CyberpowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA3100A Review – Does It Perform Well?

In this review we take a look at the CyberpowerPC GUA3100A – a prebuilt offering of a gaming computer that seems pretty popular. We noticed this PC on Amazon and it’s interesting because there’s a few different offerings in terms of hardware (read on to find out more).

In this CyberpowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA3100A Review, we’ll take a good look at the hardware, performance and upgradeability, as well as the different options available if purchasing through Amazon.

Overview: CyberpowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA3100A

CyberpowerPC’s GUA3100A is a prebuilt computer package which comes with a keyboard and mouse, marketed as a gaming machine. It certainly looks the part with it’s case viewing window and backlit case fan in red. The mouse and keyboard also have red highlights to match the color theme.

This is certainly an entry level machine, and you can get better performance value for money if you build your own computer (because you can choose newer parts). However, for those looking for a pre-built gaming package without the hassle of DIY assembly, this entry level PC will suit those looking to start gaming and it has potential for future hardware upgrades.

If you like the GUA3100A but aren’t completely sold on the look of the case, or just want a different color – check out the GUA882 which is made by CyberpowerPC as well.  It’s essentially the same hardware but comes in a different case with a blue / RGB lighting color scheme.

If you are purchasing through Amazon there is one particular seller who offers this computer with a graphics card and power supply upgrade already done for you – we’ll take a look at the details on this as well.

Pros

  • Matching keyboard/mouse/case package
  • Prebuilt system, complete with Windows 10 preinstalled
  • Great looking case with viewing window and red case lighting
  • Plenty of room inside the case for future hardware upgrades
  • 1 year warranty

Cons

  • No wireless adapter
  • Keyboard and mouse lights powered directly from PSU, so they run even when PC is turned off
  • No USB 3.0 ports (though there are plenty of USB 2.0 ports)
  • Not the best graphics card

Performance

As usual, the first thing we want to look at is the performance of this computer. In terms of value for money, you could get better performance from the hardware we’ve listed in our $500 gaming PC build, but if you prefer not to bother with assembling your own computer then a prebuilt option is your only other choice.

The processor in this computer is a AMD FX-4300 quad-core with a clock speed of 3.80GHz and up to 4.0GHz on Turbo boost. Performance wise, it’s okay, but is certainly outperformed by the latest Skylake Intel i3 and i5 CPUs as shown in the benchmark test results below.

CyberpowerPC GUA3100A Review - cpu comparison
Comparing the CPU of the GUA3100A with the CPU recommended in our $500 gaming build and the CPU in the popular prebuilt ASUS M32CD desktop computer. The higher the score, the better it performs. Source: CPU benchmark

 

The graphics card on the CyberpowerPC GUA3100A is the AMD Radeon R7 240 GPU, which to be honest doesn’t seem to perform that well. Bear in mind that this is an older card (released in October 2013), so it’s not going to give the best performance.

The R7 240 graphics card scores about the same as the integrated graphics which come with the latest Intel CPUs when we look at the synthetic benchmark test scores (see below). Theoretically this means that you may be better off buying a prebuilt computer like the ASUS M32CD with the 6th gen i5 CPU and onboard graphics (and it comes in a little cheaper than the GUA3100A too), based on our look at the graphics card and CPU so far.

One advantage of having a dedicated graphics card though is that the video card has it’s own dedicated memory. In this case the R7 240 has 2GB of on-card RAM. This can offer advantages over on-board graphics which need to use up your system’s RAM. Keep in mind that this advantage of the R7 240 may not be be adequately captured in the synthetic benchmark (simulated only) data below.

As you can see from the benchmark data below, our DIY $500 gaming build has given us the flexibility to select a high performing graphics card within our budget, which gives a significant performance advantage over the Radeon R7 240 in the GUA3100A prebuilt PC.

cyberpowerpc-gua3100a-review-gfx-comparison
Comparing the graphics benchmarks of the GUA3100A with the CPU recommended in our $500 gaming build and the CPU in the popular prebuilt ASUS M32CD desktop computer. The higher the score, the better it performs. Source: CPU benchmark

Speaking of memory, the CyberpowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA3100A comes with 8GB of DDR3 RAM 1600MHz, as does both our $500 gaming build and the ASUS M32CD. In the GUA3100A, the maximum memory supported by the motherboard is  up to 16GB.

In terms of storage, the computer has a 1TB 7200rpm hard drive. It’s a good amount of storage space and will be a bit faster than a standard 5400rpm drive, which is a bonus.

The case seems like the biggest selling point on this computer, as it definitely looks like a gamer’s PC. The read/write DVD optical drive is a must for physical CD game installs, but it’s a shame that this computer doesn’t come with any inbuilt or on-board wireless card – meaning you’ll need to plug in via LAN port with an ethernet cable for internet connectivity or otherwise spend a little bit of money on a wireless adapter.

Here’s a good look at the CyberpowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA3100A in the below video:

Check out the user reviews on Amazon >>

Usage

The quad core processor, graphics card with 2GB of dedicated DDR3 RAM, and system RAM of 8GB on this PC means it can comfortably handle everyday use as well as a variety of games (though don’t expect to be able to play more intensive games on high settings without introducing lag).

Aesthetically, it looks like a mean gaming PC, with the viewing window providing a nice visual of the internal computer hardware and red case lighting for accents.

For both entry-level gaming and general tasks like internet browsing, running applications and watching videos, this PC will meet your needs.

Gaming Performance

Given that the CyberpowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA3100A is marketed as a gaming computer (heck, it even has it in the name of the PC!), let’s take a closer look at how it performs in some common games. Unfortunately as we covered earlier, the R7 240 is not a great graphics card in our opinion, but this computer reportedly can play the following games:

DayZ, Minecraft, Battlefield 4, Dying Light, H1Z1, Star Wars The Old Republic, Counter-Strike: GO, Crysis, League of Legends, DOTA2, GTA, Arma 3, World Of Warcraft, Starcraft, Warframe, Runescape.

Here are a few youtube videos of the GUA3100A in a few different games:

  1. Runescape

2. Battlefield 4

3. Minecraft

4. Counterstrike: GO

Don’t expect to be able to have settings on high for all of these. The R7 240 is not the best card, so you may chug a bit on more demanding games.

One Amazon seller (G-System) offers a graphics card and power supply upgrade on this PC, though you need to be aware that this will void any manufacturer warranty (however G-system may offer their own warranty instead). We believe the upgraded card is the NVIDIA GeForce GT 740 which does perform better than the stock R7 240.  GUA3100A G system grpahics card upgrade

However, you could also do your own graphics card upgrade and go for a more recent card than the GT 740 (a 2013 release) for even better performance. You’d probably need to upgrade the power supply as well to ensure the new card has sufficient power available to it.

Screens/Video

The GUA3100A can support up to two displays from the graphics card. It has three output ports: one Single-Link DVI-D, one HDMI port, and one VGA port. According to the R7 specifications, it can support 4K resolution.

