• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Building a PC for a dummy

Roronoa Zoro

Gold Member
Ok so here's the deal guys. I have a massive backlog right now. I'm eating good on PS5 and very happy with it. But in the end I know there's gonna be a couple games I really want like probably Starfield and ES6 and a lot of others. Plus there's some oldies I wanna try that are on PC (was a big Rome Total War guy back in the day) and need a good PC for a few other things (streaming and other YouTube stuff).

Anywho the point of all this is I'm gonna eventually build one but it's not urgent. When I do get it all though I haven't had to deal with this for awhile. So stuff like virus protection, pre built vs how hard it is to build for a dummy who has been on a 2011 Mac pro since college, and basically what it would take to run modern games at a comfy 4k 60+ (or if the 1440p ultrawides are better suggest that!) fps. I would like to have a good capture card for it too and whatever software that would take.

Don't need dual monitors or anything (though I've heard of these ultra wide ones that sound coo). Honestly when I go on sites the main things that intimidate me are software stuff. Like I'm afraid I'm gonna get this PC built and it won't work right or whatnot. Or the cooling won't be right or the motherboard will be wrong or some weird stuff lol.

Help a dummy out?
 
Last edited:
Build it yourself. Use PCPartPicker.com for proposed builds (it’ll direct you to purchase every needed item, right down to software) or if you prefer to select every component individually, the site will cross check compatibility among your selections.

Right now is a horrible time to build due to GPU prices and won’t change until year’s end at the earliest. But it’s worth the hassle to not have to deal with pre-builts and the education of building a system is significant. The biggest downside is that if something goes wrong, it’s up to you and your ability to Google answers to fix it.
 

Protocol7

Member
You should check this thread too😉

 

Guilty_AI

Member
Make sure you have a good cooling solution


l1o7cgilnc911.jpg
 
Last edited:

Roronoa Zoro

Gold Member
Build it yourself. Use PCPartPicker.com for proposed builds (it’ll direct you to purchase every needed item, right down to software) or if you prefer to select every component individually, the site will cross check compatibility among your selections.

Right now is a horrible time to build due to GPU prices and won’t change until year’s end at the earliest. But it’s worth the hassle to not have to deal with pre-builts and the education of building a system is significant. The biggest downside is that if something goes wrong, it’s up to you and your ability to Google answers to fix it.
Yeah that's the scary part. I figured with the GPU shortages I wouldn't actually build it soon but hoping that goes down by the time I'd really be jonesing for one.

The software side scares me most
 

DGrayson

Mod Team and Bat Team
Staff Member
Super super simple. Dont be scared. Steer clear of overclocking and water coolong for your first build. Just follow guides online. If you need some let me know.

If you can do legos you can build a pc. Most "difficult" part for a newb is probably applying thermal paste and installing a cpu cooler but even that is pretty basic.
 
Last edited:

DeaDPo0L84

Member
Ok so here's the deal guys. I have a massive backlog right now. I'm eating good on PS5 and very happy with it. But in the end I know there's gonna be a couple games I really want like probably Starfield and ES6 and a lot of others. Plus there's some oldies I wanna try that are on PC (was a big Rome Total War guy back in the day) and need a good PC for a few other things (streaming and other YouTube stuff).

Anywho the point of all this is I'm gonna eventually build one but it's not urgent. When I do get it all though I haven't had to deal with this for awhile. So stuff like virus protection, pre built vs how hard it is to build for a dummy who has been on a 2011 Mac pro since college, and basically what it would take to run modern games at a comfy 4k 60+ fps. I would like to have a good capture card for it too and whatever software that would take.

Don't need dual monitors or anything (though I've heard of these ultra wide ones that sound coo). Honestly when I go on sites the main things that intimidate me are software stuff. Like I'm afraid I'm gonna get this PC built and it won't work right or whatnot. Or the cooling won't be right or the motherboard will be wrong or some weird stuff lol.

Help a dummy out?
I just built my first gaming PC back in late 2019. I had a buddy who lives in Australia helped me out over video chat. Like the person up above mentioned, PCPartPicker was absolutely essential cause it will let you know which parts are compatible with what down to the case, gpu, ram, cooler, etc. Plus the specific PC thread on this very forum and pretty much any dedicated PC thread on reddit is pretty good for info. With that said my first experience was pretty rough, it took me probably 4-6 hours. I consider myself pretty handy when it comes to building things but I had zero knowledge as to where things were meant to be plugged in and I was trying to be as delicate as possible as to not bend the pins or touch the mobo so I wouldn't short anything out. Fast forward a few short months later when the 3000 series gpu came out and now my wife has a gaming PC, we both upgraded our gpus AND coolers, I swapped both of these parts out in each of our PC's in less than an hour. Basically don't sweat it too much, take your time, you'll get the hang of it and it will become a breeze and most importantly enjoy the whole process cause there is great satisfaction in spending hours building your first PC and pressing the power button and it boots up the first time and works just as you desired.
 
