Buying first gaming PC

DellBoy121

DellBoy121

DellBoy121

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Joined
9 Jan 2016
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23
Hi guys. Don't know if this is the right place for this post.

First time posting here and am a complete novice when it comes to gaming computers. I've had an iMac since 2011 but now I'd like to update my computer and use it primarily for gaming. My budget is £800-£850.

I will be playing mostly first person shooters (mostly Overwatch) I will also be playing SC2 and league of legends. Ideally I'd like something which is going to last a good few years and stand the test of time.

I have literally no idea what to get. I will be doing intense research into it, however, I was just wondering if anyone could help me.

Thanks in advance.
 
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mickyflinn said:
Will you be building the pc yourself and do you need a monitor, keyboard, windows , etc ?
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I have a monitor and keyboard all sorted. I will need windows. I have zero experience building a computer, so I think its best its prebuild. I was thinking of a basic one from the Overclockers gaming section that I would edit as needed.
 
PhoenixUK said:
What monitor do you have and what games do you usually play or will want to play ? This makes a massive difference in regards to graphic card / processor / amount of memory needed.
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Monitor wise I have an Asus VG248QE and a BenQ XL2411Z. The main games I want to play/play now are Overwatch, CS:G0, starcraft 2 and some league of legends. The main game I'll be playing is Overwatch.
 
Sixense said:
I guess this is pretty reasonable for 1080p, I'm no stulid tho.

My basket at Overclockers UK:
  • 1 x OcUK Tech Labs Skylake Z170 Midi Tower Gaming PC Configurator = £820.82
    • Case:Corsair Carbide Series SPEC-01 Mid Tower Gaming Case (CC-9011050-WW)
    • Motherboard:MSI Z170A Krait Gaming Intel Z170 (Socket 1151) DDR4 ATX Motherboard
    • Processor:Intel Core i5-6600K 3.9GHz (Skylake) Socket LGA1151 Processor - Retail
    • Memory:Team Group Elite 8GB (2x4GB) DDR4 PC4-19200C16 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit - Black (TPKD48GM2400HC16DC0
    • CPU Cooler:Alpenfohn Ben Nevis CPU Cooler - 120mm
    • M.2 Solid State Drive **For Operating System If Selected**:Unwanted
    • Solid State Drive 1:Samsung 120GB 850 EVO SSD 2.5" SATA 6Gbps 32 Layer 3D V-NAND Solid State Drive (MZ-75E120B/EU
    • Solid State Drive 2:Unwanted
    • Mechanical Hard Drive 1:Seagate 1TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache HDD - OEM (ST1000DM003)
    • Mechanical Hard Drive 2:Unwanted
    • Optical Drive **Please Check Chassis Support**:Unwanted
    • Graphics Card:Sapphire Radeon R9 Nitro 380 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (11242-07-20G)
    • Power Supply:Super Flower Golden Green HX 550W "80 Plus Gold" Power Supply - Black
    • Sound Card:Unwanted
    • Networking:Unwanted
    • Case Lighting:Unwanted
    • Operating System:Microsoft Windows 10 64-Bit DVD - OEM (MS-KW9-00139)
    • Security Software:Unwanted
    • Keyboard:Unwanted
    • Mouse:Unwanted
    • Monitor:Unwanted
    • Gaming Headset:Unwanted
    • Speakers:Unwanted
    • Gaming Chair:Unwanted

Total: £834.92
(includes shipping: £14.10)
​


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Thank you so much for posting this. I'll take a good look at it and then do some more research.
 
Thank you for all the replies thus far. I've been doing a bit of research and have a few questions:

Firstly what is the difference/ which is better between the Radeon R9 Nitro 390 8192MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card with Backplate and say the MSI GeForce GTX 970 Gaming Edition 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card.

Is there a massive difference between the 970 and the 980.

