- xSapphire
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- Fabled Member
Posted by: xtremetman85
What does gigahertz mean? What is a good amount of them.
How do I know what parts are good, what key specs should I look at for each part; mobo, pcu, etc?
Do I need a heatsink?
How do I know parts are compatible? (I just hope they are and have been lucky)
And where can I go to learn everything?
For CPUs, more than 3GHz is optimal for gaming.
RAM should be 4GB to 8GB, unless you're running massive memory-eating programs. CPU, already said above. Try and get a quad-core. For the hard drive, 1 terrabyte and 7200RPMs. The general sweet spot for power supplies is 600-700 watts, providing you're not running crossfire/SLI. Try and get at least a bronze-certified one. And there are no specs for the motherboard. Just make sure it's compatible with your other parts, and it has enough PCI slots for your purposes.
I don't know about AMD, but Intel CPUs come with a CPU cooler. You don't need an aftermarket one unless you plan on overclocking.
Make sure the CPU socket in the MOBO matches the CPU (IE LGA1155 CPU, LGA 1155 motherboard), make sure the motherboard supports how much RAM you are buying, make sure you've got the proper amount of pins in your RAM (standard is 240). Everything else is more or less compatible with anything.
I dunno, here, I guess, for know. I learned by building. And, getting advice from Jackie (OP).