Last edited:
Yeah that's the scary part. I figured with the GPU shortages I wouldn't actually build it soon but hoping that goes down by the time I'd really be jonesing for one.

The software side scares me most
Software is easy, don’t fret too much. If you’re not ripping files from the unverified websites or installing unauthorized browser extensions, Defender will protect you just fine.

There are sites and YouTubers who will provide a short list of programs worth downloading if you’re new to the PC scene and they’re each worth a click. But I strongly recommend joining the master race, it’s worth the hassle.
 

nemiroff

Gold Member
Yeah it's funny to think back on the old cumbersome antivirus days now when it's completely out of my mind by Windows having it automated and built in and with no interaction from my side.

With a normal set of decent hardware Windows 10 is rock solid, not like the walking on eggshells of the past. It even handles most drivers by itself. In a worst case scenario reinstalling Windows is just a couple of clicks, don't even need to put in the "CD key", lol.
 
Last edited:

Armorian

Banned
The most logical parts for NOW (more powerful CPUs might be needed in few years but I somehow... doubt it given games are still using 8 threads):

- Intel 11400F
- 16GB DDR4: AT LEAST 3200Mhz
- some certified ~650W power supply
- GPU: 3060Ti/3070 - 6700XT/6800 (or even 3090 if you have the money but I'm not sure about power supply LOL)
- Any (?) Intel mobo for Rocket Lake
- Monitor WITH FREESYNC/GSYNC (also go Ultrawide for better experience)
 

Krappadizzle

Gold Member
With what GPU and CPU?
Right now is a bad time to build. Hopefully soon GPU prices come down, but as it currently stands in regards to pricing and availability, pre-built is probably your best bet. I'd go with something like a RTX2070 as a minimum, a RTX3060+ would probably be more ideal though.

If you can wait, and honestly, unless there's something RIGHT NOW on PC you MUST play, you should. I've never been one to suggest a pre-built as learning to do it yourself teaches you more about your PC, is easier to do than people think AND is generally cheaper, but the market is in a shitty spot for newly interested PC gamers freshly jumping in.

It's never been a better time to be a PC gamer, but it's also never been a worse time to START being a PC gamer either.

Again, knowing what I do and unless there's something you have to play coming out in the next few months, I'd wait 6 mos. or so and check back.
 
Last edited:

Porcile

Member
Built my first PC last year. Easy as pie. Just watch a bunch of vids on Youtube, from established channels and follow their advice and steps. You can even look up vids for installing the particular part you buy.
 
Last edited:

Dr.D00p

Gold Member
You forgot the thing we all hate:

maxresdefault.jpg

Most motherboards now come with an adapter that you plug all those separate wires into first, then that plugs over the motherboard jumper pins, at least my Gigabyte one did. But you're right, prior to those adapters being adopted, they were a PIA.
 

KyoZz

Tag, you're it.
Most motherboards now come with an adapter that you plug all those separate wires into first, then that plugs over the motherboard jumper pins, at least my Gigabyte one did. But you're right, prior to those adapters being adopted, they were a PIA.
Ooooh so that was what this little piece of plastic that I threw last year was for.
Make sense.
 
Give it a go.

GPU prices are horrid right now, but that might change sooner than some think since the recent crypto beating. maybe it won't. but if it does cheap second hand GPUs will flood the market.
 

Roronoa Zoro

Gold Member
Right now is a bad time to build. Hopefully soon GPU prices come down, but as it currently stands in regards to pricing and availability, pre-built is probably your best bet. I'd go with something like a RTX2070 as a minimum, a RTX3060+ would probably be more ideal though.

If you can wait, and honestly, unless there's something RIGHT NOW on PC you MUST play, you should. I've never been one to suggest a pre-built as learning to do it yourself teaches you more about your PC, is easier to do than people think AND is generally cheaper, but the market is in a shitty spot for newly interested PC gamers freshly jumping in.

It's never been a better time to be a PC gamer, but it's also never been a worse time to START being a PC gamer either.

Again, knowing what I do and unless there's something you have to play coming out in the next few months, I'd wait 6 mos. or so and check back.
Yeah given my backlog on ps5 this is a year plus away anyway
 

Armorian

Banned
Oh I dunno lol I was just giving the end goal and wondering what parts would get us there

8 core Intel (10, 11 gen} or 5xxx Ryzen will easily last ty you entire gen. Rtx3080 and 6800xt should easily last for years in UW 1440. Gpu prices are still super high so maybe wait
 
Last edited:

Krappadizzle

Gold Member
Yeah given my backlog on ps5 this is a year plus away anyway
O. Well, you got time. Any suggestions now would be ANCIENT in a years time. AMD has some very interesting things on the horizon and in a years time, chances are the entire landscape will be different anyways. As far as software concerns, it's never been easier, seriously, don't even sweat it.
 

