9 Upgrades to Create a Monster Gaming Rig

To help you create the best gaming PC possible, TechRadar handpicked 9 of the best PC upgrades from their database of reviews to help turn you from Fail1ty into Fatal1ty.

[Major_Tom]

Wow, this must be the worst page layout I've ever come across. So 'deep into technology' that there comment section is 3/4 of the article.

[phosphor112]

I want to bring this up before anyone else does. "Why does it seem like PS3 fanboys always have a 'gaming rig'?"

Because most do =]

http://i735.photobucket.com...
40lb full tower CPX case (7 fans, 850w antec PSU)
GTX 260
4 gigs of ram
Q6600 @ 3.5ghz
1080p 5ms monitor
The blue/grey thing under the monitor is my amplifier for my 5.1 head set (tritton ax360)
A pack of big red gum (f*ck yeah)

last but not least PS3

[Major_Tom]

I also have a gaming computer, why only 4gigs of ram?

[phosphor112]

It's a waste.. when win 7 comes out, i'll upgrade to 8. Win 7 will be able to use all of that, and ram will be cheaper (yes, only slightly, but still cheaper) than what it is now.

[likedamaster]

Best thing about your rig is the case. PS3? Not so much.

[phosphor112]

Soo.. me being able to run Crysis on full settings isn't good enough for you? My case is the only good part? You obviously don't know what you are talking about. Even a quick google search would have shown that those are top notch...

[Pandamobile]

The Q6600 was top dog in 2006. It's still a good CPU, but it's not top dog.

And the 260 is pretty much your basic high-end GPU.

[phosphor112]

Yeah, you are right.. GTX 260 is the best bang for you buck (not the best GPU) and pretty much the same for the Q6600.. but either way, I can still play all the new games at the highest settings, so I don't see what's wrong with it. Especially when I'm working with a student budget.

[2FootYard]

Monsters aren't real.

[marcus j]

Why would you buy a gtx 295 when the new ati cards (5870) will beat it?

[TheIneffableBob]

The card hasn't launched yet.

[ReservoirDog316]

You know, I would love to build something like this to play pc games but I swear, I just can't get the hang of keyboard and mouse controls. So it would kinda suck to go through all the trouble of building a Crysis-ready pc yet being unable to play it cause I can't do keyboard and mouse.

I don't know how people say they prefer keyboard and mouse over a PS3 or 360 controller.

[champ21]

@reservoir

breakings news controllers are supported, even ps3 controller.

anyways.. once you start using M/KB for fps, rts there is no way you are gonna go back to the controller.

[Pandamobile]

"I don't know how people say they prefer keyboard and mouse over a PS3 or 360 controller. "

Really?

FPS games are designed for mouse and keyboard. You don't have per-pixel accuracy with the analog sticks.

When you use a mouse, you get quicker reactions, and more precise aiming. You can turn 180 degrees and shoot a guy faster than you can say "BOO".

Certain games work better with different control schemes. Racing games, sports games, side scrollers, adventure games work better with controllers. First person shooters, third person shooters, RTS, and MMORPG's work better with mice. Games where you need quick and precise movements will benefit heavily from a mouse.

We'll use COD4 as an example for this:

If you were to get some 'professional' Xbox 360 COD4 player with a controller, and drop him in a PC server, he'd get absolutely owned.

[ReservoirDog316]

@champ21

Yeah I know controllers are supported. But I doubt I'd get the full experience on a pc if I were to use a PS3 controller.

@Pandamobile

Yeah, I've seen how perfect people are with a keyboard and mouse. I could use a mouse (obviously) pretty well since it requires very little thinking but I can't get used to the wasd thing. It just never works right for me. Maybe I just need more practice.

[Pandamobile]

For a hardened PC FPS player like myself, playing with a controller is like doing the 100m dash in a wheelchair.

[GamerPS360]

100m dash in wheelchair.. best way to explain. That's why I call handicap controller when it comes to FPS, TPS !!

I'd love to see crossplatform multiplayer games in future. I know company won't support it but may be through hax....somehow !!!!

[Pandamobile]

GamerPS360:

The main reason we don't see cross platform play is because the PC versions of games always have more patches because it's easy to release a quick fix on a PC game, where as on the PS3 and 360, the devs have to get all this crap certified and verified by Sony or Microsoft and that can take weeks.

Cross platform play would be impossible if the different platforms are on different versions. (I'm citing a guy from Epic games on why UT3 cross platform play between PC and PS3 was dropped.)

[Jdoki]

@ReservoirDog

A LOT of games are now supporting the 360 controller out of the box on PC.

Load up Bioshock or Wolfenstein, for example and press the Guide button and the layout and even onscreen button prompts change to the 360 control mappings. Requires no manual mapping of buttons - it's pretty good.

I bought the wireless receiver for Windows, so I can use my 360 wireless controller. Works great (even on Windows 7 RC1)

Personally I prefer mouse/keyboard - but it's nice to have the option for some 3rd person adventure games.

