[SOLVED] suggestions for a pc build

Jul 7, 2021
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Hello
Decided its time to get the son more into pcs..
So what would a good, preferably used parts/cheap setup be for him to start experimenting with some of the basics, like some simple video editing and of course gaming?
Hoping for something that he'll be able to use for a couple of years till he's ready for more serious gaming..etc.
Thanks
 
Solution
Look for a i3-10100 processor.
It sells for $100 used on ebay.
It will have graphics included which is ok for a starter.
It should also come with a cooler.

You can buy a gaming graphics card later when prices permit.
It will support gaming at a very high level with a good graphics card.

No problem buying used ram. ram usually carries a lifetime warranty.
It might cost you $25 for a 2 x 8gb kit.
Yes, 8gb would work for starters, but adding ram later is not always compatible since ram is sold in kits for a reason.

I would not buy a cheap low quality psu. .....EVER.....
A cheap PSU will be made of substandard components. It will not have safety and overload protections.
The danger is if it fails under load, it can destroy anything...
What is your budget?
Do you have any parts now?
Are you interested in the building process and windows installation?
Or, are you just wanting a starter pc.
For a starter pc, I would avoid pre-builts which may not have good quality parts and will have power supplies that preclude upgrades.
 
Jul 7, 2021
6
0
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Since its his first I'd like to keep it on a low budget..
Seen some refurbished PCs wearing an i5-3570 but I'm not sure about ram upgrade capabilities nor do I know how that will handle gaming wise...but I'd generally prefer a custom build with some cheaper due to them being aged parts that could easily handle some basic games..maybe a need for speed, a FIFA, fortnite or whatever today's 12yr olds are in to.
He could of course do that on my old e5450..but something newer would definitely provide a better experience
 
Look for a i3-10100 processor.
It sells for $100 used on ebay.
It will have graphics included which is ok for a starter.
It should also come with a cooler.

You can buy a gaming graphics card later when prices permit.
It will support gaming at a very high level with a good graphics card.

No problem buying used ram. ram usually carries a lifetime warranty.
It might cost you $25 for a 2 x 8gb kit.
Yes, 8gb would work for starters, but adding ram later is not always compatible since ram is sold in kits for a reason.

I would not buy a cheap low quality psu. .....EVER.....
A cheap PSU will be made of substandard components. It will not have safety and overload protections.
The danger is if it fails under load, it can destroy anything it is connected to.
It will deliver advertised power only at room temperatures, not at higher temperatures found when installed in a case.
The wattage will be delivered on the 3 and 5v rails, not on the 12v rails where modern parts
like the CPU and Graphics cards need it. What power is delivered may fluctuate and cause instability
issues that are hard to diagnose.
The fan will need to spin up higher to cool it, making it noisy.
A cheap PSU can become very expensive.

Do not buy one.
Look for at least tier 3 quality on a list such as this:
or this:
Consider investing in a quality550/650w psu with a 7 to 10 year warranty.
Seasonic is usually good.

Unless you have cats around, you actually do not need a case to start with.
Just assemble the pc an put it on the desktop.
You can download windows for free and use it apparently forever.
You just have to tolerate a reminder to activate watermark on the lower right hand of your display.

For starters, any monitor is likely to do. Shopping locally on craig's list will save you shipping costs.
Monitors tend to be heavy.

Yes, you can buy a used HDD for $10.
But trust me on this you want a new SSD. All goes much quicker.
250gb at least. a samsung 860 m.2 evo is about $45

A local walmart can supply a keyboard/mouse for not much.
 
Solution

logainofhades

Titan
Moderator
Since its his first I'd like to keep it on a low budget..
Seen some refurbished PCs wearing an i5-3570 but I'm not sure about ram upgrade capabilities nor do I know how that will handle gaming wise...but I'd generally prefer a custom build with some cheaper due to them being aged parts that could easily handle some basic games..maybe a need for speed, a FIFA, fortnite or whatever today's 12yr olds are in to.
He could of course do that on my old e5450..but something newer would definitely provide a better experience

Low budget is subjective. Really need a target budget number.
 