Roronoa Zoro

Gold Member
O. Well, you got time. Any suggestions now would be ANCIENT in a years time. AMD has some very interesting things on the horizon and in a years time, chances are the entire landscape will be different anyways. As far as software concerns, it's never been easier, seriously, don't even sweat it.
Oh good lol other than the initial construction that's always been my biggest thing with getting back into it. Understand the last time I PC gamed was the original Rome Total War. It was Norton and CD codes and shit. So much had changed and it wouldn't be worth it without it being better than the console I have so I just always kinda stuck with Playstation. But now with Bethesda going there and sometimes getting a hankering for some ps2 or ps3 era stuff plus wanting to try some non ancient strategy games i feel like jumping in this gen
 

Reizo Ryuu

Gold Member
Super super simple. Dont be scared. Steer clear of overclocking and water coolong for your first build.
Water cooling should be super easy now too. I built a pc for a friend 2 years ago, and while he was present while I was building it, he had never done so himself.
He's also a bit of an RGB freak so he wanted to swap out the air cooler for something with more lights on it; he wound up removing the cooler I installed, cleaned the cpu and fit the water cooling perfectly.
 

I_D

Member
How much do you think it'd be to do ultra settings at 1440p ultra wide 60fps for new gen games?

I just finished building a build using NZXT's website. It includes an RTX 3080 and i9-11900k, and the total cost was $3000 plus S&H.
The markup is certainly more than MSRP, but it's still the cheapest way to get strong hardware while relatively avoiding scalpers.

The plan is that this should run any game perfectly fine at 1440p for years to come, though.
 

teezzy

Banned
How much do you think it'd be to do ultra settings at 1440p ultra wide 60fps for new gen games?

I play everything 1440p on high/ultra with my current setup and I have like a 2070 with a quad core and ddr3

It's a shame the market is so out of sorts right now, because I really do think PC is the best it's ever been as a platform, and even XSX and PS5 have legiterally nothing to sway me over
 

Armorian

Banned
I just finished building a build using NZXT's website. It includes an RTX 3080 and i9-11900k, and the total cost was $3000 plus S&H.
The markup is certainly more than MSRP, but it's still the cheapest way to get strong hardware while relatively avoiding scalpers.

The plan is that this should run any game perfectly fine at 1440p for years to come, though.

DON'T BUY 11900K!!!!



11700K is the same thing and cheaper, but if you want CPU that will last go 5900X
 

I_D

Member
DON'T BUY 11900K!!!!



11700K is the same thing and cheaper, but if you want CPU that will last go 5900X


With the market how it is, I'd say buy whatever you can get your hands on for a decent price.

The NZXT building site also has 59xx processors, buy they sell out within a few minutes of going up. I would recommend the AMD route as well if you can catch it in time.
 

rofif

Can’t Git Gud
DON'T BUY 11900K!!!!



11700K is the same thing and cheaper, but if you want CPU that will last go 5900X

Seriously... at this point I am angry I got x570 and 3700x... 10400f is so much cheaper and intel is so much less troublesome
 

fersnake

Member
virus protection? been using windows defender since windows 7 just try to navigate the web with some common sense and just download trustly apps.

on the build... well if you have a friend who knows more than you, ask some help. believe me you are gonna have some questions and if you dont know anything about it watch some video tutorial first and read alot (reddit, forums etc)
 

Nubulax

Member
With the market how it is, I'd say buy whatever you can get your hands on for a decent price.

The NZXT building site also has 59xx processors, buy they sell out within a few minutes of going up. I would recommend the AMD route as well if you can catch it in time.
I scored a 10700k on Amazon a few days ago for around $245 I think. Also got Samsung 980 PRO SSD PCIe 4 that was also on a great sale imo. Then I dove down the rabbit hole and picked up everything else I needed for a build. I already have a EVGA 1060 6GB GPU so im just using that until the 3000x series are cheaper and easier to find. I dont think prices seemed too bad for most things I bought and looked at. Seemed about in line from when I last built a PC. I feel like the GPU and possibly CPU are the two parts that might be huge price increased and or very hard to find

Will be nice since right now im going off an older SSD Sata type, with a I5-3570k that came out in 2012 lol and also going from DD3 1866 to DD4 3200 RAM will be nice

I would also probably recommend the AMD 5XXX Processors but the 10700k at that price seemed like a really good deal
 
Last edited:
Have a local shop build it. They'll do it right and test everything out before you go pick it up. It may cost a little money, but think of the hours you didn't spend stressing and troubleshooting if anything went wrong.
 
Top Bottom