Home built PC?

[Hiierarch]

I'm a novice at computer building/programming but I'm looking into building my own computer. Right now I just have my mom's Dell Demension 3000 from around 2004 and it's just not cuttin it. I'm an avid gamer and looking to build myself the most efficient computer as cheaply as possible, but I want it to have a lot of memory, and the capacity to run high end games like Oblivion. Price really isn't an issue if it's less than 1,300 USD (of course the cheapest components for my needs would be desired). I'm turning 15 here in January and I'll be getting a job ASAP once my birthday rolls around.

 

I'm expecting to get comments like "you've got no idea what your talking about, you're going to get in over your head and regret it" or something along those lines. Don't worry about it, I've thought about it and I'd like to invest some of my money into a PC. I think I'm a pretty intelligent young man and resourceful so you've got nothing to worry about. What I don't know off the top of my head, I can find on the internet , or Tip.It :lol:

 

I'm not to worried about assembling the components and I'm designing and building my own computer case to house everything in. I'm looking for suggestions on what kind of components I should use for the inner workings, disregard the cabinet, monitor, speakers, keyboard, and mouse. If you guys have to specs of your personal computers that you think might be an asset to me, I'd appreciate it. Another thing is the operating system, I'm thinking I'll go with XP but maybe I should think about Vista? Oh and a security program also, Norton is annoying as hell.

[Cruiser]

I'm expecting to get comments like "you've got no idea what your talking about, you're going to get in over your head and regret it" or something along those lines.

 

Pfft, you obviously haven't read around the T&C forum much. There are several people here that are very helpful when it comes to people wanting to build their own machine.

 

 

 

Let me be the first to say, Newegg.com is now your new best friend. :P

 

 

 

Vista would be a good choice just because of DX 10 (as much as I hate saying that). Any high end Core 2 Duo (or quad if you're feeling adventurous) will be plenty of processing power and 2gb or more of RAM is recommended if you go with Vista. The video card nuts will probably be along shortly to give you something for that department (not my area :P ). After that it just depends on which parts you decide on and how much you're willing to spend on disc space and prices on each part.

[MageUK]

Currently building my own rig with a decent bit of power for around your $1300 mark.

 

 

 

Specs :

 

Asus P5k Socket 775 Mobo

 

Intel Q6600 (Quad @ 2.4GHz)

 

4GB Patriot DDR800 Memory

 

Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 PRO

 

OCZ 700W GameXStream PSU

 

Thermaltake Tsunami Case

 

BFG 8800GT 512MB OC'ed GFX

 

500GB Samsung SATA2 Disk

 

19'' Hyundai ImageQuest B90D TFT 8ms

 

 

 

I'm bringing the DVD, sound card, spare hard drive, mouse, and monitor (going dual screen) from my current build, so if you wanted to buy these items as well you may have to drop the specs a little or perhaps expand your budget a little. This was a UK build so you may be able to find the parts a little cheaper in the US. For the money this is, in my opinion, quite a powerful rig (or I wouldn't have bought it), and the Q6600 is extremely overclockable as well.

 

 

 

My build is designed to be not too far off your own aims. I am increasing productivity for college but I'm also looking to game a lot on this as well. (Team Fortress 2, Counter Strike Source, a few others). My needs are pretty similar but naturally there's so many computer parts these days all of these are interchangeable to produce a similar spec'ced machine.

 

 

 

As for the OS, I'm sticking with XP for now. No games out currently support DX10 alone and they won't do until the majority of XP users have converted to Vista. Probably won't happen too soon. Also, recent tests show that XP performs twice as fast as Vista, Vista SP1 causes Vista to perform slower, whereas XP SP3 actually provides a speed increase. And personally, I use F-Secure Internet Security, but that's just a personal preference, best way is to experiment with some trials and see what suits you.

 

 

 

Good luck with your build!

