First gaming PC help

[hanson2709]

I'm looking to buy/build my first actual gaming PC. With that being said, I have no idea where to start. I'm not looking for a very hardcore gaming pc as I will mainly play on a console. I'm really just looking for a smooth running, good graphics, and something affordable. I'm not looking for the top of the line. I will be using this exclusively for gaming, that's all.



Moved from PC Gaming

Anandtech Moderator
KeithTalent

 

[KaOTiK]

I will be using this exclusively for gaming, that's all.

not even porn?

 

[hanson2709]

not even porn?

haha. honestly not. i'd use my laptop for that.

 

[diesbudt]

not even porn?

I don't. Anything "fishy" is on the laptop. So if I get maleware, keyloggers, or trojans it doesn't hit my personal info or anything of that nature.

 

[diesbudt]

I'm looking to buy/build my first actual gaming PC. With that being said, I have no idea where to start. I'm not looking for a very hardcore gaming pc as I will mainly play on a console. I'm really just looking for a smooth running, good graphics, and something affordable. I'm not looking for the top of the line. I will be using this exclusively for gaming, that's all.

Well first I would point you to the General hardware / computer help forums (top left column)

Secondly I would have to ask what games, price range, buy one on shelf or buy a custom built one from a website?

Stuf flike this would help us help you.

 

[hanson2709]

I don't. Anything "fishy" is on the laptop. So if I get maleware, keyloggers, or trojans it doesn't hit my personal info or anything of that nature.

Go Pack Go!

 

[Xonim]

You're definitely going to want to build instead of buying a prebuilt gaming PC, simply due to the fact that places like iBuyPower don't really use quality parts.

You probably also want to define your budget -- something affordable for you could mean $800 where to some others that may be anything under $2,000. What games do you play? Do you want/need max graphics and at what resolution?

Considering an average build, you're going to be looking at something like this:

($220) Intel i5-3450 (non-OC) or i5-3570k (can OC)
($100-140)Z77 Motherboard -- I tend to recommend Asus or Gigabyte. Pay attention to features like SATA 6GB/s or USB3.0 if they're important.
($35) 8GB DDR3-1600 RAM -- whatever is on sale, as long as it's rated 1.5v or lower. G.skill and Samsung are good, but most any will do.
($80) 128GB SSD -- Samsung or Crucial or Intel
($70) 1TB 7200rpm hard drive -- because not everything will fit on an SSD
($75) Quality 500+ watt power supply -- Seasonic, Corsair, or Antec
($50-150) Case -- pick whatever appeals to you, make sure it has good cooling. Corsair cases are a great place to start. I have the Corsair 600T SE and would buy it at $150 again in a heartbeat.
($80-100) Win7 license, unless you want 8 -- I'd stick with Win7
($100-300) Video card -- Need more details on the games you play to give a better recommendation
($........)Keyboard + Mouse + Speakers -- Personal preference really, expect to pay more for a mechanical keyboard if you want one. In my opinion, they're worth every penny.

 

[hanson2709]

Well first I would point you to the General hardware / computer help forums (top left column)

Secondly I would have to ask what games, price range, buy one on shelf or buy a custom built one from a website?

Stuf flike this would help us help you.

It would be mostly for FPS games and maybe a little bit of RPG type games.

 

[hanson2709]

My ideal budget would be under 600. I'm poor. lol

 

[Xonim]

My ideal budget would be under 600. I'm poor. lol

Do you have a Micro Center nearby or would you be ordering from Newegg/Amazon?

 

[hanson2709]

Do you have a Micro Center nearby or would you be ordering from Newegg/Amazon?

I believe there is one relatively close, would you recommend buying from there? I had previously planned on buying from Newegg.

 

[Xonim]

Prices are BEFORE mail in rebates.
($50) Case: Corsair 200R $20 MIR
($55) PSU: Antec NEO ECO 520w (Power cord not included)
($35) RAM: Samsung 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1600
($70) Hard drive: Seagate 1TB 7200rpm 64MB Cache
($220) Video Card: MSI Twin Frozr 2GB 7850 $15 MIR, Includes Far Cry 3
($100) OS: Windows 7 License
($4) Power cord

EDIT: If you can go to $700, go with the above and then get an i3-3225 ($120) + motherboard from MicroCenter. You get $40 off a motherboard when purchased with the i3-3225 at MC. If you can find a board in their ad for $60-70, it'll only be $20-30 at checkout. If you can't go to $700, we'll either need to find a cheaper video card or consider an APU unit which combines a less powerful processor with a less powerful graphics card and puts it all on the CPU.

