Need advise on a new PC, mostly for IV. TIA

[Phil45]

Hey guys,

 

Being a GTA fanatic since III, and having every version made on all the platforms(PS2, PS3, PSP, XBox, Xbox360, PC), the only version i don't have is IV on the PC, mainly because playing IV and EFLC on both consoles to 100% took up enough time..lol

 

Having said that, i'm so tired of the blurry graphics on both consoles, and since IV is basically the only game i play anymore(i beat all others, and all others bore me out anyway), and since we need a new family pc here anyway, i'm looking at getting the most bang for the buck.

 

Ok first off, iv'e always been an Intel guy, so i'm looking at the I7-930 CPU. Is this a wise choice for IV and the upcoming V?

 

Second, and most important..and what is driving me nuts, is how the heck do i choose the ideal path for the GPU?

 

I'm looking to max out all settings in IV..including visability. But i'm not content on eithier the GTX480 1.5Gig. or the ATI 5970 2GIG as it's PhysX benchmarks are not up to par with the 470/480 lineup from NVidia.

 

Also, i simply cannot fork over $600 on that 5970, it's just way too much and would drive my pc rig to $2000. (i want to keep it at $1500 or lower)

 

The GTX480 would be ideal, however i'm wondering is 1.5Gig's enough to max out IV? Also, since IV in itself needs at least 1Gig. to max settings..and more like 1.2+ Gig's to max out everything, then what about when V eventually arrives?

 

Also, both of these cards are on the high side..to be honest, and if i can get by with say a 5770 for the next 6+ months, until say NVidia puts out a 2Gig version of the 480..or prices drop on the 480/5970, then that may make more sense.

 

Right now i'd like to config a rig with these specs, for $1500 or under:

 

-I7-930 CPU

-8(or 9) Gig's of DDR3 (triple) Ram, upgradable to 24Gig's

-1 TB HDD (i don't need much HDD space, as my 9 yr old desktop has only a 80 Gig inside it)

-Radeon 5770 1Gig. (If i can max out IV..at least everything but visibility, that is) [but if possible a GTX480 would be ideal]

-BR Burner/Reader

-500(or 525) Watt P.S [i looked into the Alienware models but i'm looking at over $2000 for this config. with it's 875 watt P.S)

 

This 'family' pc(and a couple of pc games, mainly being GTAIV and when GTAV ever arrives in 11'/12'?)

 

For $1500 max., how would you design a pc mainly used for playing GTA:IV and also the upcoming V?

 

Also, i'd like to add in at least a 1.5 gig card(GTX480) or maybe a 2Gig GPU that has near the performance of the 5770.

 

[i used to be a pc 'geek'..lol, but since my son was born 7 yrs back, i have been a console gamer and had little time to spend on the pc. But now i'm getting some more free time since he's in school.]

 

Thanks guys, for whatever advise you can give me here.

 

Phil

[OverTheBelow]

Firstly, I'd get an i7 920. You'd probably save a few bucks with minimal performance difference.

 

 

I'd also advise perhaps getting 2 GTX 470's and putting them in SLI. Not as expensive as a 480, but still almost double the performance as a single 480; plus 2.40gb video memory.

[mkey82]

Well, firstly, the next GTA when and if it arrives will most probably use this same engine as it cost so much I'm betting R* will want to put out a few towns before developing anything new. Just look at the GTAIII series and how many games it featured. This being said, next GTA will probably have the same if not lower demands then IV. I don't see them revorking the engine, but they will probably update and optimize it a bit, if nothing else then to remove some issues.

 

What resolutions are you looking at? Because maxing out draw distance on lower resolutions makes no sense and higher resolutions will demand more from your GPU. The 5770 is more or less the same as my 4870 performance wise and I can tell you this card can't max out GTAIV. Well, with 1GB VRAM you could probably have everything on high but draw distance and probably shadows on 1680x1050. With a better CPU then mine, you'd probably be doing more FPS which in my case hovered around 40.

 

I don't know if GTAIV can take maximum advantage of a 5970 as it's and x2 card and GTAIV CF/SLI support sucks ass. So probably the 480 1.5GB would be the way to go, even though it's questionable if you'll be able to max absolutely everything on it, this seems to require a bit of luck with GTAIV.

 

That CPU should be fine, but you will probably want to overclock it, if you're a bit lucky and get a good chip you'll probably be able to get 4GHz on air.

