Hi all,
I’m a noob so please excuse me if I know so little and if I make any silly mistakes or ask stupid questions. Please feel free to give me as much detail as possible. This will be my first build and I’ll need everything.
I need a new PC as I’m moving from my very old Inspiron 9300 laptop and thought I’d have a go at this building a PC thing and I’d finally like to understand what goes on inside these ‘magic machines’.
I’ll still keep my laptop and hope it lasts me so I can use it when on the move for word processing and some light surfing.
I’ve done quite a bit of reading (nearly all of it from reports on Tom’s Hardware – great stuff!) and my mind is frankly quite tired after so much reading without enough breaks – it’s just soo addictive!
I have come up with some ideas….but then since I don’t really have a budget (but don’t want to spend more than say ₤1200 - but even this is a guide) so I need to just build a first computer which will last me a few years and hopefully I’ll be loving it and will want to upgrade in a couple of years!
I’d prefer to buy value components and upgrade when the prices fall. This is of a particular concern for the GPU as the ATI HD cards may be overpriced at the moment.
So I still need some basic help… in deciding what power (i.e. CPU and everything else) to go with.
APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Today/Tomorrow/This week (the sooner the better)
BUDGET RANGE: Approx. ₤800 but will be willing to go higher if it’s worth the benefits and doors of fun/opportunity that are opened by getting a better system After Rebates
SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Surfing, watching movies via 1080p TV already have, music, strategy gaming and maybe some driving games if the system is good enough, Excel programming. This might change after system is built to more gaming and other activities.
PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Need everything except maybe a monitor (but would get this if it’s better than just using my laptop screen (Brand: Dell Inspiron 9300 at 1900x1200 native resolution [WXGA I think, but not sure]).
Would also prefer to have a TV tuner in there and to able to record from it…erm and maybe some small sound for when I just want to sit and play casually.
PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: None but I would like to get as good a value as possible of course and one which would help me out if I made mistakes or got into difficulties i.e. a reputable company.
Prob want to buy all parts from the same supplier as mentioned in an article on here.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PARTS PREFERENCES: Mid Tower as advised by an ex PC components addict and ex-PC enthusiast, none otherwise.
After reading articles I was leaning towards the AMD II X3 since it’s such a good CPU and great value for money at approx ₤66
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/athlon-ii-x3-440-gaming-performance,2619.html
(and in case I screw this up) but then also read another article saying how quad cores are for the future.
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/257075-13-guide-choosing-parts
Thanks to Proximon to for that great article.
I also get distracted by thinking it will be so much more fun if I go for a quad core Phenom or maybe even the i5 (or even i7 when I start getting ahead of myself) according to the tests with GPU and various processors to build a balanced system:
Part 2:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/balanced-gaming-pc,2477.html
Part 3:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/balanced-gaming-pc-overclock,2625.html
OVERCLOCKING: Maybe – or yes and would like to learn about it! SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Probably not. Unless it’s much better for my needs
MONITOR RESOLUTION: As mentioned I have a 1080p TV and so that would be the minimum requirement. My laptop screen (which I could use as the monitor otherwise) is 1900x1200 in native resolution. Don’t know what best if I do get a new monitor (am considering it but it’s not a priority)
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I already have a set up for gaming, sound and TV (Panasonic 1080p) – PS3, Xbox360 (so those are my main points of playing games) and have 5.1 sound via an Onkyo TX-SR606 AV receiver.
So I’d like to hook my PC up to the TV (sometimes watch stuff through that or maybe just do my work on it if I feel like watching a bigger screen from further away) as well as the sound system.
I would prefer to have a mid tower which would have a touch of bling (maybe just a little blue [or red maybe, haven’t decided yet] lighting. I like the looks of the Lian Li PCB25-FB
Would love to have a window to help me feed my interest. However maybe that would put too much pressure on making the insides look good rather than just getting it right. Any views on the difficulty of making it look nice?
It should not be loud like the annoyingly loud Xbox 360 fan.