Is an intel i5 better in terms of performance and reliability than any AMD stuff. For example how do the AMD Piledriver FX-6 Six Core 6350 Black Edition 3.90GHz (Socket AM3+) Processor or the AMD Kaveri A10-7870K 12 Compute Core APU w/ Radeon R7 Graphics (4 CPU + 8 GPU Compute Cores) compare to the i5 6600/6600k.
 
CorrodedTemplar said:
I disagree, personally I wouldn't go any lower than my GTX970 for 1080p. Not for modern gaming.

If you could squeeze an R9 390 into the build i'd say go for it.

You could go for the following, swapping the 120gb SSD and the 1TB HDD for a 1TB SSHD hybrid drive, crank up to 750w from the psu and run an r9 390 for 1080p+ gaming.

I've also swapped the retail 6600k for an OEM one as you don't need the intel cooler. There's little point in having a K processor on a H-170 board, but it's the same price as the 6600 non-k, so either or really.

1080p Gaming Monster Overclockers UK:

Total: £857.43
(includes shipping: £12.60)
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-=EDIT=- I see the above ones are prebuilt by Overclockers. I say get down and dirty and do it yourself. You can buy an anti static wristband for less than a fiver normally and youtube tells you how to do everything. Once you know, you never forget.

And yeah i've gone £7 over your budget, but what's £7 for a massive jump in performance...
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After doing a bit of research this seems like a good around machine. Would it be able to play most games at good meetings with decent fps? Also would it be good for future games? I'd want it to last at least 3-5 years.
 
If I was going to get a prebuilt one, how does this look?

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ocuk...dr3-gaming-pc-fs-152-og.html#t=a4b7c5d;e5f0i0

Case Aerocool Qs-180 Micro-ATX Chassis - Black
Processor Intel Core i5-6600 3.30GHz (Skylake) Socket LGA1151 Processor - Retail
Memory Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-14900C10 1866MHz Dual Channel Kit (HX318C10FBK2/16)
Graphics Card Asus GeForce GTX 970 TURBO OC 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
Primary Solid State Drive / Hard Drive Samsung 250GB 850 EVO SSD 2.5" SATA 6Gbps 32 Layer 3D V-NAND Solid State Drive (MZ-75E250B/EU)
Storage Mechanical Hard Drive Seagate 1TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache HDD - OEM (ST1000DM003)
Optical Drive **Not Compatible with Kolink Victory Case** Not wanted
WIFI Not wanted
Operating System Microsoft Windows 10 64-Bit DVD - OEM (MS-KW9-00139)
Security Software ESET Smart Security - Trial Key
Build Time Standard Build Systems - Dispatched within 7 working days
Warranty OcUK Standard System Warranty - 3 Year (24 Month C&R + 12 Month Labour)

price is £842.14 (including shipping)
 
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CorrodedTemplar said:
Sorry for the slow reply, been fairly busy.

The difference between the R9 380 and the GTX 970/R9 390 is massive, to be frank.

I have one of the higher end GTX 970's now, and it was paired with an AMD fx8350 processor, and now it's paired with an Intel i5 6600.

And from my experience, if you went AMD you'd go the cheapest you can get within reason, as the prices of the new Intel Skylake stuff is fantastic and the higher end AMD cpu's just can not compete.

(in my favourite racing game the intel gave me 50 extra minimum FPS, I literally could not believe it.)

In games that are CPU hungry, you'll feel it with the AMD chips.

In games that are Graphics card (GPU) heavy, the difference is much much less noticeable.

SO yes, I would suggest an Intel for this budget.

The GTX970 will be fine for 1080p single monitor, mines just starting to struggle and i'm gaming over a triple screen 1080p setup at high-ultra graphics. But in theory the R9 390 has a longer future in it due to it's 8GB of VRAM compared with 3.5ish on the GTX970.

-=-=

As for the latest prebuilt you've put up, the case will leave a lot to be desired, but this can be upgraded in the future when you have spare £50/60

The rest of it seems solid mate, you will have plenty of fun with that build.
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Ok so intel i5 it is then over any AMD stuff I could afford. After doing some more research I like the look of the GTX970 over anything else in my budget.

