Buying new computer

[minime]

I'm thinking of buying a gaming PC, can anyone suggest a good one please.

[Kit.]

Not that I could get good advice on buying pre-built computers in England (unless I invest a couple of hours in research), but you should have probably mentioned the games you played, the amount of money you were going to spend and the noise levels you were willing to bear.

[minime]

I was planing on playing games like minecraft, W.o.T, Planet side 2 and starcraft 2. Price I will spend a max of around £500 more if I have to, sound i'm not to fust about.

[Gekkey Matthews]

Prebuilt PC
What is it?
A prebuilt is a PC that comes complete and ready to use out of the box.
Sounds good!
It sounds so, yes. Prebuilts proudly show their CPUs, RAM and HDD. Sometimes, prebuilts may mention the VRAM, but rarely mention the actual card.
What is the catch?
Prebuilts usually come with horrible and explosive PSUs, low-quality mobos, low-tier GPUs, and a low-airflow case. The RAM is typically too much, and the CPU is immensely more powerful than the GPU, making it a very unbalanced PC. Prebuilts are always overpriced when compared to PCs that you buy and assemble yourself.
Verdict:
Never buy a prebuilt. If the PSU and mobo do not fry themselves, then you will have an unbalanced PC than can barely play games, and you will have paid way too much for it.

Just build one. If you can match shapes and work a screwdriver, you can build a computer

Use http://www.logicalincrements.com/ as a guide for picking parts. You'll learn a lot this way. Use amazon or newegg for ordering them, and you could probably find a whole bunch of tutorials on youtube if you want. I like Rose's: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69WFt6_dF8g. Tek Syndicate is also great: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4Js2A1qdB8

[SirSlaughter]

DO NOT BUY PRE-BUILT. They alwasy stick you with a standard rated PSU, a sub-par GT series or maybe even 4000 series GPU meaning you have no graphical power AT ALL. Then you have to deal with terrible cooling due to not having powerful enough fans or some such thing.

Build your own. You can build one really cheap.

Look at an i3 2120, maybe an Nvidia GTX 650 or 650ti (I say 650 due to it being very nicely priced and being a current Gen card). Look at a cheap 400Watt PSU that is AT LEAST Rated at 80+ Gold. Get a smaller Z77 mootherboard from either Asus or EVGA. Hell Even ASrock is a decent choice this Generation.

As for your HDD, nothing is gonna break your band. A 1TB drive is perfect if you get a Caviar black, just be ready to hear a loud HDD. (7200RPMs gets loud). Be sure your case is at least a Mid Tower so you can get plenty of room for your parts and airflow. I would suggest a Phantom Mid tower. It has everything you need and it looks cool to boot.

RAM: go with either some RipJaws or Corsair Vengeance. Good price and won't die.

CPU cooler: Coolermaster always works well if you're on a budget and needs something proper.

make sure you never forget your OS. Don't do the 8. Find win7.

Never forget your CD/DVD drive. You kinda need that to Boot up your OS disk.

Internal Multicard reader if you want utility (I actually have a computer Drawer that I keep my SD cards inside)

your monitor

Keyboard/mouse

Now if you need extreme budgeting: AMD/ATI build. Dirt cheap but no where near as good performance unless you get a specific processor and overclock it. (from what I have seen/gathered/experienced)

I mean it should be around that price. All you need to do is know where to put everything. Then to run the disk.


I built mine myself and I embellished and got expensive shiny parts so it was a bit of money, but it is a beast: http://xsirslaughterx.deviantart.com/gallery/36746523

[Kit.]

Price I will spend a max of around £500 more if I have to

That's a very tight budget if you need to buy a monitor as well. If you already have one to use with your new computer and you are not afraid of Windows 8, I can suggest Dell XPS 8500.

Building your own computer is fun, and I always do it by myself if I have time, but you need to know a lot about what you are doing if you want your computer to be both stable enough and cheaper than a prebuilt one. And of course you cannot build your own laptops and all-in-ones.

[minime]

Thanks for the tips everyone.

[graufuchs]

I don't recommend building a PC if you don't already have experience with computer parts, basic repairs, and upgrades.

