Best Configs Return, Powered By Tom's Hardware Forums
A few months back, we introduced a feature called Best Configs, which included nine systems with components chosen by the Tom's Hardware staff. After considering your feedback on this new section, we're giving the community control over the picks!
Greetings Guys And Gals,
Best Configs is making a return, and this time, we want to feature your top picks for each of our nine configurations!
First, a little bit of background. The Best Configs feature first surfaced on Tom’s Hardware FR, consisting of monthly updates to 13 different builds with parts picked by the staff. We introduced a similar feature on Tom’s Hardware US and ran through a couple of different iterations. I followed the feedback on those carefully, and noticed that there were already very compelling configurations being posted to our forums by dedicated members of the community.
Rather than compete with those folks, I thought it’d be much more interesting to work with them, building the Best Configs section back up, but this time using your component recommendations.
Here’s how it works: we have nine sticky threads going in the forums, under the New Build category. If you see a configuration to which you’d like to contribute, we invite you to submit it. If you’d like to add a completely new configuration, feel free to post your idea here, and we’ll consider it for next month’s update.
At the end of three weeks, we’ll pick our five favorite recommendations in each thread and let you vote on them. The top build will become that month’s Best Config. We’ll lay it out on a new section featured on the front page of Tom’s Hardware, give you credit for the build, and make sure it’s accessible for the whole month before starting all over again.
In this way, Best Configs will be powered by our knowledgeable community. We’ll make sure to add system classifications that are currently missing, and I’ll get to work more closely with you—something I’ve been anxious to see happen for two years now.
The following are direct links to each of the existing nine builds:
Budget Intel-Based Gaming PC
Budget AMD-Based Gaming PC
High-End Intel Gaming PC
Intel-Based Office PC
High-End AMD Gaming PC
MicroATX Gaming Build
Home Theater PC
High-End Workstation
AMD-Based Office PC
See you in the forums!
Chris Angelini
Managing Editor, Tom’s Hardware US
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Cool this might come in handy for building balanced systems.
This is the best idea Toms has ever come up with. Thank you very much for this section, since it will help help a ton.
Very nice idea, as already said this will def be a help to many people
Awesome idea, but just a gripe... When I think of "budget" PCs, I don't really think of a $1000 "budget"... more like a 600 dollar "budget"
Awesome idea, but just a gripe... When I think of "budget" PCs, I don't really think of a $1000 "budget"... more like a 600 dollar "budget"
There's a good chance that we'll keep the top picks in the budget categories limited to $500 or so. If we need to adjust down the limit on the forum threads, that's the route we'll go! I'm with you--budget feels like something not much pricier than a gaming console.
Great idea! This will also provide good comparison and insite into other techies build choices.
Awesome Chris.
I'll have to see if my new CF 2X5850 / 1090T refrigerated rig fits into what budget ...
Weight wise it is a boat anchor ...
I like the idea, it'll be good to see what comes out. Now to hear the gripes about people and their different definitions of budget!
Hope we'll get some good feedback!
I wish I had this back when I built my current computer a few months ago.
I know this is a USA site, but just 40% of the visitors are american, the rest of the world has waaaay different prices (A lot more expensive tbh), so even though these things are nice it would be nice to see them on other countries maybe? Idk, with 1000 usd you barely make a C2D machine in my country.
I know this is a USA site, but just 40% of the visitors are american, the rest of the world has waaaay different prices (A lot more expensive tbh), so even though these things are nice it would be nice to see them on other countries maybe? Idk, with 1000 usd you barely make a C2D machine in my country.
Where are you from NeeKo? One of our strengths is the fact that there are localized versions of Tom's for Germany, France, Italy, Russian, Finland, Turkey, etc.--if this is something you'd like to see in another country, I can make the managing editor of that location aware, and possibly bring you something similar, tailored to your native currency!
Regards,
Chris
Ok I will, I will check this out.
I think it'd be better if you used a master sticky with links to all the configs, instead of having 9 stickies clogging things up.
Great idea though.
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This seems like a great idea. Hopefully people post real world results too.
I would love to see a graphics orientated build eventually. (Perhaps a mid and high level build: Photography-Photoshop/Lightroom, and 3D/Video editing).
This seems like a great idea. Hopefully people post real world results too.I would love to see a graphics orientated build eventually. (Perhaps a mid and high level build: Photography-Photoshop/Lightroom, and 3D/Video editing).
How would you envision something like that differing from say, a more general-purpose workstation?
How about Best Config category for Hackintoshs?
Where are you from NeeKo? One of our strengths is the fact that there are localized versions of Tom's for Germany, France, Italy, Russian, Finland, Turkey, etc.--if this is something you'd like to see in another country, I can make the managing editor of that location aware, and possibly bring you something similar, tailored to your native currency!Regards,Chris
I am from South America, to be more specific Uruguay.
Just to give you a hint i7 930 here cost USD 349+Taxes (Which is 22% btw).
Besides than that, we have very little choices.. just 5-6 places to buy and not much to choose from so I really doubt anyone would like to see one of these from here haha, I was just pointing out the fact that a 1000usd machine isnt the same everywhere
I still think you should have a
Where are you from NeeKo? One of our strengths is the fact that there are localized versions of Tom's for Germany, France, Italy, Russian, Finland, Turkey, etc.--if this is something you'd like to see in another country, I can make the managing editor of that location aware, and possibly bring you something similar, tailored to your native currency!Regards,Chris
I'm in Iraq! No tom's for middle East! And prices here are insane
Just to give you a hint i7 930 here cost USD 349+Taxes ... we have very little choices.. just 5-6 places to buy and not much to choose from ...
Same suffering here dude! Most of the time I wait for my brother's next trip to China to get the things people in my country only hear of or read about, and never are able to get their hands on.. But this has many drawbacks..The last mobo I bought from China (ASUS P6X58D Premium) costed ~430 USD and it died after half an hour of operation!
thumps up...very nice idea
Wouldn't it be nice to see some of these builds to be put on benchmark to see who's getting the best raw power?
my 2 cents
Also, for the same budget, would AMD be faster than Intel if we suppose that AMD is less expensive ?
woohoo. This is just what people need to help them build optimal systems to fit their needs. I used sites like this all the time on my first few builds, and even now to keep up on current hardware and performance graphs.
Great idea, having the Best Build a community feature. I hope you guys are ready to wade through the suggestions.
Great idea but would building gaming builds not be based on monitor resolution?
intel fandBOIs REJOICE! AMD all the way.
awesome idea
a community based effort should produce some interesting results. Power to the masses.
$1,000 is not a "budget" machine.
Make this a $500 challenge. That is a more realistic budget. I think you can build a gaming rig, that will play most games at ~near~ max frame rates with the knowledge available on this website alone.
$1,000 is just to high. With that kind of money you basically can get 1-2 tiers just below bleeding edge. If I gave my 10 year old daughter a $1,000 she could build a gaming PC too! $500 though and you really have to put some serious thought in how you want to go about building the system and what parts to invest into and where to sacrifice.
While I agree that $1,000 is a little too high for "budget" systems, I'll throw this point out: who among us in the enthusiast crowd would actually build a $500 system? You know, besides 10-year-old kids. Serious question, not rhetorical BS. I just see so many people these days discarding any systems or builds that come under $800 to $1,000, with the assumption that such a machine won't be potent enough to run the latest games and whatnot.
Do the builds require a monitor?