Project CARS - Hardware recommendation on PC

[Johnnypenso]

Hey everyone,

I got a question about performance but from the other end of the spectrum: I just have a convertible laptop with a modest i5 processor and Intel's trusty integrated graphics (HD 4400 I think). Now I know what you're thinking but the thing is recently I've been trying out more modern games on it and I'm honestly surprised how well it handles. For example I bought Grid Autosport last month and at 1080p, ultra low settings I get buttery smooth framerates 80-90% of the time! (and compared to PS3 games on a big TV it still looks pretty darn great if you ask me.)

So I'm wondering now if my baby would be up to handling the holy grail - I planned to get a PS4 sometime in the future but I'd quite like to jump straight in on PC if I knew it could run respectably (on the lowest of settings at the lowest of resolutions if need be, I don't care how crap it looks!).

I'm guessing no one here has such simple hardware so what I wanna ask is, for people who own both Grid Autosport and pCars, how does your performance compare between the two on similar settings? It really is the only good reference point I can use. Does pCars have a lot of graphics and resolution options at the lower end too?

Thanks!

Sorry, but that's a no go. The reason you can run GridAS is because you are slightly ahead of the minimum requirements:

Now look at PCars:

The benchmark of your 4400 is 538.
The benchmark of the minimum recommended HD5770 is 1682, triple the performance of the 4400, and that's the minimum.

 

[TRGTspecialist]

Darn, ah well. Yeah only just realised now it's a silly game comparison even if Grid AS is a 2014 game, being made for current gen consoles and all. PS4 it is!

Thanks anyway

 

[hotak]

Hey everyone,

I got a question about performance but from the other end of the spectrum: I just have a convertible laptop with a modest i5 processor and Intel's trusty integrated graphics (HD 4400 I think). Now I know what you're thinking but the thing is recently I've been trying out more modern games on it and I'm honestly surprised how well it handles. For example I bought Grid Autosport last month and at 1080p, ultra low settings I get buttery smooth framerates 80-90% of the time! (and compared to PS3 games on a big TV it still looks pretty darn great if you ask me.)

So I'm wondering now if my baby would be up to handling the holy grail - I planned to get a PS4 sometime in the future but I'd quite like to jump straight in on PC if I knew it could run respectably (on the lowest of settings at the lowest of resolutions if need be, I don't care how crap it looks!).

I'm guessing no one here has such simple hardware so what I wanna ask is, for people who own both Grid Autosport and pCars, how does your performance compare between the two on similar settings? It really is the only good reference point I can use. Does pCars have a lot of graphics and resolution options at the lower end too?

Thanks!

Grid uses a very old graphics engine (i think the same from their 1st dirt game) so it can run on almost every PC. I think pCars won't ever run on an integrated graphics card, for sure i doesn't on the one of my i5 2500k: i tried on that both pCars and Assetto Corsa when my GPU broke last year and both were 100% unplayable

 

[cmbeal317]

Since Project CARS doesn't support the G27 on PS4, I was wondering if my laptop would be powerful enough to run it on decent settings. I know I won't get anywhere near maxing the settings out.

Dell Inspiron 15R SE
i7-3612QM 2.1GHz(3.1 w/ Turbo Boost)
Radeon HD7730M
8GB ram

I run Assetto Corsa with high settings, 2x AA, no post processing; and get anywhere between 45-60fps with official cars & tracks. I could run PP, and consequently get around 30fps; but I prefer a slightly smoother experience.

I'm also looking at building a dedicated gaming pc in the near future, as I really doubt I'll be buying a PS4 anytime soon.

 

[DG_Silva]

Yes, you'll get quite a decent performance out of that laptop, roughly the same as AC.

 

[cmbeal317]

Yes, you'll get quite a decent performance out of that laptop, roughly the same as AC.

Awesome! I'm definitely gonna preorder now!

 

[Cyber_stig_77]

FIXED

my point on the 970-980 is thet they're mid-end chips, so probably when next nvidia GPUs come out they'll have more than double the performance of the 900 series, expecially if they finally decide to leave 32nm. So while the 970 is a best buy if you need to buy a GPU now, if you don't really have to i'd say it's better to wait and see

Pretty sure the gtx 980 is the most powerful gpu available, how is this mid end.
If you take the stance of waiting for the next series of GPU's to come out you will wait for ever, there is always going to be another one coming out the 9 series GPU's fit your reasoning anyway. Eg they are the next generation ( previous was 7 ) they have about double the performance of the previous gen GPU's so I don't understand your comment.

