Want to buy a New Computer.

[SuperJack]

Hello people. I've used laptops for about 5 years. But since I have my own place now, I'm looking to buy a new computer.

I'm not too great with the techno babble so I was hoping if you guys have any ideas what I should be aiming for.

Here's a few things that may help:
-Primary use will be to play games.
-I'm looking to spend around £1000 (British Money) (Willing to go more)
-I can buy the rest of the things separately. But if it comes in a package that saves me money overall(Monitor, mouse ect..) I dont mind.

If there are any questions that can help. Please ask ^^ I would welcome any help.

[RLVG]

Make a custom one.

You want to focus on a good balance of Motherboard, CPU / Processor, GPU (Graphics Card), with RAM and PSU to support these.
Get a minimum of 500GB HDD, if you can't get 1TB or more.

You can also have a SSD and install your OS into it to make it boot up smoothly and quickly.

[Mugy]

1000 pounds is actually a lot, it's $2277 NZD apparently.
I haven't been up to speed with tech for some time now, but I think a few of these rules still apply.
-If you're going for gaming, just get the latest i5(with an x so you can overclock if you want to in the future). Getting an i7 for gaming is pointless.
-Cheap motherboard is fine, I doubt you're gonna want to have more than one graphics card.
-An SSD is a must, my god it's so god damn fast, at least 240GB capacity preferably. Add a 1TB hard drive to store movies and stuff.
-GTX 980 seems looks pretty sufficient, should run pretty much all games well.
-PSU of 600w or more

Disclaimer: I haven't been up to speed with pc tech for about the past year. It's a rough draft of what I would probably go for :)

Edit: Oh yeah, and this is if you want to build it yourself. Obviously I guess.
I would recommend doing so, it's good experience if you haven't done it before.

[Cryptonic]

I wish my work would allow me to build a comp. They give 3k every 2 years towards a new comp that you pay back over those 2 years with 0 interest. But they're only do already built models from "trusted retailers" :[

I'm jelly. Def build one

[SuperJack]

How do I go by building a custom one? Like I said I'm not so good with that part. Do I go to websites like alien wear and build a custom one there? Or do I personally go out and buy each part?

[Cryptonic]

You'd buy the individual parts, yea

[Mugy]

Yes, buy each part separately. As in they come in separate small boxes.

Oh, I should add that 16GB is the most RAM you would want to get.

[NoctiZ]

And assembling the parts ain't that hard. It's kinda like Lego. It's just a bit more fragile but you get a manual and all for each part.

[Mugy]

I would recommend consulting a youtube video or written guide on building computers.
Newegg has a nice video on youtube.

[SuperJack]

Hmmm.... I shall consult things then
if any of you know some great links that would be helpful. ^^ i don't mind

Once I'm home, I might start browsing, editing into the top post a list of things I'm buying.

[RLVG]

If you buy a Frame / Casing and all the hardware in a bulk, you are likely to get support in having them build the computer for you.

[BananaCucho]

http://www.reddit.com/r/PCMasterRace/wiki/builds

Those are different builds that you could do if you're looking for a guide on what parts to get according to your budget.

Also yeah, watch YouTube videos to get an idea of what to do. There's also a video of a guy on ign building the whole thing and he has no idea what he's doing but someone is helping him and explains everything

[DarknessB]

I'm going to play the contrarian for a second. Here's the trade-off between build vs. custom order. Build is cheaper and you have more flexibility on what you want. Custom order is hassle free, requires no knowledge, and comes with a warranty. Ultimately, it comes down to how comfortable you are putting together a system and your level of tolerance for things going wrong.

You seem to have a pretty decent budget for a new machine so it might be worth your time checking out what you can get from a custom build first, unless, of course, you're looking for a DIY-type project, in which case, build the machine yourself.

[SuperJack]

I'm all up for a little build it up hobby.

[DarknessB]

Cool, then I'd go with the DIY like everyone else is saying. Far more bang for your buck and a lot of custom builders either don't offer certain options or charge insane amounts for them.