Building a PC is easy...if you know how. You need to know about all the sockets, chipsets, and memory types, which CPU's work with each one, which brands are best for all the different parts, etc. You also need to be able to install RAM, the CPU, and heatsink. If you damage the socket or bend a pin, you can ruin your motherboard or CPU.

I think the builders here have likely built so many PC's that they take these basic skills for granted. I know I would not count on anyone in my family to put a CPU in a socket without breaking it unless I showed them step by step. I recommend finding someone who builds PC's to watch and talk to about your plans.

If you wind up buying the wrong parts or get a crummy brand you can wind up paying much more than you would for a pre-built PC. Building a PC is a great way to get a really good PC, but I don't think it's a good way to get an *inexpensive* PC. Dell is probably better for that.

[EvilNinjadude]

I learned to assemble a PC some years ago, when I was 12. Basically you need to make sure you have a list of things to check off, put everything in the right way round by checking both the socket AND the plug (this applies from power cords to CPUs), and read a quick guide as to what order to put everything in.

Make sure to have enough screws (10max), enough fans (4 is more than enough most of the time) and that all your hardware fits together BEFORE you buy it. That's all from me, have a nice day!

[SirSlaughter]

I learned to assemble a PC some years ago, when I was 12. Basically you need to make sure you have a list of things to check off, put everything in the right way round by checking both the socket AND the plug (this applies from power cords to CPUs), and read a quick guide as to what order to put everything in.

Make sure to have enough screws (10max), enough fans (4 is more than enough most of the time) and that all your hardware fits together BEFORE you buy it. That's all from me, have a nice day!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPIXAtNGGCw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_56kyib-Ls

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxaVBsXEiok

There you go. I watched these a few times. And even a new person can build a PC. So you have nothing to worry about. Just be sure to foloow these steps:

Make sure it all fits
Be sure the socket types match

ALWAYS STAY GROUNDED! Meaning either touch your PSU before yo touch anything else, or wear an anti static wrist band if you are in a dry climate or are prone to a lot of static or near a rug.

[Kit.]

enough fans (4 is more than enough most of the time)

Real Men don't count fans. They buy the whole rig from Dell or HP.

Real Roleplayers use one or two (redundant) fans. The rest is either ducts (for smaller systems) or watercooling.

Loonies don't use fans. They think they are cool enough by themselves.

Munchkins use 8 fans: one per each PSU (2 total), one per each CPU (2 total), one per each video card (2 total), and one per each 4 of their HDDs (they have 8 HDDs in RAID10 configuration, but it's for their collection of porn; they use SSDs as their main drives). Air conditioning is extra.

[EvilNinjadude]

enough fans (4 is more than enough most of the time)

Real Men don't count fans. They buy the whole rig from Dell or HP.

Real Roleplayers use one or two (redundant) fans. The rest is either ducts (for smaller systems) or watercooling.

Loonies don't use fans. They think they are cool enough by themselves.

Munchkins use 8 fans: one per each PSU (2 total), one per each CPU (2 total), one per each video card (2 total), and one per each 4 of their HDDs (they have 8 HDDs in RAID10 configuration, but it's for their collection of porn; they use SSDs as their main drives). Air conditioning is extra.

Thanks for the summary!

Also, famous people don't need to buy fans either, all they need to do is leave the front door open.

[Ryusen]

I don't recommend building a PC if you don't already have experience with computer parts, basic repairs, and upgrades.

Building a PC is easy...if you know how. You need to know about all the sockets, chipsets, and memory types, which CPU's work with each one, which brands are best for all the different parts, etc. You also need to be able to install RAM, the CPU, and heatsink. If you damage the socket or bend a pin, you can ruin your motherboard or CPU.

No. No no no. Building a PC is not difficult. Countless people do this every year, and it only gets easier with the plethora of information, guides, and walkthroughs out there. If someone tries telling you that doing this yourself is too hard, they have been lied to. As long as you can dedicate some time to watching youtube videos and work slowly, there is no reason at all you shouldn't build it yourself.

