I want to join the PC Elite...what next?

[Fr]anc[is]

This website helped me get started when I built mine 3 years ago. Amazingly I still have the bookmark

http://www.build-gaming-computers.com/

The first thing I did was pick a CPU and motherboard. Everything attaches to the motherboard, so make sure you get a good one with plenty of space and the correct type of slots for what you want. Then you just start picking the pieces, always double checking to make sure they are compatible and will fit. You don't need a soundcard. Graphics cards are huge and suck a lot of power, plan accordingly. Make sure to keep it cool in there, mine came with a big ass fan on one side of the case, so it's always cool for me.

Edit: also beware of static electricity. Don't build it in your room or any room with carpet, and get one of those silly looking wristbands. Don't risk your expensive parts

 

[gbemery]

the one most important thing you need is a power cord. It must be the most important since "is it plugged in" is the first thing tech support seems to ask when you have an issue.

 

[NitoSpeak]

anc[is]This website helped me get started when I built mine 3 years ago. Amazingly I still have the bookmark

http://www.build-gaming-computers.com/

The first thing I did was pick a CPU and motherboard. Everything attaches to the motherboard, so make sure you get a good one with plenty of space and the correct type of slots for what you want. Then you just start picking the pieces, always double checking to make sure they are compatible and will fit. You don't need a soundcard. Graphics cards are huge and suck a lot of power, plan accordingly. Make sure to keep it cool in there, mine came with a big ass fan on one side of the case, so it's always cool for me.

Edit: also beware of static electricity. Don't build it in your room or any room with carpet, and get one of those silly looking wristbands. Don't risk your expensive parts

Building this monster of a machine seemed a little daunting at first, but I guess this is what separates the gaming boys from the gaming men eh? Thank you for your advice everyone, especially this little tidbit right here, I'll begin right away. When all is said and done some of you should add me on Steam.

 

[breadlord]

You can always save up money for a supercomputer. Or you can go with newegg. Which ever one suit's your fancy.

 

[ChipSandwich]

Save money by building it yourself, but it requires a LOT of research on what fits where, how much it costs in terms of dollars, wattage and temperature and whether everything will manage to fit together.

Here's a recent guide of popular components and their Newegg prices. Remember, RESEARCH what YOU need, do not buy a certain thing purely on anecdotal evidence. Only use that when you've narrowed things down:
http://tinyurl.com/FalconGuide

-Don't put a dual GPU setup in your first build
-Always look for combos
-Estimate your average system wattage and get a PSU that is about twice that. PSU's are most efficient at 50% load. On topic with PSUs, Antec, Corsair, Seasonic. 80+ certification is sweet.
-You do not need 8GB of RAM.
-Many people overlook hard drive read speed.
-Six cores for games is overkill right now. Most games up until now are perfectly fine with dual cores, and there aren't many games that actually use four cores or more. Black Ops and Battlefield 3 do though.
-Your GPU will be obsolete in 2 years. Try not to get used to "max settings". You can still play games about 5 years into the future, but by then about 3 or 4 generations of cards will have gone past. So don't go overboard.

 

[Fooz]

GPU: your going to want a very good graphics card, maybe 2 if you want an absolute beast and just crossfire them with at least 1GB of video ram on each, maybe 2GB again if you want a beast (Nvidia are good) crossfiring is a bit overkill though and tbh 1GB of Video Ram is fine i have a Radeon 6870 1GB and it runs every game i have on max easily including crysis and metro 2033

RAM: 4GB of DDR3 ram is minimum in my opinion, i have 8GB, i would reccommend 6-8GB min if you want to play all the best games maxed out

CPU: i would reccommend an i5 or i7 intel proccessor, now that they have released the sandy bridge edition they are even better, quad core is good, six core is better, crysis 2 is going to use 6 cores at maxed out graphics etc, also if you can overclock it then it will be better, mines overclocked and runs at 4.0GHz

PSU: you will want a 700Watt power supply min, the more power hungry hardware you use the higher you will want to go

Optical Drive: you will need a disk drive obviously, blu-ray disk drive if you are feeling fancy

Motherboard:, AM3 model, Asus and Gigabyte are both good brands

Hard Drive: 1TB is a good idea, again 2TB if you have the money (you could get an SD card as well but i dont see the point)

