- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
Another good post
Posted by: Silent Thunder
Good guide Coytler... it's good to see that not everyone is buying Dells. I would like to add a few things for someone who is seriously considering building their own system.
-Newegg.com is probably the best place to buy. Newegg has great shipping and awesome service, and you can selfom find a price that's much better (I would check PriceWatch.com just in case), plus their customer reviews and links to pro reviews like Tom's Hardware Guide (also an awesome site) come in handy. Sure, I'm a fanboy, but only because I've had repeated success.
-Don't be afraid to buy used, but only from hardcore gamer-types who upgrade frequently. I got a Radeon 9700 Pro video card for $125 from a guy who got a 9800XT. Best deal I've ever gotten. With video cards, ask if they still have the original box and dongles (S-Video cords, DVI to VGA converters, etc.) and if they have ever overclocked it. You probably don't want it if it was OCed, even if you're going to OC it yourself. Don't buy used CPUs if you can help it, as you can sometimes make a mess getting them off, and don't buy used unless you can save at least 30% over full retail.
-Make sure you have everything you need for a complete system before you buy and start putting it together. Here's a list of all the parts you will need (some you can probably take out of your old system if they're not too old):
1) Case- the external shell of your system. You want one that's not too cramped inside, is well laid-out, and looks cool, especially if you'll be hitting the LAN scene. Aside from cooling capabilties, this has no impact on your system's performance. Go to tomshardware.com and look at their semi-annual case guides for a good idea what to get.
1B) Power supply unit- most cases will come with this, but if yours does not, you have to have at least a 300 watt unit for almost any video card. ThermalTake and Antec make good PSU lines (TruePower and PurePower). 420w or greater is really recommended if you can swing it.
2) Motherboard- the component everything will be connected to. This mounts in your case and should be the first thing installed. Make sure the I/O plate (the big bump of ports on one edge) is facing through the hole in the case. Many motherboards require a custom I/O plate to put on the case, but this is almost always included with the mobo. ASUS is probably the best brand; EPoX and Gigabyte are also good.
3) CPU- the heart of your system. Make sure you get one that fits on your motherboard (the socket type should match up; i.e. all Athlons through the original 800mhz-or-so generation through the Athlon XP Barton use Socket A). Also, if you get the OEM instead of retail, you need a good heatsink- see below. Be ultra-careful when installing the CPU as they are fragile and expensive. Fortunately, once it's in you should never need to touch it again.
3B) CPU Heatsink (optional)- you only need this if you don't get the retail version of the processor. A good brand is Thermaltake, especially the Volcano series for Athlons. You usually wind up spending more on the OEM processor and heatsink together than you would on the retail processor, which includes the heatsink, but sometimes it's worth it-- the Athlon XPs have somewhat crappy stock cooling.
4) Memory- as a rule of thumb, you want memory with a rating greater than or equal to the model of processor. For example, if you have an Athlon XP 3200+, get PC3200 (also called DDR400). Get CAS latency 2.5 or 2.0, never 3. Kingson and Corsair are the best brands. You also want at least 512mb, and if your motherboard supports dual channel, get two sticks (2x256 instead of 1x512), as it improves memory bandwidth.
5) Drives- Get a hard drive with an interface that is supported by your motherboard. If you're not sure, get an EIDE model (up to ATA-133). If you know your motherboard supports Serial ATA (SATA), get a SATA drive; they have thinner cables and better performance. Seagate is a good brand. 80gb is about the smallest size you want. If you can afford one with an 8mb cache (2mb is standard) then get it. As for CD-ROM drives, you will want CD-RW and DVD, which you can get in a combo drive or seperately (LiteOn drives are solid and a good deal). A DVD burner can do the functions of the other two if you opt for one. If you feel you still need a floppy drive, get one, as they are under 10 bucks, but I recommend a USB flash drive for that purpose. If your case is black and doesn't have a door on the front covering the drives, you may want to get CD drives in black; most manufacturers offer this.
6) Video- the single most important aspect of a gaming system. Don't cheap out on this one. With a new generation of cards being released, the old models are getting cheap; the old flagship 9800 Pro is around 200 bucks and is still an awesome card. Be careful as many cards require a direct connection to your computer's power supply.
7) Sound- Most motherboards have this onboard (integrated), and they are almost all in 5.1 surround sound. Don't be fooled- many onboard sound chips are utter crap. The SoundStorm system on nForce 2 chipset-based boards is probably the best out there. If your integrated sound isn't very good, or isn't in 5.1 surround, the Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Gamer is a good deal and comes with several free games. The Platinum Pro is the best for hardcore types.
8) Networking- Once again, this is almost always integrated. But not every integrated networking system is equal. Some have Gigabit (1000mbps) and a few nForce 2 based boards have two slots, which comes in handy. If you want wireless, you'll most likely have to buy an add-on card, but some manufacturers have proprietary slots for their own WiFi devices; you can save some money this way.
9) Keyboard and mouse- You don't need anything too fancy. Logitech makes good keyboards, but I've been disappointed in their recent mice. Wireless mice are cool but not that great for gaming. At the moment I would recommend a Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer Optical and a Logitech wireless keyboard. At the minimum get a good keyboard and an optical mouse with scrolling. Once again, if your system is black, you might want to get a black keyboard and mouse to match.
10) Monitor- It's entirely up to you if you want a digital flatscreen or not; they're not as good for gaming as a good old-fashioned CRT, but they are very portable. If you opt for flat, make sure your video card has a DVI plug. With CRTs, get a 17" or up with at least .28 dot pitch. I recommend a 19" for gaming. ViewSonic and NEC are my favorite brands.
11) Speakers- You will most likely want a 5.1 speaker system to go with your computer. Logitech, Creative and Altec-Lansing all make good 5.1 systems for around $60. You can go up into the 400 dollar range and make a full home theater out of your computer if you want, but relatively cheap ones will probably suffice. A pair of headphones is useful for LAN parties, as speakers are usually discouraged and it's pretty much impossible to set up a full 5.1 system when all you have is a cubicle.
12) Operating System- This is one that is too easy to forget. You will most likely need a new copy for your new system unless you keep your old hard drive. WinXP Pro is better for networking if you're going to hit the LAN party scene and is probably worth the extra $$. Get the OEM version if you can, and save 50 bucks or so.
Those are the vital parts; anything else is really optional. You can get a fairly high-end system for around 1400 bucks, and have the comfort of knowing nothing crappy was slipped in to cause a bottleneck (Dells are bottlenecks in just about every area except the CPU, and sometimes even there). Upgrading works the same way, except you want to determine what parts are causing a bottleneck and replace them instead of buying everything new. Hopefully with this information and that given you by Coytler, plus thorough readings of all manuals (this is important), you should be able to build your system cheaply and without too much hassle. Good luck.
A realy good post about how to make your own computer
[Edited on 7/25/2004 11:07:10 AM]