Help me build a new PC
April 12, 2010 9:10 AM Subscribe
I've decided to buy a new PC, mostly because I want to upgrade before the next WoW expansion.
I've been reading a bit a Tom's Hardware, and done some research elsewhere, but I have to say that the dazzling array of options before me is a little overwhelming. I am hoping for some pointers on what I should buy, my overall budget is <$1,000. I plan on using the PC to run Windows 7, Warcraft, and play movies on my (future) HDTV. Some questions:
Should I go with Intel or AMD?
Duo, Quad, or X3?
How much RAM, and what speed?
1 GPU or several in Crossfire? (HD 5850 seems a clear favourite, but do I need more than 1?)
Do I need to buy a seperate sound card like I did in 2004?
How much power do I need?
Please help!
I've been reading a bit a Tom's Hardware, and done some research elsewhere, but I have to say that the dazzling array of options before me is a little overwhelming. I am hoping for some pointers on what I should buy, my overall budget is <$1,000. I plan on using the PC to run Windows 7, Warcraft, and play movies on my (future) HDTV. Some questions:
Should I go with Intel or AMD?
Duo, Quad, or X3?
How much RAM, and what speed?
1 GPU or several in Crossfire? (HD 5850 seems a clear favourite, but do I need more than 1?)
Do I need to buy a seperate sound card like I did in 2004?
How much power do I need?
Please help!
Also, does that $1000 include everything, or are you keeping stuff from your old computer, like hard drive, monitor, keyboard, mouse, disc drives, etc?
posted by Grither at 9:23 AM on April 12, 2010
posted by Grither at 9:23 AM on April 12, 2010
Ars Technica's System Guides used be the standard reference, but it appears Ars Technica is not updating as frequently as they used to.
posted by notyou at 9:26 AM on April 12, 2010
posted by notyou at 9:26 AM on April 12, 2010
Keep in mind that WoW is approaching six years old. The advantage to this is you don't need a bleeding edge system if you want to play WoW and watch movies.
1/2. I went with a quad-core Intel chip for my last PC due to the fact it benchmarked better plus it was very stable to overclock. I would investigate Tom's Hardware/Anandtech/Ars Technica and look at the latest benchmarks and price points for CPUs.
3. 4 gigs minimum. I would recommend going to 8 if within your budget.
4. 1 good video card, anything else if overkill for your budget and for your computer use.
5. Current on-board sound solutions are 'good-enough'. Double check that you have the appropriate outputs if you want to route elsewhere. If you need more ins/outs, you may need to get a separate sound card.
6. I would read the system guides on the same sites as listed above for a recommendation.
posted by seppyk at 9:37 AM on April 12, 2010
1/2. I went with a quad-core Intel chip for my last PC due to the fact it benchmarked better plus it was very stable to overclock. I would investigate Tom's Hardware/Anandtech/Ars Technica and look at the latest benchmarks and price points for CPUs.
3. 4 gigs minimum. I would recommend going to 8 if within your budget.
4. 1 good video card, anything else if overkill for your budget and for your computer use.
5. Current on-board sound solutions are 'good-enough'. Double check that you have the appropriate outputs if you want to route elsewhere. If you need more ins/outs, you may need to get a separate sound card.
6. I would read the system guides on the same sites as listed above for a recommendation.
posted by seppyk at 9:37 AM on April 12, 2010
I am currently running WoW on a roughly year old system with maxed settings, so unless Cataclysm massively increases it's system demands I think any decent system you get will run it well.
I currently have a Core 2 Duo with 4 GB of RAM and a 9800 GTX graphics card (can put out 30-60 fps, depending on what's going on).
So I think: 4-6GB of RAM, 1 HD5850, and no separate sound card should be fine. Other questions I will leave to those with more recent experience to chime in.
posted by pombe at 9:38 AM on April 12, 2010
I currently have a Core 2 Duo with 4 GB of RAM and a 9800 GTX graphics card (can put out 30-60 fps, depending on what's going on).
