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Never built a computer before, pretty bad with this stuff.

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Comments

  • stillwatersstillwaters Member UncommonPosts: 13

    I have used  nothing but http://www.ibuypower.com/ 

     

    Great site

  • maskedweaselmaskedweasel Member LegendaryPosts: 12,195

    Originally posted by Sainthood

    Originally posted by midgey555



    I am hoping to spend somewhere between 800-1300 bucks total including buying an OS.  (ive never tried vista or 7 so I would like a reccommendation on this as well.

     

     

     

     

    Enough said..Some of the parts you are being recommended to buy will cost you 500 bucks for 1 item.

    Windows 7 professional =  $250

     

     

    If he's building then he could buy an OEM disk and cut that by half,  Pro is a good option because it comes with a licensed XP installation.  If he goes prebuilt it will come with an OS loaded,  most likely a windows 7 install of some sort.



  • IzkimarIzkimar Member UncommonPosts: 568

    Lol, honestly bro a lot of these dudes have no idea what they are talking about.  None of them have dealt with Digital Storm, there will be no errors this company gets it right.  I'm telling you go look at reviews about most the other sites and you will read horror stories about bad customer service and doa's.  Go look around in the forums in DS and it is completely different.  Now did you say price isn't really too much of a conflict?  I saw a guy post that you want a 5870, and a better cpu, but that's hard when you're budget is around the 1200 range.  But, don't worry about your cpu struggling to play games, it won't happen anytime soon and it's gonna have a high overclock.  But, if like you said money isn't too high of an object and you want to up the budget a little I could get you an even better config.  But, if not the rig you have will do you good.  MMORPG isn't really the best forum to be asking for computer advice lol as you can see, but why don't you post a thread in the config section at DS about building a pc in general and see what advice they will give you.

  • IzkimarIzkimar Member UncommonPosts: 568

    Oh yeah, personally I would stay away from anything Cyberpower, and Ibuypower.  Those two for sure, go look around at reviews online about them there is toooooo many horror stories.  Yeah, some people get lucky and get a working rig, but there are many who haven't and they won't do anything to fix the problem, hell you can see a bunch of previous buyers from there complaining on the DS forums, like we said this is your money your dealing with and the best advice I can give you is stay away from those 2.

  • midgey555midgey555 Member Posts: 185

    Originally posted by gracefield

    Originally posted by midgey555

    Originally posted by gracefield

    Originally posted by midgey555

    Ok well I have been wanting a new computer for quite some time and since im going to play FFXIV it gives me just another excuse to buy one.

    I have never built a computer nor have I ever even looked into it.  Ive never been good with this sort of thing and really have no clue what part does what.  I have heard that you can build a much better computer for cheaper than it would be to buy one from dell.  I already have a very nice monitor so that would not be needed, I would however need to buy an OS with it I guess.

    I dont know anything about this stuff but I have heard as long as you follow a guide or some such the actual assembly is pretty straightforward, I just have no clue on everything I need and dont know what to buy.

    So if someone is REALLY nice could I possibly get a list of what I need?  And if your really up to it recommendations/links would be awesome. 

    I am hoping to spend somewhere between 800-1300 bucks total including buying an OS.  (ive never tried vista or 7 so I would like a reccommendation on this as well.

    Also, this way is much more simple but would this be better than building my own?  And what additions should I add to it if i go this route? http://www.dell.com/us/en/home/desktops/alienware-aurora/pd.aspx?refid=alienware-aurora&s=dhs&cs=19&~ck=mn

     

    I know its a lot to ask for but im a little nervous with this, as its quite a bit of money going towards something im not too sure about, thanks.

     Mate, if you have as little knowledge of computer design and function as you profess, then I honestly think you should save yourself the hassle and avoid trying to put one together yourself. Save and buy one, you have to buy the bits anyway, so just save a while longer and get the job  done right.

