New Laptop/PC Advice -Please Read the Opening Post

[HotDogManUK]

3 minutes ago, louismarcus said:

Are these specs any good for 900 pounds. It’s from pc specialist, any thoughts.

I asked for help above so do have limited knowledge but from reading a lot in here if your main usage is FM then there is no need at all for a six core processor, apparently single core is all you need so no point getting more than a dual core if FM is your main reason for buying a new PC or laptop.

[EdL]

That isn't at all true for anything I'd suggest a bare minimum 4 core machine these days

[HotDogManUK]

6 minutes ago, EdL said:

That isn't at all true for anything I'd suggest a bare minimum 4 core machine these days

Really? I actually have less idea at what I'm trying to buy than I thought 

[HotDogManUK]

Budget - I'd like to pay around £500 but willing to pay up to £750 for a desktop only please.

I like to play FM full version with a large db, English league 2 and above, Ligue 1, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga all as playable and then the SPL, Liga Nos & Eredivisie on view only.

I only use commentary when playing and that's unlikely to change as I've played FM ever since around CM04 and have never got in to the 2D or 3D.

Please help here experts, whatever desktop will run FM the best for my price range please as that will be the thing that takes up most resources for me, thank you so much.

(I've reached my maximum posts per day so will respond tomorrow to anyone who helps me).

Edited January 19, 2020 by HotDogManUK
Reached my maximum posts today

[ChelseaFan7]

20 hours ago, Smurf said:

 

This one is savage - and it's a refurb but only Open Box which means it should be like brand new

https://www.box.co.uk/(Open-Box)-Acer-Nitro-5_2862939.html

 

 

20 hours ago, JordanMillward_1 said:

https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/medion-erazer-p6705-core-i5-8300h-8gb-1tb-hdd-128gb-ssd-15.6-inch-geforce-30026164/version.asp

This has a slightly less powerful processor (but by only a tiny amount, likely not enough for you to even notice), but much more storage space, and for a similar price.

Is there much if a difference between these two lads? If the first one is noticeably better then I'll get that, I'm just a little wary on it being a refurb or am I being unnecessarily cautious here?

 

Thanks for your suggestions btw. 

Edited January 20, 2020 by ChelseaFan7

[kevhamster]

14 hours ago, peteraiken said:

Hey Smurf and gang, I've been playing FM for a few years but I keep dropping away from it because when I click any button or tab, it takes aaaggges to load, like over 10seconds to load my tactics screen, never mind trying to drag players around positions. It's virtually unplayable. I'm assuming this isn't FM's base performance and a laptop upgrade would eliminate that, so I'm looking for a laptop at around max £700. 

Worth noting that I may choose to use this laptop for other games (such as Civ, The Sims, maybe some first person games that are PC exclusive if possible). I've looked at this one:

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/lenovo-ideapad-l340-15-6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-gtx-1650-128-gb-ssd-10193779-pdt.html

after seeing it suggested a couple times. How would you imagine this running FM20 specifically, but also other games that would be more demanding? I would also use this for some probably light web browsing.

I also saw you suggest this one a few times:

https://www.box.co.uk/30026175-Medion-Erazer-P6605_2496888.html

but (maybe I'm new to this) I don't recognise the brand so I'm hesitant.

Thanks for any and all help!

The one in Curry's has the better CPU, but given you are looking to play a few games you may find the small storage restrictive.

Both will run everything you've listed more than adequately, but I would go for the one at Box of the two, purely down to the larger amount of storage.

[peteraiken]

15 minutes ago, kevhamster said:

The one in Curry's has the better CPU, but given you are looking to play a few games you may find the small storage restrictive.

Both will run everything you've listed more than adequately, but I would go for the one at Box of the two, purely down to the larger amount of storage.

Thanks for your reply, I was strongly leaning towards the Box one purely because of the storage. I actually went and customised one myself at PCSpecialist.com and have mildly blown my budget on these specs:

I believe these to be better than both of those I initially posted, but it's about £150 over my budget, but if it would last me longer and cover a wider potential for gaming I'd probably be happy enough. Sorry to latch onto you for this since you just replied, but you seem to be knowledgeable so would you have any thoughts on this?

