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I'm getting a new computer soon and having a look at prices. I've been out of the computer market for a few years now and have no idea what the current babble means.
I'm wondering is this is a good setup.

Importants specs:


Processor Intel Core™ i7-4770 Processor, 8M Cache, 3.4GHz up to 3.90GHz, LGA, 1150, 84W, Intel HD Graphics 4600

CPU Cooling Intle Original Cooling Fan With HeatSink (does this need an upgrade?)

MOtherboard: ASUS B85M-G LGA 1150 Intel B85 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard

* Intel B85 Chipset
* Support Intel® Socket 1150 for 4th Generation Core™ i7/Core™ i5/Core™ i3/Celeron® dual-core/Pentium®/Celeron® Processors
* Supports Intel® Turbo Boost Technology 2.0
* 4 x DIMM, Max. 32GB, DDR3
* Integrated Graphics Processor, Maximum shared memory of 1024 MB
* Multi-VGA output support : HDMI/DVI/RGB ports
* 4 x SATA 6Gb/s port, 2 x SATA 3Gb/s port
* 4 x USB 3.0 ports
* 8 x USB 2.0 ports
* 1 x PCI Express x16 slot
* 1 x PCI Express 2.0 x1 slot
* Realtek® 8111G, 1 x Gigabit LAN Controller
* Realtek® ALC887-VD2 8-Channel High Definition Audio CODEC
* New UEFI BIOS
* uATX Form Factor

RAM: 16GB 2X 8GB 1600Mhz DDR3 Gaming Ram 240-pin

Graphics:
Graphic Card Integrated (Onboard) Graphics Intel® HD Graphics with D-Sub, DVI-D and HDMI outputs Support Blu-ray Stereoscopic 3D, Full HD 1080p Blu-ray / HD-DVD playback. Ready for Windows 7 / 8

(this clearly isn't good enough ) I am being offered nvidia - from GT620 all the way to GTX690 or ati radeon cards - HD7850 to HD7970

Case Cooler Master K350 ATX Gaming Tower Case
Front USB2.0 x 2 / USB3.0 HD Audio & Mic

PSU 650W PSU with Fan

ANy suggestions? IS this a gaming computer that will last a while. I'ts fairly pricey so i thought I'd check with the experts...you guys

Are there any video cards which get crap support from gaming companies
? Are amds still better value?
Anything else I should know?

Looks like a good mid-level build.

I went AMD; the FX-6300 specifically. My brother went with the older quad-core model, and he hasn't had any issues. And the stock coolers should be just fine, as long as you don't plan on over-clocking. Better thermal paste would be good, though. I have a buddy with an older i-7, and it's been doing well for him still.

I went with an HD7850, and I love it. I can run BF4 online on High without any sort of problems. I can run campaign on Ultra, but it does chop sometimes. My brother went with the GTX 650ti, and it's also been pretty good.

With most games, 8GB of RAM is more than enough, but there's no issue with 16...well for gaming.

And the 650PSU should be fine, but upping to the 700 wouldn't hurt if you wanted to.

I would seriously recommend building your own one:
You will be able to upgrade it till your hearts content and it will work out cheaper then a pre-build generally. More importantly you can pick exactly what parts you want to ensure they are parts that will last.
You are going to want a decent GPU now for it to last a long time - otherwise it will start struggling down the line. If you really want to go the intergrated graphics route, dont use the Intel ones, the AMD APUs are far better. On the CPU front if you are looking at I7s, I would recommend this CPU:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D697PEG/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00D697PEG&linkCode=as2&tag=teksynd-20
It is an I7 without the intergrated graphics element, which is fine if you are using a graphics card. It also has a larger memory cache meaning it will operate fractionally faster and more importantly it is cheaper. The only catch is that you cannot overclock it. Cooling wise the stock cooler will keep it cool enough but upgrading the CPU cooler will mean it last longer.
If you give us more of an idea of what you want the computer to do, budget and the size you want it to be as well as what you would want to possibly upgrade it with, im sure someone will put together some potential lists of components for you.

