Conundrum - lead to cost analysis

[azidahaka]

Wow the recommended processor is 260 EURO alone i guess getting a recommended PC will cost around 800s...

 

[Willfred_1]

This was something I was curious about, perhaps I'll wait even until Windows 9 comes out before making a decision to see how that software performs. I had originally selected 8.1 for that reason, because I didn't want to get caught out using an older (if better) OS.

And about that ram, the motherboard doesn't mention 1866, won't that downgrade the performance of the memory to essentially 1600?

Lastly, If the system does end up being a little over the top in certain areas, I'm okay with that. I will most likely use this for other purposes and games, and I'd ideally like to future proof it a bit so that my equipment is still capable a year or so from now. I don't want to get into the habit of buying new PC parts all every year. My wallet would hate me more than it already does.

EDIT: Alright, I think I'm happy with this system:
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/FFKmNG
I could sleep well if I upgraded the CPU, but with your input, I feel like the 4570 would be a safe bet moving forward. I went with a nicer motherboard to fully take advantage of the RAM you suggested and am happy with just about everything. Could maybe pick up an Internal Hard Drive if memory becomes an issue.

Also, that PSU is way overkill for the estimated wattage this system will need, but could certainly future proof it in the event I add more pieces to the pie.

you gone to the oppsite extreme with cases what want is a midi case providing the gpu fits in these are often the cheapest cases
also you could probably get away with not having a blu-ray reader instead have a cheap dvd reader /writer it few dollar saved but it all adds up.

 

[Snaeper]

you gone to the oppsite extreme with cases what want is a midi case providing the gpu fits in these are often the cheapest cases
also you could probably get away with not having a blu-ray reader instead have a cheap dvd reader /writer it few dollar saved but it all adds up.

I did get a basic DVD reader... don't know where you're seeing the Bluray reader. And that case has had good reviews and its from a reputable brand so I trust it. The builds I've seen with it look good.

Not all the dimensions are given for the parts (or are they?) So I don't. Know if everything will fit, but it says everything is compatible.

 

[HBR-Roadhog]

That 9800GT is about 3 years older than minimum spec for pCARS.....

The minimum specs in the thread here that I saw says 9600GT 512mb ram.

CPU - 3.0GHz Dual-Core, 2.4GHz Quad-Core
GRAPHICS - nVidia 9600 GT 512Mb, ATI Radeon HD 4750 512Mb
MEMORY - 2Gb RAM (3Gb-4Gb recommended)

So the card I am using is faster than a 9600GT and has double the amount of video ram.
Unless there is an updated requirement list that shows the need for a stronger card that I am unaware of.

 

[skazz]

The minimum specs in the thread here that I saw says 9600GT 512mb ram.

So the card I am using is faster than a 9600GT and has double the amount of video ram.
Unless there is an updated requirement list that shows the need for a stronger card that I am unaware of.

I have no idea where they got those specs.... They might be from ages ago before pCARS decided to refocus towards next gen consoles.

Current required specs here: http://www.projectcarsgame.com/faq.html

Based on my own experiences with a GTX760, anything near their minimum spec card will mean turning everything down quite low, accepting almost no AA, and racing against low numbers of AI.... Unless they manage huge improvements in graphics performance between now and release.

 

[HBR-Roadhog]

Thanks. I had not saw that page yet, just the one posted here at GTP.

Here is the spec from the link above

MINIMUM SPEC
CPU – 2.66 GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400, 3.0 GHz AMD Phenom II X4 940
GRAPHICS – nVidia GTX 260, ATI Radeon HD 5770
MEMORY – 4Gb RAM, 1Gb VRAM

RECOMMENDED SPEC
CPU – 3.5 GHz Intel Core i7 3700, 4.0 GHz AMD FX-8350
GRAPHICS – nVidia GT600 series, AMD Radeon HD7000 series
MEMORY – 8Gb RAM, 2Gb VRAM

The minimum has increased only a little but looks like I would need to bump up the Video card a little to meet that requirement. I'm not sure now what route I will take. I may just pick up a new card and see how it does on my hardware. The 1100T CPU I have is a good bit stronger than a 940 and I have a 955BE in my other system but a 9600GT card so looks like one of them will get an upgraded video card. The good news is that the 600 series cards can be found for around $100

Or I may go ahead a build another system, I see the FX8350 is less than $150 and will be lower by the time the game comes out.

