AMD Phenom II X3 720 - Decent Gaming System

warden30 · 09-01-2009, 10:09 AM

I have a custom vendor locally that offers gaming sysems within various price ranges. I'm not looking to spend more than $1000.00.

This system appears reasonably priced with decent components. Please give me some feedback.

AMD Phenom II X3 720
- 4GB DDR2 800MHz Memory
- 640GB SATA HDD
- 22x DVD-RW SATA
-
ATI Radeon HD4890 1GB DDR5 PCI-Express Card
- Coolermaster Centurion 590 Chassis with 600W PS
Mainboard: ASUS® M4A78 PRO
Memory: 4 GB DDR2 800MHz Dual-Ch. Memory
Hard Disk: 640GB 7200rpm SATA 3G Drive
Optical Drive 1: 22X DVDRW SATA
Optical Drive 2: optional
Video Graphics: ATI Radeon HD4890 1GB DDR5
Sound Card: Six Channel High Definition Audio

**koala** · 09-01-2009, 10:57 AM

As long as the 650W PSU is a quality one, and not the generic one that usually comes with the Coolermaster Centurion 590, that looks like a good gaming computer. What make/model is the PSU?

The HD4890 1gb is a very high-end card. Will you be playing graphically instensive games at very high resolutions on a large monitor? (eg Crysis at 1920x1200, maximum texture settings on a 24" monitor). If not, you could save some money by going for the 512mb HD4850 or 4870 without losing any fps/performance.

warden30 · 09-01-2009, 02:17 PM

I beleive the PS is a Coolmaster Extreme Power Plus Model. As far as the kind of games i'd be playing, online mmrpg's. I was planning on buying a system ahead of the graphics curve for upcoming online games like Biowares Star rWars Ild Republic, and current games like Lord of the Rings Online. I've never purchaed a computer exclusively for gaming before, so I don't know if a system like this one will allow me to play those games at the highest graphical levels or not, and

I also want to be certain that shese components are high-quality, for easy upgrade of a more powerfull CPU and video ard at some point in the future

**koala** · 09-03-2009, 04:09 AM

Yes, they are high quality components. The motherboard fully supports PCIE 2.0 and has good upgrade capabilities for the CPU and RAM. It will let you play the games you mentioned, and other similar games, at high graphics settings.

Correction to last post: I thought your case came with a 650W. If it's only 600W and you go for the HD4890, you should consider upgrading the PSU.

If you're planning on upgrading the CPU and graphics card in the future, you could definitely do with a higher quality PSU as it will struggle when you go beyond a X3 CPU and HD4890, so it's better to spend an extra $20 now rather than buying a new $120 PSU later.

Examples
Corsair 750W (over 80% efficient, 60A/+12V) - $110 ($90 after rebate)
Corsair 850W (over 80% efficient, 70A/+12V) - $140 ($120 after rebate)

Dacads · 09-03-2009, 10:36 AM

Just wondering how much that system costs?

09-01-2009, 10:09 AM	#1 (permalink)
warden30 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 12 OS: vista	AMD Phenom II X3 720 - Decent Gaming System I have a custom vendor locally that offers gaming sysems within various price ranges. I'm not looking to spend more than $1000.00. This system appears reasonably priced with decent components. Please give me some feedback. AMD Phenom II X3 720 - 4GB DDR2 800MHz Memory - 640GB SATA HDD - 22x DVD-RW SATA - ATI Radeon HD4890 1GB DDR5 PCI-Express Card - Coolermaster Centurion 590 Chassis with 600W PS Mainboard: ASUS® M4A78 PRO Memory: 4 GB DDR2 800MHz Dual-Ch. Memory Hard Disk: 640GB 7200rpm SATA 3G Drive Optical Drive 1: 22X DVDRW SATA Optical Drive 2: optional Video Graphics: ATI Radeon HD4890 1GB DDR5 Sound Card: Six Channel High Definition Audio Last edited by warden30; 09-01-2009 at 10:11 AM.

09-01-2009, 10:57 AM	#2 (permalink)
koala Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: UK Posts: 12,366 OS: XP/7/Ubuntu My System	Re: AMD Phenom II X3 720 - Decent Gaming System As long as the 650W PSU is a quality one, and not the generic one that usually comes with the Coolermaster Centurion 590, that looks like a good gaming computer. What make/model is the PSU? The HD4890 1gb is a very high-end card. Will you be playing graphically instensive games at very high resolutions on a large monitor? (eg Crysis at 1920x1200, maximum texture settings on a 24" monitor). If not, you could save some money by going for the 512mb HD4850 or 4870 without losing any fps/performance. __________________ New members: Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. TSF Folding@Home Team 85015 - details here

09-01-2009, 02:17 PM	#3 (permalink)
warden30 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 12 OS: vista	Re: AMD Phenom II X3 720 - Decent Gaming System I beleive the PS is a Coolmaster Extreme Power Plus Model. As far as the kind of games i'd be playing, online mmrpg's. I was planning on buying a system ahead of the graphics curve for upcoming online games like Biowares Star rWars Ild Republic, and current games like Lord of the Rings Online. I've never purchaed a computer exclusively for gaming before, so I don't know if a system like this one will allow me to play those games at the highest graphical levels or not, and I also want to be certain that shese components are high-quality, for easy upgrade of a more powerfull CPU and video ard at some point in the future

09-03-2009, 04:09 AM	#4 (permalink)
koala Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: UK Posts: 12,366 OS: XP/7/Ubuntu My System	Re: AMD Phenom II X3 720 - Decent Gaming System Yes, they are high quality components. The motherboard fully supports PCIE 2.0 and has good upgrade capabilities for the CPU and RAM. It will let you play the games you mentioned, and other similar games, at high graphics settings. Correction to last post: I thought your case came with a 650W. If it's only 600W and you go for the HD4890, you should consider upgrading the PSU. If you're planning on upgrading the CPU and graphics card in the future, you could definitely do with a higher quality PSU as it will struggle when you go beyond a X3 CPU and HD4890, so it's better to spend an extra $20 now rather than buying a new $120 PSU later. Examples Corsair 750W (over 80% efficient, 60A/+12V) - $110 ($90 after rebate) Corsair 850W (over 80% efficient, 70A/+12V) - $140 ($120 after rebate) __________________ New members: Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. TSF Folding@Home Team 85015 - details here

09-03-2009, 10:36 AM	#5 (permalink)
Dacads Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: UK Posts: 188 OS: XP SP2 My System	Re: AMD Phenom II X3 720 - Decent Gaming System Just wondering how much that system costs?