# First time pc builder help please



## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Hi Im wanting to build my first pc soon and Im wanting it to be a gaming pc but I have a few questions before I decide I want to build one myself. 

1) Is the amount of money you save worth the stress of building it yourself?

2) Aslong as you know what parts are compatible with what and you destatic yourself is it still difficult to do?

3) Im wanting an overclocked system but Im concerned of damaging it if I do it myself but have read you can buy preclocked gpus cpus etc, do these work fine aslong as you provide sufficient cooling?

4) Would you recommend AMD or Intel?

5) Which is better a good fan or water cooling?
Im from the uk and I think there is mainly american users but I could be wrong but my budget Im wanting to spend but I would be willing to go slightly over is £1000.


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## JMPC (Jan 15, 2011)

1) For me it's not about saving money but about picking specific parts. You'd have to price out the parts you want and then find the same parts from a system builder to see how much you'd save.

2) it's not difficult to put a new system together but I would imagine it can be more difficult for a first time builder. There are tons of videos and guides online so you can watch the process first.

3) with sufficient cooling, overclocking is fine. Pre-overclocked systems and parts will typically be just as reliable. GPUs are the only parts that come pre-overclocked.

4) I like Intel for gaming.

5) Air coolers and water coolers can be comparable as far as performance. There are good ones and bad ones. Water cooling, except in the case of all in one units, can be complex.

You can find build suggestions for different price ranges in the sticky post at the top of the building forum.
http://www.techsupportforum.com/for...evised-2012-and-updated-regularly-448272.html


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

JMPC said:


> 1) For me it's not about saving money but about picking specific parts. You'd have to price out the parts you want and then find the same parts from a system builder to see how much you'd save.
> 
> 2) it's not difficult to put a new system together but I would imagine it can be more difficult for a first time builder. There are tons of videos and guides online so you can watch the process first.
> 
> ...


Oh right I thought you could buy everything preclocked so its only just gpus that you can buy preclocked? How difficult is it to overclock would it remove the warrant?

And that guide at the bottom looks good but I live in the Uk so its not much use to me.


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## JMPC (Jan 15, 2011)

It's not that difficult to overclock but I would suggest getting the system built and stable first before trying to overclock. In some cases it could void the warranty. 

Although the links for the parts are for US stores, the guide can help you determine which types of parts work well together in different price ranges. In most cases the same parts or very similar will be available anywhere.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

JMPC said:


> It's not that difficult to overclock but I would suggest getting the system built and stable first before trying to overclock. In some cases it could void the warranty.
> 
> Although the links for the parts are for US stores, the guide can help you determine which types of parts work well together in different price ranges. In most cases the same parts or very similar will be available anywhere.


Thanks for the advice  I think a overclocked gpu would make more of a difference then anything else overclocked anyway? Or would you say a oc CPU would make a big difference?


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## helios19 (Nov 25, 2008)

JMPC said:


> ...In some cases it could void the warranty.


Doesn't overclocking void the warranty in all cases?

In terms of cpu overclocking, they generally say go all the way or don't bother at all. So it depends on how much you OC it.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

I got a 25% speed increase in benchmarks with my overclock (from 3ghz to 4ghz), but the 960T is an exceptional overclocker so your results may vary.


AMD vs Intel is purely an issue of budget in my opinion. The Phenom II and FX processors from AMD are perfectly capable gamers and can easily cost you less than $150. You don't get significantly better CPU gaming power until you reach the $200+ range with the Intel i5s. The i5-2500k is about $220 right now. I would say you get more bang-for-buck from something like an overclocked FX-4100 or Phenom II 960T, but if you plan to purchase a $500 video card then a less expensive CPU will bottleneck you. So it's really all about budget.


So long as you keep an eye on your temps and purchase a good PSU, there's little risk involved with overclocking. It's also fun and educational to do it yourself.


