questions about buying/building a gaming pc

[antijohn]

Hi, I'm a console gamer and have been my whole life. I've been thinking about trying out pc gaming but have some reservations and questions about it. I'd appreciate it if someone could help me out.

Should I build a gaming pc or just buy one? Keep in mind that I have virtually zero technical knowledge about video cards and all that gobbly-beloved patriot. This is one of the main reasons why I've avoided pc gaming. Seems too complicated and confusing. But I suspect that this is just a misconception. Can a completely clueless noob such as myself build a gaming PC without tearing my hair out? Also, how much exactly (as approximate as possible please) would each cost (including monitor and everything else I might need)? If you need to know, I'm looking to get as high-end a pc as possible. I want to play the most graphically advanced games at the highest settings (Crysis, anyone?). But if this is a bit ambitious for someone in my position, I'd settle for something in mid-high range. Also, in case you were wondering, I don't think I can convert my current PC into a gaming PC because it's like 9 years old haha.

 

[PhoenixEnigma]

Hello and welcome!

Can you put together ikea furniture? If so, you can probably build a computer. It's pretty much tab A in slot B stuff, and for a gaming machine the couple hours spent doing it generally save you a good deal over prebuilt.

There certainly can be a lot of information to take in if you are starting at zero - though I presume you read Anandtech, which is a good start. Luckily, there's a bunch of people who have nothing better to do than memorize all that stuff and share it with others.

I'd suggest taking advantage of them by going over the the General Hardware forum. One of the stickies has a short questionnaire - fill that out and start a thread. For a complete gaming rig, monitor, OS, peripherals and all, I'd aim for a budget somewhere between $1k and $2k as you see fit.

Naturally, you'd probably want to leave a little money set aside for games - luckily, we can expect Steam's summer sale pretty soon, so you'll end up broke but with a huge catalog.

 

[santz]

haha, u can also buy all the parts and ask a friend to build it for u and thus learn from him, it takes hardly 15 mins. On the other hand, you could also take to parts to your local PC shop and have them assemble it and be there infront of them. Honestly its supersimple

 

[Whirlwind]

Read up on it and build it yourself...you can get a great rig for $1200-$1500...including the monitor.

You will be glad you did and you will never look back.

 

[borisvodofsky]

Read up on it and build it yourself...you can get a great rig for $1200-$1500...including the monitor.

You will be glad you did and you will never look back.

I recommend at least $1500, if you're including the monitor in that.

Intel 2500k cpu + Asus z68 pro g3 motherboard ~ $300-350

Hyper 212 Evo, or Thermaltake Frio ~ $40

256GB samsung 830, or Crucial m4 ~ $180-200

8GB 2133 memory $80-100

GTX670 ~ $400-450

Corsair 850hx ~ $100-120



As for monitor, the only choice within this budget is the ZR24W, which is the best for gaming.

 

[antijohn]

thanks everybody for the posts, it's all very helpful. Now, I would like to ask how much a prebuilt rig would cost compared to a built one? That is, if they are virtually identical, if they both have the same hardware and all that.

 

[Tweak155]

thanks everybody for the posts, it's all very helpful. Now, I would like to ask how much a prebuilt rig would cost compared to a built one? That is, if they are virtually identical, if they both have the same hardware and all that.

The main area you save with a pre-built rig is in the software. Usually you'll get Windows thrown in without having to buy it, but it is also riddled with bloatware.

Also, the hardware will be similar in cost, but generally of much lesser quality. So while you don't necessarily "save" by building your own (they trade punches depending on the setup), you generally get individual warranty for parts that last a lot longer, and like I already said they are usually MUCH higher quality.

So with a pre-built I'd suspect you'd still be in that similar range of $1000-$1500 as long as you don't go for Alienware or some overpriced niche brand. Sometimes you can get refurbished deals for even less.

If you're looking for cheap, I'd scan the FS/FT forums. Some people are dumping low-mid end gaming systems for dirt cheap (~$300-$500) that can play most any game, just not decked out like the recommended systems above.

 

[coloumb]

Pre-built systems [such as the XPS 8500 from Dell with monitor/speakers] will run you about $1600. The advantage of pre-built systems is the support/warranty vs building your own system. Dell is pretty good about their service and will send someone out the next day if they determine it can't be fixed over the phone. Buying used is good too - but be prepared to troubleshoot issues if they happen and warranty support might not be available or you'll have to send in the product for an exchange. Clear advantage of buying used - you can build your own system and learn how to do it [there are books in the library / book store which detail how to build a computer]

Here's an example of what ~$1600 will buy you

SUPPORT 1 Year ProSupport with 1 Year NBD Limited Onsite Service After Remote Diagnosis
ACCIDENTAL DAMAGE SERVICE 1 Year Accidental Damage Service
MONITOR Dell ST2420L 24 Inch Full HD Widescreen Monitor with LED
SPEAKERS Dell AY410 2.1 Stereo Speakers with Subwoofer
MCAFEE SECURITYCENTER McAfee SecurityCenter, 15-Months
KEYBOARD Dell KB213 Wired Multimedia Keyboard
MOUSE Dell Laser Mouse
Chassis XPS 8500, White Chassis w/19:1 media card reader
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64Bit, English
PROCESSOR 3rd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-3770 processor 3.40 GHz with Turbo Boost 2.0 up to 3.90 GHz
MEMORY 12GB Dual Channel DDR3 1600MHz - 4 DIMMs
HARD DRIVE 2TB 7200RPM, SATA Hard Drive 6.0 Gb/s + 32GB SSD SRT Enhancement
VIDEO CARD AMD Radeon™ HD 7770 2GB GDDR5
OPTICAL DRIVE 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW), write to CD/DVD
WIRELESS Dell Wireless 1703 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth v4.0+LE
SOUND CARD Integrated 7.1 with WAVE MAXXAudio 4
USB 3.0 Integrated 10/100/1000 Ethernet
Ship Material Shipping Material, Direct
Wireless Driver Dell SRV Software 1703
Documentation English/French Documentation
Power Cord US Power Cord

 

[Aikouka]

Pre-built systems [such as the XPS 8500 from Dell with monitor/speakers] will run you about $1600.

Based on what he said, this system won't be that great for him. He wants max settings, and the resolution of that system is 1080p.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/536

It's playable, but you see a lot of the results are between 30-50 FPS.

 

[riversend]

OP, check out the Gen Hardware forum if you have not already, lots of topics on building gaming rigs with multiple price points. Good folks over there giving great advice if you have a little patience.

Riversend

 

[antijohn]

hey everybody, thanks again for the posts. I also wanted to ask how I get started. Is it simply just buying all the parts you guys have listed and then putting them together? or do I have to buy like another computer first and then exchange the parts or what? As I said, I don't think I can use this computer because it's nine years old and barely even functioning. By the way, I will probably start another thread specifically about my build, but I just want to understand how to start before I do.

 

[Arachnotronic]

You build it from scratch.

 

[Borealis7]

you can reuse some parts like the case, DVD drives etc'.
buil;ding computers is very easy today. i've been doing it since i was 9 and back then you had a lot more to do than you have today.

 

[Tweak155]

If you're on a budget, I'd recommend this guy's PC:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2251590

Before you just go and buy it (if you're interested), make sure you set up a safe trade where you're both comfortable with the terms.

I have a similar setup and it plays games really well. It won't be max-out on every game, but really good quality, especially at 1920x1080.