ScottQ

Hey people,

I've been looking for a new PC for a while as mine is about 3-4 years old now and I'm not looking for a complete all out gaming computer that's expensive, I'm just looking for a computer like I have now which is fast and has a good graphics card. I set my mate a challenge to find me the best computer for under 500 pound and he found me this - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-170-OK&tool=3. I've had a lot of good comments about it but I really just wanted a second opinion or any better options from a trusted UK site to buy from, as I don't want to be making any mistakes in buying.

The game I play is CounterStrike : Source (CS:S) and my average FPS ingame is around 40-60 which isn't brilliant so I want somethings that's gunna give my FPS a huge boost and is going to help me alot more ingame. My computer is definately in need of an upgrade so I need to know if that PC or of another PC that would be really worth it for a big improvement.

Some specs for my current (crap) PC -

CPU - Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 3.00GHz (one core)

GFX CARD - NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT

RAM - 1gb

All suggestions/comments are welcome,
Thanks!

Zealex

If you want a good strong computer, I recommend building one. You get better quality parts, cheaper and it just makes you proud of yourself. I know some "gaming" computers that are decent, but expensive. Alienware makes gaming computers, but you can build their computers for 1/2 the price. We have a section on TSF that helps you choose the right parts.

ScottQ

Sorry I'm not currently in a position where I can build one or get anyone else to build it for me, mostly due to being busy a fair bit and not having a wide knowledge of PCs anyway. Any thoughts on that exact PC though or anything better for under 500 pound?

Tyree

The PC you linked to looks like a pretty good deal, they actually list the brand names of the hardware and they are decent parts.
Hopefully, they will warranty the parts. OC'ing the CPU voids the CPU warranty and Intel does check.

ScottQ

Thanks for the info

Dacads

Yep that is a good price for a good PC, I have found some systems that are comparable:

http://www.arbico.co.uk/Arbico-Pro-I...r-p-17319.html

http://www.meshcomputers.com/Default...UCT&KEY=497697

http://www.meshcomputers.com/Default...UCT&KEY=582862

mervin

You don't have time? To be perfectly honest, building computers isn't that tough. You'd be surprised how easy it is. Back in the days of Windows 95 and Windows 98 it was a bit harder, but only because you needed a floppy drive and some understanding of basic DOS commands to install the operating system, but now days it's pretty darn simple. Believe me, people who build computers don't need the skills of rocket scientists.

Ibuypower makes some pretty inexpensive gaming computers with decent parts. Alienware and ABS also make great computers. Their computers will often come factory overclocked, and under warranty. If you want someone to build a computer for you, any one of those three companies would be a good place to start.

If I were going to buy a computer though, I probably wouldn't get one with a processor less than an E8400.

Tyree

I looked at thge ABS site and they appear to be like most builders. They fail to list the brand names of the parts they use.
Ibuypower does list brands but you pay dearly to get the good stuff.
Alienware PC's do use good hardware but you pay about twice the price they're worth...and the cases are ugly.

mervin

I agree with what you're saying when it comes to gaming computers, or computers designed for a very specific high-end purpose, but I think it's getting tougher and tougher to build a run-of-the-mill midrange computer and do it for less than what a company like Dell, HP, Gateway or a lot of the other manufacturers can do it for.

I've actually looked into this a lot and over the past few years and it amazes me much they've come down in price and what you get for the price you pay. A lot of the time they'll even throw in built WI-FI and a Blue-Ray player. Factor in the warrany and 24 x 7 tech support and it often amounts to a price that is tough to beat, even if you're building.

I agree that companies like Dell, HP or Gateway don't necessarily put in low latency RAM, a high wattage, namebrand psu, or a fancy ATX motherboard with a BIOS that you can configure, but the average user doesn't need all this stuff.

Anyway, this is off topic. Just thought I would share this piece of info. :)

wrench97

You can not build it cheaper then Dell, just better, another valid point is in the upgrade ability of a custom build over an OEM build, OEM PC's are for the most part not designed to be upgraded.

Mcninjaguy

Motherboard (AMD setup)
Gigabyte GA-MA790GP-UD4H AMD 790GX Socket AM2+ VGA DVI HDMI 8 channel audio ATX Motherboard
£120.18
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/160855

CPU
AMD Athlon II X2 250 3.0GHz 1MB L2 Chche Socket AM3 Retail Box Processor
£65
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/166519

RAM
Corsair 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 1066MHz/PC2-8500 XMS2 Memory CL5 2.1V
£49
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/148816

PSU
Corsair 650w
£72.05
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/135514

Graphics Card
Sapphire VAPOR-X HD4870 1GB GDDR5 HDMI DVI VGA PCI-E Graphics Card
£132.17
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/161307

Case
Antec 900 Nine Hundred - Gaming Case with 200mm Top Fan
£74.98
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/118268

HDD
Western Digital WD3200AAKS 320GB SATAII 16MB Cache 7200 RPM
£33.45
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/124735

Total = £549


That will play Crysis on max settings and you can upgrade to a phenom 2 955 later on.

wrench97

For 15 pounds more the Phenom X2 550 would be a better choice for the 6meg cache size and unlocked multipliers.

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/166518

Mcninjaguy

That's really cheap for a Phenom X2 550!

I didn't bother to look, I just thought it was going to be really expensive.

wrench97

I believe AMD is using it for marketing to attempt to regain market share.

mervin

Look a little closer Tyree, ABS does indeed list almost every part down to the specific model number. They use Asus or Evga motherboards; corsair or super talent RAM; Tagan power supplies; Gigabyte, Lian-Li, or Cooler Master cases; and a variety of different video cards that they list very specifically.

I always thought the cases from Ibuypower were the ugliest ones.