[Charlotte Buckley]

this isnt actualy a custom build, its a off the self computer. as far as things like loading times etc. are concerned, all files that arnt game related are going to be stored on a 1TB external hard drive so not to muddy up the system (I am aware that 3TB of memory is overkill in the biggest sense imaginable, but i can get external hard drives for next to nothing, so this is a no brainer for me)

also, im looking to not have to upgrade this for any major reason any time soon, so anything that overkill is perfectly acceptable to me, its if anything is lacking enough to not run it at the best settings that concerns me. Also as far as power is concerned, as this is store bought, it will be set up on delivery, and i know electritions if the sockets were its going to be housed need rewiring so one has a seperate wiring to the rest, but this will be getting its own socket to run on, not an extension, and anything i can do to opptomise that socket (again, i know several computer/electritians, 2 of which live next door)

Thanks though

But, do you plan to OC? The "k" indicates an unlocked multi for OCing. If not OC'd, there's no dif between the 2600 and 2600k.

http://www.techpowerup.com/147749/EVGA-Rolls-Out-First-GeForce-GT-545-Graphics-Card.html

The GT 545 isn't great at all and the GPU has much more to do with gaming than the CPU.


...I need to be to work in 10 minutes, but if you leave what country you're in and a budget, I may find you better in the morning.

[Janette Segura]

But, do you plan to OC? The "k" indicates an unlocked multi for OCing. If not OC'd, there's no dif between the 2600 and 2600k.

http://www.techpowerup.com/147749/EVGA-Rolls-Out-First-GeForce-GT-545-Graphics-Card.html

The GT 545 isn't great at all and the GPU has much more to do with gaming than the CPU.


...I need to be to work in 10 minutes, but if you leave what country you're in and a budget, I may find you better in the morning.

ahh, well im not that well versed in computers (i know the basics of what will and will not stand any chance of running this, and im going on the assumption that skyrim will attempt to destroy any system its put into)

Im in the UK (England to be precise) and the budget (without monitor, keyboard, mouse or anything to be honost) is ￡1000 but i can stretch that to maybe ￡1200. that system is ￡1099 without the monitor buy keyboard and mouse are included

as i said, it doesnt need to be mind blowingly powerfull, so long as itll run skyrim smoothly as possible maxed out and it wont need a complete overhall 5 minutes after i buy it.

Looking up on overclocking im doubtfull, unless it would make a console generation style diffrence, i dont think id tamper with my desktop, especialy not running the risk of overheating (although note that the room its in is usaly quite chilly)

Thanks for the help, i was looking for just this, so i can accuratly determine the best possible option

[brian adkins]

So I'm looking at getting an imac around September.

I have a PC that I know would run it, unfortunately the graphics card is shot and I'm in no mood to replace it. (lots of problems with warranty, should have been replaced for free) It's specs: intel core i7 2.8ghz, 8 gig ram, 1 gig ati radeon 5770, 1 tb harddrive. It was a beast, until it was smothered by a stupid....person...

Anyways. The iMac. I want the second-tier 21.5" one.

The specs:

2.7GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with 6MB on-chip shared L3 cache
1920 x 1080 resolution
4GB (two 2GB) memory
1TB hard drive
AMD Radeon HD 6770M with 512MB

Will that (theoretically) run Skyrim? (I realize I will have to bootcamp it.)

As a side note, will running a game off an SSD improve performance in any noticeable way? If so, is it worth taking apart an iMac? (not paying apple $500 for a hard drive I can get for $200 /// ED: I realize that may sound a little ridiculous given the price difference between Apple and competitors but I am incredibly fed up with Windows and faulty hardware)

[Alessandra Botham]

No.

No... noo... nooooo.

The CPU is overkill and the GPU is weak.


First, let's change that 2600k to a i5 2500k... if you don't plan on overclocking the a i5 2500 or 2400 will be more than fine.

Second, let's up that video card to a GTX 560Ti or HD6950 1GB or better. Make sure the power supply can handle what you choose

Third, get a 7200rpm Hard Drive [...or even an additional small SSD. Unless you care about boot times, save the full SSD for games.] The faster the drive the more it will help in loading areas quickly.

Lastly, you don't need the 8GB, 4 will do [But DDR3 is so cheap, who cares?]

