TUTORIAL: Buying a Computer for StarCraft 2 for under $650

RAM and GPU doesn't meet the minimum, so a completely new system would be a better option.

 

Help!!

alright guys so i need ur help is that updated build going to be posted anytime soon? I've been playing the beta both phase 1&2 and 6 days before launch my computers hardrive fails .... ive been using a dell xps 1530 for a couple years now and finally when sc2 is about to come out it dies on me... I don't really have any knowledge on building computers but I just want to save as much money as possible and be able to assemble it easily... can anyone help me out and post a build for me or possibly a prebuilt desktop ? I'm switching to a desktop so it dosn't cost as much... i can't believe this crap would happen right before launch. I need help! im trying to keep it around $700

thanks guys

 

If the harddrive failed you could always just replace the hard drive...

 

Hi, also first post, but some 10 years PC hardware experience and a couple certifications. Want the bad news? Pretty much your entire system is holding you back. Check the recommended system requirements by Blizzard. You don't come even close. Sorry, mate.

First CPU and motherboard - they need to go. If you like AMD - a tripple core Rana Athlon 435 will do it, better yet a quad core Phenom 2. They are AM3 CPUs, so you'll need a decent mobo - AMD 785 chipset is good enough. Better chipsets are available already - like the 870. Creme de la creme - 890. If you are an Intel fan - it will be a bit more expensive. Long term proposition - I5 750 (great quad-core, nuts overclocker) But beware as there are two versions - i5 750 2.66 GHz and i5 750S 2.4 GHz. I'd pick the first one . Personally I would not go bellow i5 CPU's for a gaming PC. Motherboard - stay away from H55/H57 motherboards - they come with built-in graphics and limited SLI capabilities. Stick with P55 from a reputable manifacturer like Gigabyte, Asus, MSI, EVGA and you'll be fine.

Next Memory: Are you serious? 512 MB? It's obvious that you need to spend some money on a decent amount of ram - 4 GB DDR3 1600 is your best friend ( 2GB with Windows 7 and a game running - no thanks, I'll pass).

Video card: AGP is long gone, PCI Express has entered the building. Your starting point is nVidia GeForce GTS 250. Personally I would go for AMD/ATI Radeon 5770 1 GB (DX11, triple monitors supported, faster, more energy efficient than the nVidia).

Hard Drive: I'll leave this up to you, but the way things are going you'd want to invest in a quite a bit faster and larger SATA 2 hard drive. Personal preference - WD Black (no flaming WD vs Seagate pls, it'sjust my preference) 640GB, 1TB. Larger 2 TB hard drives are a bit slower and is ok, because they are intended to store large amounts of information, not act as system drives.

You'll need a new power supply as well to power these machines and a better CPU heatsink if you even consider overclocking. Using Antec's Power Supply Calculator the consumption does not exceed 400 Wats (I could swearit would be higher), but just to be on the safe side and give some upgrade headroom, go with a 650 W 80Plus certified power supply with enough amps on the 12 volt rail(s).

Cheers,

Darkblade

 

Hey, so I bought Starcraft 2 yesterday and to my dismay my computer didn't even play it on low settings, however I am able to play WoW with smooth frame rates....So now I'm forced into buying a new computer. It's pretty amazing when a game comes along and sells computers...and I know Starcraft 2 is doing exactly that. I see so many people asking about what they should buy.

I've read through a lot of forums and such but I just can't find any consistency, that is the one thing I absolutely hate about trying to research this kind of stuff.

So I decided I was going to choose my video card and ask you guys what I should buy to finish the rest of the computer...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130562

Maybe it is an option to just buy a ready-made PC and upgrade the video card with this? I don't know..

I really need some help, it will be greatly appreciated.

 

That works too but I usually find it more fun to build my own.

 

A little GPU performance comparisson in SC2

I found an article comparing the performance of Nvidia and ATI GPUs in SC2.
There's the link:

http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/foru...-starcraft-ii-gpu-performance-comparison.html

Tests were done on an overclocked i7-920, so bear that in mind. You would not want to bottleneck the video card with a slow CPU.

On a personal sidenote minimal acceptable framerate is 40 fps and I do like anti-aliasing. Therefore the cheapest video card I can get away with that meets those specs on a 28 inch 1920 x 1200 monitor is the GTX 460 1GB (even the768MB version meets them, but the few bucks price difference doesn't justify the hit on performance because of the limitations that it comes with - lower memory bandwidth, less memory, less ROPs, etc.) Full specs on the two video cards can be found here .

I guess ATI's drivers still have some AA glitches, and on top of that Nvidia has been working with Blizzard on the video support, so for the time being I will have to switch camps, although I admint I am a bit of an ATI fan.

