get some1 else to assemble it for you. many hardware stores actually do PC assembly for a small fee
It is 2014 and PC specs are still way too confuisng.
- Thread starter Alphahawk
- Start date
get some1 else to assemble it for you. many hardware stores actually do PC assembly for a small fee
phoenix296
Member
Agreed. I also hear you have to install games to your hard drive. What is this, 2001?
It is 2014 and the educated populous is still technology illiterate.
Microsoft tried this, it doesn't work, you cannot arbitrarily assign a score based on rudimentary synthetic benchmarks.
OmegaTreeFish
Banned
Its a system that wouldn't work because every one would have to adopt it. When a lot of people build there own spec it wont be possible.
However the GPU is the only thing that advances so fast you might want to upgrade it every 2-4 years (and that's only people wanting top graphics). If you do that it is almost that system. Just learn the graphics card numbering system .
For me I now use gaming laptops for various reasons and plan to upgrade every 3-5 years. I just make sure I save at least £250 a year into an account and its there when I need to upgrade. Then I get a new laptop with high-mid GPU and I'm good.
There are plenty of ways to make PC gaming simple without worrying about specs. However you will at least want to learn about the core components first. But its really not hard to learn.
If you are unwilling to even learn the basics then PC gaming is simply not for you. That's all.
UnrealEck
Member
It's 2014 and we have huge amounts of information when we want it.
If something confuses you, educate yourself on it.
'Is X CPU compatible with Y motherboard?' Google it.
'How does A GPU perform in games compared to B and C GPUs?' Google it. Plenty of benchmarks.
Or if you still can't find the answer, ask around. Plenty of forums on computer hardware these days.
If something confuses you, educate yourself on it.
'Is X CPU compatible with Y motherboard?' Google it.
'How does A GPU perform in games compared to B and C GPUs?' Google it. Plenty of benchmarks.
Or if you still can't find the answer, ask around. Plenty of forums on computer hardware these days.
The thing a lot of people don't understand is I have a laptop, it's great for the internet and music and stuff like that. I don't really have any desire to upgrade to a desktop just to build a PC. This isn't really about me, either, I just think for such a big market it's ludicrously hard to get in and game.
Lanrutcon
Member
If you shop around you're bound to hit find some shop/company/vendor that pretty much deals exclusively in enthusiast gaming rigs. That's your one stop shop right there: they sell the hardware, they know their shit, they'll explain things to you, they know what's coming down the pipeline and they can assemble your rig for you.
I'd also just like to echo something that was said earlier: if you're going to invest $$$ to get yourself into a hobby, then empowering and educating yourself around the subject is obviously a wise move. /lifelesson
I'd also just like to echo something that was said earlier: if you're going to invest $$$ to get yourself into a hobby, then empowering and educating yourself around the subject is obviously a wise move. /lifelesson
if you couldnt be bothered to build a gaming desktop then pay a huge premium fee and get a gaming laptop (razer blade pro, alienware, MSI, Asus ROG, etc)
if you want cheap, you gotta put in some hardwork and research
I built my PC three years ago ($1100 in total) but sadly for the past year, it's been pretty shit. It can hardly run games like LoL on a consistent 60 FPS, games like Just Cause 2 or Tera have A LOT of screen tearing and Smite is near unplayable for me. I didn't even finish building it myself either because I could not for the life of me figure out where all the bajillion of cable wires and fan wires go into.
It's such a hassle and just too confusing for me to handle. As well as how difficult and careful you have to be with each part you put in since they are also very delicate. I just can't handle something so expensive to buy and then try to put together in a confusing and delicate many.
I wish that I could just order the parts and have them all connected for me ready to go. Either that or just have some store assemble the whole rig for me. I don't want to ever go through building it again, especially since I'll probably just screw it up and ruin my computer like I probably did with the current one I have now.
Otherwise, PC Gaming is also just not for me. It's a shame but what can ya do?
It's such a hassle and just too confusing for me to handle. As well as how difficult and careful you have to be with each part you put in since they are also very delicate. I just can't handle something so expensive to buy and then try to put together in a confusing and delicate many.
I wish that I could just order the parts and have them all connected for me ready to go. Either that or just have some store assemble the whole rig for me. I don't want to ever go through building it again, especially since I'll probably just screw it up and ruin my computer like I probably did with the current one I have now.
Otherwise, PC Gaming is also just not for me. It's a shame but what can ya do?
OmegaTreeFish
Banned
I use a laptop.
Type your GPU into google. First thing to pop up will be notebook check. Will give you a pretty good idea of what your card can do.
What GPU do you have?
uncredited male
Member
Make sure you don't skimp on the Johnson Rod quality. If you get a low-end one your upgrade options will be severely limited.