It may be possible to connect up a third monitor to the CyberpowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA3100A by supplying one screen from the on-board motherboard integrated graphics – in this case it looks like the motherboard is a Gigabyte GA-78LMT-S2PT with a VGA port for connecting up a monitor display.

Upgrading the Gamer Ultra GUA3100A

If you’re a serious gamer, the GUA3100A should definitely be upgraded as the Radeon R7 240 card is just not that great.

The most common upgrades to this computer are a new graphics card, new power supply and wireless adapter. If you need more guidance on this, leave us a comment below and we’ll be happy to offer some advice.

A USB wireless adapter like this one will be the easiest way to get the GUA3100A capable of wifi connectivity.

If you’re thinking of upgrading this PC, we’ve included a list of the full specifications as a reference at the end of this review.

Keep in mind that when considering future upgrades you may want to pay particular attention to motherboard slots and I/O.

Another thing to be wary of when buying prebuilt gaming PCs is to check out the power supply that they come with. Many people overlook power supply specifications (apart from the wattage), which means that manufacturers can tend to ‘cheap out’ on this component.

However, having a low-quality power supply can damage your other components and lead to shorter lifespan, so you should never skimp out on this component – be sure to buy a reputable brand and spend a few more dollars, as it will save you in the long run.

There is limited information available on what power supply the GUA3100A (stock) ships with, so if you are planning on keeping this PC for a while and upgrading it, one of the things we would recommend to upgrade would be the power supply so that you can ensure your other components are being powered safely and within their limits. We found quite a few bad reports of CyberpowerPC using poor quality power supplies in their builds, so it’s something to be wary of.

CyberpowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA3100A Specifications

CyberpowerPC don’t have an official specification page for their GUA3100A build, which appears to be an Amazon offering (not listed on the official CyberpowerPC website).

It does appear that the actual hardware that you get could potentially vary from what is listed below since CyberpowerPC basically assemble these computers themselves. Based on what we’ve seen through various Amazon reviews and questions, there is some variation in the parts used by CyberpowerPC. The specifications below are based on the best information available on this product that we could find.

Model Number:

GUA3100A

Operating System:

Windows 10

CPU:

AMD FX-4300 quad core 3.8 GHz with 4.0GHz turbo boost. AMD 760G Chipset

Graphics:

Graphics Card: AMD Radeon R7 240 with 2GB DDR3 or GDDR5 dedicated memory

Outputs supported: 1x HDMI, 1x VGA, 1x DVI-D

Clock speed: Up to 780MHz

4K Resolution support: 4K60 SST or MST

API Support: DirectX® 12, Mantle, OpenGL® 4.3, OpenCL™

Full graphics card specifications can be found here.

Motherboard:

*Note that CyberpowerPC appear to assemble their computers from individual parts, and it appears as though they may use a different motherboard model in their build depending on the market. We believe the below specifications for the motherboard used in CyberpowerPC’s GUA3100A are correct as of the time of writing.

Gigabyte GA-78LMT-S2PT

CPU: AM3+ Socket

Chipset: North Bridge: AMD 760G, South Bridge: AMD SB710

Form Factor: Micro ATX –  24.4cm x 20.6cm

Memory: 2 x 1.5V DIMM, max. 16GB DDR3, 1333+/1066/800MHz

Expansion Slots: 1 x PCIe x16,  1 x PCIe x1, 1 x PCI  (All PCIe ports conform to PCI express 2.0 standard)

Output Support: VGA (from onboard graphics)

Audio: Realtek HD codec high definition audio. 2/4/5.1/7.1 channel

Gigabit LAN: Atheros GbE LAN chip (10/100/1000 Mbit)

SATA: 6 x SATA 3Gbit/s

IDE: 1 x IDE connector supporting ATA-133/100/66/33 and up to 2 IDE devices

USB: 4 x USB2.0 on back panel, 2 x USB2.0 on front side (can expand front panel USB outputs to 4 through the internal USB headers – this would give a total of 8 USB2.0 ports)

Internal I/O connectors:
  • 1 x 24-pin ATX main power connector
  • 1 x 4-pin ATX 12V power connector
  • 6 x SATA 3Gb/s connectors
  • 1 x IDE connector
  • 1 x CPU fan header
  • 1 x system fan header
  • 1 x front panel header
  • 1 x front panel audio header
  • 2 x USB 2.0/1.1 headers
  • 1 x Clear CMOS jumper

 

Details above were taken from here.

Back I/O ports:

1 x PS/2 keyboard port
1 x PS/2 mouse port
1 x serial port
1 x parallel port
1 x VGA (D-Sub) port
4 x USB2.0/1.1 ports
1 x RJ-45 port
1 x Line in
1 x Line out
1 x Microphone

Front I/O Ports:

2 x USB 2.0/1.1
1 x Headphone
1 x Microphone

Memory:

Internal memory: 1 x  8 GB DDR3L-SDRAM  1600MHz

Maximum internal memory: 16 GB

Storage:

Total storage capacity: 1000 GB, Storage media: HDD, Hard drive interface: Serial ATA III. 7200rpm

Power Supply:

350W

Wireless:

Nil

Optical Drive:

LG 24X DVD±RW Dual-Layer Drive

Dimensions/Weight:

7.9 (W) x 17.5 (H) x 17 (D) inches

25.1 pounds

Summary

Most entry-level or casual gamers seem to enjoy the Gamer Ultra GUA3100A PC, however after looking in more detail at its hardware, we think you can certainly get better performance value for money. The graphics card in the GUA3100A is not the best and there is no onboard wireless connectivity.  

A better option may be to look at the M32CD desktop computer and fit it out with a dedicated graphics card for a similar price to the GUA3100A. (Or for even better performance you could always build your own from scratch following our $500 gaming PC build).

However, for those who are just looking for a pre-built computer complete with keyboard and mouse that looks the part and gives decent all-round performance, this offering may be for you. The GUA3100A should meet your needs for most games – provided you keep the settings on low to medium.

If you are after a gaming PC that you can play nearly any recent game on high settings though, you’re talking about a different league of gaming PC. If this sounds like you, be sure to check out our Cyberpower PC Gamer Xtreme VR GXiVR8020A review – this PC costs a little more than the GUA3100A but absolutely blows it out of the water when it comes to gaming performance!

Click here to check out the GUA3100A on Amazon

97 Comments

  1. Hello!

    I am looking for a Pc, that can run, Team Fortress 2, Overwatch, Garry’s Mod, Battlefield 4, Escapist 2, Terraria and Source Filmmaker. My current one is a laptop, and when i open Team Fortress 2, Source Filmmaker and Garry’s Mod, my pc has a BSOD. I used to be able to play those, if i just first have Youtube and stuff for around 1 hour on. It stopped on one day when i updated that Laptop like it asked. But now it doesn’t work due to some unrepairable corrupted files on my pc. So can the Gua3100a Pc, run those games, and also i noticed that Overwatch would not run that well, so can some new gadgets for Gua3100a, make it run better. I took a look at the Requirements for those games but i do not know anything of it and i think, its just better if someone there would check it. Iwe never built a computer and i don’t know anything of it, but i know people who could help with possible new parts. Also i live in suburban area if you need to know it for the internet or something. I have no idea about the requirements and so on, so i hope that i will not have to try my luck in searching the requirements. Simplified, can Gua3100a, run Team Fortress 2, Overwatch, Garry’s Mod, Battlefield 4, Escapist 2, Terraria and Source Filmmaker, and if it cannot, what new parts do i need?

