping
VIDEO CARD - Sapphire Radeon HD 4850 for $120 ($20 MIR) w/free shipping
HDD - WD 640gig 6400AAKS for $70 w/free shipping
OPTICAL - Samsung 22X DVD Burner for $26 w/free shipping
CASE/PSU - Antec NSK6580 with Earthwatts 430watt for $110 w/free shipping
MONITOR - Acer X223Wbd 22" lcd for $160 w/free shipping

Total: $685.00
 
Everyones suggestion for 4GB of ram and a 2.5GHZ+ CPU and extreme graphics card is over kill. Specialy for the res you plan on running at. If anything I would go a little lighter on the graphics card you have planned and get a bigger hard drive since its a chick that uses a computer and I'm more then sure she has music/wants to load it with music. I have a 3650 512mb of ram and it plays Sims 3 well on high settings at a higher res. Also with a 2ghz core duo just to give you a idea of how much over kill any of the systems people are suggesting.
 
pArTy said:
Everyones suggestion for 4GB of ram and a 2.5GHZ+ CPU and extreme graphics card is over kill. Specialy for the res you plan on running at. If anything I would go a little lighter on the graphics card you have planned and get a bigger hard drive since its a chick that uses a computer and I'm more then sure she has music/wants to load it with music. I have a 3650 512mb of ram and it plays Sims 3 well on high settings at a higher res. Also with a 2ghz core duo just to give you a idea of how much over kill any of the systems people are suggesting.
Click to expand...

You have the Sims 3? I was under the impression it came out in a month or so.
 
HardwareGuru said:
$700. Can put together a pretty decent build with that with a 22" lcd monitor. I know this build will be overkill for just SIMS3 but, you mention the computer to last a year and keep up with other new games that are coming out.

CPU/MOBO (Combo Deal) - Intel Core 2 E5400 (2.7ghz) + Gigabyte P43 mobo for $160
RAM - OCZ SLI-Ready Edition 4GB for $39 w/free shipping
VIDEO CARD - Sapphire Radeon HD 4850 for $120 ($20 MIR) w/free shipping
HDD - WD 640gig 6400AAKS for $70 w/free shipping
OPTICAL - Samsung 22X DVD Burner for $26 w/free shipping
CASE/PSU - Antec NSK6580 with Earthwatts 430watt for $110 w/free shipping
MONITOR - Acer X223Wbd 22" lcd for $160 w/free shipping

Total: $685.00
Click to expand...

QFT. Yes, anything above the sims3 minimum system requirements can be considered overkill. However, he also mentioned something to last longer. No, she doesn't need a good vidcard for a 16" monitor, but why play a nice new game on a 16" monitor!? She has the budget, so you should get her a new monitor.

No good dell deals right now, otherwise I'd point you to one with a vidcard upgrade. :p
 
Wow...holy crap. I really didn't expect that many people to respond. Many thanks to all who responded.

-vsboxerboy- I'll be sure to keep an eye on the for sale section from now on.

-fromeo85- Interesting design. I do think that 4GB of ram is a tad bit much though :)

-tiraides- many thanks for pointing me to the combo deals. I'll keep checking back on these too. And I wouldn't mind putting setting her up with an AMD processor if it wasn't for the fact that I plan on using it too. Intel usually has AMD beat in most of the benchmarks I've seen (gaming), so I don't mind dishing out just a little bit more cash for the performance.

-drywilly- I won't lie to you...I did consider that at first, but ultimately decided I wanted to design this thing to my every specification. Plus I didn't want to worry about all that power supply BS (ya know, putting random power supplies in gateways frying mobos...that sort of thing).

-DrFreeze- I'd get an ATI card if it wasn't for the proprietary drivers (I think Nvidia has open-source display drivers...correct me if I'm wrong here)

-DTN107- I've seen those posted specs, and I find them to be rather ridiculous. My computer even meets those specifications, and I know for a fact that I can't even run Sims 2 comfortably.

-HardwareGuru- Another interesting design (was considered).

-pArTy- I completely agree that 4GB of ram is overkill, but I do plan on upgrading her monitor (just a little later on though, since I've realized I'm a few hundred dollars short of my original budget)

-JaYp146- I know right.

-enginurd- Anything above sims3 system requirements could be considered overkill, but I still wonder about those stated specifications. They just sound too unreal.


