I want to get a gaming computer

[PuddingKnife]

And that means I'm going to have to run Windows if I want to play anything modern thats not a FPS. Thats fine, my laptop always has the latest version of Ubuntu.

I've never built a computer myself, so I dont think I want to go down that road.

What would be some good suggestions or places to start looking?

[Icehuck]

It's not always a popular answer but if you watch dell's website you can find some pretty good deals.

There are not that many games that can use a quad core processor to the full extent. In the future this will change, but that is more like 2-3 years away. If you are trying to keep up with games, you will probably be doing some upgrades by then anyway.

[PuddingKnife]

http://www.overstock.com/Electronics/Visionman-Widow-WGMA-1PCC10A-Gaming-PC/4291023/product.html

http://www.overstock.com/Electronics/ZT-Affinity-7339Ma-3.2Ghz-AMD-Phenom-II-Quad-Core-Desktop-PC/4363712/product.html?rcmndsrc=2

http://www.overstock.com/Electronics/Visionman-VBBA-378V00-Barebones-Gaming-PC/4319198/product.html


So far I like what I see here.. but I notice that they have DDR2 RAM.. would I want to have DDR3? What are the advantages over DDR2?

[MooPi]

There are a multitude of online tutorials regarding building a PC. If you never try you will never feel the joy of accomplishment. I suggest you research the components and ask knowledgeable people, or the forum for advice on parts. Then build your own computer. You'll save tons of money and learn something in the process. I've built more than I can remember and I got them all to work.

[NoaHall]

I'd really recommend you build your own, but if you must buy one, and you have money, alienware are always good.

[Mahngiel]

Look at newegg.com and powerpc.com

[Mahngiel]

I'd really recommend you build your own, but if you must buy one, and you have money, alienware are always good.

Alienware is more expensive than it's worth. Unless you sit and play MMO's all day or are creating Avatar 2, you don't need to waste your money.

You can build or buy a great system for under $1000. You can build/buy a phenomenal gaming system for under $1500.

[LowSky]

Alienware is more expensive than it's worth. Unless you sit and play MMO's all day or are creating Avatar 2, you don't need to waste your money.

You can build or buy a great system for under $1000. You can build/buy a phenomenal gaming system for under $1500.

You can build a great system for about $700 and an amazing system for $1500

I've been building for years, and for me my system always a work in progress. right now I'm blowing money on upgrading my media center and even more on my desktop for gaming.

Building you own PC isn't hard at all, and the best part is you know exactly who makes each part and get to learn a bit more about computing.

[swoll1980]

I would recomend building one, but if you insist on buying go to Micro Center, or Microcenter.com and buy a power spec gaming system. Power spec is Micro Centers house brand. You will get a very nice system at a great price.

[yester64]

I personally can only say this,

a) make sure to match the ram to the motherboard. Not every ram works with every motherboard.
b) get a better cpu fan, since the once coming with the cpu are mostly weak. With that i mean the screws.
c) i recommend western digital harddrives since they are usually quite and last. But thats my personal opinion.
d) good motherboard. Gigabyte is my favorite, but MSI is good too. Most important is, to make sure you have enough connectors on the motherboard for expansion later on.

On a different note, i personally reject to have a gaming computer since you have to invest a lot of money and have to deal with DRM with gaming software.
I prefer now a console over a pc.
However, it depends on the game and not all games are good on a console. Especially if you like to mod games, a pc might be better.

Anyway, hope my tips helped somewhat and you built a good pc. As a source i recommend either newegg or ZipZoom.

[|{urse]

QUAKE WARS: ENEMY TERRITORY


http://zerowing.idsoftware.com:6969/torrents/f59b20f69f1cd2a7a6d9e0dd11d131ca5eaef344.torrent

both the graphics and gameplay on this fps are amazing! Fly planes, tanks, atvs etc etc etc. Objective based with a lot of different character classes and unlockable content. This IS the best game available on linux right now. (trust me i have them all, lol)

[Mahngiel]

I personally can only say this,

a) make sure to match the ram to the motherboard. Not every ram works with every motherboard.
b) get a better cpu fan, since the once coming with the cpu are mostly weak. With that i mean the screws.
c) i recommend western digital harddrives since they are usually quite and last. But thats my personal opinion.
d) good motherboard. Gigabyte is my favorite, but MSI is good too. Most important is, to make sure you have enough connectors on the motherboard for expansion later on.