Jul 7, 2021
6
0
10
Look for a i3-10100 processor.
It sells for $100 used on ebay.
It will have graphics included which is ok for a starter.
It should also come with a cooler.

You can buy a gaming graphics card later when prices permit.
It will support gaming at a very high level with a good graphics card.

No problem buying used ram. ram usually carries a lifetime warranty.
It might cost you $25 for a 2 x 8gb kit.
Yes, 8gb would work for starters, but adding ram later is not always compatible since ram is sold in kits for a reason.

I would not buy a cheap low quality psu. .....EVER.....
A cheap PSU will be made of substandard components. It will not have safety and overload protections.
The danger is if it fails under load, it can destroy anything it is connected to.
It will deliver advertised power only at room temperatures, not at higher temperatures found when installed in a case.
The wattage will be delivered on the 3 and 5v rails, not on the 12v rails where modern parts
like the CPU and Graphics cards need it. What power is delivered may fluctuate and cause instability
issues that are hard to diagnose.
The fan will need to spin up higher to cool it, making it noisy.
A cheap PSU can become very expensive.

Do not buy one.
Look for at least tier 3 quality on a list such as this:
or this:
Consider investing in a quality550/650w psu with a 7 to 10 year warranty.
Seasonic is usually good.

Unless you have cats around, you actually do not need a case to start with.
Just assemble the pc an put it on the desktop.
You can download windows for free and use it apparently forever.
You just have to tolerate a reminder to activate watermark on the lower right hand of your display.

For starters, any monitor is likely to do. Shopping locally on craig's list will save you shipping costs.
Monitors tend to be heavy.

Yes, you can buy a used HDD for $10.
But trust me on this you want a new SSD. All goes much quicker.
250gb at least. a samsung 860 m.2 evo is about $45

A local walmart can supply a keyboard/mouse for not much.
thank you for this really analytic post..
 
Jul 7, 2021
6
0
10
Low budget is subjective. Really need a target budget number.
Since I'm thinking of basic I'd like to keep it under the 300 range all spent on used parts minus psu and monitor which I have a spares.. 650w and a 24inch
Of course I should clarify that I'm referring to euros and the European market since shipping from the US simply isn't worth it
 

logainofhades

Titan
Moderator
Then local for sale sites are probably your best bet. A 2nd gen i7, or E3 Xeon 1230 and up, would be a decent starter chip. Games starting to make use more than 4c/4t i5's can handle. Some people will buy old Dell Optiplex systems and throw a GPU in them, for a cheap gaming setup.
 
Jul 7, 2021
6
0
10
Then local for sale sites are probably your best bet. A 2nd gen i7, or E3 Xeon 1230 and up, would be a decent starter chip. Games starting to make use more than 4c/4t i5's can handle. Some people will buy old Dell Optiplex systems and throw a GPU in them, for a cheap gaming setup.
That's sounds closer to what I was originally thinking of.. Or maybe some kind of bargain like I got with the Q6600 when the extremes were released. Any such bargains available?
 
Also, not sure about europe, but in the states, many times you can get old Dell systems from an office with an older i7, maybe an i7 3770 or so for a little over 100 bucks.

My wife's home computer for her home office that she uses for web browsing, online sales and working from home is one I got from my work that was being retired for 50 bucks. Added a 500gb ssd, updated it to 16gb of ram. It had the i7 3770 in it. Repaste the CPU, that system runs as fast as some new systems.
 
Jul 7, 2021
6
0
10
Also, not sure about europe, but in the states, many times you can get old Dell systems from an office with an older i7, maybe an i7 3770 or so for a little over 100 bucks.

My wife's home computer for her home office that she uses for web browsing, online sales and working from home is one I got from my work that was being retired for 50 bucks. Added a 500gb ssd, updated it to 16gb of ram. It had the i7 3770 in it. Repaste the CPU, that system runs as fast as some new systems.
Those go for around 250euros here.
But then I'd have to be sure the mobo can upgrade to that kind of ram and would need a gpu.
Any similar suggestion for a custom setup which would have onboard gpu as suggested above but not as high as the 10100 would take me?