Gaming Need Advice on Building a PC

[yuyuyup]

Here is my advice, if you are building a machine with intentions of "future-proofing" so you want to upgrade down the road, make sure to keep a close watch on prices cause shit gets discontinued as newer chipsets come along, now I can't upgrade my damn 939 slot processor cause I missed the damn boat

also if you get a good videocard make sure to download the proper utilities to RAISE the fan speed, my damn DEFAULT WAS 25% I didn't realize this till after I installed 6 extra fans to cool my pc down

 

[Joe88]

dont buy used components especially the psu

 

[Berthenk]

Okay, found a motherboard that supports DDR3! Linky.

 

[jlsyber]

From previous experice I think it will be best to pay for Windows 7.

What is your budget?

 

[syko5150]

OK i edited my first post to include everything that's in the shopping cart with their prices/final price just let me know if it needs to be fixed

@jamesdiamond:there is no budget limit but i dont want to go overboard and start buying high end products for a multimedia/light gaming computer.

 

[playallday]

http://www.overclock.net/main-components/7...3-mobo-box.html - $80
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820227316 - $100
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/Se...mp;sku=A79-1055 (should be coming back soon) - $125
http://www.overclock.net/cases/ - pick whatever case you want for around $100 shipped
http://www.overclock.net/other-components/...wer-supply.html - $90

Get a H50 Corsair when you can find one here. You can chose one or two video cards here as well if you want.
By the way, that's about as top line for a computer as it comes right now! Not bad for $550 plus video cards.

i dont really want to buy anything used even if i have to pay a bit more id rather have everything unopened

What you've picked out right now is a total waste of money, you really should be getting a six-core system for that price.

Really, this is what you should spend:

$150 - AMD six-core CPU
$100 - CrossFire Motherboard
$100 - 4GB of DDR3
$100 - 1000W PSU
$100 - 1TB to 2TB HDD
$100 - Case
$100 to $500 - Video card(s)

QUOTE(Joe88 @ Apr 28 2010, 02:35 PM)

dont buy used components especially the psu

Why not? I do it all the time and I don't have issues. Most PSU's come with warranty, so as long as you trust the maker you should be OK.

 

[syko5150]

http://www.overclock.net/main-components/7...3-mobo-box.html - $80
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820227316 - $100
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/Se...mp;sku=A79-1055 (should be coming back soon) - $125
http://www.overclock.net/cases/ - pick whatever case you want for around $100 shipped
http://www.overclock.net/other-components/...wer-supply.html - $90

Get a H50 Corsair when you can find one here. You can chose one or two video cards here as well if you want.
By the way, that's about as top line for a computer as it comes right now! Not bad for $550 plus video cards.

i dont really want to buy anything used even if i have to pay a bit more id rather have everything unopened

What you've picked out right now is a total waste of money, you really should be getting a six-core system for that price.

Really, this is what you should spend:

$150 - AMD six-core CPU
$100 - CrossFire Motherboard
$100 - 4GB of DDR3
$100 - 1000W PSU
$100 - 1TB to 2TB HDD
$100 - Case
$100 to $500 - Video card(s)

QUOTE(Joe88 @ Apr 28 2010, 02:35 PM)

dont buy used components especially the psu

Why not? I do it all the time and I don't have issues. Most PSU's come with warranty, so as long as you trust the maker you should be OK.

why spend all the extra money when its going to be used just for music/movies/web browsing/light gaming? thats what i call a total waste of money...the total price in my first post includes sales tax and shipping for all items where as your total is already past what my total is and its not even including everything...also even if theres warranty included why would i want a used product that might break in a month then i have to replace it which is bothersome where as a new product MOST of the time your product will last quite a while and you never know what you're getting with used products it might look nice but there could be something wrong with it and like i said it would just be bothersome having to replace a part i just got...

 

[Originality]

I'd say the system in the OP post looks pretty complete. Off the top of my head, I can't think of any real improvements to make.

A six-cored machine is extremely overkill for anybody that isn't doing rather heavy rendering (or at least using programs that are multi-threaded). Especially in this case, it would be hard to find any use for even the third core, let alone the rest. Likewise for the CrossFire Mobo and 1000W PSU - syko's fiancée will never need it.

On a side note, I'd feel extremely hesitant about using used parts - the PSU most of all, since it's the most susceptible to wear and tear with power surges and brown-outs. Fresh parts with fresh warranties are the least likely to let you down (aside from DeadOnArrival parts).