On a different note, i personally reject to have a gaming computer since you have to invest a lot of money and have to deal with DRM with gaming software.
I prefer now a console over a pc.
However, it depends on the game and not all games are good on a console. Especially if you like to mod games, a pc might be better.

Anyway, hope my tips helped somewhat and you built a good pc. As a source i recommend either newegg or ZipZoom.

Either building or buying, check out NewEgg.com. I've been using them as a resource for over 5 years. Their new searching system allows you to extremely narrow down what you're looking for so you're almost assuredly getting the right parts.

Start with a decent Motherboard, and check out it's specs.

For gaming, start with a GFX card with at least 1GB of memory for today's common games. Or, look up the new games and see their system req's. That's a great way to find a starting point.

[|{urse]

I would recomend building one, but if you insist on buying go to Micro Center, or Microcenter.com and buy a power spec gaming system. Power spec is Micro Centers house brand. You will get a very nice system at a great price.

Sorry to disagree. I've seen sooooo many powerspecs with blown capacitors. I'd say almost half the D.O.A motherboards that make it into my shop are powerspecs.. mainly because MicroCenter like to put crummy cheap psu's in their boxes. 20% are dells, the rest is just random. Powerspecs aren't even popular enough to have so many dead in my shop.

By the way,
<fact> MicroCenter is great, just not Powerspecs </fact>

[Icehuck]

If you are going to build your own, I suggest getting a Lian Li case. Sure they are more expensive but the quality alone makes it worth it. I won't build myself a new machine without one.

[CharlesA]

I usually pick coolermaster cases, and Corsair and OCZ PSUs. Asus or Gigabyte mobos, but I prefer Asus.. more stuff to do in the BIOS and it's easier to tell it to boot off a USB drive.

My 'gaming' rig is in a HAF 922. It's fairly quiet too.

[swoll1980]

Sorry to disagree. I've seen sooooo many powerspecs with blown capacitors. I'd say almost half the D.O.A motherboards that make it into my shop are powerspecs.. mainly because MicroCenter like to put crummy cheap psu's in their boxes. 20% are dells, the rest is just random. Powerspecs aren't even popular enough to have so many dead in my shop.

By the way,
<fact> MicroCenter is great, just not Powerspecs </fact>

Powerspecs are pre-built microATX form machines, and use quality hardware. I don't know where you're getting Dell from. Does Dell even make ATX hardware? Almost everyone in my family owns one, and never had any problems. My brother has had his for 5-6 years now.

[PuddingKnife]

I've never built a computer myself, so I dont think I want to go down that road.

Thanks for all the computer building tips though. Maybe one day..

Basically I want something that's going to run Jumpgate: Evolution whenever it comes out. And run it well.

Of the 3 links that I originally posted, which one is the best bang for the buck? Or are there better cheaper PCs out there?

[aklo]

3 choice.

Buy from dell (insert company here)
Build your own.
Choose the parts and let people build it for you.

My comp now is from choice 3. Not sure about your country but in mine, i can choose the parts and pay $10 for the shopguy to fix everything.

[MooPi]

Of the three listed go with the Quad core AMD. I use the exact model but with a different video card. The video card and processor are better then the other two offer and the bare bones model doesn't even include one. But I'd like to add that I can build a similar rig for 200$ less

[Khakilang]

Get a PS3. Now that's a mean gaming machine.

[PuddingKnife]

Of the three listed go with the Quad core AMD. I use the exact model but with a different video card. The video card and processor are better then the other two offer and the bare bones model doesn't even include one. But I'd like to add that I can build a similar rig for 200$ less

Thanks!

I also like the idea that someone brought up about buying the parts and paying someone to build it for me.

As for the PS3 idea, hell I wouldnt mind having one but I doubt that Jumpgate: Evolution will be released for it.

[|{urse]

Powerspecs are pre-built microATX form machines, and use quality hardware. I don't know where you're getting Dell from. Does Dell even make ATX hardware? Almost everyone in my family owns one, and never had any problems. My brother has had his for 5-6 years now.

I mean that percentage of systems in my shop are dells. I'm glad your family has had luck with powerspecs. Congrats ^^.

[Zoot7]

Good read if you've never put a PC together yourself before.
http://techreport.com/articles.x/13671

And a good read for selecting hardware as of now:
http://techreport.com/articles.x/18510