[yoječ]

This is what I'd get:

 

$258 Intel Core i7-930 Bloomfield 2.8GHz

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819115225

 

$450 GIGABYTE GV-N480D5-15I-B GeForce GTX 480

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814125319

 

$175 GIGABYTE GA-X58-USB3 LGA 1366

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813128456

 

$75 SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16822152185

 

$160 A-DATA XPG Gaming Series 6GB (3 x 2GB)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820211462

 

$140 SeaSonic X650 Gold 650W

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16817151088

 

$130 LG Black Blu-ray Burner WH10LS30 LightScribe Support

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16827136186

 

$90 COOLER MASTER RC-692-KKN2 CM690 II Advanced

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16811119216

 

= $1 478

 

Powerful CPU, powerful GPU, good motherboard w/USB3 and SATA3, fast 1TB HDD, 6GB of RAM, one of the best PSUs on the market, Blue-Ray burner and last but not least great case.

[Phil45]

Well, firstly, the next GTA when and if it arrives will most probably use this same engine as it cost so much I'm betting R* will want to put out a few towns before developing anything new. Just look at the GTAIII series and how many games it featured. This being said, next GTA will probably have the same if not lower demands then IV. I don't see them revorking the engine, but they will probably update and optimize it a bit, if nothing else then to remove some issues.

 

What resolutions are you looking at? Because maxing out draw distance on lower resolutions makes no sense and higher resolutions will demand more from your GPU. The 5770 is more or less the same as my 4870 performance wise and I can tell you this card can't max out GTAIV. Well, with 1GB VRAM you could probably have everything on high but draw distance and probably shadows on 1680x1050. With a better CPU then mine, you'd probably be doing more FPS which in my case hovered around 40.

 

I don't know if GTAIV can take maximum advantage of a 5970 as it's and x2 card and GTAIV CF/SLI support sucks ass. So probably the 480 1.5GB would be the way to go, even though it's questionable if you'll be able to max absolutely everything on it, this seems to require a bit of luck with GTAIV.

 

That CPU should be fine, but you will probably want to overclock it, if you're a bit lucky and get a good chip you'll probably be able to get 4GHz on air.

Hey..thanks for the info, i really appreciated it!.

 

I'm looking to run IV, maxed out @ 1920*1080p on my 50" Plasma. (and 22" LED, which handles 1080p as well).

 

As far as FPS wise, i can live with 30fps..easily, as i'm used to it on the consoles.(the ps3 version sometimes runs below 20fps at times, the 360 version below 25fps)

 

I'm now thinking it's eithier the GTX480 1.5Gig or 5970 2 Gig, as i can config a rig with a I7-930, 9 gig's of DDR Ram, and eithier of those cards for about $1500-$1600 or so.

 

(If so, i'll wait on the BR burner for now, and add it in as an upgrade in the future, as i want to stay near $1500)

 

However for eithier card, i'm not 100% sold on, as i really want 2Gig's(because IV is siad to use up almost 2Gig's, i believe) but i heard the Nvidia lineup runs IV with less problems, and has better PhyX benchmarks.(for games like GTA IV,Mafia II..ect)

 

Since you have the 4870(basically the same performance as the 5770), are you able to max out all your settings 1680*1050?

 

Also, that's card has 1GB of VRam, correct?

 

Basically, can you max out everything in 1680*1050, or say even 1280*720? (because i can live with 720p..maxed out for now, and then i'll upgrade to a better GPU down the road)

 

If i drop the resolution to 1280*720, is 1Gig enough on any GPU to max out IV?

 

Now that i think about it, the consoles run at 720p(360) and 640p(PS3) anyway, and they are just upscaled to 1080p.

 

TIA

 

 

[Spider-Vice]

1GB of VRAM isn't enough to max GTA IV completely as it needs roughly 1.6GB.

[Phil45]

This is what I'd get:

 

$258 Intel Core i7-930 Bloomfield 2.8GHz

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819115225

 

$450 GIGABYTE GV-N480D5-15I-B GeForce GTX 480

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814125319

 

$175 GIGABYTE GA-X58-USB3 LGA 1366

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813128456

 

$75 SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16822152185

 

$160 A-DATA XPG Gaming Series 6GB (3 x 2GB)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820211462

 

$140 SeaSonic X650 Gold 650W

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16817151088

 

$130 LG Black Blu-ray Burner WH10LS30 LightScribe Support

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16827136186

 

$90 COOLER MASTER RC-692-KKN2 CM690 II Advanced

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16811119216

 

= $1 478

 

Powerful CPU, powerful GPU, good motherboard w/USB3 and SATA3, fast 1TB HDD, 6GB of RAM, one of the best PSUs on the market, Blue-Ray burner and last but not least great case.

Thanks alot for the info and the links!.