[JordanMilly]

46 minutes ago, peteraiken said:

Thanks for your reply, I was strongly leaning towards the Box one purely because of the storage. I actually went and customised one myself at PCSpecialist.com and have mildly blown my budget on these specs:

I believe these to be better than both of those I initially posted, but it's about £150 over my budget, but if it would last me longer and cover a wider potential for gaming I'd probably be happy enough. Sorry to latch onto you for this since you just replied, but you seem to be knowledgeable so would you have any thoughts on this?

Aye, the PC Specialist one would beat out the two you posted, and should last you the next few versions of the game at minimum, baring any huge changes to the minimum requirements. 

[Smurf]

2 hours ago, ChelseaFan7 said:

 

Is there much if a difference between these two lads? If the first one is noticeably better then I'll get that, I'm just a little wary on it being a refurb or am I being unnecessarily cautious here?

 

Thanks for your suggestions btw. 

Reviews:

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Acer-Nitro-5-Core-i5-9300H-GeForce-GTX-1650-Laptop-Review.420481.0.html

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Medion-Erazer-P6705-MD61206.380321.0.html

 

The Acer is better in my opinoin and only an extra 20 quid. 

[Smurf]

*deleted

Edited January 20, 2020 by Smurf

[Smurf]

1 hour ago, peteraiken said:

Thanks for your reply, I was strongly leaning towards the Box one purely because of the storage. I actually went and customised one myself at PCSpecialist.com and have mildly blown my budget on these specs:

I believe these to be better than both of those I initially posted, but it's about £150 over my budget, but if it would last me longer and cover a wider potential for gaming I'd probably be happy enough. Sorry to latch onto you for this since you just replied, but you seem to be knowledgeable so would you have any thoughts on this?

 

31 minutes ago, JordanMillward_1 said:

Aye, the PC Specialist one would beat out the two you posted, and should last you the next few versions of the game at minimum, baring any huge changes to the minimum requirements. 

I don't want to deter from the PC Specialist one at all - if you can get it go for it.

But this is still in clearance on the Box site and it's pretty good

https://www.box.co.uk/(Open-Box)-Acer-Nitro-5_2862939.html

It's refurbished but it's down as Open Box only - so should be like brand new.

 

But by all means - PC specialist would be good.

[peteraiken]

1 hour ago, JordanMillward_1 said:

Aye, the PC Specialist one would beat out the two you posted, and should last you the next few versions of the game at minimum, baring any huge changes to the minimum requirements. 

Awesome, thank you so much! One more quick question, - the only thing I'm concerned about that one is the graphics card (GTX 1050 3GB). I assume this is great for FM, but in terms of other games, would this have a limit on the types of games I could play?

[Smurf]

5 minutes ago, peteraiken said:

Awesome, thank you so much! One more quick question, - the only thing I'm concerned about that one is the graphics card (GTX 1050 3GB). I assume this is great for FM, but in terms of other games, would this have a limit on the types of games I could play?

Depend on the game - most have a minimum spec involved so some require better graphics cards than others.

 

[peteraiken]

15 minutes ago, Smurf said:

Depend on the game - most have a minimum spec involved so some require better graphics cards than others.

 

It passes every "minimum" check I've tested for, and most of the "recommended" too, so given that I really just want to play FM I think this should do nicely for hopefully a good few years! Thank you both very much for your help, I really appreciate it.

All the best!

[peteraiken]

56 minutes ago, Smurf said:

I don't want to deter from the PC Specialist one at all - if you can get it go for it.

But this is still in clearance on the Box site and it's pretty good

https://www.box.co.uk/(Open-Box)-Acer-Nitro-5_2862939.html

It's refurbished but it's down as Open Box only - so should be like brand new.

 

But by all means - PC specialist would be good.

Ooh, sorry I missed this message. This looks very interesting, better graphics card, but smaller RAM and SSD memory. I'll do a quick "needs vs wants" comparison for myself and choose between these - thank you very much!

[Smurf]

24 minutes ago, peteraiken said:

Ooh, sorry I missed this message. This looks very interesting, better graphics card, but smaller RAM and SSD memory. I'll do a quick "needs vs wants" comparison for myself and choose between these - thank you very much!

RAM is sufficient for FM and easy to upgrade (and cheap) down the line.

SSD has no added benefit for FM.

The OS installed on the SSD will boot it up fast etc. But no gains for using SSD with FM.