OmegaTreeFish
Banned
For a desktop it's really easy, check GPU and CPU requirements and you are good to go.
For a laptop i'd suggest looking up which desktop GPU it's closest to, same with cpu and use that as reference
Games are pretty scalable these days, if your Laptop is relatively new i'd only worry about ports of next gen only games.
davepoobond
you can't put a price on sparks
Is 2014 supposed to be special or something?
DOWN
Banned
Kinda wild to me how many people are acting like the research should be no big deal. It's one of the biggest reasons the console market is massive. And Apple. People like a good design that works and does what they want. PC gaming is it's own new beast to tackle and just because someone finds the research to be a deterrent, doesn't make them unwilling to learn about their expensive gear. There's just a whole lot less research in most consumer gear these days and it's lovely.
Relativ9
Member
It only seems confusing because it's forign to you. If you have the capacity to understand something like a cooking recipe you'll have the capacity to understand computer specs once you familiarize yourself. If you still can't understand it or expect to do so without any effort then the problem is with you not the specs. It's really not that complicated.
Megapsycho
Banned
No no no, just because you don't understand doesn't make it a scam. Manufacturers just add zeros and turbo to the name? All those components well get benchmarked by numerous independent sites. By the way, PC gaming had caught on in a big way. It's still the ultimate platform for gaming.
That's because it isn't ludicrously hard, any computer store can build you a PC or laptop and from there the only thing you have to do write down is what GPU and CPU you have.
I've never looked at system requirements.
My current PC is 3 years old (wasn't built with the latest and greatest at the time) and has never not been able to play or load anything I wanted.
I'm currently enjoying Elite : Dangerous and Star Citizen without any issues
Even 10 years ago I wasn't fussed about specs. I have no idea why people get caught up with them when looking at purchasing software
My current PC is 3 years old (wasn't built with the latest and greatest at the time) and has never not been able to play or load anything I wanted.
I'm currently enjoying Elite : Dangerous and Star Citizen without any issues
Even 10 years ago I wasn't fussed about specs. I have no idea why people get caught up with them when looking at purchasing software
Have to agree with OP.
I have been researching the last few weeks on building a new PC, its the first one i'm going to build in about 15-20 years. My first one was easy, 486-DX2-66, put in a whopping 8MB ram and a 420mb hard drive. We went up 1" from a 14 to 15" monitor that set me back another $300-400. The whole thing cost almost $3000.
These days, the problem starts with model numbers, they are all over the place, so many motherboard models and makes, then you have hard drives that barely have any difference to them to the layman and 10 page reviews on Anandtech on a SSD hard drive with tech gobble that doesn't make any sense.
The PC industry has got to streamline it for the average person. The Graphics cards looks like its moving in the right direction, although there are still one too many models for every chipset. I'm not saying reduce the number of models, I just think that its really overwhelming for anyone who looks online for parts and its difficult to get into.
It's not so bad once you do a bit of research but I think there are a lot of people who are turning to things like ipads and tablets cause they don't want to deal with nonsense like getting parts and having them not work as well as they intended (or getting ripped off for buying something they don't need).
Another idea would be if pc parts makers like Asus or Gigabyte just make all the parts for a PC, including the case, motherboard, power supply, ram etc etc and just let people pick and choose parts on the website
I have been researching the last few weeks on building a new PC, its the first one i'm going to build in about 15-20 years. My first one was easy, 486-DX2-66, put in a whopping 8MB ram and a 420mb hard drive. We went up 1" from a 14 to 15" monitor that set me back another $300-400. The whole thing cost almost $3000.
These days, the problem starts with model numbers, they are all over the place, so many motherboard models and makes, then you have hard drives that barely have any difference to them to the layman and 10 page reviews on Anandtech on a SSD hard drive with tech gobble that doesn't make any sense.
The PC industry has got to streamline it for the average person. The Graphics cards looks like its moving in the right direction, although there are still one too many models for every chipset. I'm not saying reduce the number of models, I just think that its really overwhelming for anyone who looks online for parts and its difficult to get into.
It's not so bad once you do a bit of research but I think there are a lot of people who are turning to things like ipads and tablets cause they don't want to deal with nonsense like getting parts and having them not work as well as they intended (or getting ripped off for buying something they don't need).
Another idea would be if pc parts makers like Asus or Gigabyte just make all the parts for a PC, including the case, motherboard, power supply, ram etc etc and just let people pick and choose parts on the website
OmegaTreeFish
Banned
Its really no different to learning about a console. Pretty sure every console gamer on here knows the specs of both consoles and the services they offer.
Anyway there is nothing wrong with not wanting to learn and sticking to console . What's wrong is expecting PC gaming to change so it works exactly the same as console .