 

I used to build my own rigs, but i have to admit it's been now 8 yrs since i last did so, so what does labor run in a norm. pc store for labor?

 

I do know Best buy does config. a new rig(via the geek squad), but i need to pick out a pre-config'ed system, and then they will add in a new PSU and the GTX480. (which would run $1200 plus another $140 for the PSU, and $500 for the 480)

 

And that's without a BR burner as well..

 

Thanks again, those links helped out alot, as i get so little time free to do research on my own.

 

Phil

 

 

 

 

[Phil45]

1GB of VRAM isn't enough to max GTA IV completely as it needs roughly 1.6GB.

Does that depend on the resolution or does that not matter?

 

If it is..and say it's at 1920*1080, i'm guessing a GTX480 will be able to max out IV?

 

If it's a maybe?, then i may opt for the 5970 2 Gig instead, or just wait for NVidia to release a 2Gig model of it's 470/480 lineup.

 

btw: If i run it in 1280*720, will i be able to max it out, on a 5770 1GB GPU?

[yoječ]

GTX480 is enough to max out GTAIV on 1920x1080, but you might need to overclock your CPU a litte.

Edited September 25, 2010 by yojo2

[meson1]

1GB of VRAM isn't enough to max GTA IV completely as it needs roughly 1.6GB.

Does that depend on the resolution or does that not matter?

 

If it is..and say it's at 1920*1080, i'm guessing a GTX480 will be able to max out IV?

 

If it's a maybe?, then i may opt for the 5970 2 Gig instead, or just wait for NVidia to release a 2Gig model of it's 470/480 lineup.

 

btw: If i run it in 1280*720, will i be able to max it out, on a 5770 1GB GPU?

GTA:IV used to need 1.6GB VRAM for me to run at 1920x1200 with settings maxed out.

 

But since patch 7 it seems to only want 1.2GB VRAM for max settings at 1920x1200.

[mkey82]

No, I can't max out GTAIV on my card and 512MB VRAM. On that resolution about 1GB would be needed and it goes up a bit with resolution, as meson 1 said.

 

Also, there is no physx in GTAIV.

[yoječ]

But since patch 7 it seems to only want 1.2GB VRAM for max settings at 1920x1200.

Naaah, it needs 1,2GB (1193MB to be exact) to be maxed out at 1680x1050, so at 1920x1200 it sure uses much more.

[meson1]

 

But since patch 7 it seems to only want 1.2GB VRAM for max settings at 1920x1200.

Naaah, it needs 1,2GB (1193MB to be exact) to be maxed out at 1680x1050, so at 1920x1200 it sure uses much more.

See for yourself.

 

[Phil45]

But since patch 7 it seems to only want 1.2GB VRAM for max settings at 1920x1200.

Naaah, it needs 1,2GB (1193MB to be exact) to be maxed out at 1680x1050, so at 1920x1200 it sure uses much more.

See for yourself.

 

Hey much thanks for that pic..it says it all.

 

Your settings say 2Gig's, i'm gathering that's a iv.5970 2Gig GPU? If so, does it run IV with no problems..as ATI cards first had when the game was released.

 

Now that i know maxed out all that's needed is 1.2 Gig's, do i go with a 470 or 480 from NVidia, or more Vram from the 5970?

 

I cannot imagine needing more then 1.2 Gig's for any other game, but it would be nice to be more 'future proof' with a 2Ggig GPU.

 

Iv'e narrowed it down to the 480 and 5970-2Gig, which is the better option as both are great GPU's?

 

TIA

[meson1]

I run with one of these: Palit GeForce GTX 285 2GB which I bought to enable me to run GTA:IV at max settings. 2GB VRAM isn't a standard nVidia build for the 285 model card, so there were very few of them about and, obviously, they have since been succeeded by the 400 series.

 

I do not have any experience of ATI cards, so I cannot comment on any of those. I would guess that the newer nVidia cards that have a higher spec than the 285 would almost certainly be able to perform at least as well as my 2GB 285. These other guys know what they are talking about. They are experts at helping people and have more knowledge about what works for GTA:IV and what doesn't. But if I were in the market for a GPU today, I'd be looking at a 480 2GB.

Edited September 26, 2010 by meson1

[yoječ]

 

Iv'e narrowed it down to the 480 and 5970-2Gig, which is the better option as both are great GPU's?

I'd go with GTX480. Since it has one GPU (unlike 5970, whch basically consists of two 5870 on the same PCB) it is less problematic and more games can utilise its full power.

