Beginner New Build

insular1

Hi all,

Was planning a build a few years ago but got postponed due to the arrival of kids. With the announcement on Half life Alyx I've decided now's the time to get back to it.

1. What is your budget? [All in 800euro max, however the cheaper the better as I'm gonna have to buy all the VR gear as well.]

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? [Mostly gaming but also needed for some light spreadsheet work, browsing, streaming]

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

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. [From what I have been reading I should be looking at a 27" but open to correction on this]

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? [I have a cheap keyboard and Mouse but will probably need an upgrade. Happy to do this at a later date. Have wired ethernet.]

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? [Eventually I wouldn't mind looking into this but I'd like this build to be able to play Half Life Alyx out of the box]

8. How can you pay? [Paypal/credit card]

9. When are you purchasing? [The next month]

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? [Based in Kilkenny but would like to try build myself first]

I have been looking at various parts and prices to try and get a rig in my price range that can meet my desired spec but was struggling until I came across this link in a separate thread. Was wondering what people would think of this build:
https://www.cclonline.com/pc/specialist-gaming-pcs/pba/ccl-stryker-gaming-pc/?siteID=TnL5HPStwNw-ul5c4t9VYZN0LON0S.y9Qg

I upgraded the SSD to the Adata XPG SX8200 Pro for £13 and added 2 extra cooler master fans for £7 to bring the total to £530 or around €625. This would leave me €175 for a monitor.

This build would seem to meet the minimum spec for HL Alyx (I found here) and seems to be looking just as cheap and less hassle than sourcing all the parts seperatly.

What do ye think? Any worthwhile upgrades on this? Am I covered for HL-Alyx?

Xenoronin

Yup, that CCL build should run it no issue. I think you're pretty well covered. You can add more to this build over time and everything looks of good quality.

insular1

Xenoronin wrote: »

Yup, that CCL build should run it no issue. I think you're pretty well covered. You can add more to this build over time and everything looks of good quality.

Brilliant! Thanks for the response. Yeah I was really looking for something upgradable as I hope to be able to get back into gaming now the kids are a bit older so good to hear that.

Next up is monitors. Looking for something less than 175 to keep within budget. Seen this in a previous post. Would this suit my set up?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/iiyama-G2730HSU-B1-G-Master-Monitor-FreeSync/dp/B071FWBF6J

SweetCaliber

insular1 wrote: »

Brilliant! Thanks for the response. Yeah I was really looking for something upgradable as I hope to be able to get back into gaming now the kids are a bit older so good to hear that.

Next up is monitors. Looking for something less than 175 to keep within budget. Seen this in a previous post. Would this suit my set up?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/iiyama-G2730HSU-B1-G-Master-Monitor-FreeSync/dp/B071FWBF6J

Brilliant monitor.

For your ccl build I'd swap out the psu and if you have the cash the graphics card also, xfx are sh***. The psu is very budget also. For the extra 19 pounds you can get the bequiet one.

SweetCaliber

If you can stretch your budget then this build along with the monitor you linked come in at 835. Faster ram and better components. You'll also have the satisfaction of building your own pc!

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor (£108.78 @ Aria PC)
Motherboard: ASRock B450M-HDV R4.0 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard (£54.45 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (£64.99 @ CCL Computers)
Storage: ADATA XPG SX8200 Pro 512 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive (£56.99 @ Amazon UK)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon RX 580 8 GB PULSE Video Card (£175.20 @ CCL Computers)
Case: Cooler Master MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case (£40.47 @ Scan.co.uk)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520 W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply (£55.47 @ Scan.co.uk)
Total: £556.35
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-11-28 10:36 GMT+0000

gibgodsman

As someone who has VR and the PC to use it, I would say Sweet Calibers build is much better for the money than that CCL pre build.

Also, VR headsets, the decent ones anyway, are quite expensive, I think I spent €500 on my Oculus Rift S at the time and its slowly getting more and more outdated. And please don't spend 500+ just to play a VR game with a half life gimmick, Valve are only releasing it to sell their new headsets

insular1

SweetCaliber wrote: »

If you can stretch your budget then this build along with the monitor you linked come in at 835. Faster ram and better components. You'll also have the satisfaction of building your own pc!

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor (£108.78 @ Aria PC)
Motherboard: ASRock B450M-HDV R4.0 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard (£54.45 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (£64.99 @ CCL Computers)
Storage: ADATA XPG SX8200 Pro 512 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive (£56.99 @ Amazon UK)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon RX 580 8 GB PULSE Video Card (£175.20 @ CCL Computers)
Case: Cooler Master MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case (£40.47 @ Scan.co.uk)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520 W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply (£55.47 @ Scan.co.uk)
Total: £556.35
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-11-28 10:36 GMT+0000

This is amazing! I was actually looking forward to trying a self build but when I saw the value of that CCL Stryker I change my mind. Now you've swung it back the other way!

One question, with that case I think it comes with 1 fan, should I order more or would 1 be enough?

gibgodsman wrote: »

As someone who has VR and the PC to use it, I would say Sweet Calibers build is much better for the money than that CCL pre build.