So I think: 4-6GB of RAM, 1 HD5850, and no separate sound card should be fine. Other questions I will leave to those with more recent experience to chime in.
posted by pombe at 9:38 AM on April 12, 2010
-Toss up. Intel generally has the faster processors, but AMD is generally more value for the money.
-If you're mostly gaming and not doing any heavy duty file compression, photoshopping, or video encoding, 2 or 3 cores is enough. Clock speed before number of cores, at least for the next few years.
-If you're running windows 7, just get 3x2GB and be done with it, unless you feel like overclocking, just get the fastest regular speed your MB supports
-1 GPU is probably enough, especially the ATI 5800 series. That will help keep costs down and you won't need as expensive a motherboard or power supply.
-Seperate sound cards aren't necessary unless you're a bigtime audiophile. I think the HD 5800 series does HDMI audio too, so you're good there.
-a 500W PSU is recommended for the HD 5850, with at least 2 PCIe connectors. I would go with a 550W or 600W just to be safe. Go with a trusted brand like Seasonic, Corsair, Thermaltake, etc.
posted by JauntyFedora at 9:41 AM on April 12, 2010
-If you're mostly gaming and not doing any heavy duty file compression, photoshopping, or video encoding, 2 or 3 cores is enough. Clock speed before number of cores, at least for the next few years.
-If you're running windows 7, just get 3x2GB and be done with it, unless you feel like overclocking, just get the fastest regular speed your MB supports
-1 GPU is probably enough, especially the ATI 5800 series. That will help keep costs down and you won't need as expensive a motherboard or power supply.
-Seperate sound cards aren't necessary unless you're a bigtime audiophile. I think the HD 5800 series does HDMI audio too, so you're good there.
-a 500W PSU is recommended for the HD 5850, with at least 2 PCIe connectors. I would go with a 550W or 600W just to be safe. Go with a trusted brand like Seasonic, Corsair, Thermaltake, etc.
posted by JauntyFedora at 9:41 AM on April 12, 2010
One GPU is fine. Cataclysm is not going to have particularly onerous system requirements. You don't need a separate sound card, generally speaking. Onboard sound has acceptable quality and supports a range of outputs (including digital out for a receiver) as well as 5.1 channel sound.
RAM speed is going to depend on your motherboard. As for how much: 4GB is the sweet spot right now. Unless you're doing a lot of work with sound editing, video editing, or (serious) photo editing, more than 4GB is probably overkill. 2GB, however, is not really enough for Windows 7.
A DIY kit can be a good choice, but be sure to look up reviews for the individual components. Often those kits have fairly low-end motherboards, for example.
If you're planning to hook the system up to an HDTV in the future, I recommend looking out for noise. You'll want large, quiet case fans (bigger fans can spin more slowly while still moving the same amount of air). I would also highly recommend the Antec Sonata family of cases and power supplies. They're high quality, look decent, and have lots of low-noise features.
posted by jedicus at 9:43 AM on April 12, 2010
RAM speed is going to depend on your motherboard. As for how much: 4GB is the sweet spot right now. Unless you're doing a lot of work with sound editing, video editing, or (serious) photo editing, more than 4GB is probably overkill. 2GB, however, is not really enough for Windows 7.
A DIY kit can be a good choice, but be sure to look up reviews for the individual components. Often those kits have fairly low-end motherboards, for example.
If you're planning to hook the system up to an HDTV in the future, I recommend looking out for noise. You'll want large, quiet case fans (bigger fans can spin more slowly while still moving the same amount of air). I would also highly recommend the Antec Sonata family of cases and power supplies. They're high quality, look decent, and have lots of low-noise features.
posted by jedicus at 9:43 AM on April 12, 2010
FWIW Cataclysm is expected to hit in November (Blizzard never announces release dates but that's a pretty solid guess), and prices/specs will change significantly from now until then. In terms of bang for your buck, you're best off waiting until closer to release, if your current box is decent enough.
posted by reptile at 9:48 AM on April 12, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by reptile at 9:48 AM on April 12, 2010 [2 favorites]
Anandtech System Buyer's Guide: PCs for Under $1000
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 10:11 AM on April 12, 2010
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 10:11 AM on April 12, 2010
Response by poster: Thanks for the answers so far.