The 2 entities exist for a reason.
Edit. What's with people saying things like PC gaming won't catch on. That's just so funny.
Lanrutcon
Member
One of the biggest reasons the console market is massive is because most consumers are lazy?
Please don't send me death threats, console owners!
samurai1226
Member
You know that there a lot of opportunities to buy an already build pc without worrying about the specs? I bet that most of the people driving in car every have no clue about what all the specs of their engine mean at all either.
Being lazy is no valid argument. Want to buy a smartphone? Then you should start comparing what you get for your budget. Want to buy a car? Start comparing what you get for your budget. Want to buy Wii U, PS4 or One? Start comparing.
If you dont have a clue you ask the staff at the specific store, if you dont trust them start to inform yourself. if you have a good pc shop around you the staff will help you get a good gaming pc for your money - maybe not the best, but if you dont compare by yourself you rely on the traders.
Slightly Live
Dirty tag dodger
There are plenty of websites out there that will ease anyone into the hardware of a modern PC and give you an easy to understand, concise breakdown of the components.
There's really nothing to study, no tests or exams. Everyone learns as they go.
There's always folks who will know more, so folks should always ask questions if they don't know and PC GAF has some great people - some awesome smart folks who are very generous with their time and patience.
Unknown Soldier
Member
If you buy a Mac to play games then I have no idea what I should tell you
Hint: No one buys a Mac to play games
Yes. Or to put it a better way the general masses are tech illiterate. If you build something for the masses it's always going to get more market share than a market that requires intricate knowledge.
Have to say, it depends if there are games you want on the PC, a lot of people are not interested in games on the PC and are fine with games on the console.
But I really want to get into some racing sims on the PC and get it going with as high fps as possible, its just not possible to do that on consoles and will always be limited at 60fps.
There's a difficulty jump up from getting a console to getting a PC, but after a little research anyone can put together a decent PC. The building part probably isn't the hardest part, I think selecting the right parts for the right price and getting exactly what you need is the part that takes the longest.
The Dennis System
Banned
Cizeta-Moroder
Banned
They're already as simple as they can be. That won't change.
Some games just report their recommendations very vaguely.
Some games just report their recommendations very vaguely.
LOL that's not what I meant.
I meant Asus would do itself a favour if they made getting a PC a bit easier by having something on their website that builds a PC for the average person. A bit like Dell but let the buyer choose from all the parts. My point is they would sell a lot more parts and PCs if they made the process easier to understand.
Developers add these specific technical requirements just to protect themselves form idiots who complain that the new shiny game from 2014 doesn't run on their 10 year old pc. It's more of a legal stuff to list all these precise requirements.
In reality, everything these specs mean is "have a relatively new pc". All video cards from 2010 support DX11 and other stuff you need. All modern gpus, cpus, motherboards, RAMs have the same feature set, so your game will run fine.
I didn't look at system requirements since 2008.
In reality, everything these specs mean is "have a relatively new pc". All video cards from 2010 support DX11 and other stuff you need. All modern gpus, cpus, motherboards, RAMs have the same feature set, so your game will run fine.
I didn't look at system requirements since 2008.
And yet they aren't a substitute for what a PC can offer.
Buying an already built PC is horrible for gaming. They usually have parts you don't need and you have to do the research anyway to find out what you are paying for. When you narrow down all the parts you want, you end up making your own PC.
samurai1226
Member
Of course they have not the best hardware you can get. but if someone is really deterred from buying a gaming pc by the specs, its not like premade pcs are completly useless.
@Ikuu: Card reader, BluRay writer, maybe a non-onboard soundcard you dont need - Thats stuff where you can save a lot of money
Ivory Samoan
Member
PC tech research is fun.
I recommend trying it OP, once you're knowledgeable, PC building is one of the most satisfying things you can do with your spare dosh.
Also of note, don't pay much attention to recommended specs etc, as long as your PC decent you'll be sweet.
I recommend trying it OP, once you're knowledgeable, PC building is one of the most satisfying things you can do with your spare dosh.
Also of note, don't pay much attention to recommended specs etc, as long as your PC decent you'll be sweet.
I don't live in the UK sadly. And the only place closest to me at the moment that would actually help me assemble one would also cost me a freaking limb lol.
I have no idea. I tried taking it to repairs ($200 down the drain) but nothing. It just doesn't work well. I can indie games well. Like Papers Please lol.
That site doesn't really help me much at all.
Sure, I just pick parts and they will all work with each other right? But the problem here is that I have NO IDEA what any of them do. I have no clue what Watts mean, or what video card is good enough to play Crysis at maximum settings, all I see when I look to select each part as it gives me a list is a bunch of numbers, price, and unhelpful popularity ratings.