[deathworlds]

Don't run windows vista.

[SuperJack]

Don't run windows vista.

Going with Windows 8.1 or Windows 10.

[DarknessB]

Windows 10 is coming out very soon, and there will be free upgrades from either Windows 7 or Windows 8, so you'll be covered either way.


Going with Windows 8.1 or Windows 10.

[BananaCucho]

Open your mind to a Linux clone. Linux is awesome

[DarknessB]

No harm in setting up a dual boot with Linux, but you'll miss out on too much gaming stuff without having some Windows installation.


Open your mind to a Linux clone. Linux is awesome

[deathworlds]

I wish I didn't have windows vista on my computer at home...

[DarknessB]

To continue this thread, I agree with others than an SSD is a must, especially for the operating system and for games. Prices have gone way down on SSD so I would probably start with a 512GB sized one in terms of future-proofing. 256GB is pretty small given the size of many Blizzard, Steam, etc. games that would benefit from faster HD access -- remember, Windows itself will eat a decent chunk out of the free space on it. You should also buy a second standard hard drive (2TB at least IMO -- they're cheap enough) for music, movies, photos, lower-end games that don't need fast access, documents, etc. If your budget is as large as it is, you don't want to end up buying something that isn't at all future-proof. I already regret going with only a 256GB SSD...

In terms of brands, Samsung SSDs tend to be well regarded at the high end (Crucial SSDs as more of a value purchase) as do Western Digital HDDs. In contrast, I would avoid Seagate like the plague -- I've had too many Seagates break on me over the years...

[SparkNuts]

Get windows 10 so Microsoft and the government can spy on everything you do :-P

[SparkNuts]

The most recent desktop I built was a full sized case instead of mid sized(what almost every desktop you see is). And it is amazing, it was significantly easier to build because of all the extra space and made wire management so much better and it stays a lot cooler. It is much larger, heavier and a bit more expensive but if you have room for it and wont be moving your computer around I would highly recommend a full sized case.

Also, everyone might not agree but I prefer to get a really nice motherboard when building a new computer from scratch. It will allow you to keep it for much longer and replace parts one at a time as you need them instead of having to do a complete rebuild when a new part isn't compatible with the older/cheaper motherboard.

[Brendan]

I wish my work would allow me to build a comp. They give 3k every 2 years towards a new comp that you pay back over those 2 years with 0 interest. But they're only do already built models from "trusted retailers" :[

I'm jelly. Def build one u could prob still find a decent build, would just have to pay a bit more

[Cryptonic]

u could prob still find a decent build, would just have to pay a bit more

Yea true. For how kuch u think. I don't wanna get the full 3k lol
But my laptop died last night so might have go

[Brendan]

Yea true. For how kuch u think. I don't wanna get the full 3k lol
But my laptop died last night so might have go

prob like 2-3k for something that would keep up with games for a few years and be well rounded. My laptop was 1200 and it can run everything I've tried smoothly at max settings. I'm sure I would have to turn it down for stuff like the witcher 3 but other than that it's good.

[BananaCucho]

Tomorrow my work is doing a smash and grab. Giving out the old computers for new ones.

Tomorrow is also my birthday :)

[GoatseOntheCupboard]

Yes, be a Good Goy and buy a current gen i7, Nvidiot 980tis in SLI and a 300$ mobo, as well as the newest minimalist autism case from fractal designs. The total should ring you up to about 3.5grand, so you can get 420fps on your 150 dollar 60hz 1080p display.

[SparkNuts]

You definitely don't need $3k for a really good computer. You can build a really nice gaming desktop for around 1200-1500.

[Klingoncelt]

Don't run windows vista.

Wuss.

[Klingoncelt]

I wish I didn't have windows vista on my computer at home...

Your worries are nearly over. Windows will supposedly stop supporting Vista next year.

I'll be going with Windows 10 at that time.

[Klingoncelt]

Tomorrow my work is doing a smash and grab. Giving out the old computers for new ones.

