BEST PCs FOR GAMES

Equipped with the latest Nvidia and AMD graphics cards, Paul Monckton looked at five of the best-value gaming PCs you can buy right now

When we last tested gaming PCs, AMD and Nvidia had only just announced the first (and top-end) graphics cards from their latest ranges. Now, the full set is available from both companies, and we asked PC builders to put together their best-value gaming rigs using the new cards. Since not everyone has the same amount of money to spend, there’s a range from £650 to £899.

Although you do get more (and better performance) if you pay extra, each of these PCs is powerful enough to play modern 3D games in HD. The differences come when you place more demands on the PC, such as increasing resolution to 4K or by hooking up a virtual reality headset. And as you’ll see over the following pages, you’ll have to increase your budget if you want to do either of these things.

Virtual Reality (VR)

Virtual reality (VR) is here and you can buy an HTC Vive (£689) or Oculus Rift (£549) and play VR games at home. As you can see they’re not cheap, and it could well be worth waiting for a second-generation headset to launch before spending almost as much money on a headset as the actual PC.

What most people don’t realise is that VR games require seven times the graphics power of normal 3D games. This is because the graphics card has to deliver two different high-resolution images to both eyes at 90 frames per second (fps).

If a PC struggles to play games at 1920x1080 and at 30fps, then it’s not going to cope with running an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive, which both have a 2160x1200 screen, especially if you want 90fps (that’s 1200x1080 pixels per eye).

This month we’ve used a new VR benchmark and you can see how our gaming PCs performed on page 60.

Processor

Different games place different demands on your computer hardware, but choosing a gaming PC will involve a balancing act between CPU and graphics performance.

For gaming PC’s we’re happy to allow overclocked processors, which will significantly increase your overall processing power without having to stump up for the most expensive chips. Many gaming PCs use the 3.5GHz Intel Core i5-6600K processor, overclocked to varying degrees, with the fastest running at over 4.5GHz.

To keep the overclocked processors cool, it’s necessary to fit a third-party processor cooler, some using the traditional heatsink and fan design, while others opt for a liquid coolant pumped through a radiator. Overclocked processors place additional demands on the system’s power supply and also require better cooling, so expect to pay more for PCs with more extreme overclocking. You can overclock the processor yourself if you wish, but it can be a good idea to buy a pre-overclocked system such as the ones reviewed here, which are covered by the manufacturer’s warranty when running at the higher speed.

Motherboard

There are several points to consider when choosing the right motherboard for your PC, if you’re not into technical details you may be tempted to overlook the motherboard and concentrate on the processor and graphics, but the motherboard is extremely important.

We explain in each review what the motherboard offers in terms of overclocking. Not all boards support this, and opting for a lower-cost model without such features can also allow you to spend a little more on your graphics card, which can have a big impact on your final performance figures.

If you want the latest ports and connectors including USB 3.1 Gen 2 (which supports transfers at twice the speed of USB 3.0 – also known as USB 3.1 Gen 1), then make sure you check this before ordering.

Graphics card

It’s usually the graphics card that determine the overall quality of your gaming experience. Once your processor is fast enough, it’s down to the graphics card to deliver the game to your screen. This is why we suggest gamers go for a Core i5 processor rather than the more expensive Core i7 as the difference in price will almost certainly be better spent on the graphics card rather than on the CPU.

To ensure smooth gameplay, you generally want to achieve a minimum of 60fps in your game. This is the limiting speed of most PC displays, so you won’t really need to go faster than this unless you have a high-speed gaming monitor that allows for faster refresh rates.

Any extra performance will then allow you to increase the quality settings in your game, making characters sharper, textures more realistic and graphical effects more immersive. As we’ve already said, it’s a good idea to go for a card from Nvidia or AMD’s latest ranges. AMD’s fastest card – the RX 480 – isn’t as quick as Nvidia’s, but PCs equipped with such high-end cards will set you back over £1,000.

It’s also worth bearing in mind that it can be down to which graphics card vendor has done a better job optimising any particular game for performance on its own cards. If you have an idea of which games you want to play, it can be worth investigating how well any given card performs with those particular games before you make your decision.

Monitor

None of the PCs here come with monitors or peripherals. This allows you to choose your own, and you’ll find our picks of the best gaming monitors on page 64. For more immersive gameplay, we recommend you go for the largest display you can find and one with a good contrast ratio. A fast response time will ensure that fast, frenetic gameplay remains free of blur, although not all game players will notice any difference. TN-based monitors cost less and provide most of these features, but IPS-based displays will give you better overall colour reproduction and wider viewing angles, although response times tend to be slower. For a more responsive display, go for a gaming monitor with a high refresh rate of 120- or 144Hz, although you’ll need powerful graphics to supply frames at this speed.

For the very smoothest gameplay from an nVidia graphics card, look for a monitor that supports nVidia G-Sync. With G-Sync, the monitor stays in step with the graphics card rather than the other way around. This means less blurring or image tearing even at lower framerates, and will be of great

It’s also worth bearing in mind that it can be down to which graphics card vendor has done a better job optimising any particular game for performance on its own cards

benefit to mid-range graphics cards such as the ones found in these PCs. AMD offers a competing technology called ‘FreeSync’, which will soon be available for displays connected to AMD graphics cards.

Peripherals

As with the monitor, we’ve rounded up the best gaming mice and keyboards on pages 66 and 68 respectively.

If you’re using your PC on a desk with a monitor, you’ll benefit from the improved responsiveness of wired rather than wireless devices. Look for high-resolution mice, and keyboards with programmable keys and backlighting.

High-grade mechanical switches in keyboards have a better ‘feel’ and provide longer life than cheap membrane switches. Some draw attention to the W, A, S and D keys with a different colour or texture. A gaming sound card can provide a more immersive experience by adding multiple sound effects, with improved audio fidelity. Also consider a gaming headset with a built-in mic.

If, however, you’re planning on playing from the sofa, you’ll want wireless controllers. For keyboard input, we would recommend a wireless model that comes with an integrated pointing device, such as a trackball or trackpad.

Warranty

Warranty terms are crucial when it comes to gaming PCs and a key advantage of buying a pre-built overclocked PC is that all of the overclocking will be tested and covered by the vendor’s warranty. The longer the warranty the better, but also look for a collect-and-return rather than return-to-base option. You should also pay attention to whether parts and labour are both covered and for how long.