Should I sell my gaming rig for a top of line iMac 27?

[nizmoz]

Should I sell this system for an IMAC 27 loaded model or would this be a big mistake? I really like the new IMAC's. I can probably get around $2k or so for it and I would need to add some more to get it. I play games mostly with this machine, like BF3, Black Ops II, MOH Warfighter. And I had trouble playing them on my 2012 MBP i7, 16gb, 256gb ssd, 650M 512MB card as on low it couldn't do well at all. LAG badly even with 40 fps.

Let me know your opinions on this. Here is the specs below of my current setup.

Corsair H100 Liquid CPU Cooler
Coolermaster HAF-X Case -
Corsair AX1200 PSU -
EVGA GTX 680 2GB -
Intel i7 2600k -
Asus Maximus IV Extreme-Z Motherboard
Lite-On Blu-Ray Burner with 3D Playback SATA w/Lightscribe -
Lite-On 24x DVD Writer Black SATA -
Corsair XMS3 8GB 2x4GB PC3 16000 Memory (16gb total) -
Kingston HyperX KHX-FAN-B Fans for memory -
Noctua NF-P12-1300 120mm Case Fans -
Xigatek FCB Crystal 140mm RED Fan -
Thermaltake AF0027 80mm RED LED fan -
Xigamatek GFCB 120mm Red LED Fan -
CoolerMaster Megafflow 200mm RED LED fans - (Qty 3)
Scythe Kaze Master Pro 5.25 Fan controller -
Crucial M4 256GB SATA III SSD -
640gb WD HD’s - – Qty 3
500gb Seagate HD -
External 500gb WD HD’s x 2
External 2 TB Seagate USB 3.0s x 2

[maflynn]

I'd keep your gaming rig over the iMac, it will have better performance imo

[torana355]

Your gaming rig has a desktop 680 which already makes it much faster then the iMac, not to mention you can upgrade your rig to keep up with technology. I love my iMac with the 680mx for gaming but im aware that in a year or two it will be out of date.

[Gelite55]

Yes, Macs are better.

[Dduval]

Don't sell your current rig, you'll likely regret it later. I would keep it, and save up for an imac of your choice...this way you get the best of both experiences.

I still have my gaming rig for playing windows games and won't be parting with it anytime soon. I use my mac for everything else...

[luminouslight]

If your main concern is gaming I'd def keep the PC..

If you plan on using your computer for more than just gaming I'd say Mac all the way. The 680mx is a beast card and should play most if not all games at high/ultra. But that will change in a year or two. Really boils down to what OS you prefer but you will have to sacrifice gaming if you get the iMac.

For me I'd rather have a computer I love the OS and I just cant stand windows so i went for the Imac with the 680mx.

[Gelite55]

Honestly the way of the world is console gaming. PC gaming unoffically died back in 06'. Get yourself a High End Samsung TV and a Xbox 360. It'll be a much better experience than PC gaming. Plus your pings will be lower because everyone knows more people play Xbox 360 than PC. Plus there closer to you.

Use a Mac for computing. It's a much better experience.

[cosmicjoke]

that's a pretty sweet rig dude, it will slay for years to come especially with a 1080p monitor... imo keep it

[Arman]

Switch out the motherboard, CPU but keep everything else and build out a hackintosh. Dual boot using Chimera and have the best of both worlds.

I recommend Gigabyte z77UD5H and Core i7 3770K.

This will get you started

As you already know, your PC and and iMac are worlds apart in aesthetics. I consider the iMac well run Porsche and your PC a heavy duty off road truck with all the bells, shocks, and flashiness. IMHO.

[Gelite55]

Originally Posted by Arman

Switch out the motherboard, CPU but keep everything else and build out a hackintosh. Dual boot using Chimera and have the best of both worlds.

I recommend Gigabyte z77UD5H and Core i7 3770K.

