Newbie in Building and Need Help Building First Computer

[cmadrid]

They price match.. you have to pay sales tax, but you also get to return stuff to the store if something is f'd up

[tp4tissue]

They price match.. you have to pay sales tax, but you also get to return stuff to the store if something is f'd up

I guess if you live very close, it's fine..

It takes me a good hour to get there..  so the price difference would have to be more than $20 FROM the online competition to get me off my butt..

[fohat.digs]

you also get to return stuff to the store if something is f'd up

I am lucky that Micro Center is only 20 minutes away and their return policy is amazing and generous and no-questions-asked.

And, when you get to know the store, you learn which of the employees are helpful in both technical and pricing knowledge.

[tp4tissue]

you also get to return stuff to the store if something is f'd up

I am lucky that Micro Center is only 20 minutes away and their return policy is amazing and generous and no-questions-asked.

And, when you get to know the store, you learn which of the employees are helpful in both technical and pricing knowledge.

technical knowledge.... ??

you come to geekhack..  Tp4 got you covered.

[TimIsABat]

::::UPDATE::::

Here is what I can gather from doing research on YouTube as well as from the inputs from you guys!

I pulled this from a build Paul's Hardware did on his channel on a $1200 build! I also have decided to buy parts slowly overtime. I feel that I would complete faster than hopefully having enough money all at once. 1-2 parts per paycheck or more depending on future expenses. I added a wireless card, speakers, sound card, OS, and monitor. I'll definitely check out microcenter as well to check out the CPUs, GPUs, and MOBOs. Hopefully I can get as many parts that will match my Ducky Shine 4 CE as well lol.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/zTdggs

[Rodgaroon]

I don't know about that audio card. Do you have cans that need the added power? Onboard sound has come a long way. If you Really want to get a sound card get DGX for like $40. Or save up and get a Dac and Amp from Schitt Audio (if you have cans that need it, if not don't drop extra $$$ on this)

I like that fact that you got a SSD. They are a God Send. You can get a solid case for $50. just wait for a sale. the Antec three hundred two is great for $50-60. If you are not over clocking then don't get the CPU cooler. the stock one is just fine.

an extra $150 is an extra $150.

[tp4tissue]

The best computer audio is going to get ,  is Toslink.. 

Computers are super noisy.. this is especially true on G4m3r/0vercl0cker boards..

Galvanic isolation,   you want to get away from the PC 's electrical circuits as much as possible..


Toslink is the BEST.  but only stereo..


HDMI audio is , so so depending on the receiver you plug-into, but usuallllly adds a bit of latency to the audio, so it's up to you.



Different DAC chips make 0 difference,   but obviously Different DAC-builds make a big difference in terms of coloring audio.

[aznairjordan]

Budget: $1000-$1200
More specific use (what games, what programs): Counterstrike GO, FFXIV, Phantom Pain, Fallout 4
Planned time until purchase: 3-4 months
Do you need an Operating System?: yes
Do you have any specific preferred components?: i5, and Nvidia graphics card for the most part
Do you need a sound or wireless card?: yes and yes
Do you want stock cooling or do you plan on overclocking?: stock cooling
Do you need a monitor? mouse? keyboard?: monitor
Zip code/location? (Shipping): 07728

I suggest you wait til a week or so when you are actually ready to buy and then bump this thread. I'll give you the link to the build I think works best for what you want, but it's kind of pointless since you aren't buying it right now and prices on parts will change a lot in 3-4 months.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/7YNRmG

I'm not that familiar with wireless cards, but there should be enough of your budget leftover to get one of your choosing or if someone else wants to recommend one. Also, sound cards are inferior to an external dac/amp. If you're looking for 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound, I believe there are some that can do that.

lol this brings me back to the d2jsp days

[Leslieann]

Overclocking was great back when it paid off. Old systems could get as much as 50% increase, these days, the return on investment is so low (after you get better cooling, power supply, case...) it's not really worth the effort. Not to mention an I5 is so far ahead of the software it's not really a concern. Yes, there are cases where a faster CPU helps, but the CPU is rarely a bottleneck these days. Go with an I5, if you can swing a K series go for it, but really, it's not the best place for your money. I would recommend more memory or getting a quieter heatsink/fan combo rather than a K series. You will get more from the silence than you will shaving 1/1000 off boot times. I would also recommend an SSD, if only a 128gig, that's something you can feel, and yo especially if you have a real ultrabook with an SSD.  I would start with 8 gigs, but leave room for 8 gigs more.

Since you are not overclocking, a basic board is fine, especially if you plan on getting a sound card later.  However, by the time you get a decent sound card and wireless, you could get a higher end board with both of those features included.

Spend whatever you have left on the best video card you can get for $300 or so. Much above that you get less bang for the buck, too far below and you get something that won't last.

If you plan on buying parts a bit at a time, start with case and power supply, those rarely change much. Then motherboard and cpu (wait as long as you can, then buy the best you can, don't wait for the next best thing or you will be perpetually waiting. Ram, ssd's and hard drives are quite volatile and tend to jump around, with the latter two usually only dropping. Traditionally, prices will level off late Novemember, you might see a sale just before or after Christmas but expect prices to go up after New Years and that will last till Spring before prices start falling again. Final note... DDR4 is coming, so DDR3 prices will fall, this can be good for buying now, but also means later upgrades can be more of a hassle. It won't be like DDR2, there was special circumstances (flooding) that caused DDR2 to skyrocket at end of life, but it won't be on every shelf either for much longer.

[tp4tissue]

Overclocking was great back when it paid off. Old systems could get as much as 50% increase, these days, the return on investment is so low (after you get better cooling, power supply, case...) it's not really worth the effort. Not to mention an I5 is so far ahead of the software it's not really a concern. Yes, there are cases where a faster CPU helps, but the CPU is rarely a bottleneck these days. Go with an I5, if you can swing a K series go for it, but really, it's not the best place for your money. I would recommend more memory or getting a quieter heatsink/fan combo rather than a K series. You will get more from the silence than you will shaving 1/1000 off boot times. I would also recommend an SSD, if only a 128gig, that's something you can feel, and yo especially if you have a real ultrabook with an SSD.  I would start with 8 gigs, but leave room for 8 gigs more.

Since you are not overclocking, a basic board is fine, especially if you plan on getting a sound card later.  However, by the time you get a decent sound card and wireless, you could get a higher end board with both of those features included.

Spend whatever you have left on the best video card you can get for $300 or so. Much above that you get less bang for the buck, too far below and you get something that won't last.

If you plan on buying parts a bit at a time, start with case and power supply, those rarely change much. Then motherboard and cpu (wait as long as you can, then buy the best you can, don't wait for the next best thing or you will be perpetually waiting. Ram, ssd's and hard drives are quite volatile and tend to jump around, with the latter two usually only dropping. Traditionally, prices will level off late Novemember, you might see a sale just before or after Christmas but expect prices to go up after New Years and that will last till Spring before prices start falling again. Final note... DDR4 is coming, so DDR3 prices will fall, this can be good for buying now, but also means later upgrades can be more of a hassle. It won't be like DDR2, there was special circumstances (flooding) that caused DDR2 to skyrocket at end of life, but it won't be on every shelf either for much longer.

How far software goes vs how far hardware goes,  that's really irrelevant.


Faster is faster, regardless of which field makes the first move..


From the perspective of the SUN, humanity's technology is the bottleneck..  from the perspective of humans,  the sun is just too damn hot..

So you see..   more is more, regardless of perspective..  relative terms however can become meaningless.