    • Also, because i never buy from Amazon, due to the chance of getting broken / wrong / faulty ETC, item, and i am unable to return it, can Gua3100a, be built? I mean like, some aquintance, would find the parts and build it and i would pay! Or if i want Gua3100a, do i need to buy it from the internet? Again i do not know anything of Building Computers.

      • Amazon do have a pretty good return policy, so typically you are covered by this in the event of broken/wrong items being received. The CyberpowerPC GUA3100A probably not going to play all of the games you specified that well, but it might just manage if you turn the settings down to low. If you’ve got the cash available, either spend a bit more for a better specc’d prebuilt PC, or otherwise consider a DIY build from parts – you can usually pick better performing parts yourself for a similar overall price.

    • Hi Tekno, We’ve put together a post about how to work out if your computer can run a particular game – check it out here.
      The fastest way to check all those titles would be to use something like this Game Debate tool , with the specs of the GUA3100A. The GUA3100A’s graphics card is not that great to be honest, so it may struggle on some of those games, for instance Overwatch.

      You could definitely put together your own build with newer parts which would perform much better. To learn more about what’s involved with building your own computer, check out our Build Guide and just have a look thorough all the steps. If it seems like something you’d be interested in trying out, then there’s also heaps of in-depth videos about how to build a computer on youtube.

      Based on a quick google search, a place called NCIX appear to offer an assembly service. Our recommendation though is to learn how to do your own build if possible, it’s a good life skill to have and you’ll learn a lot about computer hardware, which can come in handy if you are interested in gaming.

  2. Hi, I have this computer, bought it when I was first getting into computer gaming through an Amazon sale. Wondering what I can do now to make it better, what should I look at upgrading first?

    Thank you

    • Hi Patrick,

      If you’re looking to make this PC better in terms of gaming then your first objective should be to upgrade the graphics card. Most of the upgraded graphics cards will draw too much power for the power supply to handle so that will need to be upgrade too.

      So, you’ll need to choose a new power supply and graphics card.

      I recommend choosing one of these two graphics cards:

      AMD RX560

      Nvidia GTX 1050

      And a 500W power supply will work well with these cards. This one is very good value and reliable.

      EVGA 500W W1

      I wouldn’t bother going for a better card than these two as your CPU will be the limiting factor at that point. Upgrading the CPU would involve a new Motherboard and CPU which may be getting a bit pricey – it’s essentially rebuilding your whole PC.

      Of course, you could get slightly cheaper cards than what I’ve recommended depending on what level of performance you’re after. So if these are out of your price range, let me know!

      • Hey just a few questions, hopefully you know the answers! I want to upgrade this to the best it can be. So for this pc what is the most powerful graphics card I’m able to put in it? I’m gonna buy a power supply to handle the card but just wondering what kinda beast of a card I can get away with here. Thank you!

        • Hi Kelby,

          Good choice to upgrade the graphics card!

          Technically, you can put just about any graphics card in this PC but before you go and buy one I have to bore you with some details 🙂

          You need to be aware of something many people call bottlenecking. In the context of upgrading your graphics card this means that your CPU could “bottleneck” your graphics card preventing it from performing to it’s maximum. Think of it like putting a 1000HP motor in a car but having a gearbox/diff that will still limit the car to 100mph.

          In the GUA3100A the CPU is a little on the weak side so even if you put in a top of the line graphics card like a GTX1080 Ti, you won’t be able to make full use of the graphics card in games. In simple terms, the CPU needs to be able to serve up requests to the graphics card for it to process and with something like a GTX 1080 ti it will be sitting around waiting for the CPU to catch up. It won’t really hurt performance by getting a graphics card thats “too good” for the CPU, it will just be a bit of a waste of money.

          Now, what’s the best graphics card without worrying about this bottlenecking stuff? It’s a bit difficult to give a specific limit as it can vary wildly depending on the game and how they’re designed. Typically though, I recommend a GTX 1050 or GTX 1050 ti for this PC. The CPU may limit the card in some instances but not so much that it’s a waste of money (depending on the game). However for you, since you want the best you can get in there you could go for a GTX 1060 6GB version if you don’t mind spending the extra. The CPU will definitely limit the GTX 1060 from performing at it’s best but the main benefit here is that you’ll get the extra video memory for games that have massive textures.

          I hope that helps, let us know if you have any other questions!

      • Hi, to add on to this, I would like to know if the GTX 1050 ti should have 2 GB or 4 GB? Would it make a difference with the level of CPU performance?

        • Hi Manuel,
          The 2GB or 4GB figure that is mentioned with those graphics cards is VRAM (video RAM) which is the memory that is built-in to the graphics card. It essentially has the same function as your system RAM which is to store data that is needed by the graphics card while it is processing. Because VRAM is integrated into the graphics card, it can be accessed faster, and also will reduce the load on your system RAM. The amount of VRAM shouldn’t noticeably affect the CPU performance. This is becoming more and more important in newer game titles, but different games tend to use/require different amounts of VRAM. The higher the amount you have available, the better (it generally will allow you to play at higher resolutions and with higher texture qualities), and we have seen figures of around 4GB VRAM recommended for today’s titles.

  3. I was looking into putting an SSD into this PC, does anyone have recommendations on what size or model would be best? Also, which graphics card would be a reasonable upgrade?

    • Hi Cooper,

      For the graphics card I like the AMD RX560 or the Nvidia GTX 1050. These are both excellent cards without breaking the bank. You’ll need to upgrade the power supply to – go for a 500w like the EVGA 500W W1.

      As for the SSD, the Samsung 850 Evo will work in your PC. It’s one of the best value for money SSDs and provides excellent performance. Here’s a link to the 256GB version but they also have 120GB, 500GB and 1TB versions.

    • Hi Christian,

      The graphics card that comes with this PC is not the greatest. You will be able to play CS GO and Dota 2 but you may need to lower the graphics settings, most importantly the resolution. Try a resolution such as 1020×768 and change the graphics settings to a lower level.

    • Hey Bryan,

      As far as I’m aware there aren’t any recommended settings from the manufacturer about what you should use on a particular game like GTA. Your best bet might be just trial and error – by that I mean selecting one of the preset options, testing it out to see how it goes, and then adjusting the individual settings from there to find the best settings to suit your preferences for gameplay.