    Also, if you are determined, then save yourself further hassle by not asking for tech advice on a gaming forum - go to one of the dedicated tech forums where you will find the people much more knowledgeable and eager to help you than the hard-nosed old gaming cynics that you'll find on here...

     actually *most* of the people on this thread were incredibly helpful and I have a better idea of what to get now.  I only came here because I needed a machine that would run FFXIV and I thought that might be a better option than going to another forum.  Thanks to everyone that actually provided me with useful information!

    I'm only trying to help you mate, but you go right ahead. And when you're up to your ears in parts you don't understand and fighting to deal with one error after another that you haven't a clue about, come back on here and see how many of these "incredibly helpful" people will have time to sort you out. Trust me, I've been at this a lot longer than you and going by your first post, I'd say I have more chance of getting off with Kate Beckinsale than you have of building a computer that'll play FInal Fantasy! But tear away, pal. Don't forget to let us know how you're getting on now...

     

    Edit - the best advice on here came from Severius btw. To which you replied, "...I'm not too worried about tech. support."

    I hope you have limitless patience and money to burn...

     when I said most people on here were being helpful I didnt mean you werent, im sorry if you took it that way.  I was referring to the people who wanted to get into a pissing match with me for no reason.  I only said tech support isnt much of a problem because I honestly have never had problems with computers, at least not up to needing to call someone for help...and usually the answers are easier to find online than anywhere else.

  • IzkimarIzkimar Member UncommonPosts: 568

    That's the thing though, it's not about needing tech support for small issues.  It's about major issues, custom computers are a tricky thing and things can go wrong easy.  That's why you would want to be ensured you're getting good parts, and a tech support that will actually answer and help.  Look around on here resellerratings.com.  Look  around at the bad reviews, and see that most never got any help with tech support and got rigs that were not acceptable.  You look at the bad report on Digital Storm and obviously the damage the guy described was a shipping ordeal, and you know how shipping can be dude's don't give a damn about your boxes usually.  Anyways Digital Storm actually addresses his issue on there and talks about taking all the fees and completely rebuilding it, something you would never get in that situation with the other places.

    Cyberpower  - http://www.resellerratings.com/seller6897.html

    Ibuypower - http://www.resellerratings.com/seller2001.html

    Digitalstorm Online - http://www.resellerratings.com/seller3902.html

  • gracefieldgracefield Member UncommonPosts: 279

    Originally posted by midgey555

    Originally posted by gracefield


    Originally posted by midgey555


    Originally posted by gracefield


    Originally posted by midgey555

    Ok well I have been wanting a new computer for quite some time and since im going to play FFXIV it gives me just another excuse to buy one.

    I have never built a computer nor have I ever even looked into it.  Ive never been good with this sort of thing and really have no clue what part does what.  I have heard that you can build a much better computer for cheaper than it would be to buy one from dell.  I already have a very nice monitor so that would not be needed, I would however need to buy an OS with it I guess.

    I dont know anything about this stuff but I have heard as long as you follow a guide or some such the actual assembly is pretty straightforward, I just have no clue on everything I need and dont know what to buy.

    So if someone is REALLY nice could I possibly get a list of what I need?  And if your really up to it recommendations/links would be awesome. 

    I am hoping to spend somewhere between 800-1300 bucks total including buying an OS.  (ive never tried vista or 7 so I would like a reccommendation on this as well.

    Also, this way is much more simple but would this be better than building my own?  And what additions should I add to it if i go this route? http://www.dell.com/us/en/home/desktops/alienware-aurora/pd.aspx?refid=alienware-aurora&s=dhs&cs=19&~ck=mn

     

    I know its a lot to ask for but im a little nervous with this, as its quite a bit of money going towards something im not too sure about, thanks.

     Mate, if you have as little knowledge of computer design and function as you profess, then I honestly think you should save yourself the hassle and avoid trying to put one together yourself. Save and buy one, you have to buy the bits anyway, so just save a while longer and get the job  done right.

    Also, if you are determined, then save yourself further hassle by not asking for tech advice on a gaming forum - go to one of the dedicated tech forums where you will find the people much more knowledgeable and eager to help you than the hard-nosed old gaming cynics that you'll find on here...

     actually *most* of the people on this thread were incredibly helpful and I have a better idea of what to get now.  I only came here because I needed a machine that would run FFXIV and I thought that might be a better option than going to another forum.  Thanks to everyone that actually provided me with useful information!