Overkill? Screw overkill if he wants a damn good processor let him have it.
Graphics card is the only thing that really needs to be upgraded on that, but the rest of what you said would help too.
And don't even go for 4gb when you could get 8 so cheap, why would you recommend getting less?

[Marie Maillos]

okay, so I'm currently operating on a Acer laptop (good stats, but video card family oppose to a graphics card, so it falls behind even old computers in that department) and I'm considering getting a new system for Skyrim as oppose to using my consoles, so I can use Mods and the fact I wont be hindered by the consoles limited power and go above and beyond them in terms of looks and at times performance. So will this set up run Skyrim, on optimal settings, without any problems (new system is purely for this purpose, and I see little point in buying a system that doesn't meet its needs).

Graphics card NVIDIA GeForce 3GB GT 545

Thanks in advance. A friend told me this should run Skyrim every which way without any difficulty, but getting a second opinion from the community would be great.

You don't want ANYTHING less than a "GTS", and nothing less than an "n50". A GTX is better, of course.

That card is just not particularly good.

Your Computer will run Skyrim in every way possible.

Not with a mere GT 545, it certainly won't. That's not a card worth considering for games.

[Terry]

You don't want ANYTHING less than a "GTS", and nothing less than an "n50". A GTX is better, of course.

That card is just not particularly good.



Not with a mere GT 545, it certainly won't. That's not a card worth considering for games.

The main issue here is the fact this isnt a custom build, and i dont much fancie buying a brand new desktop to have it sent away to be hacked at at my expense. This is an off the shelf desktop for ￡1099 from PC world (the english equvilant to... whoever your biggest computer chain store is) so would you recommend a diffrent desktop, or will this do considering its overkill in every other department almost? i dont want something like my laptop, which will play alot of games fantasticly, but the graphics card is so bad it wont meet to min requirement, were everything else mexes out.

[Carlitos Avila]

If it's a question of cost, as you've been told, there is too much money tied up in an expensive and very fast CPU, and not enough in a Low-midrange GPU. You've got what looks like plenty of room to shop for a system that is balanced better for gaming than the one you asked about.

[Robert]

If it's a question of cost, as you've been told, there is too much money tied up in an expensive and very fast CPU, and not enough in a Low-midrange GPU. You've got what looks like plenty of room to shop for a system that is balanced better for gaming than the one you asked about.

Any recomendations, using PC world, the only thing with a better Graphics card is ￡1399, which is what i was aiming for including monitor

I could have one built, but then its the issue of parts + labour, which could result in a worse computer for the same price :/

[Rachel Eloise Getoutofmyface]

We have "White Box" builders in every major stateside city who assemble custom-chosen parts to suit your desires for a rather nominal assembly expense. There is no such thing across the pond?

I am very skeptical of any storefront operations offering proper prices on pre-assembled systems; I expect them to overcharge by so much that I won't shop with them (such as our Best Buy stores here). I greatly prefer dealing with eTailers.

I've been building my own systems for 24 or 25 years now, and wouldn't even consider looking at anyone else's builds as any better or more reasonably expensed than my own.

[Eileen Collinson]

Is this good for Skyrim?

4 GB Ram
160 GB HD
Intel Core 2 Duo CPU T5850 @ 2.16 GHz 2.17 GHz
32-bit Windows Vista
NVidia GeForce 8600M GT
Dedicated Video Memory 256 MB
Shared System Memory 1535 MB
Creative Soundblaster X-Fi

[GPMG]

Is this good for Skyrim?

4 GB Ram
160 GB HD
Intel Core 2 Duo CPU T5850 @ 2.16 GHz 2.17 GHz
32-bit Windows Vista
NVidia GeForce 8600M GT
Dedicated Video Memory 256 MB
Shared System Memory 1535 MB
Creative Soundblaster X-Fi

no, you're gonna need an upgrade to well, everything.

[Russell Davies]

An 8600 m is way past its useful life, but if you anticipate being satisfied with Low to Medium on everything, that's where its performance fits in now (lowest 10% or so of the medium quality range).

no, you're gonna need an upgrade to well, everything.

I have to assume that the comment quoted resulted from your choice of the word "good" when asking about that really old laptop and Skyrim. Because to run it well, yes, almost everything is too far out of date.