    • Hi Adrian,
      I assume you are referring to H1Z1: King of the Kill.
      The minimum and recommended requirements for this game are listed here.

      Unfortunately as we mentioned in our review, the R7 240 graphics card that’s in this build is not the best; and in this case it performs worse than the minimum requirement card listed (GTX 275 or better). As a comparison, we checked the benchmark scores of each here. Based on this we’d say that H1Z1 wouldn’t run that great on this PC.

      • I own this PC and have not yet upgraded although I have a power supply being shipped now and will replace graphics card soon. I can say, you can run H1Z1: KoTK with this PC, don’t expect more than 30 FPS but it runs… If this PC is your first PC, you should be able to play with 30 FPS for a bit, definitely recommend upgrading ASAP.

        • Thanks for the feedback Joel, always good to hear if someone has tried it out. Based on the specs we guessed H1Z1:King of The Kill wouldn’t run that well, but good to hear that it can manage at least 30 FPS on this PC. As you’ve mentioned, it’s playable, but not the best.

  4. I am just getting into computer gaming and I was wondering if this would work for games like over watch and team fortress 2. Or if I should just get ur 500$ build but I have no experience with building computers and what is good in computer terms

    • Hi Owen,
      Thanks for stopping by. We’d definitely recommend our $500 build over the GUA3100A, but fully understand it can be a bit daunting if you’ve never built a PC before.

      It can be a bit difficult to compare stuff when you’re first getting into hardware, but here are some pointers to help you out in your research:
      (1) Check the benchmark scores of different pieces of hardware. For gaming computers, you’ll want to look at the graphics card (use something like this list or this tool) and the processor (use something like this tool) in particular.
      (2) Check the minimum and recommended requirements for the game titles that you think you’ll be playing, and make sure your computer hardware is at least as good as the items mentioned. To do this google “ recommended requirements” or “ system requirements”, and make sure the link you go to is from a reputable source (usually the game manufacturer or distributor). For example, here are the recommended requirements for Overwatch.
      (3) To check if your PC will meet the minimum requirements, compare both the graphics card and CPU using something like these hierarchy lists as a guide of which is better: CPU and Graphics Cards

      Based on the steps above, I noticed that TF2 is not very demanding (doesn’t even recommend a graphics card), while Overwatch is a bit more demanding. The R7 240 graphics card in the CyberpowerPC GUA3100A is not that great and doesn’t really compare to the minimum requirement graphics card GTX 460 for Overwatch (see a benchmark score comparison of these two cards here). Based on this, the GUA3100A wouldn’t be great for running Overwatch, but it might play TF2 okay. I would recommend a different machine as you can get better value for your money.

      If you’re not completely confident in building your own PC from scratch, you can pick a good ‘base’ computer to start out with, and do a minor upgrade like the graphics card (which is the most important part for a gaming computer). This is a good way to learn, and a good ‘base’ computer that we have recommended in the past is the ASUS M32CD – check out our full review of that machine here which also includes information on upgrading it for gaming.

      Hope this helps!

  5. I was thinking about upgrading mine, (had it for almost 6 months now) I was thinking I would do the power supply, graphics card, and more ram for good measure. Would EVGA 500 W1 work good for the power supply, and then the GTX 1050 Ti for a graphics card and finally a Corsair 8GB DDR4 RAM stick. Would all of that work in this PC?

    • Hi Nick,

      Those would all be excellent upgrades to this PC except the RAM needs to be DDR3 for this motherboard, not DDR4. Also, you could save some money and only upgrade to a GTX 1050 graphics card rather than a GTX 1050 TI. The CPU in the computer may start to become the limiting factor and prevent you from seeing the benefit in the 1050 TI over the regular 1050.

  6. well this pc play games like Star Trek Online and Guild Wars 2 at there highest settings or not? it doesnt look like it will but i am unsure.

    • The graphics card in the GUA3100A is not the best, but it looks like it is better than the requirements mentioned in the system requirements listed for these two games (here and here). Keep in mind these are ‘minimum’ requirements though so if you want to play smoothly on high settings, you might need a bit better hardware. We’d recommend a PC with newer hardware to be safe (for example the M32CD with a graphics card upgrade).

  7. Hi can the new gtx 1050 ti run with this computer. It only needs 75watts that comes from the pci express slot. Im just worried if the pci express 2.0 slot is too low because the graphics card says it has pci express 3.0.

    • Hi Phil, great question and I can see you’ve actually researched the specs.

      PCI express 3.0 cards can run in PCI express 2.0 slots. The very top of the line cards may need the extra bandwidth provided by a 3.0 slot but the 1050 ti wont, so no issues at all here.

      As for power you will most likely need to upgrade the power supply for that card. You’re correct that the card only draws 75W but you will be right on the limits of what the power supply in this system (300-350w) can output when you account for the rest of the system. To play it safe, I recommend getting a 500w power supply like the EVGA 500W W1.

  8. Hi.

    I have had this pc for a while now and I finally have some money to do an upgrade. I’m looking into these parts (a new graphics card and power supply)

    (Evga gtx 1050ti 4g..important to have that 4g)

    (Evga 600w bronze power supply, do I need that or can I get away with the 500w white you’ve been mentioning)

    I really want to make sure that all items are compatible before purchasing and that I’m making smart investments based on what else is out there. Thanks

    • Hi Alex,

      Both of those are excellent choices and will work together in this PC. Yes, you can definitely get away with a 500W W1 that I commonly recommend here as the GTX 1050 TI is low power draw card (only about 75W). It never hurts to have a bit more for the future though.

      Good luck with the build!

  9. Hello. Thanks for the great review.

    After reading your comments, I ordered a USB Wifi Adapter, EVGA GTX 950 SSC and EVGA 500 W1 80+.
    You have suggested SC+, but I bought SSC, does it matter? I tried to research, but it just says SSC is better.

    And also after replacing the hardwares, GFX Card and PSU
    Do I have to install a new graphics driver? Or is it automatically configured its own?

    • Hi Chanyu,

      Excellent decision! The SC+ or SCC won’t matter. These are just slightly different overclocks on the graphics card. The manufacturers tweak the cards to run slightly faster then normal and charge you a small amount more. If you got the slightly faster overclock then great, your card should run slightly faster.

      After you perform the hardware upgrades you should install the latest graphics card drivers to be sure you’re getting the most out of the hardware. These days the later versions of Windows will usually download an appropriate driver via Windows Update but it’s always good to download the latest from the manufacturers website to be certain. For your card, head over the Nvidia website here: http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx

  10. So i was looking for a new graphics card amd i found one bit the power supply dose not have the 6+2 or 8 pins to go into the graphics card.does that mean i need a new power supply?

  11. Can I replace the ethernet card in this model? My husband has it, and it doesn’t even come close to the speeds the other pcs in the house do, and we were told this was why. What card could we get to replace it?

    • Hi Bobbi,

      The Ethernet card in this model is actually part of the motherboard so it can’t be upgraded but you can simply add another Ethernet card and plug into that one.