    I'm only trying to help you mate, but you go right ahead. And when you're up to your ears in parts you don't understand and fighting to deal with one error after another that you haven't a clue about, come back on here and see how many of these "incredibly helpful" people will have time to sort you out. Trust me, I've been at this a lot longer than you and going by your first post, I'd say I have more chance of getting off with Kate Beckinsale than you have of building a computer that'll play FInal Fantasy! But tear away, pal. Don't forget to let us know how you're getting on now...

     

    Edit - the best advice on here came from Severius btw. To which you replied, "...I'm not too worried about tech. support."

    I hope you have limitless patience and money to burn...

     when I said most people on here were being helpful I didnt mean you werent, im sorry if you took it that way.  I was referring to the people who wanted to get into a pissing match with me for no reason.  I only said tech support isnt much of a problem because I honestly have never had problems with computers, at least not up to needing to call someone for help...and usually the answers are easier to find online than anywhere else.

    No sweat, mate, I know what you mean. I just think that, as the guy before me says, building a decent PC that'll do the job takes a bit of know-how, not the gung-ho attitude you get from most of the headcases on here. You strike me as a guy that's not terribly at home with technology and I'm just trying to spare you the expense and the stress that could be yours. Just be careful with your cash.....

  • GrimzayGrimzay Member Posts: 214

    Someone could have just posted a link or few to legit websites that build the computers for you.

    All you do is pick out the case and the insides and shabang.

    x.X

    "We got rid of the trinity." How'd you do that? "Now everyone can heal." Sounds like you just took the mechanic and spread it thin. "Well no, there's one class that can do it better than others." I see, so they're healers. "No. They're.." -mind asplode-

  • IzkimarIzkimar Member UncommonPosts: 568

    Look back on the other pages, some people did post links.

  • GrimzayGrimzay Member Posts: 214

    Originally posted by WardTheGreat

    Look back on the other pages, some people did post links.

     Couldn't be bothered, by bad.

    Assumed nobody did because it's so long.

    "We got rid of the trinity." How'd you do that? "Now everyone can heal." Sounds like you just took the mechanic and spread it thin. "Well no, there's one class that can do it better than others." I see, so they're healers. "No. They're.." -mind asplode-

  • sOnEsOnE Member Posts: 10

    Just built my comp last week, did all my research using newegg reviews and websites.

     

    OS:    Windows 7 professional 64 bit from

    Had to use a crack because I bought an upgrade version, but crack was sucessful because I had a legit cd key. Just tricked the system to think that I had xp on it and was upgrading to windows 7.  Used a usb to installed windows 7.

    http://www.microsoft.com/student/en/us/software/windows.aspx

    29.99



       

    Motherboard:    GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 X58 ATX Motherboard   (microcenter.com)

    LGA 1366 are the ones you want to get, They are top of the line

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0327331

    $220



    You can also get this

    X58 SLI LE LGA 1366 X58 ATX Motherboard

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0312963

    Just as good, but read the reviews on www.newegg.com

       

     

    Processor:    Core i7-930 Processor     (microcenter.com)

    Best price I found. Also this one can be overclocked to be better than the high end ones

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0331303

    $200

       

        

    RAM:    Corsair XMS3 6GB DDR3-1600 (PC-12800) CL8 Memory Kit (Three 2GB Memory Modules) (microcenter.com)

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0311100

    $210



    Power Supply:    Corsair HX750 750W Professional Power Supply (microcenter.com)

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0314083

    $170 after pricematching with bestbuy

        



    Tower:    Nine Hundred Two Mid Tower Gaming Case (microcenter.com)

    Got mine for $120 after pricematch, its lower now due to rebate

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0305999

    $100



    Harddrive:    Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7,200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0331606

    $100





    Videocard:    GeForce GTX460 SuperClocked PCIe 2.0 x16 Graphics Card

    From EVGA, 768 MB.  EVGA is the best, it was also benchmarked as the best, better than other brands that has 1GB. Overclocks higher than other brands too.

