Gaming Pc - starting out

Stickman 1

Hi Guys,

My son has been saving up for a gaming pc and is just about ready to purchase now. Unfortunately I know little or nothing about same. I see AMD models (which are within our price range) for sale on amazon but I believe you can also order/design/build your own on line.

Can anyone advise on this?

Thanks.

cherryghost

I would suggest you visit the friendly guys at the PC Building and Upgrading Forum

Stickman 1

Cool. Thanks for that.

Stickman 1

Have just had a look at that.

Can't emphasise enough that I know nothing about this subject(!) and am not really up to the technicalities of building. What I need is a user friendly retailer who can supply a decent entry level model at affordable price....

Digital Solitude

You want dabs.ie or TerrorFirmer or Bloodbath on adverts to start.

Building is fairly easy, you post a budget and what you want to play, we tell you the best parts to buy and you click it together akin to expensive Lego. A local boardsie or techhead may be willing to build or help you build it if you go for that.

What is the budget on it, you'll get a few recommendations on prebuilts if that's what you want

Stickman 1

Thanks - will have a look at those sites.

What I would ideally like is to be able to talk to the retailer/builder/supplier on the phone as the e-mail conversations I've been having are way too technical for me.

Also I think prebuilt would probably be best for us as neither my son or I know enough about this. I assume prebuilts are suitable for general RPGs such as Batman Arkham Asylum, Dino Crysis, etc and Just Cause 3, Fallout 4, etc when he's a bit older. He thinks that PC is a better platform than Xbox, playstation etc...

Digital Solitude

The specs on prebuilts are just as varied as customs, there's no one spec, it depends on what you're willing to spend.

Dunno about getting lads on the phone but there's enough of us here that we'll be able to answer any questions in layman's terms

ScottStorm

What age is your son, if he is 15+ then with minimal help he would be able to assemble a pc himself. He would then gain some confidence and get a much better machine for the money.

Stickman 1

Thanks for that, Digital Solitude, have sent mail to dabs.ie. Thanks also for offer of advice. I’ll see what they come back with.

Hey, Scottstorm. He’s only 12 so I don’t think we’re quite ready for a self build. The idea is to get him set up with something that meets his needs for now and then as he learns more he can tinker round the edges, redesign etc.

Sneak

Stickman i was in ur situation not too long ago, early March if I'm correct. A self-build at that time was also very daunting! I looked up a few YouTube videos, newegg did a 3 part self-building tutorial which I found very helpful. I rewatched it 3/4 times to be sure what I was doing and to be honest I actually found the build as digital solitude adhered to as assembling expensive lego, he also was helpful enough to provide me with a parts list that I went on to build my pc with. The whole experience of building your own machine can be very rewarding. I think it'd be a great activity for you and your son.

Stickman 1

Just looking at one which they have at dabs.

"PC Specialist Infinity XT II AMD A8-7650K 8GB 1TB Windows 10" at 560.95 euros (won't let me post link)

I assume something like this would do all the things he wants and more.

Would appreciate any thoughts on this...

Stickman 1

Hey Sneak,

Did you build over the phone/via e-mail or did you actually do it yourself at home. Both options pretty daunting - the second even more so...

Lu Tze

Fill out the below, it will make it easier for people on here the suggest pre-built PCs if they know your budget and requirements


1. What is your budget? [€xxx]

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? [Gaming/Video editing/3D Modelling/HTPC/Internet] (If gaming include which games)

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? [Yes/No]

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? [Hard drive/DVD Drive/Case/PSU/etc.] (If possible state brand and model of the parts to ensure compatibility)

5. Do you need a monitor? [Yes/No]

5a. If yes, what size do you need. [19'/20'/22'/24'/etc.]

5b. If no, what resolution is your current monitor and do you plan to upgrade in the near future? [1920x1080/1440x900/etc.] [Yes/No]

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? [Keyboard/Mouse/Wireless Card/Card Reader/Speakers/etc.]

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? [Yes/No]

8. How can you pay? [Bank Transfer/Credit Card/Laser]

9. When are you purchasing? [In x days]

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? [South Dublin City/Cork City/Kerry/etc.]

