Online gaming has become prominent nowadays that eSports are held in different countries with contestants from all over the world. With its prominence, many people spend most of their day at home to play computer games and make a living out of it. If you are one of those people who has an interest in computer games, you might be thinking of building your own gaming personal computer (PC) to be updated.
Setting up your PC for gaming is an experience itself. For first timers, you will figure out that the actual process is far different from what you hear from others. However, there are some things that you need to know before building your own PC for the first time.
To save you from troubles, here are four things to consider in building your PC.
Contents
1. The Cost
If this is your first time building your gaming PC, expect that you will be spending more. Consider your budget and shop around to compare prices of the components you would be needing in setting up your PC.
You can budget your cost in three ways:
- Make a list of what you need. Do your research and consider the minimum requirements of the games you plan to play. You do not need to exceed the requirements of the software and hardware to maintain your PC in good condition while playing.
- You need to be very patient because prices fluctuate a lot more than you expect. What is too expensive for you today, may be an affordable price for you tomorrow. A CPU that costs $240 now may come down to $200 in the next few days.
- Plan out your purchase. It is advisable to make an interval of two weeks in buying computer parts and other necessary equipment you need. Different kinds of gamers have different needs, and planning in advance will help you optimize the cost and performance of your PC.
2. Computer Parts
There are often multiple misconceptions about hearing people building their gaming PC. Oftentimes, people think about complex things and imagine how complicated the process could be.
Fortunately, you are assuming the wrong way about building your PC. It is not as hard as you perceive it to be. There are seven parts you need to be familiar with.
- Motherboard
This is the main circuit board which allows connection between all components that is attached in your computer. Components such as CPU or central processing unit, the graphics card, hard drive, memory, and other more.
- The Processor or The CPU
The central processing unit is the one which carries instructions of the computer program by doing basic arithmetic operations being inputted. Choosing the right processor for your PC is a crucial choice. A processor such as Intel or AMD is two of the best examples which you can choose. Picking a specific processor is vital because once you already had your choice, you can only upgrade with the same option. It is because motherboards right now can only support one processor.
- Power Supply
This is the component that supplies power to your computer. Basically, it converts one type of electrical power into a different form of energy. The power supply is essential, thus, finding a power supply that won’t let you down should be on your top priority list. Make sure to look for 80 plus certifications to ensure the efficiency of your power supply.
- Random Access Memory or RAM
This is the computer’s memory that can be accessed randomly. All the information being stored can be lost once the power supply is being cut or lost. RAM does not store data permanently.
- Storage
The computer data storage is used for storing, extracting, and transferring data and files. It has the capacity to store information both permanently and temporarily. It can also be internal or external storage to a computer, server, or any other device.
- Graphics Card
Graphics card is the computer hardware that allows you to see images on your computer’s monitor. It is also responsible for delivering the vision, converting data to signal your monitor can understand.
- Case
The computer case is just like a cabinet for your computer’s essentials. This is where your computer’s power supply, motherboard, memory, disk drives, and other mores being placed. It is usually made of aluminum or steel. Mid tower cases are what people typically use and find the best among the other available ones. This is also most commonly used for gaming PC, workstation, home servers, and video editing.
3. Compatibility Challenge
One of your top priorities in choosing a CPU or motherboard is their compatibility. Checking the socket is not enough to determine that your CPU and motherboard is compatible. Assess the latest processor carefully to make sure if your motherboard well supports it. Using an incompatible CPU affects the speed of your memory, and thus, affecting your performance. And this is the last thing you and every game out there wants to happen.
The Bottom Line
Building your gaming PC requires quality time and effort. It is a total experience, and you will learn a lot throughout the process. Picking up the right components, gathering them together, and seeing if they are all compatible requires your patience. In its totality, the experience and process should be fun; thus, there is no room for frustrations. Remember that in every issue you might encounter is an opportunity hiding to work on.