Building a Gaming PC

[Kouki]

Hijacking this thread...

Was thinking about getting a cheap Chromebook for web browsing, playing music, and remoting in to my work PC.

Would it be better to just buy a used laptop?

 

[gourimoko]

Hijacking this thread...

Was thinking about getting a cheap Chromebook for web browsing, playing music, and remoting in to my work PC.

Would it be better to just buy a used laptop?

Chromebooks are specialty devices.. If ALL you want to do is browse; and you really don't want to do ANYTHING ELSE, then maybe... Personally I would recommend getting a tablet the next time you upgrade your phone (bundles can get you a great tablet for $199.99 - basically half price). Otherwise, I'd look to buy a used tablet from Craigslist.

 

[Kouki]

I have a shitty tablet from Verizon, my mom got suckered into a deal. Not really a fan of tablets, I use it a bit but only when my girlfriend needs to use the laptop.

Since I will use it to remote into my PC at work I will be hooking it up to an external display, mouse, and maybe a keyboard, so I'd need HDMI out and USB.

What is a tablet, essentially, but a Chromebook without a keyboard?

 

[AuxiliaryPie]

What is a tablet, essentially, but a Chromebook without a keyboard?

Look at the Windows 8.1 tablets. They run full on Windows like your desktop/laptop, meaning every program that Windows runs, you now run on your tablet. The Intel Atom tablets have PHENOMENAL battery life, im talkin 10-14+ hours of screen on time per charge, while the Core i3/5/7 tabs are beastly powerful for a tablet.

I just got the Lenovo Thinkpad Tablet 2 (its older, but i snagged it for $195 LNIB) and its crazy nice. They have a newer version called the Tablet 10 i think. Mine has 8mp camera, GPS, a Waycom stylus (professional grade drawing/note taking ability), and... FULL FREAKING WINDOWS on a tablet! With 10+ hours of battery life!!

Edit- wrote this edit with the stylus ...BALLIN

 

[Kouki]

Oh and I forgot to mention I want to go super cheap. Like, super super cheap. Reason why I thought of this is because a Chromebook was on sale for $200 on Amazon today as per Gizmodo.

 

[AuxiliaryPie]

Oh and I forgot to mention I want to go super cheap. Like, super super cheap. Reason why I thought of this is because a Chromebook was on sale for $200 on Amazon today as per Gizmodo.

the key to getting em cheap is to watch the used prices on amazon, eventually youll get an LNIB on the low

 

[Lionheart]

Thanks to the OP for starting this thread.

So I've decided to build a desktop PC, I do mostly 2D and 3D graphic design and I just feel like my laptop just isn't cutting it anymore. It would be great if I could sneak in a little NBA2K during my downtime too.

I am planning a relatively cheap build, the budget is $500-$550 (or about PHP25,000 local currency). I have looked at this thread and a Price List of a local vendor and cross-referencing reviews on Newegg.com for the parts available to me.

Here's the price list if you'd like to check it out (PDF): http://chelseycomputer.com/Pricelist/Pricelist2014.pdf

It would really mean a lot to me if you could chime in on my choices so far:

CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...995&cm_re=core_i3_4150-_-19-116-995-_-Product

MOBO: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...BYTE_GA-H81M-DS2_M-ATX-_-13-128-648-_-Product

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...08&cm_re=RIPJAWS-X_4GB-_-20-231-308-_-Product

HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ..._DIGITAL_1TB_SATA3-_-1B0-0024-001D2-_-Product

GPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...4&cm_re=evga_GTX_750TI-_-14-487-024-_-Product


A few points:

1. The weather where I'm at right now is crazy warm (75F-90F, no AC) so that's a concern, but I figured if I buy a case with a large exhaust fan and keep the room's air flow going that I can prevent overheating. Any cheap alternative solutions to this?

2. I've used Newegg's calculator and I'm looking at maybe a 550-watt power supply. Am I correct?

 

[AuxiliaryPie]

Thanks to the OP for starting this thread.

1. The weather where I'm at right now is crazy warm (75F-90F, no AC) so that's a concern, but I figured if I buy a case with a large exhaust fan and keep the room's air flow going that I can prevent overheating. Any cheap alternative solutions to this?

2. I've used Newegg's calculator and I'm looking at maybe a 550-watt power supply. Am I correct?

use http://pcpartpicker.com/ to piece everything together, its the easiest way (i'm assuming this will work for you because you are using Newegg.com). It'll make sure everything is compatible and it will give you the power requirements on the right hand side

As long as you have a couple case fans (120mm) on the front, back, and side you shouldnt have to worry about heat too much. you could also get a cheap fan from a hardware store and just keep it blowing on your tower through a vent if you need to?

 

[Lionheart]

Thanks. I'll be using pcpartpicker and see wha

use http://pcpartpicker.com/ to piece everything together, its the easiest way (i'm assuming this will work for you because you are using Newegg.com). It'll make sure everything is compatible and it will give you the power requirements on the right hand side

As long as you have a couple case fans (120mm) on the front, back, and side you shouldnt have to worry about heat too much. you could also get a cheap fan from a hardware store and just keep it blowing on your tower through a vent if you need to?

Thanks, I'll be using pcpartpicker and see what happens.

I realize that the options I have as far as pc components may be limited so I'll be very careful before spending any money, I don't have much to boot. lol

I'll be considering a new build this time using an AMD processor and let you guys know. If you have any suggestions, or would like to help me out, please check the price list I provided on my previous post and consider helping me with a full build. Thanks!