GPUs are a little trickier to keep cool so overclocking with them isn't always as worthwhile. Gigabyte makes some cards with a triple-fan cooling solution that really rocks. My 6950 came pre-overclocked and stays under 60°c during a stress test.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> I got a 25% speed increase in benchmarks with my overclock (from 3ghz to 4ghz), but the 960T is an exceptional overclocker so your results may vary.
> 
> 
> AMD vs Intel is purely an issue of budget in my opinion. The Phenom II and FX processors from AMD are perfectly capable gamers and can easily cost you less than $150. You don't get significantly better CPU gaming power until you reach the $200+ range with the Intel i5s. The i5-2500k is about $220 right now. I would say you get more bang-for-buck from something like an overclocked FX-4100 or Phenom II 960T, but if you plan to purchase a $500 video card then a less expensive CPU will bottleneck you. So it's really all about budget.
> ...


Would a intel i5 3,3ghz sandbridge be good enough to easily run the latest games on max aslong as I have a good graphics card?

I've read that oc a 560 can make it as good as a 570? Or am I incorrect im new to the whole building a pc. Should I post the full list of what I was planning on getting?


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Also is there much benefit from oc Ram?


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

There's very little real benefit to overclocking RAM. Going from 1333 to 1600 is only a small difference, and anything above 1600 gives less added benefit still. 8gb (2x4gb) of DDR3-1600 is pretty much the best you can get before you just start wasting money on speed you'll never notice.

The i5 is capable of all the gaming you could imagine throwing at it. In-game, you wouldn't notice any difference between it and a less expensive AMD quad-core until you crank the graphics up to max on a highly demanding game.

As for overclocking a video card, nothing is guaranteed. Once again, cooling is more difficult on a video card, so you won't know what you can get out of it until you try. But it's usually not a big difference.

If you post your full component list, we'll be able to give more specific advice :smile:


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## Amd_Man (Jan 27, 2009)

To overclock memory you need high preformance memory designed for it because you have to increase memory voltages when overclocking. Using mainstream memory to overclock is a recipe for blue screens. As toothman said, little benefits to overclocking a gpu.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Amd_Man said:


> To overclock memory you need high preformance memory designed for it because you have to increase memory voltages when overclocking. Using mainstream memory to overclock is a recipe for blue screens. As toothman said, little benefits to overclocking a gpu.


So the only thing worth overclocking is the cpu? Also are SSD good for gaming? I know they are faster then a regular harddrive but they are so much more expensive are they worth it?

Ill post what components im wanting later today.


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

The largest benefit you would see is on application start times, provided of course the game is installed on the SSD. Those games which have all textures/maps installed on the SSD should show a noticeable improvement in load times. Frame rate should be unaffected. Those games which are played from the CD/DVD will see little benefit, if any.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> There's very little real benefit to overclocking RAM. Going from 1333 to 1600 is only a small difference, and anything above 1600 gives less added benefit still. 8gb (2x4gb) of DDR3-1600 is pretty much the best you can get before you just start wasting money on speed you'll never notice.
> 
> The i5 is capable of all the gaming you could imagine throwing at it. In-game, you wouldn't notice any difference between it and a less expensive AMD quad-core until you crank the graphics up to max on a highly demanding game.
> 
> ...


What im wanting is
gpu either 560 or 570

cpu: i5 2500 sanbridge 3.3ghz

ram: 2x4gb kingstone 1600mhz 

motherboard: asus sabretooth( I dont know if this motherboard is the best choice)

case: antec twelve hundred 1200.

powersupply: Dont know what power I need so havent decided yet.

Harddrive: still deciding if I should get 1 hard drive or a ssd and a normal hard drive.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Going with G.Skill or Corsair RAM would be beneficial.
You will need to be at 750W with a 560ti or a 570 GPU.
SeaSonic-XFX-Corsair.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Tyree said:


> Going with G.Skill or Corsair RAM would be beneficial.
> You will need to be at 750W with a 560ti or a 570 GPU.
> SeaSonic-XFX-Corsair.


Oh right thank you, I was thinking in a few years of getting another 1 of the same graphics card to get some extra life out of the pc. Or would I be better of upgrading to a single better graphics card? 

