Finally building a new PC for my mom. Would love some input

[Stg-Flame]

Updated this some more.

Any suggestions? I'd love to get this ordered before Monday since a lot of the sales end then.

Edit: More updates. Still waiting to see about headphones vs speakers and what type of keyboard. I'd like to see this get tweaked further as I know I can get something better for cheaper.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Updated this some more.

Any suggestions? I'd love to get this ordered before Monday since a lot of the sales end then.

Edit: More updates. Still waiting to see about headphones vs speakers and what type of keyboard. I'd like to see this get tweaked further as I know I can get something better for cheaper.

Keyboards and headphones are really pretty personal - it's hard to make a good recommendation.

Most gaming mechanicals use similar switches, and have similar key feel, in which case you're shopping for aesthetics, mostly. My Ducky 2108 has some WAF, but the more garish gamer gear tends to be... icky.

But membrane KBs vary a lot - you can hate one and love another. You really ought to go to a store and try out a few display models.

For headphones, you probably should go to a music store, Guitar Center, etc., and get a good pair of studio cans. Have her try them on, and find a pair that's comfy on her head and sound decent. Be prepared to spend $100+ if you buy them in the store. Which I would not recommend. Prosumer audio equipment is frequently discounted 50%+, depending on the store, the item, and the time of year.

 

[VirtualLarry]

For Studio cans... sweetwater.com ? I know that they sell "studio monitors" (speakers). Been meaning to order some. I'm lazy, and there's not all that much room on my desk(s), so I use the speakers built into my monitors / UHD TVs.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

For Studio cans... sweetwater.com ? I know that they sell "studio monitors" (speakers). Been meaning to order some. I'm lazy, and there's not all that much room on my desk(s), so I use the speakers built into my monitors / UHD TVs.

Sweetwater is one of the bigger/older mailorder places, and they sell everything, but they don't always have the best prices.

Studio monitors (Essentially bookshelf speakers with a built in amplifier) are often pricier than they ought to be. You can wallmount speakers, so desk space shouldn't be an issue. Once upon a time, I had a set of Behringer MS40s that were awesome. MS20s would be cheaper and sufficient in a smaller apartment. MS16 if you want to be real cheap.

When my MS40s broke, I replaced them with Alesis Elevate 3s. They sound pretty good, and they fill the room just fine, but lack a certain "oomph".

But if you just want a lot of sound for cheap, (I'm assuming you're not a trained musician, not doing audio editing, etc., so maximum fidelity is probably not needed) I'd probably be hunting garage sales and goodwills for old component stereo equipment.

 

[Stg-Flame]

She's coming over today to decide whether or not she wants headphones now. I pitched the idea that she can play Skyrim and have the sound as loud as she wants and she won't be able to hear my dad yell at the TV when he's playing Warcraft 2 or Suikoden. I think headphones might be in this build, but that will be an afterthought.

I'd like to know if there are any foreseeable issues with the CPU/GPU/PSU/Mobo I've chosen or if I can save any money in the build with better/alternative products. The peripherals should be easy enough to handle.

 

[Valantar]

Good audio tends to cost quite a bit of money, although there are good cheap(-ish) studio monitors out there. Small "PC speakers" tend to be quite awful, even the mid-priced 2.1 kits. As recommended above, if you want speakers, compact studio monitors are the way to go. If you can find some at a decent price, go for some with an optical input - that takes the PC's sound card out of the equation and shifts audio processing to the (usually far superior + far better shielded from EMI noise) DAC in the speakers.

If you go for headphones, given that she doesn't play online, you can usually get far better bang for your buck from audio-focused headphones rather than some gaming-branded crap. Even something like the $28 Sennheiser HD202 II will sound better than most $60-100 gaming headsets. That is, of course, a matter of taste. What audio profile is preferred, not to mention the preference for in-ear, over-ear, on-ear, closed- or open-backed headphones (and so on ...) is extremely individual and pretty much impossible to predict. Still, Sennheiser delivers excellent quality in pretty much all price ranges.

 

[Dave Rafael]

Thanks for this idea! im thinking to assemble my own pc but idont know where do i start but thank you for information that you provide its a big help.

 

[Ken g6]

Where's your heat sink? The latest K processors don't come with one, you know. Here's a list of cheap ones that would work if you're not overclocking. The other thing you might want is quiet - perhaps this Cooler Master would be worth the extra cost to you?

I don't see anything else that doesn't have a decent justification. (Meaning, like, Z170 boards are cheaper than Z270, and 7700K won't work with a stock Z170 and isn't much faster than a 6700K.)

Anybody ask if you live near a Micro Center yet? You can get cheap CPUs there.

 

[Stg-Flame]

No Micro Center. I live in a relatively small area, so the best we have is Best Buy.

As for the heat sink, I was waiting for input on the CPU before I decided. Also, your link may need updating - it leads to a site about Taxonomy with no mention of heat sinks.