 

[Cermage]

op looks good, but you won't be needing an aftermarket cooler. you only will need it if you intend to o/c. the cm case already has a fair bit of room for what you're putting in it.

you can pick up a 4550 which generally performs better and can be had for a bit cheaper.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...0-484-_-Product

CPU: Core i3 vs Athlon II X4. The Core i3 is slightly more expensive (~£90 compared to ~$100) and only dual core as opposed to quad, however is 300Mhz faster and around 30-40% more powerful. Between these two, I'd say Core i3 wins. However, the Athlon II X2 550 is a little over half the price, for a little over half the power of the i3. This will be enough for multimedia and low profile gaming, but doesn't give much room to stretch into more intensive tasks/multitasking. Fortunately the graphics does take some of this pressure away from the CPU, so the CPU isn't as important as it used to be.
Motherboard: directly linked to the CPU. It's always either Intel or AMD, so your motherboard has to match. Motherboards rarely make much difference anyway in the budget range.

i3 beats the x4 in gaming for the most part but i chose it due to it being a quad core and companies are being pushed more and more to make their aplications multi-threaded. even though there are quite a few quadcores floating around and hexacore's they still haven't been pushed to their limit within every day use while you can do it pretty easily within a dual core.

also h55 boards vs am3, the cheapest h55 board on newegg is $65 on sale with average being around $90-$100. the cheapest am3 board is about $40, and average being around $60-70.

 

[syko5150]

ok so Cermage you're saying i dont need the cooler at all? and if not everything else is ready for purchase then?

 

[BoxShot]

ok so Cermage you're saying i dont need the cooler at all? and if not everything else is ready for purchase then?

You get a stock cooler with the processor unless you buy an OEM one but you aren't.

 

[DSGamer64]

Get a separate cooler if you plan on overclocking your processor, stock ones aren't great for it.

 

[syko5150]

ok then i'll take the cooler off the list then since she wont be overclocking

 

[W.I.C.K.E.D.]

First off. There's much there that you don't need. I'll post a build I made really quick with free shipping on all items being it would be pointless and wasteful of you to pay it twice if you are sending it to your father's.

Sony Optiarc 24X DVD/CD Rewritable Drive Black SATA Model AD-7240S-0B - OEM
Item #: N82E16827118030
$21.99

Rosewill Smart One ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, Black interior, comes with three Fans-1x Front Blue LED 120mm Fan, 1x Rear ...
Item #: N82E16811147120
$49.99

Western Digital Caviar Green WD10EARS 1TB 5400 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #: N82E16822136490
$79.99

Acer X193WCb Black 19" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor
Item #: N82E16824009210
$109.99

Rosewill Green Series RG530-S12 530W Continuous @40°C, 80 PLUS Certified, Single 12V Rail, Active PFC "Compatible with Core ...
Item #: N82E16817182199
$49.99

Logitech Black USB Wireless Desktop MK300 Keyboard and Mouse
Item #: N82E16823126069
$33.99

CORSAIR XMS2 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-6400C5
Item #: N82E16820145184
$99.99

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM
Item #: N82E16832116754
$99.99


Bundle
Combo: 382154
GIGABYTE GA-MA785GM-US2H AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 785G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
Item #: N82E16813128394

AMD Athlon II X2 245 Regor 2.9GHz Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Processor Model ADX245OCGQBOX
Item #: N82E16819103687
$110.98



Subtotal: $656.90
Shipping: $0.00


You don't need ddr3, well, she doesn't for what she's using it for. The western digital drive is better and more power efficient that the samsung. I have that motherboard, and paid almost the same you would for the bundle of that and the cpu together. It's a nice board, allows am3 cpus but only supports ddr2 up to 1200. It has a 4200 ati onboard chip which I've seen my wife play the sims 3 on, backing the forth coming point that you don't really need a graphics card. You could buy one, but I doubt the computer will barely even utilize it. A 4850 would be too much for what she needs, and a 4350/4650 isn't much higher than what's already in it, aside from it being dedicated. That dvd drive seems ok and supports DL which is always a plus being backing up takes less disks if thats the route you choose to take. The ram listed is quality, and 4gb of 800 speed will be sufficient for her use.

The psu is good, and is also energy friendly. She really doesn't need even a 530w but it'll be less work on the supply therefore lengthening it's life, also leaving the option to install a graphics card at a later time without needing to upgrade the power supply. The cpu is good, only difference between those and a phenom II X2 is the lack of L3 cache, which would mainly assist in heavy applications and games, therefore once again, not needed. The rosewill case looks awesome for the price, and has plenty of ventilation which every pc loves. The price also includes that logitech keyboard and mouse, both wireless. Also included is a 19'' monitor and windows 7. You could get a bigger lcd but I wouldn't go much higher than 20'' with onboard graphics. All this for a little less than what you were gonna spend. Shit you could even spend the 50 some dollars on the 9400gt if you wanted, that power supply is more than capable of handling it. I will point out one thing, ddr3 isn't much more than ddr2, so if you could swap out the motherboard for a similar priced one and get ddr3 for damn near the exact same price it would only be in your favor (or hers), better performance.