I am willing to spend up to $1100 in AU dollars. Trouble is over here (like everything else) computer parts seem to be more pricey so keep that in mind.
I'd like a gaming computer that is going to last me at least 5 years. I am not to big on playing FPS but I would like the option . I generally play strategyesque games and occasionally MMos , my current computer fails and DCUonline and Rome 2 and that is my chief reason for upgrading. I do not plan to overclock my computer. How hard is it today to put together all the components?

Integrated graphics built into the motherboard? No. That's not something you want in a gaming computer. You need to get an actual graphics card.

I advise against building your own one. Especially if you dont know too much about them. The people I know who built theirs are constantly repairing and upgrading and so on. Building your own computer is like a hobby on its own.

Just get a decent one and go rather than build one. May not get great results. but better then tinkering for a long time.

Unless you are into it.

There are a number of places that allow you to pick your parts and then they assemble and send it to you. It's better than buying a "production" model that will leave you with weird bottlenecks or things missing (like an actual GPU), and it's 10x easier than making it yourself.

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
There are a number of places that allow you to pick your parts and then they assemble and send it to you. It's better than buying a "production" model that will leave you with weird bottlenecks or things missing (like an actual GPU), and it's 10x easier than making it yourself.

Tahts what I would recommend as well. Its not actually very difficult to make your own desktop, I have made 2 myself, but its too easy to break something if you don't know what you are doing. A PC build website will cost you more but at least you know it will have been done properly and they come with a warranty as well.

 Swastakowey wrote:
I advise against building your own one. Especially if you dont know too much about them. The people I know who built theirs are constantly repairing and upgrading and so on. Building your own computer is like a hobby on its own.

Just get a decent one and go rather than build one. May not get great results. but better then tinkering for a long time.

Unless you are into it.

If you know what you are doing, you will not have these problems.

There are also plenty of step by step guides on how to build your own computer, online. As well as youtube vidoes. It's really not at all that complicated, especially when you have a plethora of step by step guides.

Building your own is the best way to get the most bang for your buck.

 Sasori wrote:

 Swastakowey wrote:
I advise against building your own one. Especially if you dont know too much about them. The people I know who built theirs are constantly repairing and upgrading and so on. Building your own computer is like a hobby on its own.

Just get a decent one and go rather than build one. May not get great results. but better then tinkering for a long time.

Unless you are into it.

If you know what you are doing, you will not have these problems.

There are also plenty of step by step guides on how to build your own computer, online. As well as youtube vidoes. It's really not at all that complicated, especially when you have a plethora of step by step guides.

Building your own is the best way to get the most bang for your buck.

Pretty much, though people do tend to forget about software costs that are often bundled with prebuilt. That said, prebuilt PC's often have weird parts so that you can't do any upgrading and often come with terrible company software. Also, gaming pc for the next 5 years? No, not without upgrading. But honestly, nothing you buy now will likely be capable of high end gaming in 5 years.

Bullockist wrote:
I am willing to spend up to $1100 in AU dollars. Trouble is over here (like everything else) computer parts seem to be more pricey so keep that in mind.
I'd like a gaming computer that is going to last me at least 5 years. I am not to big on playing FPS but I would like the option . I generally play strategyesque games and occasionally MMos , my current computer fails and DCUonline and Rome 2 and that is my chief reason for upgrading. I do not plan to overclock my computer. How hard is it today to put together all the components?

It's actually really simple. I always describe it as a fancy Lego set. Hell, most of the owner's manuals tell you how to plug in, and install everything.

While parts can be expensive, I'm sure that it's still way cheaper then actually buying an assembled computer. Plus, you can buy individual parts at a time. Check out some computer stores, and price stuff out! Also, plenty of retailers will offer discounts when you bundle things like CPUs and motherboards in the same purchase.

 Optio wrote:
I would seriously recommend building your own one:
You will be able to upgrade it till your hearts content and it will work out cheaper then a pre-build generally. More importantly you can pick exactly what parts you want to ensure they are parts that will last.
You are going to want a decent GPU now for it to last a long time - otherwise it will start struggling down the line. If you really want to go the intergrated graphics route, dont use the Intel ones, the AMD APUs are far better. On the CPU front if you are looking at I7s, I would recommend this CPU:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D697PEG/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00D697PEG&linkCode=as2&tag=teksynd-20
It is an I7 without the intergrated graphics element, which is fine if you are using a graphics card. It also has a larger memory cache meaning it will operate fractionally faster and more importantly it is cheaper. The only catch is that you cannot overclock it. Cooling wise the stock cooler will keep it cool enough but upgrading the CPU cooler will mean it last longer.
If you give us more of an idea of what you want the computer to do, budget and the size you want it to be as well as what you would want to possibly upgrade it with, im sure someone will put together some potential lists of components for you.