I'll only be using one screen so it shouldn't be a problem.
As quite honestly I have no idea about cases, what is wrong with the one I've chosen and could you suggest something better? I don't mind spend the extra if it makes a big difference.
Thank you for your reply I found it very useful.
 
CorrodedTemplar said:
Mostly the steel thickness. At 0.5mm it's highly likely that the case will feel too flimsy. Personally I don't go below 0.7mm.

And the restriction to M-atx and Itx motherboards would mean any future upgrades you'd be limited to specific motherboards.

Don't get me wrong, it'll do the job.

But if I was dropping £850 on something, i'd also want it to look good and be resilient.
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Ok thank you. I'll look into a new case for this build and all future builds.
 
PhoenixUK said:
Please, for the love of god, don't listen to anyone who tells you to not buy SSD. Do get decent 250gb or bigger SSD (Samsung Evo 840 or 850 for example).

Also, whoever mentioned matx case - make sure your PSU, mobo and GPU can actually fit into it. I'll probably get normal size or bigger case unless space is a problem for you. Quality 500w+ psu will be enough for single card i5 setup so can save money there.
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Could you give me an example of what you think is a good build?
 
Wow guys thank you so much for these replies. I think that both of you pose very good points. I'm sorry I haven't replied sooner, I've just been super busy.

Let me make a few things more clear about myself and my usage.

Firstly, I only really said that was my budget as at the time I thought you had to spend that much to get a really decent up to date gaming computer.

I would be more than happy to buy second hand. In fact I was looking at Ebay only this morning.

I'm not a competitive gamer, I just want to have a good time playing with my friends and run the games I like at a decent level, however, I do want it to stand the test of time as in my mind I'd rather spend a bit more now and have it last than have to spend twice as much upgrading this computer a year or so down the line.

I don't really want to spend that much, honest the most I really want to spend is £650-£700, I am however, prepared to spend more if I can justify it.
 
PhoenixUK said:
It's a shame you're new to the forums as otherwise you'll have access to 'Members Market' which is a place here where we trade with each other and you can grab some bargains.

Ebay might be a bit tricky - make sure you buy from trusted sellers if you decide to get anything. I would actually avoid this unless you know what you're doing and how to test different parts to make sure they don't have any issues.

I'd stick with a cheaper and upgradeable build rather than splashing all the money now - it really is more efficient in the long run, especially GPU wise.

Out of curiosity what is the current PC that you're using? Maybe we can salvage something out of it:).

------------------------------------------

Also, there is this option if you're on a budget:

Case Raijintek Aeneas mATX Cube Case - Black Windowed

CPU AMD Kaveri A10-7870K 12 Compute Core APU w/ Radeon R7 Graphics (4 CPU + 8 GPU Compute Cores) - Reta

Memory Kingston HyperX Savage Red 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit (HX324C11SRK2/8)

Primary Solid State Drive / Hard Drive Samsung 250GB 850 EVO SSD 2.5" SATA 6Gbps 32 Layer 3D V-NAND Solid State Drive (MZ-75E250B/EU)

Graphics Card Not wanted - Onboard Graphics **AMD APU Processors Only**

Operating System Microsoft Windows 10 64-Bit DVD - OEM (MS-KW9-00139)


It hasn't got a GPU but it will play league of legends, starcraft, counter strike, any older games and any new games on low/medium/high depending on game.

Overwatch still isn't out until June - which in PC world is a very long time. By the time it comes out, you can try it out on this PC on low/medium settings - see if you like it and if you do, get an extra GPU later. There are new GPU technologies coming out around that time so it could be a wise move - even if they turn out to be nothing spectacular, the prices will drop massively anyway (maybe by then you'll have access to members market for some 2nd hand bargains once everyone starts buying new tech).