 

[Johnnypenso]

Pretty sure the gtx 980 is the most powerful gpu available, how is this mid end.
If you take the stance of waiting for the next series of GPU's to come out you will wait for ever, there is always going to be another one coming out the 9 series GPU's fit your reasoning anyway. Eg they are the next generation ( previous was 7 ) they have about double the performance of the previous gen GPU's so I don't understand your comment.

My thoughts exactly. The way I look at it is, if you're going with new parts, you have to spend $800-$1000 if you want something that's going to last for a couple of years and be flexible and upgradeable. Adding an extra $200 to your build for the GTX970 vs. a GTX660 for example, and pretty much doubling your framerates/eyecandy seems a no brainer to me. If one can't afford the extra $150 that's an understandable limitation.

 

[ron24]

My thoughts exactly. The way I look at it is, if you're going with new parts, you have to spend $800-$1000 if you want something that's going to last for a couple of years and be flexible and upgradeable. Adding an extra $200 to your build for the GTX970 vs. a GTX660 for example, and pretty much doubling your framerates/eyecandy seems a no brainer to me. If one can't afford the extra $150 that's an understandable limitation.

THATS WHAT I DID. heres my new pc build for project cars. tired of waiting on ps4 support.

: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.40 GHz, ASUS MAXIMUS VII HERO Z97 ATX , Corsair 16GB DDR3 2133 MHz , Intel ssd 180GB ,EVGA SuperNOVA 850G2 750W psu, Corsair Hydro Series Cooling H75 Corsair Carbide Series Black 500R Mid Tower case with high flo Corsair fan's

 

[mister dog]

Any of you whizzkids could tell me how the Alienware Alpha would fare for PCARS?:

There's also 8GB versions and an I5 and I7 one but they are way more expensive.

 

[Myles Prower]

i5 and 7 models would be goodish

 

[mister dog]

i5 and 7 models would be goodish

The I3 can't handle it? Please illiterate a bit. The GPU can't be replaced neither so i wonder if it would be future proof.
In any case it's supposed to be as powerful or more then the next gen consoles + you have hardware compatibility (wheels), and it is based around steam 👍

 

[NLxAROSA]

The i3 doesn't meet the minimum requirements because it's only dual core. I also read that the GPU is a Geforce 860M (notebook chipset), which is really not all that great. So if you go for the i5, which is 800 dollars, I think there are better alternatives, like building your own.

 

[mister dog]

The i3 doesn't meet the minimum requirements because it's only dual core. I also read that the GPU is a Geforce 860M (notebook chipset), which is really not all that great. So if you go for the i5, which is 800 dollars, I think there are better alternatives, like building your own.

Darn i have a bit of 'drempelvrees' to build one myself, so i'm looking for a pre build gaming pc that can handle next gen games and doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

 

[NLxAROSA]

Well, if you specify a budget you have in mind, a few of us could take a look for you.

 

[mister dog]

Well, if you specify a budget you have in mind, a few of us could take a look for you.

600 bucks and i have patience so i could wait a year or so before buying one (counting on pricedrops)

 

[Saidur_Ali]

600 bucks and i have patience so i could wait a year or so before buying one (counting on pricedrops)

Wait for Intel Broadwell / Skylake and 16nm/20nm Nvidia Maxwell GPUs to come out. Hopefully should be coming out this year so if you want to get an Alienware Alpha, it should receive a huge performance boost then.

 

[NLxAROSA]

600 bucks and i have patience so i could wait a year or so before buying one (counting on pricedrops)

Looking at your location, just to be sure: 600 USD or EUR?

EDIT: I made a little shopping list that will top out at around 700 EUR. This will give you a PC that will run pCARS decently and is still upgradable in the future. You could go a bit cheaper still, but will sacrifice upgradability (which I would recommend against).

 

[mister dog]

Thanks @NLxAROSA i appreciate the effort and will keep this for later

 

[Snaeper]

GTX 970 ordered and on the way. CPU is last on the menu.

Don't I know how to tease myself? All these parts sitting around begging to be put together, when in reality they're a bunch of plastic and metal without the brain.

 

[Amauri]

Hi,

I would like to buy a Zotac ZBOX EN760, which has I5-4200U and NVidia GTX860M with 2GB GDDR5 and I intend to put 16GB of RAM memory. See the link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KX8OX2K/?tag=gtplanet-20

Do you think it will run Project Cars smoothly? At least with 30fps in 1080p? I have doubt about the clock frequency of i5-4200U which is less than 3GHz,is it enough?

