Choosing a computer that is in my budget price range

[malikrthr]

Here is the Here is the last update of my list before I begin to purchase the computer components. A couple of improvements with this computer.

1. Power Supply: Limited Edition 700W Power Supply - ATX, 115/230V

2. Processor: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Deneb Black edition 3.4Ghz boxed processor

3. Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-970A-UD3 AM3+ AMD 970 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard

4. Video Card: EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR GeForce GTX 550 Ti (Fermi) FPB 1GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

5. Monitor: HannsG HL203DPB 20" Class LED Backlit Monitor - 1600 x 900, 16:9, 30000000:1 Dynamic, 5ms, DVI, VGA, Energy Star

6. RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9

7.Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

8. System Case: Z9 ATX Mid Tower Computer Case



My question is, based off of my most recent computer specifications, would this computer be able to handle my Major Tri State Area in Trainz 2010 at maximum graphics settings while running around 50-60fps? Maybe even better? Would this computer be able to handle trainz smoothly in areas where there are alot of treez, scenery objects, buildings, factories, tracks, trains, and shrubs. I would like to turn all the sliders up along with the anisotropy cranked to max. Basically I would like to run trainz 2010 with alot of detail, very high view distance, and smooth as glass. As long as I can run trainz as smooth as glass with all of these settings cranked to max, then I'll be a happy camper. How smoothly does everyone think this computer will handle all the detail and high graphics settings?last update of my list before I begin to purchase the computer components. A couple of improvements with this computer.

1. Power Supply: Limited Edition 700W Power Supply - ATX, 115/230V

2. Processor: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Deneb Black edition 3.4Ghz boxed processor

3. Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-970A-UD3 AM3+ AMD 970 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard

 

[malikrthr]

My bad about the above post showing up in white font. all you have to do is click and highlight and after that you will be able to read what I wrote.

 

[RRSignal]

Looks good except the monitor. I'd get one that does 1920x1080; oddball resolutions might not look right.

Personally, I don't like LCD/LED monitors, but if I were in the market for something like that, I'd have to go down to Best Buy and actually see them in action. I've only seen one that I really like. I'm kinda picky like that though.

 

[malikrthr]

Do you think this computer would handle my Major Tri State Area Project with decent framerates, maybe between 40 and 70. It will have parts of New York City, Long Island, New Jersey, Westchester county, Rockland county, Orange County, Duchess County, and Connecticut all in one route. I'd say about several hundred miles of track and about 1000 baseboards or so. How do you think the EVGA GTX 550Ti fermi edition would handle everything if I put all the graphics settings to high, along with anisotropy set to high. It has 1GB GDDR5 and 951Mhz core clock. I hope it won't stutter or lag with all the detail that is being put into this route.

 

[johnwhelan]

Toms has a new $500 game machine http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-pc-overclocking-pc-building,3273.html

Cheerio John

 

[malikrthr]

Would you go with the GTX 550ti that has 1GB GDDR5 and a core clock of 951Mhz or a GTX 550Ti with a core clock of 900Mhz. Even though the 1GB GDDR5 951Mhz is faster, it is only by a little bit. The 900Mhz has twice the memory would it be able to run with trainz 2010 at high detail in areas where there are alot of splines, buildings and trees. I was searching this card up on Google the other day and it seems there are mixed reviews on it. Based off of what I learned and looked up so far, it seems that this card would easily outperform or would be alot better than the radeon 6570 with 2GB, GT 520 with 2GB or GT610 with 2GB. I also read the reviews on Thomashardware and it seems that even though the AMD FX 4100 would be the best budget processor out now, it is not a true quad core. The Phenom II X4 965 would be the better choice. If anyone has any opinons, feel free to post. I appreciate the help so far. So far, it seems the best graphics card to get would be the GTX 550Ti fermi 1GB with 951Mhz core clock, that is my opinion.

 

[malikrthr]

Good news everyone. Purchased just about all the computer parts today. I went to Microcenter and brought the AMD Phenom II X4 965 black edition 3.4Ghz boxed processor and a Z9 ATX mid tower case. Can't wait to build my first desktop.

 

[malikrthr]

Last weekend, I was building my computer and I was sure I did everything right as far as the building goes. I then pressed the power button on my new gaming desktop and nothing happened. I rebuilt it about two or three times just to see if I made any errors or missed something along the way. Could not find anything wrong so I did a little research on my laptop and found some info about issues due to a faulty or defective Power Supply. My power supply is brand new so I thought it would be working ok. Thomas hardware along with some youtube videos explained how to test the power supply. The next morning, I made a U shape out of a paper clip and put that in the green and black wires for the Power connector and then turned the power switch on. None of the fans on the Power Supply were spinning.

Yesterday afternoon, I went over to Home Depot to pick up a multimeter because that is the best way to see what is receiving power and what isn't. For the multimeter, I put the black wire in the port that says COM. Then I put the red wire in the port that say V, Omega Symbol, ma or Vma. I found a youtube video on youtube and then turned the switch on the multi meter to 20V. The screen gave me 0.00. I followed the video by connecting the red wire from the multimeter to the yellow wire in the molex and the black wire from the multimeter to the black wire in the molex connector. According to the video, it would have gave a reading of 12.66. It gave me a reading of 0.00. Same went for the power connector. So now, I am assuming that I have a dead Power Supply. Would that be true if the readings just stay on 0.00?

