Parents are buying me a computer, need some help figuring things out...

[Shotgunsnipa 268]

First, sadly, my parents will not let me buy parts and put them together (for a few reasons not worth listing)

Second, thanks anyone who takes their time to help me with this

Third, I'm getting a windows PC (Sorry, I'm not familiar with linux, and mac is... well just plain terrible.

Fourth, I'm going to stop counting...

I'm looking for something that is around or less than $1000, and is within the range of upgrading in the future (i.e. the power supply is 700 watts, so a graphics card doesn't need to be lower powered in the future; my current computer has 400w, and it has been annoying to up the graphics card as my father is uncomfortable changing too much even though it is well within his ability).

I'm looking for something that can run (For point of reference really) a game like SC2 or Diablo 3 on the higher end settings (not including when the screen is full of hundreds of units like in mass battles in SC2).

If anyone could point me in the right direction, as well as asking about the dozens of things I have left out (I am pretty unaware when it comes to hardware, but I'd like to think I'm skilled with software), I'd appreciate it...

[Velo 2077]

Don't ever think about buying a:

1) eMachines

2) Acer

3) Gateway

(They're basically the same companies.)

They use low quality parts (Especially eMachines, If you purchase an AMD box from them, the MB will probably take a shit, or power supply, Their intel boxes use those junk celeron processors that have no cache.), I've never worked with an acer, but i'm assuming that they are shit b/c of their association with emachines and gateway, and gateway's customer support is just plain shit as in the worst i've ever seen.

Dell looks like it's been moving in the right direction the past few years, so has HP

Lenovo is OK if you've got the cash

Stay away from gaming laptops obviously, if you do feel the need, buy the longest-lasting warranty you can as parts usually don't last long due to excessive heat and usage.

Also think about getting a job?

Edited May 17, 2012 by Velo

[wuggabo 14]

Do you have a monitor?

All you need to do is go to hp.com or dell.com and just look at customizing a pc.

Do you know quite a bit about pc parts or a little bit or not at all? I would look at just getting basic i5 or i7 depending on how much you want to spend, 8gb of ram, 1tb hard drive (dont really even need a tb but oh well), 600w psu, personally im a nvidia guy i will be putting a 550ti in my pc shortly its a good budget card and will run all the games out currently.

On hp you can customize pretty much every part of the pc you would like to buy add whatever take whatever out just take a good look and you will be set.

[wuggabo 14]

Didnt feel like dicking off with editing the other one.

Operating system Windows 7 Home Premium [64-bit] edit Processor Intel® Core i5-2500 quad-core processor [3.3GHz, 6MB cache] edit Memory 8GB DDR3-1333MHz SDRAM [2 DIMMs] edit Hard drive FREE UPGRADE to 1TB hard drive from 500GB edit Secondary Hard Drive No secondary hard drive edit Office software Microsoft® Office Starter: reduced-functionality Word & Excel w/ ads. No PowerPoint or Outlook edit Security software No additional security software edit Graphics card 1GB AMD Radeon HD 7450 [DVI, HDMI, VGA adapter] edit Primary optical drive SuperMulti DVD Burner edit Networking Integrated Ethernet port, No wireless LAN edit Productivity ports 15-in-1 memory card reader, 2 USB, audio edit TV & entertainment experience No TV Tuner edit Sound Card Integrated sound edit Keyboard and Mouse HP keyboard and optical mouse edit

Your additional options: Click edit to modify. NOTE: These items are in stock and will ship immediately. Monitor HP 2311x 23-inch LED Monitor edit

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Edited May 17, 2012 by wuggabo

[Shotgunsnipa 268]

Don't ever think about buying a:

1) eMachines

2) Acer

3) Gateway

(They're basically the same companies.)

They use low quality parts (Especially eMachines, If you purchase an AMD box from them, the MB will probably take a shit, or power supply, Their intel boxes use those junk celeron processors that have no cache.), I've never worked with an acer, but i'm assuming that they are shit b/c of their association with emachines and gateway, and gateway's customer support is just plain shit as in the worst i've ever seen.

Dell looks like it's been moving in the right direction the past few years, so has HP

Lenovo is OK if you've got the cash

Stay away from gaming laptops obviously, if you do feel the need, buy the longest-lasting warranty you can as parts usually don't last long due to excessive heat and usage.

Also think about getting a job?

I did know to avoid acer and the like. If necessary, I have the money to add a few grand, but the comp is a high school graduation gift; thus I have money saved up for college that I'd be using, but considering I have college tuition paid for by the school and room and board mostly paid off in scholarships, it may not hurt to use this money I've been saving on this. Is the problem with gaming laptops with the inaccesibility of its hardware, or just the general disability in comparison to a desktop? I've wanted a desktop, but I can see where a laptop could be convenient. Other advice is noted.

Do you have a monitor?