      However before you do, could you explain a little more about the speed issue you’re experiencing? I doubt it would be the Ethernet card unless it’s somehow faulty.

  12. hi was was wondering if you could give me a link to the gua3100a being sold by G-System on amazon, i have not been able to find a link for the life of me.

  13. so I ordered this pc off of amazon and they have changed some things. I thought you might want to know. The cpu fan looks much different and is I believe a nicer fan. the gpu is a R7 200 and the power supply is now 500w.

    • Hi Carter,

      Yes, you’ll be able to run dual monitors with this PC and it’ll work great for everyday multitasking. Some users suggest that there is a very slight performance decrease if you’re running dual monitors while gaming (game on one monitor, websites etc on the other) but we’ve yet to test and confirm this.

    • Hi Andrew,
      Yep, the GTX 970 will fit within this PC. Have you also considered the GTX 1060? It’s potentially a little cheaper and offers better performance (check out the benchmark comparison here).

      Keep in mind that for both of these graphics card upgrade options you will need to upgrade/replace the original power supply in the GUA3100A. Depending on how much the upgrades total, it could be worth checking out a better prebuilt PC to start off with for a ‘base’ computer. One that comes to mind which we were pretty impressed with is the GXiVR8020A, have a quick look to see what you think as this could be an option as well.

      • thank you I will for sure get that graphics card instead but what I’m not sure about is the power supply. My pc came with a 500w power supply does it really need the upgrade to a new 500w power supply?

  14. I have this same PC bought from Walmart and the power supply has already quit working. I don’t want to use the warranty replacement as they will probably give me another piece of junk. Without upgrading anything else would I be able to buy the upgraded power supply you have suggested in previous replies? I believe you said the EVGA 500w?

    • Hi Rebecca,

      Correct, you could easily swap out the power supply directly and wouldn’t need to change any other components, as long as it is in fact just the power supply that’s damaged.
      There could be a slim chance that other components may have been damaged by the faulty power supply, if the fault was caused due to something like a power surge (I’ve never seen a power supply naturally fail by itself and take out other parts with it though).

      The EVGA 500W is a good quality supply that will give you some extra room for any future upgrades that you might choose to do on this computer. There are plenty of videos on youtube that can assist with the whole process, for example here is a quite detailed video:

      Hope this helps and good luck!

    • Hi Levi,

      x16 refers to the bus speed of the slot and is the longer slot on the board, while the 2.0 is the version of the PCI express bus.

      The motherboard in the GUA3100A machine has a single x16 PCI express 2.0 slot which the supplied R7 240 graphics card will be slotted into.

      However if you are planning on putting in a PCI Express 3.0 x16 graphics card then this will work without any issues, as the newer 3.0 graphics cards are backwards compatible with 2.0 PCI express slots.

  15. Hi! I was wondering which you would prefer: this prebuilt gaming desktop or the linked pc setup in the article? And Why?

    • Hey Dylan, are you referring to the $500 build that we linked?

      If so, we’d definitely recommend the $500 do-it-yourself build. As for why, it has a WAY better graphics capability (check out the benchmark score comparison in the article to get an idea of how much – it’s around 5 times better!), a better quality power supply, and you will learn heaps by putting it together yourself.

      If you have any more questions, let us know!

    • Hi Hakeem,

      The GeForce GTX 960 will fit into the motherboard but we recommend installing a new power supply at the same time.

      The Power supply that comes with the GUA3100A will not be powerful enough to reliably run the GTX 960 in games.

      Take a look at this EVGA power supply, it’s excellent value and will work perfectly with the GTX 960:
      EVGA 500W

      Which cords are you asking about? The power supply cables? If so, the new power supply you install will definitely have the correct cables for the install.

      Let me know if you have any other questions.

  16. Man this was a great write up. Extremely well written. I only wish I had read it before actually buying this computer. It definitely struggles with gaming. You should consider writing articles on steemit. I think you would do well. Thank you.

    • Thanks for the feedback Tyler! While the 3100 does stuggle with some games it’s a decent base computer to upgrade from for basic gaming. Yeah, Steemit is definitely an interesting concept which I’ve been watching recently.

  17. Hello, I wanted to order this pc from Amazon add more RAM to it. I know the max is 16gb and I wanted to add 2x 8gb sticks, do you have any suggestions on which brand of sticks of RAM I should add to my pc? I also wanted to upgrade the power supply and video card down the road so I can play games like Fallout 4 on high settings. What parts would you suggest to achieve this?

    • Hey Taylor,

      You might find some useful information in our article on how much RAM costs for a PC, including a tip on how to assess your current RAM usage to gauge if a RAM upgrade will give you noticeable performance improvements or not. (There are also a few videos there to help you with RAM installation).

      For the brand of RAM, as long as you stick with a reputable brand you should be fine. Here are some options that should work from Kingston, G Skill, or Corsair. Note that the motherboard in the GUA3100A (We assume yours has a Gigabyte GA-78LMT-S2PT in it – you should be able to check the model number written on the motherboard) appears to cap any RAM to 1600 MHz speed, so purchasing RAM with any speeds higher than this isn’t beneficial in your case. We checked out the full memory support list of this motherboard here, a list which tells you what models of RAM it has been tested with. Unfortunately the document looks a little outdated and so there are no 8GB modules listed. However, it’s very unlikely that you’ll have any problems with the RAM options listed above, as the motherboard specs do say it can support 16GB of RAM max.

      For the power supply upgrade, we’d recommend the EVGA 500W W1 as a solid choice.

      If you’re looking to play Fallout 4 on high settings, at a resolution of 1080p the GTX 950 will do what you need, but if you can afford it go for a higher model like the GTX 960 or GTX 970. Here’s a video that shows both the GTX 950 and GTX 960 as well as a few AMD cards side-by-side running Fallout 4 on high settings. The GTX’s seem to work better for this game due to possible driver issues on the AMD cards.

      When upgrading RAM it is good practice to get two matching sticks, so going with a 2 x 8GB option sounds good (If you are interested, there is also some additional FAQ about matching sticks, brands, and speeds on our memory component page).

      Firstly you should choose a model and brand of RAM that is listed as compatible with the motherboard of the GUA3100A.

  18. Hi I just purchased this PC and I need to know can I put an RX 470 in this PC? I am little confused as to which GPUS I can put into this PC when looking on Amazon and Newegg

    • Hi Dale,

      I highly recommend you take a look at our Graphics Cards page to help explain a few selections consideration which may help you out. Here’s a summary to help you find which graphics cards you can put into your PC.

      1. Motherboard slot type. Currently (and for the past ~10 years), all graphics cards operate on a “PCIe 16x” bus – you’ll see the long PCIe slots on your motherboard but usually only 1 of them is a 16x slot, others will be slower speeds like 8x or 4x (some physically shorter too). In your case, the existing R7 240 graphics card is in the 16x slot. So, just about any new graphics card you find online will “fit” your motherboard. As a side note, there are different versions of PCIe v1, v2, v3, v4 – these are all backwards compatible so no real worry for you.