[likedamaster]

I retired the mouse & keyboard a few years back. I'll take the controller over M+KB any day.

[ReservoirDog316]

Yeah I know controllers are supported a lot. But I wouldn't really be getting the same experience playing with a controller on a pc as I would playing with a mouse and keyboard.

[Pandamobile]

I just use my 360 controller for games like GRID and occasionally when I'm flying vehicles in Battlefield 2.

[zagibu]

The real reason why cross-platform multiplayer will never work is not version-differences. PC patches rarely touch the client/server code, so this is just an excuse. The trouble is the handicap. The different controlling schemes are meant for different games, FPS just don't work on controllers. They tried it in Shadowrun, and it was very frustrating for PC players, because they introduced an unusual bullet spread and maximum turning rate. Without these handicaps, it would not have been fair for the controller-guys, but with them, it was not fun for the PC players (who wants to play a gimped shooter?).

[shutupandplay]

Listen up ps3 fanboys. 9 tips to upgrade your non-existent monster gaming rigs.

[gambare]

Number one:

Put an insecure bot to comment BS about PS Rigs that has nothing to do with the PS3

[Pandamobile]

I've got a real life gaming rig! WOW!

[marcus j]

I use toonly play my ps3 a lot before but started to get into pc gaming, cs:s will make you love your keyboard also make you better even at cod4 on ps3.

[2FootYard]

Wow, what a waste of money it must have been and will continue being.

[darx]

Ready for the reunion tour to hit the states?

[SpitFireAce85]

"When you use a mouse, you get quicker reactions, and more precise aiming. You can turn 180 degrees and shoot a guy faster than you can say "BOO". "

Can you do that in real life dont think so.Last time i checked
gamers wanted games to be more realistic.And not where you turn 180
degrees and give some guy a head shot at 100 yards.

Thats why i dont like playing PC FPS games their to fast paced.
Very unrealistic.Then there is gaming keyboards and mice to give
you an edge over the competition just like a modded controller
which to me is cheating.

I also heard there is the
•Killer Xeno Pro Gaming Network Card which reduces lag so you get
another edge over the competition

[GamerPS360]

So you really think holding conroller gives you feel of holding real Colt or driving Tank ??

HAHAHAHA Biggest Joke.

[Sarcasm]

If you're too worried about Realism, then you should stop playing video games.

[champ21]

@Spitfireace85

i dunno about you but in real life i have taken shooting courses.. and i dont feel handicaped in real life while taking an aim.

i could easily shoot moving targets(which is something control pad just fails at)

A control pad for aiming just doesnt feel right. IMO mouse is just more like real.

[Pandamobile]

Mouse movement feels a hell of a lot more natural than controllers. With a controller you do long, smooth, blocky movements. With a mouse, everything is short, quick, and precise.

A mouse more realistically emulates the way your eyes see and focus on things.

[roxkis]

9 Upgrades to Create a Monster Gaming Rig = Buy a new massively expensive gaming computer? Gezz who would have guessed...

[VicHyper]

This turned into a keyboard vs. mouse debate. Anyway, I'll stick to my $600 rig instead of spending triple that to get a 25% performance increase. maybe I'll spend that much after college, lol.

[Jamescagney]

How to build a pc from components that cost the earth? Wow, how helpful, I'll bear it in mind when I've won the lottery.

[Scudd]

Listing the latest Tech is hardly worth turning into an article about gaming rigs. You can get a great gaming rig for a fraction of the price.

[NotSoSilentBob]

Damn I picked up

AMD Phenom IIx3 2.8
4 gig of corsair ddr3
ATI radeon 4870HD
and a 320gig Satahd

and I can get crysis at High resolution with 45 FPS
used my old Antec Soho case
and picked up an Acer LCD(27in)

for 600$ total.

[Pandamobile]

Don't forget to overclock the sh1t out of your CPU :)

[NotSoSilentBob]

why should I? I can run Crysis at High with 40 fps and 4xAA. Nothing needs that much right now it just looks good.

[Scenarist]

Intel I7 920 @ 3.3ghz
6gb corsair dd3 in trip channel OC
ATi 4850 HD
7200rpm sata drive
700watt corsair psu

My rig pwns Cpu intensive things like photoshop , 3dsmax ,studio audio rendering etc...
but my graphics card is my bottle neck for everything else

Crysis 28avg fps max crysis but i play with noAA or2x AA instead of 8 wich is key for this game
all other games i pretty much can run at 60fps wich is my monitors max
gta 4 i get 45+ fps at max settings and so i play it at max ( minus my 512MB limitation on my gpu for maxxing so max that it allows me lol with gfx mods)

i spent 700 bux on this rig so far ....

case , mobo , cpu , ram , psu , dvd drive , HDrive , gpu

already had 22in monitor , its old but it has hdmni and i can play my ps3 through ....too bad its only 1680x1050

I will be buying a early dx11 card so im waiting on that too complete my pc