gaming PC for my son. please review.

[Willzzz]

Because of the implied budget.

Obviously a 7870 is more powerful than a 7770, but then why not suggest a 7970? We can't all afford the best systems.

[Mehta23]

I know that there will be a budget. Otherwise I would've recommend a quad sli titan setup ^_^ cos obviously that's better.

But as far as i can see, no actual figure was mentioned.

[jim]

I know that there will be a budget. Otherwise I would've recommend a quad sli titan setup ^_^ cos obviously that's better.

But as far as i can see, no actual figure was mentioned.

Not here, but £300 was mentioned here: http://forums.hexus.net/welcome-hexu...ml#post2870581

Bonebreaker's estimate suggests £330 for the current build, so seems reasonable.

[Mehta23]

Oh right. That makes sense now ^_^

[dacads]

I haven't heard great things bout Scan so would be looking at overclockersuk and dabs, you pay the price for going cheap and not getting the service expected

[Phage]

I haven't heard great things bout Scan so would be looking at overclockersuk and dabs, you pay the price for going cheap and not getting the service expected

What have you heard about Scan ? I have heard good and bad things about all of those suppliers. Also there isn't much between their pricing, so your implication doesn't hold any water at all.

[Willzzz]

I've had dreadful service from overclockers, never buying from them again. Dabs have been consistently wonderful time after time. But I'm sure lots of people have had very different experiences.

[wasabi]

Supermum - if you're a first time builder you might want to consider taking the parts insurance option Scan offer when you hit checkout. Can't remember the smallprint but it gives you an extra safety net if stuff goes wrong.

[Mehta23]

I've had good experiences with all of them. Returns with Ebuyer was simple enough, but I was happy with the customer service from Scan and Amazon too.

[Biscuit]

most of the problems you read about scan on the forums end up either
a. being resolved fairly quickly
b. a customer who expects above and beyond his rights (which in many cases, scan have actually gone to with me but they have limits)
c. Proving to be a bit more complex than they may seem at a first glance.
Remember people quite often only make a fuss if there is a problem.

Sure scan mess up from time to time, but there are a lot Lot LOT more happy customers than unhappy. Take a look at their hexus trust and their google shopping reviews.

I have also had good experience with OCUK, Ebuyer, CCL, Aria, Novatech, Dabs, Morecomputers (although my friends used to work there and urged me not to buy from them) and various Amazon sellers (including Amazon themself).

You will always find someone who has some story that they will use to insist you dont buy from a certain company, at the end of the day there is always a risk and the best you can do is minimise it. To me that puts Scan pretty high on the list.

p.s. dont buy hard drives from ebuyer, they don't pack them properly.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

OcUK are now owned by Caseking and seem to be much better than in the past.

However,as BF3 and Arma II tend to prefer 4 reasonably fast threads,especially for MP games,I do wonder if an FM2 or AM3 Athlon II X4 would be a better choice:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B003M7BLO..._df_B003M7BLOW

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/amd-a...he-100w-retail

[supermum]

The budget is about £350.
What do you think??
Can you tell me what the best computer setup would be for this budget??
thanks a lot!!

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The budget is about £350.
What do you think??
Can you tell me what the best computer setup would be for this budget??
thanks a lot!!

Is that without an OS??

The build in the OP comes to around £375 to £400 when you include Windows 7.

[Bagnaj97]

For £350 the closest I can get is an APU build for £354 - http://www.ebuyer.com/lists/list/167335 It'll max out source engine games (Portal, Counterstrike, TF2, Garry's Mod, L4D etc). Other games will need settings turning down quite a lot, but you could add a discrete graphics card later down the line and the CPU will be able to keep up more than your original Pentium suggestion.

Replacing the CPU with an Athlon and adding a discrete card would be somewhere between £375 and £400 as Cat's previously suggested. Also, whilst most games will run on 4gb, 8gb is preferable. Both for multitasking and future-proofing. Personally, unless you're desperate to purchase now, I'd wait and save up at least another £50 or so.

I'd say these are what you want to aim for:
FX6300 + 8gb ram + discrete card = budget
FM2 Athlon + 8gb ram + discrete card = fairly tight budget
A10-5800k + 4gb fast ram (2000+ MHz) = very tight budget

[wasabi]

p.s. dont buy hard drives from ebuyer, they don't pack them properly.

Had several 2.5 inch drives (SSD and spinny) off ebuyer - all superbly packaged.

My vote goes for Scan for specialist stuff and ebuyer for commodity stuff. Both are great IMO.

Personally avoid OCUK like the plague as find them obnoxiously arrogant. I also avoid Dabs as they let someone run up £3.5k of debt on my debit card (for 4 high end TVs delivered not to my registered account address...) using credentials skimmed at a petrol station.

[phil4]

Personally avoid OCUK like the plague as find them obnoxiously arrogant.

I'll second that. Why I had to write a formal letter of complaint quoting the sale of goods act to get a refund on defective goods (as admitted by the manufacturer!!!), is completely beyond me.