      2. Physical size. Some cases are very small and won’t fit longer, gaming cards. I haven’t got my hands on an RX 470 in person yet but I believe they’re about 8 inches long which should find easily in your case – you can always measure your case to be sure.

      3. Power supply. To run an RX 470 in the CyberpowerPC GUA3100A you’ll need to upgrade the power supply. When building PCs, the manufacturers typically only install a power supply that can JUST handle the load. Since the higher end graphics cards draw a lot more power than the lower end cards, you’ll need to upgrade to a more powerful unit. I recommend the EVGA W1 500 watt power supply, it’s a good quality unit and is excellent value. Check it out here:
      EVGA W1 500

  19. I just got the gua3100a and its great but I was just thinking about upgrading the graphics card to a GeForce GTX 950 thing is idk how to put it in and where it goes in my PC could you guys help

    • Hi Omari,

      Upgrading to a GTX950 is a great way to give your system a big performance boost in games, however I would recommend also upgrading the power supply while you’re at it. The EVGA W1 500w is an excellent budget friendly choice.

      As for how to put it in, take a look at the 2nd video on our M32CD review page – it shows how to upgrade both the power supply and graphics card in an ASUS M32CD. The system is not exactly the same as yours but the the process is very similar for your CyberpowerPC. In your case, you’ll have to remove the current graphics card first which is a simple process.

      If you get stuck or need more information let us know!

      • Nice thx and jw will I need to upgrade the processor in the gua3100a as well and if I do which one would you reccomend (processor in gua=3.8 GHz FX-4300)

        • Hi Omari,

          It really depends on the games you play – some are much more CPU intensive than others and could cause your CPU to become the bottleneck for you graphics card. However, this is not very likely with the GTX 950. Do you have any examples of games you’ll be playing?

          My advice is to stick with your current CPU for now and just upgrade the graphics card and power supply. Once you’ve done that, give it a go and try playing some games on higher settings. You can always upgrade your CPU later on If you find you do need to. This way you can wait for the best price on the CPU and shop around.

          By the way, check out some of the GTX 960 4GB versions – I’ve seen a few on sale recently for not much more than a GTX 950.

          • OK I’ll get the graphics card and power supply and see how it goes and the games that I’ll be be playing are the total war series of games and we newer titles like bf1 cod fallout ect.

  20. I just bought one and I was wondering if it would be worth returning and buying the Asus instead. I know nothing about this kinds of things. Can you give some advise to a noob?? Lol

    • Hey Blake,
      The Asus M32CD does have a better processor and can be better value for money based on the current prices on Amazon, but if you’ve already got the GUA3100A I’d say just stick with that one. For the hassle of trying to do an exchange, you probably won’t notice the difference in CPU unless you end up putting in a high end graphics card and start running very high graphics settings.

      Give the CyberpowerPC a go and see if you like it, many people are pretty happy with the performance of the GUA3100A as an entry-level gaming PC. If you do find it can’t handle some of the games you’re wanting to play, you can always put in an upgraded graphics card further down the line.

      • What would be the best graphics card for it for the price?? I play ark, seven days to die and rising world alot. It struggles on ark on medium graphics

        • It depends how much you want to spend Blake – what’s your budget?

          A good resource that we like to use is Passmark’s price performance benchmark list found here – it ranks videocards based on their benchmark scores per dollar, so the ones with a larger bar represent better performance value for money. You still need to check out the benchmark score of each individual card as it’s possible for lower-performing cards to rank high on this list if they are cheaply priced.

          As you can see, the GTX 950 which we recommend in our $500 gaming build is at the top of this chart at the time of writing, just showing how it is a good deal for the price you pay for it.

          If you can afford to spend a little more, try the GTX 960, GTX 970, or GTX 980 (the larger the second number, the more higher-performing the card). There is also the GTX 10 series which has recently come out (GTX 1060, 1070, 1080 – listed in increasing performance order), but they are a little pricey at the moment since they are still new. The AMD RX 480 is also excellent value for money but relatively new so you might want to wait until prices fall a little if you are considering this card.

          From what we’ve read online Ark is a pretty resource-heavy game as it’s not optimized very well yet, so get the best graphics card you can afford.

          If you’re still having issues after a graphics card upgrade, you may be limited by system memory, if this seems to be the case you can upgrade your RAM.

      • Hello my friend’s got DayZ and Arma 3 recently and i want to play it with them could this pc run them decently? If not what would i have to get to run them easier? Im new to PCs so the help woukd be nice!

        • Hi Justin,

          I haven’t played ARMA 3 in a while but this PC does meet the recommended requirements seen here: https://arma3.com/buy#requirements.

          The Graphics card in the GUA3100 (R7 240) will play the game but only on low – medium settings. Going much higher will result in some lag / FPS drops in busy areas of the game.

          The recommended AMD CPU is the FX-4300 which is actually the same as the CPU used in this CyberpowerPC. However, big open world games like Arma 3, Squad and DayZ can put a lot of load on the CPU, especially in multiplayer. For that reason I think you might be better off going for something like the ASUS M32CD (check out our review) which has a better CPU – the Intel i5-6400. The M32CD doesn’t come with a dedicated graphics card but instead uses the GPU built into the Intel processor which has roughly the same performance as the R7 240 in this CyberpowerPC. This way, if you choose to upgrade the graphics card later you’ll end up with a better combo of CPU and graphics card.

          Hope that helps Justin, if there’s anything else let us know.

  21. I have had this pc for some time now and I am thinking of doing a complete overhaul. The exact cyberpower part number I have is a GUA1000BST. I am curious if I will have any issues with the tower installing the parts listed.

    -MSI MSI Gaming Z170A GAMING M5 LGA 1151 Intel Z170 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 ATX Intel Motherboard
    -Intel Core i7-6700 8M Skylake Quad-Core 3.4 GHz LGA 1151 65W BX80662I76700 Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 530
    -SAMSUNG 850 PRO 2.5″ 256GB SATA III 3-D Vertical Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-7KE256BW
    -Corsair Hydro Series H80i V2 Water / Liquid CPU Cooler. 120mm CW-9060024-WW
    -G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) Intel Z170 Platform Desktop Memory Model F4-3200C16D-16GVK

    I currently have upgraded the power supply to a EVGA 220-G2-0750-XR 80 PLUS GOLD 750W and graphics card to a EVGA GTX680. I would like to run more demanding games that are currently out and coming out. I strictly use this PC for gaming and some streaming.
    Would you have any suggestions/additions to what I already have installed that I wouldn’t need to do a complete overhaul?

    Thank you

    • Hey Jordan,

      Overall this looks like a solid build and will be able to handle some of the latest games. From the look of some of the parts you’ve selected it seems like you might have overclocking in mind, either immediately or in the future. Is that correct? If so, you may want to select the K edition i7 to make sure that the processor will achieve your overclocking goals.