This will get you started

As you already know, your PC and and iMac are worlds apart in aesthetics. I consider the iMac well run Porsche and you PC a heavy duty off road truck with all the bells, shocks, and flashiness. IMHO.

Hackintoshes are not ever a good long term solution. I speak from experience and experiences of friends.

[ChrisA]

Originally Posted by Gelite55

Honestly the way of the world is console gaming. PC gaming unoffically died back in 06'. Get yourself a High End Samsung TV and a Xbox 360. It'll be a much better experience than PC gaming. Plus your pings will be lower because everyone knows more people play Xbox 360 than PC. Plus there closer to you.

Use a Mac for computing. It's a much better experience.

That is pretty much it. Buy the iMac for creating stuff like photo and videos and wring and keep a x-box for games and if all you'd use the Mac for is reading email and the web don't get a mac, get an iPad. or a Mac Air.

TH 27" iMac is great for doing things like building web pages. I can page the page I'm making and my photo library both p on the screen at once. Same for video editing, you can see lots of content all at once. But rally a high-end Macbook Pro plus a 27" monitor would work as well. I have both the Macbook and the 27" iMac and net time around I'll simplify.

But for games the Sony or x-box is cheaper and better.

[Arman]

Have you built one lately? Much easier than a even a year or two ago. I agree, Hackintoshes in the old days were a pain but they have significantly improved over the past few years. Some setups have near native support. This would be a good middle solution. He can play with OSX environment before making the complete switch.

[Silvereel]

The new iMac is a beast of a machine, even for gaming. There's a certain crowd that really likes to tinker with things and worries over FPS, even if they're already getting great performance. The iMac's probably not for them. But if you just want a no hassle machine that is powerful, looks great, and lets you handle gaming (even hard core) for the next couple of years, the iMac suits you.

If you're worried it might not be powerful enough, or if you just want to keep the flexibility of your current rig, there's a couple of choices. You could get a Mac Mini and hook it into your current monitor. That would give you a decent machine for everything except gaming, and let you use OS X when you want.

And then there's those rumblings of a new Mac Pro next year. You might want to wait until then - if it follows the pedigree of the past Mac Pros, it'll be very powerful and customizable. It'll also be very expensive. There's always the Hackintosh route, too, but that's too much trouble for me. Kind of defeats the elegance of using OS X to begin with.

I'm kind of in the same boat you are - I've got a gaming rig that still performs its duties well enough, even though it's a little older than yours. I realized that I need a computer for more than gaming, though, and OS X is just a much better environment for my school and other work, and I can still get my gaming fix. It's actually more powerful than my current set up, which was an absolute beast when I bought it back in 2010. I love the power, but I'm not the type of person who worries over FPS, or ever opens up my machine to do an upgrade. So for me, the new iMac is a perfect fit. Just consider what you need out of it, and if the iMac doesn't suit you, go for the Mini or wait for the new Pro.

No matter what you do, get a Mac. You'll be much happier

[Gelite55]

Originally Posted by ChrisA

That is pretty much it. Buy the iMac for creating stuff like photo and videos and wring and keep a x-box for games and if all you'd use the Mac for is reading email and the web don't get a mac, get an iPad. or a Mac Air.

TH 27" iMac is great for doing things like building web pages. I can page the page I'm making and my photo library both p on the screen at once. Same for video editing, you can see lots of content all at once. But rally a high-end Macbook Pro plus a 27" monitor would work as well. I have both the Macbook and the 27" iMac and net time around I'll simplify.

But for games the Sony or x-box is cheaper and better.

Let me tell you before I sold my last rig I had a i7 3770 and a 7970. I maxed out BF3. When I play Call of Duty on my Xbox 360 on my 32" Samsung LED it looks BETTER. Playing video games is like watchcing a Blu Ray on the big screen. Also it's silky smooth as everything is V Synced and locked at 30 FPS (Don't think that's Low.) Gaming on the Xbox 360 has been so much better. Plus don't forget all the progress Xbox Live has made over the years.