Also would the 750 be powerful enough for 2 560s or 570. And do you know what the ti means at the end of 560 ive seen about 4 different 560s to choose from whats the difference. Ive seen some have more gb then others.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Two GPU's is a waste of money. If you get to a point where one of the above GPU's can't keep up with the demand, and don't expect that to be anytime soon, then trade up to a more powerful GPU.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

"Ti" is the symbol for titanium on the period table. Nvidia just uses it as a suffix that sounds cool and means that the card is better than non-Ti.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> "Ti" is the symbol for titanium on the period table. Nvidia just uses it as a suffix that sounds cool and means that the card is better than non-Ti.


how much better is the 2gb 560 TI compared to the 1gb 560?


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

AnandTech - Bench - GPU12

Nothing huge. 1gb vs 2gb of memory will make very little difference until you start playing on massive resolutions, such as multimonitor or 2560x1600.

The price difference isn't huge, though.
Newegg.com - EVGA SuperClocked 01G-P3-1463-KR GeForce GTX 560 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Newegg.com - MSI N560GTX-Ti-M2D1GD5/OC GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> AnandTech - Bench - GPU12
> 
> Nothing huge. 1gb vs 2gb of memory will make very little difference until you start playing on massive resolutions, such as multimonitor or 2560x1600.
> 
> ...


From what that shows the normal 560 is actually better in a few cases, so ud say its only worth getting the 2b if im getting a large monitor? Im thinking of getting a 27" LED do you know what kind of resolutions on average they would use?


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

That would be listed in the model's specifications. My 27.5" is 1920x1200, just a little bigger than 1080p, and 1gb is plenty.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Im trying to find the nvidia 560 but its come up with loads of different makes of it and not by nvidia, do you know why this is and which is the best make?


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## JMPC (Jan 15, 2011)

Nvidia makes the GPU, not the actual cards. Not sure what brands you have available but ASUS, eVGA, Gigabyte and MSI make good cards.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

You can never go wrong with EVGA for Nvidia chipped GPU's. Asus are also top quality and I have used some Gigabyte.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Does the type of power supply matter? I dont understand why you can get some power supplies that give out the same W but can be like almost twice the price.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

There is a whole lot more than just wattage that goes into a power supply. Take a read through the PSU information sticky:
http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f210/power-supply-information-and-selection-192217.html

Since a low-quality or underpowered PSU is much more likely to fail, and when a PSU fails it can permanently damage some of your components (usually the video card), it's important to choose a reliable unit with sufficient wattage to handle your needs comfortably.

Best-quality units: SeaSonic, XFX, and Corsair (TX, HX, and AX models)


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## heroman87 (Dec 14, 2006)

You can get by just fine with a 650w psu of you're using a 560 ti and not planning on SLI'ing it.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

oh right ok thanks,does a good sound card make much of a different with games. Im thinking of getting
creative sound blaster fatality 3d professional


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

Sound cards offer no benefit unless you have a sophisticated speaker setup and are a sound-nazi :tongue:


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## A1tecice (Jun 1, 2010)

^
Amen to that! ...


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> Sound cards offer no benefit unless you have a sophisticated speaker setup and are a sound-nazi :tongue:


lol well I was thinking of getting top of the range gaming headset are you sure I wouldnt notice much of a difference with a really good headset on games if I had a good sound card to go with it?


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Also would you agree with the charts on this site for which graphics card best, and the chart for best value for money which it claims Radeon HD 6850 is?

PassMark Software - Video Card Benchmark Charts


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

Passmark is not exact. Their numbers come from users who have downloaded their benchmarking software, ran the tests in their own systems, and then uploaded the results. This gives you a pretty good "general performance" idea, but may not be accurate for in-game performance.

That said, the 6850 _is_ excellent for its price. It'll play the most demanding games on high/high+ and max out everything else.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> Passmark is not exact. Their numbers come from users who have downloaded their benchmarking software, ran the tests in their own systems, and then uploaded the results. This gives you a pretty good "general performance" idea, but may not be accurate for in-game performance.
> 
> That said, the 6850 _is_ excellent for its price. It'll play the most demanding games on high/high+ and max out everything else.


