Know hardly anything about PC builds etc. Need help with my first desktop! (UK)

[KillerChinchilla]

Hi everyone,

I've basically been playing WoW on a Dell Inspiron 15R since August 2011 and since then, I've had to deal with not being able to play on high/ultra graphics and I get averagely 12FPS anywhere in game (usually get even less than that in the Shrine of Two Moons to the point where I can't actually move) so to say it's been stressing me out is an understatement because raiding is obviously having the same FPS issues and it's just ruining my experience of the game. I look after my stuff really well and even though my laptop is just over 2 years old, it is on its way out sooo I've decided it's time to get my first desktop.

I'll be starting to save up money for the parts for the build etc. after Christmas as I've already got a ridiculous amount of things on a list I need to buy first...but the thing is I literally have no idea what to even look at and what not to look at when looking to build a PC. I'd have to get it built for me too as I wouldn't have a clue how to do that either (looking at the sticky thread on here atm which includes how to build a pc) so however much extra that will cost will have to go in the budget. I don't want to 'go cheap' for my first desktop either, I want it to actually last a good amount of years so I need a build that's as cheap as it possibly can be but with the best parts available for the specifications I'll list below. I want it before Warlords of Draenor is released so I've got a good 6 months at least to save money and get it built haven't I?

Budget: £600 - £800
Resolution: 1920x1080
Games / Settings Desired: Pretty much only play WoW and want to play it on max settings and be able to get 30-50 FPS in a combat environment.
Any other intensive software or special things you do (Frequent video encoding, 3D modeling, etc): I'm a photographer so I need to be able to run Photoshop and Lightroom and any other software seamlessly and sometimes together.
Country: UK
Parts that can be reused: None
Do you need an OS?: Yes
Do you need peripherals (e.g. monitor, mouse, keyboard, speakers, etc)?: I need a monitor, keyboard and speakers.

Also, another question that I've been wanting to ask that some of you may have an answer for, because of the new character models and the slight improvement of graphics on Draenor in game for WoD, will this change anything drastically enough to go for other parts over another part in the PC build or? It's just I've been wondering if it will make much difference to whatever build I get because I know Blizzard said somewhere recently that they'll release minimum specs for the next expansion nearer the time of release.

I would include a list of parts if I knew what to actually look at but I don't so hopefully you can all help me with my request, thanks!

[Toffie]

Pre-built, monitor, keyboard, speakers, WoW maxed and 60 fps in combat at that budget will never happen.
Not even with an unlimited buget would you run WoW at average of 60 fps, I run 40-50 fps with my setup.

[KillerChinchilla]

Pre-built, monitor, keyboard, speakers, WoW maxed and 60 fps in combat at that budget will never happen.
Not even with an unlimited buget would you run WoW at average of 60 fps, I run 40-50 fps with my setup.

Well I did kind of just grab that part from another thread because I thought 60 was the norm! I'll edit that bit to 30-50 FPS.

[Toffie]

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...odid=FS-355-OK

Remember to add windows 8.1 to the build.

+ Windows 8.1
+ 7870 IceQ

Total = 583

Nice IPS monitor from dell & Keyboard, yes the keyboard is cheap but I don't see the point to spend extra on lightning keys & other rubbish things, up to you.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

Monitor: Dell S2340L 60Hz 23.0" Monitor (£147.49 @ CCL Computers)
Keyboard: Dell KB212-B Wired Ergonomic Keyboard (£9.69 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £157.18
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 12:54 GMT+0000)

All total = 740 £
Speaker I have no clue, someone else can most likely help you there ^^

[KillerChinchilla]

Thanks so much! I'll have a look at all that now.

[Toffie]

Thanks so much! I'll have a look at all that now.

No problem mate, just be to sure to check the free games you get at AMD.com/radeonrewards also

[KillerChinchilla]

No problem mate, just be to sure to check the free games you get at AMD.com/radeonrewards also

Will do. and btw, is there really a massive difference between i3 and i5 or will I get relatively the same performance with i3 for that PC build because I've seen the builds with i5 are way more expensive and out of my price range. It's just because the laptop I have atm has i3 so how different would that PC build be in terms of performance?

[Toffie]

Will do. and btw, is there really a massive difference between i3 and i5 or will I get relatively the same performance with i3 for that PC build because I've seen the builds with i5 are way more expensive and out of my price range. It's just because the laptop I have atm has i3 so how different would that PC build be in terms of performance?

Well for WoW you won't get much more out of a i5 (4 core) vs a i3 (2 core), the difference between a i3 4130 & i5 4670 Is that the 4670 has a higher boost clock 3.8GHz vs the i3's 3.4GHz. The difference is perhaps 5-7 higher average fps in raids. Now the difference will be higher once you start playing newer games like BF4 that can use more cores, but for WoW the difference is minimal.

Don't get the wrong idea of the i3, it will be by far more powerful then your i3 in your laptop.

[KillerChinchilla]

Well for WoW you won't get much more out of a i5 (4 core) vs a i3 (2 core), the difference between a i3 4130 & i5 4670 Is that the 4670 has a higher boost clock 3.8GHz vs the i3's 3.4GHz. The difference is perhaps 5-7 higher average fps in raids. Now the difference will be higher once you start playing newer games like BF4 that can use more cores, but for WoW the difference is minimal.

Don't get the wrong idea of the i3, it will be by far more powerful then your i3 in your laptop.

Oh right cool, thanks for clearing that up. You've been really helpful.