Just as good on the other hard drive, you can still install the game on the SSD - but no gains - and save your files to the other drive. 

But again, no real gains for FM.

[peteraiken]

On 20/01/2020 at 12:50, Smurf said:

I don't want to deter from the PC Specialist one at all - if you can get it go for it.

But this is still in clearance on the Box site and it's pretty good

https://www.box.co.uk/(Open-Box)-Acer-Nitro-5_2862939.html

It's refurbished but it's down as Open Box only - so should be like brand new.

So that open-box Acer Nitro 5 one actually isn't available anymore, but after chatting to some friends who know about this stuff, I've landed on this one -> https://www.box.co.uk/NH.Q5BEK.008-Acer-Nitro-5_2557788.html

Note that RAM speed is not included in spec, but I emailed and found it is 2666MHz.

I assume this one will be able to run FM very smoothly, very quickly and without any issue at the highest settings, but I wanted to make sure as it is just a bit over my budget. Any thoughts on this one, for either FM or other games as well?

Edited January 22, 2020 by peteraiken

[Smurf]

25 minutes ago, peteraiken said:

So that open-box Acer Nitro 5 one actually isn't available anymore, but after chatting to some friends who know about this stuff, I've landed on this one -> https://www.box.co.uk/NH.Q5BEK.008-Acer-Nitro-5_2557788.html

Note that RAM speed is not included in spec, but I emailed and found it is 2666MHz.

I assume this one will be able to run FM very smoothly, very quickly and without any issue at the highest settings, but I wanted to make sure as it is just a bit over my budget. Any thoughts on this one, for either FM or other games as well?

If you wanted to save some money this would have similar performance 

https://www.box.co.uk/30026175-Medion-Erazer-P6605_2496888.html

https://www.box.co.uk/NH.Q59EK.007-Acer-Nitro-5_2557789.html

https://www.box.co.uk/Lenovo-IdeaPad-Gaming-L340-17IRH_2834180.html

https://www.box.co.uk/7DZ22EAABU-HP-Pavilion-Gaming-15-dk0010na_2577318.html

https://www.box.co.uk/Dell-Inspiron-G3-15-3590_2886151.html

https://www.box.co.uk/30026124-Medion-Erazer-P6705_2614018.html

 

Edited January 22, 2020 by Smurf

[peteraiken]

1 hour ago, Smurf said:

If you wanted to save some money this would have similar performance 

https://www.box.co.uk/30026175-Medion-Erazer-P6605_2496888.html

https://www.box.co.uk/NH.Q59EK.007-Acer-Nitro-5_2557789.html

https://www.box.co.uk/Lenovo-IdeaPad-Gaming-L340-17IRH_2834180.html

https://www.box.co.uk/7DZ22EAABU-HP-Pavilion-Gaming-15-dk0010na_2577318.html

https://www.box.co.uk/Dell-Inspiron-G3-15-3590_2886151.html

https://www.box.co.uk/30026124-Medion-Erazer-P6705_2614018.html

 

Thanks very much for all your help Smurf, I'll have a think about these but I'm happy enough to splash a bit more for longevity alone. Here's to many happy years of football management!

Thanks again, you were so helpful.

[Smurf]

2 hours ago, peteraiken said:

Thanks very much for all your help Smurf, I'll have a think about these but I'm happy enough to splash a bit more for longevity alone. Here's to many happy years of football management!

Thanks again, you were so helpful.

One of the links is almost identical (small differencce in graphics card)

https://www.box.co.uk/NH.Q59EK.007-Acer-Nitro-5_2557789.html

Same with this

https://www.box.co.uk/Dell-Inspiron-G3-15-3590_2886151.html

They come in a bit cheaper and basically the same.

[Earnie is God!]

On 13/11/2018 at 09:43, Smurf said:

Graphics Card (if you play 3D)

Dedicated VS Integrated graphics card

An Integrated graphics card is typically is built onto your Processor and it's not as powerful as a Dedicated graphics card.

With an integrated graphics card, you can play 3D matches, but you can't always expect it to run on very high detail level, you can change the detail level of 3D matches in the preferences to your desired level. Everyone will have a point they are happy with and different to everyone else.   However, some of the AMD processors have good integrated graphics and will give you decent performance without needing to buy a dedicated card unless that is your choice.