    Also EVGA offers LIFETIME WARRANTY on this card, except for physical damge like dropping it. You can Overclock this and still get warranty.

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0342003

    $220



    DVD drive:    Sony 24x DVDRW SATA

    I don't have a link, but get a sata drive instead of IDE, don't know if they still sell IDE, but SATA is the new technology

    $35



    Extra - CPU fan

    Hyper 212 Plus Universal CPU Cooler

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0315397

    Easy to install

    $30



    Extra - Thermal Paste cause the one that comes with the i7 sucks

    IC Diamond 7 Carat Thermal Compound 1.5g

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0282371

    7$



    This is a badass comp, hope this helps you. Also this was my first comp that I built, have always bought premade comps.  Took 5 hours for me to get everything assembled.  Hope this helps ya.



    Total was 1301 before tax.

     

  • IzkimarIzkimar Member UncommonPosts: 568

    Originally posted by sOnE

    Just built my comp last week, did all my research using newegg reviews and websites.

     

    OS:    Windows 7 professional 64 bit from

    Had to use a crack because I bought an upgrade version, but crack was sucessful because I had a legit cd key. Just tricked the system to think that I had xp on it and was upgrading to windows 7.  Used a usb to installed windows 7.

    http://www.microsoft.com/student/en/us/software/windows.aspx

    29.99



       

    Motherboard:    GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 X58 ATX Motherboard   (microcenter.com)

    LGA 1366 are the ones you want to get, They are top of the line

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0327331

    $220



    You can also get this

    X58 SLI LE LGA 1366 X58 ATX Motherboard

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0312963

    Just as good, but read the reviews on www.newegg.com

       

     

    Processor:    Core i7-930 Processor     (microcenter.com)

    Best price I found. Also this one can be overclocked to be better than the high end ones

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0331303

    $200

       

        

    RAM:    Corsair XMS3 6GB DDR3-1600 (PC-12800) CL8 Memory Kit (Three 2GB Memory Modules) (microcenter.com)

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0311100

    $210



    Power Supply:    Corsair HX750 750W Professional Power Supply (microcenter.com)

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0314083

    $170 after pricematching with bestbuy

        



    Tower:    Nine Hundred Two Mid Tower Gaming Case (microcenter.com)

    Got mine for $120 after pricematch, its lower now due to rebate

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0305999

    $100



    Harddrive:    Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7,200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0331606

    $100





    Videocard:    GeForce GTX460 SuperClocked PCIe 2.0 x16 Graphics Card

    From EVGA, 768 MB.  EVGA is the best, it was also benchmarked as the best, better than other brands that has 1GB. Overclocks higher than other brands too.

    Also EVGA offers LIFETIME WARRANTY on this card, except for physical damge like dropping it. You can Overclock this and still get warranty.

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0342003

    $220



    DVD drive:    Sony 24x DVDRW SATA

    I don't have a link, but get a sata drive instead of IDE, don't know if they still sell IDE, but SATA is the new technology

    $35



    Extra - CPU fan

    Hyper 212 Plus Universal CPU Cooler

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0315397

    Easy to install

    $30



    Extra - Thermal Paste cause the one that comes with the i7 sucks

    IC Diamond 7 Carat Thermal Compound 1.5g

    http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0282371

    7$



    This is a badass comp, hope this helps you. Also this was my first comp that I built, have always bought premade comps.  Took 5 hours for me to get everything assembled.  Hope this helps ya.



    Total was 1301 before tax.

     

    The Evga card is no different than the reference card.  All of the cards are the same, except some companies will change up cooling methods on some cards, or in your case they factory overclock it.  Which you end up paying a premium price for, also if you plan on overclocking it why did you buy the superclocked?  For future reference to save you some bucks, just get reference then overclock yourself.

  • IzkimarIzkimar Member UncommonPosts: 568

    Originally posted by gravenz

    I am going to build this:

    http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=20097248

     Do you plan on overclocking bro?  If so I would reccomend going intel i7, because the amd cpu's don't respond as well to overclocking as the i7's do.

