Competition - post a photo you've taken of nature >>

Buying prebuilt PC from Scan.co.uk

I'm considering buying this gaming PC from scan:
http://3xs.scan.co.uk/ShowSystem.asp?SystemID=1346

To anyone that has used scan before, do they have good customer support? Would you recommend that I use them? I know of people who have used scan to buy individual components before with no problems, however I've had no stories about their pre-built computers.

Reply 1

Rtcw

I have, but not 3XS. Just regular old Scan.co.uk. They're reliable and I would recommend it.

Reply 2

Darkphilosopher

That certainly is a good build and for a good price :smile:

edit:
you may wish to look into purchasing an aftermarket cpu cooler and wireless network card.

Reply 3

username221592

Original post by Darkphilosopher

That certainly is a good build and for a good price :smile:

edit:
you may wish to look into purchasing an aftermarket cpu cooler and wireless network card.

Wouldn't it come fitted with a CPU heatsink already? As for wireless, I already have a NIC in my existing PC, so I can just swap it into the new one after.

Reply 4

username451352

Why not just build it yourself? It won't be hard, and would save you money.

Reply 5

Fusilero

Original post by Phil2008

Wouldn't it come fitted with a CPU heatsink already? As for wireless, I already have a NIC in my existing PC, so I can just swap it into the new one after.

An aftermarket one would allow you to overclock further.

Reply 6

LePossum

You could build your own for the same spec for £500-550, just sayin' :wink:

Looks good.

Original post by LePossum

You could build your own for the same spec for £500-550, just sayin' :wink:

TBH I'm a bit skeptical of that.
CPU ~ £160
HDD ~ £90
GPU ~ £165
OS ~ £120
MOBO ~ £80
Sound card ~ £20
RAM ~ £35

then case, PSU, Optical drive, mouse & keyboard, BF3.

That's at least £700. Just sayin'

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 9

LePossum

You can get an i3-550 and overclock it to over 4.3 GHz for £75, or just get an i3-2100 for £80. HDD depends on size, £90 for a Tb perhaps.

GPU, you can get a GT 550 Ti or HD 6870 for around £120. Motherboard, you can get a decent one for under £60 that even has 7.1 sound built in, avoiding the cost of the sound card.

OS, you can get an Windows 7 Home 64bit for £70. Case and PSU together will cost no more than £60 for a decent pair.

That's £475 right there :wink:

Reply 10

Darkphilosopher

Original post by LePossum

i3's only have 2 physical cores and so take a large performance hit with most multi-threaded games. (i.e. most modern games)

Buying an OEM version of win7 will cause problems if you ever plan on upgrading/changing the mobo.
It also does not come with support from microsoft.

Good luck finding a decent gaming mobo (p67/Z68 - 1155 socket) for < £70

Reply 11

LePossum

If you aren't going to be buying expensive components due to low budget, you aren't going to need to upgrade your mobo much, and you aren't going to get much use from the benefits of a p67/z68, you'd be fine with a H67.

The only downside to a H61 is that afaik they aren't going to be ivy bridge compatible, that's my problem with my current setup, however I don't mind upgrading my motherboard.

And my i3-2100, H61 + HD 6870 handle all modern games (Battlefield, Skyrim, etc.) on Ultra at a smooth fps.

Reply 12

Zorg

Original post by LePossum

You could build your own for the same spec for £500-550, just sayin' :wink:

Original post by LePossum

3XS

System Case: Coolermaster Elite 430 Black & Coolermaster Elite 500W PSU

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z68AP-D3, Intel Z68 Chipset - USB3 & SATA6!

CPU: Intel Core i5 2500K, Quad Core, 3.3GHz, 6MB Cache

Memory: 8GB (2x4GB) Corsair DDR3 Vengeance - 1600MHz

Graphics Card: 1GB Asus GTX 560 Ti DirectCU II TOP - Gaming Card + Full Battlefield3 Game

Sound Card: Asus Xonar DG 5.1 PCI Sound Card & Headphone Ampifier

System Drive: 1TB Seagate Barracuda, 7200rpm, 32MB Cache, SATA6

Optical Drive: Samsung SH-S222AB/BEBE - 22x DVD Writer

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit

Def. not the same spec. The latter machine will perform better in every task. Not to mention it will actually turn on, you however may struggle without RAM.

What you've specced up is a budget system. If the OP is willing to spend little more for a more performance why stop them?

OP The 3XS machine isn't too bad, to build it yourself I reckon it'd come to £600/£650 as a rough estimate. From my personal experience of Scan, just computer components, they're a helpful bunch. Website could do with being updated more often but they won't cheat you out of anything. Check out AVForums/Hexus for free next day delivery from Scan. Not sure if it extends to 3XS but worth a look.

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 13

LePossum

Original post by Zorg

Aye that's true, forgot to mention 8GB Ram for £30. Wondered why it was under £500 :wink:

And well absolutely it's not as good, but it'll handle anything you throw at it for less money. But, as you said, if you want to spend more for more performance, then do so :smile:

Reply 14

Zorg

Original post by LePossum

Aye that's true, forgot to mention 8GB Ram for £30. Wondered why it was under £500 :wink:

And well absolutely it's not as good, but it'll handle anything you throw at it for less money. But, as you said, if you want to spend more for more performance, then do so :smile:

Lol, I throw Metro 2033, 1920x1080 at Med/High, no AA at it and it will fail.

BF3 at High 1920x1080 and it will also fail.

Moral of story = Spend money if you will see the performance.

Most all decent gaming PCs start with a quad and a 560Ti.

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 15

LePossum

Original post by Zorg

A quad really isn't necessary depending on the games you play, even for current games.

However, on the basis of future proofing I'll agree with you. If you can afford a quad, get a quad, unless you have a choice between an i3 dualcore and a phenom quad. i3 takes the cake in almost all scenarios.

I know I personally will be looking at getting either a 6950 or a 560 Ti as my first upgrade :wink:

Reply 16

Zorg

Original post by LePossum

A quad really isn't necessary depending on the games you play, even for current games.

Was true a couple years a go, not so much now. More of the big titles are taking advantage of the extra cores that I'd say it's worth getting a quad core.