About time for a new computer.

I've always been a fan of desktop computers and a few years ago I bought my first laptop. I'm not a big fan of the laptop so I'm contemplating going back to a desktop now that my battery has finally died on this machine.

I'm not much of a computer expert so I'm looking for your advise and opinions on good deals, where to buy, etc.

Most my time on the computer I spend watching Youtube or movies, downloading music, or playing some odd games here and there (not much gaming).

I see a ton of few year old gaming computers for 400$ or so on Kijiji but I'm not really sure what I should be looking for nor what is suitable.

My budget is around 500-600$ for now. Don't need anything overkill. What specs should I be looking at? I just want to buy something that is affordable and will last me for a couple years. Hell, I'd even build if I had to lol.

 

Sounds like your heading for an AMD computer with a mid-tiered graphics card (AMD as well).

If you are actually in Canada: I would say NCIX, Newegg, and Amazon are great starters for your shopping needs. Keep an eye on the deals there and see what they can offer.

I'll expand on this a little further later on.

 

Bump!

 

Definitely do build it, you'll get better components and save a shit ton of money.

Here is a good example build to get you thinking.



If you do a little bit of research and begin to put together parts (use pcpartpicker.com) I'd be glad to help you over skype as well.

 

So they would install Windows for me? So for 600$ I would have a pretty decent build. Interesting, for sure.

 

You can try to look in newegg or amazon for components but I would definetely recommend you to buy them in pieces, regardless of the prices of the new already built computers. They are way better if you compose them, the operative system shouldn't be a problem, there are $5 licenses but of course they're not like the "original ones". For $500-750 you should have a good pc, having an i7, maybe some graphics card like 1 gb ddr5 or maybe even 2GB, like 8 or 12 gb of RAM, and some other shit. If you want I could of search for you something really good, just hit me back.

 

That would be awesome. Keep in mind my budget is around 600$. I'd really like to keep it low though as I have some flights I have to pay for in the coming months.

 

I'll give you a perfect example here, even if it's not a BEAST it's still a decent-good computer.
This could be the box.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004351H9G/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER -> $59.99

Power supply.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0092ML0OC/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER -> $62.00

The HDD. 1TB
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006GDVREI/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER -> $54.99

Memory ram 2x4GB.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0057Q4ADU/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER -> $79.99

Processor, an i5-650 with 4MB of cache and 3.20 GHZ.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0030DL3FU/ref=ox_sc_act_title_7?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=AQMMCPS31QHY9 -> $175.00

This is the Graphics Card that i've chosen for you, its quite decent, has 2GB DDR5.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0088PK040/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER -> $129.99

This is the Motherboard, it's not very expensive but still a good product.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IYJS8U8/ref=ox_sc_act_title_6?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER -> $116.99

This all would be something around $650-700 So think about that one, I think it's a good one considering the price. Good luck with the trips and with the computer dude.

 

This is one you'd put together yourself. Installing windows is as simple as hitting --> english --> next --> next, etc. If you watch a youtube tutorial you could figure out how to do the build, the part selection is the hard part.


Also before you went with any company you could consider using someone on sythe. Me, n4n0, teh99prayerkid, str8 d a n k, etc are all people you could ask. Either for free or cheap. Shipping would be cheaper than going pre-built still =p. edit: I see you are in Canada. You could try Dialatic then.

 

Actually will be in New Brunswick in 2 weeks Drento haha, if you need any help. Darkest Dream taught me everything for my new build, so I now know how to do it all.

 

I was actually looking at building a new computer for the hell of it tonight.

I found one all on Newegg for a decent price (765~). The price may be different for you since you are in Canada. However, here is the list I made.

Case - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811353021
MB - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138353
PSU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171090
RAM - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148662
DVD - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151266
SSD - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820171740
CPU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116502
GPU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127784

Be aware that I was making this as cheap as I could. So the case isn't the greatest.

 

http://www.logicalincrements.com/

Set it to Canada and pick one where the price is in your range; remember it doesn't include peripherals in those builds.

Then just go to pcpartpicker and plug in those components from whichever build you pick because it will save you money and that's good.

Building a PC is real easy but watch a few videos and don't freak out when the CPU makes a crunch noise unless you really messed up.

 

amd vishera quad core
$60 mobo
500w psu
4GB ram
corsair $50 case
1TB HDD
7850

should be $500

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($106.02 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus 76.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R7 260X 2GB Video Card ($124.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Enermax ECA3253-BW ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ OutletPC)
Sound Card: Rosewill RC-701 Sound Card ($11.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $563.91
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-07 15:51 EDT-0400
Any thoughts on this where I should improve, or if I missed the mark on anything?

 

You don't need a soundcard or a CD drive.

You could have just got 4 shitty kingston 2gb sticks of RAM

 

I gave it a go myself

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Vq3ZWZ

Looks like pcpartpicker doesn't have my filthy kingston RAM that I love.


I actually own a 6 core AMD CPU, it's really not that great. I'd rather have higher ghz. Also you didn't need a CPU cooler, the stock one will be fine

Other than that our builds were quite similar really. You chose a better GPU which is a good call. I chose a cheaper case cause idgaf about looks

But hey, it's up to you!

 

Just playing with it a bit. Seems as though with how I multitask on my computers I wouldn't necessarily need a huge graphics card I just need a strong core? I really won't be gaming that much on this rig but wouldn't mind having the option.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($169.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R7 260X 2GB DirectCU II Video Card ($124.99 @ Micro Center)
Case: Enermax ECA3253-BW ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $514.92
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-07 19:52 EDT-0400

 

That's looking pretty good, however if you're going to spend $170 on a processor, you might as well go intel. As much as I like AMD, their processors are pretty shitty. Hyperthreading is a big benefit if you do plan on gaming.
As for your GPU, the one you picked is fine. I've got a HD6970, and I feel as though my crappy AMD CPU is a huge bottleneck.

Also, wheres your RAM at?

 

Oops I must've removed my ram. It's still the 8GB Ripsaw



I was comparing the two and AMD got better marks. My gaming side of things isn't really going to be huge so the frame rates that Intel helps with isn't necessarily a selling point for me.

Realistically I could probably get away with just having a graphics integrated CPU but I'd like to have the GPU to allow myself to play some of the emulation games and maybe even try a couple demos, etc. No interest in playing on ultra settings or anything at this point.


Now mind you, I'm really new to this so I'm still trying to figure out the exact uses for each part, etc.

 

I can't view the image at the moment, but it seems as though you're on the right track. If you're buying with games in mind then Intel would be better, but AMD would be fine for multitasking and such.
I wouldn't read too much into those benchmarks, I just compared my 6 core AMD with one of the i7s and according to that my CPU is almost as good, but in reality my friends have i7s with similar specd PCs and my computer sucks compared to theirs.
If you're only interested in playing games on low you could probably get away with a GPU thats worse than the one you picked. I guess it's in your budget anyway though.

The only other thing I can think of is if you're doing some serious multitasking you could go for a couple of 1gig sticks in the spare slots you have on your mobo. Just remember if you do this you need to pick the same clock speed for both types of RAM, otherwise your fast RAM will run at the slower ones speed (I made this mistake, lol)