Also, VR headsets, the decent ones anyway, are quite expensive, I think I spent €500 on my Oculus Rift S at the time and its slowly getting more and more outdated. And please don't spend 500+ just to play a VR game with a half life gimmick, Valve are only releasing it to sell their new headsets

Yeah I'm wary enough of the added cost of the Index (€1000:eek:) but I have always wanted to self build anyway and this was just the nudge to do it. Plan is build a PC specced well enough for that game and it should be able to play most games at reasonable setting. Then gonna play through a few new games (Witcher, Far cry) between now and when half life releases and if I'm still as enthusiastic then and have managed to save enough I'll probably get it. Really love the idea of VR but haven't had a chance to try it properly yet and have read fairly conflicting reports about it.

SweetCaliber

insular1 wrote: »

This is amazing! I was actually looking forward to trying a self build but when I saw the value of that CCL Stryker I change my mind. Now you've swung it back the other way!

One question, with that case I think it comes with 1 fan, should I order more or would 1 be enough?



Yeah I'm wary enough of the added cost of the Index (€1000:eek:) but I have always wanted to self build anyway and this was just the nudge to do it. Plan is build a PC specced well enough for that game and it should be able to play most games at reasonable setting. Then gonna play through a few new games (Witcher, Far cry) between now and when half life releases and if I'm still as enthusiastic then and have managed to save enough I'll probably get it. Really love the idea of VR but haven't had a chance to try it properly yet and have read fairly conflicting reports about it.

Didn't realise the case had only one fan.

If your going for another fan get this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Arctic-P12-PWM-PST-Pressure-optimised/dp/B07GJGF56L/ref=sr_1_15?keywords=quiet%2Bfans%2B120mm&qid=1574951543&sr=8-15&th=1

I have them and you cannot hear them at all they are so quiet. The stock cooler might be a little more louder but you can adjust that anyways.

The motherboard only has 2 fan headers so unless you get a splitter you can only have 2 fans, that should be fine though in a smaller case. If you feel you need another down the line then get a splitter and another fan.

insular1

Just wanted to pop back in and say thanks to everyone who helped with this. Ordered the parts almost exactly as listed by sweetcaliber above and the all arrived over the last few weeks.

First building was one of those weird experiences that was really enjoyable for no reason I can easily identify. Build went well, was a small hiccup when the rig wouldn't display anything to the monitor but after pressing down on every part a couple of times it worked. Think the GPU wasn't pressed in firmly enough.

Has been working like a charm last few days and by far the best gaming experience I've had in years even if I am just playing older games I've been meaning to catch up on.

So thanks a million for all the help and the push to build myself. Delighted with the results!

AlmightyCushion

insular1 wrote: »

Just wanted to pop back in and say thanks to everyone who helped with this. Ordered the parts almost exactly as listed by sweetcaliber above and the all arrived over the last few weeks.

First building was one of those weird experiences that was really enjoyable for no reason I can easily identify. Build went well, was a small hiccup when the rig wouldn't display anything to the monitor but after pressing down on every part a couple of times it worked. Think the GPU wasn't pressed in firmly enough.

Has been working like a charm last few days and by far the best gaming experience I've had in years even if I am just playing older games I've been meaning to catch up on.

So thanks a million for all the help and the push to build myself. Delighted with the results!

It's a law of nature, that when you build a PC something will cause it not to start up correctly. It happens to everyone no matter how many PCs they build. :pac: Enjoy the new PC.

K.O.Kiki

insular1 wrote: »

Just wanted to pop back in and say thanks to everyone who helped with this. Ordered the parts almost exactly as listed by sweetcaliber above and the all arrived over the last few weeks.

First building was one of those weird experiences that was really enjoyable for no reason I can easily identify. Build went well, was a small hiccup when the rig wouldn't display anything to the monitor but after pressing down on every part a couple of times it worked. Think the GPU wasn't pressed in firmly enough.

Has been working like a charm last few days and by far the best gaming experience I've had in years even if I am just playing older games I've been meaning to catch up on.

So thanks a million for all the help and the push to build myself. Delighted with the results!

If you want some free games, open a account on Epic Game Store https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-US/
They're giving away 12 games (1 a day)

insular1

K.O.Kiki wrote: »

If you want some free games, open a account on Epic Game Store https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-US/
They're giving away 12 games (1 a day)

Thanks for the tip! Reopened my steam account and have bought 8 games already for the princely sum of 12 euro. Forgot how addictive steam can be, need to try not fall into the trap of buying loads of games I'll never play just because they're cheap.

But if they're free then it's a win win! Never used the epic store before, when I was last playing games seriously Steam was pretty much the only store in town. Seems there's a load of them now!

K.O.Kiki

You can use GOG Galaxy 2.0 as a launcher for all the other launchers.
Also a good store front for old & DRM-free games.
https://www.gogalaxy.com/en/

insular1

K.O.Kiki wrote: »

You can use GOG Galaxy 2.0 as a launcher for all the other launchers.
Also a good store front for old & DRM-free games.
https://www.gogalaxy.com/en/

This is dead handy! Installed and now have set up Epic and origin accounts as well, all in the one place.

Do I still need the steam launcher installed if I have GOG?