  • sOnEsOnE Member Posts: 10

    Originally posted by WardTheGreat

    The Evga card is no different than the reference card.  All of the cards are the same, except some companies will change up cooling methods on some cards, or in your case they factory overclock it.  Which you end up paying a premium price for, also if you plan on overclocking it why did you buy the superclocked?  For future reference to save you some bucks, just get reference then overclock yourself.

    The superclocked version is better for overclocking

    http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-460-review/28

    The evga 768mb sc is the best in the addition, it even beats the 1028mb ones from different companies, plus you get lifetime warranty so go EVGA.

  • IzkimarIzkimar Member UncommonPosts: 568

    Originally posted by sOnE

    Originally posted by WardTheGreat

    The Evga card is no different than the reference card.  All of the cards are the same, except some companies will change up cooling methods on some cards, or in your case they factory overclock it.  Which you end up paying a premium price for, also if you plan on overclocking it why did you buy the superclocked?  For future reference to save you some bucks, just get reference then overclock yourself.

    The superclocked version is better for overclocking

    http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-460-review/28

    The evga 768mb sc is the best in the addition, it even beats the 1028mb ones from different companies, plus you get lifetime warranty so go EVGA.

     I don't know where you get that the superclocked is better for overclocking..  It is the same exact card except that it is factory overclocked for better out of the box performance, but it is the same card.  All gtx 460's will respond to overclocking the same, and you can go evga without going superclocked. 

  • Mellow44Mellow44 Member Posts: 599

    It's easy to build your own computer and if I can do it then you can do it.

    All it takes is patience and small fingers. image

    All those memories will be lost in time, like tears in the rain.

  • viddsterviddster Member UncommonPosts: 220

    And some sticking plasters, do not forget the Band-aids for your sliced fingers. ;)

    image
  • Kilo_BravoKilo_Bravo Member Posts: 33

    Originally posted by midgey555

    Originally posted by maskedweasel

    Midgey, building your own PC is a fantastic way to get acquainted with your hardware, as well as getting the best deal for your money,  but I'm going to go out on a limb here and say you do not want to build your own PC.

     

    Sure we could tell you what sounds good, what to buy, how to put it all together, but the truth of the matter is,  as simple as it is to some of us, you may not find the task nearly as easy, and in the event the PC doesn't POST or you plug in your case connections wrong, it could be tough to troubleshoot.

     

    For 900 dollars you can buy some great gaming systems that would do very well running FFXIV and come with a support option if an when you run into issues.

     

    It would also be much easier to have a large company with local technicians that can service your PC if you have a problem instead of dealing directly with manufacturers and sending parts away.  Not that I agree with most large chain retail techs -- they'd no sooner wipe your PC then find the actual problem,  but for the average end user it may be your best bet.

     

    IF you are deadset on building we can work through that as well, but from how you are talking, building may not be your best option.

     Thats what I was afraid of.  I actually was trying to hire someone to do the research and the work for me, but he didnt seem too interested (someone I know).  I know its incredibly selfish of me, but I was sort of looking for a list of everything with a good setup.  I would attempt this on my own only im sure I would screw up somewhere

    I just feel like im going to be wasting my money if I purchase a pre built pc as most people I talk to now say they havent done that in years.  How would that computer I linked stack up to a custom built computer for the same price?  And is that a better option than the other one listed in this thread?  .  If its not that big of a difference buying one from a company then that might really be the smartest choice for me, I am open to suggestions on good deals.

    Thanks

    Have you got another friend who would be interested in helping you?

    Because I find it difficult to just write the ways you could accomplish this the way you would want it accomplished.

    As for not buying pre-built machines, that's basically a fallacy. People who purchase pre-built machines aren't as outspoken as those who don't, and part of the reason why you think it's popularly "just not done" is because you hear less of those that actually do.

    In the end, it's all about what you need and the time you'll need it for. Pre-built or not, you're going to need to replace it in 4 years or so.

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