What would you say is the best benchmark comparison to use? Im wanting a card that can play everything thats out today on max, but at the same time isnt majorly expensive so I could upgrade in a few years time when its worth it.

Also wouldnt a good sound card make no difference for a good gaming headset?


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

Onboard audio these days fully support 7.1 surround sound - you'd be hard-pressed to have a speaker/headphone setup for which _that_ isn't good.

There's no performance gain to be had from it, either. Graphics and physics may have gotten more demanding, but sound is still pretty much the same. Gone are the days when your game could get noticeably smoother from installing a discrete sound card.

Also, if you want to play your games at max/ultra, you're looking at spending over $200. The HD 7850 is probably the best deal for this area. My 6950 has identical benchmarks and I couldn't imagine spending a dime more.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Musclynerd said:


> Does the type of power supply matter? I dont understand why you can get some power supplies that give out the same W but can be like almost twice the price.


The PSU is the most important piece of hardware is any PC. There is more to consider than just the Wattage numbers and many can't produce the numbers on their labels.
Stay with SeaSonic (SeaSonic- XFX- some Corsair) made units and you're good.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> Onboard audio these days fully support 7.1 surround sound - you'd be hard-pressed to have a speaker/headphone setup for which _that_ isn't good.
> 
> There's no performance gain to be had from it, either. Graphics and physics may have gotten more demanding, but sound is still pretty much the same. Gone are the days when your game could get noticeably smoother from installing a discrete sound card.
> 
> Also, if you want to play your games at max/ultra, you're looking at spending over $200. The HD 7850 is probably the best deal for this area. My 6950 has identical benchmarks and I couldn't imagine spending a dime more.


Oh right I thought I had seen that when I looked at some motherboards, would you say a good headset makes a big difference to sound quality in games? Also would you have any recommendations if it does.

And as for the graphics would you say the HD 7850 is worth getting over a geforce card? value for money wise


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Tyree said:


> The PSU is the most important piece of hardware is any PC. There is more to consider than just the Wattage numbers and many can't produce the numbers on their labels.
> Stay with SeaSonic (SeaSonic- XFX- some Corsair) made units and you're good.


I had no idea at all they were that important, I guess I best have a good look into them sometime. I just thought it basically provided power and had a fan on it to help keep the com cool. Do you have a recommendation for a particular power supply that has about 750w?


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Any PSU made by SeaSonic is top quality. SeaSonic-XFX and Corsair (not the CX-GS-M Series).


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

Musclynerd said:


> Oh right I thought I had seen that when I looked at some motherboards, would you say a good headset makes a big difference to sound quality in games? Also would you have any recommendations if it does.
> 
> And as for the graphics would you say the HD 7850 is worth getting over a geforce card? value for money wise


AMD cards, including the HD 7850, generally come with better price/performance than Nvidia cards, but that can vary greatly depending on the game. Skyrim and BF3 are two examples of games that favor AMD.

I prefer my speakers to my headset simply because dem phones can't rock tha bass, yo. But it's good to own both because a headset won't wake up a certain important female.

The headset I recommend:
Newegg.com - Creative Fatal1ty Gaming Headset
the microphone is good quality and doesn't pick up any of the sound coming through the headphones. good sound, too.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> AMD cards, including the HD 7850, generally come with better price/performance than Nvidia cards, but that can vary greatly depending on the game. Skyrim and BF3 are two examples of games that favor AMD.
> 
> I prefer my speakers to my headset simply because dem phones can't rock tha bass, yo. But it's good to own both because a headset won't wake up a certain important female.
> 
> ...


lol ive already got a creative fatal1ty headset , seems good but not had much of a chance to test it because my com keeps blue screening which is one of the reasons why I want a new one.

