Hardware Saving up for a PC build.... any idea how it will do Wii/GC emulation?

[GoldenSun3DS]

(If this is the wrong section, feel free to move it mods)

I posted a thread on Gamefaqs ( http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/916373-pc/70628970 ) asking for help on picking out parts, but for obvious reasons I couldn't ask about emulation there.

So here's the build I've picked out so far:
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/scPP99
(The graphics card was specifically picked out because it supports 3D output)

Any ideas on how well this will do Wii emulation? Full HD, full speed, 3D, etc?
I'll be saving for this for a few months.

I couldn't figure out how to filter the monitors on PCPartPicker by 3D capability, so I haven't chosen a monitor yet.

Also, are there DVD drives that can read Wii and GC (maybe even PS1/2) discs?

My current laptop is an Inspirion 15 (with dual core Celeron 1.6GHz CPU ) so it can't even run Mario Sunshine on bare minimum settings with performance hacks above 3-4 FPS

EDIT:
I'm updating a single link now instead of posting new ones for each revision:
http://pcpartpicker.com/user/GoldenSun3DS/saved/kPGdnQ

EDIT2:

Ugg. Turns out the person I had talked to was wrong and walmart.com purchases do not work for the discount.

I found a $498 i3-4130, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD, DVD drive, Windows 8 computer (didn't mention GPU so assuming no GPU). That's about $373.5 after the discount so I'm going to go get it in the morning.

I didn't even end up building a computer, but I will after Skylake CPUs get released next year

EDIT3:
For the people only having read the opening post, the discount I talked about is the 25% discount on one transaction I get from Walmart from having worked on Thanksgiving.

 

[GamerzHell9137]

Its gonna be fine.
And forget the thing about loading discs, why would u even do that?

 

[GoldenSun3DS]

Its gonna be fine.
And forget the thing about loading discs, why would u even do that?

To be able to just put a Wii/GC disc in and be able to play it without navigating to the ISO's location on the hard drive. Also so I don't have to download a 2GB file for each game.

 

[razielleonhart]

depends on the tech you put in it. i know my build is going to cost me around $1,700 - $2,000 because i want it to last 5+ years and be able to upgrade if i want. My laptop can run Wii and Cube games and i have a Asus G74 laptop low end model with RAM and HDD upgrades

 

[GamerzHell9137]

To be able to just put a Wii/GC disc in and be able to play it without navigating to the ISO's location on the hard drive. Also so I don't have to download a 2GB file for each game.

Idk, iirc both GC and Wii are using some weird optical discs. Google might help more.

 

[Nathan Drake]

The best you can hope for is to rip your own games, which would still be faster than downloading. Your PC isn't a Gamecube or a Wii; the games aren't just going to work when you insert them regardless of what CD/DVD/Bluray drive you might buy to put in there.

 

[Celice]

To be able to just put a Wii/GC disc in and be able to play it without navigating to the ISO's location on the hard drive. Also so I don't have to download a 2GB file for each game.

You're adding unnecessary load times that way :/

 

[trumpet-205]

They are all okay so to speak. I personally would spend a little more on higher quality PSU given that you will spend 1K on this PC. An SSD is also a recommended purchase.

3D gaming on PC is actually quite complicated to set up. For Nvidia you either have to use 3D Vision compatible display, pay $40 to use 3DTV play (works on generic 3D display), or use third-party paid software such as Tri-def. PC is not exactly an ideal platform for 3D gaming, console is much better on this regard.

 

[GoldenSun3DS]

The best you can hope for is to rip your own games, which would still be faster than downloading. Your PC isn't a Gamecube or a Wii; the games aren't just going to work when you insert them regardless of what CD/DVD/Bluray drive you might buy to put in there.

Well I know the PS1 emulator can work that way (I've actually done that before with a Spyro Year of the Dragon disc), so I was thinking that the GC/Wii emulator could possibly do that as well; I haven't ran Dolphin in awhile though so I haven't looked to see if that option is in the menu.

 

[trumpet-205]

Well I know the PS1 emulator can work that way (I've actually done that before with a Spyro Year of the Dragon disc), so I was thinking that the GC/Wii emulator could possibly do that as well; I haven't ran Dolphin in awhile though so I haven't looked to see if that option is in the menu.

Sadly no PC optical drive (except few rare to find and obsolete LG drive) can read GC/Wii disc. They aren't in standard DVD-ROM complaint format.

