Hey, so I've been thinking about getting a proper PC, mainly to be able to play CS:GO smoothly at a reasonable resolution. Apart from that, I don't really care for modern games that require a recent rig anyway. I've put together a first list: https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/CtHpsJ Some things to be mentioned: I'm pretty much set on the GPU, definitely don't want to spend more and want to avoid AMD GPUs if possible. Maybe a GTX 1050 would also be enough? The CPU seems like a reasonable budget option to me, especially considering the good single core performance. I've also looked at the Ryzen 5 processors and the 8-12 hardware threads are really tempting, but the benchmark tests I've seen don't show a performance increase (for games) over the i3-7100 that is worth 100€ for me. In any case, the GPU might be a bottleneck anyway. 2x 4GB is enough for the start, If I really need the 16GB I can just get two additional 4GB sticks. No SSD, just a plain WD HDD is enough for me. MicroATX mini-tower, not sure if this is a good idea. It would definitely be nice to have a slim build (might move in a year or so) but I've read the air flow is worse than in mid-towers. Also will all my stuff even fit in there properly? The PSU seems like good quality, 450W should be enough for such a simple system, right? Anyway, this is my first build so it would be nice if you could give some suggestions and point out any obvious noob mistakes. Thanks!
I think first we need to look at your budget and then decide the best hardware we can get for it. Is 600 euros ok?
Budget is actually not that much of a problem, just don't wanna spend more than I have to, 600€ is definitely okay.
Your list isn't bad at all, should be good for CS:GO but I wanted a better CPU than a dual core i3. I have made a few changes to the list, here it is: https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/227yzM Total is coming up to €619.43 Added I5-7500 instead of i3 7100. Added MSI motherboard to save some money for better CPU and removed AsRock motherboard. Added Single 8GB Sports RAM and removed the budget 4gb rams. Changed WD Blue for Seagate 1TB HDD, better performance and lower price. Changed PSU to 500W 80+ Bronze. Here is a video showing potential FPS for this system:
@Nomy, thanks for your suggestions. About the CPU, I agree maybe I should really spend some more and ditch the dual core. However, in that case the Ryzen 5 processors look more appealing to me. For example compare the i5-7500 to the Ryzen 5 1500X, performance-wise they look quite similar the latter is a bit cheaper though. Another thing is the higher number of hardware threads. In case I go for a higher end CPU, I might as well use the system for Uni stuff and benchmarking a parallel algorithm is certainly more conclusive when having 8 or even 12 hardware threads. Also compiling stuff should be faster. Obviously, the effect on gaming performance is probably barely noticeable. What do you think? Is there something that makes you prefer the i5 over the Ryzen 5 series? I'm a bit confused about the RAM. Isn't using two sticks better than one, so you can take advantage of the dual channel feature of the motherboard? Also I've read that the performance gain by using faster RAM is not really worth it in gaming (E.g. http://techbuyersguru.com/gaming-ddr4-memory-2133-vs-26663200mhz-8gb-vs-16gb). How are Seagate HDDs? Are they reliable? I picked a WD HDD because I'm currently using one in my laptop and haven't had any problems with it (also 7200 RPM and very silent). What about the mini-tower setup? Do you think it will be fine?
I was under the impression you didn't want anything AMD, I think I might have misread if you are fine with it. The RAM is fine, it's cheaper than the 2 value rams and the performance difference isn't that huge either way. So save a few bucks and get a better looking RAM with heatsink. If you really want a good mechanical HDD for games, go for WD Black 1TB but if you are going for WD Blue, just get Seagate, it's cheaper for you. 8 euros for a HDD delivery is kinda stupid, the box in which it will come isn't that big. WD Blue maybe a tiny bit faster in terms of random writes but that's about it. Both are like largest and most reputable companies with 2 years warranty. About the mini tower setup, I think you should be fine if you do a good job with cable management. I Personally like ATX motherboards with at least mid tower. I had seen other choices for the same price and I lean more towards the case having vent holes in the front just so you could install a 120mm fan for efficient cooling. If you have heat issues, you can install another case fan or get a better CPU fan. Updated: https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/NxpR3F
Yup, generally AMD is fine for me I just want to avoid their GPUs since I might dual boot and Linux drivers are terrible. Your updated list looks very nice, will definitely go for the 1x8GB RAM and the Seagate HDD. Not sure if the Ryzen 5 1400 might be a better choice though, since the GPU is not very high-end anyway. Overclocking is also an option if need be I guess, the stock cooler is said to be pretty decent. For the PSU, I will probably spend extra 20€ to get this one. It's cheaper than my original choice but it's also modular unlike your suggestion (for better cable management) Anyway, thanks for helping me out.
I'd go with Ryzen 5 1500 because of higher core clock. CS:GO likes higher clocks. I think GTX 1050 Ti will go nicely with Ryzen 5 1500. Good luck with the build, just ask if you get stuck.
Small update: The HDD failed without warning (SeaGate ST1000DM010) after just 8 months. I could still access the data from a live system but booting wasn't possible anymore. Probably just got unlucky but you may still wanna stay away from this one.
Very likely it's a one off bad one. I think it might gave you a bad first impression as well but these are used as much as WD HDDs at home and businesses. You are covered by the 2year warranty so you should just RMA. I've seen people get better drives in return sometimes. Also seems a bit weird that it works fine using a live OS to access it but it doesn't boot. Might worth fixing it using Windows Startup Repair option. It might not be a problem with the HDD itself.
Nah I'm pretty sure the disk is nearing its end. SMART indicated that it is failing. Also, it was just working fine until I restarted and kept getting a read error message from BIOS. After backing up my data I tried restoring Windows, which did not work. However, reinstalling GRUB worked and I could boot into Linux again. Windows was still not bootable though. So somehow the MBR and parts of the Windows loader got corrupted. If I could have restored Windows, I would have just kept using the HDD until it completely died but I had to reinstall that from scratch anyway.
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