Attention computer nerds: Pete needs your assistance

[Pete]

So I am thinking about getting a PC just for playing games, but I don't want to spend too much money.

I see that the Micro Center joint has the stuff to "build your own PC."  That sounds dangerous, but seems like a cheper way to get exactly what you want, no?

So here is what I need from you nerds.

1.  What do I need if I want to play sweet games on a PC

2.  What is the cheapest way to get what I need?

3.  Is building your own PC suicide for a dude like me?

[hemmy]

How much are you willing to spend?

You could get most of the stuff cheaper online - but if you are a big spender Microcenter has had the Intel i7 920 for $199 for months 

Building computer is easy though

www.newegg.com

Need: (assuming you aren't going to re-use anything you currently own, which I do a lot)

Monitor
Case
Power Supply
Keyboard/Mouse
Processor
Motherboard
Memory
Hard Drive
Video Card
DVD Burner

[jeffy]

How much are you willing to spend?

You could get most of the stuff cheaper online - but if you are a big spender Microcenter has had the Intel i7 920 for $199 for months 

Building computer is easy though

www.newegg.com

Need: (assuming you aren't going to re-use anything you currently own, which I do a lot)

Monitor
Case
Power Supply
Keyboard/Mouse
Processor
Motherboard
Memory
Hard Drive
Video Card
DVD Burner

Yeah... and an operating system is pretty handy as well.

[Pete]

How much are you willing to spend?

You could get most of the stuff cheaper online - but if you are a big spender Microcenter has had the Intel i7 920 for $199 for months 

Building computer is easy though

www.newegg.com

Need: (assuming you aren't going to re-use anything you currently own, which I do a lot)

Monitor
Case
Power Supply
Keyboard/Mouse
Processor
Motherboard
Memory
Hard Drive
Video Card
DVD Burner

Yeah... and an operating system is pretty handy as well.

OK, what are the minimum specs I should be looking for on each of these?

[hemmy]

What kind of games do you want to play?

[Pete]

What kind of games do you want to play?

I like shooters, and have increasingly been interested in the rpg type stuff on xbox...I liked oblivion on xbox.  Good graphics stuff I guess.

[jeffy]

What kind of games do you want to play?

I like shooters, and have increasingly been interested in the rpg type stuff on xbox...I liked oblivion on xbox.  Good graphics stuff I guess.

So Doom?  Duke Nuke 'em?  Quake?  Castle Wolfenstein?

[Pete]

What kind of games do you want to play?

I like shooters, and have increasingly been interested in the rpg type stuff on xbox...I liked oblivion on xbox.  Good graphics stuff I guess.

So Doom?  Duke Nuke 'em?  Quake?  Castle Wolfenstein?

Not familiar with the latest and greatest that is only out on PC, but on Xbox is Call of Duty and Halo that would be the comparibles.

Found this article, does this seem legit?  http://www.yougamers.com/articles/22763_the_2009_guide_to_gaming_pc_specs-page4/

[The1BigWillie]

Lemonade!!

[Pete]

What kind of games do you want to play?

hemmy,

what do I need, give me specs?

[ew2x4]

First off, we need a budget. Whats your max and what do you want to spend (not always the same)? Also, do you have the monitor you will be using? If so, what is it's max resolution? This helps in identifying what video card you need.

[Ghost of Stan Parrish]

Lemonade!!

Don't overstock on lemons and sugar!   

[hemmy]

Tough to recommend Core 2, since it is being replaced and I don't see many more (if any) CPUs being released for it.

But yes, must know your budget, and anything you may already have.

[Saulbadguy]

Modern Warfare 2 will be a solid choice on PC.  I'm really looking forward to Borderlands, and of course Diablo 3 (maybe 2 years...)

[Pete]

OK the budget...

I would like to stay around $600 if possible, not including monitor.

I'd like to get a nice 22 inchish LCD monitor, nothing bigger than that.

I'd like this thing to last at least 2 years, and be upgradeable for another year or so for games.

[steve dave]

I played WOW for the free ten day trial.  Made the short guy who can have guns and got a pet bear that could help me. 

[Saulbadguy]

Problem w/ alot of PC games is they are gimped because they were developed for consoles at the same time.  See the upcoming wolfenstein game for a perfect example of that. 

The CoD series do a really good job though on PC, i'd pick those up.

[ew2x4]

$600? Yikes.

If you want to be able to run 1920x1080 on you 22", you're gonna need a better system then what $600 will give you. An i7 will run $200 minimum. Mobo will be $180. Card $150 for high-mid range. $250 for a really good card. Ram $70. Power supply is $80 for a good one (do not skimp on this!). Case can be had for $50. Hard drive is $75. Windows 7 will be $115 (unless you preordered cheap or know someone with an MSDN-AA or Technet subscription). KB/Mouse will be $50-75 for a decent set. Monitor will be $150-200.

Your best bet may be to get a tower off Dell Outlet and throw in a decent card.

[fatty fat fat]

mobo's for i7's are ridic. expensive.

buy a dell or something.

[ew2x4]

mobo's for i7's are ridic. expensive.

They've been holding close to $200 for a really long time now. It's craziness.

[hemmy]

I have this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131365

Got it for 10 bucks cheaper at the start of summer.