PS1 disc is a compliant CD-ROM format, hence PC can read it.

 

[Nathan Drake]

Well I know the PS1 emulator can work that way (I've actually done that before with a Spyro Year of the Dragon disc), so I was thinking that the GC/Wii emulator could possibly do that as well; I haven't ran Dolphin in awhile though so I haven't looked to see if that option is in the menu.

Nintendo likes optical discs, PS was just CDs. Optical discs are a bit trickier, especially with Nintendo's way of using them.

Edit:

 

[GoldenSun3DS]

I've added a 3D monitor that I think would work:
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/acer-monitor-umfg6aab01
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/rjMRCJ

(Found it by google searching for 3D monitors)

 

[GoldenSun3DS]

Added a cheap keyboard and mouse:
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Kktjbv

 

[CompassNorth]

If you just want the PC to play games go for an i5, not an i7.
There are better cards than EVGA's models for Maxwell.
CX series is average, there are so many better models to choose from.
I'd go with something like this http://pcpartpicker.com/p/DqjtrH

But if you're starting to save up make another thread when you're about to buy the parts.

 

[GoldenSun3DS]

If you just want the PC to play games go for an i5, not an i7.
There are better cards than EVGA's models for Maxwell.
CX series is average, there are so many better models to choose from.
I'd go with something like this http://pcpartpicker.com/p/DqjtrH

But if you're starting to save up make another thread when you're about to buy the parts.

I actually had that exact graphics card model picked out but I scrapped it for the EVGA one because it supported 3D output xD
Does the MSI one support 3D (as in stereoscopic) output?

That other power supply does seem better (after some google searching), so I'll switch to that one, thanks
Did some quick google searching and it seems that that motherboard is also better, so I switched to that, too.

 

[GoldenSun3DS]

I'd rather stick with the i7 instead of i5 because running Wii emulation at 1080P HD, full speed and in 3D is going to take as much power as I can get, assuming I could even achieve that with an i7 and GTX 970.

 

[Originality]

In most cases, i5 performs identical to i7 in gaming. The i7-4790K is a little bit of an exception because of the 0.5Ghz clock increase over the i5-4690K, and emulation gets respectable performance boosts from higher clock rates.

This might seem like a silly point to pick on.. but do you really need a DVD drive? After installing Windows (which can be done from USB) and motherboard drivers (which are better off downloaded from the official site in the first place), would you actually use it? If not, I'd put that $18 towards a better PSU (preferably gold rated).

Aside from that, the build looks fine to me. Personally I'd always make sure there's an SSD in the build, especially now that 120GB (what I consider the minimum for a fresh system) is so affordable these days (around the $75 mark).

 

[trumpet-205]

Agreed. Neither Corsair CX or Antec HCG is what I considered premium high quality PSU for expensive PC. They are mostly for budget user. You should look into reputable PSU like Rosewill Capstone, Seasonic Gold Rated PSU, etc.

Also, keep in mind that 3D gaming only works for games that support 3D in the first place. You are not going to see 3D effect on Wii emulation.

 

[guitarheroknight]

The i7 is a total overkill if youre buying this for gaming. An i5 would perform just the same when it comes to games.

Edit: I was running Dolphin with and old HD7850 and 2 gb of ram maxed out.

 

[CompassNorth]

I actually had that exact graphics card model picked out but I scrapped it for the EVGA one because it supported 3D output xD
Does the MSI one support 3D (as in stereoscopic) output?

That other power supply does seem better (after some google searching), so I'll switch to that one, thanks
Did some quick google searching and it seems that that motherboard is also better, so I switched to that, too.

All GTX 970s support 3D, it's not a manufacturer specific feature, it's a Nvidia one.

I'd rather stick with the i7 instead of i5 because running Wii emulation at 1080P HD, full speed and in 3D is going to take as much power as I can get, assuming I could even achieve that with an i7 and GTX 970.

You can just overclock with the i5 to match the i7, the difference is that the i7 has a feature called hyperthreading which isn't even used in games iirc.

Agreed. Neither Corsair CX or Antec HCG is what I considered premium high quality PSU for expensive PC. They are mostly for budget user. You should look into reputable PSU like Rosewill Capstone, Seasonic Gold Rated PSU, etc.

Also, keep in mind that 3D gaming only works for games that support 3D in the first place. You are not going to see 3D effect on Wii emulation.

Actually the Antec HCG-M are rebranded SeaSonics,