[Hiierarch]

 

Let me be the first to say, Newegg.com is now your new best friend. :P

 

 

 

Vista would be a good choice just because of DX 10 (as much as I hate saying that). Any high end Core 2 Duo (or quad if you're feeling adventurous) will be plenty of processing power and 2gb or more of RAM is recommended if you go with Vista. The video card nuts will probably be along shortly to give you something for that department (not my area :P ). After that it just depends on which parts you decide on and how much you're willing to spend on disc space and prices on each part.

 

 

 

Thanks, I've enjoyed reading through NewEgg so far, I like the speed of XP versus Vista like Puremage said, I'll wait until I'm at that point to decide.

[Mamong]

Building a computer isn't too hard and I think that you should be able to do it. I'm only 14 and I've changed parts regularly on my computer without much trouble at all. The hardware bit is the easiest, normally the software is tougher.

 

 

 

If in doubt, just do a Google search and find a few articles that should show you all the nuts and bolts.

 

 

 

Found a few video cards on Newegg that would all suit your needs.

 

 

 

$300 8800GTS. Will run Oblivion very well, a little pricey however

 

 

 

A 512mb 8800GT like Pure_MageUK pointed out. $265, will also run Oblivion with ease

 

 

 

This is a cheaper card, but by no means worse. The X1950Pro runs quite well although not as powerful as the aforementioned cards, but only $170

[Hiierarch]

Building a computer isn't too hard and I think that you should be able to do it. I'm only 14 and I've changed parts regularly on my computer without much trouble at all. The hardware bit is the easiest, normally the software is tougher.

 

 

 

If in doubt, just do a Google search and find a few articles that should show you all the nuts and bolts.

 

 

 

Found a few video cards on Newegg that would all suit your needs.

 

 

 

$300 8800GTS. Will run Oblivion very well, a little pricey however

 

 

 

A 512mb 8800GT like Pure_MageUK pointed out. $265, will also run Oblivion with ease

 

 

 

This is a cheaper card, but by no means worse. The X1950Pro runs quite well although not as powerful as the aforementioned cards, but only $170

 

 

 

Hey thanks, I'm probably gonna go with the 8800GTS

[blade995]

Building a computer isn't too hard and I think that you should be able to do it. I'm only 14 and I've changed parts regularly on my computer without much trouble at all. The hardware bit is the easiest, normally the software is tougher.

 

 

 

If in doubt, just do a Google search and find a few articles that should show you all the nuts and bolts.

 

 

 

Found a few video cards on Newegg that would all suit your needs.

 

 

 

$300 8800GTS. Will run Oblivion very well, a little pricey however

 

 

 

A 512mb 8800GT like Pure_MageUK pointed out. $265, will also run Oblivion with ease

 

 

 

This is a cheaper card, but by no means worse. The X1950Pro runs quite well although not as powerful as the aforementioned cards, but only $170

 

 

 

Hey thanks, I'm probably gonna go with the 8800GTS

 

 

 

Believe it or not, the 8800GT is faster than the GTS. My suggestion is to go with the 8800GT because it's faster and it uses DirectX 10.1 instaid of the older 10.0 than the GTS uses. It also uses PCI-E 2.0 so it "may" be faster on a pci-e 2.0 motherboard (backwards compatible with normal pci-e).

[das1330]

Here's a good build:

 

 

 

CD drive(s) - any drive will do, really. I have always preferred having 2 dvd drives in my computer, but its up to you.

 

 

 

Hard drive - Again, any good Segate or Western Digital drive will work well. If 400 Gigs isnt enough for you, get a bigger one.

 

 

 

graphics card - The g92 revision of the 8800 gts. Make sure you get the one labeled G92, its a newer version of the card with a faster graphics chip. This outperforms the 8800 gtx is some situations.

 

 

 

Power supply - I have always had good luck with Thermaltake PSU's. There reliable, and always put out the advertised wattage. This power supply also has modular cables, so you can keep the inside of your case nice and clean looking.

 

 

 

Memory - You wanted lots of memory, you got it. This is 4 gigs of fast RAM from Mushkin, a reputable memory manufacturer.