 

[SuperFudd]

Looks like a dead supply. Does it have a circuit breaker you can reset?
Since the meter is new, have you tested it, perhaps by reading the voltage of a battery.

 

[tomurban]

Did you remember to plug the PS into a live outlet?

 

[clam1952]

This should be obvious but has it got an on / off switch on the back of the PSU?
Tried a different power lead?
Not sure what sort of plugs they have in the US but is it a fused one and does it have a fuse in it? if it has is it blown.
Also check the voltage selector is correct and not set up as for Europe at 240 volts.
What make was the PSU?

 

[malikrthr]

Good news and bad news everyone. I just got a new ULTRA limited 700W power supply. I tested the PSU with a paper clip and I saw the fans spinning. . Ok so that tells me the the PSU is working. Today, I decided to put the PSU in the system case and connect all of my connectors to the motherboard. I then pressed the power button on my case and the fan under the hard drive and dvd bays turned on with it's blue lights for 1 second then immediately turned back off. What could be the problem now? I hope it's a simple error that can be easily fixed. Would anyone know?

 

[SuperFudd]

Hmmm...

Seems like the supply is shutting down cause it can't put out enough current, behaps because of a short in the computer?
Is the supply pluged in correctly?

 

[malikrthr]

The power suppy is plugged in correctly. There is 115V in the wall and on the plug for the power supply, there is a tag that says 125V. The psu is 700W and I have the supplemental power connector along with the main atx 24pin connector plugged in to my motherboard.

 

[malikrthr]

I am out of this world happy right now. I finally built a gaming PC and got it up and running. Had to get a replacement power supply to make it work. With the help, support and conversations with so many people from my family, train forums, and friends, my computer now works. Just need Windows 7 or 8 as an operating system. Doing studying and research on the computer parts really helps in the end. I am just so happy. I guess it is safe to say that I know how to build a computer now. It took several months of trial and error but I really appreciate all the help that I got from so many people. I know this computer is going to work out great. Even though I had to go with trial and error for several months with this computer, it shows that perseverance and determination all pay off in the end. Here are some pics

 

[JCitron]

Congratulations on the birth of your new computer!

I'm sure this was quite the learning experience for you. After you've done this a few times, you'll become an expert.

On thing I'd like to mention though. Straighten out those power wires. Try to tie them up neatly because this will help the air flow in the case. This really makes a difference when it's very hot outside and the computer is mustering all its power trying to run trains without overheating from the heat and humidity outside.

I'm not sure if your case has this, but mine allows wires to be tucked out of the way behind the motherboard so that the only thing protruding are the wires at the connectors. Other than a few wires here and there, my case is pretty void of wires all over the place.

John

 

[malikrthr]

My case does not have the ports or little holes to tuck away the unused PSU connectors. On the other side of the motherboard, there is a little space to tuck away the unused PSU connections. I just tied some of the unused PSU connections several minutes ago. It may not be that much of an improvement though but it is something. Just one question though, I am now debating between which trainz simulation to get along with with which operating system to get.

Ok first trainz. I have seen several videos and screenshots of trainz 2010 and trainz 12. To me, trainz 12 looks more appealing but it has no compatibility mode so older pieces of content from from earlier version of trainz will have issues. I heavily depend on some of those older pieces of content to build my major tri state area project. A mixture of the old content that I use is from the dls and third party sites. I did hear that N3V is working on putting everything from trainz 2010 on the dls along with upgrading the older pieces of content from the dls so they won't show as faulty and will work in trainz 2012. That sounds interesting but I am still debating. I have seen some screenshots of routes that adjust to different seasons such as fall and winter. Would that appear in trainz 2012 or 2010? I also heard that trainz 2012 has a better speedtreez system and I recently read a thread around here that says, trainz 2012 CMP has a better error identification system than 2010 so trainz 2012 may see errors in certain pieces of content that trainz 2010 cant. I know I am jumping from topic to topic but both simulators look appealing. Maybe I should go for trainz 2010 in native mode.
What does everyone think. I would like to build my Major Tri State Area Project without having many issues with content not working, doppler effect, seasonal changes, etc...

Now as far as operating systems go, personally, I really don't like Windows 8 beacause it has that tablet look. I am used to the traditional Windows style with the taskbar and start menu and desktop icons. I heard there are ways of getting Windows 8 to look like 7 though. What would be a better operating system as far as Trainz performance and fps goes, Windows 7 or Windows 8.

 

[drchoi21]

Go with TS2010, I have tried out TS12, but many of my custom contents are faulty with ridiculous errors. with operating system, get an XP or Vista

 

[malikrthr]

Which mode would you operate trainz 2010 in, Compatibility mode or Native mode?

 

[drchoi21]

Native mode, I used Compatibility mode, but it still didn't drop under 200 FPS, so I just use Native mode because I've fixed all the faulty content