New to PC gaming

Hi everyone! I'm looking into getting my first gaming pc and after extensive research, DigitalStorm is the winner. However, I am unsure if this setup would work. I have a 32inch 720p Sony tv and I may get a smaller 1080p.

Budget:$1800


Expectations:
Run modern games at least on high and not have to worry about upgrading for a few years

Usage:
Gaming and school work. Run games like BeamNG Drive, Battlefield Hardline...

Special Needs:
Going to bring this to college.

Saved Ticket #: 1242440


Specifications:
Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Pre-built Digital Storm Eclipse

Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish

Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish

Processor: Intel Core i7 4790K 4.0 GHz (Codename Devils Canyon) (Unlocked CPU) (Quad Core)

Motherboard: GIGABYTE Z97N-WIFI (Intel Z97 Chipset) (Mini-ITX)

System Memory: 8GB DDR3 1866MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)

Power Supply: 450W SilverStone ST45SF (Bronze Rated) (Supports up to GTX 980)

Expansion Bay: - No Thanks

Optical Drive: DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 8x / CD-Writer 8x)

Storage Set 1: 1x SSD (250GB Samsung 850 EVO)

Storage Set 2: 1x Storage (1TB Seagate)

Storage Set 3: - No Thanks

RAID Config: - No Thanks

RAID Card: - No Thanks

Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)

Graphics Card(s): 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 4GB (Includes PhysX)

Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio

HPC Processor: - No Thanks

Extreme Cooling: High Performance Cooler with Five Heatpipes

H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a custom HydroLux liquid cooling system selected

Chassis Fans: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: - No Thanks

Airflow Control: - No Thanks

Chassis Mods: - No Thanks

Noise Reduction: - No Thanks

LaserMark: - No Thanks

Boost Processor: Option Not Available

Boost Graphics Card(s): - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)

Boost Memory: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory

Boost OS: - No Thanks, Please do not tweak the services on the
operating system

Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium (64-Bit Edition) (FREE Upgrade to Windows 10)

Recovery Tools: Windows Recovery Toolkit (Bundled with Windows CD)
Virus Protection: FREE: McAfee AntiVirus Plus (1 Year Service Activation Card) (Not Pre-installed) ($35 Value)

Office: - No Thanks

Game: - No Thanks

Display: - No Thanks

Surge Shield: APC SurgeArrest Personal PER7 (7 Outlet) 120V Surge
Protector

Speakers: - No Thanks

Keyboard: Logitech Media Combo MK200 Keyboard and Mouse

Mouse: - No Thanks

Portable Gaming: - No Thanks

Branded Gear: - No Thanks

Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 5-10 Business Days After
Order Is Successfully Processed

Warranty: Life-time Expert Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty (3
Year Labor & 1 Year Part Replacement)

And one question, about how long would it take for me to receive my PC from the time I order it?

Thanks!

Originally posted by bprat22 Hi antnee7.....  Welcome to the forums.That build will definitely work and play strong on a 1080p screen.   The gtx 970 is one of the best cards for the buck out there.    If you can squeeze a little more budget, change the Seagate HDD to the Western Digital Black for $19.  More reliable and longer warranty.I would select the 600 watt Gold psu.  The 450 w will run the rig, but the 600 Gold is more headroom if ever needed.   Depends on the budget, like everything else. Hope this helps and good luck.

Awesome! Thank you bprat22! How do you think it would look on the 720p tv? I remember I plugged in my PS2 into my 19 inch 720p tv and it looked terrible. I couldn't even see what I was doing LOL. Would it have any problems though?

Originally posted by bprat22 720P TV won't have the quality of a better monitor at 720P.  The 1080p will be better.   Both work, just the quality that you can see.   The larger 32:720p will be duller than a smaller screen at same resolution.  The pixels just stretch themselves out to fill the screen.

Alright cool! Thank you for the help bprat22!

Originally posted by bprat22 My pleasure.   When you get it, snap a couple of pics if you can.   Not a lot of pics of the Eclipse on the forums.

You got it!

like bprat22 said, the biggest thing that sticks out about the build is the power supply choice.  this is where most uninformed people try to skimp-DON"T!  always get a good quality psu with sufficient headroom for your needs.  psu efficiency degrades over time, so starting off with high quality and more power than you need at the initial purchase is wise. 

i noticed you have selected a "K" model Devil's Canyon cpu.  that's an oc'ing chip.  no reason to buy one if you don't intend to oc.  an oc'ed DC under load (while playing games and such) is going to draw over 200+watts from the wall.  that GTX 970 (stock) is going to pull another ~290 watts under load.  that's over 500 watts just from the main components.  factor in the rest of the system, which isn't a lot to pile on top, but it's well over 500 watts total system while under load.  now, factor in trying to get the most performance boost out of your gpu by oc'ing it (and why wouldn't you they're made for it) and the power requirements go up and up.

in your shoes i wouldn't look at anything under 600w with a certified bronze or better 80+ rating.  buy from reputable, well-reviewed vendors and models (like Seasonic or Corsair).   