All you need to do is go to hp.com or dell.com and just look at customizing a pc.

Do you know quite a bit about pc parts or a little bit or not at all? I would look at just getting basic i5 or i7 depending on how much you want to spend, 8gb of ram, 1tb hard drive (dont really even need a tb but oh well), 600w psu, personally im a nvidia guy i will be putting a 550ti in my pc shortly its a good budget card and will run all the games out currently.

On hp you can customize pretty much every part of the pc you would like to buy add whatever take whatever out just take a good look and you will be set.

I do have a monitor (better than a standard one), so I don't need a new one. I'd say I know a little bit about some specific parts (hard drives, ram) , but next to nothing about most others.

The other post, I have some other things to consider well before I get to that step.

[wuggabo 14]

What exactly do you have to consider before you go to that step of selecting each part?

[wuggabo 14]

double post

Edited May 17, 2012 by wuggabo

[Ace 51]

Don't ever think about buying a:

1) eMachines

2) Acer

3) Gateway

(They're basically the same companies.)

They use low quality parts (Especially eMachines, If you purchase an AMD box from them, the MB will probably take a shit, or power supply, Their intel boxes use those junk celeron processors that have no cache.), I've never worked with an acer, but i'm assuming that they are shit b/c of their association with emachines and gateway, and gateway's customer support is just plain shit as in the worst i've ever seen.

Dell looks like it's been moving in the right direction the past few years, so has HP

Lenovo is OK if you've got the cash

Stay away from gaming laptops obviously, if you do feel the need, buy the longest-lasting warranty you can as parts usually don't last long due to excessive heat and usage.

Also think about getting a job?

I did know to avoid acer and the like. If necessary, I have the money to add a few grand, but the comp is a high school graduation gift; thus I have money saved up for college that I'd be using, but considering I have college tuition paid for by the school and room and board mostly paid off in scholarships, it may not hurt to use this money I've been saving on this. Is the problem with gaming laptops with the inaccesibility of its hardware, or just the general disability in comparison to a desktop? I've wanted a desktop, but I can see where a laptop could be convenient. Other advice is noted.

WUT. I thought you were like 46 years old. ._.

[skitt 1307]

i had something written up, but I'm too fucking lazy to do it again. longstory short, listen to other ppl about brands(i dont buy full computers anymore, so idk) for a dece desktop, and buy a netbook if you want a laptop for notetaking in classes.

[DarkPredator 1193]

Shotgun, where do you live? Do you have any companies youre already looking at buying from? Or local builders who will build it for you and you can buy from?

AND EDIT:

If you have the monitor, you're looking to spend $1000 without that cost?

Do you have keyboard/mouse? Speakers?

FYI, dont get the AMD Radeon 7450 if you want to play modern games

I threw this together using some random website as like a guide for what you could get for around 1000, im sure you can do better though, especially since I put a random SLI motherboard on there because you said you might expand sometime. also the mobo has USB3 but the case doesnt, you gotta make sure if youre buying parts from a company who will put it together that it all matches up for what you want

IMHO, i never find myself upgrading my computer often enough to warrant using SLI at all. I upgrade once every 3 years-ish and each time it hasnt been worth it to get a copy of my older shitty graphics card

my upgrade order usually goes like this:

1. I want new GFX card. I choose one.

2. I find out that my CPU will be too far outclassed by this new GFX card so I choose a new CPU too.

3. New CPU doesn't fit the old socket on my mobo so I have to buy a new mobo.

Those are the 3 main components that take up your costs usually: CPU, GPU, MOBO

The GPU not so much, but if your upgrade patterns are YEARS apart, then you're probably gonna have to upgrade your CPU and MOBO at the same time. And upgrading those 2 alone means taking your entire computer apart. So if down the road you wanna upgrade, you might want to look into building computers in the mean time so you're able to do it yourself by buying the parts.

Otherwise I would suggest skip upgrading, and when you want to, sell your old computer for what you can get, and buy new shit. Now I'm going to sleep lol

Edited May 17, 2012 by DarkPredator

[Shotgunsnipa 268]

Shotgun, where do you live? Do you have any companies youre already looking at buying from? Or local builders who will build it for you and you can buy from?

AND EDIT:

If you have the monitor, you're looking to spend $1000 without that cost?

Do you have keyboard/mouse? Speakers?

