Can you recommend a Gaming Desktop build please?

R

Red Kelt

Member
Hello all.

I've had my current PC for about 5 years and I've had some problems wih it.

I've tried to fix it but it still crashes now and then, about once a day. It never crashed for the first 4 years.

Anyway I've been contemplating buying a new set up for a while and after some bad news I've had lately I thought now is the time.

I used to be a keen gamer but I went the XBOX route a while back, nevertheless and whether I need one or not, I want a decent gaming machine.

My budget is £1,000 to £1,300.

I'm really looking for something that will demonstrate a noticeable difference to what I've already got. I think Win 8.1 will help with this anyway. So additionally I want Win 8.1 to whizz along :)

My current specs are pasted in below from Speccy.

I'm out of touch with technology and components after relying on the XBOX to deliver my gaming.

Some things I'm not sure about.

My current CPU is five years old and has a clock speed of 3.4 GHz. I'm looking at a Intel® Core™ i7-4790K Processor which appears fairly new and this offers 4 to 4.4 GHz. I'm puzzled that the clock speed of today's CPUs doesn't appear that much faster. Can anyone educate me on this?

I don't know much about fans, are the branded supposedly quiet fans a decent modification.

Do I need 16Gb of RAM, I feel like I want it :)

Will Office 2003 run on a Win 8.1 system?

Are the Samsung SSDs superior to the Intel SSDs?

Is a modular PSU a good investment? As opposed to the default option?

Is the default onboard audio sufficient? Is a Creative Labs card a good idea and why?

I don't plan on getting a new monitor or keyboard and mouse but I may look later. I'm not sure they're worthwhile at present, I'm sure what gains I would experience as my present stuff appears sufficient. Just an old wireless MS keyboard and Logitech standard wireless mouse.

Can someone be kind enough to recommend a build please? I hope this info helps.

BTW, I've tried posting this twice. I hope my post doesn't come up twice, I'm not meaning to spam the forum.



Operating System
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit SP1
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 965 53 °C
Deneb 45nm Technology
RAM
8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 666MHz (9-9-9-24)
Motherboard
ASUSTeK Computer INC. M4A79XTD EVO (AM3) 48 °C
Graphics
T24C300 (1920x1080@60Hz)
ATI Radeon HD 5700 Series (ATI) 42 °C
Storage
931GB SAMSUNG HD103SJ ATA Device (SATA) 26 °C
232GB Samsung SSD 840 EVO 250GB ATA Device (SSD) 29 °C
Optical Drives
HL-DT-ST BDDVDRW CH08LS10 ATA Device
TSSTcorp CDDVDW SH-S223C ATA Device
Audio
High Definition Audio Device
 
keynes

keynes

Multiverse Poster
Do I need 16Gb of RAM, I feel like I want it
Click to expand...
You don't need 16gb for gaming
Will Office 2003 run on a Win 8.1 system?
Click to expand...
yes
Are the Samsung SSDs superior to the Intel SSDs?
Click to expand...
both are good but I doubt you will notice the difference.
Is a modular PSU a good investment? As opposed to the default option?
Click to expand...
for your budget I would get one
Is the default onboard audio sufficient? Is a Creative Labs card a good idea and why?
Click to expand...
I would try onboard audio first before adding a soundcard.

Case
COOLERMASTER CM690 III ADVANCED CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-4690 (3.5GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard
Gigabyte Z97-HD3: ATX, LG1150, USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
3GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 780 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
1st Hard Disk
250GB Samsung 840 EVO SSD, SATA 6Gb/s (upto 540MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk
1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1003FZEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W RM SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET (£79)
Processor Cooling
Super Quiet 22dBA Triple Copper Heatpipe Intel CPU Cooler (£19)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 4 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Operating System
Genuine Windows 8.1 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365
Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £1,177.00 including VAT and delivery.

Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/intel-haswell-pc/Xz0d_6X5J9/
 
A

A314159

Super Star
Reason clock speeds aren't much higher is that clock speeds aren't everything. A 3ghz CPU might easily outperform a 4ghz CPU - cores, cache and other things like efficiency are much higher on newer CPUs.
 
R

Red Kelt

Member
Thanks for the replies.

I'm curious as to why you didn't select the i7 chip though, is there little difference?
 
R

Red Kelt

Member
Ok, thanks for your help and wish me luck.

I've ordered but with the i7 and the next PSU up just in case of future add ons.

:)
 
tom_gr7

tom_gr7

Life Serving
Looks like a pretty solid spec, I'd guess it will easily last you a good 4-5 years.

Nice choice with the I7 though, it offers hyper-threading tech, whilst most games don't use it, they may do in a few years. - here's a link to hyperthreading on wikipedia if it interests you.
 
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