Tomorrow is also my birthday :)

Happy Birthday!!

[deathworlds]

yay vista is going to be the next windows 98

[Admiral]

Shit tier
1TB of Hard Disk space + a at least a 128GB SSD for OS
8GB of DDR3 1600MHz RAM
GTX 760 or equivalent AMD card
Intel i5 series CPU or AMD FX 8000+ CPU

Actual tier
1-2TB of Hard Disk space + at least a 256GB SSD for OS
16GB of DDR3 1600MHz or better RAM
GTX 770+ or equivalent AMD card
Intel i5 high end or i7 series CPU

Future tier
2TB+ of Hard Disk Space + At least 512GB of SSD
16GB of DDR3 1600MHz or better RAM
970+ or equivalent AMD card
i7 series CPU


Fury and Fury X just launched. You can TRY to order one but I bet they are OOS everywhere.

[Brendan]

Shit tier
1TB of Hard Disk space + a at least a 128GB SSD for OS
8GB of DDR3 1600MHz RAM
GTX 760 or equivalent AMD card
Intel i5 series CPU or AMD FX 8000+ CPU

Actual tier
2TB+ of Hard Disk space + at least a 256GB SSD for OS
16GB of DDR3 1600MHz or better RAM
GTX 770+ or equivalent AMD card
Intel i5 high end or i7 series CPU

Future tier
2TB+ of Hard Disk Space + At least 512GB of SSD
16GB of DDR3 1600MHz or better RAM
970+ or equivalent AMD card
i7 series CPU


Fury and Fury X just launched. You can TRY to order one but I bet they are OOS everywhere.

who the fuck uses 2TB tho

[Admiral]

who the fuck uses 2TB tho

I am currently using over 1TB (not including my OS drive) and still have a lot of stuff to reinstall. Storage is cheap.

[Admiral]

Also, everyone might not agree but I prefer to get a really nice motherboard when building a new computer from scratch. It will allow you to keep it for much longer and replace parts one at a time as you need them instead of having to do a complete rebuild when a new part isn't compatible with the older/cheaper motherboard.

A super nice mobo isn't really important. What IS important is making sure you're not on a "dead end" socket, or are at least aware that you're on a dead end socket if you are about to buy one.

[Brendan]

I am currently using over 1TB (not including my OS drive) and still have a lot of stuff to reinstall. Storage is cheap.

for what?

[Admiral]

for what?

Games, videos, movies, etc. For $50-60 for 1TB of storage, there's no reason to NOT get 2TB. If you want like say WD Blacks (me) you're gonna shell out a bit more but WD Blue is just fine too and are under $50 per right now for OEM on Newegg.

Games are only getting bigger (file size). GTA 5 is ~60GB. Arma 3 with the mods I've got is running 46GB. Bioshock Infinite is ~17GB. It all adds up.

[DarknessB]

Two sides to this one, I think. Admiral is totally correct that it's insane not to get at least a 2TB HDD given how cheap they run these days.

That said, you really want the HDD for infrequently accessed files where performance isn't affected by speed. In other words, higher quality games will run significantly better off of an SSD in terms of load time and smoothness.

That's why it's best to get a decent SSD for the OS, programs, and higher-end games (512 GB at least) and then a decently sized HDD for documents, music, videos, and lower-end games.


Games, videos, movies, etc. For $50-60 for 1TB of storage, there's no reason to NOT get 2TB. If you want like say WD Blacks (me) you're gonna shell out a bit more but WD Blue is just fine too and are under $50 per right now for OEM on Newegg.

Games are only getting bigger (file size). GTA 5 is ~60GB. Arma 3 with the mods I've got is running 46GB. Bioshock Infinite is ~17GB. It all adds up.

[SuperJack]

I dont even have enough crap to fill up 1TB, including games + OS atm.

[DarknessB]

The difference between 1TB and 2TB these days is something like $25-$30 at the most. The 2TB future-proofs you, especially as games keep increasing in size as Admiral points out.