The main games I want a new pc for and want to be able to easily play on very max settings are:
crysis,diablo3, skyrim,metro and possibly bf3. Any others id want to play my current com could already max.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

If you wish to max BF3 and Crysis/Crysis 2 (Crysis 1 actually still a very demanding game), your £1000 budget seems about right. If you build something along these lines:

CPU: Intel i5-2500k
Mobo: ASUS z77, z68, or p67 ~£100 price range
RAM: G.Skill or Corsair DDR3-1600 8gb (2x4gb)
PSU: SeaSonic X750 
GPU: HD 7870
HDD: 1tb 7200RPM
Case: COOLER MASTER Elite 430
whatever DVD-ROM/Burner is cheap and reliable
27" Monitor from a good brand - £180ish

In USD on Newegg.com, the total comes out to just under $1400. You'd have a pretty amazing gaming computer right there and I couldn't imagine you having an issue with any game.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> If you wish to max BF3 and Crysis/Crysis 2 (Crysis 1 actually still a very demanding game), your £1000 budget seems about right. If you build something along these lines:
> 
> CPU: Intel i5-2500k
> Mobo: ASUS z77, z68, or p67 ~£100 price range
> ...


well the prices in the uk are alot more expensive then it is in america unless you looked at prices in the uk? I was thinking about the antec 1200 twelve hundred case because it looks good is it a good case to have?

And that budget doesn't include the monitor my gf is buying me that as a gift for oweing me a fair bit of money


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

The 1200 Antec is a good case but it's basicall a 900 with more fans/bling which is basically a 300 with more fans/bling.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

Tyree said:


> The 1200 Antec is a good case but it's basicall a 900 with more fans/bling which is basically a 300 with more fans/bling.


:rofl: Tyree breaks it down like a boss

put some LED fans in a three hundred and your case will look plenty sexy


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> :rofl: Tyree breaks it down like a boss
> 
> put some LED fans in a three hundred and your case will look plenty sexy


Ive just looked at it and it does look pretty much exactly the same...if I bought some blue led fans to put in it wouldnt it actually look exatcly like the 1200?


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Musclynerd said:


> Ive just looked at it and it does look pretty much exactly the same...if I bought some blue led fans to put in it wouldnt it actually look exatcly like the 1200?


Pretty much. Too many fans can be a problem. One 120mmin front & rear us usually sufficient.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

*** my post had disapeared and I got a email about a reply and I cant see that either :S


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

What do you think to dedicated gaming network cards such as bigfoot killer 2100?


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

negligible. distance from server is always going to be your hard limit, so you can only ever get your ping closer and closer to this limit. most good motherboards will be good enough that the difference is unnoticeable.

i play league of legends on ~62 ping and the server response feels instant.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> negligible. distance from server is always going to be your hard limit, so you can only ever get your ping closer and closer to this limit. most good motherboards will be good enough that the difference is unnoticeable.
> 
> i play league of legends on ~62 ping and the server response feels instant.


Oh right ill not bother with it then, thanks alot for the info uve helped me alot wish I could repay you back someway 

Im now trying to find a decent looking case that has red lights, im thinking of getting alienware tactx keyboard I love the look of how you can change the colours and it looks good in general. I wouldnt normally go for anything alienware because I know its overpriced but I just really like the look of the keyboard.

And im thinking of getting a razor mouse and mat but not sure which yet. As for a monitor im still deciding.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Cases are a personal choice but anything Alienware should be avoided. You can almost always get better for less.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

The power supply is the most important part of your computer. There is a hell of a difference between a 650w rosewill and a 650w seasonic. Its about quality.

If you go cheap or underpowered you will have problems and potentially damage the entire system.

Buy quailty and you will have a good running system for years.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Tyree said:


> Cases are a personal choice but anything Alienware should be avoided. You can almost always get better for less.


Do you know of another keyboard that has lights that change colour like that which is cheaper? Because I think it looks good, but id never buy anything else alienware


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Is there any 1155 motherboards you would recommend for gaming aswell?