I don't know why people say it's so easy to build a pc, it isn't when it's your first time(ignorance is for humor of the intelligent). There is a lot of shit you can fuck up very easily. It's important to always stay grounded, which many neglect, because ESD can and will damage components. There are bracelets you can get to prevent this so make sure you either pick one up from newegg, although they are cheaper on ebay. Make sure you do research, the internet is your friend. You don't have to go buy books as they get easily outdated and the internet is constantly updated. I wish you luck though man, if you need any advice feel free to pm me, my ears are as open as paris hiltons vagina...j/k..lol..i'm out.

edit: You definitely don't need a ssd. You could also swap stuff listed with less expensive things, such as the case you picked, etc. I believe I could make something a little more wallet friendly, but I need a cigarette and it's late as shit. If I run across a nice online guide I'll be sure to send a link to ya.

 

[Berthenk]

You do need DDR3 if you want to upgrade RAM. DDR2's going to be expensive once DDR3 has settled in.
I agree about the GPU though, the on-board one's probably fine and you can always buy a dedicated card if she really needs it.

 

[W.I.C.K.E.D.]

You do need DDR3 if you want to upgrade RAM. DDR2's going to be expensive once DDR3 has settled in.
I agree about the GPU though, the on-board one's probably fine and you can always buy a dedicated card if she really needs it.

Yes, but at the pace it's going and with the games he stated she plays that speed isn't necessary, and probably won't be for a while I imagine. I did clearly state the following as well as if the price was near same the performance boost couldn't hurt...."I will point out one thing, ddr3 isn't much more than ddr2, so if you could swap out the motherboard for a similar priced one and get ddr3 for damn near the exact same price it would only be in your favor (or hers), better performance."

 

[syko5150]

hmm looking at your list W.I.C.K.E.D. it would actually only come out to $562.93 including tax since i already have a LCD TV that i'm going to use as the monitor and have extra keyboards/mice

 

[Cermage]

The psu is good, and is also energy friendly. She really doesn't need even a 530w but it'll be less work on the supply therefore lengthening it's life, also leaving the option to install a graphics card at a later time without needing to upgrade the power supply.

except rosewill's are notorious as shit to destroy systems. most builders wouldn't go within 10ft of rosewill. for most of their supplies they use the lower end of the power supply manufacturers, that said there are some gems and they're the ones you'll find a fair bit of talk on. from memory the RG series are made by ABS, which do make very hit or miss power supplies. there's a fair bit research to be had on budget power supplies and its not always as clear cut as a bunch of advertised ratings.

 

[Originality]

Sims 3 running off a HD4200... somehow that doesn't sound very impressive, but you make a very good point - the integrated graphics should work (I have bad had bad experiences with them, trying to get them to play L4D in medium graphics with a few tweaks, but that doesn't matter in this case). If she needs any more power, then syko can always get a dedicated graphics card and throw it in.

The good thing about DDR2 in this case - it won't need upgrading in future. However, a DDR3 motherboard (as mentioned) will come to around the same price, and DDR3 does take up less power than DDR2 with some performance boosts, so I think DDR3 is preferable.

I do stand by my original comment: building computers is relatively easy. It's just a 3D jigsaw puzzle - you have to put the parts together in a logical and straightforward manner. The last step for me is always finding ways to get the abundance of cables out of the way, and that (for me) is the hardest step of all. As for the risk of static discharge... either grounding the case or touching a grounded object (like a radiator) is typically all the precaution you need to take. See http://www.pcworld.com/article/116572-5/bu...t_pc_myths.html

For budget PSUs, the easiest way to tell if it will work or not is to look at professional reviews doing group tests. Take the Corsair PSU I mentioned in my second post - CPC recommends it for budget systems because it performed the most stable of all the budget PSUs they tested a while back. Sure, it's only 400W, but that should be enough for this system.

 

[syko5150]

i decided to go the DDR3 route and in the end its only about $20 more then what W.I.C.K.E.D. suggested so that's fine...OK i changed my first post the only thing i changed was the motherboard because the other one didn't have integrated graphics.I think i'm done making changes to the list i just need one last confirmation that everything on the first post is compatible together and then i'll purchase everything.