Cheers,

Darkblade

P.S.
I admit I am not able to provide a set of components to build a PC that will meet the 650$ mark and provide smooth gameplay with max viseo settings on 1920x1200 and AA. The closest I was able to come is 730. So I'll just post a list of components that would go in a rig that will guarantee smooth gameplay:

Case: No recommendations - any decent middle or full tower case (note the width if you go for the recommended air cooler). I like the CM HAFs (HAF=High Air Flow).
PSU: OCZ ModXtreem Pro 700W (cheap and has what we need)
CPU: Intel I5-750 2.66GHz (we'll overclock this bad boy to 4GHz)
MB: MSI P55-GD65
Cooler: Scythe Mugen 2 (con - it's a huge piece, so make sure your case can accomodate it)
Memory: 4GB DDR3 1600 CL8 from Corsair, Gskill, Mushkin - they all go for around 100 bucks
HDD: 640 to 1 TB WD Caviar Black
DVD-RW: Liteon 24x
Video: GeForce GTX 460 1GB

 

I updated ALL the U.S. links (didn't do Canada, sorry) as of 8/2/2010. Prices seem to be going up a little bit as new technology comes on the market and older stuff stops being produced. If you're in no rush I'd wait a few months maybe into November or December to buy this stuff as the prices are going up again.

 

Nice work, Joneagle_X.

Two questions though.

Regarding the recommendations for the Intel motherboard and cpu - why do you recommend a dual core i5, which is actually more expensive than a real quad core?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115215

Second scratch on the head is caused by the fact that the Intel mobo is a ddr3 one, and the recommended memory is ddr2. Maybe you just didn't put a ddr3 recommendation in the post.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...54&cm_re=ddr3_1600_4gb-_-20-226-154-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...78&cm_re=ddr3_1600_4gb-_-20-231-278-_-Product

 

hey guys what about this comp? It's cheap, it's just a tower and a keyboard. With windows 7.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883114084

hmm am i missing something?

 

@ dark,

Both of the things you pointed out are actually mistakes. Product of my researching on the road and at 4 am. If you don't mind I changed my i5 link to yours as that's a good deal and is still compatible with the motherboard I chose.

As for the RAM I think the DDR3 is too expensive at the moment. I actually recommended a DDR3 link last time but now it's over $100 for 4 GB. That's a little much in my opinion. So I'd stick with the DDR2 for now (minor speed difference) and upgrade later.

@ Dan,

That build has integrated graphics, won't run SC2. It also has a RIDICULOUSLY old Dual Core processor (it's not even a Core 2 Duo). Don't buy that it's basically a netbook in desktop form.

 

Actually, I think the reason he was asking is because the memory controller on the i5-660/i5-750 is DDR3 only. Unfortunately, DDR2 won't work with the Intel motherboard in your post.

Link on the first post is still for the i5-660. Highly suggest changing it for the i5-750 or i5-760.



I'm a bit surprised at how bandwidth sensitive StarCraft II seems to be.

 

Gah, link didn't update.

And unless I'm mistaken DDR2 will work with a DDR3 motherboard so long as the pin alignments are the same (240 pin, etc.) Any literature to explain why I'm wrong?

I'll update it to a DDR3 link to be safe.

 

No, they're not compatible. The location of the notch on DDR3 is actually different from DDR2 to prevent you from installing DDR3 RAM on a DDR2 motherboard.

http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q...MRkKH0&sig=AHIEtbTf5j-DmBPdvmwgRNSIv64R_dzjDw

You could always read the JEDEC specifications for further clarification. Incredibly boring, though.

 

Aight, well I changed the memory link anyway. Good to know. I gotta do more reading on the Quad Cores because I've only built like 3 systems with them and I know almost nothing other than voltages and now I gotta start OC'ing the things.

 

If I have componints from other computors laying around the house can I use them in this build?
Like the ram, disk drive and hard drive? I am a total newb to building my own compy but am stoked to do so for st2 but want to save as much as posible.

 

You can definitely use your CD drive and Hard Drive (if it's SATA). The RAM likely not since as we were just discussing compatibility is an issue.

 

Thank you, also is the 512 mb nvida gforce vid card compatible with the motherboard you segested? The graphics card you listed is out of stock. Thank you for this tread I was using Tiger derects build but they havnt answard any of my emials.

 

I don't have the time to build one haha...

ok ok...

How about this ONE?!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229181


I've heard mixed reviews on the this geforce card...

 

That graphics card is fine but you're paying $700. Should be getting at least a GTS 250 for that price...