My ideas thus far have been:
CPU: AMD 2 x3 or x4 : at ₤65 or ₤100 respectively. Is ₤40 worth going to quad core?
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-Athlon-II-X3-440-Rana-Triple-Core-S-AM3-30GHz-15MB-Cache-HT-4000MHz-95W-Retail
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-Athlon-II-X4-635-Propus-Quad-Core-S-AM3-29GHz-2MB-Cache-HT-4000MHz-95W-Retail
If I go for quad core then maybe I should go for more? Maybe a Phenom 2 X4 or i5? Only another ₤40-50 more.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-Phenom-II-X4-955-BlackEdition-Sok-AM3-32GHz-8MB-Total-Cache-125W-Retail
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Intel-Core-i5-750-Lynnfield-45nm-Quad-Core-266GHz-8MB-Cache-95W-Retail
MOBO: 880G for AM3 with USB 3.0 (is the USB 3.0 relevant for my needs? Maybe soon in the future?)
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Asus-M4A87TD-USB3-AMD-870-S-AM3-PCI-E-20-%28x16%29-DDR3-2000%28OC%29-SATA-6Gb-s-SATA-RAID-ATX
Was decided on this until I read a report about 790 being so much better in Proximon’s list.
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/269620-13-list
Somebody also said ASRock were a cheap brand and so should be avoided. Is this right?
GPU: had originally decided on HD 5850 1Gb but then thought it might be overkill.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-Sapphire-HD-5850-PCI-E-20-4000MHz-GDDR5-GPU-725MHz-DisplayPort-2x-DL-DVI-I-HDMI
Should I go for the HD 5770 1Gb (since it’s so much cheaper and I’m prob not going to be playing FPSs. Or is the HD 5770 that overkill as well?
Which brand should I go for? A friend said she used to love her Sapphire brand.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-Sapphire-HD5770-PCI-E-20%28x16%29-4800MHz-GDDR5-GPU-850MHz-Cores-800-2x-DL-DVI-I-HDMI
Again, why is there such a number of ATI HD5770s by the same brand? What are the main differences?
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-Sapphire-HD-5770-Vapor-X-PCI-E-21-%28x16%29-4800MHz-GDDR5-GPU-860-MHz-DL-DVI-Display-PortHDMI
Finally getting my hands on PC with a decent discrete GPU may invite me to play other games on the PC.
RAM: 4Gb minimum.
Which brand and which speed (1333 or 1600 or higher)?
HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 (HD103SJ)
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ss1TB-Samsung-HD103SJ-Spinpoint-F3-SATA-3Gb-s-7200rpm-32MB-Cache-89-ms-NCQ-OEM
DVD Drive: Samsung Black 2X SH-S223B going by Proximon’s big list of things he likes
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CD-126-SA
I am hoping to use my PS3 as my Blu-Ray player
Case: Lian Li PCB25-FB
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Lian-Li-PC-B25FB-Black-Mid-Tower-Aluminum-Case-w-o-PSU
This was my original choice but then read about aluminium reverberating and also it’s maybe unnecessarily pricey
Alternatives: LanCool K62
CoolMaster CM-690 II
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Lancool-K62-Black-Advanced-Tower-5x525-4x35-inc-3x140-1x120mm-fans-front-USB-and-HD-97-Audio-ports
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-196-CM
Any other recommendations?
PSU: No idea
Case fans: No idea.
OS: Win7 (maybe 64bit)
Monitor: not sure if needed
Keyboard: must be wireless and be rechargeable (if that’s possible) as I’d to constantly replace batteries. Something that has a backlight might be cool.
Mouse: no idea, no pref whether it’s a trackball or normal one – have used both
Network card: Do I need this. I would to do networking and maybe make another PC to hold all my data in future.
Not sure what else I would need.
If it’s too confusing then I will probably end up going for all the cheaper options in order just to build a PC first and then maybe upgrade to a much better one later.
Oh you’re still reading. Thanks for reading this essay!
All suggestions are welcome to help me pick out an okay or decent system to last me a few years.