 

A Dedicated graphics card is usually a better choice for 3D Matches. 

There's a full list and ranked graphics cards - the higher on the list, the better.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Graphics-Cards-Benchmark-List.844.0.html

 

Some lovely people decided to break into my house a couple of months ago and steal a load of stuff, including my FM laptop.

I've not been able to replace it yet and have had to be happy with playing FMM but it's just not the same.

I was going to just save up and get a decent laptop but, in the meantime, if I buy a crappy refurbished laptop (I've found one which is a good deal) which exceeds the minimum requirements except for the graphics card, will I just not be able to play games in 3D or will FM not even load? I'm not fussed about 3D anyway, just want to make sure I can play FM!

Tbh I'm sick of using my kindle to get online, it's a pain in the arse and even typing out this post is taking forever, so I'd be using the laptop for more than just FM but it would be daft to get one that I then couldn't use to play!

Thanks

[Smurf]

12 hours ago, Earnie is God! said:

Some lovely people decided to break into my house a couple of months ago and steal a load of stuff, including my FM laptop.

I've not been able to replace it yet and have had to be happy with playing FMM but it's just not the same.

I was going to just save up and get a decent laptop but, in the meantime, if I buy a crappy refurbished laptop (I've found one which is a good deal) which exceeds the minimum requirements except for the graphics card, will I just not be able to play games in 3D or will FM not even load? I'm not fussed about 3D anyway, just want to make sure I can play FM!

Tbh I'm sick of using my kindle to get online, it's a pain in the arse and even typing out this post is taking forever, so I'd be using the laptop for more than just FM but it would be daft to get one that I then couldn't use to play!

Thanks

Even the 2D engine requires graphics power, from what I understand. 

If your graphics don't match minimum requirements then I wouldn't be able to stand over it.

How much are you spending? What laptop are you lookin at?

Don't mean to pry, but does your house insurance not cover your laptop?

 

[Earnie is God!]

On 13/11/2018 at 09:43, Smurf said:

 

Stupid thing wanted to quote you all over again and I can't get rid of it.

Thanks for the reply.

Insurance dispute the claim and were trying to say that I didn't lock the back door properly, if at all. When photographic evidence was sent, they then suggested I had staged it or even planned the break-in 🙄

Finally looks like they have caved in and it's just negotiating the settlement which apparently could take a number of weeks.

So all I wanted for the time being was a cheap temporary replacement which would then end up as my backup once it was all sorted.

I might end up going for an older desktop instead, budget is only around £200 as it's only going to be a temp thing.

 

[Smurf]

37 minutes ago, Earnie is God! said:

Stupid thing wanted to quote you all over again and I can't get rid of it.

Thanks for the reply.

Insurance dispute the claim and were trying to say that I didn't lock the back door properly, if at all. When photographic evidence was sent, they then suggested I had staged it or even planned the break-in 🙄

Finally looks like they have caved in and it's just negotiating the settlement which apparently could take a number of weeks.

So all I wanted for the time being was a cheap temporary replacement which would then end up as my backup once it was all sorted.

I might end up going for an older desktop instead, budget is only around £200 as it's only going to be a temp thing.

Have you considered getting Google Stadia - FM20 full can be played on that for under that price.

 

[Earnie is God!]

I hadn't but a lot of my frustration comes from using this kindle to get online and how long it takes to do stuff, even posting the simplest of replies.

Google Stadia would be great if it was just for FM but I can't go another two weeks, let alone months, without easy online access for the most basic of things.

I've looked at refurbished, low grade possibilities. I'm not fussed if there is minor damage, or even more serious damage to something like the base plastics as in the first link below. It's only a temp solution to mainly stop me throwing my kindle out the window😁

But this first one scrapes by the minimum except for the graphics which is rubbish:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Dell-Latitude-E5420-Core-i5-2-50GHz-16GB-Ram-120GB-SSD-HDMI-Windows-10-Laptop/324048915249?var=513094853598

I could choose more RAM for that one but seems pointless getting it with those graphics.

There's a Lenovo ThinkPad (I've had something similar before) from the same seller, refurbished, for £149. It doesn't state the graphics although, looking around, they seem to have Intel HD 630 which seems fine. I've asked the seller for confirmation:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lenovo-Thinkpad-T440p-Core-i7-4600M-2-90GHz-4GB-500GB-Windows-10-Webcam-Laptop/372841106527#viTabs_0

If I go for a desktop, I spotted this:

https://www.encore-pc.co.uk/lenovo-thinkcentre-m93-bundle-deal

They have others and generally options to add monitor, keyboard, etc if needed as I have none of those.

