Mobo-
Manufacturer: Acer
Model #: EG31M R01-C2
Link if possible: N/A
Operating System-
Name: Windows Vista Home Premium
Bit: 32
Resolution-
Size: 1920x1080
Sound Card-
Manufacturer: Unknown
Model #: Unknown
Channels: Unknown
DxDiag: ???
Link if possible: N/A
Network Card-
Manufacturer: Unknown
Model #: Unknown
Wired or Wireless: Wired
Link if possible: N/A
================
Now what is it you want....
Upgrade or New Computer: New Computer, willing to reuse anything worthwhile
Upgrade on what (you hope): Everything but peripherals
Willing to Self Build or a Pre-Built: Either
How much you want to spend: roughly $1,000 US
How much you can spend: roughly $1,000 US
What all you plan to use it for: mostly WoW, some email and light browsing
What Operating system you want to use & Bit: Win7/8 64bit
What Resolution you hope to be in: 1920x1080 (current)
What Settings do you Want & how much FPS: as high as possible with at least 60 fps in WoW, preferably more, of course
What Country are you from: United States
What can you re-use: monitor, keyboard, mouse, headset
Network will be wired or wireless: wired
Any Additional Info Here: No major problems with my current setup. Had it for a few years and ready for an upgrade. I've perused the most recent setup of the month by chaud and figure something around the Narwhal specs are what I'll end up with. I'd be happy buying pre-built but have no aversion to building my own if it would be significantly less expensive as my husband and I have done so before.
I've checked out ibuypower.com as it was recommended to me by a few folks locally. I managed to build something close to "Narwhal" that includes an OS, shipping and a warranty for an estimated $1,286.25 which is a little higher than where I would like to be. I've pasted the specs of that build below but I am welcome to any and all opinions, of course.
1 x Case ( NZXT Source 210 Gaming Case - Blue )
0 x Case Lighting ( None )
0 x iBUYPOWER Labs - Noise Reduction ( None )
0 x iBUYPOWER Labs - Internal Expansion ( None )
1 x Processor ( Intel® Core™ i5-3570K Processor (4x 3.40GHz/6MB L3 Cache) - Intel Core i5-3570K )
0 x iBUYPOWER PowerDrive ( None )
1 x Processor Cooling ( Liquid CPU Cooling System [SOCKET-1155] - Standard 120mm Fan )
1 x Memory ( 8 GB [4 GB X2] DDR3-1600 Memory Module - Corsair or Major Brand )
1 x Video Card ( AMD Radeon HD 7870 - 2GB - Single Card )
1 x Video Card Brand ( Major Brand Powered by AMD or NVIDIA )
1 x Free Stuff ( [FREE] - Razer Arctosa Gaming Keyboard - Free with purchase of any desktop )
1 x Free Stuff ( [FREE] - Gigabyte GC-WB300D Bluetooth 4.0 / Dual Band WiFi Expansion Card - Free with purchase of Intel Desktop )
1 x Motherboard ( ASUS P8Z77-V LX )
0 x Intel Smart Response Technology ( None )
1 x Power Supply ( 650 Watt - Corsair CMPSU-650TXV2 - Free Upgrade to 750 Watt Corsair CMPSU-750TXV2 ($20 Savings) )
1 x Primary Hard Drive ( 2 TB WD Black HARD DRIVE -- 64M Cache, 7200rpm, 6.0Gb/s - Single Drive )
1 x Data Hard Drive ( 120 GB OCZ Agility 3 SSD - Single Drive )
1 x Optical Drive ( 24X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive - Black )
0 x 2nd Optical Drive ( None )
0 x Flash Media Reader / Writer ( None )
0 x Meter Display ( None )
0 x USB Expansion ( None )
1 x Sound Card ( 3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard )
1 x Network Card ( Onboard LAN Network (Gb or 10/100) )
1 x Operating System ( Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium + Office Starter 2010 (Includes basic versions of Word and Excel) - 64-Bit )
0 x Monitor ( None )
0 x 2nd Monitor ( None )
0 x Speaker System ( None )
0 x Video Camera ( None )
1 x Advanced Build Options ( Tuniq TX-2 High Performance Thermal Compound)
1 x Advanced Build Options ( Professional wiring for all cables inside the system tower - Achieve exceptional airflow in your chassis )
1 x Advanced Build Options ( Professional wiring for all cables inside the system tower - Advanced - Power Package (Individually Sleeved 24-pin ATX, 8-pin CPU, and SATA Drive Power Cabling) )
1 x Advanced Build Options ( Professional wiring for all cables inside the system tower - Advanced - Video Package (Individually Sleeved 8-pin and 6-pin PCI-E VGA Power Cabling) )
1 x Advanced Build Options ( Professional wiring for all cables inside the system tower - Basic Pro Wiring )
0 x Case Engraving Service ( None )
1 x Warranty ( 3 Year Standard Warranty Service )
1 x Rush Service ( Rush Service Fee (not shipping fee) - No Rush Service, Estimate Ship Out in 5~10 Business Days )
Thanks!
---------- Post added 2012-11-18 at 06:00 PM ----------
Just noticed the "Computer Build / Upgrade Help" Sub-forum, could a mod possibly move this post there? Thanks!
Better GPU, roughly the same price. You can save a good bit by buying things on sale. If you live near a CompUSA or Microcenter there are cheap CPUs there. The code EMCJJJA35 takes $20 off of the case price at Newegg. The games the GPU comes with can be sold if you don't want them. You can grab Windows 8 for ~$40. You can get a slower 2TB drive for ~$100 if you are only storing media or other non speed limited things. Lots of ways to save! 16GB RAM is on sale today for $40 with the code HARDOCP1114C.
Cost cutting mostly. Just about any SSD is much faster than a spinning disk, and it doesn't sound like Scrimshaw is pushing for the fastest things out there. I wouldn't pay $93 for it though. The 256GB version was on sale for $130 AR last week. All about those sales if you want to save money!
Looking at two setups, all being equal aside from...
1 x Case ( NZXT Phantom Full Tower Gaming Case - Red )
1 x Processor ( AMD FX-8150 CPU (8x 3.60GHz/8MB L2 Cache) - FREE Upgrade to FX-8350 8-Core CPU )
1 x Processor Cooling ( Liquid CPU Cooling System w/ Dual Radiator - 2x Standard 120mm Fan )
1 x Motherboard ( ASUS M5A97 -- AMD 970 )
▲▲▲▲▲
is $118.70 USD more than
▼▼▼▼▼
1 x Case ( NZXT Source 210 Gaming Case - Blue )
1 x Processor ( Intel® Core™ i5-3570K Processor (4x 3.40GHz/6MB L3 Cache) - Intel Core i5-3570K )
1 x Processor Cooling ( Liquid CPU Cooling System [SOCKET-1155] - Standard 120mm Fan )
1 x Motherboard ( ASUS P8Z77-V LK -- 2x PCI-E 3.0 x16, 4x USB 3.0 )