Gaming System Deals

[mattg70]

Finishing my buildout of my Garage Simulation setup using SkyTrak and plan on primarily playing TGC2019

For computer, debated build my own (not familiar with all the particulars) vs buying system. Trying to stay budget conscious and was attempting to stay under $700 and I think it can be done. However, in doing my research on requirements here is what I've found in a few different price points. Any ideas, suggestions are much appreciated.

These meet recommend requirements:

Dell $1,099
Alienware Aurora R11 Gaming Desktop
10th Gen Intel i7 10700F (8-Core, 16mb cache, 2.9ghz to 4.8ghz w/Turbo Boost max 3.0)
Windows 10
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Super 6GB GDDR6
16GB Dual Channel HyperX Fury DDR4 XMP at 2933MHz
1 TB 7200RPM Hard Drive (overkill)
550W Power Supply


Best Buy - $979
iBUYPOWER Element Gaming Desktop
Intel Core i7-9700F
16GB Memory
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660
2TB Hard Drive + 240GB SSD - Black
Mouse and Keyboard included

These meet minimum requirements:

Dell XPS 8940 Gaming PC $749
10th Gen Intel Core i5-10400 6-Core (Up to 4.3GHz) Processor
16GB 2666MHz DDR4 RAM, 256GB SSD + 1TB HDD
AMD Radeon RX 5600 6GB GDDR6 Dedicated Graphics
500W Night Sky Bezel Chassis including optical drive
1x USB 3.1 Type-C Gen 1, 7x USB 3.1 Gen 1 Port, 2x USB 2.0, HDMI 1.4, Display Port 1.2, Gigabit Ethernet
802.11ac WiFi, Bluetooth 4.1, Win10 OS
Keyboard and Mouse included

Costco $699
Lenovo Legion 5 Desktop
10th Gen Intel Core i5-10400F (meets minimum requirements, but not recommended)
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Super 6GB GDDR6
1TB 7200 RPM Hard Drive
256GB NVMe M.2 2280 Solid State Drive
16GB RAM
Keyboard and Mouse included


For Projector, down to these two:
BenQTH671ST $699
3000 Lumens
1080p

Optoma HD28HDR - $649
1080p
4k input
3600 lumens

[kkalkut]

I'm right there with you...waiting on Black Friday to make a decision on the PC and have been doing way more research than what is considered healthy. I will say that GungHoGolf has refurbished BenQTH671ST's for $599, which I ended up going with.

https://store.gunghogolf.com/BenQ-TH...hed-p255287242

[3on3putt]

I recommend anyone buying or building a PC for TGC2019 to abide by the recommended specs, not just the minimum specs. Even with the recommended specs you will still be making some sacrifices with graphics. And that will be even more so with only the minimum specs.

[mattg70]

Fully understand that I wouldn't go with less than the minimum based on what I've read in other forums. Just trying to be as cost conscious as possible. Don't need a 1TB HD, but it seems that is all they come with. Don't think a build is much cheaper if cheaper at all - so now down to spending $1k or just a bit under, but hoping that I could do for less than that.

[Bountyhunter]

I'm in the same boat, but I have been looking for gamers selling used equipment so they can upgrade on black Friday themselves. You can find i7 machines with 1060 cards, SSD and TB hard drives for $500-$600.

[mattg70]

Where are you finding these used pc's at?

[Stonebattle]

It seems to me any of the systems will work fine. I run a system with less power and it works well with TGC 2019 at 1080P and max settings.

[Stetson]

Facebook marketplace is a decent spot. Newegg had a fantastic build for sale last week that I posted somewhere. More computer than we all need but it would be futureproof

[mattg70]

I'll check Facebook marketplace. I did look at Newegg too. Does anyone know if you must be an Intel i7 processor or could it be an AMD Ryzen 7 (which is the equivalent)? I also looked at Microcenter and building one, taking away 1 TB HD for 500GB, and spending that money on better graphics card, etc.... It still seems that if you buy a pre-configured new vs build new you are still around $1k. Same with graphics card - does it have to be Nvidia 1060 or higher or could you use AMD? If so, what is equivalent AMD graphics card?