I’m a noob so please excuse me if I know so little and if I make any silly mistakes or ask stupid questions. Please feel free to give me as much detail as possible. This will be my first build and I’ll need everything.
I need a new PC as I’m moving from my very old Inspiron 9300 laptop and thought I’d have a go at this building a PC thing and I’d finally like to understand what goes on inside these ‘magic machines’.
I’ll still keep my laptop and hope it lasts me so I can use it when on the move for word processing and some light surfing.
I’ve done quite a bit of reading (nearly all of it from reports on Tom’s Hardware – great stuff!) and my mind is frankly quite tired after so much reading without enough breaks – it’s just soo addictive!
I have come up with some ideas….but then since I don’t really have a budget (but don’t want to spend more than say ₤1200 - but even this is a guide) so I need to just build a first computer which will last me a few years and hopefully I’ll be loving it and will want to upgrade in a couple of years!
I’d prefer to buy value components and upgrade when the prices fall. This is of a particular concern for the GPU as the ATI HD cards may be overpriced at the moment.
So I still need some basic help… in deciding what power (i.e. CPU and everything else) to go with.
APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Today/Tomorrow/This week (the sooner the better)
BUDGET RANGE: Approx. ₤800 but will be willing to go higher if it’s worth the benefits and doors of fun/opportunity that are opened by getting a better system After Rebates
SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Surfing, watching movies via 1080p TV already have, music, strategy gaming and maybe some driving games if the system is good enough, Excel programming. This might change after system is built to more gaming and other activities.
PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Need everything except maybe a monitor (but would get this if it’s better than just using my laptop screen (Brand: Dell Inspiron 9300 at 1900x1200 native resolution [WXGA I think, but not sure]).
Would also prefer to have a TV tuner in there and to able to record from it…erm and maybe some small sound for when I just want to sit and play casually.
PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: None but I would like to get as good a value as possible of course and one which would help me out if I made mistakes or got into difficulties i.e. a reputable company.
Prob want to buy all parts from the same supplier as mentioned in an article on here.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PARTS PREFERENCES: Mid Tower as advised by an ex PC components addict and ex-PC enthusiast, none otherwise.
After reading articles I was leaning towards the AMD II X3 since it’s such a good CPU and great value for money at approx ₤66
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/athlon-ii-x3-440-gaming-performance,2619.html
(and in case I screw this up) but then also read another article saying how quad cores are for the future.
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/257075-13-guide-choosing-parts
Thanks to Proximon to for that great article.
I also get distracted by thinking it will be so much more fun if I go for a quad core Phenom or maybe even the i5 (or even i7 when I start getting ahead of myself) according to the tests with GPU and various processors to build a balanced system:
Part 2:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/balanced-gaming-pc,2477.html
Part 3:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/balanced-gaming-pc-overclock,2625.html
OVERCLOCKING: Maybe – or yes and would like to learn about it! SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Probably not. Unless it’s much better for my needs
MONITOR RESOLUTION: As mentioned I have a 1080p TV and so that would be the minimum requirement. My laptop screen (which I could use as the monitor otherwise) is 1900x1200 in native resolution. Don’t know what best if I do get a new monitor (am considering it but it’s not a priority)
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I already have a set up for gaming, sound and TV (Panasonic 1080p) – PS3, Xbox360 (so those are my main points of playing games) and have 5.1 sound via an Onkyo TX-SR606 AV receiver.
So I’d like to hook my PC up to the TV (sometimes watch stuff through that or maybe just do my work on it if I feel like watching a bigger screen from further away) as well as the sound system.
I would prefer to have a mid tower which would have a touch of bling (maybe just a little blue [or red maybe, haven’t decided yet] lighting. I like the looks of the Lian Li PCB25-FB
Would love to have a window to help me feed my interest. However maybe that would put too much pressure on making the insides look good rather than just getting it right. Any views on the difficulty of making it look nice?
It should not be loud like the annoyingly loud Xbox 360 fan.