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

Musclynerd said:


> And im thinking of getting a razor mouse and mat but not sure which yet.


can't go wrong with the deathadder:
Newegg.com - RAZER DeathAdder Precision Optical Gaming Mouse - 3.5G Infrared Sensor

As for mousepad, I've used TCG playing mats for years now :grin: something like this works perfectly, looks a lot cooler than a mouse, and gives you tons of room:
http://www.amazon.com/Dragon-Shield-Ar_c_ane-Dragons-Playmat/dp/B003FNWO62/ref=pd_sim_t_21


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

I was just looking at this site to compare how much it would cost for a gaming pc to come pre built and for me to do it myself.

everything I want from this site turned out to be about
£1263

for me to build 
£1025

but another thing I noticed when you click on motherboard it says ugkc motherboard next to the sabretooth does that mean its their own brand of it?
Could you go on this site and click info next to the motherboard and tell me what you think please
Scout - i5 Gaming Computer | i5 PCs | Gaming Computers, Gaming PCs & Custom PC desktop base units – UKGC


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

I doubt it.

For them to claim the asus sabertooth along with their name would mean they have to pay asus money and highly doubt they can afford that.

I always buy from Computer hardware, components & gaming PC retailer Overclockers UK or Computer Hardware - Scan.co.uk or PC Components, Desktop PCs, Laptops, LCD TVs & Computer Hardware


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

greenbrucelee said:


> I doubt it.
> 
> For them to claim the asus sabertooth along with their name would mean they have to pay asus money and highly doubt they can afford that.
> 
> I always buy from Computer hardware, components & gaming PC retailer Overclockers UK or Computer Hardware - Scan.co.uk or PC Components, Desktop PCs, Laptops, LCD TVs & Computer Hardware


Would you say making it yourself is really worth it? Because I know it saves a fair bit of money but the time and effort of putting it together im just worried is the risk of doing it myself and the time putting it together worth the extra expense, I know alot of people will say to me just look into it and do it its easy, but was it easy when you did it for the very first time?


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

It's challenging but rewarding. You learn a lot in the process, and you'll be much more capable as a user because of it.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> It's challenging but rewarding. You learn a lot in the process, and you'll be much more capable as a user because of it.


Im thinking of following this tutorial on how to actually build it if I decide to, ive watched one of his previous tutorials that was based on a pc years ago and it was really detailed.

How to Build a Gaming Computer - YouTube


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

there are loads of guides on youtube which are guide.

In my personal experience its pretty oblvious where cables etc go, most of the time parts can only go to one one plave, Apart from the hard drive power plug which can go in either way and one wa destroys it.

Building a pc is like doing a jigsaw puzzle, most pieces will only go to certain fits.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Ive been recommended a site scan.co.uk and it has some kind of insurance for if you build the computer yourself if you accidently damage something theyd replace it, im going to find the full details but I think this has made me definitly have the confidance to build it myself now because of it.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Read the Mobo manual thoroughly to familiarize yourself with all it's features/connections. After that, do a bench test to insure all parts are working properly. 
Then it's basically assembling the parts in the case.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Tyree said:


> Read the Mobo manual thoroughly to familiarize yourself with all it's features/connections. After that, do a bench test to insure all parts are working properly.
> Then it's basically assembling the parts in the case.


what do you mean by testing the parts before its in the case :S


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

ALL new builds should be tested on the bench prior to installing in the case. It only takes a few minutes and can save you hours of troubleshooting.

Set the motherboard on a non conductive surface. The motherboard box is perfect for this. DO NOT PLACE THE MOTHERBOARD ON THE STATIC BAG! It can actually conduct electricity! 
Install the CPU and heat sink. 
Install 1 stick of RAM.
Install the video card and attach the power supply connection(s) to the card if your card needs it.
Connect the monitor to the video card.
Connect the power supply to the motherboard with both the 24pin main ATX Power connection and the separate 4 or 8 pin power connection.
Connect power to the power supply.
Do NOT connect ANYTHING else. Make sure you have the power connector on the CPU fan connected.
Use a small screwdriver to momentarily short the power switch connector on the motherboard. Consult your motherboard manual to find which two pins connect to your case's power switch. Then touch both pins with a screwdriver to complete the circuit and boot the system.

If all is well, it should power up and you should get a display. Then assemble the parts into the case and try again. If the system now fails to boot, you have a short in the case and need to recheck your motherboard standoffs.