FYI, dont get the AMD Radeon 7450 if you want to play modern games

I threw this together using some random website as like a guide for what you could get for around 1000, im sure you can do better though, especially since I put a random SLI motherboard on there because you said you might expand sometime. also the mobo has USB3 but the case doesnt, you gotta make sure if youre buying parts from a company who will put it together that it all matches up for what you want

IMHO, i never find myself upgrading my computer often enough to warrant using SLI at all. I upgrade once every 3 years-ish and each time it hasnt been worth it to get a copy of my older shitty graphics card

my upgrade order usually goes like this:

1. I want new GFX card. I choose one.

2. I find out that my CPU will be too far outclassed by this new GFX card so I choose a new CPU too.

3. New CPU doesn't fit the old socket on my mobo so I have to buy a new mobo.

Those are the 3 main components that take up your costs usually: CPU, GPU, MOBO

The GPU not so much, but if your upgrade patterns are YEARS apart, then you're probably gonna have to upgrade your CPU and MOBO at the same time. And upgrading those 2 alone means taking your entire computer apart. So if down the road you wanna upgrade, you might want to look into building computers in the mean time so you're able to do it yourself by buying the parts.

Otherwise I would suggest skip upgrading, and when you want to, sell your old computer for what you can get, and buy new shit. Now I'm going to sleep lol

I live in a location where computer stores are relatively spread out and don't last long, so I'm purchasing it online. I have a monitor, keyboard, and mouse, so I'm not worried about those. I can raise my budget from $1000 to a maximum of $2000, but if I can keep closer to $1500, I'd be happy.

I'm looking at the form you have put up, and it seems like I could give my personal thoughts about certain pieces

Processor: How different is an i5 from an i7? Is the difference enough to warrant favoring an i7?

Memory: I will possibly just use the memory from this comp, along with what ever default memory (assuming it has a second memory slot {if I'm running vista on this comp, is that an issue or is the OS stored in another way?}).

Graphics Card: I've been using a site to give me an idea of what kind of power these have, but is there a way to tell other than that or reviews?

I have to go take finals, so I'll probably ask more around 4:30. This is my last day of highschool (essentially, I may go to play Risk tomorrow).

[Justice 69]

For the need of running something like SC and D3 these suggestions go way too high.

Going for a PC, the price can be lowered greatly. Then again I don't know much about ready comps, do they sell Dual-Cores anymore even?

We are looking at pretty high performance here, running BF3 and such is no problem. It's up to you then, I mean, if it's a present it doesn't really matter. Then again, it's your parents money it seems, which ever one prefers, save a lil or go for the best.

[DarkPredator 1193]

I'm looking at the form you have put up, and it seems like I could give my personal thoughts about certain pieces

Processor: How different is an i5 from an i7? Is the difference enough to warrant favoring an i7?

Memory: I will possibly just use the memory from this comp, along with what ever default memory (assuming it has a second memory slot {if I'm running vista on this comp, is that an issue or is the OS stored in another way?}).

Graphics Card: I've been using a site to give me an idea of what kind of power these have, but is there a way to tell other than that or reviews?

I have to go take finals, so I'll probably ask more around 4:30. This is my last day of highschool (essentially, I may go to play Risk tomorrow).

CPU:

For the gaming you specified, an i5 is more than adequate actually. TBH with you, I don't know much about AMD CPUs because for gamers they can't hit the right price/performance ratio atm (You can verify that with net reviews if you want). You could even go with the i3 2120 for your needs. I game with the i5 2500k on BF3 at 75% of max settings at 1080p and feel no lag (for me that takes an avg 100 FPS). My younger brother games with the i3 2120 at the same settings and screen and he only sometimes gets lag when hes sitting inside a massive explosion (which doesnt last long). IMO, the i7 are for rich people with money to blow who want the very best. Additionally, I'm not sure if you're into overclocking or ever will be, but the only difference between the i5 2500 and the i5 2500k is that the "k" version can overclock for like $5 more.

GFX Card:

I like to use TigerDirect a lot to buy parts and they list power consumption requirements sometimes. On the box of the part they WILL list it for sure, but you're not buying parts. So for you if you're ordering from online I would do as you've been doing, check reviews etc.

Make sure if you're looking for the power consumption for a part in google that you find pretty much the exact part, say for example it's a

EVGA 01G-P3-1461-KR GeForce GTX 560 Superclocked Video Card - 1GB, GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0 (x16), 2x Dual-Link DVI-I, Mini-HDMI, DirectX 11, Dual-Slot, SLI Ready, Overclocked

In the above example, the parts I've highlighted in blue are the important parts for power consumption

Most important is: GeForce GTX 560 <-- thats the base model and if you can find a review of that all others should be pretty similar

Second important is the fact that the version above is: 1 GB <--- nowadays GFX cards can be 512 MB, 1 or 2 GB, sometimes even higher, that could change power consumption slightly

And finally not so important is the brand and overclocked or not, which can only change power consumption slightly. Just keep an eye out for if they have a custom brand cooling solution on the card. Like if it says "Silent Cooling NO FANS", the power consumption would actually be less, but your heat would probably be up

There's one other VERY IMPORTANT part about GFX cards and power supplies. Most high end new GFX cards require an independent power connection (or TWO) which plug directly into the GFX card. If the vendor your purchase from is responsible theyll take care of that though.