I think the builders here have likely built so many PC's that they take these basic skills for granted. I know I would not count on anyone in my family to put a CPU in a socket without breaking it unless I showed them step by step.

Either you were raised by rhesus monkeys or you're exaggerating. Plenty of middle and high-school age kids are more than able to build a computer. You don't trust your family? Fine. But anyone who has even an ounce of desire and a little patients will find it well rewarded when doing this.

If you wind up buying the wrong parts or get a crummy brand you can wind up paying much more than you would for a pre-built PC. Building a PC is a great way to get a really good PC, but I don't think it's a good way to get an *inexpensive* PC. Dell is probably better for that.

This is only true if you want to get a laptop under about $250. At those price points, there really aren't any good components to pick from, so you aren't going to save much money anyway. But if you plan to spend anything above $350, you can most definitely make your money go further with a custom build. And anything above $600 will blow the pre-built machines out of the water.

If you are looking into a custom build, then you should really spend some time lurking around /r/buildapc. If it's possible to do with a PC, someone on there has done it (and posted a guide on it to boot). There are guides for everything from "What is a keyboard?" to the viscosity of water-cooling additives and everything in-between. The guides on the sidebar are a fantastic place to start, and the people will help you pick a build that matches your price point. This will get you the parts you need, and those Newegg guides have everything you need to know for the actual assembly. Building your own PC means you take time picking out your parts, making sure they match one-another, and shows you the not-so-difficult world of computer hardware.

Real Roleplayers use one or two (redundant) fans. The rest is either ducts (for smaller systems) or watercooling

I've been really tempted to watercool my rig, but the cost of a custom loop is staggering. To build a quality custom loop for a CPU and 2GPUs would run well over $500! The aesthetics would be amazing, the heat would be negligible, and the e-peen enormous, but darn it if I don't have bills to pay.

EDIT: Made words more gooder.

[TheDragonfiend]

I learned to assemble a PC some years ago, when I was 12. Basically you need to make sure you have a list of things to check off, put everything in the right way round by checking both the socket AND the plug (this applies from power cords to CPUs), and read a quick guide as to what order to put everything in.

Make sure to have enough screws (10max), enough fans (4 is more than enough most of the time) and that all your hardware fits together BEFORE you buy it. That's all from me, have a nice day!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPIXAtNGGCw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_56kyib-Ls

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxaVBsXEiok

There you go. I watched these a few times. And even a new person can build a PC. So you have nothing to worry about. Just be sure to foloow these steps:

Make sure it all fits
Be sure the socket types match

ALWAYS STAY GROUNDED! Meaning either touch your PSU before yo touch anything else, or wear an anti static wrist band if you are in a dry climate or are prone to a lot of static or near a rug.

Lol i dont even bother to ground... like at all (wears woolen socks on a rug while handling gear without protection) ive never broken anything ever... and ive handle 20 year old cpus that way.

[SirSlaughter]

I learned to assemble a PC some years ago, when I was 12. Basically you need to make sure you have a list of things to check off, put everything in the right way round by checking both the socket AND the plug (this applies from power cords to CPUs), and read a quick guide as to what order to put everything in.

Make sure to have enough screws (10max), enough fans (4 is more than enough most of the time) and that all your hardware fits together BEFORE you buy it. That's all from me, have a nice day!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPIXAtNGGCw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_56kyib-Ls

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxaVBsXEiok

There you go. I watched these a few times. And even a new person can build a PC. So you have nothing to worry about. Just be sure to foloow these steps:

Make sure it all fits
Be sure the socket types match

ALWAYS STAY GROUNDED! Meaning either touch your PSU before yo touch anything else, or wear an anti static wrist band if you are in a dry climate or are prone to a lot of static or near a rug.

Lol i dont even bother to ground... like at all (wears woolen socks on a rug while handling gear without protection) ive never broken anything ever... and ive handle 20 year old cpus that way.

Then you got lucky. In my house there is a static issue upstairs so I have to wear it and ground. I have zapped laptops and caused them to restart because of that. SO You can take your chances all you want, but I'll be safe with my $1500+ build.