Attila Computer & Hardware Recommendations

[SingingAntelope]

Here's what I've picked out for you at the same budget:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4160 3.6GHz Dual-Core Processor (£89.99 @ Novatech)
Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£35.42 @ CCL Computers)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£29.60 @ Scan.co.uk)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£34.45 @ Aria PC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 270X 2GB TurboDuo Video Card (£122.16 @ More Computers)
Case: Aerocool DS Cube Red Edition Silent Cube MicroATX Mini Tower Case (£55.99 @ Aria PC)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (£56.99 @ CCL Computers)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer (£10.50 @ CCL Computers)
Monitor: BenQ GL2023A 60Hz 19.5" Monitor (£65.11 @ Amazon UK)
Wireless Network Adapter: TRENDnet TEW-726EC 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter (£20.30 @ Dabs)
Speakers: Logitech Z213 2.1 Multimedia Speakers (£24.36)
OS: Windows 8.1 Upgrade (£46.95)
Total: £591.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

CPU: I decided to go with something that's faster yet less expensive, but has a little more power draw. So I traded the i3 4130T for the i3 4160.
Motherboard: Same features as the Asus board, decent overclocker, and a few £ cheaper.
Memory: Faster and about the same price as the DDR3-1333, but should allow for a little more OC headroom.
Storage: Faster, same capacity, and less expensive than the HDD you selected.
Videocard: The R9 270x 2GB is possible by trimming some fat off the OS price. Kicks the GTX 750 Ti's ass.
Case: This is probably the most subjective item. It's really your choice, but you can actually shift about £20-30 toward your GPU if you select a less expensive/flashy case.
Powersupply: I went for something that's modular with a little more juice should you decide to upgrade to more power hungry components down the line.
Optical drive: Cheaper and same/better performance than the Asus drive.
OS: There are usually deals for OS's. I usually find these for $30-50 USD by purchasing the upgrade version. You don't even need a prior Windows install to use the upgrade.
Wireless NIC: Cheaper and same performance as the Asus NIC.
Speakers: Got rid of the Lenovo cans. These should put out a nice round sound for you music and games.

There's actually an even better rig already spec'd out on the partpicker front page, but it doesn't have all the OS, speakers, WiFi NIC, DVD/CD drive, and monitor goodies you were looking for: http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/guide/gcT...l-gaming-build

Yeah my budget is around 600, and even that is pushing it so I won't be able to go higher Thanks very much for the help, I'll probably build this one in about 2 months, need to start saving

[anonimo272]

geforce 740m
i5 3230m
4 gb ram
runned rome 2 on low fine, never tried more
can i run attila too ? with 2x unit sizes ?

[SingingAntelope]

Another question, does the case matter?? Would a certain case not be able to fit the same components in it?

[SPARTAN VI]

Another question, does the case matter?? Would a certain case not be able to fit the same components in it?

Yes it matters. Most ATX cases will have the necessary screw/openings for ATX and micro-ATX motherboards (aka "mobo"), but obviously micro-ATX cases probably wont fit full sized ATX mobos. Also worth considering is the internal size and configuration. Many cases have the harddrive and optical bays that hang to the right of the mobo area. This is fine except if the space is too tight, a large video card may not clear the harddrive/optical bays. This isn't a common problem, but one that I've avoided in the past by moving harddrives to neighboring ports. Here's an example of a 8800GTX that was almost too large for its case. While we're on the subject of fit, I've also encountered issues where a heatsink fan conflicted with the placement of the powersupply and/or RAM modules. Again, not common unless you get a massive heatsink (the stock OEM heatsink should clear everything just fine).

If you can, try to track down measurements for the case as well as the larger components (e.g. GPU, aftermarket heatsink fan, etc.). Also ensure the vendor(/s) have a refund/return policy that's flexible enough should something not fit.

geforce 740m
i5 3230m
4 gb ram
runned rome 2 on low fine, never tried more
can i run attila too ? with 2x unit sizes ?

I see the 740m can pull off low/medium on R2TW at 1366x768 or 1024x768, so I'd bet you'll be in the same area if it runs at all with Attila. Can't comment on 2x unit sizes.