Just some general questions, for typical online use as well as for FM...

I know 4GB Ram is a bit low, is it worth spending an extra £30 for 8GB?

SSD makes little diff for FM but generally much better/quicker for everything else. As this won't be my main laptop/desktop once I've got things sorted, I will only really have FM on there and then just general surfing otherwise so no need for much storage. 256GB SSD is out of my price range so would 128GB SSD be better than say 500GB HDD? I could always pick up cheap external storage for other stuff if needed.

I like the thought of a desktop as generally more RAM and a bigger monitor. I've had about 5yrs of putting up with a 14" laptop and wouldn't mind having something bigger tbh.

Anyway, thanks for taking the time to help me out here. Much appreciated.

[Earnie is God!]

Seller just replied about the ThinkPad:

"This comes with a Intel HD Graphics 4600 graphics card."

 Meh, not great but it passes the requirements.
 

[JamieTC13]

On 12/01/2020 at 12:26, JordanMillward_1 said:

That'll run it absolutely fine. I'd double check the alleged speed of the processor though, as the normal top speed for the i5-8600k is 4.3Ghz, which means either the store you're looking at is telling fibs, or is highly overclocked, which could reduce reliability and the lifetime of the processor.

It has been professionally overclocked and stress tested as i know football manager loves single core performance so i wanted it clocked fairly high as i intend to use this system for the next 3-4 years till ddr5 comes out 

[Welshace]

2 hours ago, jckc221013jamie said:

It has been professionally overclocked and stress tested as i know football manager loves single core performance so i wanted it clocked fairly high as i intend to use this system for the next 3-4 years till ddr5 comes out 

Just be warned, that high an overclock will certainly shorten the lifespan of the cpu, especially when playing an intensive cpu game like FM .. 

Personally, i'd prefer it at stock if you are looking for longevity in the system... the extra ghz won't translate as well as you think for FM in particular..

[Smurf]

On 12/01/2020 at 07:50, jckc221013jamie said:

I would just like to know how many years this set up will be good for football manager

I5 8600k at 5ghz

16gb ddr4 3200mhz ram

Rtx 2060 6gb 

500gb samsung nvme drive

Thanks!

 

On 12/01/2020 at 12:26, JordanMillward_1 said:

That'll run it absolutely fine. I'd double check the alleged speed of the processor though, as the normal top speed for the i5-8600k is 4.3Ghz, which means either the store you're looking at is telling fibs, or is highly overclocked, which could reduce reliability and the lifetime of the processor.

 

11 hours ago, jckc221013jamie said:

It has been professionally overclocked and stress tested as i know football manager loves single core performance so i wanted it clocked fairly high as i intend to use this system for the next 3-4 years till ddr5 comes out 

 

8 hours ago, Welshace said:

Just be warned, that high an overclock will certainly shorten the lifespan of the cpu, especially when playing an intensive cpu game like FM .. 

Personally, i'd prefer it at stock if you are looking for longevity in the system... the extra ghz won't translate as well as you think for FM in particular..

 

Lads - a processor like that should last ten years. Overclocking it would bring the lifespan down to maybe 7-8 years. 

And severely overclocking perhaps 5 years.

But it would be out of date in 5 years anyway - so overclocking it won't severely degrade the lifespan - you'll still probably get close to between 6-8 years.

Didn't really see these points earlier - but thought I'd pitch in as to get away from the idea that overclocking it would cause severe damage to the computer - it won't. 

[Welshace]

4 hours ago, Smurf said:

 

 

 

 

Lads - a processor like that should last ten years. Overclocking it would bring the lifespan down to maybe 7-8 years. 

And severely overclocking perhaps 5 years.

But it would be out of date in 5 years anyway - so overclocking it won't severely degrade the lifespan - you'll still probably get close to between 6-8 years.

Didn't really see these points earlier - but thought I'd pitch in as to get away from the idea that overclocking it would cause severe damage to the computer - it won't. 

