0-20k Need Urgent Advice for Home PC with Mild Gaming

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DD2020

Beginner
  1. Hi all,
I am without a PC now as my motherboard has finally stopped working, the techs have failed to repair, so I am trying to move on:)


  1. What is your budget?
    • 10K to 25K
  2. What is your existing hardware configuration (component name - component brand and model)
    • CPU – AMD Athlon 4200+
    • Motherboard - Asus M2AVM
    • RAM - Transcend 1gb DDR2
    • HDD – Seagate Barracuda 120gb
    • Monitor – Viewsonic 20”
    • SMPS – Zebronics 400W, what comes with dabba:)
    • Speakers – Altec Lansing 2.1
    • Cabinet – Zebronics Bijli
  3. Which hardware will you be keeping (component name - component brand and model)
    • HDD – Seagate Barracuda 120gb
    • Monitor – Viewsonic 20”
    • SMPS – what comes with dabba
    • Speakers – Altec Lansing 2.1
    • Cabinet – Zebronics Bijli
  4. Which hardware component are you looking to buy (component name). If you have already decided on a configuration then please mention the (component brand and model) as well, this will help us in fine tuning your requirement.
    • CPU
    • Motherboard
    • RAM – 4GB
    • HDD – Seagate Barracuda 500gb
    • GPU (if needed, within 4K)
    • SMPS (if I add the GPU)
  5. Is this going to be your final configuration or you would be adding/upgrading a component in near future. If yes then please mention when and which component
    • No, I am looking for least possible things for my requirement, and use and throw later. My AMD 4200+, M2AVM MoBo and 1gb RAM was intended for 3 years and use and throw, but it lasted 6 years without a hitch before recently my MoBo gone bad.
  6. Where will you buy this hardware? (Online/City/TE Dealer)
    • Lamington Road, Mumbai
    • Open to online purchase
  7. Would you consider buying a second hand hardware from the TE market
    • Yes
  8. What is your intended use for this PC/hardware
    • Basically, typical budget home PC
    • Entry Level Gaming
    • Browsing
    • Desktop Processing
    • Watching HD movies
  9. Do you have any brand preference or dislike? Please name them and the reason for your preference/dislike.
  10. If you will be playing games then which type of games will you be playing?
    • No racing, FPS or 3D games, not even real time strategy
    • Turn Based Strategy - Civilization 5
    • Arcade – I keep downloading like Plants Vs. Zombies, Royal Envoy, Insaniquarium, Feeding frenzy, Pizza Frenzy. My 6 year old earlier setup was able to handle all these, except CIV5, but CIV4 it was running
  11. What is your preferred monitor resolution for gaming and normal usage
1650X1080
  1. Are you looking to overclock?
What is that?:)
  1. Which operating system do you intend to use with this configuration?
    • Windows 7 64 bit
I do not plan to buy what is not needed for a typical home pc. I surfed through the threads at TE and googled, I can see that something like this is the least config for me:

CPU: AMD 3.4 GHz FM2 A4-5300 @ 3k
Motherboard: MSI FM2-A55M-E33 @ 3.3k
RAM: Corsair Vengeance DDR3 4 GB (1 x 4 GB) @ 2k
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 500 GB HDD @ 3.2k

But this can be the max config for me:

CPU: Core i3 3220 @ 7.2k
Motherboard: Gigabyte B75M D3H @ 3.3k
RAM: Corsair Vengeance DDR3 4 GB (1 x 4 GB) @ 2k
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 500 GB HDD @ 3.2k
PSU: Corsair CX V2 430W @ 2.7k
GPU: Something within 3k-4k

You can suggest what to buy. However, it will be very helpful if you answer these queries also:

1) What about Pentium G620/G2120/G2010 compared to i3 3220 – how much do I lose? Why G2120 is not available now while G2010 seems weaker than it?
2) Is there an AMD rig where I can play CIV5 without using a graphics card?
3) Why they have discontinued all low priced graphics cards like HD5450?
4) Can you suggest some graphics cards between 3000/- and 4000/-?

Just curious, why intel still could not develop something with a good enuf IGP and why the AMD ones still consume so much power – will there never be a perfect choice for a budget pc with good IGP?
 
Hi & welcome to TE

Let me try to answer some of your querries first?