 

[AuxiliaryPie]

can anyone tell me what makes a crossfire/sli able mobo good or bad? like what feature do i need to look at to see if it will be good or not?

i always thought it would be just 2x PCIe 16x slots, but some mobos say they have this (two 16x slots) but it says one runs at 4x. is that normal?

 

[gourimoko]

Thanks. I'll be using pcpartpicker and see wha


Thanks, I'll be using pcpartpicker and see what happens.

I realize that the options I have as far as pc components may be limited so I'll be very careful before spending any money, I don't have much to boot. lol

I'll be considering a new build this time using an AMD processor and let you guys know. If you have any suggestions, or would like to help me out, please check the price list I provided on my previous post and consider helping me with a full build. Thanks!

Noooo! Wait!

Don't go AMD for 2D/3D Workstations!! Your performance will be abysmal.

For something like this you really want an i7/Geforce (or Quadro). If you're going to be using it for gaming as well, then just go with a Geforce card. The 580, 660-680 series, or the 760-780 series is fine just make sure you get 4GB of ram per card and leave room for expansion. Unlike SLI for gaming, adding an additional card _really_ helps 3D design work.

I would rethink your build if you can and try to reconfigure with an i7.

A brand new build with an i7-4960K & SLI mobo, will put you at around $850-$900 with a GTX 760 4GB and 16GB of RAM. I would look at that and figure if I could try to save money with used parts. Try to get it down by $250-300. You can save money on the case, HDD (for now), and even the PSU to an extent (for now).

First places I would cut?

Get a lower-grade i7? (...hurts the most)
Get a used GPU (trust the source, but yes)
Get a used Mobo (sure)
Recycle a case or buy a cheap case (cases here can be had for PHP1,200 or less with 650w (garbage) PSU)
Start with 8GB and not 16GB of RAM (saves you $80 off top)

But this skeleton build can be done and even though you won't have 100% new parts, you'll have the basis for a better machine long-term. When you first contract comes in, buy an SSD, slick case, and better PSU and 2 more DIMMS (2x4GB)..

 

[gourimoko]

can anyone tell me what makes a crossfire/sli able mobo good or bad? like what feature do i need to look at to see if it will be good or not?

i always thought it would be just 2x PCIe 16x slots, but some mobos say they have this (two 16x slots) but it says one runs at 4x. is that normal?

Sure..

Most mobos offer multiple x16 slots. You look at the slot and say.. Yep, that's an x16 slot. But in reality, it's not.

Say we have 2 PCI-Express buses on our mobo. One is solely for the primary x16 slot, and the other splits two other slots an x8 and another x8. Well, to maximize compatibility, we the manufacturer can solder on x16 slots over the actual x8 (electrical) connection and it will work just fine. PCIe devices will downgrade the connection based on the available bandwidth.

So while you can get your GTX running smooth on the primary slot, the second card will be capped at x8 (or worse) depending upon the configuration of the motherboard.

The way to determine this is by reading the mobo manual or tech specs. Often you will see:

1x PCIe x16 slot
2x PCIe x16 slots (8x electrical)

This means the board has 3 PCIe x16 compatible slots, but 2 of them are half-bandwidth.

Ideally, you want not only two full-bandwidth PCIe x16 slots, but running on two different and distinct buses. This will give you optimal performance. This isn't only for SLI either; however, with CrossFire cards, the discrete buses are less important.

 

[Lionheart]

Noooo! Wait!

Don't go AMD for 2D/3D Workstations!! Your performance will be abysmal.

For something like this you really want an i7/Geforce (or Quadro). If you're going to be using it for gaming as well, then just go with a Geforce card. The 580, 660-680 series, or the 760-780 series is fine just make sure you get 4GB of ram per card and leave room for expansion. Unlike SLI for gaming, adding an additional card _really_ helps 3D design work.

I would rethink your build if you can and try to reconfigure with an i7.

A brand new build with an i7-4960K & SLI mobo, will put you at around $850-$900 with a GTX 760 4GB and 16GB of RAM. I would look at that and figure if I could try to save money with used parts. Try to get it down by $250-300. You can save money on the case, HDD (for now), and even the PSU to an extent (for now).

First places I would cut?

Get a lower-grade i7? (...hurts the most)
Get a used GPU (trust the source, but yes)
Get a used Mobo (sure)
Recycle a case or buy a cheap case (cases here can be had for PHP1,200 or less with 650w (garbage) PSU)
Start with 8GB and not 16GB of RAM (saves you $80 off top)

But this skeleton build can be done and even though you won't have 100% new parts, you'll have the basis for a better machine long-term. When you first contract comes in, buy an SSD, slick case, and better PSU and 2 more DIMMS (2x4GB)..

Wanna know why I fucking love RCF? Its because of this and all the other people willing to help. Thanks man. I don't know if I can find trusted used PC part sellers but I'm gonna try. Buying stuff online (here) whether new or used is still tricky business and requires a lot research and patience.

Keep the discussion going!

 

[AuxiliaryPie]

so basically Gour, if it says pcie 16x but running at 4x i should stay away?

i really appreciate the help!

 

[Ren]

Yes, often motherboards will provide multiple x16 PCIe slots but only 1 (or none) will run at full x16 bandwidth. For example you will see a mobo with 3x PCIe x16 but it will say (x16, x8, x8). As gour stated only one slot will run at full bandwidth while the other two will run at half bandwidth. Basically, you're not getting the full capacity out of your video cards.