Need advice for building a new PC

evolution83

New member
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7:42 PM
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42
Location
California
Hi all,

I'd like to build my very first custom built PC, but need a little guidance on where to start. I'm pretty tech savvy and have watched a few tutorials on YouTube, so it looks fairly easy. I just need to know what to buy as far as parts in order to build the latest and very best.

I'd be using my PC for high-end stuff (photo / video editing; gaming; music; etc), so if you can recommend what to buy, I'd definitely look into it.

I hear it is cheaper to build your own, but not sure if that's true when building something top notch. I'm guessing I'll spend around $1K, but that's where y'all come in to tell me otherwise :P

Please only recommend the best manufacturers to buy from; I know parts go bad, but I don't want something burning out a year from now (seems to happen a lot with the last two HP PCs I've bought).

Thanks for any help :)
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP m8277c desktop
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate (32 bit)
CPU
Core 2 Duo E6750 (C) DC 2.66 GHz, 1333 MHz front side bus
Motherboard
Manufacturer: Asus
Memory
2GB
Graphics Card(s)
nVidia GeForce 8400GS, 512MB RAM
Sound Card
Integrated High Definition audio, Realtek ALC 888S chipset
Monitor(s) Displays
w2408 24" lcd wide-screen monitor with integrated speakers
Screen Resolution
1920x1200
Hard Drives
400 GB SATA 3G (3.0 Gb/sec)
The list could be endless. You could start by looking at Tigerdirect.com
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Skylake Special #666
OS
Windows 10 Pro x64
CPU
Intel Core i7 6700K
Motherboard
Asus Sabertooth Z170 Mark 1
Memory
GSkill TridentZ RGB 16GB 3600 16-16-16-36
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GTX 980 Ti SC x2
Sound Card
Realtek High Definition
Monitor(s) Displays
AOC G2460PG
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080 144Hz
Hard Drives
Samsung 860 Pro 256GB, Seagate Barracuda 4TB x2
PSU
EVGA 1000 P2, EVGA White Custom Braided Cables
Case
Corsair Vengeance C70 Gunmetal Black
Cooling
Corsair H100i v2, Corsair ML120 x2, Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut
Keyboard
Logitech G910 Orion Spectrum
Mouse
Logitech G700s
Internet Speed
Verizon Fios Quantum Gateway 75/75
Antivirus
Windows Defender, Malwarebytes Free 3.8.3
Browser
Chrome
Other Info
Corsair SP120 x4, LG Blu-ray Drive, Durabrand HT-395 100 Watt Dolby Digital Amp, Corsair H2100 Wireless 7.1 Headset
I have used newegg, Toms hardware also microcenter, tiger direct. Take a look at PC World magazine, they have a step by step on building your first PC and will give you several options regarding specs and price.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
home built
OS
windows 7 ultimate 32 bit
CPU
e8400 dual core
Motherboard
msi p45 neo
Memory
4gb corsair
Graphics Card(s)
nvida geforce
Sound Card
system board
Monitor(s) Displays
gateway 20 inch and acer 21 inch
Hard Drives
seagate 1tb
Case
xion
Cooling
install several fans in case
Keyboard
gateway
Mouse
microsoft wireless
Internet Speed
broadband
Antivirus
microsoft essentials
I have used newegg, Toms hardware also microcenter, tiger direct. Take a look at PC World magazine, they have a step by step on building your first PC and will give you several options regarding specs and price.

Is this in every issue of theirs? I've heard about this but wasn't sure if they only did this one time or not.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP m8277c desktop
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate (32 bit)
CPU
Core 2 Duo E6750 (C) DC 2.66 GHz, 1333 MHz front side bus
Motherboard
Manufacturer: Asus
Memory
2GB
Graphics Card(s)
nVidia GeForce 8400GS, 512MB RAM
Sound Card
Integrated High Definition audio, Realtek ALC 888S chipset
Monitor(s) Displays
w2408 24" lcd wide-screen monitor with integrated speakers
Screen Resolution
1920x1200
Hard Drives
400 GB SATA 3G (3.0 Gb/sec)
When you go to PC Worlds website register for free and then select the how to section.. you will find the article there also some videos
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
home built
OS
windows 7 ultimate 32 bit
CPU
e8400 dual core
Motherboard
msi p45 neo
Memory
4gb corsair
Graphics Card(s)
nvida geforce
Sound Card
system board
Monitor(s) Displays
gateway 20 inch and acer 21 inch
Hard Drives
seagate 1tb
Case
xion
Cooling
install several fans in case
Keyboard
gateway
Mouse
microsoft wireless
Internet Speed
broadband
Antivirus
microsoft essentials
For buying, Usually I'd say just do a search for components that meet your critera (cost, performance, noise, appearance when relevant), then do a thorough look through the reviews. If the part is important (such as motherboard or case), then try to avoid anything where there is less than three or so full reviews, and that the overall average doesn't have more than 70% 4/5 or 5/5.

Depending on your budget, stick with the minimal components for the first build (case, mobo, cpu, ram, psu, OS, HDD, DVD/BD drive). Don't skimp on these parts, because once you start upgrading you'll feel the need to put all of your own components into a second system, then find a use for it. later on you can add more RAM, A SSD, additional fans, and a graphics card, if you figured you could last with Intel graphics for a while. It depends on what games you play, but my Pentium's HD 1000 graphics handles almost everything i throw at it, and the HD 3000 series does a whole lot more.

Cost isn't really that bad, everything mentioned in my system specs (minus internet and the TV) cost me just under $700. That will go up a tad when I get a IB processor and a second HDD.


After that, unless you really want a specific product at the best price possible, I'd recommend getting everything from the same place. Newegg has always been awesome for me.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Apple 17" iMac MA199LL (Early 2006)
OS
Windows 8 Pro (32-bit)
CPU
1.83GHz Intel Core Duo
Memory
2GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM (PC2-5300) (upgrade)
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon X1600 with 128MB GDDR3 memory
Monitor(s) Displays
17-inch TFT active-matrix LCD, millions of colors
Screen Resolution
1440 x 900
Hard Drives
Hitachi 320GB HDT721032SLA360 7200RPM SATA II (upgrade)
Keyboard
Microsoft Wired Keyboard 600
Mouse
Microsoft Basic Optical Mouse v2.0
Internet Speed
4 Mbps
Antivirus
Microsoft Security Essentials
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
WEI:
Base Score: 3.9 Processor: 4.4 Memory 4.7
Graphics: 3.9 Gaming Graphics: 4.1 Primary HD: 5.9
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