I could go as far as saying the Xbox might become Microsoft's Flagship product aside from the corporate server side of the world in the near future. As W8 was such a failure.

Ordering a close to spec'd out iMac, I have a top setup.

Plus console people will have Grand Theft Auto 5 in the spring. PC gamers will be left behind.

[forty2j]

I don't think you mentioned what kind of display you have that gaming rig hooked up to. But I can tell you this much already:

- PCs don't have a great resale value. You'll probably get more for that by taking it apart and selling each component individually than trying to sell a complete used gaming rig running Sandy Bridge.
- As good as the 680MX is, the desktop 680 is still much better. Very few games will notice the difference between Sandy and Ivy, but most of them will notice the difference in the GPU.

If the choice was to build a PC or buy an iMac, I would definitely vote iMac all the way. Given that you already have the PC, you should really stand pat and upgrade it for a couple years, or get an iMac as a second computer if you can afford to do so and gradually transition over.

[Gelite55]

Originally Posted by forty2j

I don't think you mentioned what kind of display you have that gaming rig hooked up to. But I can tell you this much already:

- PCs don't have a great resale value. You'll probably get more for that by taking it apart and selling each component individually than trying to sell a complete used gaming rig running Sandy Bridge.
- As good as the 680MX is, the desktop 680 is still much better. Very few games will notice the difference between Sandy and Ivy, but most of them will notice the difference in the GPU.

If the choice was to build a PC or buy an iMac, I would definitely vote iMac all the way. Given that you already have the PC, you should really stand pat and upgrade it for a couple years, or get an iMac as a second computer if you can afford to do so and gradually transition over.

I had that $189 24" Asus 50M:1 LED panel from Amazon on my Rig. Sold that to. I took a $645 hit on my Rig I sold. Owned it for 6 months.

Waiting for my iMac.

[MaydayMAc]

I just sold my Gaming Rig it had a GTx 690 Watercooled. and Bought Imac 27 with GTX 675MX and it fine for me. I found lower little detail its fine and I dont even Notice

[nizmoz]

27" Apple Cinema (a few months old) and 24" Dell Ultrasharp (8 years old). The Apple would stay but the Dell would be sold. But I already looked at the prices on HardForum to see what the components would go for, and with everythng added up, it would be around $2k for what I have.

Thanks for the info otherwise everyone. It is a hard decision that I have been going back and forth on. And something I seriously don't want to make a mistake on and mess up my gaming experience. Like I mentioned, I tried to do it on my MBP and it had a hard time gaming with everything on low and that fan full speed. While my desktop rocks it with no issues.

Originally Posted by forty2j

I don't think you mentioned what kind of display you have that gaming rig hooked up to. But I can tell you this much already:

- PCs don't have a great resale value. You'll probably get more for that by taking it apart and selling each component individually than trying to sell a complete used gaming rig running Sandy Bridge.
- As good as the 680MX is, the desktop 680 is still much better. Very few games will notice the difference between Sandy and Ivy, but most of them will notice the difference in the GPU.

If the choice was to build a PC or buy an iMac, I would definitely vote iMac all the way. Given that you already have the PC, you should really stand pat and upgrade it for a couple years, or get an iMac as a second computer if you can afford to do so and gradually transition over.

[Gelite55]

Originally Posted by nizmoz

27" Apple Cinema (a few months old) and 24" Dell Ultrasharp (8 years old). The Apple would stay but the Dell would be sold. But I already looked at the prices on HardForum to see what the components would go for, and with everythng added up, it would be around $2k for what I have.

Thanks for the info otherwise everyone. It is a hard decision that I have been going back and forth on. And something I seriously don't want to make a mistake on and mess up my gaming experience. Like I mentioned, I tried to do it on my MBP and it had a hard time gaming with everything on low and that fan full speed. While my desktop rocks it with no issues.