[Richard]

We have "White Box" builders in every major stateside city who assemble custom-chosen parts to suit your desires for a rather nominal assembly expense. There is no such thing across the pond?

I am very skeptical of any storefront operations offering proper prices on pre-assembled systems; I expect them to overcharge by so much that I won't shop with them (such as our Best Buy stores here). I greatly prefer dealing with eTailers.

I've been building my own systems for 24 or 25 years now, and wouldn't even consider looking at anyone else's builds as any better or more reasonably expensed than my own.

as a general rule over here, the only builders are large company's that will tailor a system (Dell for example) or a small independent computer store who offer custom builds, but as a general rule the company's are far to expensive and small stores have a tendency to make something that will blow up the moment its plugged in.

ideally I want something that can simply be plugged in and work without needing to be stripped, as even with computer engineers a stone throws away, they have the tendency to go down the "you don't need that" route if they cant acquire something out of a box in the attic.

Are there any manufactures who can be relied on for selling something that's a good all rounder, as most iv found tend to accell to the point of being ludicrousness in one area, then in another simply die on their feet. as I said the budget is ￡1000 but can be stretched, and im not bothered about anything like 3D (or anything equally as pointless, for example i dont need 3 dozen USB ports) i can get a monitor from a local store, but I don't trust them for getting the actual computer, as they all have a habit of saying itll run something when in fact, it will not.

I have had a custom build before (although this was bought for me, not by me) which was reliable (mostly) and in a case double the size it needed, it was, however, made of spare parts.

My apologies for this, but buying a computer in England is like buying a kidney on eBay, plus this is an awful lot of money for me, but i need a computer that i can use for most everything, as having consoles and a TV for them and a laptop is simply idiotic.

Should also add at this point im a student, hence the need for something that wont need upgrading instantly and the lack of being able to spend more on this. But having a TV for gaming, Another for TV, and my laptop is about as cost affective as gold plating a toilet, so im trying to incorperate everything into one, plus, I'm a huge gamer

[Cartoon]

First, you find the "right" model pre-built somewhere, anywhere, with the correct balance of parts, then you use a price-collecting service that compares everyone's cost for that particular model. After looking at the quotes for the best prices, go to a different web site that collects recommendations and condemnations on various businesses, and find out what kind of reputation those particular dealers have accumulated. You probably won't actually buy from the very lowest-quoted dealer, who will either be too new to have a record, or is working so close to the profit margin that service is too poor.

[Nikki Lawrence]

My current PC will run ANYTHING on Maximum.. but it wasn't cheap at all.. want my Specs? :disguise:

iBUYPOWER Erebus Full Tower Custom Liquid Cooling Gaming Case - Black

iBUYPOWER Internal USB Expansion System + Bluetooth Module

Processor: Intel? Core? i7 990X Processor Extreme Edition (6x 3.46GHz/12MB L3 Cache)

iBUYPOWER PowerDrive Level 3 - Up to 30% Overclocking

Custom Liquid Cooling w/ Quad + 3 Dual Radiators

Low-Conductivity Coolant powered by Koolance Colorless

Tubing Wraps (Anti-Kink Coil) powered by Koolance - Black

Memory: 24 GB [4 GB X6] DDR3-1600 - Corsair Vengeance

Video Card: [Liquid Cooled] NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 - 3GB - Single Card

Motherboard: [3-Way SLI] Gigabyte G1.Sniper w/ Killer Network Technology

Power Supply: 1000 Watt -- Corsair CMPSU-1000HX

Primary Hard Drive: 60 GB ADATA S511 SSD SATA-III 6Gb/s - Single Drive

Data Hard Drive: 300 GB WD Velociraptor HARD DRIVE -- 16M Cache, 10000 RPM, 3.0Gb/s - Dual 300GB Drives (600GB Capacity) - RAID 0 High Performance

Optical Drive: [12X Blu-Ray] Pioneer BLU-RAY Re-Writer, DVD±R/±RW Burner Combo Drive Black

2nd Optical Drive: 24X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive [Lightscribe Technology] Black

Flash Media Reader / Writer: 12-In-1 External USB Flash Media Card Reader/Writer

Meter Display: NZXT Sentry 2 Touch Screen Fan Controller & Temperature Display

USB Expansion: NZXT Bunker 5.25" USB Locking Device (4 x Ports)

Sound Card: Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion Series

Network Card: Killer 2100 Gaming Network Card

Monitors: (2) 27" LCD 1920x1080 -- Sceptre X270W-1080P


Price: $6400


and as you can see.. There is plenty of room for expansion.. But I won't have to upgrade for about 2 yrs :thumbsup:

Why would you waste that much money on a computer, it's ridiculous. The only thing a console does have is better graphic. I can get mods for my 360 anyway.

