My first computer.

[bullet311]

I want to start making my very own pc soon and was wondering what aspects I need to focus on. Basically what are the most important things to look into before purchasing a bunch of parts and throwing them together. I know I want something that will be customizable and is fast enough to play an average game today.

I am a newbie so any help would be appreciated, and sorry if there are many more threads like these but these forums are like an ocean and I can't hold my breath for long.

Thanks!

[DeadlyOats]

If you're building a "gamer", you have three choices: All Out video graphic quality AND performance, or just enough to get by with good performance, but 'just O.K.' video graphics quality, or anything in between. That will be determined by your budget.

That's what I think anyway.

But on to the nuts and bolts.

1) Do Not use a motherboard that has built in video graphics chips. The CPU has to pull double and even triple duty, calculating all kinds of stuff, and then has to find the time to also process excruciating mathematical calculations to process all of the video graphics that games are heavy on. Getting a motherboard that has a video graphics card slot means that the video graphics card will do ALL of the video graphics calculation work, so that your CPU won't have to. That by itself will ensure very good performance.

2) Unless they've changed their ways, and I haven't seen anything to believe they have, stay away from ATI video graphics cards, use a motherboard that supports nVidia graphic cards. From a Windows perspective, it's not an issue, but if you want good video quality, and stability in Linux, I think nVidia is the way to go. ATI doesn't really go out of their way to help the Linux community with developing drivers that support their cards, and while nVidia is not as helpful as some would wish, the Linux community has much more flexibility and resources when it comes to developing drivers for nVidia in Linux. (At least, that's how I understand it).

3) Unless you want the latest in 3D fully immersive (spelling?) sound quality, most motherboards have pretty O.K. sound chips built into them, and are usually supported in Linux. I don't know if things have changed, but Linux developers have had the same issues with Creative Labs Sound Blaster sound cards, as with ATI graphics cards. Sound Blaster cards work in Linux, but you may have issues from time to time. I don't have an alternative to recommend - if you're looking for real good 3D 5.1 sound cards.

4) This is expensive. Get the best RAM your motherboard will support. In other words, if your motherboard supports an 800 MHz front side bus, then get RAM that can match that front-side bus. There should be no bottle necks between your CPU and it's workspace - RAM.

5) This too is expensive. Get the best CPU your motherboard will support. Intel or AMD, it's up to you, but these days, gamers seem to agree, Intel is superior. Plus, I think AMD have lost their way. But remember this: The motherboard you get will not only determine what graphics card to get, but also what CPU to get too. Pay attention to what your motherboard will support before you buy the other components.

No one pays attention to these, but the following two are very important. Cooling and power.

6) Cooling, get a Computer Case that has PLENTY of ventilation, using no less than two (three is better) 120mm fans, built into the case. Also, the ergonomic design of the case is also important. Read USER reviews about how easy or how hard it is to work inside a case ("installing parts is easy", or "I cut my hand trying to slide the...", etc).

7) What good is all of those components if your power supply can't handle them? That's right, you need to figure out how many amps all of your components will require, and get a power supply that can deliver those amps - with plenty more where that came from. For example, if your machine, CPU, RAM, cooling fans, all of your PCI cards, etc., etc, require a total of 550 amps, then get a power supply that can support up to 650 amps. This will keep your power supply from:
a) over heating,
b) causing uneven electrical current flow - which can cause your CPU to reboot the PC,
c) dying an untimely death. Seriously, an overworked Power supply will go out on you if it's not up to the task.

Power supplies also have fans that can help help not only keep the PSU (power supply) cool, but adds additional air flow to keep your case cool too. So, a PSU with a 120mm fan is ideal. Read USER reviews on PSU's as well ("The PSU is junk", "The cables are too short", "This PSU was never meant to be used in gaming machines. Don't buy it!" etc, etc.).

Before you buy any component, check with the Linux Hardware Compatibility List to be sure it is supported in Linux. Usually, that is not an issue, but it's better to be safe than sorry.

I hope this was helpful.

Feel free to add to or refute any of my advice, fellow PC builders.

[bullet311]

First off thank you for that informative post. That was more than I expected; this community is really friendly!

So I read everything twice and will be saving it as reference for the future. For my personal self and so you know I learned something :) Ill post the main ideas I got from this post.

1. Motherboard is key. Almost all components will rely on being compatible with the mobo and also Ubuntu...
2. Make sure all hardware will work with Ubuntu.
3. Don't go short on RAM, you can never have enough.
4. Few care about sound cards, our ears can't tell the difference.
5. Get a good case that will stay cool. and looks nice too.
6. Do not get an IGC. Integrated Graphics Chip. (is that a real acronym?)
7. Get a separate graphics card preferably nvidia, personal choice though.
8. Calculate Amperage and get a decent power supply.
9. Review reviews, prices, and specs!

Thanks!

Any other input or comments would still be awesome. I hope to start this computer in a month or so as I will start researching components and make a plan.

[bullet311]

bumping to get more opinions.

[mr clark25]

i have been wanting to do the exact same thing!

this is what i have come up with so far:
1.intels core i7 920
i think that anything over the 920 is a waste, because you can overclock it to met all the others. (be careful, if you want to do this, i will help)
2.asus p6t motherboard
seems to be a really good motherboard, and has lots of overclocking support. and asus is a really good brand to go with.
3.1TB hard drive (dont know what brand to go with yet)
4.agood nvidia graphics card
5.antec case
most look really cool, and have really good cooling
6.a namebrand power supply
a good namebrand power supply is a must. the cheap ones wont last near as long as the more expensive ones.


newegg.com sells many computer parts for a good price. they also have really good combo deals. i think i will be getting most of my parts from them.

[foresthill]

I would agree on the part about avoiding ATI graphics. If you have one of their cards that came out in the last year or two, their current Linux driver will probably work. But they have stopped supporting a lot of cards that are not that old. The integrated ATI chip that came on my notebook I bought in July of 2006 is no longer supported by ATI in Linux. I think that's total BS and inexcusable for a company that wants to stay competitive.

But if you don't plan to game, I would skip paying a bundle for some graphics card that will be obsolete next year. You still have not answered that question yet. If you do game a lot, you're going to want to dual boot with Windows, because while a lot of games will run on Linux, most don't run at all or very well, and the amount of time you'll spend monkeying around trying to troubleshoot this or that graphics glitch drives most normal people back to Windows.

The best thing about Linux though, IMO, is that you don't need cutting edge hardware to get great performance. It runs great on older hardware, and for most devices, you don't even need to install a driver.

I would avoid spending huge sums on cutting-edge components. I have my dream system from 2005 sitting next to me. I think I spent over $2000 on it, and it's probably worth about $150 now. If I had spent that money on something that held its value, I would have been much better off.

But don't get me wrong, get quality components (e.g. good power supply, adequate RAM, reliable motherboard and hard drive) just avoid the processor or graphics card that just came out last week, because there is a huge premium for gear like that. That is, unless you have money to burn, and are not inclined to regret wasting huge sums of money later on.

I prefer to buy last year's processor or graphics card, the one that's almost as fast and has been marked down to half its original price, but that's just me.

[bullet311]

Mr. Clark,
glad someone else shares interest. I hope your building process is going well, or atleast your planning. Yep, Newegg is really awesome. Microcenter is supposed to be really good too.

Foresthill,
The computer that I have in mind will be media based with blazing fast video. I definitely plan to do some gaming but it doesn't necessarily have to be online. I am not really worried about its value. It being my first computer, Ill just being excited to get it together!


Thanks Guys!