Do you need monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers also, or do you have them?

 

[hanson2709]

Prices are BEFORE mail in rebates.
($50) Case: Corsair 200R $20 MIR
($55) PSU: Antec NEO ECO 520w (Power cord not included)
($35) RAM: Samsung 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1600
($70) Hard drive: Seagate 1TB 7200rpm 64MB Cache
($220) Video Card: MSI Twin Frozr 2GB 7850 $15 MIR, Includes Far Cry 3
($100) OS: Windows 7 License
($4) Power cord

EDIT: If you can go to $700, go with the above and then get an i3-3225 ($120) + motherboard from MicroCenter. You get $40 off a motherboard when purchased with the i3-3225 at MC. If you can find a board in their ad for $60-70, it'll only be $20-30 at checkout. If you can't go to $700, we'll either need to find a cheaper video card or consider an APU unit which combines a less powerful processor with a less powerful graphics card and puts it all on the CPU.

Do you need monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers also, or do you have them?

I would still need a mouse and keyboard.

Thanks for the input so far guys!!

 

[Termie]

Prices are BEFORE mail in rebates.
($50) Case: Corsair 200R $20 MIR
($30AR/Code) PSU: Corsair CX500
($35) RAM: Samsung 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1600
($70) Hard drive: Seagate 1TB 7200rpm 64MB Cache
($175AR) Video Card: PowerColor HD7850 Includes Far Cry 3
($100) OS: Windows 7 License
($4) Power cord

EDIT: If you can go to $700, go with the above and then get an i3-3225 ($120) + motherboard from MicroCenter. You get $40 off a motherboard when purchased with the i3-3225 at MC. If you can find a board in their ad for $60-70, it'll only be $20-30 at checkout. If you can't go to $700, we'll either need to find a cheaper video card or consider an APU unit which combines a less powerful processor with a less powerful graphics card and puts it all on the CPU.

Do you need monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers also, or do you have them?

Good list overall, but there are a few tweaks that will save a lot of money, shown in bold above.

And here is the Microcenter catalog that you can use to choose the appropriate motherboard bundle (like the Biostar H77 for $60 before $40 discount) - don't use H61 as it may not be compatible: http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/f115d278#/f115d278/28

The total comes to $600 after rebates. Slides in just over budget after taxes. That includes about $50 in rebates, if that matters to you.

 

[hanson2709]

Processor - AMD FX 6100 Black Edition 3.3GHz Six-Core Socket AM3+ Boxed Processor
Motherboard - ASUS M5A97 R2.0 Socket AM3+ ATX AMD Motherboard
Hard Drive - Intel 330 2.5" 120GB SATA 6Gb/s Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
RAM - Corsair XMS3 Series 16GB DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800) CL 11 Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit (Two 8GB Memory Modules)
Video Card - HIS H777F1G2M iCooler Radeon HD 7770 1024MB GDDR5 PCIe 3.0 x16 Video Card
Case - Fractal Design Arc Midi Mid Tower ATX Computer Case
PSU - Cooler Master GX Series 650W ATX Power Supply


I went online and priced out some options and came up with this set up. Do you guys see any issues with a setup like this, and am I leaving anything out that I need?

EDIT: This comes in a little over my budget so any tweaks to lower the cost would be appreciated!

 

[Xonim]

Problem with the setup is that it's AMD =) Also, stick to Seasonic / Antec / Corsair PSU's, and 16GB RAM is completely unnecessary for a gaming rig.

AMD is quite far behind Intel for the past few generations. The only way you should really even consider AMD is if your budget is lower than it already is ($110 for Phenom ii X4 965 + motherboard) or if you need/want an APU. Intel chips tend to run cooler and consume less power while being faster overall. Plus in my experience, the stock Intel heatsink/fan tend to be better and quieter than the AMD ones.

Good recommendations on my list (especially the PSU), though I'm the type of person to shell out another $25-30 for the MSI card over Powercolor, but that's a brand loyalty thing I've got going on. The TF3 cooler doesn't hurt either.

 

[thespyder]

I don't. Anything "fishy" is on the laptop. So if I get maleware, keyloggers, or trojans it doesn't hit my personal info or anything of that nature.

Ah, so just Wi-Fi hackers can get to your secure information?

 

[Durvelle27]

Problem with the setup is that it's AMD =) Also, stick to Seasonic / Antec / Corsair PSU's, and 16GB RAM is completely unnecessary for a gaming rig.