[SingingAntelope]

Yes it matters. Most ATX cases will have the necessary screw/openings for ATX and micro-ATX motherboards (aka "mobo"), but obviously micro-ATX cases probably wont fit full sized ATX mobos. Also worth considering is the internal size and configuration. Many cases have the harddrive and optical bays that hang to the right of the mobo area. This is fine except if the space is too tight, a large video card may not clear the harddrive/optical bays. This isn't a common problem, but one that I've avoided in the past by moving harddrives to neighboring ports. Here's an example of a 8800GTX that was almost too large for its case. While we're on the subject of fit, I've also encountered issues where a heatsink fan conflicted with the placement of the powersupply and/or RAM modules. Again, not common unless you get a massive heatsink (the stock OEM heatsink should clear everything just fine).

If you can, try to track down measurements for the case as well as the larger components (e.g. GPU, aftermarket heatsink fan, etc.). Also ensure the vendor(/s) have a refund/return policy that's flexible enough should something not fit.



I see the 740m can pull off low/medium on R2TW at 1366x768 or 1024x768, so I'd bet you'll be in the same area if it runs at all with Attila. Can't comment on 2x unit sizes.

Mm alright, well the case is going to be the hardest thing to get, as I'm not sure on measurements and stuff, but anyway thanks very much for the help! Maybe when I have built the computer, I will give you a game of any total war game

[SPARTAN VI]

Mm alright, well the case is going to be the hardest thing to get, as I'm not sure on measurements and stuff, but anyway thanks very much for the help! Maybe when I have built the computer, I will give you a game of any total war game

No worries mate. I already have all the TW games anyway. Thanks for the offer.

I wouldn't worry about fit if I were you. The components you're using are relatively standard.

[Mr.Freud]

I'll just leave this here...

source: http://gamegpu.ru/rts-/-strategii/to...-test-gpu.html

[craziii]

wow, didn't realize this game is a gameworks game. seeing how sli works and not cf. a 780 beating a 290x n 960 beating 290 :)))))))))))))))))

[Mr.Freud]

wow, didn't realize this game is a gameworks game. seeing how sli works and not cf. a 780 beating a 290x n 960 beating 290 ))))))))))))))))

I bet AMD is going to release Attila ready drivers soon. But still - even single gtx980 struggles with Attila ready GeForce drivers

[craziii]

http://www.sweclockers.com/artikel/2...ila/3#pagehead nope it seems the game is just very poorly optimized, same problem as rome 2. but with NV gpus getting a min of 15% to 50% max (that is freaking huge) edge. I guess we know which gpu brand they worked on. check the gpu and cpu rendering times. Damn, horrible coding I guess? with such low fps, you would expect bottle neck at one or both, not 50% load.

I really don't have the patience for 1 more year of patches.

[IamOdysseus]

I'll just leave this here...

source: http://gamegpu.ru/rts-/-strategii/to...-test-gpu.html

So a 350 € graphic card like GTX only has 30 fps?? What are they thinking??

[SPARTAN VI]

Is ultra quality the new maximum setting? (edit) Yes, ultra is the new maximum. It was "extreme" in R2TW. I've got 2x GTX 770 2GBs in SLI, so hoping it pegs somewhere around a GTX 980 and obviously under the SLI 780s.

Also not surprised to see the performance discrepancy in nvidia vs. AMD GPUs. Warscape has historically favored nvidia hardware.

[alQamar]

http://www.sweclockers.com/artikel/2...ila/3#pagehead nope it seems the game is just very poorly optimized, same problem as rome 2. but with NV gpus getting a min of 15% to 50% max (that is freaking huge) edge. I guess we know which gpu brand they worked on. check the gpu and cpu rendering times. Damn, horrible coding I guess? with such low fps, you would expect bottle neck at one or both, not 50% load.

I really don't have the patience for 1 more year of patches.

Well very recently I was able to make an evidence that 1 year of patches did not sustainably improved the problems crazii.

Have a look at the peformance comparison in my signature. At least this is valid for my quite good computer and Nvidia.