I have no idea what's a "good" or "great" video card, I have no idea what a good enough power supply unit is, I have no idea what makes a good motherboard or the big difference with each of them are, and I have no idea if I need a sound card or not. Then there is this whole "crossfire" deal by having TWO video cards connected (which is just astounding to me) or even FOUR! It's just all so over my head.
I remember playing around with it and tried making decent attempts at a great rig for a decent price. Yet the prices I get for most of them range from $2700-$4000 lol.
I got a challenge, or more like a request: I guess using that site, make a rig that can play most if not all play games at maximum settings (because I don't see the point in PC Gaming otherwise) for a fair price. Say, between $1000-$2000? Can that be done or close to it? I'm really curious.
Hell, I heard a Youtuber named TotalBiscuit uses an amazing rig, what's his specs? XD
Sentenza
Member
Then don't.
Adding 20-30 bucks to the total sum typically means someone else will do it for you.
Isn't that kind of similar to what Alienware did with the X51 (and their upcoming Alpha console)? Regardless I'm not convinced it'll offer much outside of the resources already available to consumers. And in the end they can't really complain about the current thriving enthusiast hardware market.
Nikodemos
Member
Aw hell, I'm getting PTSD from that shit. Having to physically change IRQ/DMA via motherboard jumpers as well as reconfigure the autoexec was nasty. So was trying to squeeze the last few kilobytes of conventional memory by carefully moving drivers into Upper Memory (since not everything could fit, you had to manually calculate which drivers to lh/loadhigh and which to leave in the conventional memory).
People whining nowadays that putting together a PC is hard don't know how good they've got it. It was basically technomancy back in the old days.
samurai1226
Member
With a $1500 PC you can play every game out there in max setting in 1080 with an amazing framerate. Why dont you look in one of the mentioned guides?
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=835397
Just swap the graphic cards to the GTX970 (its a new generation of graphic cards and way faster for a cheap prize) and you're fine.
That crossfire stuff is really not worth the money for a normal gaming pc its more for the people who want to achieve the maximum power.
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=835397
Just swap the graphic cards to the GTX970 (its a new generation of graphic cards and way faster for a cheap prize) and you're fine.
That crossfire stuff is really not worth the money for a normal gaming pc its more for the people who want to achieve the maximum power.
CyanideFuse
Member
This thread is massively helpful: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=835397
In my relatively short time of PC gaming (2 years) I have enjoyed reading up on enough of the aspects to make me comfortable with sourcing components and building. When I decided I wanted to go the PC route for gaming I knew absolutely nothing.
I don't have any where near the knowledge of some of the people on the PC thread but I think I know enough to be more than comfortable. I built a PC earlier this year and it was as smooth as I could ever have hoped.
Have a read around and see what you can buy with the money you want to put down.
In my relatively short time of PC gaming (2 years) I have enjoyed reading up on enough of the aspects to make me comfortable with sourcing components and building. When I decided I wanted to go the PC route for gaming I knew absolutely nothing.
I don't have any where near the knowledge of some of the people on the PC thread but I think I know enough to be more than comfortable. I built a PC earlier this year and it was as smooth as I could ever have hoped.
Have a read around and see what you can buy with the money you want to put down.
Did you post in the 'I need a new PC thread'? I'm looking through your history now but can't see any. That's literally what they do there.
For 1K-2K you'll be playing games at much better than console settings for the entirety of the generation.
Lanrutcon
Member
^
I pay people to build my stuff for me. I know perfectly well I can do it and have done it before.
I'd just like to point out that, unless you're building a high end enthusiast rig, slapping together a desktop is pretty easy. You get screwless cases these days, most things just snap in, there's really only one place to plug most things in, cases come with detailed specs and manuals, almost every plug is now shaped in such a way that you can't put it in the wrong way and when you really look at things there are very few components to actually mount. You screw in your PSU, you mount your mobo, you mount your cpu, you slide in your drives, you slot in your gpu, you connect power to things and your drives to your mobo. Bam. Connect some LEDs and maybe some built in fans.
Last time I actually fucked up badly was like, a decade ago. Broke a resistor or something off my mobo while trying to fit an extra drive into a super small case!
You know what I really don't understand? People who say "This is too complicated, but I refuse to even give it two minutes to try and inform myself in order to understand it", and therefore "it sucks".
Even if PC specs were really that hard to understand, it's not that there isn't a massive amount of easy-to-access information at your disposal. You just need to make the little effort of reading a bit.
Even if PC specs were really that hard to understand, it's not that there isn't a massive amount of easy-to-access information at your disposal. You just need to make the little effort of reading a bit.