That all depends on the individual cpu and who is doing the overclocking... saying that it can't reduce the lifespan isn't great advice, nor is pulling random years from nowhere that it will last.. 

Anyone claiming professional overclocking is infallable is dangerously wrong and as most overclocked cpu's won't be covered by warranty's  (although this is changing), suggesting anyone does it for minimal gains on a game like FM is bad advice.  And in this case, a 8600k at 5ghz has been proven to be not infallible as it's on the edge of stable for that cpu mostly.

[Smurf]

2 hours ago, Welshace said:

That all depends on the individual cpu and who is doing the overclocking... saying that it can't reduce the lifespan isn't great advice, nor is pulling random years from nowhere that it will last.. 

Anyone claiming professional overclocking is infallable is dangerously wrong and as most overclocked cpu's won't be covered by warranty's  (although this is changing), suggesting anyone does it for minimal gains on a game like FM is bad advice.  And in this case, a 8600k at 5ghz has been proven to be not infallible as it's on the edge of stable for that cpu mostly.

Nothing random about it. I pulled the stats from research across multiple site.

Plus my own personal experience.

I dont see a lot of people overclocking for FM so it is impossible to gather data on whether there any gains.

But by the fact it is running faster in single core and multi core, it should be running FM faster with more gains, technically.

I have actually never jeard of a cpu that was overclocked pack in. 

I would say its a rare thing.

 

The motherboard could get damaged, for sure. Too much voltage there would ruin it.

But a cpu lifespan due to overclocking is usually over 5 years and which point it will be obsolete anyway, as said earlier.

[JamieTC13]

16 hours ago, Welshace said:

Just be warned, that high an overclock will certainly shorten the lifespan of the cpu, especially when playing an intensive cpu game like FM .. 

Personally, i'd prefer it at stock if you are looking for longevity in the system... the extra ghz won't translate as well as you think for FM in particular..

I have never had any problem with the life spam of cpu if they are in rang with the voltage under 1.40 volts max but all ways try to stay at about 1.35 volts for 5ghz not once have i ever had any problems doing so but not for 1 minute an i saying it doesn't shorten the life spam i'm just saying that the people i know and from my experience ect that i have never had a problem if it is overclocked within the guidelines but i do know people that has fried their cpu with stupid voltage settings

From stock settings to my overclock now it is a lot quicker you only have to look at the benchmark test forum to see that so it is a benefit to me other wise people would not be overclocking at all if their wasn't but that doesn't mean every should do it i'm just saying from my experience 

 

Edited January 24, 2020 by jckc221013jamie

[JamieTC13]

8 hours ago, Smurf said:

 

 

 

 

Lads - a processor like that should last ten years. Overclocking it would bring the lifespan down to maybe 7-8 years. 

And severely overclocking perhaps 5 years.

But it would be out of date in 5 years anyway - so overclocking it won't severely degrade the lifespan - you'll still probably get close to between 6-8 years.

Didn't really see these points earlier - but thought I'd pitch in as to get away from the idea that overclocking it would cause severe damage to the computer - it won't. 

and it ain't the overclocking that shortens the life spam its how much voltage you use for that overclock

[Welshace]

2 minutes ago, jckc221013jamie said:

I have never had any problem with the life spam of cpu if they are in rang with the voltage under 1.40 volts max but all ways try to stay at about 1.35 volts for 5ghz not once have i ever had any problems doing so but not for 1 minute an i saying it doesn't shorten the life spam i'm just saying that the people i know and from my experience ect that in have never had a problem if it is overclocked within the guidelines but i do know people that has fried their cpu with stupid voltage settings

From stock settings to my overclock now it is a lot quicker you only have to look at the benchmark test forum to see that so it is a benefit to me other wise people would not be overclocking at all if their wasn't but that doesn't mean every should do it i'm just saying from my experience 

Hey, as I said, as long as you trust who's doing the overclock and they give you guarantees, go for it.... I only said I wouldn't bother after seeing how higher frequencies and overclocking scales for FM as an application.  And yes, a bad overclock is using too high a voltage, which can fry a cpu, but overlocking even while stable for the cpu doesn't necessarily mean stable over long periods of time for the whole system... that was my only point, and that there are plenty of people who don't know enough about the overclocking process who use this thread as a guide, and I would want them to have both sides of the process to keep in mind, not only the positive.

