So, I have built up a nice chunk of change and wanna reward myself and I think it's time I finally take peoples advice and get into PC gaming. Now I will have around $1100 or so to spend on Monday. Should I build a pc or save up some more? Also, if I didn't wanna spend all 1100 how much could I make a nice pc for? Around how long does it take a noob to build a computer? (after I already have all the parts) Is it difficult? From sources online it doesn't look to hard. Thanks!
I don't play on pc so i can't give much advice. However if i was you i'd use the money to join xbox live. The main thing stopping me is the money issue and the stress. I'm not very smart with technology so pretty much everything is a struggle for me However if i had $1100 it wouldn't be an issue i'd just buy a laptop and do it that way. that's what i'd do, but i'm not you..........obviously
I think $1100 will be more than enough to get you a solid set up capable of offering a solid gaming experience. It wont be top of the line shit but you know... Honestly I don't think I'd spend the full $1100 if I were you.. because you could spend less and still have a very capable machine. I'm not 100% sure on that, but it might be worth it to research that idea haha. With how fast technology progresses it seems like it's always good to have some extra money set aside for upgrades when nicer parts drop in price. It might be worth it to save some of that money for upgrades then?
I agree with Mogwai that your budget seems like enough to get you a good machine. Buying your parts is the best option and sites like Mwave.com, newegg.com, and buy.com can get you fantastic deals. Pro tip - try to get a graphics card with whats called a "double warranty" that way when you decide to upgrade who you sell it to can also get a warranty from the manufacturer effectively enabling you to sell it for closer to what you paid for which makes upgrading that much easier :] good luck!
Oh man, with 1100 you buy you're own parts and you could have a pretty nice high end comp right there buddy. But I mean, if you're not willing to spend the whole cash on a pc, 800 should also suffice. It'll be good enough to play the higher demanding games with little to no effort. Just go to newegg to see what you want and to save money get them from craigslist, or just buy em off newegg.
Thanks for the help guys. And yeah that's why I was asking about how cheap I could make a decent machine Mogwai, I don't wanna blow my whole budget then in a month half of it is outdated. I would rather have something semi-nice now that will run most games well but still have money for when I need to upgrade, plus it would be cheaper then. Anyone have any part recommendations? Since I know very little about the brands and models and info would be appreciated
Ah shit, somehow I completely missed where you mentioned trying to not spend the whole $1100 >.>'.. I would guess the $700-800 range would do you well
Off the top of my head, I'd recommend: CPU - Core i5 2500k Sandy Bridge GPU - AMD Radeon 6870 RAM - 8GB G.SKILL Ripjaws X series (16GB is also an option because RAM is super cheap) PSU - 650W Antec (I have Antec Green earthwatts 650W and have no complaints so far) Mobo - This is a bit tougher. Some brands are liked, some aren't. Some offer more features than others. It's best just to browse around newegg and read the reviews for what is in your price range. HDD - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 7200rpm Case - whatever you want. Just make sure it will be big enough to accommodate your hardware (shouldn't have any issue with any mid-tower). Depending on case, the price comes out to roughly $850 You should take into account though that you'll still need Windows and a monitor. Assuming you have both of those or can secure both, you're good to go. If you want to spend more, you can always double on the ram, buy a solid state drive to simply run Windows and a few select programs, etc... Here's a screenshot of my cart on Newegg with all the above in it: Note, that this is just a place for you to start. You may want Nvidia graphics over AMD. Or you may want to spend less money and go AMD over Intel when it comes to processor and motherboard. There are a lot of options. EDIT: In response to your outdated remark, unless you're willing to drop thousands, everything is completely outdated. However, games are much further behind when it comes to technology that they can hardly utilize this "outdated" computer hardware. Quadcore processors and pretty standard now and most games still only utilize 2 cores. The machine I put together or one that you could put together on a similar budget will likely play all new games for the next two years. If by chance it doesn't, you're probably looking at a simple graphic card upgrade and perhaps some more RAM and you'll be good for another year or two.
^ thats a solid build right there, I would swap out the radeon 6870 for an nvidia gtx560ti, but then again thats my preference, and it would cost a tad bit more. I do suggest going for the i5 2500k over an AMD though, I upgraded from an AMD quad core and the difference is night and day in games
i have the 6870 and it runs fine, no need to go for the 560ti that requires more power and more money you basically put together the same exact rig as mine, if you're having problems looking for a motherboard I suggest mine.. love this mobo. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131806
Patience, young padawan. You have made a wise decision in investing in a gaming rig. But never build your rig in one go. Wait for deals. Buy your components piece by piece, its like your little project. What you could have built for 1100 now, if you wait for specials and buy your parts separately, you could easily have a machine worth 1500 in just a few months. For example I saw the GTX 570 go for sale for like 250 or 280 on Easter. That card blows both the 6870 and 560ti out of the water. The stuff you can consider buying now is the case, memory, and CPU. Prices for these are pretty stable.
I bought my tower for around 550 and got 4gig ddr3 ram Ati 5670 card 2.8ghz amd quad Normal hdd 500wt psu Came with some minor bloatware and windows 7 64bit. Combo'd it with a nice monitor and it has lasted me 2 years. Can run all current games on it fine.
I love the 2500k. I moved up to it from the original AMD Phenom X4. I believe it ran at 2.3ghz. The 2500k just ripped it apart. I went with the ASRock mobo that I suggested because I wasn't looking to spend more than $140 and it seemed to be the best rated in my budget. Love it though. Haven't had an issue with it yet. For a more expensive mobo, the one you listed looks great though.