Some clarifications:
$1,000 (or less) is for the case and components only. I have a good monitor, and good speakers + sub/w.
True that WoW is an old game, but I expect that I will want to play other games too, so best be prepared.
I do some photoshop but only simple stuff, no video editing.
I was looking at a previous post and terpia suggests mutliple HDs linked via RAID 0, is this a good idea?
Also, this post over at Tom's Hardware supports overclocking the CPUs, RAM, and GPU. Should I venture into this kind of thing? I don't mind trying it, just afraid that I might mess something up and make things worse.
posted by Vindaloo at 10:21 AM on April 12, 2010
Some clarifications:
$1,000 (or less) is for the case and components only. I have a good monitor, and good speakers + sub/w.
True that WoW is an old game, but I expect that I will want to play other games too, so best be prepared.
I do some photoshop but only simple stuff, no video editing.
I was looking at a previous post and terpia suggests mutliple HDs linked via RAID 0, is this a good idea?
Also, this post over at Tom's Hardware supports overclocking the CPUs, RAM, and GPU. Should I venture into this kind of thing? I don't mind trying it, just afraid that I might mess something up and make things worse.
posted by Vindaloo at 10:21 AM on April 12, 2010
I was looking at a previous post and terpia suggests mutliple HDs linked via RAID 0, is this a good idea?
Not really. Lots of drives means lots of chances for failure, and RAID 0 has no redundancy. If you want a fast drive, buy an SSD. It'll be faster, quieter, more reliable, and about the same price as a RAID 0 setup. If you wait until closer to the release of Cataclysm SSDs will only be larger, cheaper, and faster.
posted by jedicus at 10:25 AM on April 12, 2010
Not really. Lots of drives means lots of chances for failure, and RAID 0 has no redundancy. If you want a fast drive, buy an SSD. It'll be faster, quieter, more reliable, and about the same price as a RAID 0 setup. If you wait until closer to the release of Cataclysm SSDs will only be larger, cheaper, and faster.
posted by jedicus at 10:25 AM on April 12, 2010
Some simple, small overclocks are quick and easy most of the time, as long as you make sure to get a proven overclocking setup. For example, my computer has 4x1GB sticks of RAM so it's unable to overclock like it could if it had 2x2GB of RAM. Overclocking a CPU slightly tends to be a pretty painless way of getting 300-600 extra Mhz out of your PC.
posted by JauntyFedora at 10:27 AM on April 12, 2010
posted by JauntyFedora at 10:27 AM on April 12, 2010
Waiting is always to your advantage. Wait for the upgrade and then do it.
posted by rr at 10:43 AM on April 12, 2010
posted by rr at 10:43 AM on April 12, 2010
Waiting is always to your advantage.
The notable exception to this point is RAM. The Anandtech article linked a few comments up indicates that prices have tripled since last year.
posted by teraflop at 11:16 AM on April 12, 2010
The notable exception to this point is RAM. The Anandtech article linked a few comments up indicates that prices have tripled since last year.
posted by teraflop at 11:16 AM on April 12, 2010
I recommend the SomethingAwful guide which is current and no-nonsense. I've built two machines for the same purposes you describe from their recs recently and have been very happy. I think what it's best for is showing why some options (RAID-ing, overclocking, bleeding edge video cards, SLI, etc.) may or may not be worth the investment of money or time.
posted by turbodog at 11:19 AM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by turbodog at 11:19 AM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]
Raid 0 is not worth it if you're on a budget. The built-in raid on many motherboards doesn't actually do much for performance.
posted by kenliu at 9:17 PM on April 17, 2010
posted by kenliu at 9:17 PM on April 17, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Grither at 9:16 AM on April 12, 2010