1] What is OC - Over Clocking ?
- It's pushing the capabilities & performance of a processor or GPU to higher levels. So if a processor comes with the "K" code, it means it can be overclocked. Say an 3.2 or 3.6GHz processor can be OC to 4.2 to 4.6GHz (using Air/Water cooling) and above 5.6GHz would need liquid nitrogen cooling.
Who does it and why ?
- Mostly hardcore gamers, benchmarker's or high adrenaline driven persons. Whatever car/bike you may own, you would at times like to zoom over 90 or 16okph or 300kph :eek:. The benefits of OC are - faster processing times & performance.
So why is'nt everybody doing it ?
- OC is not so easy as it may seem. Any slight mismatch in voltage/timings can "bheja-fry" your proc :nailbiting: ..... besides manufacturer's do not cover these accidents. OC also reduces the lifespan of the processor.

2) Is there an AMD rig where I can play CIV5 without using a graphics card?
YES - AMD A10-5800K (it has the best iGPU that beats the hell outa Intel's iGPU's). And you will not need any discrete GPU for a vast majority of the games you play. You should consider this rather than the Intel i3-range. Remember one thing - A10 works best with faster speed RAM's (1600MHz and above), I would recommend a 2 x 4GB G.Skill or Corsair module.
YOU NEED TO KEEP IN MIND that the core-components (CPU+Mobo) should serve your future needs too for the next 4-6 years.

3) Why they have discontinued all low priced graphics cards like HD5450?
- This was launched in Feb 2010. In the highly competitive would of GPU's ........ NO iteration survives beyond 10-18 months. Same is the case for CPU's too - only that these are held on for a slightly longer span of time.

Lastly, you need to replace your Zebronics PSU too (change to Seasonic or Corsair). I used a VIP 450W for 9 years BUT I would never recommend TODAY any of these brands - iBall; VIP; Zebronics etc

Cheers
Terry
 
Thx a ton Terry for enlightening about OC, SMPS and AMD A10.

Let me rearrange the questions for you all:

1) What about Pentium G620/G2120/G2010 compared to i3 3220 – how much do I lose? Why G2120 is not available now while G2010 seems weaker than it?
2) Can you suggest AMD A10 compatible low priced MoBo's?
3) A10 IGP is equivalent to HD what and i3 3220 IGP is equivalent to HD what?
4) What is the price and performance comparison between i3 3220+gigabyte b75 d3h+best graphics card within 4k and A105880+Compatible MoBo within ~4k?
5) Can you suggest some graphics cards between 3000/- and 4000/-?
 
DD2020 said:
2) Can you suggest AMD A10 compatible low priced MoBo's?
5) Can you suggest some graphics cards between 3000/- and 4000/-?
Click to expand...

2) Motherboard: MSI FM2-A55M-E33 @ 3.3k - this is compatible with A10-5800k

5) Asus Geforce GT610 2GB DDR3 Nvdia PCI E Graphic Card (GT610-SL-2GD3-L) .... Rs 2900/-

Like I said, if you chose the A10-5800K use it for 2-3 months AND ONLY AFTERWARDS decide whether you need a separate GPU

Remaining querries, I would need time (I am at work ;))

Read up about A10-5800k from these links
check the actual user feedback here
http://pcworld.co.nz/pcworld/pcw.nsf/reviews/amd-a10-5800k
http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/amd_a10_5800k_review_apu,1.html ..... best article/review
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/gigabyte-ga-f2a85x-up4.html
http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/50...d_fx_8350_vishera_joint_cpu_review/index.html

Your querry#4 is also covered in the above articles

Cheers
Terry
 
Googled more about graphics cards under4k and this is what I found (listing only popular choices:) ):

  • HD5450 cards are still available at 2000/-
Good cards at ~2.5k:
  • Sapphire HD6450 1GB DDR3 2600/-
  • Sparkle GT520 1GB DDR3 2650/-
Good cards at ~4k:
  • Powercolor HD5670 1 GB DDR3 4200/-
  • Sapphire HD5670 512MB GDDR5 4200/-
  • Sapphire HD6570 1GB DDR3 4000/-
  • Zotac GT520 1GB DDR5 4170/-
My Questions:
1) is HD6450 better than GT520?
2) Which one at 4k do you suggest, people are saying 1GB not needed for mild gaming, so 512MB DDR5 better than 1GB DDR3, do you agree?

Please also the suggest the best GPU below 4k:)
 
terence_fdes said:
2) Motherboard: MSI FM2-A55M-E33 @ 3.3k - this is compatible with A10-5800k

5) Asus Geforce GT610 2GB DDR3 Nvdia PCI E Graphic Card (GT610-SL-2GD3-L) .... Rs 2900/-

Like I said, if you chose the A10-5800K use it for 2-3 months AND ONLY AFTERWARDS decide whether you need a separate GPU

Remaining querries, I would need time (I am at work ;))

Read up about A10-5800k from these links
check the actual user feedback here
http://pcworld.co.nz/pcworld/pcw.nsf/reviews/amd-a10-5800k
http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/amd_a10_5800k_review_apu,1.html ..... best article/review
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/gigabyte-ga-f2a85x-up4.html
http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/50...d_fx_8350_vishera_joint_cpu_review/index.html

Your querry#4 is also covered in the above articles

Cheers
Terry
Click to expand...