 

 

 

Motherboard - This one is based off the Intel P35 chipset, which is nice and fast. The only problem is that it does not support dual graphics cards, so if you ever plan on adding another one, you will have to get a motherboard based on the Nvidia 680i chipset.

 

 

 

Processor - an Intel q6600 quad core processor. The cheapest quad they offer, and if you decide to overclock, it runs so coolly it practically overclocks itself.

 

 

 

CPU cooler - Don't bother with this if you don't plan on overclocking, but if you do, its one of the best coolers out there for the price.

 

 

 

Thermal grease - Some Arctic Silver 5. Again, don't bother with it if you don't plan on overclocking, but for 5$ this lowers the temperature of the CPU by about 15 degrees F (by improving thermal transfer between the processor and heat sink)

 

 

 

and a copy of vista Here. Vista does use more system resources then XP, but new games need vista to run, so its not really fesiable to get a copy of windows xp now, unless you plan on shelling out another hundred to upgrade later on.

 

 

 

-Totals about 1300$

 

 

 

As far as building a case goes, I wouldn't recommended it unless you have extensive experience in fabrication or case modding. Computer components are built to exacting specifications, and if you don't meet them Exactly you will have a big problem on your hands. As far as buying a case, that's more personal choice, so browse newegg and see if there's anything you like.

 

 

 

About overclocking: I highly recommend you overclock the processor. This particular processor runs cool and is very easy to overclock. Just read some internet tutorials on overclocking core 2 quads and you should be fine.

[Nadril]

Great build there sniper. Also I can back you up on Thermaltake, I've been using one (550w or so IIRC) in my rig and its worked great, no problems at all.

 

 

 

 

 

As far as case's go really just make sure that its sturdy enough that it won't break easily, and its always good to have a case that has a lot of airflow in it. (especially if you plan on overclocking a case with good airflow is a must.) In my experience I've liked my Apevia case so far -- pretty sturdy and great airflow, the entire rig runs at about 79-80 degrees F on full load (no OC, but yeah).

 

 

 

 

 

And that is with stock heatsinks.

[____]

The only problem I have ever had in regards to thermaltake is the dba of their fans. I have never been impressed with the noise they make, especially on some of their PSU's.

[Mercifull]

The only problem I have ever had in regards to thermaltake is the dba of their fans. I have never been impressed with the noise they make, especially on some of their PSU's.

Ditto, I got a supposedly "quiet" fan for my Themaltake Shark and it sounds like a hair drier.

[Nadril]

The only problem I have ever had in regards to thermaltake is the dba of their fans. I have never been impressed with the noise they make, especially on some of their PSU's.

 

 

 

Really? Mines pretty damn quiet to be honest. (550w thermaltank).

[Alex_Ewan_1]

My best mate at my last school built one back in his homeland of hing kong. You buy all the parts required and bolt them together yourself. if you study technology or similar you might be able to do it.

 

 

 

However if you kinow tonnes about computers like me be careful because even though you may know loads on how to use a computer all i can manage myself is replace the HDD/RAM.

[Hiierarch]

Here's a good build:

 

 

 

CD drive(s) - any drive will do, really. I have always preferred having 2 dvd drives in my computer, but its up to you.

 

 

 

Hard drive - Again, any good Segate or Western Digital drive will work well. If 400 Gigs isnt enough for you, get a bigger one.

 

 

 

graphics card - The g92 revision of the 8800 gts. Make sure you get the one labeled G92, its a newer version of the card with a faster graphics chip. This outperforms the 8800 gtx is some situations.

 

 

 

Power supply - I have always had good luck with Thermaltake PSU's. There reliable, and always put out the advertised wattage. This power supply also has modular cables, so you can keep the inside of your case nice and clean looking.

 

 

 

Memory - You wanted lots of memory, you got it. This is 4 gigs of fast RAM from Mushkin, a reputable memory manufacturer.

 

 

 

Motherboard - This one is based off the Intel P35 chipset, which is nice and fast. The only problem is that it does not support dual graphics cards, so if you ever plan on adding another one, you will have to get a motherboard based on the Nvidia 680i chipset.

