[Famous Amos]

Just a few questions, basically what are the standards nowadays for a desktop computer?
how much ram is generally considered enough?
what processor speed would be considered decent?
Basically what specs for a computer would be considered okay to use for a gaming machine for at least a few years?

I'm looking into getting myself a desktop since my laptop is a bit older and might be considered outdated(toshiba satellite 2415, intel pentium 2.0 ghz, 512 mb ram) I've been using it for gaming all along but recently noticed it wasn't able to run a few new games. Is it better to try and build my own computer, or find a decent build online(i've seen some nice ones on newegg.com and a few other sites) Obviously if I built my own computer I could customize the specs to exactly what I want, but I don't know how much work goes into building a computer or how hard it is.

I'm sure that there's probably a topic out there somewhere like this but I searched and didn't see one that answered my questions. If anyone would be kind enough to just give some pointers, they'll make one very happy gamer.

[Advertisements]

Well, for a gaming machine you would be getting an AMD rig, so you would be looking at the athlon 64 processor range or the X2 range depending on your budget.

The slowest one that is considered good is probably the 3200+ venice core, and then it goes up to the 3500+ or if you can afford one the best you should probably get is the 3700+ san diego core cpu.

RAM at the moment 1 gig is the standard minimum you would want to put in a new system , if you can though you would want to put in two gigs both in a dual channel setup and good quality as well.

Vid card you are looking for something with 256Mb of ram and at least an x800 or 6800. in terms of cards my preferance from cheapest to most expensive would be, x800GTO>x800GTO2=x800XLor XT= 6800GS or GT> 7800GT> x1800XL>7800GTX>x1800XT> then the forthcoming x1900 after that. thats generally the order i would pick them from the slowest/cheapest to what i think are the best for your money but obviously the more the card the less value for money.

Mobo you would want Nforce4 or ATI200 chipset.

It is better to build than to buy though.

[warriorscot]

Well, for a gaming machine you would be getting an AMD rig, so you would be looking at the athlon 64 processor range or the X2 range depending on your budget.

The slowest one that is considered good is probably the 3200+ venice core, and then it goes up to the 3500+ or if you can afford one the best you should probably get is the 3700+ san diego core cpu.

RAM at the moment 1 gig is the standard minimum you would want to put in a new system , if you can though you would want to put in two gigs both in a dual channel setup and good quality as well.

Vid card you are looking for something with 256Mb of ram and at least an x800 or 6800. in terms of cards my preferance from cheapest to most expensive would be, x800GTO>x800GTO2=x800XLor XT= 6800GS or GT> 7800GT> x1800XL>7800GTX>x1800XT> then the forthcoming x1900 after that. thats generally the order i would pick them from the slowest/cheapest to what i think are the best for your money but obviously the more the card the less value for money.

Mobo you would want Nforce4 or ATI200 chipset.

It is better to build than to buy though.

[Famous Amos]

Alright, I've been researching for hours now, and I made a list of hardware that I checked out and most of them sound like decent parts. I know that I'm missing a few things obviously, just let me know what I'm missing, what I should replace, basically any advice possible.(I know for a fact I'm missing the sound card. Reason being I looked at 4 or 5 different ones and couldn't decide which sounded like the best deal)
Total cost of this build with mail-in rebates: $1383.94

COOLER MASTER RC-830-SSN1 Silver Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case $289.99
ASUS A8N5X Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 ATX AMD Motherboard $88.99
AMD Athlon 64 3200+ Venice 1GHz FSB 512KB L2 Cache Socket 939 Processor $160.00
CORSAIR ValueSelect 1GB 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Unbuffered DDR 400 (PC 3200) System Memory $83.00
BFG Tech Geforce 6800GT 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card $278.50
PLEXTOR Black 2M Cache IDE DVD Burner $62.99
Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 ST3120813AS 120GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive $87.50
Logitech Cordless Desktop Black Wireless Standard Keyboard Mouse Included $32.99
LG L1930B Silver-Black 19" 25ms LCD Monitor 250 cd/m2 400:1 0.294mm Pixel Pitch $249.99
Logitech X-530 70 Watts 5.1 Speaker $49.99

All hardware was found on newegg.com. Any advice for this system-building newbie?
I might be able to find quality keyboards,monitors, and speakers somewhere else so it isn't a necessity that they stay on this list. Believe it or not, I work at wal-mart and we do have very nice LCD monitors and speakers. I'm not really looking for a fancy keyboard so it's not really that important.
Price range almost definately has to stay below $2000, I also attend college, and school bills are almost as important as gaming
Thanks for the help.

[warriorscot]

Well i dont see much point in such a ridiculously expensive case, its a case for the extreme overclocker and enthusiast not for a begginer its not bad to set up but its not easy either.

The 6800GS is cheaper than the GT and is the same in terms of performance. ild go with a larger hard drive it costs lees per Gb at the 200-250Gb range.

Monitor response time is a little poor, check out samsung for monitors they are the cheapest and some of the best(they make the panels everyone else uses in the first place).

Sound card you dont need one, they are nice to have but its something thats nice rather than essential.

I would go with MSI or Abit for the motherboard, ASUS are fantastic when they work, problem is they dont always work.

Ram upgrade to XMS its like $10 more or somthing like that so its worth it to get the good stuff.

You need a PSU, something above 450W and from a reliable brand, you could cokmbine the PSU and case purchase if you buy an antec they make cases that are very high quality and good for beginers, at the moment the Sonata IIs are a very good deal.

Everything else looks good, i know how skint we can be im at uni as well, mind you we dont pay for it here in Scotland the governemt pays and then we get like 10 quid in tax added on to our salary when we leave and are earning good money, its a sweet deal over here.

[Famous Amos]

Ha Ha, when I was searching for a good case to get, I actually took a look at the Sonata II. The price was awesome and I did notice it came with a PS. Very good deal except almost EVERY review said the front door broke, fell off, or at least had some problem with it. While this doesn't really affect the performance of the computer, I would rather have a case with a door that stays on. Even so, when I do my taxes this month and find out how much money I'm NOT getting, I might decide to get this case anyway.

XFX PVT42GUAD7 Geforce 6800GS 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card $199.00
Seagate Barracuda 7200.8 ST3250823AS 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache Serial ATA150 Hard Drive $108.00
MSI K8N Neo4-F Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 ATX AMD Motherboard $80.00

Overall that's $1125.95, about $258 less than the build I proposed.

The price difference in the memory you mentioned was so small I'm going to get the one you suggested. I was shocked at how small the price difference was in the hard drives. For some reason I figured a larger hard drive would cost tons more. It was just about 20 dollars more for almost double the space. same brand, same speed, same cache. Steal.
Do the other parts I just mentioned sound okay? The monitor I'm not really worried about because I already have a monitor I can use as a temp until i get some more cash for a better one.
Thanks for all the help, after I collect all the parts together, get some help from a friend, and put it together, I'll maybe see if I can post some pics or something. Believe me, building my own computer and having it work right would be a miracle considering my knowledge.

[warriorscot]

Looks good to me, yeah people lways pick small HDDs and always say the big ones are cheaper up to 250Gb, after 300 the price goes up by a bigger amount though.

Ive not heard to many with bother with the door other than the fact that they dont like doors, i lie them but i dont se my drive more than once every couple of weeks so its not a bother, i just run my games straight from the HD.

My lanboy door is similar its not incredibly strong you wouldnt swing off it but when you its shut its fine and you can always remove the doors make a new one, but most of the time people break these things it carelessness.