Saturday 24 September 2011

How do I build a good budget gaming computer?

I plan to build a gaming computer for the first time but I don't know where to start. My budget will be about $1200 and I really want to get the best bang for my buck, with good upgradability and able to play the latest games with relative ease. I was think about getting an i7 processor but when I looked on wikipedia (Generally not the best place for information, I know.) it listed a few different versions of the exact same processor, but released at different times. Is that kind of like what they did with the XBox 360 where they changed the processor around slightly on the newer models but it's still basically the same? I'm getting off track now but the basic question is what should I look for without breaking the bank?
How do I build a good budget gaming computer?
Check out http://www.gamingbuilds.com/



There is an awesome picture guide on the homepage if you are a beginner. It shows exactly how to build a computer, step by step. Highly recommended.



The website also offers computer build ideas, which sounds like it would come in handy for you. Honestly, the processor will not make that much of a difference on a gaming build. I would check out the $700 build on that website and just choose a more expensive video card if you want to spend more.
How do I build a good budget gaming computer?
Case-wise, I'd suggest the Antec 1200. Plenty of space for everything you'd want to put in there. Harddrive suggestion: Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5%26quot; Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive I have two running in Raid 0 and my comp is running very quickly.
You should probably read some reviews for the components you are considering using, and look for sites that provide clear and unbiased reviews. You could google for things like %26quot;i7 processor reviews%26quot;, %26quot;i7motherboard reviews%26quot;, etc.

THe overclockers sites and their forums are usually a good source for reviews because they want the best parts to overclock the hell out of and still remain stable and don't cost a lot.

Here are a few links. There are many more.

If you go to the intel site you can find lot of info about the i7 cpu and how the various releases are different. It is worth browsing the site.

Good luck