Hi All,
I've been toying with the idea of building a PC from scratch and was basically wondering if it's worth my time and effort, given the amount I'm looking to spend.
I tried to do some research into parts but I'm pretty much a tech noob, so I struggled to get an idea of whether I'm asking too much of my modest budget, hence why I'm here
I suppose what I'm really curious about is what I'd be able to get for my money, in terms of what I'd be able to do and how well...
The things I would like to achieve:-
streaming HD videos flawlessly, recording from external & internal HD sources, rendering & editing said material and last but not least, gaming.
Additional notes:
- The budget is only for the PC (case and parts), I already have the other peripherals
- I own a 24" Full HD monitor, which I'd like the PC to work with
- I sort of require lots of media ports but this is negotiable (in/out & rear/front if possible)
- I'd like the option to be able to upgrade/expand as the years go by i.e. extra HDDs and RAM
- I don't mind having to add minor things here and there, as future pay checks come in ^^^
- I don't want to choose between paying for electricity and having food in my tummy
- My sister has a spare key for Windows, so I'm covered operating system wise
- I'm prepared to wait for sales/discounts, I fully expect this project to last me a good few months anyway
The ~£400 budget isn't really a spend target, more of a rough limit, I mean if I can achieve the same with less then that would be great! However, if spending say an extra ~5%, will get me something vastly better, then obviously I would give it some thought.
From what I can ascertain, gaming is the biggest hurdle for low budget PCs, so if I'd only get about a years worth of decent gaming before my tech becomes obsolete, I might be inclined to remove that from my check list for the time being (I'm currently a console gamer anyway) but having the option to upgrade in the future [strike]should I win the lottery[/strike] [wait, no, I'd just order a PC then ^_^]
I'm not fussed about having the fastest PC just a good hard working and reliable machine, though obviously not having to wait a day for rendering to finish would be preferred lol
While I'm here, I probably should add that I have zero PC building experience, well, I once swapped out some RAM on my laptop but that's it, so warn me if I should just quit now
I don't know if it's remotely similar but a few years back I took apart my PS3 then put in back together again, so I think I'm up to the challenge but like I said, tech noob *points to self * XD
Hmm, quite lengthy for a first post, I do apologies but I figure more detail is better than less right?
Anyway, I realise you guys [and gals] probably see dozens of these posts every day but thanks in advance for reading and any responses
TL;DR - I would like thoughts on what I could realistically achieve with my budget. I'd like to be able to do some gaming but it isn't essential IF I stand to save a ton and still have great performance for my other tasks like capturing/rendering/editing HD video. Ability to upgrade in future is a must.
I've been toying with the idea of building a PC from scratch and was basically wondering if it's worth my time and effort, given the amount I'm looking to spend.
I tried to do some research into parts but I'm pretty much a tech noob, so I struggled to get an idea of whether I'm asking too much of my modest budget, hence why I'm here
I suppose what I'm really curious about is what I'd be able to get for my money, in terms of what I'd be able to do and how well...
The things I would like to achieve:-
streaming HD videos flawlessly, recording from external & internal HD sources, rendering & editing said material and last but not least, gaming.
Additional notes:
- The budget is only for the PC (case and parts), I already have the other peripherals
- I own a 24" Full HD monitor, which I'd like the PC to work with
- I sort of require lots of media ports but this is negotiable (in/out & rear/front if possible)
- I'd like the option to be able to upgrade/expand as the years go by i.e. extra HDDs and RAM
- I don't mind having to add minor things here and there, as future pay checks come in ^^^
- I don't want to choose between paying for electricity and having food in my tummy
- My sister has a spare key for Windows, so I'm covered operating system wise
- I'm prepared to wait for sales/discounts, I fully expect this project to last me a good few months anyway
The ~£400 budget isn't really a spend target, more of a rough limit, I mean if I can achieve the same with less then that would be great! However, if spending say an extra ~5%, will get me something vastly better, then obviously I would give it some thought.
From what I can ascertain, gaming is the biggest hurdle for low budget PCs, so if I'd only get about a years worth of decent gaming before my tech becomes obsolete, I might be inclined to remove that from my check list for the time being (I'm currently a console gamer anyway) but having the option to upgrade in the future [strike]should I win the lottery[/strike] [wait, no, I'd just order a PC then ^_^]
I'm not fussed about having the fastest PC just a good hard working and reliable machine, though obviously not having to wait a day for rendering to finish would be preferred lol
While I'm here, I probably should add that I have zero PC building experience, well, I once swapped out some RAM on my laptop but that's it, so warn me if I should just quit now
I don't know if it's remotely similar but a few years back I took apart my PS3 then put in back together again, so I think I'm up to the challenge but like I said, tech noob *points to self * XD
Hmm, quite lengthy for a first post, I do apologies but I figure more detail is better than less right?
Anyway, I realise you guys [and gals] probably see dozens of these posts every day but thanks in advance for reading and any responses
TL;DR - I would like thoughts on what I could realistically achieve with my budget. I'd like to be able to do some gaming but it isn't essential IF I stand to save a ton and still have great performance for my other tasks like capturing/rendering/editing HD video. Ability to upgrade in future is a must.
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