Thx again Terry, are there any other MoBos from MSI and Gigabyte between 3K and 4.5K?
 
I request again you all to answer these questions:

1) What about Pentium G620/G2120/G2010 compared to i3 3220 – how much do I lose? Why G2120 is not available now while G2010 seems weaker than it?
2) Can you suggest AMD A10 compatible low priced MoBo's?
3) A10 IGP is equivalent to HD what and i3 3220 IGP is equivalent to HD what?
4) What is the price and performance comparison between i3 3220+gigabyte b75 d3h+best graphics card within 4k and A105880+Compatible MoBo within ~4k?
5) Can you suggest some graphics cards between 3000/- and 4000/-?

Googled more about graphics cards under4k and this is what I found (listing only popular choices:) ):
  • HD5450 cards are still available at 2000/-
Good cards at ~2.5k:
  • Sapphire HD6450 1GB DDR3 2600/-
  • Sparkle GT520 1GB DDR3 2650/-
Good cards at ~4k:
  • Powercolor HD5670 1 GB DDR3 4200/-
  • Sapphire HD5670 512MB GDDR5 4200/-
  • Sapphire HD6570 1GB DDR3 4000/-
  • Zotac GT520 1GB DDR5 4170/-
My Questions:
1) is HD6450 better than GT520?
2) Which one at 4k do you suggest, people are saying 1GB not needed for mild gaming, so 512MB DDR5 better than 1GB DDR3, do you agree?

Please also the suggest the best GPU below 4k:)
 
DD2020 said:
I request again you all to answer these questions:

1) Can you suggest AMD A10 compatible low priced MoBo's?
2) A10 IGP is equivalent to HD what and i3 3220 IGP is equivalent to HD what?
3) Which one at 4k do you suggest, people are saying 1GB not needed for mild gaming, so 512MB DDR5 better than 1GB DDR3, do you agree?
4. Can you suggest some graphics cards between 3000/- and 4000/-?
Click to expand...

1.If you are going with A55 chipset then Gigabyte GA-F2A55M-DS2 or ASUS F2A55-M-LE.
2. AMD A10-5800k have Radeon HD 7660D and Intel i3 3220 have Intel HD Graphics 2500. Don't even compare A10 iGP with i3. Intel i3 iGP stands no where in front of A10's. If you go with A10, chances are there that you don't have to invest in external GPU as it can easily run all games from low-mid settings.
3. 512MB DDR5 is always better than 1GB DDR3.
4. Only one which fits your budget, HIS AMD/ATI 5670 ICEQ 1GB GDDR5 Rs 4538
 
sky said:
1.If you are going with A55 chipset then Gigabyte GA-F2A55M-DS2 or ASUS F2A55-M-LE.
2. AMD A10-5800k have Radeon HD 7660D and Intel i3 3220 have Intel HD Graphics 2500. Don't even compare A10 iGP with i3. Intel i3 iGP stands no where in front of A10's. If you go with A10, chances are there that you don't have to invest in external GPU as it can easily run all games from low-mid settings.
3. 512MB DDR5 is always better than 1GB DDR3.
4. Only one which fits your budget, HIS AMD/ATI 5670 ICEQ 1GB GDDR5 Rs 4538
Click to expand...

thx a ton sky, which one will perform better for my requirement -
a10 5800 + Gigabyte GA-F2A55M-DS2
i3 3220 +gigabyte B75D3H + HIS 5670 1GB GDDR5

Can anybody tell the price of Gigabyte GA-F2A55M-DS2 and/or ASUS F2A55-M-LE?
 
Go ahead with the A10 & no need for GPU card

FM2 boards: Online it's hard to find (there seems to be a sudden shortage), this is the only one that I could find ASRock FM2A55M-DGS ....Rs 4252 (This is a good board)
Otherwise go to Lammy & enquire. Chose ONLY between these brands Gigabyte > Asrock > Asus & NOT MSI or Biostar
Note: The Gigabyte board GA-F2A55M-DS2 is listed as coming-soon on FK
The ASUS F2A55-M-LE - is listed at Rs 5649

RAM: Ask for 4GB x 2 @1600MHz - either G.Skill or Corsair
Note: There are only 2 RAM slots on mATX FM2 boards
 
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