Second the first point.

what neck of the woods are you from mate? If you're a queenslander, buy from Umart. Also, building a computer isn't that difficult, and you can do it with no experience whatsoever. (I did so)

I did as well (built my own machine)

Make sure you set the motherboard jumpers and IDE master/slave correctly.

Helps if you're not afraid to solder a 25-pin SCSI port too.

And remember, if a molex adaptor won't come out you just need to tug harder.

Make sure you give the power supply some cooldown time or it could kill you.

Arctic silver heatsink paste or GTFO.

If it overheats, take the side panel off for better ventilation and/or blow a desk fan over it.

 scarletsquig wrote:
Make sure you set the motherboard jumpers and IDE master/slave correctly.

Helps if you're not afraid to solder a 25-pin SCSI port too.

And remember, if a molex adaptor won't come out you just need to tug harder.

Make sure you give the power supply some cooldown time or it could kill you.

Arctic silver heatsink paste or GTFO.

If it overheats, take the side panel off for better ventilation and/or blow a desk fan over it.

What the hell are you talking about?

Oh! If you build your own, get a modular power supply. You'll thank me later.

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
There are a number of places that allow you to pick your parts and then they assemble and send it to you. It's better than buying a "production" model that will leave you with weird bottlenecks or things missing (like an actual GPU), and it's 10x easier than making it yourself.

Places like?

Thanx for all the help guys, I'm leaning against putting it together myself with all this talk of soldering irons and pulling parts out, I'll be too scared I'll break something

Well I did mine through Hardwired PC. I kinda went top of the line, so it was expensive, but they have a lot of options, you just pick what you want, leave the rest (eg. I didn't get any case mods or coloured lights or any of that nonsense), and away you go. They build it and send it to you.

There are other places in Australia that do it, but these guys had the best range of products (and were the only place I could find that was not only selling nVidia Titans, but was offering them in an SLI config). What really sold me was the case fan options. Any site that has the "just fill every possible slot with a fan" is good by my books.


Oh, and another thing: Don't get Windows 8.

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
Oh, and another thing: Don't get Windows 8.

I built a new PC about a week ago, and was faced with this conundrum. On the one hand, DirectX 11.2 is Windows 8 exclusive. On the other hand, I will have to use Windows 8.

I went with 7 x64 as always. That being said there is at least one small reason to get Windows 8.

Anyway, OP, my own shopping list, if you like, since there are a lot of similarities in our builds:





At this time I did not pick up a new GPU because I am waiting for the enthusiast-grade Maxwells - I will require at least 4gb of VRAM. If you do only light gaming, you can get the entry level Maxwells since they are fantastic value for the money and quite capable. Look for the Geforce 750 & 750 TI.





Automatically Appended Next Post:

Bullockist wrote:
Thanx for all the help guys, I'm leaning against putting it together myself with all this talk of soldering irons and pulling parts out, I'll be too scared I'll break something

I've building PC's since my first 486 DX and I have yet to need a soldering iron at any part of the process, I have zero idea what that tangent was about.

If you can assemble a 40k tank, you can assemble a computer. That being said some of the boutique stores do offer a pretty good deal and a warranty to boot if you aren't comfortable doing it.

My specs, which are very silly:

Case: Corsair Obsidian 800D Black Full Tower Case
CPU: Intel i7-3930K LGA2011 3.2GHz Six Core
Cooling: Corsair Hydro Series H100i Liquid Cooler
Motherboard: Asus RAMPAGE IV Extreme Socket 2011
Memory: Corsair 16GB Dominator Platinum 2400Mhz Quad Channel DDR3
Video Card: 2 x Nvidia TITAN 6GB GDDR3 in SLI
Hard Drive1 : Intel 520 Series 120GB SSD
Hard Drive 2: Western Digital 2TB Caviar Green
PSU: Corsair AX1200i Modular 1200 Watt 80 Plus Platinum
OS: Windows 7 Pro Edition 64bit

Bullockist wrote:
Thanx for all the help guys, I'm leaning against putting it together myself with all this talk of soldering irons and pulling parts out, I'll be too scared I'll break something

Ignore scarletsquig, he's remembering the good old days.

