Gaming PC help

[Kaiiuken]

I have recently decided to jump ship from the New XBox One and look at a gaming PC. I started looking at the Alienware X51 and the Revolt. I like these options because of the size and I can easily fit them where I want in the entertainment center. Can I get some possible input on some systems to check out and any other input that might help me along the way. The Alienware is nice but I get the feeling Im just paying for an over priced DELL.

 

[antisober]

I have recently decided to jump ship from the New XBox One and look at a gaming PC. I started looking at the Alienware X51 and the Revolt. I like these options because of the size and I can easily fit them where I want in the entertainment center. Can I get some possible input on some systems to check out and any other input that might help me along the way. The Alienware is nice but I get the feeling Im just paying for an over priced DELL.

IMPO you are getting an overpriced Dell. You can find better rigs for much cheaper. What is your budget?

 

[mjd]

Can you please tell us more about what you're going to use the machine for? What are your favorite games? Are you always interested in cutting-edge FPS games?
What existing monitors or equipment do you have to use with a new machine?
Do you want a Gaming Laptop or Desktop?
Are you going to build it yourself or buy a prebuilt?
Do you have a budget? And in what country are you purchasing?
Do you have a timeline for your purchase?
Any other requirements/interests/applications you'd like this new machine to support?

Thanks,
-M

 

[Kaiiuken]

Battlefield 4, COD Ghosts, Upcoming Titanfall, Batman and so on are a few I want to play. Budget would be around $900 to $1100. Want something that will fit on my entertainment center and can hook up to my 65inch TV (HDMI). Want prebuilt as I have not built my own rig yet. I live in the US.

 

[nsafreak]

I'm not sure if you're going to get much in the way of recommendations in the way of pre-builts from this crowd, many of are very much DIY folks especially when it comes to gaming systems and I would include myself as part of this crew. It really isn't hard to put together a PC, it's kindof like putting together a bunch of legos. The "hard" part comes when you're working with cable management to get everything perfect. That being said here's a build for your consideration:

CPU: Intel i5 4430
Motherboard: ASRock Pro4 B85 MicroATX
RAM: Crucial Ballistix Sport 2x4GB
GPU: MSI R7970 BE Twin Frozr
SSD: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 1TB
PSU: Corsair CX500M
Case: SilverStone Grandia Series HTPC Case

Total (not including shipping): $974.92

The Revolt & X51 are nice units, but they won't touch this PC in performance.

 

[Papa Hogan]

I'm not sure if you're going to get much in the way of recommendations in the way of pre-builts from this crowd, many of are very much DIY folks especially when it comes to gaming systems and I would include myself as part of this crew. It really isn't hard to put together a PC, it's kindof like putting together a bunch of legos. The "hard" part comes when you're working with cable management to get everything perfect. That being said here's a build for your consideration:

CPU: Intel i5 4430
Motherboard: ASRock Pro4 B85 MicroATX
RAM: Crucial Ballistix Sport 2x4GB
GPU: MSI R7970 BE Twin Frozr
SSD: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 1TB
PSU: Corsair CX500M
Case: SilverStone Grandia Series HTPC Case

Total (not including shipping): $974.92

The Revolt & X51 are nice units, but they won't touch this PC in performance.

I have a solution for your difficulty with cable management: just get a case without a window. Throw everything in and call it a day.😱

 

[mfenn]

I have a solution for your difficulty with cable management: just get a case without a window. Throw everything in and call it a day.😱

The correct answer. :thumbsup: :awe:

But seriously OP, do you think you'd be willing to build your own. The more niche you get, the more money you can save by doing it yourself. "SFF Gaming" is a pretty small niche right now.

 

[Aithos]

I have to recommend against what you're talking about doing. It sounds like (and correct me if I'm wrong) that instead of a gaming console you're going to put a "gaming" pc in your home entertainment center (your tv stand) and use it to play games on your TV. If that is the case I'll save you the trouble: buy an Xbox or PS4 and just be done with it. Here are some considerations:

1) Computers aren't meant to be stuffed inside cabinets and enclosures, cases ARE enclosures. They need air flow in order to operate and especially with modern systems they generate a LOT of heat. If you stuff it into an entertainment center it's going to die a hot fiery death at worst and overheat and cause performance issues at best.

2) If you plan to use a gamepad and a TV you aren't going to be able to take advantage of any of the positives of a gaming PC (higher resolution/detail and better control). You won't see any noticable difference between games on a screen that large with a console and a PC, that's the real reason you don't see consoles that equal high end gaming rigs over time. The pixel density of 1080p on a 50" screen just isn't high enough to make it worth the extra hardware.

If I am misunderstanding I'd be happy to help you with some components. For budget concious here is what I'd consider:

Intel i5-4670 or i5-4670k
Asus z87-A or ASRock Extreme4
Corsair RM750 psu
EVGA GTX 770 superclocked
Corsair Vengeance Pro 1866 16gb
Samsung 840 250gb SSD
WD black 2tb HDD

 

[Torn Mind]

You will likely have to allocate some of your budget another separate graphics card because most of the the ones that come with gaming PCs are not particularly powerful relative to the graphics card offerings sold from $150 and up. There are exceptions, but pay close attention to what GPU you are getting

 

[mfenn]

I disagree somewhat with both of these points.

1) Computers aren't meant to be stuffed inside cabinets and enclosures, cases ARE enclosures. They need air flow in order to operate and especially with modern systems they generate a LOT of heat. If you stuff it into an entertainment center it's going to die a hot fiery death at worst and overheat and cause performance issues at best.

The PS4 and Xbox One are not meant to be stuffed into cabinets either. They're computers with significant heat output and will not be happy being stuffed in a small compartment. A modern PC will actually quite gracefully downclock to meet thermal restrictions.

2) If you plan to use a gamepad and a TV you aren't going to be able to take advantage of any of the positives of a gaming PC (higher resolution/detail and better control). You won't see any noticable difference between games on a screen that large with a console and a PC, that's the real reason you don't see consoles that equal high end gaming rigs over time. The pixel density of 1080p on a 50" screen just isn't high enough to make it worth the extra hardware.

Not many console games are going to actually render at 1080p, whereas a moderate gaming PC will have no problem doing so at a higher graphics fidelity. You don't have to have a 1440p+ screen to make PC gaming worthwhile.

As for the controller, yes that is personal preference and certain types of games will never work well. Valve has mad great strides in cajoling developers to put in reasonable controller support, so the situation is better than it ever has been. The types of games that appeal to somebody coming from a console will by definition work fine on a gamepad.

Intel i5-4670 or i5-4670k
Asus z87-A or ASRock Extreme4
Corsair RM750 psu
EVGA GTX 770 superclocked
Corsair Vengeance Pro 1866 16gb
Samsung 840 250gb SSD
WD black 2tb HDD

Care to list out prices? This seems more like a 1200 machine to me.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

The Alienware is nice but I get the feeling Im just paying for an over priced DELL.

I would disagree. That little box looks purpose built and well done to me. The reviews are good, especially for the rev 2. I'd configure it with the i5-4430 and the gtx 670.

For the price though you could buy both the ps4 and xbox with change left over for games.