Edited by db188 - 22 Jul 2015 at 2:50pm

Originally posted by db188 like bprat22 said, the biggest thing that sticks out about the build is the power supply choice.  this is where most uninformed people try to skimp-DON"T!  always get a good quality psu with sufficient headroom for your needs.  psu efficiency degrades over time, so starting off with high quality and more power than you need at the initial purchase is wise.  i noticed you have selected a "K" model Devil's Canyon cpu.  that's an oc'ing chip.  no reason to buy one if you don't intend to oc.  an oc'ed DC under load (while playing games and such) is going to draw over 200+watts from the wall.  that GTX 970 (stock) is going to pull another ~290 watts under load.  that's over 500 watts just from the main components.  factor in the rest of the system, which isn't a lot to pile on top, but it's well over 500 watts total system while under load.  now, factor in trying to get the most performance boost out of your gpu by oc'ing it (and why wouldn't you they're made for it) and the power requirements go up and up.in your shoes i wouldn't look at anything under 600w with a certified bronze or better 80+ rating.  buy from reputable, well-reviewed vendors and models (like Seasonic or Corsair).

I have no intentions of oc'ing so I put the i5 4590 in and added the 600w. Dropped the price a little bit too . Everything else is the same. Money is starting to get to me so it seems now that I wont be ordering for a while . If I end up getting a bigger budget for this, could there be anything that I could swap out or do you think this a pretty solid build?

i'm assuming you want the SFF for portability and space saving, yes?  otherwise, go with an entry level full size desktop like the Vanquish line. 

as far as my comments on your updated build: the I5-4590 is an entry level gaming cpu.  the question is whether or not it will hold back your performance/enjoyable experience in the types of games you prefer to play?  it seems to me you prefer online multiplayer games, or at least games with that component.  hyper-threading helps out in these scenarios on many games of this type due to them being cpu-bound.  what does that mean?  it means that while you might have the graphics muscle to render the game adequately, the gpu is being bottle-necked (held back) by the cpu's inability to keep up.  unfortunately, you'd have to go with an I7 (like the one in your original build selection) in order to get hyper-threading.  difference in price is between a ~$200 cpu and a ~$300 cpu unless you drop down to a dual core w/HT, OR a better option go with this Xeon E3-1231v3 (it's about $20 more than an I5-4690K w/o integrated graphics and has HT) with performance similar to an I7-4770.  you're also limited to what the boutique builder has to offer in their build packages compared to if you were building it yourself.  i'm not sure what kind of price premium you'd pay for special order changes to their stock configurations or even if they'd do it. 

it's really hard to offer really specific advice because i'm finding that i have to fill in a lot of gaps in your needs and budget.  first, you set an $1800 budget, then you mention cash flow problems and then you ask for advice on improving the build if you had a bigger budget. 

i hate to advocate against a potential sale for DS, but in your shoes i'd seriously suggest buying (if you don't already have one) a console to game on your tv with and get a cheap (non gaming) laptop for your school needs.  diving into the pc market isn't something to be casual about.  it's expensive and frustrating at times.  they're finicky, fussy, and comparably expensive things that require time and effort to tune properly and upkeep.  if you can embrace that philosophy, and you like to tinker, a pc can outperform any console in every way (with the right component selection and care) and do so much more than just game on.    

 

 

      

it's no problem friend, really.  no dig on you.  i just want people to get to a place where they're not unhappy with their purchasing decisions.  money's tight for just about everyone, nothing to apologize for.  it really pays off to do your own research and invest a lot of time into developing a build concept from what your needs are (now and for the future).  computers, unlike consoles are upgradeable, so spending time/thought on an upgrade path when budgets and time allow aren't necessarily a bad thing. 

my advice on the top 2 (or first two) hardware considerations when it comes to budget planning/partitioning: are 1) the monitor, and 2) the discrete video card (graphics). 

what goes into considerations around a monitor?  1) resolution you want to game at.  2) what image quality is acceptable/preferable to you? 3) refresh rate, response time, signal processing lag, input lag, etc.  4) build quality and features. 

selection of the graphics muscle then becomes easy because you get what you need to run what you decided on with the monitor(s) choice.

selection of the cpu then becomes easy because you get what won't bottle neck your graphics muscle. 

system cooling and power requirements become easy because you get enough to keep your components from shutting down or becoming damaged.  but, you have to educate yourself a little on fluid dynamics (in the case of custom water cooling) and in airflow/case design, etc.

you don't break the bank on system ram, but you can find good/fast and with enough capacity (for your needs) at reasonable prices. 

storage:  good, budget-oriented ssd are where you want to go.  a model like the Crucial BX100 is a fantastic value at any capacity and you can get it at ~$90 in the 250GB capacity.  it's better (faster and more reliable) than any mechanical option.