[craziii]

So a 350 € graphic card like GTX only has 30 fps?? What are they thinking??

bad optimization it seems. cpu and gpu load are both at about 50% only. This isn't exactly a brand new game by CA. it is basically a giant mod with new features on rome 2. what is causing such bad performances?

@aq I guess attila could really be my last game of the series. could be time to move on. why the hell would the game give me 30 fps but use only 50% of my hardware. that makes no ing sense except for 1 reason, bad game engine or bad coding or both.

[IamOdysseus]

bad optimization it seems. cpu and gpu load are both at about 50% only. This isn't exactly a brand new game by CA. it is basically a giant mod with new features on rome 2. what is causing such bad performances?

If the benchmark is right then there is even a worse performance than Rome II has! I rememeber seeing that with a GTX 970 you can play at 60 fps on extreme at 1920x1080. I don't know where was that but i'm sure about the numbers because it's the graphic card i'm getting very soon.

[craziii]

If the benchmark is right then there is even a worse performance than Rome II has! I rememeber seeing that with a GTX 970 you can play at 60 fps on extreme at 1920x1080. I don't know where was that but i'm sure about the numbers because it's the graphic card i'm getting very soon.

seriously, don't get 970. get a 290x tri x or pcs+ or the msi lightning(best 290x there is) for less money and you would get full 4gb vram to use. just 13 days ago, the lightning version was going for 300$ on newegg. what is your current gpu? might be better to wait till start of summer since new amd 380x n 390x cards would be out by then. even if you must get nvidia, you can probably get a 980 for 300$ by then

[alQamar]

Hey splenyi and all the other guys, based on the benchmarks do you really think that this thread has a future if even good rigs cannot afford to play this game maxed out at 1080p? This is really nasty.

If the benchmark is right then there is even a worse performance than Rome II has! I rememeber seeing that with a GTX 970 you can play at 60 fps on extreme at 1920x1080. I don't know where was that but i'm sure about the numbers because it's the graphic card i'm getting very soon.

Actually on a rig containing an i5 Dev Canyon (OC 4.4), 8 GB 2300 MHz DDR3, 970 GTX, which I've recommended Noif the Boldemoze, he had 56 fps at 1080p and maxed out settings in the benchmark of Rome 2. I believe very much those benchmarks are valid because Attila has higher requirements (compare Steam Store), has more graphical intense features (fires, real antialiasing) etc. Still I am shocked.

[Totalheadache]

Well I did warn you!

Nah thread is still good for its help and info..

p.s I recommend a 970 as well..great cards!

[craziii]

to all readers of this thread, if you must get a maxwell, wait a few months and get the 980 in june for 300$. never upgrade at the end of a cycle, especially when the next cycle offers like 50%(380x, 390x) increase in performance. you are gonna kick yourself for listening to super bad advice coming from the likes of post #118.

[IamOdysseus]

seriously, don't get 970. get a 290x tri x or pcs+ or the msi lightning(best 290x there is) for less money and you would get full 4gb vram to use. just 13 days ago, the lightning version was going for 300$ on newegg. what is your current gpu? might be better to wait till start of summer since new amd 380x n 390x cards would be out by then. even if you must get nvidia, you can probably get a 980 for 300$ by then

So are you sure that in a few months they are going down in cost? I have a 650 GTX now.

Anyways with computers...if you wait and wait you'll get always get more for less. Anyway the thing that annoys me is paying for a gtx 970 and get these numbers

Actually on a rig containing an i5 Dev Canyon (OC 4.4), 8 GB 2300 MHz DDR3, 970 GTX, which I've recommended Noif the Boldemoze, he had 56 fps at 1080p and maxed out settings in the benchmark of Rome 2. I believe very much those benchmarks are valid because Attila has higher requirements (compare Steam Store), has more graphical intense features (fires, real antialiasing) etc. Still I am shocked.

In any case, it's a 26 fps loss which i consider an insult because the better graphics don't justify these numbers (despite the performance in Rome II is bad if we compare graphics/requeriments).

Here is what I say http://us.hardware.info/reviews/5882...al-war-rome-ii