For your memory question, do you mean the Hard Disks or the RAM? And the OS question, are you buying a new OS? If so I'd do what wuggabo said and get the cheapest version of win7 possible that suits your needs (or *cough* MyDigitalLife forums - Win7 Repository *cough*). If you're trying to transfer your whole OS into the new computer using the same hard disk that should be easyish. If youre trying to transfer your licence of windows from an old hard drive to a new hard drive that gets more complicated

And yeah I mentioned it above, if you're dealing with a reputable vendor at all they should help you through the process and mention things that don't add up or fit together

[wuggabo 14]

Personally im starting a build right now and i will be buying an amd cpu, much cheaper then intel its said not to be as good as intel but when you are buying a processor that is close to 4ghz speed itll work just fine.

my build will be

600w psu

gigabyte 970 mobo

8gb of corsair ram

nvivia 550

amd fx 4100 3.6ghz (3.8ghz turbo)

ofc win 7 blah blah

[Shotgunsnipa 268]

In response to the people saying things are overboard, I will likely use this computer for 8 years or more. I just gave those as a starting point, but the better it is the better. At this point, I believe I am using money specifically allocated to me for spending on a college computer (and gaming computer).

The OS thing, I have Vista on whatever it is stored on (the hard disks right?), but I'd prefer a windows 7 PC. I want to use my old memory so that I won't have to re-install everything; is this possible if the operating systems are different (and I'd prefer to use both).

[wuggabo 14]

Your hard drive is what stores you operating system aka vista

If you are able to upgrade your os to win 7 you can keep your files but if you have to do a clean install of win 7 then you have to reformat your hard drive erasing all data.

The safest bet is just to get a few dvd-rw or a big jump drive and save all your files onto that then when you get the new pc you can transfer those files over. Just save the things you dont want to lose like pics movies music documents any games you can just reinstall not really worth the time of saving each game to xfer over.

Your "memory" aka ram in your pc has nothing to do with the storage of files in your pc.

[Shotgunsnipa 268]

I know about the Random Access Memory; I just assumed memory on the hard drive was what would be assumed as memory... Sorry

[wuggabo 14]

No need to be sorry bro im just trying to help you out so you have a better understanding of it all. Buying a pc when you only know a little bit about the subject cant make things very hard.

[Velo 2077]

In response to the people saying things are overboard, I will likely use this computer for 8 years or more. I just gave those as a starting point, but the better it is the better. At this point, I believe I am using money specifically allocated to me for spending on a college computer (and gaming computer).

The OS thing, I have Vista on whatever it is stored on (the hard disks right?), but I'd prefer a windows 7 PC. I want to use my old memory so that I won't have to re-install everything; is this possible if the operating systems are different (and I'd prefer to use both).

In response to the people saying things are overboard, I will likely use this computer for 8 years or more. I just gave those as a starting point, but the better it is the better. At this point, I believe I am using money specifically allocated to me for spending on a college computer (and gaming computer).

The OS thing, I have Vista on whatever it is stored on (the hard disks right?), but I'd prefer a windows 7 PC. I want to use my old memory so that I won't have to re-install everything; is this possible if the operating systems are different (and I'd prefer to use both).

Just download win7 and use a loader...

Been doing this since win7 was released. If you really want a legit copy of win7, go to walmart or somewhere and peel the COA off of a display model.

Edited May 18, 2012 by Velo

[fatb0y 1337]

When buying assembled computers, all the parts are going to function pretty much the same.

So work out whatever specs you want, and pick a company that has amazing customer service. Because customer service is the only "plus" to buying an assembled computer. Also, you can just have the people assembling your computer install a copy of win7 for you. Then all you have to do is stick your current hard drive in there and transfer files and whatever.

just get this: http://www.shopping.hp.com/en_US/home-office/-/products/Desktops/HP-Pavilion-Elite-Phoenix/A5U34AV?HP-Pavilion-HPE-h9-1120t-Phoenix-Desktop-PC

Also, if you plan on using this computer for 8 years? lol then spend the extra money, because in 8 years you are probably gonna need the "excessiveness" people here keep commenting on.

[Windmill 1521]

Whatever you do don't buy a Dell/Alienware. If I were you, Shotgun, I would make an effort to convince them. Show them the price of a pre-assembled computer by like Dell or something. Then, find identical specifications, looking at individual parts, on newegg.com and show them the difference.

[fatb0y 1337]

Whatever you do don't buy a Dell/Alienware. If I were you, Shotgun, I would make an effort to convince them. Show them the price of a pre-assembled computer by like Dell or something. Then, find identical specifications, looking at individual parts, on newegg.com and show them the difference.

its not a big difference.... I don't know why you think it will be.

[Dyscivist 5686]

[fatb0y 1337]

Just get a Falcon-NW pc.

[MOFLSTOMP 899]

Dys, where the hell do you find these things?