These days, there no soldering, no jumper settings, it's all plug in and go.
It's square peg and round hole stuff. If it doesn't fit, sit back and have another look, as you're doing it wrong.
The only bits I've broken are HDD cables, and there are usually spares in the box.

The reason I don't build my computer is that I have several friends in IT, neither of whom has a running desktop right now.

They both urged me to build my own, and when I asked if they'd build one for me (I'd pay for their time), they never mentioned it again.

I'm not saying it can't be done, or isn't done. It's just not as easy a solution as many people like to think.

The fiddly bit is getting windows installed correctly. I always have 2 hard drives, with the OS on one, and data and apps on the other. If you install with both fitted, it can get messy.

If you do build a PC, install just the minimum parts (these day's that's everything anyway) and add bits once it's working.

But, if you know an IT bod, and want to build your own, we usually have a spare lying around somewhere to practice on. If that works, grab the bits and go for it.

 Polonius wrote:
They both urged me to build my own, and when I asked if they'd build one for me (I'd pay for their time), they never mentioned it again.

That's got less to do with "it's hard to build a PC" and more to do with "now I'm lifetime tech support for it". I've actively avoided assisting several acquaintances with their issues because I've opened that door in the past, you don't really like what comes out of it, and it's a hard door to close.

tl;dr

 Ouze wrote:

 Polonius wrote:
They both urged me to build my own, and when I asked if they'd build one for me (I'd pay for their time), they never mentioned it again.

That's got less to do with "it's hard to build a PC" and more to do with "now I'm lifetime tech support for it". I've actively avoided assisting several acquaintances with their issues because I've opened that door in the past, you don't really like what comes out of it, and it's a hard door to close.

tl;dr

]


I love that comic, and I myself have done everything I can to conceal what little computer knowledge I have from the world.

I can see not wanting to be tech support, but OTOH my crappy HP I bought on sale at Best Buy hasn't had any problems, while I know a hand built one will.

I know I could build my own computer. I'm smart, and I understand the basics. I simply have little interest in doing so. I make enough money that I'd rather simply give somebody money, and receive a computer. I also can't spend six months of my time dicking around computer websites while ostensibly working deciding on the build.

I'm a lawyer, and I don't tell people that need a will "Just write your own, it's really easy!" I mean, it is (for most people), but it's easy for me, because I've learned an awful lot about this stuff.

 Polonius wrote:

 Ouze wrote:

 Polonius wrote:
They both urged me to build my own, and when I asked if they'd build one for me (I'd pay for their time), they never mentioned it again.

That's got less to do with "it's hard to build a PC" and more to do with "now I'm lifetime tech support for it". I've actively avoided assisting several acquaintances with their issues because I've opened that door in the past, you don't really like what comes out of it, and it's a hard door to close.

tl;dr

]


I can see not wanting to be tech support, but OTOH my crappy HP I bought on sale at Best Buy hasn't had any problems, while I know a hand built one will.

Why? I've never had a problem with my handbuilt pc's while the crap fans in pre-builts always seem to die in a matter of weeks and are near impossible to replace. Dell can go feth itself.

Because the guys that tell me to build my own have barely working computers themselves?

I think that's more an issue with them then TBH.

Yeah, I mean my 14 year old little brother put together his own computer completely by himself and has absolutely no experience with that sort of thing and it works perfectly.... Then again, this is also the same kid who disassembles his Nintendo products so that he can recolor the cases, etc.

Bullockist wrote:

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
There are a number of places that allow you to pick your parts and then they assemble and send it to you. It's better than buying a "production" model that will leave you with weird bottlenecks or things missing (like an actual GPU), and it's 10x easier than making it yourself.

Places like?

Thanx for all the help guys, I'm leaning against putting it together myself with all this talk of soldering irons and pulling parts out, I'll be too scared I'll break something

I built my first two PCs this year (mine and my brother's), and I didn't have to solder anything. Literally, everything plugs into everything else. The only issue I had was routing the wires so the tower didn't look all messy inside.