List your system specs. What mobo, case and psu do you have?
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bad idea to upgrade my HTPC for gaming?
is it a bad idea to upgrade my htpc for gaming? Im tryin to max out battlefield 3 so i would probably have to go from dual core to quad, and from my 520 nvidia to something bigger and better. Im concerned about longevity from heat and what not
I currently have 3 HDD with plans for more, a ceton tuner and 4 gigs of memory.
But i really really want Battlefield on the PC
I currently have 3 HDD with plans for more, a ceton tuner and 4 gigs of memory.
But i really really want Battlefield on the PC
1 - 20 of 29 Posts
I have a gigabyte ga-ma785, thermal take 500-600 watt psu, nmediapc 6000b case
Currently have 4gig memory, dual core AMD xII, nvidia gt520
Currently have 4gig memory, dual core AMD xII, nvidia gt520
I recommend building a new gaming desktop for BF3 (I assume you mean the newest Battlefield that will be coming out?), it deserves to be displayed in all of its glory in at least 1080p @ 60 frames per second.
Will my current system not be able to be upgraded to do so?
The big limiter is your vid card. I would wait for BF3 to come out and give it a run, see how far you can push it. If it fails to meet your desires, upgrade the card.
The MSI GTX 560TI Hawk is overclocked to death...but the cooler is completely silent. It can also be overclocked even more without making any noise. Mine is currently running at 1020 core and 4200 memory. I almost have the power of a GTX 570 for a much lower price.
The MSI GTX 560TI Hawk is overclocked to death...but the cooler is completely silent. It can also be overclocked even more without making any noise. Mine is currently running at 1020 core and 4200 memory. I almost have the power of a GTX 570 for a much lower price.
Interesting, think I can get by with a dual core? Without being bottlenecked by my graphics card?
The wu bf3 looks now I'm sure I'm going to want to push it
The wu bf3 looks now I'm sure I'm going to want to push it
You mean like dual or triple GPU, dual overclocked 6 core processors and gigabyte SSDs.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lilwheezy75 /forum/post/20837811
Interesting, think I can get by with a dual core? Without being bottlenecked by my graphics card?
The wu bf3 looks now I'm sure I'm going to want to push it
You mean like dual or triple GPU, dual overclocked 6 core processors and gigabyte SSDs.
You just need a really fast gpu. Thats where I put my money for gaming now. Just get the fastest either brand and you can probably crank up the settings pretty good.
I recall quads being mandatory for BF2 so I wouldn't expect less for BF3. Drop in a quad or try to unlock cores in bios if your board allows it.
The problem is cooling. I have that case and it is not suited for that kind of heat load without modification. It will probably be pretty loud too.
The problem is cooling. I have that case and it is not suited for that kind of heat load without modification. It will probably be pretty loud too.
I'm going to try and start with an unbiased option of playing BF3 on a console because it would probably be cheaper than a new video card and CPU. HAHA, sorry, I hate playing any FPS games without a keyboard and mouse but I had to put it out there.
I've had a HTPC in my living room for about 8 years now, but until recently it was always a lower-powered PC with whatever video card I had left over from upgrading my gaming rig. When I upgraded to a nice 7.1 sound system and a big-screen HDTV I thought to myself how sweet L4D would look/sound. I upgraded my HTPC to a water-cooled AMD [email protected] and 5850 and it easily handles games or video at 1080p. It probably won't max out BF3, but I could always add another GPU to get close. I love having the flexibility to play any Steam game on a 52" screen, at least until my wife demands to watch a movie.
Pros:
*Might save some money upgrading your existing rig over building a completely new one as some have suggested... unless you go whole-hog with triple-SLI and need a new mobo and PSU
*Allows you to play games on your best A/V setup, assuming your living room has better equipment than your PC monitor and speakers
Cons:
*Fan noise may be distracting if you can't tone it down for movies (Even with my water cooled setup I still have a fan controller to keep noise to a minimum)
*Some people don't like using a keyboard and mouse to frag from their couch (I keep a wireless keyboard and large mousepad under the couch)
*You may notice some hiccups in your recorded TV files if you're recording and playing games at the same time. This can vary greatly based on your setup, but without a new CPU I'm guessing you'd see some stuttering.
*If you are willing to drop $500 on video cards to max out BF3 you might as well leave your HTPC alone since your TV (probably) can't handle resolutions higher than 1920x1080.
I've had a HTPC in my living room for about 8 years now, but until recently it was always a lower-powered PC with whatever video card I had left over from upgrading my gaming rig. When I upgraded to a nice 7.1 sound system and a big-screen HDTV I thought to myself how sweet L4D would look/sound. I upgraded my HTPC to a water-cooled AMD [email protected] and 5850 and it easily handles games or video at 1080p. It probably won't max out BF3, but I could always add another GPU to get close. I love having the flexibility to play any Steam game on a 52" screen, at least until my wife demands to watch a movie.
Pros:
*Might save some money upgrading your existing rig over building a completely new one as some have suggested... unless you go whole-hog with triple-SLI and need a new mobo and PSU
*Allows you to play games on your best A/V setup, assuming your living room has better equipment than your PC monitor and speakers
Cons:
*Fan noise may be distracting if you can't tone it down for movies (Even with my water cooled setup I still have a fan controller to keep noise to a minimum)
*Some people don't like using a keyboard and mouse to frag from their couch (I keep a wireless keyboard and large mousepad under the couch)
*You may notice some hiccups in your recorded TV files if you're recording and playing games at the same time. This can vary greatly based on your setup, but without a new CPU I'm guessing you'd see some stuttering.
*If you are willing to drop $500 on video cards to max out BF3 you might as well leave your HTPC alone since your TV (probably) can't handle resolutions higher than 1920x1080.
