Good PC's ?

[shxherva]

I'm looking for a PC to play sims 4. I have a crap ton of cc and mods (probably way too much than the average simmer needs but here I am lol) and I want to be able to play on the highest settings. What are some good computers? Price doesn't really matter.

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@shxherva  Sorry for taking a little longer than I intended; I got kind of sidetracked tonight.  Anyway, I found plenty of good options for under $1,100, and I'll list the ones I think are the best configurations and the best value for the price.  If there are details you're not thrilled about, let me know, and I can find something else more suitable.

To be clear, for a graphics card, you don't need an Nvidia 2060, or even really a 1660 Super; a 1650 Super would run all of Sims 4 on ultra settings, now and probably for the entire development of the game.  But since you have the budget for it, and apparently a lot of custom content, you probably want at least a 1660.  Whether you'd get any benefit from a 2060 depends on the monitor you want.  (See below.)

You could actually get a good gaming PC, including a 1660, for $750 if you wanted.  This one also has a good processor, and the 256 GB solid state drive is large enough for all your cc, although you'd want to move most non-Sims 4-related data to the secondary (slower) HDD.  The one drawback is it has only 8 GB memory: although that's enough for Sims 4, multitasking would be easier with 16 GB.  Still, you could get a second 8 GB stick for around $40, or pay a bit more to have someone else install it.

https://www.amazon.com/CYBERPOWERPC-Xtreme-i5-9400F-GeForce-GXiVR8060A8/dp/B07VGJDKZ4

This one has a significantly stronger processor, although that wouldn't make a difference to Sims 4.  Its 1660 Super is maybe 10% faster than a regular 1660, although again you may not need that extra speed.  It has the same 256 GB SSD/1 TB HDD as the one above.  It also has 8 GB memory, but for $900, you could upgrade it easily enough, or have Best Buy do it for you.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/cyberpowerpc-gamer-xtreme-gaming-desktop-intel-core-i5-9600kf-8gb-nvidi...

This one's processor is a bit stronger than the one above, and its SSD is larger, plus it has 16 GB RAM already installed.  So for $1,000, you're getting an upgrade on memory and storage.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/ibuypower-gaming-desktop-intel-core-i7-9700f-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce...

An Nvidia 2060 is around 15% faster in gaming than a 1660 Super, although builds with a 2060 are usually significantly more expensive.  This one is $1,000 though.  Its processor is a bit weaker than the ones in the Best Buy computers, but that won't make a difference to Sims 4.  It has a single 500 GB SSD, which should be more than enough no matter how much cc you download, and 16 GB RAM.

https://www.newegg.com/skytech-st-arch3-0-0056-ne-archangel/p/N82E16883289049?Item=N82E16883289049

You also have the budget for a custom build, if you want to go that direction, and if none of these are exactly what you want.  It would cost more money for the same processor and graphics card, but the benefit, aside from picking out exactly what you want, is that you'd get higher quality components, e.g. motherboard and power supply.  If you're interested, let me know, and I'll check the usual sites.

For monitors, the two questions that matter are the resolution and the framerates you want.  The resolution is literally how many pixels there are on a monitor; more pixels means a sharper image, but also more work for the graphics card.  If you're not sure what you'd want, let me know the width you'd like the monitor to be, more or less.  Small enough, and there aren't many options with high resolutions; large enough, and a normal-resolution monitor would look kind of grainy.

The framerates you see in game are how many frames per second (fps) the monitor displays.  Some people can't tell the difference between 60 fps and higher, and some can, so it's hard for me to tell you what you want.  If you're in a position to go to a physical store and have a look at the monitors, that's the best option.  Open a File Explorer window, grab it with the cursor, and move it rapidly around the screen.  If you can't tell the difference between a 60 Hz and a 120 or 144 Hz monitor, then there's no reason to aim for higher than 60 fps in-game.  A friend with a 144 Hz monitor could also set it to 60 Hz temporarily and show you what each mode looks like.

If these options aren't feasible, it's not really a problem, especially if you want a smaller monitor.  A 1660 Super would run Sims 4 at mostly over 100 fps on a normal resolution anyway; the question only comes up if you want a higher resolution.

And of course if you have questions about any of this, feel free to ask.

[puzzlezaddict]

@shxherva  Price might not matter, but do you have a preferred budget in mind, or even a range?  Do you have a monitor, or do you need a recommendation for that too?  In either case, what resolution would you prefer to play at, and what framerates?  The graphics card required to run Sims 4 at a resolution of 2560x1440 at over 100 fps is a lot faster than the one required for 1920x1080 at ~60 fps.

Please also let me know your country, so I can make some suggestions.

