Building my first comp. - have a few questions

[KilyenaMage]

There's a great sense of pride you get every time you sit down and turn on a computer that you built yourself.

I suggest getting a large FULL TOWER. These are very rare to find in pre-built machines, and will allow you to upgrade your machine indefinitely. They also obviously allow for much better air flow (and thusly cooling).

You also get the satisfaction of hand-selecting each component. Sure it may only be a savings of $1-200, BUT you'll likely be getting higher-quality components also.

For example you'll be able to get some nice Corsair gaming RAM for essentially the same price you'd pay for some no-name generic RAM cards otherwise.

I **VERY** strongly suggest going with NVidia for graphics right now -- and eventually getting a 3D Vision Kit and a 120hz monitor. NVidia's 3D Vision is simply amazing, especially with certain games, and you will not be disappointed.

[toddfx]

I stumbled upon this article today and thought of this thread:

http://lifehacker.com/#!5151369/the-...r-from-scratch

Should be helpful

[moklianne]

Originally Posted by KilyenaMage [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

I **VERY** strongly suggest going with NVidia for graphics right now -- and eventually getting a 3D Vision Kit and a 120hz monitor. NVidia's 3D Vision is simply amazing, especially with certain games, and you will not be disappointed.

Do you run p1999 in 3D? I've been wondering how well it looks/works. Years ago when their 3D was still new, I think there was an issue reading text on the screen.

[Japan]

Terrible advice in this thread. "AMDs run hot"? step your game up

[quido]

Building a computer is easy if you have a 2+ digit IQ. If your components aren't defective and you can follow some relatively simple instructions, it's pretty straightforward. I built my first computer when I was a wee lad just by sticking shit where it fits and having a bootable Windows 98 CD.

Troubleshooting a build that runs into problems is where things can get difficult. If things don't go as planned don't try to get tricky or creative. Get a knowledgeable friend or an expert to assist you.

[Obama]

Here is what I would suggest: you need to think of the right things to search for. Google "cpu benchmark comparisons" for example, and you will find which processor is the most bang for your buck (and then read reviews on them to see if they are reliable). If you don't want to spend too much time then browsing newegg will give you an idea of what to get.

Just be confident in your abilities, take your time, do your research, and you may enjoy your blazing fast computer even more.

[SwordNboard]

Don't get too sucked up in one processor having 512MB more cache than another. Instead look for hardware that is maybe 1 step behind (not the "cutting edge state of the art" new release). Buy OEM harware, it's cheaper. Why? Because it doesn't come with 20 "free" games and manuals and 7 different connectors. Don't buy Intel, they're greedy with pricing. Otherwise, just make sure all the DIMM slots and processor pin counts on your hardware and motherboard match up. ATI? Nvidia? Hmmmm, Ford or Chevy? Doesn't matter. I've always built my own PCs with this 1 step behind theory and have made awesome rigs for under $1,000. Way under.

Feel free to PM me with some questions.

[Galv]

Thanks for all the info. I have been on that Toms Hardware site every day reading as much as I can about all the hardware. I've put together several rigs on newegg and was surprised at the machine I could build for ~$850-$900. That's complete with OS, monitor, everything.

It's sad to know just how far behind the curve I am on computers. To give you an idea my last comp. was a Dell 4700 series, my current one is an AMD 2850e from walmart. I am use to playing games on very low settings with frame rates of 10 to 20. So being able to play a game on max settings and get 50 to 60 FPS will be unreal.

I currently play on P99 and I cant even turn the settings up past low on my wiz without it bogging down when I cast an AE. Most of the time i just play with them off.

[Extunarian]

Good advice here and I'd also recommend building it yourself. I like Newegg for hardware purchases or my local Microcenter.

Most importantly, as someone stated above, if/when something goes wrong it is best to get help and don't try to jury rig anything. The time you might save is not worth the time lost in RMAing all the crap you fried.

[odizzido]

toms hardware has some testing problems and a general lack of knowledge.

I would suggest www.techreport.com