Roommate needs a new desktop - FFXIV friendly

MorPhiend

MorPhiend

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My roommate needs a new computer. He would prefer a desktop over a laptop. Since he is getting a new computer he wants it to run FFXIV. That's really his only requirement. He wants to go as cheap as he can go, but figuring FFXIV has high system requirements, I don't know if it's too possible to go cheap.

He keeps bothering me about it because "I know about computers". But since I haven't been up to date on hardware and prices for years, I have to keep doing research on it and I have not been able to help him sufficiently. So I am coming to all of you, as there has to be a few out there who have the knowledge to help without too much time commitment.

I just realized since he doesn't have a monitor, but has a TV maybe having HDMI out would be good too. I don't know if his TV has VGA or DVI inputs. I'll ask him and update later.
 
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His budget would be nice, because FFXIV isn't to low-budget computer friendly. It's been a year since I immersed myself in computer hardware/pricing when I built my new rig, though I think a collaborative effort of CAG could yield something.
 
Don't really have any suggestions as far as hardware (I haven't been keeping up, seeing as I haven't had a prayer of paying for upgrades), but I will say that for comparisons sake when I played the beta, my pc had issues in populated areas. The specs I am running are a Q9550 (oc to 3.4ghz), 4gb of ram, and a Radeon 4850 gfx card running at 1680x1050 (Or whatever resolution is near that, I am not on my desktop to check the actual resolution)... Point being if he is going to hook the pc up to a 1080p tv, you are looking at a higher resolution than that, and to keep that in mind when you buy or build the pc (higher resolution = more demanding on the system).
 
He really doesn't have cost restrictions other than he is frugal. He wanted a desktop for $300, but I told him that if he was going to be playing FF on it, he would need at least two to three that for minimal settings. So he kept bringing me setups for $400-450 after that and I told him none of them would do either. So basically the lowest end machine that can run it.

And his TV is 1080i.
 
[quote name='MorPhiend']He really doesn't have cost restrictions other than he is frugal. He wanted a desktop for $300, but I told him that if he was going to be playing FF on it, he would need at least two to three that for minimal settings. So he kept bringing me setups for $400-450 after that and I told him none of them would do either. So basically the lowest end machine that can run it.[/QUOTE]

If he can build it himself, he can put together a machine that could run the game fantastically for $400. You sure as hell don't need a $900 computer to run it at minimal, if you're building it yourself.

Can he put it together himself from components, or does he need a prebuilt?
 
I suppose I could build it for him if that's the only way. I just hate becoming people's tech support guy...

So, what would be some suggestions from those parts? Like I said, I haven't been into the technical side of hardware for years now. I have no idea what the base parts that the game could run on would be and how much performance increase you would see with each step up.
 
I'm in the same position as your friend, but will accept not being able to game on it. I'll watch this thread and hope for good results for both of us.
 
These are minimums that I can think off of the top of my head that can start as a base.

A more recent dual-core (quad core if possible) processor and compatible mobo, 4GB RAM, and 768MB/1GB memory video card (try for 256-bit, DDR3/5, DX10/11).

I'll try to do some research the next few days on what's new to maybe get some specific items.
 
Alright, OP, I've got a shopping list worked out for you, but a couple questions first: can he recycle an HDD and/or DVD burner, does he want wifi, and do you need/want to buy a legit copy of windows?

Let me know, and I'll give you the shopping list for a seriously kickass machine for under $500.
 
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