Help with Building a PC!

OmniSylar

So I'm new to these forums - hi, by the way I joined because a buddy recommended I do so because he says you guys are pretty helpful when it comes to PC advice. I'm going to be building a PC come tax return, and I have a budget of about $1,000. SO.

A) should I set more aside or will that be fine for a decently powerful rig? I'm mostly looking to play games like Black Desert Online, Overwatch, ect.

B) what parts am I going to need and is there a helpful site you guys know of that would help me get this done quickly? Looking to order the parts soon. I know specs and tech but I know nothing about cooling systems, software and compatibility, etc. Spent most of my life as a console player.

Thanks in advance, and thanks for the membership

Cliff_Forster

If you can wait just a little while longer, rumor is March should see the release of AMD's new platform called Ryzen, which we all hope will be very competitive and give you another option to consider. If I were building today on $1000 budget for gaming.

I'm going to assume you need a decent mouse, keyboard and monitor in as part of your budget.

What I'm listing puts you in the wheelhouse of a decent gaming PC. That said, the AMD platform in this build is a little older and there may be some better opportunity in a couple months to get on a more modern platform with more opportunity to grow. With your budget, assuming the mouse, keys and monitor and operating system are all necessary first time buys I'm not sure we could fit in a more expensive Intel CPU without sacrificing in other places I would not be willing to. This build keeps you right on budget and gets you everything you need though.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/mLKjbj

primesuspect

Welcome to Icrontic

Cliff is right: This is a weird time to build a PC because Ryzen will be here in March sometime and, well, it's probably going to be a game-changer. Competition in the market has been stagnant for a couple of years but Ryzen looks like it will shake things up.

Personally, I'd wait until Ryzen is out and THEN build. You are coming in at the VERY end of the last-gen cycle, as it were. It would be like buying a PlayStation 3 a month before PlayStation 4 comes out.

aspieRommel

@primesuspect said:
It would be like buying a PlayStation 3 a month before PlayStation 4 comes out.

Or an Xbox One S a month before Project Scorpio releases....

drasnor

The new Intel stuff (Kaby Lake, Optane) is coming at about the same time as Ryzen so we'll have brand new stuff from both sides. It's an exciting time to be in the market!

drasnor

On a more general note, when you're building a computer you'll want to budget for:

• The Key Three: Motherboard, Processor (CPU), Memory (RAM). Most people buy these all at the same time for compatibility reasons. Most people have strong opinions about their motherboard and processor manufacturers; I usually buy MSI motherboards. Motherboard selection is all about features you want your computer to have (how many USB ports, what kind, how much RAM, which processor, how many and what kind of expansion cards, how many and what kind of hard drives). For memory, I usually go with Crucial, Mushkin, or G.Skill.
• Video card: Asking AMD or nvidia is a good way to start a fight. Check benchmarks before buying; $200 is appropriate for entry-level and $300 is the most you should contemplate spending as the price/benefit curve goes asymptotic after that (infinite price increase for marginal performance increase).
• Case: Holds all your stuff; check sizes and capacity for compatibility with your key three. More expensive usually means higher build quality (less likely to cut you, break things, or fall apart). I'm a Lian Li man but there are lots of lower-cost alternatives that are still perfectly serviceable such as Antec and CoolerMaster. Key thing to check is whether or not the case comes with a power supply and/or fans so you know if you need to buy those separately. If it comes with these check if they're any good on their own before buying the combo.
• Power Supply: Powers your stuff. Most computer parts sites provide a calculator for sizing them but you will want to get a high-efficiency supply with at least 20% more capacity than what you expect your computer to need. I use SeaSonic but Antec and PC P&C are also good.
• Hard Drive: Get a 512GB or higher SSD and if that's not enough space for your downloaded music/movies get a 1 TB spinning hard drive to go with it. Install your OS and all your software on the SSD. Can't beat Toshiba SSDs for customer service. Hybrid SSDs are an OK compromise if you need cheap, fast, spacious but have all the drawbacks of both solid-state and spinning hard drives.
• OS: Windows 10 Home costs a nice chunk of change.
• Keyboard, Video, Mouse: These are the parts of your computer you interact with the most; don't cheap out and definitely try before you buy if you get a chance. Go to a big box store and scope things out. Don't forget that OEMs (HP, Dell, etc) make very competitive, affordable monitors. Most people who use mechanical keyboards never go back.

You can usually get the same motherboard (manufacturer, features) in both the larger ATX and smaller micro-ATX form factors; an ATX case will hold either motherboard but a micro-ATX case will only hold the smaller micro-ATX boards. You should check if going smaller makes things cheaper.

My PC Part Picker pick: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/QrFRCy

OmniSylar

Oh okay, like I said I'm brand new, had no idea about Ryzen. I'll wait a bit. I already have a mouse, keyboard, but would need a nice monitor.

Thanks for the help!

aspieRommel

@OmniSylar said:
Oh okay, like I said I'm brand new, had no idea about Ryzen. I'll wait a bit. I already have a mouse, keyboard, but would need a nice monitor.

Thanks for the help!

Do you have a television with an HDMI outlet?

Sonorous

A quality power supply is the most important part of a new computer. Don't skimp in that area. The brands @drasnor recommended are solid choices.

CrazyJoe

@Sonorous said:
A quality power supply is the most important part of a new computer. Don't skimp in that area. The brands @drasnor recommended are solid choices.

I concur with this statement. Alot of people use whatever leftover budget they have to get a power supply, but getting a good quality, efficient power supply is very important.

drasnor

@OmniSylar said:
Oh okay, like I said I'm brand new, had no idea about Ryzen. I'll wait a bit. I already have a mouse, keyboard, but would need a nice monitor.

Thanks for the help!

Let us know if you have any questions about what you need to have or advice on actually assembling it. Biggest piece of advice I have is don't over-torque your fasteners: apply firm pressure with an ordinary screwdriver but don't crank it with all your might. You're shooting for around 4 in-lb.

OmniSylar

@aspieRommel said:

@OmniSylar said:
Oh okay, like I said I'm brand new, had no idea about Ryzen. I'll wait a bit. I already have a mouse, keyboard, but would need a nice monitor.

Thanks for the help!

Do you have a television with an HDMI outlet?

Yeah I do, for my PS4. 1080p. So I guess that could work perfectly fine, and it's a small TV because I use it almost like a PC setup on a desk, 24 inch. Should I just stick with that?

pigflipper

@OmniSylar said:

@aspieRommel said:

@OmniSylar said:
Oh okay, like I said I'm brand new, had no idea about Ryzen. I'll wait a bit. I already have a mouse, keyboard, but would need a nice monitor.

Thanks for the help!

Do you have a television with an HDMI outlet?

Yeah I do, for my PS4. 1080p. So I guess that could work perfectly fine, and it's a small TV because I use it almost like a PC setup on a desk, 24 inch. Should I just stick with that?

That will probably get you by if a new monitor is not a pressing concern.