I've also only picked 250gb SSD and no mechanical drive - after all, you should be able to easily put a reasonable number of games on that (how many games can someone play at the same time right?) and if you ever need extra storage you can always get it later (again, get a 2nd hand bargain).
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What do I have to do to become part of the 'members market'?

I've used Ebay a lot for other things but never for computing therefore, as I'm relatively new to the whole thing I'll avoid Ebay.

Unfortunately right now I'm using a 2011 iMac.

I've heard mixed things about the -----> CPU AMD Kaveri A10-7870K 12 Compute Core APU w/ Radeon R7 Graphics (4 CPU + 8 GPU Compute Cores) - Reta <----- Is it any good? How does it compare with the i5 stuff?

Memory Kingston HyperX Savage Red 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit (HX324C11SRK2/8) This is my go to, however, one question why 8GB and not 16GB?

As for this Primary Solid State Drive / Hard Drive Samsung 250GB 850 EVO SSD 2.5" SATA 6Gbps 32 Layer 3D V-NAND Solid State Drive (MZ-75E250B/EU) Would you always go 250GB over 12GB?
 
PhoenixUK said:
Do you mean that overclockers should close the business then, for selling gaming PCs based on AMD builds? Clearly they don't have a clue and all of those benchmarks showing barely 5-10% difference in most games lie.
Everyone should should spend £2000 on a PC like you did, to play games that will play exactly the same on a machine for less than half of the price :-).
If you have nothing reasonable to contribute then please keep it to yourself.

I've posted earlier explaining the differences and another option of cheaper i5 build (still couldn't come under £750 though) as well as couple more things but it's gone off somewhere.

Whatever the OP decides to go for, I'd definitely suggest investing in a better motherboard, PSU and case rather than CPU/GPU from which the first one can easily be overclocked (and most games nowadays aren't that much CPU hungry, anything around the performance of 3-4th gen i5 will run any game fine unless you play on stupid resolution) and second one loses more value per day than a mid range brand new car and becomes obsolete every 8 months anyway.

@DellBoy121
Where are you based?
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I live in Reading but spend a lot of time in Cambridgeshire and Liverpool.
 
With an AMD I can get what I think is a good build for like £600-£650. With the i5 I'm looking at £750-£800. Considering I was going to just upgrade my iMac to the new one which costs between £750 and £1000 I wouldn't mind spending that on a new PC. However, while I wouldn't mind doing it, I'd only want to if I can justify it. Because like I said I'm not a pro gamer and realistically I'm only going to be spending at a few hours a day playing games.
 
PhoenixUK said:
That's the point. If you can spend the extra cash then that's great, but if you're on a tight budget then alternative options are there to use. Sometimes it's worth squeezing extra but sometimes it isn't.

Some of the best gaming PCs I've built were with cheap components - the well known, AMD64 3200+, E2200 (in the age of 3x price E6700 at the time), the famous unlockable 550BE which clocked to 4.5ghz and unlocked to quad core for £50 before they became popular. All of those CPUs were around £70 and took everything you could throw at them. I've never spent myself (although have built for others) more than £150 on a GPU and could play all games just fine.

If a £300 console can play games, why a £600 PC equipped with better hardware can't?
Some people just have bigger wallet than brains :-).

Ofcourse, if you want a fancy 4k monitor or a multi monitor setup and want to play all those newest shooters on maxed eyecandy then you might need to spend a bit extra but for the casual gamer or someone who plays RTS/Mobas or the occasional arcade shooter (overwatch/tf) then you'll find that a £600-700 build is all you'll need.

And as far as knowing that mid/higher end i5/i7s are great - looking from experience, it looks like skylake is very far from a good buy being hardly 15% quicker than 4years older ivybridge architecture, with virtually 0 real world noticeable performance gains in gaming. A lot of money for essentially performance of a 4 year old tech.

I have to say I'm kind of disappointed with intel over the last few years, they didn't really bring anything interesting out other than heat problems, errors and get people to change motherboards every 2 years.