[shxherva]

I live in America. I guess the range would be like 900 to 1100?? I do need a monitor as well. But I have no idea what a framerate is. I just know I want the game to be able to run smoothly. Sorry I’m not as knowledgeable in this topic. 

[puzzlezaddict]

@shxherva  No worries, I'll get back to you in a couple hours with some suggestions.

[shxherva]

Ok thank you sooo much 

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@shxherva  Sorry for taking a little longer than I intended; I got kind of sidetracked tonight.  Anyway, I found plenty of good options for under $1,100, and I'll list the ones I think are the best configurations and the best value for the price.  If there are details you're not thrilled about, let me know, and I can find something else more suitable.

To be clear, for a graphics card, you don't need an Nvidia 2060, or even really a 1660 Super; a 1650 Super would run all of Sims 4 on ultra settings, now and probably for the entire development of the game.  But since you have the budget for it, and apparently a lot of custom content, you probably want at least a 1660.  Whether you'd get any benefit from a 2060 depends on the monitor you want.  (See below.)

You could actually get a good gaming PC, including a 1660, for $750 if you wanted.  This one also has a good processor, and the 256 GB solid state drive is large enough for all your cc, although you'd want to move most non-Sims 4-related data to the secondary (slower) HDD.  The one drawback is it has only 8 GB memory: although that's enough for Sims 4, multitasking would be easier with 16 GB.  Still, you could get a second 8 GB stick for around $40, or pay a bit more to have someone else install it.

https://www.amazon.com/CYBERPOWERPC-Xtreme-i5-9400F-GeForce-GXiVR8060A8/dp/B07VGJDKZ4

This one has a significantly stronger processor, although that wouldn't make a difference to Sims 4.  Its 1660 Super is maybe 10% faster than a regular 1660, although again you may not need that extra speed.  It has the same 256 GB SSD/1 TB HDD as the one above.  It also has 8 GB memory, but for $900, you could upgrade it easily enough, or have Best Buy do it for you.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/cyberpowerpc-gamer-xtreme-gaming-desktop-intel-core-i5-9600kf-8gb-nvidi...

This one's processor is a bit stronger than the one above, and its SSD is larger, plus it has 16 GB RAM already installed.  So for $1,000, you're getting an upgrade on memory and storage.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/ibuypower-gaming-desktop-intel-core-i7-9700f-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce...

An Nvidia 2060 is around 15% faster in gaming than a 1660 Super, although builds with a 2060 are usually significantly more expensive.  This one is $1,000 though.  Its processor is a bit weaker than the ones in the Best Buy computers, but that won't make a difference to Sims 4.  It has a single 500 GB SSD, which should be more than enough no matter how much cc you download, and 16 GB RAM.

https://www.newegg.com/skytech-st-arch3-0-0056-ne-archangel/p/N82E16883289049?Item=N82E16883289049

You also have the budget for a custom build, if you want to go that direction, and if none of these are exactly what you want.  It would cost more money for the same processor and graphics card, but the benefit, aside from picking out exactly what you want, is that you'd get higher quality components, e.g. motherboard and power supply.  If you're interested, let me know, and I'll check the usual sites.

For monitors, the two questions that matter are the resolution and the framerates you want.  The resolution is literally how many pixels there are on a monitor; more pixels means a sharper image, but also more work for the graphics card.  If you're not sure what you'd want, let me know the width you'd like the monitor to be, more or less.  Small enough, and there aren't many options with high resolutions; large enough, and a normal-resolution monitor would look kind of grainy.

The framerates you see in game are how many frames per second (fps) the monitor displays.  Some people can't tell the difference between 60 fps and higher, and some can, so it's hard for me to tell you what you want.  If you're in a position to go to a physical store and have a look at the monitors, that's the best option.  Open a File Explorer window, grab it with the cursor, and move it rapidly around the screen.  If you can't tell the difference between a 60 Hz and a 120 or 144 Hz monitor, then there's no reason to aim for higher than 60 fps in-game.  A friend with a 144 Hz monitor could also set it to 60 Hz temporarily and show you what each mode looks like.

If these options aren't feasible, it's not really a problem, especially if you want a smaller monitor.  A 1660 Super would run Sims 4 at mostly over 100 fps on a normal resolution anyway; the question only comes up if you want a higher resolution.

And of course if you have questions about any of this, feel free to ask.

[shxherva]

You are amazing!! Probably going to go with the last one that just sounds like everything I need. I’ll probably go to the store to look at monitors knowing what I know now about the frame rates and stuff. Thank you so much again for the recommendations, you have been the most help I’ve gotten in like 3 months.