Hey, can someone help me

[AdamB]

Hey guys, i got my computer 9 months ago but made the classic mistake of going cheap and not getting the best components i could for my money. anyway, i decided that i need to get some decent harware to boulster my system so i can play games like Arma 2 and Arma 3 in the future aswell as IL-2 ClOD and the Crysis Series. Please can those who have expertise in this area help me out, but i dont want this turning into a discussion about how ATI and AMD arent as good as Nvidia or intel, because I would just like you to offer your advice on the questions below, lets not start a competiton


Here are my current system specs:
AMD phenom II X2 560 BE
Asus M4N68T LE-V2 motherboard
Palit GTS 450 (the store i broght it from said it wasnt a palit so i got screwed)
400w Xigmatek PSU
Xigmatek Asgard Tower gaming Case
4GB cas 9-9-9-24 (2x2GB) 1600Mhz RAM (Dual Channel)
12X DVD drive
500GB Hard Drive 3Gb/s (S-ATA II - i think)

1. Could someone recommend a good site (uk only) to buy PC components for the lowest, other than Scan.co.uk - this is the cheapest site i know at the moment and where i could be buying my components from

2. Should I buy an i7 with Z68 or P67 motherboard with my current hard drive, as the Z68 doesnt have the problem that the P67 mobo had with S-ATA II devices connected to its SATA ports

3. to make things more confusing I found a bundle deal to buy an AMD phenom II x6 1090T @ 3.2Ghz and an Asus, Point of View, Charged, Nvidia GTX 560 2GB (not the Ti version), is this better than upgrading to an i7 (with mobo) for the games stated above

4. Is the Asus, Point of View, Charged, Nvidia GTX 560 2GB better than a standard GTX 560 1GB

Thanks for any help.

AdamB

[JG52Krupi]

1. http://www.overclockers.co.uk/ is a good site and good deals but there might be better offers elsewhere.

2. I7 2600K or I5 2500K both good cpus.

3. Not sure i always buy Intel so a bit biased http://www.overclockers.co.uk/produc...=43&catid=2053 check these bundles out.

4. Clod uses a lot of Vram so personally I would go for the 2GB or if you can afford it the 580 3GB version, I own a ATI but get the impresion that nivdia will run this game better than ATI like it was in 1946.

Hope that helps.

[bongodriver]

www.novatech.co.uk

[Ataros]

Please read performance reports for listed hardware in this section http://forum.1cpublishing.eu/forumdisplay.php?f=191

CloD needs a 4 core CPU @3.5+ (I think Intel ones are faster now).
AND
A high-end video card to run maxed out (like GTX580 or at least HD6970-2GB). ArmA-3 will also need it next summer.

It's up to you to decide what to upgrade first. I decided to start with CPU. Will get a videocard in 6-9 months when the nextgen cards are out.

[AdamB]

Thanks guys for coming back so quick. You were all very helpful. I really wasn't expecting any yet 3 replies in 15 mins so thanks for that. I was inclined to go for the i7 and mobo first by I thought that buying a cheap Amd six core would help tun games like Arma better and I could keep my original mobo and psu. But hey I do think getting an i7 is the way to go as far as gaming is concerned. Thanks.

AdamB

[Ze-Jamz]

Originally Posted by AdamB

Thanks guys for coming back so quick. You were all very helpful. I really wasn't expecting any yet 3 replies in 15 mins so thanks for that. I was inclined to go for the i7 and mobo first by I thought that buying a cheap Amd six core would help tun games like Arma better and I could keep my original mobo and psu. But hey I do think getting an i7 is the way to go as far as gaming is concerned. Thanks.

AdamB

Mate dont write off the AMD!, its an awesome CPU and has tons of room to O/C too..

I have the normal 1055t 2.8ghz and is overclocked to 3.5ghz with stock Cooling! and has been stable for around 6 months lol

If you go for the AMD black edition its even better at handling OC'n

Id save your money and get a decent GPU, keep yer MOBO and PSU..a 6-core AMD will run ARMA as good as you want it..

Just so you know my spec is in my Sig and i play this game with everything maxed out apart from building detail which is at MED and thats at 1920x1200 res

[AdamB]

Originally Posted by Ze-Jamz

Mate dont write off the AMD!, its an awesome CPU and has tons of room to O/C too..

I have the normal 1055t 2.8ghz and is overclocked to 3.5ghz with stock Cooling! and has been stable for around 6 months lol

If you go for the AMD black edition its even better at handling OC'n

Id save your money and get a decent GPU, keep yer MOBO and PSU..a 6-core AMD will run ARMA as good as you want it..

Just so you know my spec is in my Sig and i play this game with everything maxed out apart from building detail which is at MED and thats at 1920x1200 res

I can see where your coming from, but I'm planning a computer to use in the future and intels hyperthreading allows me to do that. Also I can run IL-2 at max settings on a 1240x720 which is still HD and I get decent Fps. What I was asking is if was better to buy an AMD 6 core and gfx card or buy and i7 sandybridge and mobo (at an extra cost. About £360 where as an AMD 1090T BE + Asus point of view charged GTX 560 2gb will cost £300). Damn you for giving me the same problem as before It s so difficult to decide.

P.S. I'm very envious of your Track IR 5 been wanting to get but I've had to start saving money for this upgrade. upgrade

[NedLynch]

http://www.overclock3d.netJust to put things in perspective.
Look for their video channel and find the video on how to build a gaming rig for under 600 pounds (sorry american keyboard, no pound key). Just enter "how to" in the search box and it should be the third video from the top.
It may not be what you want to build, but it calms the nerves a lot regarding having the hottest hardware on the market and how to make choices, you can do great things without the highest priced components.
With all the new stuff coming out in a little while and for pcs in general it is very easy to get caught in the rat race for the latest and greatest hardware.
I know that is not an answer to your question, however my point is you can buy whatever you want right now and you look a month later on an internet retailer's site and say to yourself, man, I should have waited another month or two and that will go on and on.
As for AMD, the bulldozer/FX processor is coming out and new AM3+ MBs are available and even now that these MBs have just been released, I read on another sites techsection they will be obsolete pretty soon as well, since a new socket is due to come out for the bulldozer.
Whatever you do you will feel as if you missed out on something.
So if you feel like an i7 or i5 go for it and do not worry about the rest, if you feel like a new gpu is in order go for it and there is always a little later to upgrade other things.
It seems to me when you have your own build it always remains a work in progress, so see what's in the budget, go for it and there is always later for the other stuff .

[Troll2k]

The original p67 boards had an SATA problem.They were recalled.The new p67 boards(revision b3.It should say it on the box)are out now and do not have the problem.

The Z68 boards have built in video and also are able to use an SSD to cache an SATA drive.

[AdamB]

Originally Posted by Troll2k

The original p67 boards had an SATA problem.They were recalled.The new p67 boards(revision b3.It should say it on the box)are out now and do not have the problem.

The Z68 boards have built in video and also are able to use an SSD to cache an SATA drive.

Ah ok, thanks for clearing that up for me. I would be spending an extra £20 on a Z68 mobo, if i brought one over a P67.

Thanks again

AdamB