An introductory guide to the world of PC gaming, including DIY and maintenance (with usergroup!)
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okay, that's very helpful. I don't have the time nor effort to build my own computer but I found this thread very interesting to learn. Now I don't feel COMPLETELY left out in these kinds of conversations. Just one question: What is the GPU?
My laptop (not specifically a gaming laptop) has a
"NVIDIA GEForce GT320M up to 2746MB TurboCache."
I have no idea what any of this means and was just wanting to be let in on the secret
My laptop (not specifically a gaming laptop) has a
"NVIDIA GEForce GT320M up to 2746MB TurboCache."
I have no idea what any of this means and was just wanting to be let in on the secret
If you have a friend who is competent with PCs, ask them to build it for you, you can find plenty of resources online that will recommend the parts you'll need that work well together.jurnag12 said:
Depending on the friend, you should offer something in return for their work, you could offer a bit of money (£10-20) but most would consider it a favour and would be uncomfortable taking money for it so you ought to buy them a decent meal and perhaps buy a couple of beers for them on a night out.
Alternatively you could go to a local PC shop with the parts and have them do it for you or buy from a website that offers said building service, just make sure you get the OS install disc, you'll want to re-install windows to get rid of all the bloatware.
Great guide
I've found my PC being used more and more over the last few years, and my consoles less. Steam and flash games (websites like kongregate/armor games) are mostly to blame for that.
My "gaming" PC cost me $300 over 7 years ago (originally $500, on sale for $400..and got $100 off because of a shipping error from dell.
I have a dual core pc with 2 gigs of ram (Dell inspiron 521 with 2.81 ghz dual processor) and a Nvidia gforce 8600 gt.
I mention this only because I can play all the newest games still on my system. Skyrim, Marvel Heros, Knights of the old republic etc. You do not need a brand new system to game on a pc. Depending on where you live, you might want to look at places like craigslist etc to see if any used systems are being sold. I recently almost bought a system that was 2 years old, built by the owner for $600, and being sold for $400. It was a massive upgrade to my current system, but the owner was too far away...and I really don't need a new computer yet (everything still runs on it fine). His system not only could play games on high graphic settings, he had room for adding another graphics card in case requirements go up in the future.
Building your own pc is the best bet, but if you feel scared by that, look into buying a built PC used from someone else. You get all the advantages of building a PC (low cost, easy customization for gaming etc), and usually a sizable discount on top of that as well.
When buying a pic, get a list of the parts, and check out the price of the parts (now) at somewhere like pcpartpicker . That can allow you to see if they are selling it for more then it would cost to make with the same parts (new) right now. It should be at least 10% less then the price of the parts when buying a used system.
Doing something like that, you can get a good gaming system for less then current generation consoles cost, let alone the next gen. PC has tons of free games to play along with great deals on steam etc. You often pay less then half as much for PC games then you would on a console....for the exact same game.
You can use an xbox controler as well with your PC, meaning there is really no difference between playing on a console or PC at that point (and as mentioned above you can even play on your TV if you want.)
Over the last 7 years I have spent more money on xbox 360 and PS3 games, but spent WAY more time playing PC games, flash games etc. Some of my favorite games have been free in fact (I'm a big fan of tower defense games and all the best ones have been on the pc and usually free as well).
I've found my PC being used more and more over the last few years, and my consoles less. Steam and flash games (websites like kongregate/armor games) are mostly to blame for that.
My "gaming" PC cost me $300 over 7 years ago (originally $500, on sale for $400..and got $100 off because of a shipping error from dell.
I have a dual core pc with 2 gigs of ram (Dell inspiron 521 with 2.81 ghz dual processor) and a Nvidia gforce 8600 gt.
I mention this only because I can play all the newest games still on my system. Skyrim, Marvel Heros, Knights of the old republic etc. You do not need a brand new system to game on a pc. Depending on where you live, you might want to look at places like craigslist etc to see if any used systems are being sold. I recently almost bought a system that was 2 years old, built by the owner for $600, and being sold for $400. It was a massive upgrade to my current system, but the owner was too far away...and I really don't need a new computer yet (everything still runs on it fine). His system not only could play games on high graphic settings, he had room for adding another graphics card in case requirements go up in the future.