[JamieTC13]

4 minutes ago, Welshace said:

Hey, as I said, as long as you trust who's doing the overclock and they give you guarantees, go for it.... I only said I wouldn't bother after seeing how higher frequencies and overclocking scales for FM as an application.  And yes, a bad overclock is using too high a voltage, which can fry a cpu, but overlocking even while stable for the cpu doesn't necessarily mean stable over long periods of time for the whole system... that was my only point, and that there are plenty of people who don't know enough about the overclocking process who use this thread as a guide, and I would want them to have both sides of the process to keep in mind, not only the positive.

Yes i make you totally right and please just because i have mention about overclocking my cpu i really don't want people to just think they can just go and overclock their cpu please only do so if you know what you are doing can it can be very disastrous if done wrong 

Edited January 24, 2020 by jckc221013jamie

[Smurf]

8 minutes ago, jckc221013jamie said:

and it ain't the overclocking that shortens the life spam its how much voltage you use for that overclock

I know - said that in a later post quoted below.

2 hours ago, Smurf said:

The motherboard could get damaged, for sure. Too much voltage there would ruin it.

But a cpu lifespan due to overclocking is usually over 5 years and which point it will be obsolete anyway, as said earlier.

 

[danseakins]

Hi Smurf,

 

I've been browsing the currys.co.uk website for a laptop, with my budget being £50 a month instead of paying all of the price upfront.

I have found these two:

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-envy-x360-15-6-intel-core-i7-2-in-1-512-gb-ssd-silver-10193315-pdt.html

 

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-envy-17-ce0576na-17-3-intel-core-i7-laptop-1-tb-hdd-256-gb-ssd-silver-10193314-pdt.html

 

What do you think?

 

Many thanks,

 

Dan

[Smurf]

5 hours ago, danseakins said:

Hi Smurf,

 

I've been browsing the currys.co.uk website for a laptop, with my budget being £50 a month instead of paying all of the price upfront.

I have found these two:

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-envy-x360-15-6-intel-core-i7-2-in-1-512-gb-ssd-silver-10193315-pdt.html

 

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-envy-17-ce0576na-17-3-intel-core-i7-laptop-1-tb-hdd-256-gb-ssd-silver-10193314-pdt.html

 

What do you think?

 

Many thanks,

 

Dan

Try stay away from u processors if you can.

That price range try for i7 9400h or even a processor ending in K.

What is your priority with the computer? Portability or gaming or just for fm or watching movies or what willl you be doing with it most.

[danseakins]

3 hours ago, Smurf said:

Try stay away from u processors if you can.

That price range try for i7 9400h or even a processor ending in K.

What is your priority with the computer? Portability or gaming or just for fm or watching movies or what willl you be doing with it most.

@Smurf

Thanks for the advice.

I found this one, which is a bit over my budget but might be worth it: https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-spectre-x360-15-6-intel-core-i7-2-in-1-1-tb-ssd-dark-silver-10188846-pdt.html

I prefer HP

Black/Grey colour

At least 15 inch screen to watch videos/films

16 GB RAM preferred but 8GB would be acceptable as well

I'll be using Microsoft office programmes

Play FM while web browsing would be plus.

Do you think having a touchscreen is worth it?

I don't mind if its heavy in weight

or there's this cheaper version that has 8GB instead: https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-spectre-x360-15-6-intel-core-i7-2-in-1-512-gb-ssd-dark-silver-10188845-pdt.html

[Smurf]

40 minutes ago, danseakins said:

@Smurf

Thanks for the advice.

I found this one, which is a bit over my budget but might be worth it: https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-spectre-x360-15-6-intel-core-i7-2-in-1-1-tb-ssd-dark-silver-10188846-pdt.html

I prefer HP

Black/Grey colour

At least 15 inch screen to watch videos/films

16 GB RAM preferred but 8GB would be acceptable as well

I'll be using Microsoft office programmes

Play FM while web browsing would be plus.

Do you think having a touchscreen is worth it?

I don't mind if its heavy in weight

or there's this cheaper version that has 8GB instead: https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-spectre-x360-15-6-intel-core-i7-2-in-1-512-gb-ssd-dark-silver-10188845-pdt.html

Personally I don't think touchscreen is worth it

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/dell-g7-17-3-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i7-rtx-2060-512-gb-ssd-10195362-pdt.html

 

[HotDogManUK]

£550 for this desktop, any good?