Most likely I will get a 600 series card and try it in the 1100T system and see how it goes, if the performance is not suitable then I will probably build a new system. Since I already have cases, HDDs and PSUs on hand I should be able to build one above the recommended model for less than it would cost me for a PS4 and a new wheel.

 

[azidahaka]

talking about the 600 video card i have enormous doubts it can perform well enough to go heavy on eye candies...

 

[A1-242]

talking about the 600 video card i have enormous doubts it can perform well enough to go heavy on eye candies...

I have a GTX680 & it does just fine with heavy eye candy, it should be good for a couple more years although I may purchase an 880 to celebrate the release of Project Cars.

 

[skazz]

I have a GTX680 & it does just fine with heavy eye candy, it should be good for a couple more years although I may purchase an 880 to celebrate the release of Project Cars.

The 680 was a €500 card around a year ago... Performance of that level right now would be roughly a 770 at €400 I guess. Very different from a GT610 or something low end like that.

 

[HBR-Roadhog]

I go and look at some performance charts before I decide which card to get. I know in the past the GeForce cards had several different levels of performance within a series. With the lower numbers sometimes being lesser than higher numbers in the previous series.

I just looked up a few of them and the benchmark I am seeing shows a 570 out performing a 650 and a 750. Looks like whatever series should probably get a 60 or higher.

 

[Simfan David]

OK guys I need some help from some tech junkies on a pc build. I said I wasn't going to this but my old pc addiction has come back to haunt me. Here is my quote for a pc build and you tell me if it will run P.C. with some nice eye candy.
Asus z97-k lga1150
4xddr3/gb lan/6x sata6g

core i7-4790k 4.0g 8m retail

8g ddr3 pc12800
1600mhz/512x8

geforce gtx760 2gb

win7 home p. X64

60gb Kingston ssd sata

850 watt seasonic p/s

500gb wd 7200 sata-6g 64m

 

[LVracerGT]

When did SMS announce that Fanatec won't be supported on PS4? Have they said anything about Logitech yet? Last I heard they hadn't finalized the supported wheel list.

I still have a hard time believing the most popular wheel for the PS3 (Logitech) won't be supported on PS4. Every console thus far has supported older wheels. I'm still going to hold out until the game is actually released. You never know, the new 2.0 PS4 update that's bringing the Share Play feature could bring Logitech support with it. Fingers crossed!

 

[skazz]

OK guys I need some help from some tech junkies on a pc build. I said I wasn't going to this but my old pc addiction has come back to haunt me. Here is my quote for a pc build and you tell me if it will run P.C. with some nice eye candy.
<PC specs....>

I'd say:
- In terms of performance for the money I'd switch down from the i7 to a similar speed i5 and spend the gained €100 on more GPU (e.g. GTX770 instead of 760).
- 850W is overkill if you aren't going for SLi. I'd recommend a good gold rated 550W Seasonic PSU for your build (should save some cash there too)
- You'll kick yourself for buying a tiny 60GB SSD given how cheap bigger SSDs are. I really suggest you consider a 256 or 512GB SSD instead of the double combo. For instance a 512GB Crucial MX100 is pretty good price and you really will benefit from having one in the medium term. [Personally I will never buy another HDD again, pure SSD only]

 

[Sele1981]

Thanks for the recommendation. I altered my list with your insight to make a system I'm happy with at a price I could live with, too. I could probably come down on the graphics card a bit, but I'm not really sure. I'm happy with the specs on the current card I have listed.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Vzs7sY

@Willfred_1 going to a full size motherboard and case did not help pricing, and looking at the case I've picked for a Micro ATX desktop, I don't think cooling should be much of an issue. I'm not planning on overclocking the system so I would hope that would alleviate cooling concerns. How much will the 3.5ghz improve system performance over 3.2?