 

 

 

Processor - an Intel q6600 quad core processor. The cheapest quad they offer, and if you decide to overclock, it runs so coolly it practically overclocks itself.

 

 

 

CPU cooler - Don't bother with this if you don't plan on overclocking, but if you do, its one of the best coolers out there for the price.

 

 

 

Thermal grease - Some Arctic Silver 5. Again, don't bother with it if you don't plan on overclocking, but for 5$ this lowers the temperature of the CPU by about 15 degrees F (by improving thermal transfer between the processor and heat sink)

 

 

 

and a copy of vista Here. Vista does use more system resources then XP, but new games need vista to run, so its not really fesiable to get a copy of windows xp now, unless you plan on shelling out another hundred to upgrade later on.

 

 

 

-Totals about 1300$

 

 

 

As far as building a case goes, I wouldn't recommended it unless you have extensive experience in fabrication or case modding. Computer components are built to exacting specifications, and if you don't meet them Exactly you will have a big problem on your hands. As far as buying a case, that's more personal choice, so browse newegg and see if there's anything you like.

 

 

 

About overclocking: I highly recommend you overclock the processor. This particular processor runs cool and is very easy to overclock. Just read some internet tutorials on overclocking core 2 quads and you should be fine.

 

 

 

Wow, thathelped a great deal, thanks you very much :D :D

[Nadril]

My best mate at my last school built one back in his homeland of hing kong. You buy all the parts required and bolt them together yourself. if you study technology or similar you might be able to do it.

 

 

 

However if you kinow tonnes about computers like me be careful because even though you may know loads on how to use a computer all i can manage myself is replace the HDD/RAM.

 

 

 

Lol.

 

 

 

 

 

In reality it is not that difficult to build a computer. Before I built mine the only knowledge I really had was putting in a new video card or ram, and even then most of the time I had my dad do it.

 

 

 

 

 

However it isn't that difficult, especially if you just make sure to read directions and don't try and guess something. The biggest pain for me was getting all the small stuff hooked up to the motherboard to be honest.

[Hiierarch]

My best mate at my last school built one back in his homeland of hing kong. You buy all the parts required and bolt them together yourself. if you study technology or similar you might be able to do it.

 

 

 

However if you kinow tonnes about computers like me be careful because even though you may know loads on how to use a computer all i can manage myself is replace the HDD/RAM.

 

 

 

Lol.

 

 

 

 

 

In reality it is not that difficult to build a computer. Before I built mine the only knowledge I really had was putting in a new video card or ram, and even then most of the time I had my dad do it.

 

 

 

 

 

However it isn't that difficult, especially if you just make sure to read directions and don't try and guess something. The biggest pain for me was getting all the small stuff hooked up to the motherboard to be honest.

 

 

 

I'm really not worried about assembling it, I'm afraid of installing everything for the first time because I don't wanna have to have someone repair it for me if I screw it up

[Nadril]

My best mate at my last school built one back in his homeland of hing kong. You buy all the parts required and bolt them together yourself. if you study technology or similar you might be able to do it.

 

 

 

However if you kinow tonnes about computers like me be careful because even though you may know loads on how to use a computer all i can manage myself is replace the HDD/RAM.

 

 

 

Lol.

 

 

 

 

 

In reality it is not that difficult to build a computer. Before I built mine the only knowledge I really had was putting in a new video card or ram, and even then most of the time I had my dad do it.

 

 

 

 

 

However it isn't that difficult, especially if you just make sure to read directions and don't try and guess something. The biggest pain for me was getting all the small stuff hooked up to the motherboard to be honest.

 

 

 

I'm really not worried about assembling it, I'm afraid of installing everything for the first time because I don't wanna have to have someone repair it for me if I screw it up

 

 

 

Instalation is pretty easy. Really the worst scenerio you might experience is that it will try and read from the wrong drive (mine tried booting from a floppy drive that wasn't there) but its just a simple change in the Bios.

 

 

 

 

 

Installing windows is easy, it pretty much walks you through it all.