[tannis]

Case
COOLERMASTER ELITE 310 BLUE CASE

Processor (CPU)
Intel? Core?i7-2600k Quad Core (3.40GHz, 8MB Cache) + HD Graphics

Motherboard
ASUS? P8Z68-V: USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs, NVIDIA?SLI?, ATI?CrossFireX

Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (2 x 4GB KIT)

Graphics Card
3GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 580 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready

Memory - 1st Hard Disk
1TB WD CAVIAR GREEN WD10EARS, SATA 3 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE

1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM

Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT

Power Supply
600W Quiet 80 PLUS Quad Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan

Processor Cooling
COOLIT ECO A.L.C (ADVANCED LIQUID COOLER)

Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)

Network Facilities
ONBOARD 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT - AS STANDARD ON ALL PCs

USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD

Modem
56KBPS INTERNAL V92 DATA/FAX/VOICE MODEM

Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence

Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE

Anti-Virus
NORTON ANTI-VIRUS 2011 - 1 Year Licence for 1 PC

Monitor
IIYAMA E2271HDS 22" LED WIDESCREEN, HDMI/DVI-D HD 1920x1080

DVI-D & HDMI Monitor Cables
1 x 2 METRE GOLD PLATED V1.4 HDMI CABLE

Keyboard & Mouse
LOGITECH? K200 USB MEDIA KEYBOARD

Mouse
LOGITECH? OPTICAL USB MOUSE

Speakers
LOGITECH Z323 2.1 SPEAKERS - 30W RMS with 360 Degree Sound

Surge Protection
6 Socket Compact 2M UFO Surge Protector + Auto Power Off Function

Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)

Home Installation
Technician Assisted Installation & Set-Up

Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)

Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 10 to 12 working days

Total Cost
￡1577.00 inc VAT


Is this a good system for the price? and more importantly, is it a good system at all?

[Lalla Vu]

So many idiots in this thread.

Here are the primary specs for a build I am getting in August:

• CASE - Antec Three Hundred Versatile Mid Tower Gamer Case
  
• MOBO - Asus P8P67-M Rev 3.0 w/ Dual DDR3 1600, 7.1 Audio, Gigabit Lan, 1394, Quad CrossFireX
  
• PSU - Corsair CMPSU-600CX V2 600 Watt
  
• CPU - Intel i5-2500K 3.30GHz w/ 6MB Cache
  
• GPU - Asus ENGTX 460 1GB GDDR5
  
• RAM - Corsair XMS3 4GB DDR3 1333MHz CL9 DIMM
  
• And of course Windows 7 64-bit (Home Premium)

If you need more specs in order to rate my system just ask.

[Oscar Vazquez]

I just want to ask something here. I know someone here said I would have no problem running Skyrim on full. My only concern is how does anyone know for sure? As I stated previously when I said I like to run my games on full. It needs to have a minimum of 60fps. This is with all the settings on their absolute highest, so AA, AF, Draw Distance, 1920 x 1200. So that is why I asked, I remember when Oblivion came out and I couldn't run that on full. At the time I had a very decent computer.

Store Bought HP
CPU: AMD Atholon 3800+ X2
RAM: 1GB DDR1 @ 400MHz
GPU: 7600GS
Monitor: 17" 1280 x 1024
Later I upgraded to a X 1950XTX.

For it's time the CPU I was using was the first dual core processor. Then a couple of months later Intel released their Core 2 Duo, and AMD has yet to take the crown back since then. From What I've seen though Skyrim looks amazing (graphics wise). Everytime they release a TES game the graphics are exponentially greater then the last, and a resource hog is born.