Digital Solitude

Go for an Intel PC anyways. Assuming the budget is at 550-600?

ScottStorm

Stickman 1 wrote: »

Just looking at one which they have at dabs.

"PC Specialist Infinity XT II AMD A8-7650K 8GB 1TB Windows 10" at 560.95 euros (won't let me post link)

..

There is no graphics card in that pc. So it would likely struggle to play some of the games you mentioned at a decent level.

Sneak

Built it myself at home. I mean theres essentially only 8 parts to the whole build. It only took me less than a hour and I was taking my time.

Stickman 1

Thanks Lu Tze,

Have to sign off for the day now but will go through that list and post again.

Thanks to everyone for advice.

Stickman 1

Did a bit of research into this over the weekend and have narrowed it down to 2 prebuilts from 2 different suppliers.

AMD FX Quad Core Black Edition Gaming Desktop PC from Custompc.ie at €549

and

PC Specialist Infinity XT II AMD A8-7650K 8GB 1TB Windows 10 from Dabs.ie. at €560.95

I can’t post links for either I’m afraid, but with my limited knowledge I get the impression that the Dabs package is slightly better value? It includes operating system which Custompc.ie doesn’t, 8Mb memory vs 4Mb, 3 year warranty vs 2 year and 3.3GHz vs 3.8GHz (not sure if that’s better?)

Does anyone have experience/advice re either supplier? Delivery, customer care, after purchase tech support, etc. Custompc seem more expensive but have been better at getting back to me re queries – havn’t heard back from Dabs at all.

Any thoughts on the above? Have filled out questionnaire Lu Tze posted on Fri to give some idea of our profile, what pc will be used for, etc., and have pasted below.

Many thanks to everyone who has advised with this so far.

1. What is your budget? €600 - €700

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer?
Gaming mainly I think. RPGs like Arkham Asylum, etc. He also does Coder Dojo so would probably like to do some coding too.

3. Do you need a copy of Windows?
Yes.

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer?
No.

5. Do you need a monitor?
Yes.

5a. If yes, what size do you need.
19” should be grand, I think.

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? [Keyboard/Mouse/Wireless Card/Card Reader/Speakers/etc.]
All of these. Do computers not come with wireless card, card reader installed?

7. Are you willing to try overclocking?
I afraid I don’t even know what that means…

8. How can you pay?
Credit Card

9. When are you purchasing?
For Christmas – so in the next few days hopefully…

10. If you need help building it, where are you based?
South Dublin – but think we’d be better off with a pre-built for now.

sirboby

Are you trying to get the moniter and peripherals within the €600-€700 budget?

Stickman 1

As much as possible - could go a bit over but not much...

Digital Solitude

Hi stickman, have you had a look at building videos as per Sneaks recommendation? Neither of the PCs above are going to be great by my assumption.

Your son may enjoy building his own PC if he lkikes the coder dojo.

I'd tell you to have a look into it again, and if it seems out of your depth we can find you a well valued machine, but I wouldn't knock the self build because it sounds hard. We were all beginners once.

TerrorFirmer

The Custom PC one is a much stronger performer, not a criminal price but you could do better. That Dabs one is next to useless for new games.

You could get this and just add this.

Would run rings around the CustomPC machine.

Stickman 1

Hey Digital Solitude, - Yes had a look at self build vids. TerrorFirmer now suggesting another model at Dabs and adding Video card myself – might just be up for that!

Thanks for that, TerrorFirmer. If I were to do as you suggest would that machine be good to go apart from peripherals – keyboard, mouse, monitor, etc? I mean don’t underestimate my ignorance – I was looking at another one until ScottStorm informed me that it didn’t even have a graphics card! (By the way thanks for that, ScottStorm!)

Digital Solitude

Terrors link is a sound machine, needs nothing but a keyboard, mouse and speakers with a monitor

MarkAnthony

Basically there aren't any good PC retailers now (or ever really in Ireland). I worked in the industry pretty much from the inception of the home PC in the 90s and no one has ever found a way to build PCs, sell them a decent price and deal with the technical support users required. Time/Tiny were rip off merchants but at least if you were nice to the guys in the shop they'd usually help. PC World have always been a bunch of bollox and now simply don't sell gaming machines. I worked for Mesh which was a boutique builder in the UK, they had the bright idea of targeting 'new PC owners' and their technical support collapsed almost over night with the demand.