Building your own pc is the best bet, but if you feel scared by that, look into buying a built PC used from someone else. You get all the advantages of building a PC (low cost, easy customization for gaming etc), and usually a sizable discount on top of that as well.
When buying a pic, get a list of the parts, and check out the price of the parts (now) at somewhere like pcpartpicker . That can allow you to see if they are selling it for more then it would cost to make with the same parts (new) right now. It should be at least 10% less then the price of the parts when buying a used system.
Doing something like that, you can get a good gaming system for less then current generation consoles cost, let alone the next gen. PC has tons of free games to play along with great deals on steam etc. You often pay less then half as much for PC games then you would on a console....for the exact same game.
You can use an xbox controler as well with your PC, meaning there is really no difference between playing on a console or PC at that point (and as mentioned above you can even play on your TV if you want.)
Over the last 7 years I have spent more money on xbox 360 and PS3 games, but spent WAY more time playing PC games, flash games etc. Some of my favorite games have been free in fact (I'm a big fan of tower defense games and all the best ones have been on the pc and usually free as well).
Depends which GTX 465, as with all video cards it's not just AMD/Nvidia or the series name, alot of it comes down to the manufacturer and which one of theirs. However I can't even find 465's for sale (checked my sources of hardware) so I can only check newer hardware. Do you have a website your looking at in your currency and a budget for me to browse? Otherwise a card I would suggest would be an EVGA GeForce GTX 650 2GB:jurnag12 said:
http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=193_1435&products_id=22968
If you can do the Ti version then great but that card would do you well for some time. On the AMD side the Sapphire Radeon HD 6670 looks to be a good card for a low price:
http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=193_1240&products_id=21427
ofcourse this is going by Australian prices and website, your local prices might balance differently.
You'll have about 9 or 10 screws to tighten, some slotting in of stuff and some clipping on to do. At most it will take a novice 1:30 to 2 hours to do first time and most of that will be reading and lining up stuff (measure twice, cut once so to speak).StraightToHeck said:
nice post overall, would love to hear more on the building aspect if you have time, and preferably post the link to the specific post in the OP (so nobody has to trawl through pages of replies to find the relevant topics). but yeah, good stuff ^^
This guide is very well put together, but you seemed to have left out a crucial point that will screw anyone who doesn't know this prior: Make sure your parts are compatible! You can't just buy any CPU and have it work with any motherboard. You have to match slot types. Same goes with RAM. Don't buy DDR2 RAM and expect it to work in a DDR3 slot.DrunkOnEstus said:
Yeah, but Mobo is easier to type, and we're all lazy =Pblackrave said:
To be fair MB is easier still to type, and that's what I'll normally shorten it to too. I agree Mobo feels kinda wrong but... IDK, it works.
It changes dependent on the brand, but, deciphering that card:blink said:
"NVIDIA" - The card is an Nvidia card. NVIDIA is one of the two main companies that produce graphics card designs, the other being AMD.
"GEForce" - Its a graphics card, basically. More specifically its of NVIDIA's GEForce range of products, but those are graphics cards. AMD will usually use HD here.
"GT320M" - The GT denotes that it is a GT model card. NVIDIA use GT, GTS, GTX, and maybe a couple of variations in between to indicate how powerful a graphics card is relative to other products of the same gen just using that. GT is the lowest, GTX is the highest. The 320 indicates that it is a 320 model card. The three denotes it as a part of the 300 series, and the 2 indicates it is the second card in the 300 series. The 300 series was released... 4 years ago I think. The second model is the second worst model. The 'M' at the end indicates it is a mobile variant of the 320 card - one made for laptops basically. This means it runs cooler, and has lower clock speeds and voltages, however does not perform as well, and likely does not have as good cooling as a desktop card would [So really it would run hotter overall].