      If not, you could potentially save some of your cash by making a few changes and putting the savings towards a graphics card upgrade. The GTX 680 is a great high performance card but updating this to a more recent card may be more beneficial than having a top of the line CPU and water cooler for example.

      For a gaming PC, you typically would sacrifice on other parts in order to get the best graphics card you can, so it really depends on your budget if you could save enough cash to put towards something like the GTX 970, GTX 1060 or even a GTX 1070 which would definitely give some performance improvement (see benchmark comparison of these cards here).

      If you’re not planning to overclock in the future, you could drop the water/liquid CPU cooler for a fan cooler, and also drop the i7 processor down to a i5. The i7 is a little overkill for gaming, it’s more suited to hardcore CPU tasks like video conversion or virtualization. Other potential savings could be had in dropping back to the Samsung EVO SSD instead of the PRO version, or scaling back your motherboard to a more basic version (while not limiting yourself with motherboard ports for anything you have planned for later)- it really comes down to what you plan on doing with your build in the future and if you feel you want to upgrade your graphics card at this point yet.

      If you’re interested, you can also check out our guide on choosing computer parts for a build which may offer a few more tips, including how to do checks that your RAM is compatible with motherboard etc.

      To summarize, if you’re just interested in gaming and streaming without overclocking, my recommendation would be:
      Change i7-6700 to i5-6500.
      Change Corsair Hydro water cooler to the awesome Cryorig H7 air cooler
      Change Samsung 850 PRO to 850 EVO
      To save even more cash you could change the motherboard to a H series chipset rather than Z series. This will restrict you in terms of overclocking and amount of ports etc.

      Keep the savings and test the latest games. If necessary, put the savings towards an upgraded graphics card and sell the GTX 680. Bit of a shame because the GTX 680 is a fantastic card but this is probably the best bang for buck route.

      As far as compatibility goes the only possible issue I can see would be the motherboard size. Im not 100% certain on which size motherboards your case takes. The MSI Z170A M5 you mentioned is a Full ATX size, some cases only support a mATX (Micro ATX) size. Just check out your case before buying. If uncertain we may be able to help you find out.

      Some other points to consider:
      If you do go with a Z170 chipset motherboard it should come with an M.2 slot. This means you can run an insanely fast M.2 SSD such as the Samsung 950 PRO. Check out our article explaining M.2 SSDs for more info.

  22. Hi
    Do you know if this PC would be able to play games like Dragon Age inquisition, Witcher 3 and/or No Mans Sky? I don’t need to play on the highest settings, I just need something that can play relatively new games yet is affordable.
    Thanks!

    • Hey April, the games you’ve mentioned are a little more on the demanding side, and the R7 240 that is in the GUA3100A appears to fall short of the minimum recommended system requirements for all of these games, however that doesn’t mean you wouldn’t be able to play them on low settings. For example here is an example of Dragon Age Inquisition gameplay and Witcher 3 gameplay with the R7 240 card, and a system with less RAM and a lower performing processor than the FX-4300 that’s in the GUA3100A.

      No Man’s Sky is a newer game and the minimum recommended requirements for it seem fairly high so it’s unknown how the GUA3100A might handle this one. You could potentially try it out and if required just be prepared to upgrade the graphics card at a future date if you feel it starts to limit your system.

      If you’re not confident in doing the graphics card upgrade yourself, a possible alternative could be opting for a prebuilt with a better graphics card already installed, for example the CyberpowerPC GUA3200A, which looks to be essentially the same hardware as the GUA3100A but with an upgraded graphics card and power supply.

      • This is exactly the information I was looking for! Thank you so much for the helpful information and links! I’m really looking forward to No Man’s Sky but I’d rather get a system now (and catch up on games I can’t play on my current PC) and then save up for a better graphics card. Again thank you for the thorough answer 🙂

    • Klinton, we checked out the recommended minimum specifications that is advised for each of these titles, and unfortunately the R7 240 graphics card that is the in the GUA3100A just doesn’t cut it. It’s too low-end. That being said, we have seen some user reports (through Amazon reviews, for example) of people playing some of these games on the GUA3100A, but we are not sure how well they would go. Gameplay may not be smooth and you’d have to use low settings.

      Processor-wise, the GUA3100A uses the AMD FX-4300. It meets the minimum recommended processor for Black Ops 3, but doesn’t perform well enough to meet the minimum recommendations for GTA V or Dying Light. Based on this, we’d have to say it wouldn’t run well on medium graphics, but you might be able to get away with choppy gameplay on low settings. It’s very much an entry-level PC so won’t play the more demanding games as well.

  23. Hi, I am planing on getting this as my first gaming pc and I want to make sure that I am making a good choice. Some games that I am planning on playing on it are Star Wars: The Old Republic, DC Universe Online, and World Of Warcraft. Will this computer run these games well? Also, I was hoping on connecting a Blue Snowball mic as well as recording the games I play. While these are not a necessary functions they would be greatly appreciated. Can this computer do those things? Thank you in advance for your help.

    • Hi Amanda,
      The GUA3100A can make a good starter gaming computer as it’s got the gaming computer look etc, but the weakest part is definitely it’s graphics card – unfortunately this is one of the most important pieces of hardware for a gaming PC! The graphics card that is in it is pretty poor by today’s standards, but the games you’ve mentioned aren’t too demanding. We’d definitely recommend upgrading the graphics card in the future if you want to get the best gameplay (or start playing more demanding games), along with the power supply.

      If you buy this computer and want to run it as-is, it does meet the minimum recommended specifications for all the games that you’ve mentioned (see here for WoW, here for SW:TOR, and here for DC Universe Online), so you should be able to run them all well on at least low or medium settings. When it comes to meeting the optimum recommended settings, the only thing holding back the GUA3100A is it’s R7 240 graphics card – as we mentioned it’s a lower-end card.

      Connecting the microphone won’t cause any noticeable affect to gaming performance, but recording gameplay may put a bit of extra demand on the graphics card and can usually result in lower framerates. You could always grab the GUA3100A as a base computer, see how you like it and upgrade from there if you feel the need. Another good base computer to consider is the M32CD as it offers great hardware for the price, have a look at our M32CD review here if you’re interested.

      • That you so much for your help. If it isn’t too much trouble, I would like to ask a couple more questions using the information you have given me. If I were to get the computer and only update the graphics card, how much would it increase the GUA3100A’s performance? Also would this help remedy the lower framerates caused by recording? Lastly, what graphics card would you recommend to replace the old one with, and how much would that upgrade cost? Again, thank you for your help and I look forward to hearing your advice.

        • You’re most welcome Amanda!

          With the CyberpowerPC’s we really recommend replacing the power supply that comes in these machines as well, as we’ve heard reports that they CyberpowerPC use a low quality power supply in their builds. Low quality power supplies have the potential to lower the lifespan of your computer parts, or at worst, damage them through things such as power surges/spikes. A good power supply that we like is the 500W EVGA
          for around $40, though you can get the lower wattage one for a bit cheaper (the size you choose may depend on what graphics card you go with).