--------------------
If you decide to get something, give us a shout once you're ready or give ocUK a call and someone will help you find the best deals around. If you ever pass through Cambridge - I've got a spare 500GB hdd and some quality thermal grease lying around that you can have for a price of good pint of ale.
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I've got family in Cambridgeshire so I visit Cambridge a lot throughout the year. In fact I was born there, only moved for uni and work.

Ok so this is the cheap side of a build, let me know what you think. Remember I'm new to this whole thing so any feedback is much appreciated.

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ocuk...3-gaming-pc-fs-151-og.html#t=a+b8c4d@e5f0i0j6

Case Corsair Carbide Series 88R Micro-ATX Case - Black (CC-9011086-WW)
Processor AMD Kaveri A10-7870K 12 Compute Core APU w/ Radeon R7 Graphics (4 CPU + 8 GPU Compute Cores) - Reta
Memory Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-14900C10 1866MHz Dual Channel Kit (HX318C10FBK2/8)
Graphics Card Sapphire Radeon R9 Nitro 380X 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card with Backplate (11250-01-20G)
Primary Solid State Drive / Hard Drive Samsung 250GB 850 EVO SSD 2.5" SATA 6Gbps 32 Layer 3D V-NAND Solid State Drive (MZ-75E250B/EU)
Storage Mechanical Hard Drive Seagate 1TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache HDD - OEM (ST1000DM003)
Optical Drive **Not Compatible with Kolink Victory Case** Not wanted
WIFI Not wanted
Operating System Microsoft Windows 10 64-Bit DVD - OEM (MS-KW9-00139)
Security Software Not wanted
Build Time Standard Build Systems - Dispatched within 7 working days
Warranty OcUK Standard System Warranty - 3 Year (24 Month C&R + 12 Month Labour)

£687.02 (including shipping)
 
Or what about this build?

Case Corsair Carbide Series 88R Micro-ATX Case - Black (CC-9011086-WW)
Processor AMD Piledriver FX-6 Six Core 6350 Black Edition 3.90GHz (Socket AM3+) Processor - Retail
Memory Ballistix Sport 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (BLS2CP4G3D1609DS1S00CEU)
Primary Solid State Drive / Hard Drive Samsung 250GB 850 EVO SSD 2.5" SATA 6Gbps 32 Layer 3D V-NAND Solid State Drive (MZ-75E250B/EU)
Secondary Mechanical Hard Drive Seagate 1TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache HDD - OEM (ST1000DM003)
Graphics Card Sapphire Radeon R9 Nitro 380X 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card with Backplate (11250-01-20G)
Optical Drive Not wanted
Sound Card / WIFI Not wanted
LED Fan Colour Not wanted
Operating System Microsoft Windows 10 64-Bit DVD - OEM (MS-KW9-00139)
Security Software Not wanted
Build Time Standard Build Systems - Dispatched within 7 working days
Warranty OcUK Standard System Warranty - 3 Year (24 Month C&R + 12 Month Labour)

£678.98 (including shipping)
 
PhoenixUK said:
They look alright although I would really consider MidiTower case. With micro atx (mini sized motherboards only) you're really limiting yourself badly with the choice of your components.

Also, as mentioned regarding the GPU, I'd probably just leave it out at start because from what I can see, the games that you mainly play can be played without any problems on the integrated Kaveri APU. Another reason for this is that there are new GPUs coming out around summer. I wouldn't pay £200 for that GPU, it doesn't look like a good value right now.

I'll have a look tonight and see what I can come up with if you were to self build and maybe it will work out better.

When were you planning to place the order? There are 'weekend only' deals on ocUK every week so it's possible that something comes up at a great price.
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I've been toying with buying for a while now. I will probably be looking to place the order around late Jan/early Feb. I could hold off buying till the summer to see what comes out as overwatch doesn't come out till then anyway. If I can save a large chunk of cash I'd rather self build it (never done it before but I think I could learn).
 
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