"2746Mb" - This I'll admit I'm not too sure about. It would seem to be referring to the amount of memory available for Turbocache. It doesn't fit with any number I'd expect to see for TurboCache though. Normally here would go the amount of VRAM a card has, though the 320M only has 1Gb, or 1024Mb, of VRAM. At a guess this number is referring to the bandwidth of the PCI-E bus, though IDK.
"TurboCache" - a technology used by Nvidia cards to allow them to use more framebuffer memory.
Uh. Okay. I shall hope that what I discover will be... somewhat comprehensible to me! But thank you for your answer.Joccaren said:
If all else fails, I shall turn to my technically-minded friend. I need to find out his favourite type of ale- there gets a point where making him tea isn't adequate payment for putting up with my tech-stupid ways any more!
Yeah, this. This would probably come more under the realm of BUILDING the PC though, as opposed to simple PC know-how.Th37thTrump3t said:
God damn, I should find those posts of mine from that thread ages back. Had all that, and how to build, explained in a few walls of text...
I live in the UK so if the PC's are even more value for money in Australia that does not affect meJoccaren said:
The PS3 is £120 in the UK now- and I can't build any pc for £120 -that's my point.
Your PC sounds impressive..how much does it cost..because the PS4 will probably be launched in the UK at £400.
isn't poor porting and poor optimisation pretty much the same thing when it comes to playing the game
You have argued 512mb ram got us corridor shooters etc...so there is less worth in going through the trouble of building a pc, maintaining-drivers/fans etc only for games to be severely limited by the consoles.
I'm open to getting a gaming pc instead of a console next but the price to gaming quality ratio is a big factor. Maybe 2 years after the next gen consoles launch it will even better value for money
Hah, everything is more expensive in Australia. EVERYTHING. I think even Vegemite would be more expensive to buy here than in New Zealand, or the UK, and we make the damn stuff. Nothing down here is value for money.IronMit said:
And you probably could get an old, second hand PC for that price. My 9800GTX rig I'd have sold for $50 in the end. It was ancient, but it still ran Skyrim max settings except draw distance.
Lets face it, we have no idea what the PS4 will launch for. I've heard $300, $500, $700 - I'm leaning towards the latter of the lot but we'll see.
My PC, for just the parts and none of the peripherals, the price breakdown went like this:
Motherboard + CPU + RAM + Liquid Cooling: $300
Graphics cards: 2 * $250
Hard Drives: Recycled old Hard Drives, $200 for the SSD
Case: Originally recycled, upgraded from being bought off a friend for $80 with full fan compliment and fan controller
PSU: 1000W overkill and around $200
Added up... $1280.
$280 more than the PS3 at launch, and a hell of a lot stronger than a PS4. Could build a better rig for cheaper these days, thanks to new tech coming out each year for a similar price to the old tech, and me having gone absolutely overkill with my build originally.
Accounting for exchange rates that's 800 pound for the whole thing, or 179.2 pound more than a PS3 at launch.
Kind of. Depends on what sort of optimisation you're talking about, and what part of it being a bad port.
1. Large texture sizes.
2. Exclusive games and genres. Good luck finding a number of good RTS on a console.
3. Complete backwards compatibility, back to the DOS days, and all those games.
4. Mods. Seriously. Mods. Some start killing even high end PCs thanks to their ambition.
As for maintaining drivers/fans ect. - that's nothing. Maintaining drivers: Ignore them. If you start getting poor performance or stability, go to the website, click the "Auto-select drivers" button, download, run, restart. I do this once every 3 months tops, and that's 'cause I like keeping my drivers fairly up to date, not because I have to.
Fans... I don't touch the bastards. Worst thing you'll have to do is every 3 years brush some dust off them, and even then my old PC went 5-6 years without that just fine.