If the system does not boot after this process, then you most likely have a faulty component. You'll need to swap parts, start with the power supply, until you determine what is defective.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Tyree said:


> ALL new builds should be tested on the bench prior to installing in the case. It only takes a few minutes and can save you hours of troubleshooting.
> 
> Set the motherboard on a non conductive surface. The motherboard box is perfect for this. DO NOT PLACE THE MOTHERBOARD ON THE STATIC BAG! It can actually conduct electricity!
> Install the CPU and heat sink.
> ...


thats a good idea is it just to basically save you having to take everything back out again if it doesn't work correctly? And is this definitly safe with it not being in a case, isnt there chance of it getting static damage even if its on a safe surface.

have you ever used cathode tubes and are they easy to install ive seen some can make inside a case pretty cool


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Use the Mobo box to bench test and keep everything on a non-conductive surface (i.e. wooden table).
I've used cathodes as well as other "trick" additions but remember that you are the one that has to look at your PC every day and that "trick" stuff loses it's appeal very quickly.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Should I get dual or tri channel 1600mhz ram?


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

That depends on the Mobo.
For a Dual Channel Mobo, 2x2 or 2x4GBatched pair.
For a Tri-Cheannel Mobo, 3x2 or 3x4 matched set.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Tyree said:


> That depends on the Mobo.
> For a Dual Channel Mobo, 2x2 or 2x4GBatched pair.
> For a Tri-Cheannel Mobo, 3x2 or 3x4 matched set.


I dont fully understand the difference, is it worth getting tri or should I just stick with getting dual? Also im thinking of getting asus sabertooth z67


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

That chipset is Dual Channel so you will want a matched pair of 2x2 or 2x4GB.
The RAM speed would depend on the exact Mobo but 1333 & 1600MHz are the most used.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

Tyree said:


> That chipset is Dual Channel so you will want a matched pair of 2x2 or 2x4GB.
> The RAM speed would depend on the exact Mobo but 1333 & 1600MHz are the most used.


Ive been trying to look at the difference and I cant quite understand it, is there an advantage to tripple channel?


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

It's theoretically faster than dual-channel, but there's very few uses that will benefit from the added speed. So much so that Intel dropped the triple-channel support from their next lineup of motherboards and went back to dual-channel.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

toothman said:


> It's theoretically faster than dual-channel, but there's very few uses that will benefit from the added speed. So much so that Intel dropped the triple-channel support from their next lineup of motherboards and went back to dual-channel.


Oh right so I may aswell just stick with dual channel? 

Also what is quad channel is it just using dual channel twice?


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

Dual- triple- and quad-channel are not types of memory. They are methods of configuring memory. Any one DIMM my be used in dual-, triple, or even quad-channel mode, provided the motherboard and processor supports that mode.


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## Musclynerd (Apr 22, 2012)

gcavan said:


> Dual- triple- and quad-channel are not types of memory. They are methods of configuring memory. Any one DIMM my be used in dual-, triple, or even quad-channel mode, provided the motherboard and processor supports that mode.


Can someone please explain to me what they are fully because I dont know what the advantages are to them, I dont know what DIMM is.


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

*D*ual *I*n-line *M*emory *M*odule

Multi-channel memory architecture - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

a dual-channel setup will basically run two sticks of RAM as though they're one, but with twice as much potential speed. similarly, triple and quad will do the same but at three times and four times the potential. problem is, RAM is pretty much as fast as anything will use right now at dual-channel 1600mhz, so the benefits are very limited but the added costs can get quite high.

Most cost-effective RAM setup right now is two DDR3-1600 4gb sticks running in dual-channel. Anything more, in speed, channel, or size, isn't worth getting.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

A dimm is the RAM stick it stands for dual inline memory module.

dual channel means you need two sticks (dimms) in matching coloured slots for best performance. Triple means 3 sticks in matching slots and Quad means 4 sticks in matching coloured slots.

As said above dual,triple and quad are ways of comfiguring the memory to run at its best by putting them in the matching slots.


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