Edited September 26, 2010 by yojo2

[soll]

If you choose to go with a i7 and a top flight vid card you should at least get 750 watt psu. Do not even think of using the stock fan that comes with the cpu ether get a good cooler! One think to also think about is the i7 950 is only 10 dollars more now than 930 that is what I would go for right now, at 3.06 that is plenty fast right out of the box with out oc it.

I do like asus boards, with mine I just turned on turbo boost and it clocks at 3.43 (i7 875k @ 2.93). The 950 should be about 3.6 I think. On cases I know nvidia cards run hot get a good case with good airflow. Good luck and do have fun with what you get!

[yoječ]

Proper 650W (like Seasonic X or Corsair AX) is enough for overclocked i7-930 and GTX480.

 

With good cooling, any of the modern CPUs can be overclocked to 4GHz.

[Phil45]

Proper 650W (like Seasonic X or Corsair AX) is enough for overclocked i7-930 and GTX480.

 

With good cooling, any of the modern CPUs can be overclocked to 4GHz.

Thanks for the info/advise.

 

Iv'e been looking at the Dell XPS 9100 which has a 525W PS inside it. Now this PS can handle a 5970 2Gig..believe it or not, but i'm wondering if that's a bit too much for that PS?

 

That config includes a I7-930 cpu, 9 Gig's DDR3, a BR burner, 1 TB HDD..ect, and i can go with a 5770(1 Gig) or a 5970(2 Gig). The 5970 config runs almost $1900.

 

This is so damn frustrating, as i'm not even happy with that 525 PS, and if i go to say an Alienware, it will run me..easily $2300 with a 5970.

 

I know this sounds crazy, but i'm tempted to say..the heck with it, grab a HP 480, with a 5570 2 Gig GPU, 930 cpu/9 gig..ect, BR writer all for $1300.

 

I'm not happy with the 5970 cards, i really would like to see 2Gig's on the 470/480 lineup from Nvidia, and who's to say (mainstream)GPU's in the next couple yrs won't need only 400 watts from the PS?

 

Damn, i cannot believe i cannot find a pre-built and maxed out config(650 watt PS/ I7-930, 8/9 Gig's DDR 3, BR writer..ect, and a 470/480 GTX GPU, for under $1700!)

 

I know to some, $1000 is not alot, but i'm on a budget with my family. And i need to pisk up the Kinect and Move for my son, and a newer slim 360 as well.

 

My wife is easy going, but i'm not going to go crazy spending $3000 on consoles and a new pc rig..

 

I'm seriously thinking about that HP deal, with the 2Gig 5570 ATI..and all else, for under $1300. That is if it just runs IV at even 25-30fps in 1280*720, heck i'd be elated if it ran it at 1920*1080p at 25fps!..

 

The Dell 9100 deal looks better(better ps at 525 over the 460watt of the HP) but for $1450 it includes only the 1Gig 5770, and i will have to switch it for a GPU with more vram, eventually.

 

I just want one pre-config'ed rig, that i won't need to mess with, for at least 6-12 months, and that can run IV maxed out..in any res., even 1280*720p.

 

This is so frustating..

 

Thanks for any advise guys.

[Phil45]

Iv'e narrowed it down to the 480 and 5970-2Gig, which is the better option as both are great GPU's?

I'd go with GTX480. Since it has one GPU (unlike 5970, whch basically consists of two 5870 on the same PCB) it is less problematic and more games can utilise its full power.

Thanks for thta info.

 

About the 5970, since it uses two 5870's on the same board, can games like GTA IV access the full 2Gig's?

 

TIA

[yoječ]

Well I dunno, never used it.

 

So, just say how much do you want to spend and we'll build you a decent gaming rig. For like $1000 you should be able to geat a PC that will max out GTAIV on 1680x1050.

[mkey82]

Iv'e narrowed it down to the 480 and 5970-2Gig, which is the better option as both are great GPU's?

I'd go with GTX480. Since it has one GPU (unlike 5970, whch basically consists of two 5870 on the same PCB) it is less problematic and more games can utilise its full power.

Thanks for thta info.

 

About the 5970, since it uses two 5870's on the same board, can games like GTA IV access the full 2Gig's?

 

TIA

Usually, when you have two cards in CF/SLI then each card uses its own VRAM - so you don't get to double it. I.e. two 1GB 4870 will have 1GB VRAM available for games and anything else.

 

I'm not sure how this works with the 5970, is the 2GB "total" or what the card can actually use.