I'm not trying to derail this topic, but I just want to get my opinion out there and see what others think. To me personally it seems like a lot of people are underestimating this game in terms of it's graphics requirements. My friend back in the day had an 8800GTX and that was the GTX 580 of 2006. During moments where he was about to enter an oblivion gate, he was fighting things, and grass was swaying to the storm overhead his fps would drop as low as 20fps. His computer was the same as mine except he had 2GB of RAM and a 1920 x 1200 monitor. How can everyone be so sure that this game won't eat up my GTX 580?

Also to the person that asked about my dedicated physx card. The performance from it is awesome. It's only if you use something like an 8600gts or something that is leagues below the GTX580.

[Niisha]

Why would you waste that much money on a computer, it's ridiculous. The only thing a console does have is better graphic. I can get mods for my 360 anyway.

You have proven with this statement that you suffer from mild mental retardation.

[Laura Richards]

You have proven with this statement that you suffer from mild mental retardation.

lol, I think people have proven a lot in these threads... tsk tsk tsk...

[Genevieve]

Here are 2 PCs, I would like to know how each will perform in skyrim @ 1440x900 resolution and at which settings :

PC No.1 :

CPU : Intel Core2Quad 8300 @ 2.5Ghz
MOTHERBOARD : Asus P5PKPL-SE
GPU : Nividia GTX460 768mb
RAM : Corsair PCS2 4GB DDR2 800mhz Ram
HDD : Seagate Barracuda 1TB
Power Supply : 750W ThunderStone

PC No.2 :

CPU : AMD Phenom X4 955 AM3 3.2GHZ Black Edition
MOTHERBOARD : Asrock M3A770DE
GPU : XFX ATI Radeon 1024MB HD6850
RAM : Corsair 4GB Vengeance DDR3 1600mhz
HDD : Samsung 1.5TB Spinpoint SATA300 32MB
Power Supply : Xilence 800W Gaming SLi Rev3

anyone?

[Dewayne Quattlebaum]

I'm getting a laptop for my b-day and would really like to know if it will run Skyrim. I plan to upgrade the memory. I'd be content with it just running the game, don't care about max or whatever..

Compaq Presario CQ62-228DX 15.6" Black Notebook PC
Memory Type: DDR3
Total Memory Size: 3GB
Maximum Memory Supported: 8GB
Display Type: High-Definition HP BrightView LED Display
Maximum Resolution: 1366 x 768
Capacity: 160GB
Hard Drive Speed: 7200 RPM
Processor Brand: AMD
Processor Class: V Series
Processor Type: Single-Core
Processor Speed: 2.2GHz
Processor Number: V120
Graphics Description: Dedicated Graphics
GPU/VPU: ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4250 Graphics
Video Memory: Up to 1405MB
Windows 7 Home Premium

According to the op, I see the processor may be a bit slow.. I hope it's not unrunable at that speed?
Thanks.

[Christine]

666 mhz Pentium 3
384 mb RAM
Geforce 3 ti 200
Windows 98

[Keeley Stevens]

I'm getting a laptop for my b-day and would really like to know if it will run Skyrim. I plan to upgrade the memory. I'd be content with it just running the game, don't care about max or whatever..

Compaq Presario CQ62-228DX 15.6" Black Notebook PC
Memory Type: DDR3
Total Memory Size: 3GB
Maximum Memory Supported: 8GB
Display Type: High-Definition HP BrightView LED Display
Maximum Resolution: 1366 x 768
Capacity: 160GB
Hard Drive Speed: 7200 RPM
Processor Brand: AMD
Processor Class: V Series
Processor Type: Single-Core
Processor Speed: 2.2GHz
Processor Number: V120
Graphics Description: Dedicated Graphics
GPU/VPU: ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4250 Graphics
Video Memory: Up to 1405MB
Windows 7 Home Premium

According to the op, I see the processor may be a bit slow.. I hope it's not unrunable at that speed?
Thanks.

You won't be running Skyrim on that considering the single-core CPU which you haven't specified and the HD 4250. I highly recommend not getting this.

[Celestine Stardust]

666 mhz Pentium 3
384 mb RAM
Geforce 3 ti 200
Windows 98

This has got to be... THE GREATEST SETUP EVER!






(sarcasm)