OS: windows 7, you probably knew that though

Case: you can get some nice cases that are easy to access. Antec have some good models

remember its best to get a more expensive machine as you wont have to upgrade as often if you want to play the new games comfortably, also you have to be serious about playing PC games as the machine isnt cheap, you dont want to spend a couple of grand on a PC and not use it much, but in my eyes its worth it, mods for games, cheaper games, and if you want you can make your own mods (difficult though lol)

you are going to want to do a little research by yourself so you can make a good choice and make sure everything will work together but i hope this helped you out, it can be hard to know where to start, it was for me at least!

http://www.cclonline.com/

this is where i built mine, its very good, its also an english site

 

[loc978]

Save money by building it yourself, but it requires a LOT of research on what fits where, how much it costs in terms of dollars, wattage and temperature and whether everything will manage to fit together.

Here's a recent guide of popular components and their Newegg prices. Remember, RESEARCH what YOU need, do not buy a certain thing purely on anecdotal evidence. Only use that when you've narrowed things down:
http://tinyurl.com/FalconGuide

-Don't put a dual GPU setup in your first build
-Always look for combos
-Estimate your average system wattage and get a PSU that is about twice that. PSU's are most efficient at 50% load. On topic with PSUs, Antec, Corsair, Seasonic. 80+ certification is sweet.
-You do not need 8GB of RAM.
-Many people overlook hard drive read speed.
-Six cores for games is overkill right now. Most games up until now are perfectly fine with dual cores, and there aren't many games that actually use four cores or more. Black Ops and Battlefield 3 do though.
-Your GPU will be obsolete in 2 years. Try not to get used to "max settings". You can still play games about 5 years into the future, but by then about 3 or 4 generations of cards will have gone past. So don't go overboard.

^I'd like to nominate this post for a best advice in thread award^

Also, to add to games that can utilize multiple processor cores: Supreme Commander. Up to eight. Talk about ahead of its time...

 

[lacktheknack]

The top three pieces, in order:

CPU
RAM
GPU

Everything is built off of how fast your computer can process input, so an excellent CPU is required. i7 is a solid choice, and falling in price. Quad-core or die in current gaming. Of course, your information needs a place to go, so RAM is next. DDR3, 4Gb or more. Preferably 6Gb if you're using multiple applications at once or FRAPS. Lastly, your GPU is the piece that splashes your screen in lovely loveliness. Get an Nvidia 400+ GTX, or the ATI equivalent (I don't know what it is). Keep in mind that 8000+ is NOT better than 400+ GTX (Nvidia has reset their product line).

After that, each piece can be selected to your pricing. Just remember that higher price equals better performance and future-proofing. Also, make sure you get a power supply that can handle it all! I use an 800 watt Antec.

 

[KiKiweaky]

Not sure how expensive parts/computer stuff is in the States but I dropped like ?2,000 on my rig, graphics card alone was £350 I think (note sterling as I was buying the parts from the UK, cheaper than most of the Irish suppliers).

If I was to spend that much now it would be (350.00 GBP = $567.794 /?415.064 at todays prices, exchange rate was slightly better when I was buying my computer, so I did pay a little less) that was for a superclocked EVGA e-Geforce GTX 285. Its an absolute monster but its about a year and 3/4's old now so you could do better. It runs crysis fine not sure what settings though, I never play my games on full graphics anyway as I dont really see the point, I can barely tell the difference and not sure its worth the extra strain on my hardware.

Things like your motherboard/ram/gpu/processor will be what your spending most of the money on, you could go for an decent (not top of the range) processor and spend the saved money on a bigger graphics card if you want. Take your time anyway when your making your list and check for compatability and all that. Happy gaming

 

[Retardinator]

