Building from Scratch

S

stonewall50

New Member
So I want to build a gaming computer from scratch. I was wondering if I could get some help. Basically I am looking to learn about the parts. Where should I start? That kind of thing. I want a computer that will play Arma 3 WELL. I know that is a project. I can do this the Johnny Cash way too (one piece at a time). So I have a list of questions:

1) What part do I start with?
2) What should I read to learn more about this stuff?
3) Where do I find cheap parts?
4) I should build myself correct? Order parts and put them together as I get them right?
5) Any special recommendations?
6) Is there any parts I should consider pirating off of something else? Like stealing bits and pieces from other things?

This will be the first PC I build. I would like it to be nice lol.

BTW...no word processors lol. I freaking hate microsoft, but I am ok getting windows since I know it.
 
1. Do all your parts at once if at all possible. The longer you spread it out the more you'll regret it. Prices changes on a daily basis (or even more frequently than that). Also new parts get released all the time. If you buy piece by piece over say 3 months your processor that you bought in January might be out of date by March and finding a matching motherboard could cost more than what it was before or what have you. Overall better to just save and do it all at once.

2. This forum is a great resource. Do some reading through other threads. Youtube is also great. Channels like LinusTechTips, TekSyndicate, and a variety of other computer channels will get you started.

3. Newegg and Amazon are typically the cheapest assuming you're in the US.

4. Yes. It's cheaper than buying a prebuilt machine and you learn a lot about how your system works and have a better idea of where to start if something goes wrong. It's also fun!

5. Need a specific budget before we can suggest parts. Do you need any peripherals like mouse, keyboard, monitor, etc? Do you need a copy of an Operating System? Those cost right around 100 dollars for a copy of Windows 8.1

6. If you're talking about salvaging parts from other computers you could, maybe. A power supply might be salvageable, but you'd want to find out the exact model and specs of what you're going to use. Might also be able to salvage a disc drive, a hard drive, or maybe even RAM out of a preexisting machine. It really depends on what you have around. If you're talking about pirating software it is against the forum rules to discuss that and your thread will be locked if you bring it up. So don't. :P

Welcome to CoFo!
 
^ Darren just tackled that like a pro.

Take this benchmark as an example.
arma-fr.png


The i5-4690K is the hot item for gaming. It's a quad core and runs Arma 3 no problem. The i3-4330 is a good option, but price to performance isn't good unless you want to skip AMD. This would be ideal if you wanted something Intel but don't want to break the bank.

The G3258 is next. Older Pentium but runs on the newer LGA1150 socket (can be upgraded!) Overclocked this processor runs over the AMD Athlon X4 750K. Ninjabubbles3 runs this pent in his build. Personally I wouldn't recommend it and would rather get the i3 for dual core performance.

Lastly, the X4 750K. The newer version of this (860K) is out, and is what I run. I like it and for the price it couldn't be beat. It's a quad core so other games will utilize it better then the dual core i3 or pentium.

Based on your overall budget, you'll get a sense of what kind of processor power you're looking at to get 30FPS plus.

Keep in mind that this benchmark was done with a Titan so there was no GPU bottleneck playing on Ultra.
 
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Darren said:
1. Do all your parts at once if at all possible. The longer you spread it out the more you'll regret it. Prices changes on a daily basis (or even more frequently than that). Also new parts get released all the time. If you buy piece by piece over say 3 months your processor that you bought in January might be out of date by March and finding a matching motherboard could cost more than what it was before or what have you. Overall better to just save and do it all at once.

2. This forum is a great resource. Do some reading through other threads. Youtube is also great. Channels like LinusTechTips, TekSyndicate, and a variety of other computer channels will get you started.

3. Newegg and Amazon are typically the cheapest assuming you're in the US.

4. Yes. It's cheaper than buying a prebuilt machine and you learn a lot about how your system works and have a better idea of where to start if something goes wrong. It's also fun!

5. Need a specific budget before we can suggest parts. Do you need any peripherals like mouse, keyboard, monitor, etc? Do you need a copy of an Operating System? Those cost right around 100 dollars for a copy of Windows 8.1

6. If you're talking about salvaging parts from other computers you could, maybe. A power supply might be salvageable, but you'd want to find out the exact model and specs of what you're going to use. Might also be able to salvage a disc drive, a hard drive, or maybe even RAM out of a preexisting machine. It really depends on what you have around. If you're talking about pirating software it is against the forum rules to discuss that and your thread will be locked if you bring it up. So don't. :P

Welcome to CoFo!
Click to expand...

Thanks Man. Not pirating software no. Just taking parts off of old machines. I wouldn't discuss pirating software on the interwebz lol. I'm not really sure what my budget is. I'm just trying to get a machine to run ARMA 3 well. Obviously I don't want to break the bank and the sooner I can afford it the better lol.

Is there a part I shouldn't compromise on? Like processor? My understanding is that with the ARMA series especially it is really important.
 
Your money preferences should go like this

Power Supply (crappy one goes boom and takes your system with it) --> GPU (most important factor for performance in games --> CPU(second most important for performance in games)

Now with the power supply you're only going to need so much. The reason I put it first it s more to emphasize not to cheap out on it. Spend the money on a good unit then work with your budget from there.

Corsair CX units are good and still pretty cheap. They're basically the norm for recommendations around here anymore. I've been running one for over 3 years with zero issues.
 
It depends on your budget and as your looking to play arms 3 well, I'd get at least a i5 4690k and a gtx 970 or 980. I'd also as stated above get a good spacious quality case (corsair, cooler master, nzxt, bit fenix etc) ,good quality PSU (corsair, cooler master, antec). Also if possible get a good cpu cooler so you can get as much performance out of the cpu as you can.
 
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