i know there’s about a half dozen threads on the topic of building custom game PCs. There’s at least one other on the top page of thisforum and at least two or more posted every few weeks. Every OP has their own specifications, budget, store preference, etc. So i apologize in advance for what is possibly the most posted question here not involving helmets and release dates.
Can you guys help me build a new PC?
My budget falls between $500 to $900, give or take a few bucks. i need specific recommendations on videocards; preferably nvidia. i need a mobo that supports plentiful and relatively inexpensive ram so i can add more down the road. CPU needs to run cool. i have no desire to overclock. i also might go 64 bit OS later but for now, a lot of my favorite apps require 32 bit XP. i might dualboot or use virtualbox some time later.
Cooling is a must. i live in the Pacific Northwest so climate isn’t a problem, but the PC will also be used as a fileshare server around the clock, running 5 HDs and hosting the occasional Minecraft server.
The system will be used for gaming, mostly games like Skyrim, which is a resource hog, even without graphics mods. i’d like to play more current gen games and need CPU, RAM and GPU to back them up. i’m not a graphics whore, i play a lot of older and basic games and i don’t typically turn up anti-aliasing but i DO work a lot in Photoshop, using lots of rasterized layers and effects. When GTA5 comes out, i’d prefer to play it on PC as apposed to console. i was disappointed when i found GTA4 ran like garbage on my current setup.Also, as i posted in an earlier thread, i run multiple applications at
once like Photoshop and media player on separate screens. The videocard is probably the most expensive thing i’ll be putting in, but if need be, i can use my current 8800GTS until i can afford something else.
is SLi worth it? Would i get a bigger boost out of hooking up two <$100 cards instead of something >$200? For that matter, what specs are most important when seeking out a videocard? i can honestly say i’ve fallen behind as far as hardware goes. The last machine i built without help was back when AGP was the standard bus type for video. USB 3.0 was a distant pipedream and terabyte HDs were something only whispered about among file-swapping pirates in need of precious space for their warez.
Chassis, drives and the like are all taken care of unless anyone can share a great cooling system that requires a
heftier case. i’d like to keep my CPU, RAM and mobo around 5-600. i’m also curious if i should invest in a SSD for my new main C drive. Nothing too big, something just large enough for XP and program files.
if anyone has suggestions, questions or general advice, i’m open to it!
-Kawai Tei-
By the way, i’ve been posting all this with my ipod so please excuse the funky formatting if there is any.
