Looking to get a new PC

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shadowgooey
Posts: 10
Joined: Sat Dec 14, 2013 2:29 pm

Hey guys so I know the base equivalent of nothing when it comes to PC parts and what they do, but I'm looking to get a new computer that can actually run all the games I want, preferably on the highest settings, but I can make due for medium if it keeps the price downish. the most graphics intensive games I have are probably Dragons Dogma, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, and The Witcher 3. My price range would be about 1k - 1.5k Canadian. If you guys have any suggestions or can at least point me in the right direction, that would be amazing! thanks :)
l4tte
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2015 4:32 pm
Location: Scotland

Hey! I'll need a little more information, do you need peripherals, if so what do you need? Monitor, mouse, keyboard, etc.
Also are you intending on building the system or do you want a prebuilt?
With a little more info I'll do my best to help you out! :)
shadowgooey
Posts: 10
Joined: Sat Dec 14, 2013 2:29 pm

thanks dude :) I have basically everything else, mouse, keyboard, monitors. I think I will want to put it together myself, from what I'm to understand it's just the best way to get a powerful machine
l4tte
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2015 4:32 pm
Location: Scotland

Alright, first you're going to want to learn how to build a computer. It's really not that hard, so no need to worry! I recommend watching some of LinusTechTips older videos on how to build computers, you could check out some stuff on this playlist - they're Canadian also ;) . Also just flicked through this video which seems pretty informative!

Okay I'll put a few lists together and explain, first is a little over budget.
http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/K7cYVn
-I chose an Intel i5 processor (CPU), 4th gen because they are reasonably priced, because for the most part these are more than enough for high end gaming, it's a non k processor also. K processors are enthusiast focused as they have the ability to be over clocked - that's to have their clock speed increased.
-As for a cooler be quiet! is a good manufacturer with good quality products. I chose an air cooled solution from them, mostly to keep the price reasonable. I should also mention there is closed loop water cooling which is a little more expensive but better at cooling, I'll add another one in another list and explain it.
-As for motherboard (Mobo) I went for a full ATX board, which is a standard sized board with plenty for expansion slots for more graphics cards or any other type of expansion card you may want to add. I believe this board is good, also I would like to point out that it does not have on-board WiFi, I'm not sure if that's an issue but many gaming focused motherboards do not include them. You can get expansion cards for WiFi if you don't have a wired connection or another board with on-board WiFi
-I gave you 8GB of RAM, this is a minimum for gaming. You might want to tend towards 16GB. Note that you are going to want to have 8GB, 16GB, or 32GB as you need to have 1, 2, or 4 RAM sticks - this is a technical limitation with single and dual channel.
-As for storage I gave you an SSD, only 120GB to keep the price in range. I recommend one of these as they will allow you to boot up your computer a lot faster, also note when installing things be sure not to fill it up much as this causes it to run slower. I also added a 2TB HDD for mass storage.
-Okay so graphics card (GPU), I decided to go with Nvidia here and gave you a GTX970. This is a fairly high end card and very popular, apparently the most common used by Steam users.
-Okay so the card is more or less an aesthetic decision that I have to leave up to you. I chose this case because I have it and I like it for many reasons, it has a fairly clean look to it. Also has a basement where the power supply unit (PSU) goes, this helps with cable management (hiding the mess ;) ). It doesn't have a spot for an optical drive though (CD reader/writer) which may not appeal to you.
-As for PSU I think a 650W should do you fine, especially since you can't overclock this CPU and only have one GPU.
-Added Windows 10, because you can't get Windows 7 reliably anymore. Maybe someone can point you in the right direction for it if you want it.

Okay my second list for you, this is more or less within your price range:
http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/7NQqxr
-I went AMD this time to keep the price down a little. They are good for being well priced, but their high end CPU's lag behind Intel, however for your solution this should be enough!
-The cooler this time is a closed loop water cooler. Don't panic! These are not hard to install, no more so that a regular cooler, you just need a case that can fit this one. You could change it to the Corsair H80i and that should fit in pretty much any case as its radiator (how the water is cooled) is smaller, also cheaper.
-Motherboard is the same idea as earlier, just can fit this type of CPU.
-RAM is pretty much the same.
-Storage solution is similar just with 1TB, rather than 2TB to keep the cost down.
-GPU is the same.
-I left out a case this time, this is very much up to you. Check back with us here for any help with compatibility!
-PSU is also the same.
-I added an optical drive for this one. You will need one to install Win10, but even if your case doesn't fit an optical drive you can still just attach it to some spare cables when the case is opened up and do what you gotta do!
-And added Win10 again.

Some more info, when starting out use PC Part Picker as it helps with compatibility and shows the best deals - for the most part! Also don't go 100% by what I say, go mess around with that website. If you need anything else explaining or want more details just come as us here. I'm more than happy to help you get this right and help you out!

Good luck mate :)
shadowgooey
Posts: 10
Joined: Sat Dec 14, 2013 2:29 pm

thanks for the suggestions :) I will see what I can do with these!
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AnarchyPrison
Posts: 8
Joined: Sat Nov 28, 2015 12:00 pm
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Recently built my first PC its got a gtx 960 and haven't run into to much it cant play 1080p 60fps i guess my question is what resolution and Hz are the panels because that will really play into the build also are you planning to overclock ?
shadowgooey
Posts: 10
Joined: Sat Dec 14, 2013 2:29 pm

I have no current plans to overclock, and I have no idea what panels are
l4tte
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2015 4:32 pm
Location: Scotland

Panels are your display, basically. They can be LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), IPS (In-Plane Switching), LED (Light Emitting Diode), etc. Too much information probably, but you get the gist of it. As for Hz (Hertz), this is basically the frame rate at which your monitor runs, how many frames it can show per second. But yeah by panel he just means the monitor itself ;)
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