I would chose a R9 280 or even an 280x over an 270x. I have an Asus R9 280x TopII and that card is a beast for an damn good mid range price (not sure how it performs with project cars). If you can wait a bit, maybe get the new R9 3xx series or the new Nvidia 8xx series both with DX12 support.

The rest looks good. Maybe you´ll pay a bit extra and get an Xeon 1231V3. It has the performance of an I7 but is not overclockable.

About the case, here in Germany the Fractal Design cases are pretty liked. Good airflow, good price and top quality. The Fractal Design define R4 is a damn good one for an top price.

 

[Simfan David]

I would chose a R9 280 or even an 280x over an 270x. I have an Asus R9 280x TopII and that card is a beast for an damn good mid range price (not sure how it performs with project cars). If you can wait a bit, maybe get the new R9 3xx series or the new Nvidia 8xx series both with DX12 support.

The rest looks good. Maybe you´ll pay a bit extra and get an Xeon 1231V3. It has the performance of an I7 but is not overclockable.

About the case, here the Fractal Design cases are pretty liked. Good airflow, good price and top quality. The Fractal Design define R4 is a damn good one for an top price.

Yes I can wait. I'm building this manly for p.cars but of course will be using it for other sims. I will research the nvidia 800 series. I just figured Since people have been running this on the 680, the 760 would definitely not have a problem. but like you said the 800 series will support Dx12 but I'm not sure how this will be better. I haven't been following tech for about 2 years because of work and just now getting back into Sim racing again. I guess the ultimate goal is to build a system that can not only run this game But be good to go for future games without completely breaking the bank Thanks for your input and will definitely research a little more.

 

[Willfred_1]

My gpu (2gb) runs at about 40 fps but that's a 270'if I remember correctly

 

[Snaeper]

I would chose a R9 280 or even an 280x over an 270x. I have an Asus R9 280x TopII and that card is a beast for an damn good mid range price (not sure how it performs with project cars). If you can wait a bit, maybe get the new R9 3xx series or the new Nvidia 8xx series both with DX12 support.

The rest looks good. Maybe you´ll pay a bit extra and get an Xeon 1231V3. It has the performance of an I7 but is not overclockable.

About the case, here in Germany the Fractal Design cases are pretty liked. Good airflow, good price and top quality. The Fractal Design define R4 is a damn good one for an top price.

I appreciate the reply, but I've moved away from that build awhile ago.

This is the current set up I think I'll be running
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/QVJ4ZL
I was told by a friend that a 256gb SSD would eventually run out of room, so I went with a mixed storage set up with plans to use the SSD for the OS and maybe a game or two.

I feel like the PSU is way over kill though, as the estimated wattage is around the low 200's.

 

[HBR-Roadhog]

I was told by a friend that a 256gb SSD would eventually run out of room

All Disks eventually run out of room, the bigger ones just hold more stuff. It all comes down to what you want to store on them.

Once upon a time I thought a 500meg HDD was huge, now I have about 10TB of data on my systems and several more TBs on various, external HDDs, DVDs and CDs.

The biggest problem with the larger disks is doing a backup and what you loose if you don't

I feel like the PSU is way over kill though, as the estimated wattage is around the low 200's.

Estimated wattage of what is in the low 200s?

200 watts is not enough to power most decent video cards that have came out in the last 10 years. I have fried a couple of 350 watt units with Video cards that would be considered extremely slow by todays standards

 

[Sele1981]

I appreciate the reply, but I've moved away from that build awhile ago.