Thanks

 

[Soulfresh_ACV]

Hi,

I would like to buy a Zotac ZBOX EN760, which has I5-4200U and NVidia GTX860M with 2GB GDDR5 and I intend to put 16GB of RAM memory. See the link: http://www.amazon.com/Zotac-ZBOX-EN760-U-Intel-Barebone-System/dp/B00KX8OX2K/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1422202481&sr=1-1&keywords=zotac en760&pebp=1422202505023&peasin=B00KX8OX2K

Do you think it will run Project Cars smoothly? At least with 30fps in 1080p? I have doubt about the clock frequency of i5-4200U which is less than 3GHz,is it enough?

Thanks

Not an expert on hardware but with my limited knowledge, you're better off avoiding this completely. WIth that price where it doesn't include memory, hard disk, you can probably build something much better. And the more knowledgable guys here can recommend. With such a price, I'd personally go for those Alienware Alphas above.

 

[NLxAROSA]

Specs are roughly the same as the Alienware Alphas, so no, you won't be able to run pCARS at a decent frame rate at 1080p on it. It's also dual core (though multithreaded, so it just might run, but don't ask how well ).

 

[Saidur_Ali]

Hi,

I would like to buy a Zotac ZBOX EN760, which has I5-4200U and NVidia GTX860M with 2GB GDDR5 and I intend to put 16GB of RAM memory. See the link: http://www.amazon.com/Zotac-ZBOX-EN760-U-Intel-Barebone-System/dp/B00KX8OX2K/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1422202481&sr=1-1&keywords=zotac en760&pebp=1422202505023&peasin=B00KX8OX2K

Do you think it will run Project Cars smoothly? At least with 30fps in 1080p? I have doubt about the clock frequency of i5-4200U which is less than 3GHz,is it enough?

Thanks

Why not get the Alienware Alpha, much better value and comes with HDD, RAM, OS and faster CPU and also might have Xbox 360 Wireless Controller: Link

Might be able to play pCARS at 1080p 60FPS with one.

 

[Amauri]

Maybe a Alienware but I would like a small form factor and without HDD. Do you think if I mount my own small PC, buying the motherboard, CPU.... I could get a good pc for pcars with good price? Do you have any spec for this PC? Mainly the processor and video card...

Thanks

 

[NLxAROSA]

Might be able to play pCARS at 1080p 60FPS with one.

It comes with a dual core i3 (pCARS requires a quad core) and a crappy mobile GPU, so no, it won't do that. Unless you spend more bucks on the i5 version, but it will still have the crappy, non-upgradeable GPU, so you're better off with a custom/own buiild. As already pointed out multiple times on this very same page...

Maybe a Alienware but I would like a small form factor and without HDD. Do you think if I mount my own small PC, buying the motherboard, CPU.... I could get a good pc for pcars with good price? Do you have any spec for this PC? Mainly the processor and video card...

Thanks

Check the rest of this topic, there are several good recommendations at various price levels.

 

[Amauri]

Hi,

I just choose these parts on Newegg website for a small pc. I would like to use day by day tasks and play pcars with good quality. I intend to connect my 40 inch Led TV on it and play with 1080p . What do you think of my configuration? Is it a good deal? The total price is $773.00

 

[FuriousDemon]

It's pretty good. I'd try to get gtx960 though. I think it's at around $200, so would only cost you $50 more, but would be really good value added.

 

[NLxAROSA]

The 960GTX would be great, but would probably not fit that case I think.

EDIT: Just checked, it fits dual slot GPU's, so would fit. 👍

 

[Johnnypenso]

Hi,

I just choose these parts on Newegg website for a small pc. I would like to use day by day tasks and play pcars with good quality. I intend to connect my 40 inch Led TV on it and play with 1080p . What do you think of my configuration? Is it a good deal? The total price is $773.00

View attachment 297988

I second @FuriousDemon 's recommendation of the GTX960. It benchmarks about 75% higher than the 750Ti which is a massive leap in performance for $50-75. That's 75% more performance from your system without changing anything else and likely without any temperature increase as the 900 series cards run cool. Tough to beat. I'd also recommend the i5 4690 which is 3.5GHz vs. 3.0GHz for the 4590s for just over $10 more.