          For graphics card replacement, it really depends on your budget. There are a few options, check out this comment for some of them. If your budget is less than the $150 mark then you could also look at the GTX 750 Ti which is a little cheaper again. You can use video card benchmarks to help get an idea of how different cards perform. This link compares the benchmark scores a few of the graphics cards mentioned – higher scores indicate better performance, this should give you an idea of how they perform relative to each other.

          If you are planning on updating both graphics card and power supply, then the Asus M32CD may be a better base computer to start with – it has a bit better performing processor than the GUA3100 (we’ve shown some benchmark score comparisons in this post). You could put a GTX 750 Ti into this without needing any power supply upgrade, and the M32CD is a bit cheaper to begin with as well.

          When it comes to recording your gameplay, recording generally always causes some loss of frames per second (FPS). This issue can get a bit complicated, but basically it can depend on quite a few different things like: the recording software you use, the settings used, and your computer hardware. Typically hardware which can cause problems/bottlenecks could be your video card, CPU, or hard drive speed. It’s difficult to estimate the exact outcome due to so many factors, but a graphics card upgrade would ensure that your video card is less likely to be a limiting factor.

  24. Im thinking of getting this for my daughters birthday in a few weeks but wanted to know if this is a good starter desktop for her she would be playing games mostly like Minecraft some games like destiny and others and is it windows 10? If this isn’t a good desktop for her whats another one (in the same price range) that would be good?

    • Hi Lydia, one of these would make a great birthday present as a starter computer! This PC will be suitable for playing Minecraft but I’m not sure which Destiny game you’re referring to – just be aware that if it is this one she won’t be able to play it on this PC (the game is only available on xbox and playstation, and a version was never released for PC).

      Windows 10 on this computer does come preinstalled, so it’s quite easy to set it up when you power up the computer for the first time – just follow the prompts.

      With this computer you may need to upgrade the graphics card at some point if you start wanting to play more demanding games but it is a good starter PC that many people have positive things to say about.

  25. I’m very new to PC gaming, I’m about to purchase this on Amazon. I assume in the future I’m going to need to replace the graphics card and power supply? My main concern is that is can run CS:GO and DayZ smoothly. Also I need a affordable wifi adapter that is good for gaming, could you point me in the right direction?

    • Hey Taylor,
      To be honest we wouldn’t really recommend this CyberpowerPC GUA3100A as a prebuilt gaming computer from a performance point of view, as the graphics card is pretty low-end. You can definitely get better value for money by either starting with a cheaper base computer to upgrade, or building your own from scratch (check out our $500 gaming PC build).

      If you are considering replacing the power supply and graphics card (which we’d definitely recommended in order to get better performance) in the GUA3100A, you could be better off starting with a prebuilt like the ASUS M32CD which we’ve previously reviewed and putting a graphics card in that instead – it’s cheaper, has a better processor and it’s onboard graphics seems to match the performance you’d get from the GUA3100A R7 240 card, according to benchmark scores. M32CD also comes with a wireless card already inbuilt, so you wouldn’t have to get a new one of those either.

      One downside is that you don’t get the cool looking case, but if you really wanted to you could get a better looking case for around $40 or so and have a go at switching the parts into the new case at a future date. This exercise also doubles as a good way to learn about building PCs!

      If you do want to stick with the GUA3100A, then that’s fine too – many people are quite happy with it as you can see from the Amazon reviews. It would be a similar process – replace power supply and graphics card. For the wireless adaptor, you just need something reliable that won’t drop out or cause latency issues – most USB stick style adaptors will do the job, for example D-Link DWA-130 or the one mentioned earlier in this post.

      Both M32CD stock (with the onboard graphics and 8GB RAM) and the GUA3100A (with R7 240) should play CS:GO fairly well, to see an example check out the video in this post for the GUA3100A running CS:GO.

      DayZ is a little more demanding. You might have issues in built up areas which is likely to cause some frame rate drops. Some people say to drop the resolution down to 720p for a better experience. We would recommend a graphics card upgrade on either machine to play it at 1080p.

      Hope this helps. If you have any other questions just let us know!

  26. Hi just bought this from amazon, didnt realize at the time how bad the graphics card is. I really need a nice one because I like to steam with high graphics. Im tottaly new to desk tops so I need some advice on what would be a good graphics card to get so I can maintain high graphics while streaming. I assume I will need a power supply to. Can you guys point me in the right direction as to what to get and how exactly hooking up a power supply even works? thanks

    • Hi Korey,

      Sure, we can point you in the right direction.

      First of all, what’s your budget for the upgrade? I assume you’d like to keep costs fairly low?

      Regarding the power supply, yeah I would recommend upgrading it just because the prebuilt computers typically spec the power supplies to be JUST good enough for the build without planning for upgrades. Different versions of the GUA3100A seem to have different power supplies too. If you like, you can write us the specs of the unit and we can let you know where you stand. You may be able to get away with using the existing power supply if the specs are ok.

      Replacing the power supply shouldn’t be too difficult if you’re careful. We have some pages on here that should help you. I’ll also link you some videos below showing the process.

      To give you an idea of the costs, here are some solid choices:

      Graphics Card:

      EVGA GTX 950 SC+

      Power Supply:

      EVGA 500 W1 80+

      If these prices are a bit higher than you were expecting then take a look at this graphics card:

      ASUS GTX 750Ti

      It’s an older card and not quite as good as the GTX 950 but it performs fairly well and has very low power requirements which may prevent the need to swap out the power supply.

      Check out our review of this ASUS PC. We provide a heap of options for replacing the power supply and graphics card in a similar spec PC to yours. The 2nd video even shows the process for upgrading the power supply and graphics card which will be a very similar process for your PC.
      http://www.pcbuildadvisor.com/asus-m32cd-review/

      Here’s some general info about power supplies:
      http://www.pcbuildadvisor.com/components/power-supplies/

      Again, let us know your budget and we’ll help you work something out!

      • So if I got the EVGA GeForce GTX 1060 GAMING, ACX 2.0 (Single Fan), 6GB GDDR5, DX12 OSD Support (PXOC), Only 6.8 Inches Graphics Card 06G-P4-6161-KR and EVGA 600 B1, 80+ BRONZE 600W, Power Supply 100-B1-0600-KR would work well with this pc?

        • Hi Anton,

          The GTX1060 is a great graphics card and the 600W EVGA provides more than enough power which is good. Since you’ve said the 1060 you’re looking at is only 6.8 inches long then you should have no issues physically fitting it in the case, but it’s always a good idea to measure it to be sure.

          That said, if you go ahead with those upgrades the CPU will be your bottleneck. This means that the CPU will not be able to serve information to your GPU fast enough and you won’t be able to make full use of the 1060. Because of this, I’d say you could probably get away with a cheaper graphics card and power supply combination.

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