My ideas thus far have been:
CPU: AMD 2 x3 or x4 : at ₤65 or ₤100 respectively. Is ₤40 worth going to quad core?
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-Athlon-II-X3-440-Rana-Triple-Core-S-AM3-30GHz-15MB-Cache-HT-4000MHz-95W-Retail
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-Athlon-II-X4-635-Propus-Quad-Core-S-AM3-29GHz-2MB-Cache-HT-4000MHz-95W-Retail
If I go for quad core then maybe I should go for more? Maybe a Phenom 2 X4 or i5? Only another ₤40-50 more.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-Phenom-II-X4-955-BlackEdition-Sok-AM3-32GHz-8MB-Total-Cache-125W-Retail
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Intel-Core-i5-750-Lynnfield-45nm-Quad-Core-266GHz-8MB-Cache-95W-Retail
MOBO: 880G for AM3 with USB 3.0 (is the USB 3.0 relevant for my needs? Maybe soon in the future?)
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Asus-M4A87TD-USB3-AMD-870-S-AM3-PCI-E-20-%28x16%29-DDR3-2000%28OC%29-SATA-6Gb-s-SATA-RAID-ATX
Was decided on this until I read a report about 790 being so much better in Proximon’s list.
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/269620-13-list
Somebody also said ASRock were a cheap brand and so should be avoided. Is this right?
GPU: had originally decided on HD 5850 1Gb but then thought it might be overkill.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-Sapphire-HD-5850-PCI-E-20-4000MHz-GDDR5-GPU-725MHz-DisplayPort-2x-DL-DVI-I-HDMI
Should I go for the HD 5770 1Gb (since it’s so much cheaper and I’m prob not going to be playing FPSs. Or is the HD 5770 that overkill as well?
Which brand should I go for? A friend said she used to love her Sapphire brand.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-Sapphire-HD5770-PCI-E-20%28x16%29-4800MHz-GDDR5-GPU-850MHz-Cores-800-2x-DL-DVI-I-HDMI
Again, why is there such a number of ATI HD5770s by the same brand? What are the main differences?
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-Sapphire-HD-5770-Vapor-X-PCI-E-21-%28x16%29-4800MHz-GDDR5-GPU-860-MHz-DL-DVI-Display-PortHDMI
Finally getting my hands on PC with a decent discrete GPU may invite me to play other games on the PC.
RAM: 4Gb minimum.
Which brand and which speed (1333 or 1600 or higher)?
HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 (HD103SJ)
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ss1TB-Samsung-HD103SJ-Spinpoint-F3-SATA-3Gb-s-7200rpm-32MB-Cache-89-ms-NCQ-OEM
DVD Drive: Samsung Black 2X SH-S223B going by Proximon’s big list of things he likes
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CD-126-SA
I am hoping to use my PS3 as my Blu-Ray player
Case: Lian Li PCB25-FB
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Lian-Li-PC-B25FB-Black-Mid-Tower-Aluminum-Case-w-o-PSU
This was my original choice but then read about aluminium reverberating and also it’s maybe unnecessarily pricey
Alternatives: LanCool K62
CoolMaster CM-690 II
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Lancool-K62-Black-Advanced-Tower-5x525-4x35-inc-3x140-1x120mm-fans-front-USB-and-HD-97-Audio-ports
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-196-CM
Any other recommendations?
PSU: No idea
Case fans: No idea.
OS: Win7 (maybe 64bit)
Monitor: not sure if needed
Keyboard: must be wireless and be rechargeable (if that’s possible) as I’d to constantly replace batteries. Something that has a backlight might be cool.
Mouse: no idea, no pref whether it’s a trackball or normal one – have used both
Network card: Do I need this. I would to do networking and maybe make another PC to hold all my data in future.
Not sure what else I would need.
If it’s too confusing then I will probably end up going for all the cheaper options in order just to build a PC first and then maybe upgrade to a much better one later.
Oh you’re still reading. Thanks for reading this essay!
All suggestions are welcome to help me pick out an okay or decent system to last me a few years.