Spoiler: Sense

Here goes:
CPU: Now you really should be going for a quad core or higher. I would recommend an AMD as they tend to give the most bang for your buck. A good starting point is an AMD Phenom II X4 965 @ 3.4GHz. It is a quad core, fairly cheap and has a high clock rate.
RAM: For your RAM you will want at least 4GB's of DDR3 RAM. The higher the clock rate of the RAM the better, but keep in mind you will need to get a motherboard that supports it.
Video Card: Now this is the most important part for any gaming computer, and you will get A LOT of people giving you their opinions on the best card. Now I personally would recommend a high end ATI card, as again they seem to get the best bang for your buck. I use an ATI HD5770 1GB card although that is getting a tiny bit dated so you would want to go for something from the 6 series - Perhaps a 6850 or 6870. Nvidia is a very good brand to use though if you are willing to spend a bit more. Just make sure any card you grab has at least 1GB of VRAM.
Motherboard: This is an important decision but I am a little behind on the current models. If you are going to loosely follow my build then you will need to get an AM3 socket board that supports DDR3 memory. Make sure it also has PCI-express 2.0 slots (for your video card) although almost any modern board should have these anyway.
Hard Drive: More important than capacity is the speed of the hard drive. If money becomes an issue, make sure you get a 7200RPM drive. If money is not much of an issue then try to get an SSD (Solid State Drive). If you go down the SSD route then the best option is to get a small one to install Windows and any games on, then purchase a larger hard drive to be used for storage (eg. music, movies, etc).
Power Supply: If you plan on running high end, power consuming parts then you will need a decent power supply. Probably get a minimum of 750W but it does depend on what you put in your PC. Corsair is a good brand to consider.
Case: It might not seem important but you will need to get a decent case to house all of your parts in. As a rule, the higher performance your computer is - the more heat it will let off. You will need a case with sufficient airflow to keep your CPU and Video Card (as well as everything else) cool. A CoolerMaster case is probably one of the better brands to use, but there are dozens of brands to choose from. Also, keep in mind if you are getting a larger Video Card, you will need a case that can fit it.

And finally some other things you don't want to forget to buy:
Optical Drive such as a DVD burner.
Windows. Windows 7 is your best bet (XP is quite old now).
Cables. By god everyone seems to forget about SATA cables I swear...

Now that is about the best I can do for you at the moment, and I apologize if I left anything important out.

Hope this helped

I don't think a quad core with such a high clock rate is really necessary, as you can still run games pretty high on a dual core. Though, if you want to run literally everything on max, it's the way to go.
In fact, I like to look at most of the things you listed as overkill, but that might just be me. If you're looking for a goddamn monster PC, this is the right way to build it.

 

[Gibboniser]

You'd be best building it yourself imo, I know you said money isn't a problem, but when you know the ins and outs of your computer, as well as how everything fits in, upgrading is going to be a lot easer.

 

[SyphonX]

Start building your own.

The sooner the better.

You can get a fair shake by simply viewing the bestselling items on Newegg. It really is quite simple.

If you're serious about it, then spend a night's worth of research on what you want/need and you're good.

 

[NitoSpeak]

Save money by building it yourself, but it requires a LOT of research on what fits where, how much it costs in terms of dollars, wattage and temperature and whether everything will manage to fit together.

Here's a recent guide of popular components and their Newegg prices. Remember, RESEARCH what YOU need, do not buy a certain thing purely on anecdotal evidence. Only use that when you've narrowed things down:
http://tinyurl.com/FalconGuide

-Don't put a dual GPU setup in your first build
-Always look for combos
-Estimate your average system wattage and get a PSU that is about twice that. PSU's are most efficient at 50% load. On topic with PSUs, Antec, Corsair, Seasonic. 80+ certification is sweet.
-You do not need 8GB of RAM.
-Many people overlook hard drive read speed.
-Six cores for games is overkill right now. Most games up until now are perfectly fine with dual cores, and there aren't many games that actually use four cores or more. Black Ops and Battlefield 3 do though.
-Your GPU will be obsolete in 2 years. Try not to get used to "max settings". You can still play games about 5 years into the future, but by then about 3 or 4 generations of cards will have gone past. So don't go overboard.

That is an excellent chart. Thank you very much for this valuable information. This is 100% what I had in mind when I made this thread.

 

[Gill Kaiser]

I second everyone else in this thread. Buy the parts and build your own (or have a friend help you).

Make sure you buy a motherboard that supports the rest of the hardware you buy, and if possible get one that isn't likely to become incompatible with upgrades in the next few years.

When you pick your power supply, ensure you get a good quality one (Corsair are good, I believe), and of a high enough wattage to support all your components with some to spare.

 

[RadiusXd]

You know what's easier?

Come to whirlpool.net forums. Tell us your budget and exactly what you want to play and at which resolution.