[topeira]

i will let the gear-heads speak for the hardware, just make sure that once u get your rig and GTAIV PC ready for gaming u also add the ENB mod to the game.

if u dont know what that is (and since it was so popular on san andreas i'd assume u do) check you tube and the ENB thread thread

http://www.gtaforums.com/index.php?showtopic=417918&st=8520

just remember - ENB doesnt work well on the latest PC patches for GTAIV. if u want to play online , which requires the latest patch, than have two versions of the game - one patched to the forth patch (1.0.4.0) and the "official" installation patched to the 7th patch.

 

and dont buy GTAIV from STEAM. it will always auto-patch and u will lose the ability to use many mods.

i dont know how much experience u have with PC gtas but if it's limited than remember mods. it will change your game.

mods and HUGE deal in GTAIV , whether its adding cars or weapons, it's also adding some cute random missions or crazy stuff like car or weapon behavior or small new game mechanics.

well if u will get a new rig and GTAIV on it, u can PM me for some mod tips or suggestions.

 

good luck.

[Phil45]

But since patch 7 it seems to only want 1.2GB VRAM for max settings at 1920x1200.

Naaah, it needs 1,2GB (1193MB to be exact) to be maxed out at 1680x1050, so at 1920x1200 it sure uses much more.

See for yourself.

 

In that pic, under vram it says 2gig's available on your gpu.

 

What gpu are you using?

 

I'm looking for a 1.2+ Gig gpu that can handle IV @ 1920*1080(as in your pic) and also supports dx11.

 

The only cards that do so are the gtx 470 and 480, as far as i know. (there are htpc type like the 5570, but those have very weak performance for high end gaming)

 

Does anyone know of any (non-htpc) GPU's with more then 1Gig of Vram and also support dx11?

 

TIA

 

[nikobellic91]

He already stated that he uses GTX 285 2GB

[yoječ]

The only cards that do so are the gtx 470 and 480, as far as i know. (there are htpc type like the 5570, but those have very weak performance for high end gaming)

There is also HD5870 2GB (a bit better than GTX470).

[Phil45]

The only cards that do so are the gtx 470 and 480, as far as i know. (there are htpc type like the 5570, but those have very weak performance for high end gaming)

There is also HD5870 2GB (a bit better than GTX470).

Actually i was about to get that 5870 however it seems it uses 2 cores of 1Gig each, and for GTA IV, the game only detects 1GB.

 

 

[yoječ]

You confused 5870 with 5970. 5870 has only one GPU, whereas 5970 basically consists of two underclocked 5870s.

[Phil45]

Finally there is a ideal GTA:IV card..and for other higher end games, as it was announced a couple months ago..but i did'nt realize it until today:

 

http://www.anandtech.com/show/3835/gainwar...s-a-2gb-gtx-460

 

It's 2Gig's of on board ram, it's power consumption i s over 100watts lower then the 480, so those with power supplies as low as 450 watts have a great DX11 gaming card without the need to upgrade the p.s/case.

 

specs:

 

http://www.gainward.com/main/product/vga/p...dfb8f.pdf?s=903

 

 

[Phil45]

Guys, first off...thanks, no matter the reply, it really helped alot.

 

I'm so damn glad i returned to the pc part of these forums, as i went away from pc gaming since 2002(yr before my son was born) as i lacked the time/patience..ect, for pc gaming.

 

But now i have more free time to devote to doing some mod work on IV, and that i'm growing tired of lower texture quality in 360/PS3 graphics, and this old pc rig needs to be replaced anyway, it makes sense to get as high a pc rig..as i can afford.

 

Guys, let me know what you think about this Dell XPS 9100 rig:

 

I7-930 (not overclocked

9 GB DDR 3 (triple ram)

ATI 5770 (1 Gig vram)

525 watt p.s.

(and other little stuff like 1TB HDD..ect)

 

This runs currently for $1300 from dell..but i'm looking at a 2 GB GPU, to be exact, i'm looking at the --> 2GB GTX 460(which run about $300), as an ideal match for this CPU.

 

If i swap the 5770 out for the GTX460, i'm hoping to run IV in 1920*1080(both the native res. of my 22" LED and my 50" Plasma's res.).

 

Is that combo good enough to both max out IV and run @ 1080p, at say 25-30+ fps, on average?

 

Also, mods that improve the texture/lighting..ect, to look far better then the released game, are just mind boggling. So hopefully 9Gig's(system) and 2Gig's(vRam) would be enough for these to run at 1080p, even if it's say at only 20fps averages.(i'm used to it anyway with most console games doing so anyway..lol)

 

One more question, do you guys know of a respected site that i can order a rig like this one, but i can have that GTX460(instead of the 5770) as it's GPU?

 

TIA (you guys have been of great help so far, and i really appreciate it)