Found this on Facebook Marketplace:
$500
Windows 10 Pro
Intel Core i7 3770k 3.90 GHz Processor
32 GB Memory
AMD Radeon HD 5500 Series
1366 x 768 x 60 Resolution
Bluetooth// WiFi
Seven USB ports// 3 USB 3.0 Ports// 2 DVI Ports// SD Card Slot// 2 VGAPorts // 2 HDMI Ports// Card Reader-Writer// 2 Ethernet ports// 3.5mm

[Stetson]

Maybe someone else can chime in but seems on the weak side to me.

As for AMD it depends on the system, Uneekor in the past has stated Intel is required. I use Tomshardware guide for CPU’s and GPU’s when trying to compare items. Does a great job “ranking” them.

[Bountyhunter]

I'm in the same boat, but I have been looking for gamers selling used equipment so they can upgrade on black Friday themselves. You can find i7 machines with 1060 cards, SSD and TB hard drives for $500-$600.

I bought mine on eBay. Just make sure to find a reputable seller. Always use the old saying “if it sounds too good to be true, than it probably is”.

[Dax]

I would just add caution to some of the builds on Facebook Market place. I have seen some under powered machines where the person is asking a lot and calling their rig a high performance gaming rig. Make sure you check the specs. As it is usually the GPU or the CPU that is under powered. For instance today I saw one with a 970 card and a $200 CPU (actually last years model of the current one that is $240) and they were asking $1700 (all numbers are in Cdn).

[mattg70]

Dax - thanks for the feedback. I'm likely to look at a build or one prebuilt. Just trying to determine if I must use Intel i7 or could use AMD Ryzen 7. Then on graphics card - Nvidia GTX1060 or better or use AMD Graphics card equivalent. Looking at Toms Hardware guide.

[Dax]

I am liking the looks of the Ryzen 7 3700 as well. Which system are you running that is forcing you down an Intel build?

TrackMan notes in their specs and intel processor and note they do this because that is what they use in all their testing. While this has me hesitating a little, I am thinking of going the Ryzen route still. I will be posting a thread under TM on this point. Are you sure you can’t find a 2000 series card for a good price? Alternatively, I have seen some 1080ti’s now on sale. Also, the price on the Ryzen 5’s are looking pretty good at the moment.

[Dax]

mattg70 I just noticed you are looking to do a Skytrak build with TGC. Depending on your budget, would an i5 9500 do the trick? 6 cores 6 threads seems to do the trick for what you are looking for then some. Saw them new just today for Cdn$200, which I thought was a great price ($110 off I believe).

[mattg70]

Dax - The recommended requirements for SkyTrak with TGC2019 is Intel i7 and Nvidia graphics card of GTX 1060 or better. Everything I've read is Intel i5 isn't sufficient. So that is why I'm thinking either Intel i7 or the AMD Ryzen 7. So much information out there, but leaning toward Ryzen 7 and then Radeon Graphics card.

[Dax]

Ok cheers, I was only thinking TGC 2019 requirements and not the Skytrak ones. Might be good to see if someone else has run an AMD with Skytrak. Good news is that Intel seems to be dropping g their prices on their old processors as I can see that the i7-9700k has been reduced to Cdn$350 from Cdn$570. I was looking at this one earlier as I now have an upgrade bug for my sim, but like you am really leaning towards an AMD.

[leibin]

I actually built my PC with an insanely low priced Ryzen 7 2600. I don't have my LM yet. Long story short I was going with Skytrak (which is apparently shipping today) but after some apparent shenanigans with the Skytrak orders that really rubbed me wrong yesterday, I bought a QED last night. Either way, in the next couple of weeks I'll know if it works or not. I also went with an AMD RX580 8GB as those were also on blow out clearance and are roughly equivalent / slightly ahead of the GTX1060's. If I have to relax the visuals much at 1080p resolution, I'll find a used 1070/1080 to pop in. I do tech for a living and I think I ended up building that PC for about $500, including 8GB of DDR4 and a fast PCIe SSD. I'll report back when I get things running. FWIW, the Ryzen 3rd gen series destroy the i7's in basically all multi-threaded apps and are basically just as fast as the fastest i7's in single threaded apps. I'm not sure how either TGC 2019 or the Uneekor software is designed from that perspective, but it's not like AMD and Intel don't support and use the same instruction sets.

