Help! Building My own Comp.

[Carbon~IS]

I am a noob to the computer thing. I wanted to try to build my own computer this go around instead of buying a new one. I know a little on the stuff that are needed to build it, but not all. I picked out a case, and are looking at some mobo, and hard-drives. I know there is video cards, sound cards, and some other stuff to build it, but don't know what it is.

So I was wondering if there is a website, or if anyone wants to explain what are some other thing I will be needing to build my own computer. It will be for gaming purposes, and i just want it to be alittle above average. Recommendation on the parts would be very helpful also, and thanks in advance!

[b18hb]

www.pricewatch.com

amd processor (i have a amd athlon 64 3200)/mobo combo. at least 512 ddr ram. 100 gig 7200 rpm hd. geforce fx 5700 256 mb video card. sound card=pick something, you wont' notice a big difference anyway unless you have surround sound. get a decent cdrom, laser mouse, and monitor/projector with good resolution. that should pretty much get you set.

pm AtifSajid. he might be able to help you you with some of the components as well.

[chrisdavis]

This is the setup Im gonna build to play Unreal Tournament 2007 (yes UT2k7)

3.2g P4 w/hyperthreading
2gigs Ram
ATI XL800 Pro 256
Raptor 10,000 RPM 76gig hard drive

[Carbon~IS]

Thanks guys! I will research those tonight.

PS: chrisdavis, idk what those things are but 10,000rpm!!! DAMN!

[chrisdavis]

Thanks guys! I will research those tonight.

PS: chrisdavis, idk what those things are but 10,000rpm!!! DAMN!

P4 is an Intel processor. There are two brands of processor, Intel and AMD. The processor is essentially the engine. Some people prefer Intel, some prefer AMD.

Video cards also come in two chipsets. ATI and Nvidia(although there are many companies who make each brand). This is also a personal preference.

Raptor is a brand of hard drive. Most hard drives spin at 7200RPMs. The Raptor spins at 10,000RPMs making the retrieval of information faster. ;)

[4dmin]

for gaming you need:

Athlon 64bit, ATI video card (atleast 128ddr), sound onboard is fine just buy some good speakers, if you want to upgrade go Creative (gaming sound card), then you need 512-1gb of ddr memory, any harddrive 7200rpm or higher (you easily find them up to 15000rpm), gigabit network card (don't go wireless), make sure you have the same amount of fans blowing out as in your pc (meaning if you have 1 on the cpu you need one going out of the case), i would run xp pro

[ironchef]

for gaming you need:

Athlon 64bit, ATI video card (atleast 128ddr), sound onboard is fine just buy some good speakers, if you want to upgrade go Creative (gaming sound card), then you need 512-1gb of ddr memory, any harddrive 7200rpm or higher (you easily find them up to 15000rpm), gigabit network card (don't go wireless), make sure you have the same amount of fans blowing out as in your pc (meaning if you have 1 on the cpu you need one going out of the case), i would run xp proI agree with you completely, but I'd say a minimum of 1gb ram for games these days. Also look for SATA type harddrives as well, as theyre basically becoming the standard and their faster than the ones they replace.

[krindus]

most motherboards/processor packages come with fans, but i would recomend trying to find a higher flow fan. They usually also come with a built in ethernet (nic) card as well as a sound card. so unless your running some serious heavy sound equipment, then you should be fine with whats on the board. don't forget the little things too, like thermal paste for putting the processor on the motherboard (they come sperated). oh... and you can never have enough fans. Infact, i would actually recomend to have more exhaust fans than intake fans. Intake fans will bring in air and it will sit there and get hot. exhaust fans will suck it out, from other fans and holes in the case.

The hardest part of putting my computer together was getting all the plugs in the right slots (for buttons, lights, buzzers, the whole shebang) because i forgot to look at the direction sheet the computer came with... other than that. it's a breeze, anyone should be able to build there own computer.

[tybalt6691]

I got a PC for 350 w.21 inch monitor
amd 2500
512mb memory
128 mb mx440
dvd rom drive
40gb hd
21 inch dell trinitron monitor

[static]

Well I have a decent setup. I built my own some time ago. It is decent. 2.8 ghz p4 oc'ed to 3.4 ghz. 512 mb 4200 GeIL ram. 5950 ultra vid card. no heat sink unfortunately. 52x cd-r/dvd-r drive

[krindus]

oh yeah, don't forget to check newegg for the latest deals, exteremely reputable seller, very fast at shipping. www.newegg.com

[DinanM3atl]

P4 is an Intel processor. There are two brands of processor, Intel and AMD. The processor is essentially the engine. Some people prefer Intel, some prefer AMD.

Video cards also come in two chipsets. ATI and Nvidia(although there are many companies who make each brand). This is also a personal preference.

Raptor is a brand of hard drive. Most hard drives spin at 7200RPMs. The Raptor spins at 10,000RPMs making the retrieval of information faster. ;)

AMD if you want to game

[Buttons]

well my sister broke her computer. so my dad gave her mine, and he built me a computer. He went to places around town and got things offline. I know a couple things of what I have. which are:

Raptor 300 GB Hard Drive
1 GB of Ram
LanBoy Aluminum Case ( with a blue light up on the side & front)
2- 120 mm fans
CD/ DVD Combo Drive
DVD- R & W Drive
and some intel pentium...

and let me tell you, you have no clue what to do with 300 GB...

[wantboost]

and let me tell you, you have no clue what to do with 300 GB...
100 percent not true lol.

[DemonEyez]

eh since when did WD make 300gb raptor drives?
if u wait around btw looking for good deals u can build a awesome computer for cheap

example

Asus p5nd2
2gb ocz pc 6400 ddr2
intel pentium D 3.6ghz
zalman cnps7500 AT
antec Sonata II case w/ 450 2.0 PS
evga 7900 gt ko video card
soundblaster x-fi platinum
NEC 16x dual layer dvd burner
logitech MX 5000 keyboard/mouse set
Western Digital 250gb sata II 7200 rpm

All that for just barely under 1k.

while pricewatch is nice and all keep an eye out on www.fatwallet.com head to forums up top then hot deals top left. i took 3 months to find all the parts at cheap prices

like the 250gb hard drive for 20 bucks at a local retailer.
processor for 80 bucks. sound card for 120.

[Dark.GEAR]

LOL....wow, every1 here recommends AMD still, Intel Core 2 Duo for gaming. Just look it up. Cheapest one is a Core 2 Duo 1.83 ghz for about $190 and it could EASILY beat AMD's X2 3800+(also a dual core). And in some cases(take a look at the link) it can beat the X2 5000+(which is about $750). AMD's probably shitting their pants right about now.... LOL...ppl are still say AMD for gaming, that's freakin hilarlious..... INTEL CORE 2 DUO FTW!!!!!



here some benchmarks...
http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2795&p=14

[ironchef]

Look at the dates of most of the replies. Core 2 duo wasn't out when most people recommended the amd.

[Dark.GEAR]

Look at the dates of most of the replies. Core 2 duo wasn't out when most people recommended the amd.

lol so true...