Intel Core 9th Generation i5-9400 Processor (6 Core, Up to 4.10GHz, 9MB Cache, 65W)

Windows 10 Home

8GB (1x8GB) 2666MHz DDR4 UDIMM Non- ECC

1TB 3.5inch SATA Hard Drive (7200 RPM)

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB GDDR5

460W, Chassis with Blue LED Lighting (Abyss Grey)

Software

Wireless Card (802.11ac + Bluetooth, Dual Band 2.4&5 GHz, 1x1)

Optical 2-Button Mouse

Thermal Heatsink for Air Cooling CPU, 65W

External English/UK USB Keyboard - Black

[JordanMilly]

1 hour ago, HotDogManUK said:

£550 for this desktop, any good?

Intel Core 9th Generation i5-9400 Processor (6 Core, Up to 4.10GHz, 9MB Cache, 65W)

Windows 10 Home

8GB (1x8GB) 2666MHz DDR4 UDIMM Non- ECC

1TB 3.5inch SATA Hard Drive (7200 RPM)

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB GDDR5

460W, Chassis with Blue LED Lighting (Abyss Grey)

Software

Wireless Card (802.11ac + Bluetooth, Dual Band 2.4&5 GHz, 1x1)

Optical 2-Button Mouse

Thermal Heatsink for Air Cooling CPU, 65W

External English/UK USB Keyboard - Black

For £550? Yep, that'll run FM very nicely.

[Earnie is God!]

@Smurf ended up going for a cheap, refurbished desktop bundle.

i5-4430 3GHz quad-core

8GB RAM

2TB HDD

Intel HD 4600 graphics

New keyboard, mouse and speakers

22" widescreen monitor

Main issue was the basic graphics card but it's above the minimum requirements. Processor is fine for what I need even with minimal turbo/overclocking potential. Would have preferred SSD but can't complain at 2TB HDD, and 8GB RAM is decent enough.

Can't complain for £170 and free delivery, should be here by Thurs.

Not sure I could have done much better for that price?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/i5-4th-Gen-QUAD-DESKTOP-TOWER-PC-22-TFT-COMPUTER-SET-8GB-WINDOWS-10-2TB-HDD/143491342333

[Baptista_8]

Should this laptop still be capable of running FM2020 (pic below)? I'm guessing not as I bought it in 2014 but thought I'd check!

[EdL]

1 hour ago, Baptista_8 said:

Should this laptop still be capable of running FM2020 (pic below)? I'm guessing not as I bought it in 2014 but thought I'd check!

Should be ok, its not going to be playing all leagues and max settings type of thing but it should run fine

[Baptista_8]

4 minutes ago, EdL said:

Should be ok, its not going to be playing all leagues and max settings type of thing but it should run fine

How much will I be looking to spend to run a fair few leagues at max detail?

[EdL]

Really depends what your expectations are, the biggest issue with that laptop is the graphics card, the CPU is pretty decent. If you aren't worried about 3D I'd imagine it will be adequate but what one person thinks is fast enough is different to anothers!

[louismarcus]

Will this run fast/smooth with database of 100,000 players and top 5 leagues on playable,

 

[Smurf]

On 27/01/2020 at 22:25, louismarcus said:

Will this run fast/smooth with database of 100,000 players and top 5 leagues on playable,

 

I wouldn't be too drawn to the processor for what you need. 

The processor here isn't great. 

Going by the ranking system it's quite low down

The I7's listed above are 6700 (which is about 3 years ago) and 4810 (about 5 years ago) are ranking above it.

 

Will it run FM - yes - but I'd be cautious on the size of the database you load.

[nox7]

Hi,

I'm interested with notebook HP 14s-cf2009tx with specs:

Intel® Core™ i7-10510U
8 GB DDR4-2666 SDRAM (2 x 4 GB)
512 GB PCIe® NVMe™ M.2 SSD
AMD Radeon™ 530 Graphics (2 GB GDDR5 dedicated)
14" diagonal FHD SVA anti-glare micro-edge WLED-backlit (1920 x 1080)

Anyone know how many stars rating of 3D graphics capability for this AMD Radeon 530?

 

And also how many stars rating for NVIDIA Geforce MX230?

 

Thanks.