People there get bored and will pick everything for you then just go buy what they tell you to buy. It's Australian though so expect to do some price adjustments for wherever you are buying stuff from.

perhaps i should have checked that out, being aussie and all..
ahh well, I'm quite satisfied with what i got, and it is gooood.

OT: would upgrading to 3d in the future be seen as an option, or are you not into that?

 

[Wolfram23]

I've recently started saving up money with my new job and intend to become a PC gamer. As I look at the custom built PC's on www.cyberpowerpc.com I realize I don't know what exactly I need.

Money won't be an issue, and I have a monitor, I just need to know what the's most important part of making a gaming PC? What are the red herrings? What do I need to spend more money on, and what do I need to back off on. Basically, I just don't want to rip myself off by buying a bunch of upgrades I won't need. I'm new to all this fancy top of the line equipment, I need a pro to guide me and set me on the path of the righteous man.

At this point I want a rig that will play titles at max settings flawlessly, including the most graphically intensive games on the market...Help me out guys. Help me build a gaming behemoth.

My recommendation is head to Tomshardware forums and check out their Systems topic, there are a TON of builds in there for any budget as well as very knowledgeable system builders who help a lot.

If you want some recommendations, IMO:
CPU: i5 2500k
RAM: 6-8gb ~1600mhz CL8 for performance
Motherboard: Avoid MSI. Asus is a great brand. Also it would benefit you to get a board with the NF200 chip for crossfire/SLI (it effectively doubles the PCIe bandwidth)
GPU: If you want to max games at 1080p, you'll need at least crossfire 6870s or SLI 560s, if not more. And if you want to do multimonitors I would highly recommend at least CF 6950 2gb models (or SLI 560 2gb models from Palit - but the 6950s would be better).
PSU: Corsair 750 or 850, or an Antec equivalent. OCZ is alright too. CoolMaster is a bit worse but their top end PSUs are decent enough.
Case: This should be something you like, but make sure it has at least 3 fans (usually 2 intake 1 or 2 exhaust). I like the Antec 902 or HAF 932.
You should also consider a CPU heatsink. Best bang for your buck is the Hyper 212 Plus, but there's defintely better available.

That would be a sick PC. Oh also here's a sweet look at a $2000 performance PC on Tom's Hardware... you can see for yourself how kickass it is: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/intel-sandy-bridge-build-a-pc-overclocking,2876.html

 

[MrTub]

My $600 PC can run every game I've come across at max settings.

(Try to) play Crysis on max settings. Then go to your room and think about what you said.

I did.
Building your own PC is far cheaper and I've beaten the top PC taxing games on max settings.

May I ask what resolution you are using?

 

[ZombieGenesis]

Wolfram, are you seriously suggesting Sandybridge and SLI 560's as the minimum for max gaming on a 1080p scale?

You can do just as well running on an i3 and a single GTX460! At considerably cheaper price (with only a small drop in FPS for certain games).

I've moved from a GTX 470/i5 build to a Sandybridge / AMD6970 and it really didn't make much of a difference at all- better processing on dual monitors is really all I can boast above my old build, and CPU intensive games like GTA IV and Oblivion.

What would I recommend getting at this point?

i5 760
GTX 560 (or 470 if you want similar performance at lower prices)

I often wonder if this is where the 'PC gaming is a millionares club' thing comes from.

 

[Arcanist]

Garbage PCs are garbage. Grab all your parts off of newegg and build it yourself.

I wholeheartedly approve of this quote.

It's much easier than most people think to put together a custom rig. Just look for a tutorial online, and go from there.

 

[MrTub]

Wolfram, are you seriously suggesting Sandybridge and SLI 560's as the minimum for max gaming on a 1080p scale?

You can do just as well running on an i3 and a single GTX460! At considerably cheaper price (with only a small drop in FPS for certain games).

I've moved from a GTX 470/i5 build to a Sandybridge / AMD6970 and it really didn't make much of a difference at all- better processing on dual monitors is really all I can boast above my old build, and CPU intensive games like GTA IV and Oblivion.

What would I recommend getting at this point?

i5 760
GTX 560 (or 470 if you want similar performance at lower prices)

I often wonder if this is where the 'PC gaming is a millionares club' thing comes from.

Cause people see dells computer - Just now for 2500$ you can get your own super awesome duper computer. And then they think it will cost you 2500$ to get a decent computer.