I think I'm going to wait for the time being, and keep checking back on deals in the FS section, as well as the Combo deals on newegg. Thanks again!
 
SomethingInteresting said:
-tiraides- many thanks for pointing me to the combo deals. I'll keep checking back on these too. And I wouldn't mind putting setting her up with an AMD processor if it wasn't for the fact that I plan on using it too. Intel usually has AMD beat in most of the benchmarks I've seen (gaming), so I don't mind dishing out just a little bit more cash for the performance.
Click to expand...

Don't knock it until you try it. The Phenom II processors can compete with the higher-end Core 2 Duo/Quad processors, even if they can't win all of the benchmarks. My point was that there are ways to get a more powerful computer for your money. Besides, how many FPS were you hoping to get from Sims 3?

Since you're trying to improve upon the Sims 3 experience, why continue to torture yourself by reusing the same small monitor? The "loss" in performance -- which would be minimal, as any build that you choose from our recommendations would probably outperform your old system -- is worth it if you reroute some of your "savings" toward a larger monitor. You could get a 22 inch widescreen LCD for under $200 nowadays.
 
SomethingInteresting said:
Wow...holy crap. I really didn't expect that many people to respond. Many thanks to all who responded.

-vsboxerboy- I'll be sure to keep an eye on the for sale section from now on.

-fromeo85- Interesting design. I do think that 4GB of ram is a tad bit much though :)

-tiraides- many thanks for pointing me to the combo deals. I'll keep checking back on these too. And I wouldn't mind putting setting her up with an AMD processor if it wasn't for the fact that I plan on using it too. Intel usually has AMD beat in most of the benchmarks I've seen (gaming), so I don't mind dishing out just a little bit more cash for the performance.

-drywilly- I won't lie to you...I did consider that at first, but ultimately decided I wanted to design this thing to my every specification. Plus I didn't want to worry about all that power supply BS (ya know, putting random power supplies in gateways frying mobos...that sort of thing).

-DrFreeze- I'd get an ATI card if it wasn't for the proprietary drivers (I think Nvidia has open-source display drivers...correct me if I'm wrong here)

-DTN107- I've seen those posted specs, and I find them to be rather ridiculous. My computer even meets those specifications, and I know for a fact that I can't even run Sims 2 comfortably.

-HardwareGuru- Another interesting design (was considered).

-pArTy- I completely agree that 4GB of ram is overkill, but I do plan on upgrading her monitor (just a little later on though, since I've realized I'm a few hundred dollars short of my original budget)

-JaYp146- I know right.

-enginurd- Anything above sims3 system requirements could be considered overkill, but I still wonder about those stated specifications. They just sound too unreal.


I think I'm going to wait for the time being, and keep checking back on deals in the FS section, as well as the Combo deals on newegg. Thanks again!
Click to expand...


nvidia only has open source drivers on the linux side and does not like people modifying their drivers in any way.. where as amd/ati agree that their drivers arent the best and completely allow and will support any modified versions of their drivers..
 
Um, Nvidia has a binary driver, the nv driver, and Nouveau. Their Linux drivers are better than ATI's still. ATI has been making progress, but they are still way behind. One major example: Nvidia's VDPAU

Edit to add: I am not suggesting Nvidia owns nv or Nouveau, but they do exist. The open source ATI drivers are mostly community maintained as well.
 
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SomethingInteresting said:
-DrFreeze- I'd get an ATI card if it wasn't for the proprietary drivers (I think Nvidia has open-source display drivers...correct me if I'm wrong here)
Click to expand...

under windows, AFAIK neither party has open source drivers, under linux, only Ati has some open source stuff, in fact whereas before many linux users prefered nvidia for their superior drivers, that is starting to change, due to the fact that the new OS ati drivers are making very nice progress, and nvidia still only does binaries..

anyway, i just suggested the 4670 because i like the power/performance/price ratio. Nvidia has the 9500GT, which is slower then the 4670, but not that much cheaper, and the 9600GSO/GT. The GSO is on par with a 4670, but consumes more power, costs a bit more, and the GT is one performance level up.

im pretty sure a 9500GT would suffice for sims 3 at not to high settings though, although a 9600GSO might be a safer bet performance wise..
 
 
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