By far the best thing to do is build yourself. Failing that get a barebones system and add a GPU (Video card). The main dealers like Dell concentrate on Memory and CPU, even worse they highlight hard drive sizes. Why? Because these are cheap components. The thing to go for above anything else is the GPU. That should be the starting point of any gaming machine, everything else is a secondary concern.

The majority of the lads here would be delighted to help you build for a few beers and you'll get no better technical support than this forum. You'll see plenty of people offering to build on adverts. It can really be done by a trained monkey so anyone with decent feedback will be grand. Get the parts speced out here then get someone in to build it for you.

Stickman 1

Thanks for that, guys. I think I'm getting there. Probably back with more tomorrow(!)

Stickman 1

Hi Guys,

Have had a look at a few youtube videos on changing graphics cards. Might just about be up for that. Just a few questions though…

1. I assume that all graphics cards will fit in all computers – that the slots etc are universal?

2. Are there software issues when you do this – do you have to uninstall old drivers/install new ones – or is it simply a matter of opening up the case taking out the old card, putting in the new one and turning your computer back on? Some of the videos mention this issue in passing, others make no mention of it at all.

3. I see from Dabs website that the graphics card which TerrorFirmer recommends is out of stock at present – if I were to get this computer now, with the intent of getting the graphics card when it is available again, would my son be able to use the computer for gaming in the meantime – i.e. is the graphics card in it now good enough for gaming? Does this computer outperform the custompc one even without the upgraded graphics card?

4. Does this computer have wireless capability – I can’t tell from the specs, I just assume all computers do but then discovered it was an optional extra at custompc.ie.

Thanks again for all the advice.

Stickman 1

Also - how many cores does the processor have - everyone seems to be talking about cores now, the more the better - but i can't tell form specs.

Skerries

Hi Guys,

Have had a look at a few youtube videos on changing graphics cards. Might just about be up for that. Just a few questions though…

1. I assume that all graphics cards will fit in all computers – that the slots etc are universal?

for your purposes and if you buy that pc then there is no need to worry as it is big enough for a new graphics card and will the right connection

2. Are there software issues when you do this – do you have to uninstall old drivers/install new ones – or is it simply a matter of opening up the case taking out the old card, putting in the new one and turning your computer back on? Some of the videos mention this issue in passing, others make no mention of it at all.

there will be no graphics card in that pc as it is built into the processor so you will just need to install the card and then install the drivers which will be on a provided disk but you should download the latest ones

3. I see from Dabs website that the graphics card which TerrorFirmer recommends is out of stock at present – if I were to get this computer now, with the intent of getting the graphics card when it is available again, would my son be able to use the computer for gaming in the meantime – i.e. is the graphics card in it now good enough for gaming? Does this computer outperform the custompc one even without the upgraded graphics card?

as i said the graphics currently is a built in one so not very powerful and will not be able to play any new games effectively and will look horrible

4. Does this computer have wireless capability – I can’t tell from the specs, I just assume all computers do but then discovered it was an optional extra at custompc.ie.

wireless only comes standard in laptops and is usually an optional extra for desktops as most people would have a network cable directly connected

Thanks again for all the advice.

Stickman 1

Thanks, Skerries.
As you can see I'm on a steep learning curve here...

Xenoronin

We usually suggest homeplugs to people looking to connect their PC up to the internet. If your modem is too far away from your PC to connect directly, you can actually use the power lines in your house. Plug ethernet cable into modem, plug other end into the homeplug in a socket. Plug the other homeplug into a socket near the PC, plug in an ethernet cable into the homeplug and the other end into the PC. Works 95% of the time. Some people's houses are wired badly, but most decent homes should be fine.

Stickman 1

Thanks for that, Xenoronin. Good to know. Our wiring quite recent so hopefully should be ok.