[ew2x4]

I have this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131365

Got it for 10 bucks cheaper at the start of summer.

See what I mean, Peter? We need to double, possibly triple your budget.

Otherwise, get a 360 and a PS3.

[Saulbadguy]

good lord, he doesn't need an i7.

[steve dave]

good lord, he doesn't need an i7.

This was what I was thinking but I'm not a computer guy and didn't want to get run off the board. 

[ew2x4]

If he wants to upgrade (which he said he did), then that's his best bet as the "core" lines are being phased out.

Moving to Core 2 Quad will only save $100 or so. For a socket that's being phased out and a huge power boost, i7 would be the best bet.

[Rick Daris]

pete,

i have an hp laptop (portable variety) that i got off the compusa website a year ago for just under four hundred. it seems to work great. i think it has vista and i'm pretty sure that i'm running ie 8. not for sure. but pretty sure. hth.

-daris

[Pete]

good lord, he doesn't need an i7.

what about these specs:

Product Specifications
Operating System    Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit)
Processor    Intel® Core(tm) 2 Quad Processor Q6600
Processor Speed    2.40GHz
Level 2 Cache    8MB Level 2 Cache
Data Bus Speed    1066MHz Frontside Bus
RAM Installed / Max RAM Supported    6GB DDR2-800 RAM (Expandable to 8GB)
Memory Configuration    (2) 2GB DIMM Memory Modules; (2) 1GB DIMM Memory Modules
Memory Slots Total    4
Memory Slots Available    (0) Available 240-pin DIMM Slots
Hard Drive    500GB 7,200RPM Serial ATA Hard Drive
Multimedia Drive    LightScribe SuperMulti DVD Burner
Display Type    Display Not Included
Video Card    NVIDIA GeForce 9500GS
Video Card Memory    Up to 2303MB Total Available Graphics Memory
Sound Card    High Definition Audio Chipset
Sound Output Mode    7.1 Channel Surround Sound
Modem/Communications Device    56K Modem
Network Features    10/100/1000 Gigabit Network
Ports and Connectors    (1) PS/2 Keyboard Port; (1) PS/2 Mouse Port; (2) Front USB 2.0 "A" Port; (4) Rear USB 2.0 "A" Ports; (2) FireWire IEEE 1394 Ports; (1) RJ-45 Network Port; (1) Headphone Port; (1) Microphone Port; (1) Digital Audio Line In Port; (1) Digital Audio Line Out Port; (1) Rear Speaker Port; (1) Side Speaker-Out Port; (1) Center/Subwoofer Port
Memory Card Reader    15-in-1 Memory Card Reader
Supported Flash Media    Smart Media, xD Picture Card, MultiMediaCard, Secure Digital, CompactFlash I, CompactFlash II, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, Memory Stick Duo, Memory Stick Pro Duo, RSMMC, MMC Mobile, MMC+, Mini Secure Digital, IBM MicroDrive
Expansion Bays    2 (1 free) External 5.25" Bays; 1 (0 free) External 3.5" Bay; 2 (1 free) Internal 3.5" Bays
Expansion Slots    1 (0 free) PCI-E x16 Graphic Interface Slot; 2 (2 free) PCI-E x1 Interface; 1 (0 free) 32-bit Bus Mastering PCI Slots
Expandable Drive Bay    HP Pocket Media Drive Bay
Manufacturer Warranty    90 Day Limited Warranty

[ew2x4]

That video card will not run games on your 22" monitor and would need to be upgraded. You also need to give a price.

[Pete]

That video card will not run games on your 22" monitor and would need to be upgraded. You also need to give a price.

That was listed as a refurb for $550 at Microcenter.  I'd be willing to upgrade the video card substantially.

Below is another one that seems to have the right "guts" but doesn't list a card.  It is listed for $489.99.  Is there any reason to think I couldn't add a 1MB video card to this one and have it work well for games?

Product Specifications
Operating System    Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
Processor    Intel® Core(tm) 2 Duo Processor E7400
Processor Speed    2.80GHz
Level 2 Cache    3MB Level 2 Cache
Data Bus Speed    1066MHz Frontside Bus
RAM Installed / Max RAM Supported    6GB DDR2-800 RAM
Hard Drive    750GB 7,200RPM Serial ATA II Hard Drive
Multimedia Drive    Double Layer 16x DVD±RW Drive
Display Type    Display Not Included
Modem/Communications Device    V.92/56K PCI DataFax Modem
Memory Card Reader    19-in-1 Media Card Reader
Input Device    USB Keyboard, Optical 2-Button Mouse
Included Software    Microsoft Works 9.0, Roxio Creator 10
Manufacturer Warranty    90 Day Limited Warranty

[ew2x4]

They list 6 GB, but not that they have Vista 64 bit, which is odd. You need a 64 bit OS for anything over 4 GB. So I assume that's what they mean. Anyways, it would be a fine system.

When it comes to graphics cards, don't judge it by the memory it has. You need to judge it by it's model number. That indicates how fast the GPU is. Another thing to watch out for is the higher end cards have a much higher power cooling system on it, so they are thicker. Look up reviews or call and ask if the computer will accept a double slot video card, and if the power supply in the computer can handle it.