Switching Over to a Gaming PC, Please Help!

iJohnny

Honorable
Mar 19, 2016
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I've been using a MacBook Pro for 3 years now and just had enough with how limited I am. I do acknowledge that BootCamp is an option but with my 121 GB of Flash Storage it's just not worth getting into. So I researched some prebuilt gaming pc's online and found a few that stood out to me like a CyperPowerPC. After researching and reading LOTS of reviews of how bad it is I am considering building a gaming pc but don't even know how or what goes in. Or could anyone suggest reliable and good quality companies who sell prebuilt pcs?
 


good

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($112.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock Z170A-X1/3.1 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($98.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Trion 100 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 950 2GB Video Card ($124.99 @ Micro Center)
Case: Cougar Volant (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($46.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Rosewill 450W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($42.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $521.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-19 19:17 EDT-0400

better

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($112.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming K4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($128.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Trion 100 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 380X 4GB DD XXX OC Video Card ($195.49 @ Newegg)
Case: Cougar Volant (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($46.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($48.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $703.42
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-19 19:19 EDT-0400
 


Is there any particular video that shows how to build a computer similar to these ones?
 
It comes with a stock cooler which works fine. I just finished testing an i3-6100 with crossfired HD 7850s and it worked great for Ultra Detail 1080p gaming, pretty much 60FPS (vsynch on) with zero fluctuation. The 380X would be slightly faster and the 950 slightly slower.
 

Alright, so if i were to purchase the "good" option, would there be any major differences? If so please tell me! I really do not want to break the bank and the better option is close to $800 and I just can't really afford it right now.
 

Also, how would I install Windows to it? (AGAIN, IM VERY NEW TO THIS PLEASE BEAR WITH ME) and how would I connect to a Wi-Fi network?

 




You will be 100% satisfied with the "good" build. If money is an issue, that's the one to get. You can always add more RAM and storage later. The GTX 950 is a really good card, especially for 1080p gaming.

For installing Windows, just use the USB method. Microsoft makes it very easy.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10
 

how would I connect to a Wi-Fi network?

 


WIFI adapter.

http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/wireless-network-card/#sort=a6&page=1

I like this one best:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Wireless Network Adapter: Gigabyte GC-WB867D-I 802.11a/b/g/n/ac PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($29.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $29.89
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-20 16:38 EDT-0400
 

Alright so it doesn't really matter which one i'd get from that whole list right i have no experience with wi-fi cards. and one more question (maybeeeeee haha) could you recommend a tutorial video of how to build the computer with these parts?
 


Everything is pretty much self explanatory. You will need a screwdriver, maybe that's about it. It you get lost, let me know.
 


I am sorry, but for a brand new builder everything is not self explanatory. The guy was asking multiple times for a tutorial on how to build a computer. Just give it to him..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIF43-0mDk4

Here is the video I used when building my first pc. It covers pretty much everything you need to know about building a computer, as well as installing windows. Any other question you might have, I would recommend searching youtube for videos, they have very good tutorials for basically anything involving computer building. Hope this helps, good luck
 


My 11 year old daughter laughed when she read this post (she builds her own).
 


You pretty much missed the whole point. I don't know a single person that just bought computer parts and was able to put together a build without even knowing what a cpu/gpu/mobo/psu ect looked like, much less how they worked and fit together. For you and your child maybe these things are self evident (maybe you were born with the knowledge), but I feel the vast majority of people that have never built a computer would like to have some kind of reassurance that they are not wasting their money on a project so complicated they will not be able to finish it.

There are lots of guides out there, and if you and your daughter never once felt the need to consult them then that is amazing. I have a feeling that you were building computers before youtube was around though. But for us newbs that have/had no idea about what we are doing, I feel a very in-depth tutorial is much more helpful than some random internet guy saying "you'll figure it out".
 


1) my daughter said she read the instruction manuals for anything that wasn't self evident, but she said pretty much put the square peg into the square hole, ect.

2) you are the random internet guy.
 


Alright, thank you both for all the help you've provided!!! Because of you guys i feel so much more confident and safer going into this especially having watched videos and gaining more knowledge through you two. Thanks for helping me start out my journey, i'll try to let you guys know how it turned out once i build it!