AMD is quite far behind Intel for the past few generations. The only way you should really even consider AMD is if your budget is lower than it already is ($110 for Phenom ii X4 965 + motherboard) or if you need/want an APU. Intel chips tend to run cooler and consume less power while being faster overall. Plus in my experience, the stock Intel heatsink/fan tend to be better and quieter than the AMD ones.

Good recommendations on my list (especially the PSU), though I'm the type of person to shell out another $25-30 for the MSI card over Powercolor, but that's a brand loyalty thing I've got going on. The TF3 cooler doesn't hurt either.

what's wrong with AMD

 

[Xonim]

what's wrong with AMD

Hehehe, well, judging by your sig, between your AMD chip and all your Apple products, you and I are going to just have to agree to disagree :biggrin: I'm not going there!

 

[lehtv]

If you agree that it's a matter of opinion that one likes AMD and another doesn't, then you also must agree that you saying that there's a problem with the setup because it's AMD, has no basis in any sort of objectivity or rational reasoning. Therefore, it's nonsensical to recommend anyone to switch away from AMD - perhaps they don't see it as a problem.

 

[Xonim]

Closest I can get to an FX6100 in a review with the SB i3s is actually at xbitlabs where they compare to an FX6200 @ 3.5Ghz. Looking specifically at games, the i3 and the FX6200 trade blows depending on the game. I'll agree it's personal preference at that point.

What's not personal preference is the chart that shows an i3 system pulling under 90w under full load while the FX6200 is over 200w. There was no chart, but I'm going to guess that there's probably also a lot more heat with the FX6200. That's enough of a case for me.

I like(d) AMD chips as much as the next guy, my old AMD 64 X2 was awesome for a long time, but since the introduction of the i3/i5/i7 chips from Intel, I just can't recommend the AMDs. But to each their own.

 

[Torn Mind]

Processor - AMD FX 6100 Black Edition 3.3GHz Six-Core Socket AM3+ Boxed Processor
Motherboard - ASUS M5A97 R2.0 Socket AM3+ ATX AMD Motherboard
Hard Drive - Intel 330 2.5" 120GB SATA 6Gb/s Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
RAM - Corsair XMS3 Series 16GB DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800) CL 11 Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit (Two 8GB Memory Modules)
Video Card - HIS H777F1G2M iCooler Radeon HD 7770 1024MB GDDR5 PCIe 3.0 x16 Video Card
Case - Fractal Design Arc Midi Mid Tower ATX Computer Case
PSU - Cooler Master GX Series 650W ATX Power Supply


I went online and priced out some options and came up with this set up. Do you guys see any issues with a setup like this, and am I leaving anything out that I need?

EDIT: This comes in a little over my budget so any tweaks to lower the cost would be appreciated!

This RAM is slightly cheaper than yours, I think:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...D=3938566&SID=

The SSD doesn't seem too necessary. A 1TB mechanical hard drive is cheaper and you get more storage.

I am not too versed with video cards, but according the nomenclature of Radeon cards, a 7770 is significant step down from the 7870. I'll let those who know more than me to highlight what you're giving up.

I do not like the FX 6100 choice because it's a Bulldozer. The Piledrivers are better and the i3s are better than it performance-wise. Since you have access to the Micro Center, consider if you can make room for the i5-3470 that is going for 150. The FX 6300 or i3 3220 would also be something to look at there.

 

[hanson2709]

thanks for all the help guys!

 

[tracerbullet]

I believe there is one relatively close, would you recommend buying from there? I had previously planned on buying from Newegg.

Price shop your butt off. Newegg was always the place to go, now there's not only competition but places beating them. Microcenter, Amazon, even Best Buy, and possibly some local mom & pop shops if your town is big enough (really - I got 2 3TB drives from a little local place tonight for the same cost as anyone's BF deals last weekend, it does happen). Check them all. Keep shipping costs in mind of course, and tax. As a general rule buy local if you can. But don't feel the need to stick w/ a single source.

Also agreed, go w/ 8GB of RAM. And I don't see a DVD drive or a CPU cooler (unless you intend to use the stock cooler, which is OK, but make sure you have a solution here). Also if you end up getting a bunch of unboxed OEM parts, you may be looking for SATA and other cables. And the 7770, while a decent card, may limit what you can do. See if you can get a little more power for not too much more money.

I don't see a monitor anywhere either...

 

[Torn Mind]

Pcpartpicker.com is handy for getting prices quick. Ask about the lesser known stores they list, some are worth shopping at. Others aren't. I use it myself when suggesting things on this site.