Do yourself a favor and ...

Go with the 27" iMac with the i7 and 680mx with a wired keyboard and Magic Trackpad. Buy a nice TV and a Xbox 360 for your gaming.

Also another few words of advice. Don't pay their ridiculous prices Apple is charging for RAM. Get 8GB and install Crucial RAM to taste.

[nizmoz]

Originally Posted by Gelite55

Do yourself a favor and ...

Go with the 27" iMac with the i7 and 680mx with a wired keyboard and Magic Trackpad. Buy a nice TV and a Xbox 360 for your gaming.

Also another few words of advice. Don't pay the ridiculous prices Apple is charging for RAM. Get 8GB and install Crucial RAM to taste.

I have tried console gaming before with Xbox and currently PS3, and IMHO, the experience is not the same as doing it with a keyboard, and being in a clan.

[Gelite55]

Originally Posted by nizmoz

I have tried console gaming before with Xbox and currently PS3, and IMHO, the experience is not the same as doing it with a keyboard, and being in a clan.

Just FYI Clans on the PC are so 05'-06'ish. When I was in Middle School and High School that's what we use to be in. I agree until you get use to the Xbox 360 controller I thought a mouse and keyboard was better for gaming and sniping. But my opinion changed after a couple hours playing withe the controller. The returns on investment on PC gaming are horrible compared to the solution I mentioned above. Not to mention we all know were overdue for a new Xbox soon. That day will probably come within the year or next. Like I said before. PC Gaming unofficially died in 06'. Sure there will be new GFX card release. But the paradigm of gaming has shifted. It's time to move to the times. Apple has the best Desktop and Mobile platforms right now. Gaming should be done on the console.

Also I'm in IT myself as a career. I'm not just some unintelligent Apple user on the forums.

When it all comes down to it everyone makes their own decisions. I respect it. I hope you're happy.

[MacsRgr8]

As to gaming on a console vs on a PC: Flight Sims?

Console gaming might be popular amongst the COD / Far Cry crowds, not all games and/or all gaming needs can be done on a console.

[Gelite55]

Originally Posted by MacsRgr8

As to gaming on a console vs on a PC: Flight Sims?

Console gaming might be popular amongst the COD / Far Cry crowds, not all games and/or all gaming needs can be done on a console.

You should watch some videos on YouTube showing how good the new 27" iMac plays X-Plane.

[WilliamG]

The new iMac is a gaming beast. It really is. THAT said, you lose something by playing in OS X, since Apple has never seemed to really give these powerful iMacs the time they deserve in developing drivers for their GPUs in OS X. And iMac upgrade paths? What iMac upgrade paths!?

I'd say keep your desktop if you're really, really into gaming something hardcore. You'd just have buyer's remorse if you buy an iMac.

That said, go buy an iMac anyway. If it works for you, sell your desktop. If it doesn't, - well - you have 14 days to return the iMac.

[Gelite55]

Originally Posted by WilliamG

The new iMac is a gaming beast. It really is. THAT said, you lose something by playing in OS X, since Apple has never seemed to really give these powerful iMacs the time they deserve in developing drivers for their GPUs in OS X. And iMac upgrade paths? What iMac upgrade paths!?

I'd say keep your desktop if you're really, really into gaming something hardcore. You'd just have buyer's remorse if you buy an iMac.

That said, go buy an iMac anyway. If it works for you, sell your desktop. If it doesn't, - well - you have 14 days to return the iMac.

Even if the OP wanted to be smart and sell his Desktop he'd take a decent financial lose (I did it). He'd also have to get on a the waiting bandwagon as there is far to much demand for the supply right now. Try finding that scenario with a Dell or HP!

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Not that I buy computers from HSN. Have you seen them try to sell a computer with Windows 8 on it? It's hilarious! They're like we'll it's different... Might not be what your use to.. But look at all this cr*apware that were giving you!
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