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Disciple of Nagash

Oldblood
Staff member
Feb 12, 2008
27,732
As some of you know, many years ago I built my own PC, and now my brother has decided he would like me to put one together for him. However having been a bit out of the loop with such things, I am not upto speed on the best kit / deals, and I know we have quite a few computer savvy people on here, hence the request for advice!
So what do I need? At a bare minimum I need a new tower which is a reasonably good gaming PC. My brother mainly plays sims like Flight Simulator etc, which can be quite taxing on CPU, graphics etc. I would if possible also like to future-proof it a little. By that I mean get decent specs that will see him through for a few years at least, it looks like the last PC he bought was just ok at the time, so 18 months later was struggling.
His current components are really no good (old dual core, 4GB, small hard drive etc), so I am shopping for:

  • New motherboard - I previously bought an Asus as I have heard very good things and I’ve not had any issues. Are these still the best?
  • CPU – My previous purchase was an i7. I’ve no idea what is a good current CPU so any suggestions (which work well with the motherboard obviously)
  • Graphics Card – Obviously important, we both have old Radeons so really need help with this one
  • RAM – Looking around RAM is now dirt cheap, able to pick up 16GB of DDR3 for under £100, any comments on this?
  • Hard drive – Looking at a SSD, I have a Kingston HyperX 240GB. Again are there any better recommendations? The plan here is to have the operating system for this and another hard drive for storage
  • Power – Need help here as I just have an old 750w I managed to get off work.
  • CPU Fan
  • Case – Not too bothered about something fancy, the main thing is that is has to keep the rig cooled by air (no water!)
If there are any deals that have a keyboard and mouse, all the better!
Moneywise, my brother is will to spend a decent amount but not too much, realistically under £1000, if closer to £500 all the better!!
Ta very much! xd
 

Disciple of Nagash

Oldblood
Staff member
Feb 12, 2008
27,732
Thanks for the information, I'll have to have a look around......though if anyone has any recommendations in the meantime I would really appreciate it....so little time, so many things to do! xd
 

Sanguinus

Ghoul
Nov 21, 2013
171
I typically buy individual components as and when I feel they are outdated. PC Part Picker should help with finding the best deals for each component if you decide to buy in parts, rather than a pre- or custom-built rig.
  • Motherboard - probably the least of your concerns. A mid-range board is perfectly serviceable. Not sure I'd say Asus was the best, but they are definitely still a competitive choice. I use the Z87-A myself.
  • CPU - An upgrade would be a Haswell i5 or i7. Unless you're an animator, film editor, or do some other kind of rendering, there's no need to get an i7 over an i5. Model numbers that end in a K designate that it can be overclocked. It's worth noting that Intel intend to release new processors next year, so you may or may not want to hold off.
  • Graphics card - This is really where the bulk of your budget is going to go, and they get outdated incredibly quickly these days. The best way to future proof the rig is obviously to get the latest card. Really, I would probably suggest looking at the recommended specs for the games intending to be played and get a card that falls midway between it and the best available.
  • RAM - Not much to say on this, you've pretty much nailed it. I personally favour Corsair.
  • Hard drive - I would definitely recommend an SSD, Samsung EVO in particular. I would also suggest hooking up the old HDD and using it to store any pictures/music/documents and keep the SSD for programs that are used regularly, like favourite games.
  • Power supply - power consumption is pretty low these day, so that 750w should be fine.
  • CPU fan - stock cooler is adequate, but if you really want a new one, I'd recommend a Noctua or Corsair hydro-series.
 

John Rainbow

Crypt Horror
Mar 7, 2013
596
PA, USA
Just had a look, and thank you very much @John Rainbow - that site is excellent and I've begun pricing some things up xD
No problem.

My other advice would be to stick to the compatibility list of the motherboard if at all possible. Sure you can get other things like RAM and stuff to work with it by changing some stuff around but unless you are into that kind of thing or have the time to sort it all out my experience has been that it is generally better to go with stuff the company has tested and given approval to.

[edit] Doing this also tends to limit you to the better brands which are more reliable, etc.
 

Duke Danse Macabre

The Duke
True Blood
Sep 16, 2010
3,696
Sunderland, United Kingdom
Good thing I kept out of this one in my Alienware glory... (yes I know its over priced but its cool, same reason i play warhammer. ;) )
So hows the PC coming along Don?
Kinda curious on the specs and why the hat for liquid cooling systems?
 

John Rainbow

Crypt Horror
Mar 7, 2013
596
PA, USA
Yeah how's this going? In the current age you don't really need to spend all that much to get a very decently spec'd out gaming PC. In reality the processing power, etc of most chips hasn't really improved all that much in the last few years. Sure the architecture has changed but there aren't that many games that take advantage of threading, multiple processors, etc simply by virtue of the fact that they have to be compatible across a large range of systems. I don't think you need to go high-end with any of the options and IMHO anything that requires anything other than simple fan cooling is probably overkill for what you want to do.
 

Disciple of Nagash

Oldblood
Staff member
Feb 12, 2008
27,732
I did mess around with a spec for one, looking around £700-£800 for one that I think is ok, but it's upto my brother to decide.

Then again I may be going overboard, it's the graphics card that is pushing up the price.
 

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