If you're looking to save money, buy a 256GB SSD (pretty cheap these days) and the aforementioned 2TB HDD for bigger stuff. The performance gain on an SSD is insane -- HDDs are going to be a thing of the past once storage spaces on SSDs keep going up / prices keep going down.


I dont even have enough crap to fill up 1TB, including games + OS atm.

[Apocist]

Apo didn't think Vista was still acceptable anymore. Thought it was a legacy as 95 now-a-days

[SuperJack]

£178.98 Intel Core i5 4690K Processor (3.5 GHz, 6 MB Cache, LGA1150 Socket)
£113.73 Gigabyte GA-Z97X-GAMING-5 - GIGABYTE INTEL LGA1150 Z97 4*DDR3 6*USB3.0 8*USB2.0 HDMI DVI-I DSUB ATX MOTHERBOARD
£269.94 MSI NVIDIA GTX 970 Gaming Twin Frozr HDMI DVI-I DP Graphics Card (4GB, PCI Express, DDR5, 256 Bit)
£133.00 Samsung 2.5-Inch 500 GB 850 EVO Solid State Drive
£87.50 G.Skill Ripjaws-X Memory Memory 16GB (1600MHz, 240-pin, 2x 8GB, CL10) DIMM DDR3 Memory Kit
£38.80 Seagate ST1000DM003 Barracuda 1TB 3.5 inch Hard Drive
£57.98 Corsair Builder Series CXM 600W Modular 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX/EPS PSU
£24.99 Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO (120mm)
£49.99 Corsair Carbide Series 200R Compact ATX Computer Case - Black

Subtotal (9 items): £954.91 (Aprox)

Would it be cheaper to buy and ship from America?

[mikeu1]

£38.80 Seagate ST1000DM003 Barracuda 1TB 3.5 inch Hard Drive

^
avoid getting a Seagate barracuda, they are known to fail within 3-5 years.
I just got done building a computer myself, what website helped me was (https://pcpartpicker.com)
This is my build (http://pcpartpicker.com/user/rrob5412/saved/ZwJZxr)
I spent around 1.8k, added a Fan controller module on the front of the case.
It's a great setup, and you might be saying well no SSD?
I have a previous 1TB HD and a new 2TB HD.
It's smooth and fast already, in the rear future I might get me a SSD but right now. It's no need, you can barely notice anything.

[DarknessB]

Agreed -- in my view, Seagates are notoriously unreliable on the whole, especially compared to Western Digital. I would go with a WD for the non-SSD hard drive.


£38.80 Seagate ST1000DM003 Barracuda 1TB 3.5 inch Hard Drive

^
avoid getting a Seagate barracuda, they are known to fail within 3-5 years.
I just got done building a computer myself, what website helped me was (https://pcpartpicker.com)
This is my build (http://pcpartpicker.com/user/rrob5412/saved/ZwJZxr)
I spent around 1.8k, added a Fan controller module on the front of the case.
It's a great setup, and you might be saying well no SSD?
I have a previous 1TB HD and a new 2TB HD.
It's smooth and fast already, in the rear future I might get me a SSD but right now. It's no need, you can barely notice anything.

[SparkNuts]

I've been using a Seagate Barracuda since 2007 and it still works fine.

[DarknessB]

I'll rephrase -- in my experience, Seagates have been less reliable than Western Digital hard drives. I don't recall ever having a WD fail, whereas I have had a number of Seagates fail over the years. Studies have suggested the same, for example: http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/175089-who-makes-the-most-reliable-hard-drives


I've been using a Seagate Barracuda since 2007 and it still works fine.

[SuperJack]

Might be put on hold with vet fees.

[yzb25]

Are there any key times in the year to buy a new computer where prices are low? Like January? Or are prices consistent?

[Cryptonic]

Are there any key times in the year to buy a new computer where prices are low? Like January? Or are prices consistent?

