Ok, to start this off I’m a mac lover. I know, I know, wrong crowd. However, I’m considering buying a PC for game development (level design and 3d modeling to be specific, here’s a link to my latest project ). My absolute max budget is $3500 or so, but obviously I would love to stay under that.
My current computer is a MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Late 2013)
2.3 GHz Intel Core i7
16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Intel Iris Pro 1536 MB
I think I could probably use something more powerful, but I don’t know a ton about computers, so maybe I don’t actually need an upgrade. That’s why I’m asking for advice.
I looked at getting a nice iMac, but I think to get something significantly better than what I have, its gonna rune me close to $3500.
Here are the stats on that:
4.0GHz quad-core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 4.2GHz
32GB 1867MHz DDR3 SDRAM - four 8GB
512GB Flash Storage
AMD Radeon R9 M395X with 4GB video memory
I literally know nothing about picking out a good PC, but I’m wondering if I couldn’t get something better for the price, or save some money by getting a good PC. I know I want a nice monitor (something like the Acer Predator 34"), which knocks around $1000 off. So what would I be looking at for a $1500 - $2000 PC?
Besides that you would need a CPU cooler, disc drive (DVD or blu-ray) a case and a copy of Windows.
Of course some of those things you can switch for something cheaper, like the GPU you could get a GTX 1070 instead which is still great but costs $380
Some things you have to wait until they come out, the 1080 comes out end of this week, the 1070 comes out June 10th, and if you want to wait and see then Intel will be producing new CPU’s to replace the i7 5820 line, so the 6820 will be coming at some point later this year.
Thanks for the help @darth. Its the performance difference in the GTX 1080 and the 1070 fairly significant? And any sites you would recommend for getting custom PC?
I would look up the reviews on the SSD and the CPU cooler to make sure they are good. Also, you’ll probably need a bigger power supply, like 800W
I’d also recommend looking at a cheaper monitor option, that’s very expensive and I’m not sure it’s worth the money unless it’s just something you really really want.
Thanks @darth, I do realize the screen is pricey, but I was thinking it would give me the options I need as an artist/designer and as a game dev. But then I might just be trying to justify it haha.
After digging a little more and doing some more research, here’s what I’ve landed on. I know I can cut the price down with a cheaper (much cheaper) monitor option, but other than that, does it look like I’m going overkill in any area? Or any compatibility issues I may not be aware of? To clarify I do pretty graphically intense level design, as well as texturing and some 3d modeling.
I dont believe you need a dedicated network adapter as most motherboards have one built in, although not sure about that model. As for the monitor, I would seriously consider scrapping it and buying 2-3 cheaper monitors, as using more than one monitor can tremendously speed up productivity. Also I see that the monitor is 100Hz, but if youre just doing development and not streaming or hardcore gaming, then a higher refresh rate isnt really needed and will just drive up the price of the monitor. If I were to suggest other monitors I would look for some that are 1080-2k and probably 60Hz so you can get more for your money, because like I said, productivity goes up with more than one monitor and that is definitely something you want, its worth getting two monitors that arent as good as one because you can do much more with the two. You can have your modeler open on one monitor, UE4 open in another, and your internet in the third (if you decide on three) which will make switch back and forth much easier.
As for the graphics card, I would highly, highly recommend not attempting to buy one until the 1080 is released, as well as its benchmarks, and if you can wait a little longer, wait for third party 1080s to start popping up from other companies, because generally those are better than the first release. The 1080 is much better than any existing cards, and if you are in the US, and it is around $600 then it will definitely be worth it.
Thanks for the input @shirk! I probably will end up waiting for the third party 1080’s, as I’m not in a super rush. And the monitor I’m looking at in an ultra-wide 34", from my research I was thinking I could use it as if it were 2 monitors when I wanted to, or just one, depending on the situation. And speaking of the 100Hz, its also has G-Sync and such, which really drives the price up. So do you think stuff like that isn’t necessary/helpful for a game developer?
Also forgot to mention I’m a graphic designer as well, so having at least WQHD rez is important. THIS is a much more budget friendly one without all the fancy gaming features.
I highly recommend getting 2 monitors rather than the one big one–I don’t think the big one will help all that much, it’s just cool. At home I use 2 Asus 144hz monitors and it’s great. The higher refresh rate is definitely noticeable in stuff like 3ds Max as well.
That motherboard also does have a network port, so you don’t need to get a separate card
More cores doesn’t equal more speed, AMD doesn’t have anything that competes at that level, the fastest AMD desktop processor is the FX-9590 which isn’t as fast as the 5820k
The only thing as far as processors go is that the 5820k is Haswell-E and they will be releasing Broadwell-E sometime this year which will replace it, but not sure when that will be. Luckily they use the same socket so whatever you get right now if you wanted to upgrade the CPU when the new ones come out you can just switch out the CPU’s
I didn’t filter the page, which is why I said most of this page. I am basing it solely on reported Ghz.
If AMD is lying about it, then that’s a different problem, but I’m making the statement, and sticking to it, that AMD cpu’s are faster for price over Intel CPU’s based solely on reported Ghz speed from the respective companies.