Quadcore was a recommended cpu, but dual-core was required at least.
I have a gamers rig/htpc and it can be done. You just have to choose your parts a bit more carefully to balance silence and gpu power. I have an AMD 6850 video card and a AMD Sempron 140 (unlocked to dual core) and so far it has run every game I've thrown at it super smoothly at 1080p resolution, including BFBC2. I do use a Silverstone GD04b case to keep my rig cool, and a scythe big shuriken for the CPU (a bit overkill, but I have an AM3+ motherboard so I will upgrade to the newest Bulldozer CPU when I start to see that my current rig is lagging), and also have a fan-less 400W psu. The rig is dead silent from 10' away (my old launch day PS3 sounds like a jet engine compared to my HTPC).
In your shoes I would upgrade your video card to a 560ti or AMD 6950, look really carefully at dual fan or quiet models of these cards and sit on everything else you have. Once you get BFBC3, and you see that it just doesn't run really smooth at 1080p, then upgrade your CPU to an AMD quadcore (you can find them for around $75 or less for Athlon II X4). If you choose to upgrade the cpu now, you will just be drawing more power, making your case hotter, and HTPC applications just do not use all 4-cores, and rarely do they use 2 cores actually. (I have a single core Sempron 140 powering my bedroom HTPC and it plays 1080p blu-ray rips flawlessly, Hulu and Netflix perfectly as well....but I wouldn't game on it)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruiner /forum/post/20838206
I recall quads being mandatory for BF2 so I wouldn't expect less for BF3. Drop in a quad or try to unlock cores in bios if your board allows it.
Quadcore was a recommended cpu, but dual-core was required at least.
I have a gamers rig/htpc and it can be done. You just have to choose your parts a bit more carefully to balance silence and gpu power. I have an AMD 6850 video card and a AMD Sempron 140 (unlocked to dual core) and so far it has run every game I've thrown at it super smoothly at 1080p resolution, including BFBC2. I do use a Silverstone GD04b case to keep my rig cool, and a scythe big shuriken for the CPU (a bit overkill, but I have an AM3+ motherboard so I will upgrade to the newest Bulldozer CPU when I start to see that my current rig is lagging), and also have a fan-less 400W psu. The rig is dead silent from 10' away (my old launch day PS3 sounds like a jet engine compared to my HTPC).
In your shoes I would upgrade your video card to a 560ti or AMD 6950, look really carefully at dual fan or quiet models of these cards and sit on everything else you have. Once you get BFBC3, and you see that it just doesn't run really smooth at 1080p, then upgrade your CPU to an AMD quadcore (you can find them for around $75 or less for Athlon II X4). If you choose to upgrade the cpu now, you will just be drawing more power, making your case hotter, and HTPC applications just do not use all 4-cores, and rarely do they use 2 cores actually. (I have a single core Sempron 140 powering my bedroom HTPC and it plays 1080p blu-ray rips flawlessly, Hulu and Netflix perfectly as well....but I wouldn't game on it)
Its sure a lot easier to go the other way.
Are you going to play with a keyboard/mouse if so how is the setup?
I can't figure out how to play good games without kb/m... Most don't support controllers.
I can't figure out how to play good games without kb/m... Most don't support controllers.
Can it even use 4 cores? I doubt any game needs 4 cores. It may alleviate some of the cpu load but the gpu is what is most important.
New gpu for sure. I had a gtx 460 (768mb) in my htpc and it could play BFBC2 and Call of duty great at 1080p. I would try to overclock that cpu at least. dual core (athlon?) is pretty weak for gaming. But I would buy a gpu first and then see how it plays.
Also figuring out what to do with your keyboard/mouse from the couch is a pain. I thought of wireless but ended up using a 15ft usb cable. Never used it much because it was a pain.
Also figuring out what to do with your keyboard/mouse from the couch is a pain. I thought of wireless but ended up using a 15ft usb cable. Never used it much because it was a pain.
Thanks guys. I'll invest in a video card. Going to have to go with the pCI version because my pci express port is occupied by my ceton.
As far as the keyboard and muse go, iwas considering runnin an extension USB behind my couch and putting a hub underneath to pull out when I wanted to game
As far as the keyboard and muse go, iwas considering runnin an extension USB behind my couch and putting a hub underneath to pull out when I wanted to game
Ouch! PCI version? Not sure if there are any powerful enough vid cards that use that bus.
What? Why don't you use the PCI-e x16 slot that your Nvidia GT520 occupies now? Your Ceton is in the x1 slot.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lilwheezy75 /forum/post/20841842
Thanks guys. I'll invest in a video card. Going to have to go with the pCI version because my pci express port is occupied by my ceton.
As far as the keyboard and muse go, iwas considering runnin an extension USB behind my couch and putting a hub underneath to pull out when I wanted to game
What? Why don't you use the PCI-e x16 slot that your Nvidia GT520 occupies now? Your Ceton is in the x1 slot.
I just got done upgrading mine to play BF3. I can run it completely maxed out smoothly. I can not do much overclocking because of poor case ventilation, but it runs just fine with stock clocks. It turned into a pretty serious machine.
Specs:
nMedia 5000b
Phenom II x4 3.2 GHz
Sapphire 1gb HD 6950
4gb DDR3 1866
60gb Vertex 3 Sata III SSD
2 x 2tb HHDs
Gigabyte GA-880GMA-USB3
I use a PS3 controller wireless paired with a BT dongle
Specs:
nMedia 5000b
Phenom II x4 3.2 GHz
Sapphire 1gb HD 6950
4gb DDR3 1866
60gb Vertex 3 Sata III SSD
2 x 2tb HHDs
Gigabyte GA-880GMA-USB3
I use a PS3 controller wireless paired with a BT dongle
1 - 20 of 29 Posts
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