They can change weekly, because people put on random sales, or offer rebates, free shipping events, ect
I used this site, it gives the best prices for a part and tells compatibility between parts chosen:
www.pcpartpicker.com

[DarknessB]

Are there any key times in the year to buy a new computer where prices are low? Like January? Or are prices consistent?

You typically want to buy just as new technologies are being released -- that makes prices go down all existing products which are now a generation behind. In several different places, I've heard Quarter 3 is a good time for computers generally just based on when Intel releases new processors / chipsets. That said, you can get good deals at most times during the year -- it's just looking for sales / promotions vs. paying sticker price.

[DarknessB]

They can change weekly, because people put on random sales, or offer rebates, free shipping events, ect
I used this site, it gives the best prices for a part and tells compatibility between parts chosen:
www.pcpartpicker.com (http://www.pcpartpicker.com)

Agreed on this, especially if you're building a machine of your own. If you're looking to buy a prebuilt, then it's more a question of whatever promotions the manufacturer / store happens to have at any given time.

[SuperJack]

Guys I'm building a new of this year.

[secondpassing]

Guys I'm building a new of this year.Nice. Haven't gotten to upgrade mine for five years now.

[SuperJack]

Nice. Haven't gotten to upgrade mine for five years now.

Gotta wait for that 4000 amd and that 3000 Nvidia

[Marshmallow Marshall]

Nice ^^

Is it actually possible to get a computer these days? Are new computers seen as essential?

[SuperJack]

Nice ^^

Is it actually possible to get a computer these days? Are new computers seen as essential?

I can order the parts off the internet and they turn up.

Computers are extremely essential. I mean, everything uses then.

[Marshmallow Marshall]

I can order the parts off the internet and they turn up.

Computers are extremely essential. I mean, everything uses then.

Fair, but I was wondering about new computers. I guess nobody will cry if that's allowed though lol.

[Ganelon]

Nice. Haven't gotten to upgrade mine for five years now.
I’m still using my 2017 Mac.
It works for gaming as long as you play strategy games.

[oops_ur_dead]

nice

[SuperJack]

nice

what do you run?

[Apocist]

Nice ^^

Is it actually possible to get a computer these days? Are new computers seen as essential?

Decent computers are like a requirement to work in this quarantine now.

[oops_ur_dead]

£178.98 Intel Core i5 4690K Processor (3.5 GHz, 6 MB Cache, LGA1150 Socket)
£113.73 Gigabyte GA-Z97X-GAMING-5 - GIGABYTE INTEL LGA1150 Z97 4*DDR3 6*USB3.0 8*USB2.0 HDMI DVI-I DSUB ATX MOTHERBOARD
£269.94 MSI NVIDIA GTX 970 Gaming Twin Frozr HDMI DVI-I DP Graphics Card (4GB, PCI Express, DDR5, 256 Bit)
£133.00 Samsung 2.5-Inch 500 GB 850 EVO Solid State Drive
£87.50 G.Skill Ripjaws-X Memory Memory 16GB (1600MHz, 240-pin, 2x 8GB, CL10) DIMM DDR3 Memory Kit
£38.80 Seagate ST1000DM003 Barracuda 1TB 3.5 inch Hard Drive
£57.98 Corsair Builder Series CXM 600W Modular 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX/EPS PSU
£24.99 Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO (120mm)
£49.99 Corsair Carbide Series 200R Compact ATX Computer Case - Black

Subtotal (9 items): £954.91 (Aprox)

Would it be cheaper to buy and ship from America?

Don't get an Intel lmao, Intel is objectively awful. Buy whatever 3rd gen AMD Ryzen you can afford.

[DJarJar]

Don't get an Intel lmao, Intel is objectively awful. Buy whatever 3rd gen AMD Ryzen you can afford.

Well, at the time of the post you are quoting, everybody would have said AMD is objectively awful and you should only get an intel

[oops_ur_dead]

Well, at the time of the post you are quoting, everybody would have said AMD is objectively awful and you should only get an intel

Oh dear.