Now that I read a comment above that Uneekor, in the past, mandated Intel....we'll see

[mattg70]

That sounds like a really nice set-up. I've settled on the following for my set-up and also building one for a friend - so if you still have the SkyTrak and haven't returned - let me know. Would like to discuss your set-up as I like the price, but concerned that you may need to upgrade sooner than spending now! I'm not the computer expert but have spoken with many, including several SkyTrak users about minimum requirements and the upgrades they've made to get to where they are.

My Custom SkyTrak/TGC 2019 Build - $903

Ryzen 7 3700x at around $270
Radeon RX5500XT ($185) is similar priced as RX 580 Red ($199) and agree both are rated higher than Nvidia GTX 1060. Might spend a bit more to get the RX5600XT (about $100 more)
16GB of RAM (2x8) DDR4 - $90
Asus TUF Gaming Motherboard - $119
Tower - $59
Power - 650W 80+ Gold rated for $90
Windows 10 - $90


I've also spec'd out three others (basic that meets recommended TGC2019 requirements, middle of the road and then super build)
Meets recommendations - $650
Middle custom (similar to mine above) - $750 to $900 depending on the CPU and GPU and motherboard
Highly customized - $1,100 to $1,300 (Ryzen 7 3800XT, AMD RX5700XT)

May need to get into the business of setting up gaming PC's for Skytrak users

[leibin]

Well, the current doc's on Uneekor's site say - in red text - Intel is required...LOL. I'm going to try it anyway. If it doesn't work, I'll swap this PC out with one I built for my son which is an i7 with a 1060 6GB.

[mattg70]

FYI - found a great deal at local Micro Center by me for Intel i7 9700k Coffee Lake 3.6GHz at $199, which is $300 off. Also have the 9700F 3.0GHz for $199 - obviously buying the 3.6GHz processor for same price.

[leibin]

Man, that's a great deal mattg70 ! The 'k' series are unlocked, as well. I was supposed to get the QED today, but Fedex is slacking it. I should hopefully know tomorrow if the Ryzen will fly or not.

[mattg70]

I did some more digging on the Intel i7 - this one doesn't have the cooling fan, so you would need to purchase which puts this right back up in same price range as the Risen 7's I've discussed above.

[preludesam]

Just so everyone knows a K series CPU does not specifically mean they are faster. It just means if you have the time and knowledge you can manually overclock it and get more performance. If you leave it stock out of the box it will perform exactly the same as a non-K CPU. If you're not planning on overclocking do not waste the money if the same CPU non-K variate is available. Most of the K series do not come with a cooler because they expect you to provide better cooling since you are going to increase the energy being used with an overclock generating more heat than the stock cooler can handle.

[leibin]

I only said it was unlocked (for the purpose you described), not that it is any faster out of the box than a non-k of the same specs. It is also faster than the other cpu listed at stock speeds for the same price, so it’s really a no brainer on which one to pick

[Dax]

If you are in Hamilton, London or Ottawa go to Memory Express they have Core i9-9900k’s on for $420. Sounds like a pretty good deal to me. Unfortunately they are all sold out in Alberta otherwise I would have picked one up. I should note their stock is very low.

[mattg70]

They are selling here for $299 for the Intel i9-9900K Coffee Lake 3.6GHz 8 core LGA 1151. Go to MicroCenter (microcenter.com)

[Dax]

Are your number USD? Mine are $Cdn.

[mattg70]

Yes, that would be USD, so that would be 389 Canadian Dollars

[Dax]

Everything is more expensive here even after factoring the conversion. Very unfortunate!