This is the current set up I think I'll be running
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/QVJ4ZL
I was told by a friend that a 256gb SSD would eventually run out of room, so I went with a mixed storage set up with plans to use the SSD for the OS and maybe a game or two.

I feel like the PSU is way over kill though, as the estimated wattage is around the low 200's.

Hmm not sure about the 750GTX. And, at least here in Germany, you can get Windows cheaper on ebay. A Win 8.1 license key (without DVD) costs about 42€ in ebay.

 

[A1-242]

Don't skimp on the power supply as it is one of the most important parts of the build.

 

[Snaeper]

Alright, I think I've finally got my build finalized. I discovered that my current desktop is hiding 8GB of DDR3-2000 RAM, so I'll be re-using that in the build and re-investing the money saved into a better GPU.

This build fits right in with my budget, has all the quality parts I could ask for, and will be in what I think is going to be one of the best cases you can buy for the money.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vtBkHx

 

[Saidur_Ali]

This was something I was curious about, perhaps I'll wait even until Windows 9 comes out before making a decision to see how that software performs. I had originally selected 8.1 for that reason, because I didn't want to get caught out using an older (if better) OS.

And about that ram, the motherboard doesn't mention 1866, won't that downgrade the performance of the memory to essentially 1600?

Lastly, If the system does end up being a little over the top in certain areas, I'm okay with that. I will most likely use this for other purposes and games, and I'd ideally like to future proof it a bit so that my equipment is still capable a year or so from now. I don't want to get into the habit of buying new PC parts all every year. My wallet would hate me more than it already does.

EDIT: Alright, I think I'm happy with this system:
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/FFKmNG
I could sleep well if I upgraded the CPU, but with your input, I feel like the 4570 would be a safe bet moving forward. I went with a nicer motherboard to fully take advantage of the RAM you suggested and am happy with just about everything. Could maybe pick up an Internal Hard Drive if memory becomes an issue.

Also, that PSU is way overkill for the estimated wattage this system will need, but could certainly future proof it in the event I add more pieces to the pie.

I think PSU I recommended is much better than Corsair one and I've seen link to your new build but if you want Corsair to match your case then might be worth extra $5 for 750w one to future proof yourself more.

Also there is no need for more expensive motherboard really unless you plan on getting a K series CPU to overclock or SLI or some of the extra features the motherboard has (Something like this might do if you want to save a bit more (Link). Also stock CPU cooler should be sufficient if you want to save more. Hard drive maybe worth spending a bit less on the Hitatchi if you want a small saving or spend a bit more to get the 2TB hard drive. Personally I think it is worth paying a bit more to get a Blu-ray rewriter. Finally main point graphics card, it is much better to spend less on something like this: Link and get a big framerate improvement. I personally would spend a bit more and get the following one due to much better cooling and warranty: Link, there are other ones too with good cooling and free games but think Gigabyte is best one as it has the most highest clock stock and got three year warranty. Asus is second one I would get as it also has 3 year warranty.

 

[Sele1981]

Alright, I think I've finally got my build finalized. I discovered that my current desktop is hiding 8GB of DDR3-2000 RAM, so I'll be re-using that in the build and re-investing the money saved into a better GPU.

This build fits right in with my budget, has all the quality parts I could ask for, and will be in what I think is going to be one of the best cases you can buy for the money.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vtBkHx

Looks good! Maybe you pay 30-40 bucks more and get an R9 280 or even for 70-80 more an 280x

 

[Saidur_Ali]

Looks good! Maybe you pay 30-40 bucks more and get an R9 280 or even for 70-80 more an 280x

Like I mentioned in my previous post, the R9 280 is actually cheaper than the R9 270X selected by Snaeper so you get a big performance improvement while spending less money and also get an extra game.

 

[Snaeper]

@Saidur_Ali I selected the MOBO that I did because it will fully support the DDR3-2000 RAM I'll be using the build. I've seen very few MOBO's that list DDR3-2000 as supported, but that was one of them.