Yep. If you're not up for a gaming PC now, wait. You'll get a better PC cheaper in a couple of years. Really though, give someone a budget and they'll design a rig to beat the PS4 on that budget. Some people take it as a challenge to be done for fun =P
This made PC gaming seem a lot less scary to me. I read through the entire thing, have a buddy who can literally hold my hand when/if I get enough money gathered to build a PC and, I really am interested in PC gaming though not to the extent of future-proofing but rather to play catch-up. There's a laundry-list of games I really want to play but just can't because they were never released to consoles like the PnC adventure games Yahtzee and Gabe let's play on Youtube sometimes and I just can't do that by maining the Wii U this generation (by the way, I'm maining the Wii U this generation).
I think I'm going to keep this thread book-marked just as a reference point and possibly come back. What I really want to do is make lets play videos of my own and a PC capable of playing modern/ next gen games should be more than capable of letting me record, edit and, post videos of myself playing games from multiple decades ago.
I think I'm going to keep this thread book-marked just as a reference point and possibly come back. What I really want to do is make lets play videos of my own and a PC capable of playing modern/ next gen games should be more than capable of letting me record, edit and, post videos of myself playing games from multiple decades ago.
Yeah, don't get down on redundancies. I ran a thread for over a year where I posted the Steam deals of the week. People loved it because it was a constant reminder from a place they visit all the time. It was just as easy for them to check the Steam home page themselves, but they liked having the info here.DrunkOnEstus said:
So why not get a WiiU or PS4 (if that turns out okay)? Besides consoles still have the plug and play mentality, you know your xbone game will work with your xbone. You never have to worry about your specs lining up or a game hating your graphics card.Joccaren said:
If you want a PC for the power, freedom, upgradability and versatility that makes perfect sense. Getting one to avoid companies trampling your consumer rights doesn't make any sense, and you completely dodged that question.
As I've said in a bunch of these threads, if they're going to be like Steam I might as well just use Steam. It's important to note that while the limitations are similar, PC gaming is still looking to be the better alternative. Digital retail at full price on consoles vs Steam sales. Backwards compatibility with some work sometimes required vs no BC at all. Always online as a standard vs a few always online games.TehCookie said:
Once you remove the plug and play and tradeable nature of console games, what do you really have left?
Hell, my biggest reason for prefering consoles is the controller. Nowadays, the 360 controller has so much support that's not even an issue.
Except Sony's PS4 doesn't require that. It's an offline console that can go online, and the developers are the people who choose to make their games have DRM or not, so the PS4 (in my mind at least) is still a viable option.Mycroft Holmes said:
Only the Xbone said all games are like that. The PS4 mentioned in passing it's up to publishers and it's unknown how many will take advantage of that, and the WiiU is completely DRM free. In a lot of these threads it seems like the Xbone is the only console.Mycroft Holmes said:
Then again I'm always late to the party because I like to see what everything has to offer before I make a choice, so before I freak out at rumors I'd rather see how it plays out. Jumping ship before it's even out to judge is a little took soon for me, I just lower my expectations and have the lifejackets ready.
As much as I'd like to talk about piracy on here, saying anything positive about it is walking a fine line to getting a warning.
Had my main desktop die recently, which brought about my tinkering with it since I had a spare dead one laying around. I've been the kind of PC own that just uses the things till they break. Upgrading scared the crap out of me.
Yet I managed to install a new hard drive, and even replaced a faulty DVD rom drive. Then I thought, what the hell, let me install more RAM! so little google searching to find out where the RAM was and installed that. I'm seriously considering building one of these things simply because I've enjoyed tinkering with it so much.
so... questions...
Anyway to instal Nevida Graphics drivers on the Unbuntu OS with out bricking the system? I can't seem to be able to do it.
What goes into choosing a motherboard? Like could I use my current PC's motherboard or...? I mean it's rather old. 2007.
Yet I managed to install a new hard drive, and even replaced a faulty DVD rom drive. Then I thought, what the hell, let me install more RAM! so little google searching to find out where the RAM was and installed that. I'm seriously considering building one of these things simply because I've enjoyed tinkering with it so much.
so... questions...
Anyway to instal Nevida Graphics drivers on the Unbuntu OS with out bricking the system? I can't seem to be able to do it.
What goes into choosing a motherboard? Like could I use my current PC's motherboard or...? I mean it's rather old. 2007.