Regardless, it's finally time for an upgrade and I want to, for the first time, build my own. I am willing spend $1200 for a PC plus monitor. That total cost is not a maximum; feel free to exceed it if there's a lot of value per dollar to be gained. Quality and reliability should not be compromised to fit a hard maximum. I'll have to get other peripherals, too, but those won't be in that budget.
So, I've read a couple of guides and some other build threads here, but I'm still a scrub. Logical Increments has given me basic ideas, but here are my desires and concerns:
CPU: Intel please. I read that in some cases you can get better deals if you're willing to sacrifice the ability overclock by not buying an unlocked processor; if that becomes applicable here, I am willing to give up my ability to overclock.
Motherboard: I haven't read enough about motherboards to get picky. If the build includes 8GB of RAM and it was able to accommodate more someday should it become a good idea, that would be great. USB slots are nice, a pair in front would be sweet. A cat is fine, too.
RAM: 8GB minimum, I would even do 16GB (2x8GB) if it weren't too obnoxious.
Storage: It would seem and SSD + HDD is the way to go these days. I'd be lying if I said that I knew very much about SSDs, though I hear they're better at not dying as much over time these days. For the HDD, I very much doubt I will need more than 1 TB of space, as I didn't even come close to filling 250GB in 7+ years.
GPU: If I can run games at reasonable settings at 1080p, that would be great. I might do some streaming and video editing, too. Dual monitor support would be nice, but I do not have a firm stance on the single versus dual monitor choice yet.
Case: The case on my old computer turned into a vibrating annoyance over the years where I had to keep putting slight pressure on certain spots shift the entire tower by a fraction of an inch every so often to get the damn thing to shut up. I realize that's anecdotal and probably not a problem for a quality case these days, but it's important that my case is non-agonizing.
Power Supply: Very important because as someone with a PC that's still going since 2007, I've developed an affinity for PCs that don't die or start fires. Efficiency is nice. 80+ Bronze is good, Silver or Gold if it won't be a compromise of quality and reliability.
Optical Drive: Decent DVD-RW drives are what, like $20 now?
Monitor(s?): After living in a world of 1024x768 for too long, 1080p would be nice. I wouldn't complain about having more, especially in a single monitor setup (1080p windowed would be sweet), but word on the street is that 1080p is a standard for most games and such. If it's not too troublesome, a separate build for a dual monitor setup would be neat, too.
HSF: I am not sure if extra cooling is necessary or worth it, since I am unlikely to overclock. The average summer high temperature is 91°F or ~32.78°C if that influences the choice. Stock cooling is likely sufficient, but I'm open to the idea.
And now some other stuff that is outside the main budget:
Keyboard: Recommendations and advice for a wired keyboard would be appreciated. The free Dell standard of 2007 served me well and while two or three keys became faded, it was still working nicely.
Wireless Router (purchased): Recommendations also appreciated. Yes, my PC will be wired because I'm not a scrub but I have some wireless things.
OS: Builds that I seem to not mention this as a cost. Windows isn't freeware these days, right? Anyway, did Windows 8 become sufficiently less terrible with 8.1 (for someone who will spend time tweaking just about every setting, that is) or should I go for Windows 7? (Really, they should just make Windows XP 2, they only stopped supporting it because they know nobody would buy anything else and they were mad that they can't do better, silly Microscrub. Long live WinXP, best Windows.)
Power Strip: Anything worth fussing over with a power strip? If so, recommendations are appreciated, otherwise I just buy one with a surge protector that looks decent from a hardware store. Please yell at me if this is a bad idea.
And general concerns:
1. This is a from scratch build. Will all necessary cords and cables be included? (and should any be upgraded?)
2. Do I need any tools or gear other than basic screwdrivers?
3. Any recommended guides on assembly would be appreciated (actually, Logical Increments has a bunch so I might not need them), general advice on not being an idiot, as well as anything that I may have overlooked as this is my first build.
Looking forward to your questions, builds, and advice, SEN. Thanks in advance.
Post has been edited 2 time(s), last time on Jul 19 2014, 6:08 pm by Mini Moose 2707. Reason: Updates
https://www.collaborativefund.com/blog/how-this-all-happened/
https://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2012/11/hipsters_on_food_stamps.html
https://youtu.be/vyiXaCRwZTs
https://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2011/09/how_to_be_mean_to_your_kids.html
http://lab.cccb.org/en/renata-avila-the-internet-of-creation-disappeared-now-we-have-the-internet-of-surveillance-and-control/
https://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2012/11/hipsters_on_food_stamps.html
https://youtu.be/vyiXaCRwZTs
https://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2011/09/how_to_be_mean_to_your_kids.html
http://lab.cccb.org/en/renata-avila-the-internet-of-creation-disappeared-now-we-have-the-internet-of-surveillance-and-control/