I've heard good things about the Barracuda and it seems popular and well-reviewed on top of that, so I'll keep that as my selection. 1TB is way more storage that I plan on using, but it'll be there just in case.

Lastly, I've never had the need to run a Blu Ray on my computer, so investing in a supported optical drive seems like a waste of money.

I was on the fence about going 280 vs. 270x, so I've updated it to the 280. On top of that, I bumped up the power supply to the 750W, and will be sticking with Corsair, since I've used their supply before and everyone keeps saying "Invest well in a Power supply!" So since I trust the brand, and see it featured in a lot of builds, I'm going to go with that.

 

[Sele1981]

@Saidur_Ali I selected the MOBO that I did because it will fully support the DDR3-2000 RAM I'll be using the build. I've seen very few MOBO's that list DDR3-2000 as supported, but that was one of them.

I've heard good things about the Barracuda and it seems popular and well-reviewed on top of that, so I'll keep that as my selection. 1TB is way more storage that I plan on using, but it'll be there just in case.

Lastly, I've never had the need to run a Blu Ray on my computer, so investing in a supported optical drive seems like a waste of money.

I was on the fence about going 280 vs. 270x, so I've updated it to the 280. On top of that, I bumped up the power supply to the 750W, and will be sticking with Corsair, since I've used their supply before and everyone keeps saying "Invest well in a Power supply!" So since I trust the brand, and see it featured in a lot of builds, I'm going to go with that.

750W is only needed if you use SLI/Crossfire. Most people recommended a 450W (BeQuiet! E9) power supply. The new E10 series from BeQuiet! will come in September if you are interested in BeQuiet!. I would go with 450-500W.

 

[Johnnypenso]

750W is only needed if you use SLI/Crossfire. Most people recommended a 450W (BeQuiet! E9) power supply. The new E10 series from BeQuiet! will come in September if you are interested in BeQuiet!. I would go with 450-500W.

Other than the additional cost, is there a downside to overinvesting in a power supply? Does a 750 churning out say 300 watts, run hotter (or colder or the same) than a 500 churning out 300 watts? Is there a substantial size difference?

 

[Snaeper]

750W is only needed if you use SLI/Crossfire. Most people recommended a 450W (BeQuiet! E9) power supply. The new E10 series from BeQuiet! will come in September if you are interested in BeQuiet!. I would go with 450-500W.

Well, I've actually made a bit of a discovery today in terms of that...

I was swapping out the GPU on my current computer since I was having issues with a few programs I was playing on, and I knew I had upgraded my power supply, but it was so long ago that I didn't know what I had.

Turns out there's an 850W power supply in my computer from Corsair and I didn't even know it!

I've updated the build again, since I'll be re-using that in a new build instead of buying a new PSU, this will allow me to pick up an SSD for me OS and primary games I'll be running on.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/KQ8pQ7

 

[Sele1981]

Other than the additional cost, is there a downside to overinvesting in a power supply? Does a 750 churning out say 300 watts, run hotter (or colder or the same) than a 500 churning out 300 watts? Is there a substantial size difference?

Puh I cant answer that one, I am not a pro. I hope somebody can answer that.

 

[Saidur_Ali]

Well, I've actually made a bit of a discovery today in terms of that...

I was swapping out the GPU on my current computer since I was having issues with a few programs I was playing on, and I knew I had upgraded my power supply, but it was so long ago that I didn't know what I had.

Turns out there's an 850W power supply in my computer from Corsair and I didn't even know it!

I've updated the build again, since I'll be re-using that in a new build instead of buying a new PSU, this will allow me to pick up an SSD for me OS and primary games I'll be running on.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/KQ8pQ7

Further changes I recommend are the CPU cooler to the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO and also maybe worth spending a bit extra on ssd with about 240GB / 256GB as 120GB might be quite low once everything you want is installed and also something with better customer reviews as reliability of SSD is I think worth the extra money over more higher chance of hassle of replacing drive and data loss.