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[DwarfItUp]

EL1360-UW12P Small Form Factor Desktop PC with AMD Fusion Dual-Core E-300 Processor, 2GB Memory, 500GB Hard Drive and Windows 7 . That, my good sirs is a computer set I'm purchasing to run games like Smite, GW2, Skyrim, and most importantly: Dwarf Fortress. Did I make a good choice by making these specifications? And if not, any ideas? I'm not demanding specifics, but just give me your opinion.

[Tellemurius]

EL1360-UW12P Small Form Factor Desktop PC with AMD Fusion Dual-Core E-300 Processor, 2GB Memory, 500GB Hard Drive and Windows 7 . That, my good sirs is a computer set I'm purchasing to run games like Smite, GW2, Skyrim, and most importantly: Dwarf Fortress. Did I make a good choice by making these specifications? And if not, any ideas? I'm not demanding specifics, but just give me your opinion.

that processor couldnt run any of those games.

[HavingPhun]

It doesn't look like you want some all out $2000 gaming pc, but are you building it yourself? I guess this is what I would say.

- If you can upgrade the memory to at least 4gb because 2gb can and will run out quick with games and multitasking.
- What gpu does it have. Or is that an apu or something? I don't understand those.
- I looked up the processor and I agree with Tellemurius.
- If you can get the Intel i5 2570k/3570k idk which one I have so don't take my word on the processor.

Some other bay12'ers should reply soon so take their advice one the processor.

[Tellemurius]

2500k is only 15 bucks cheaper than the 3570k. The 3570k only improvements are 1600mhz memory clock and PCI-E 3.0

[the_donut]

What are you criteria?

Form factor, Cost, Noise, Color, Ability to Upgrade, etc...
The core of any gaming machine is; Case, PSU, CPU, Memory, HDD/SSD, Media Readers (dvd/cd/b-ray + multi-card readers) GPU + peripherals like mice/keyboard/monitors/headphones/speakers.

For building yourself:
Latest $500 budget gaming machine guide from Tom's Hardware.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-pc-overclocking-pc-building,3273.html
If you are using a smaller form factor than mATX you may need a low profile heatsink for both your cpu and your gpu.

Prebuilt with Modification:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=7377493&CatId=2627
Plus a graphics card. ~$450

A great site for testing gaming requirements
http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/cyri

[foil]

Yes that system is only really suited for office work, not anything with modern graphics.

It will run DF fine but anything with 3d gfx will be turd.

The cpu is graded as a laptop cpu too only running at 1.3ghz.  Almost any desktop pc these days are running 3ghz+ and with 4GB ram or more.


these small form factor pc are slow powered AND more expensive because they use shrunk and laptop parts.

[Nadaka]

First: decide if you want a discreet graphics card right away, or if you might consider waiting till later to keep your current build cheap.

I will assume you want to keep your current build cheap. Look at the AMD A series processors, they include a decent on chip graphics package at an affordable price.

Badass! $120: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819113280

Decent! $75: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819113282

Next, pick out a motherboard that works. Socket FM2 for the above processors. The decision for motherboard really makes a difference in the long run. Ignore everything that does not have at least one PCIE 2.0 x16 or better slot. This means you can upgrade your shit with better GPU if you decide you want to stomp some pixels.

Form factor will affect things. If you are going for affordability, just stick with the nearly universal ATX.

A cheap board meeting the above qualifications might cost around $50 in either ATX or micro-ATX. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130661

Do you want more than 2 memory slots? that will cost around $85 in an ATX or micro-ATX. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157334

A mini ITX will be closer to $90. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157340

Add some ram, DDR3 is cheap as hell, 8 gigs for less than $35, lots of choices from value and performance. This is only one of many to choose from: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148543

Note: verify that your memory is on the tested compatibility list for your motherboard! This will save you some headaches.

Now you have the core of a computer. select a case/power supply, make sure it will fit your motherboard, make sure it has at least 1 6/8 pin GPU rail and 500 watts (this is future proofing for an eventual GPU upgrade), make sure it has power connectors for whatever type of drives you are using, be they PATA or SATA.

This will cost you somewhere between $30 and $100 depending on how fancy you want your stuff.


By now, you probably spent around $200-300.

Hard drive? doesn't matter much for a budget build, 500gigs is a-ok.

Optical drive? those are also cheap or can be scavanged.

Windows 7? better than windows 8.

By now you probably spent around $400-500.

This gives you a decent mid range PC good enough for even modern games (at low/medium detail settings)

Adding a graphics card capable of pushing medium/high detail settings for foreseeable future games) is a modest proposal that might set you back another $100-$200.

[Zyxl]

Important: What screen resolution? Good to know for how powerful a video card you need. For example, the AMD A10 can run Skyrim at 720p on medium settings at 30+ FPS all by itself without a dedicated card. In fact, I play ARMAII and SR3 on my A8.

If you're going to get a dedicated card, I'd recommend getting an Intel processor. The Crossfire with the AMD A-series integrated works fantastically... when it does. Otherwise you're stuck with an unused overkill integrated graphics when you could have a better processor. Sweet spot for Video cards usually floats around 150$ +/- 50$, so another 50$ or so on a better processor isn't much.

[Ashelus]

Tom's $500 rig - http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-pc-overclocking-pc-building,3273.html

[DwarfItUp]

and now I know. Thank you everyone I appreciate the answers. Now that I've atleast looked into processors and GPU's a bit more I know the stupidity in my question lol and I guess it's time to go to the local best-buy and place a few orders.

[nenjin]

Ugh. No. Do not buy/order through Best Buy. If you're going to order parts, do it through Newegg.com yourself. There is no reason to give those fools any of your business.

Also, get more than 2 gigs of ram. Running Win 7, your system is probably starving for memory.