Tech help general

[Zang]

anybody

why build one myself that MAY work when I can buy one that will run like a monster

[Stranaton]

That's just paying extra for something anybody could do himself or herself.

Depends. Some computers are cheaper as prebuilt. Just price out a pc on newegg first, then check similar prebuilt ones.

[Zorinth]

Paco, you may or may not realize this, but you are being a dick, so stop. You might be good with putting things together, but there are many people that aren't, they are just good at other things. What your doing is saying something like Why go to a restaurant for good food when you can cook it yourself for less, or call a plumber when you can fix it your self. Plus you can't forget that it takes time to make a computer, and some people don't want to spend the time or can't.

[Paco]

anybody

why build one myself that MAY work when I can buy one that will run like a monster

Because you're 16, unemployed and cheddar doesn't grow on trees.

That's just paying extra for something anybody could do himself or herself.

Depends. Some computers are cheaper as prebuilt. Just price out a pc on newegg first, then check similar prebuilt ones.

If you buy smart, it should be more balanced, adapted to your needs, and save you cheddar, unless you have to buy all your peripherals again.

[DarkSurfer]

From what I've heard, Alienware is overpriced.

[Paco]

Oh, definitely. They dress up their machines in fancy cases and go with the "gamer" label to make them look good.
A lot of computers also come with way too much RAM, or a processor that's much better than the graphics card, which is also a waste of cheddar. Some manufacturers might let you customize your PC but your choices are often very restricted and will cost you more than they would if you bought them OEM and put them together.

Building a PC is often compared to lego. It's not like you need to solder crap together, you just insert something into something else and if it doesn't fit, it won't get in.

[Zorinth]

From what I've heard, Alienware is overpriced.

So true, I was looking them up and I think the cheapest one I found was $1000, same price as my laptop, and had an i5 processor, 1g nvidia graphics card, 4g of ram, and could turbo at 3.3GHz if I remember correctly. My computer overall had equal or better specs, the one thin to note is that alienware are made for games, so get past the lowest priced computers and they will be the only computers you can find that are as good for gaming as they are.

[Stranaton]

From what I've heard, Alienware is overpriced.

NEEDS
MORE
LEDS

[YCobb]

Panties, to clarify, you don't need computers that fast. 16 gb RAM is overkill for anything you would want to run, i7 processors are fucking insane, etc.

what if we want to build a robot overlord? HMM? WHAT THEN?


but anyway I'm looking for a god computer. something that could run games like skyrim without flinching

(maybe even on high settings?)

I'm currently filling out a job application. considering I have no bills atm, I should be able to make it before Christmas. (I'm 16, no job experience. ololol)

Zang, I am telling you, the chance of this setup not handling Skyrim (and everything for a year or so afterwords) is practically zero:

>run skyrim smoothly

What you need to do my friend, is break into Nasa and steal their computers. Even with supplies, you'll definitely end up under 300$!

when i say smoothly I mean not fall under 20 fps. because that's bullshit. at least, maybe be able to livestream it too.

what do I need?

I'm expecting my computer to be able to handle Skyrim (although maybe not at maximum settings or anything like that), but to be safe, you should go a bit higher:
AMD Phenom II X4 940 (about %150 of my CPU's capability, for around $100)

General rule for DDR3 RAM seems to be $10 a gigabyte; you'll almost definitely never need more than 4 but 6 is nice too.

Doubtlessly, the weakest part of my system is my graphics card, and EN9500GT GeForce. I don't have any experience with ATI cards, so someone else has to chip in on that. The way GeForce cards are ranked, though, is by their hundreds-digit. EG an 8800 card beats a 9500 card. The thousands-digit is just the series, although you obviously don't want a 3900, because that would be so outdated it wouldn't even be funny. You probably want a 9800, which can be gotten for as low as $60

You'd obviously need a new motherboard to deal with these fancy components, which would run you at least $100, likely more. Be careful with this part, as some motherboards can be really picky about what RAM they'll accept. Also be sure to match the CPU slot, and ensure that it has at least on of the proper PCI slots for your graphics card (usually a PCIe x16).

The last component you'll really need is a power supply, which can be anywhere from $30 to more than $100 depending on your components. There's a very slight chance you can reuse the one from your current computer, but I wouldn't count on it if your current computer wasn't built for gaming back when it was made.


Finally, you should check which form factor your current box is, if it's an ATX you'd be hard pressed finding a motherboard that wouldn't fit in it.


Overall, it would cost about $350 (ideal) to $450 (if you're unlucky with power supplies and cases).


My computer is only 4 gigs of RAM and (as stated) only about 2/3s of the CPU I recommended, and I've yet to see anything but iTunes (shittiest program ever) freeze it up, even with almost ten programs running on Windows 7.
Speaking of Windows 7, you should look into it as well, it's a great OS. Unfortunately, it will run you another $100+.


Some final things to consider-my computer runs everything I've thrown at it fine on my smaller screen, but stutters a bit on my HDTV. I have no idea what the upper limits of the above setup are, but remember to try turning off anti aliasing if a game is running slowly. Even 2X AA is, by my understanding, effectively running the game at twice the normal resolution so that the game can merge two colors into one pixel to create a smoother effect. Playing at 8X, or even 16X, as I often do, is obviously a huge number of pixels rendered. You should consider the size of your screen, as size affects performance more and more dramatically the more you anti alias your games*.

Also never trust the "recommended settings" in games. Portal insists that I need everything set to medium, but runs fine, as I've stated, with everything cranked up to absolute maximum. Don't get discouraged if a game insists you need it to look like shit, it's lying.

* the actual workings of anti aliasing may be entirely different, this is just how I believe it is done.

[Paco]

Could probably save a bit more by going for an AMD video card too. The 4770, when I got it, was better and cheaper its main competitor at Nvidia (9800GT, I think). I haven't compared more recent cards though, but it's worth researching a little.
The numbering system of Radeon HD cards is pretty similar.

[Stranaton]

More important than the amount of RAM is the speed of it.

[Madican]

Do not get an Alienware. It's the same components put into standard Dell desktops dressed up in shiny lights and clear cases.

Bit of a shame really. I remember when Alienware was the pinnacle of PC gaming hardware.

[Paco]

More important than the amount of RAM is the speed of it.

I wouldn't say speed is more important, both need to be considered. I "only" have 800Mhz DDR2 RAM and I don't think it's holding back my system at all (latency is 5-5-5-15), in the Windows Experience Index it scores the highest.

[YCobb]

More important than the amount of RAM is the speed of it.

I wouldn't say speed is more important, both need to be considered. I "only" have 800Mhz DDR2 RAM and I don't think it's holding back my system at all (latency is 5-5-5-15), in the Windows Experience Index it scores the highest.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure system requirements are based on DDR2 ram anyway, so DDR3 is just icing on the cake.

[Zang]

yea i was kinda iffy about alienware too. they do seem to be kinda COLORED CASES LOL ITS ALIEN WARE GET IT

but yea, I'll check that out Ycobb. thanks =)

its kinda confusing me though. could you just give me some recommended stats? maybe even "an ideal" stat?

sorry guys I'm really new to all this gigabytes processor stuff