I hereby present to you......



NOTE :
I've seen a lot of people asking about how to configure their machine to cater for a certain budget, it gets tiring when you have to recommend specifications over and over again - so here I am with this PC Buying Guide. The following PC specification is just a guide (as in the title), I hope it will be helpful for those who have difficulty making up their mind on what parts to choose. Feel free to upgrade any of the components to suit your preference or downgrade to cater your budget.

I will change the guide from time to time.

Should you have any queries about the specification that I've presented, you may contact me. Heck if you have a suggestion to improve the guide or even to have some discussion, feel free to do so as well.

P/S : DO NOT contact me via LYN PM. my PM box is almost always full as there are 101 other PMs coming in. Contact details are on the site.

ADDITIONAL INFO :
Now with this guide, that doesn't mean you guys can't start a "Recommend Me" thread. We're not stopping that.

This GUIDE was made for those who have no idea what to get. This guide will give you a headstart on what you can expect from a computer at certain price range.

I hope that with this guide, the RECOMMENDATION process will be much easier rather than "guys, recommend me an RM 3k rig" and you get sooooooooo many recommendations but not going anywhere.

The specifications in the guide are gaming rigs, simply because if you can play game then you could do almost any other thing else with it, after all - computer gaming is THE thing that the push computers to the limits, the fuel in advancing PC technlogy.

bout damn time
wait, lets try this:
"hell, its about time."

so you can just copy n paste on locking threads to point them to this thread lol

hehe. not necessarily la.

pasting + locking = more work also mah. it's to reduce work, to help those who are clueless or looking for ideas what to get.

notice the guide i didn't put sound card. cos sound card really subjective matter. same goes to some other stuff.

I read em. Awesome job! U really save a lot of headaches for some ppl here.

Yesh, million thanks to you! XD

Noticed your sig and clicked it. What do you gotta say? Hell, it's about time

The more I read, the more I sakit hati, 'cause of the prize and rig ~__~

I can rent my sig space to put this for free
if you dont mind it, that's all

hehe true that.

soundcard nowdays does come much more flexible than before, thanks to advancement on onboard sound, unlike previously, where they're a total POS, that leads to creative's SB series branded a 'must have'

nice job bro Goldfries.
but there is no any SLi and CF setup yet
u wan me to set up two CF and SLi price list?

hehe. i don't intend to go till there la.

cos this guide was meant for n00bs. if you know how to configure SLI, you wouldn't need it.

i wouldn't recommend any n00b SLI either. so far the people that know how to fully utilize SLI are people who know their stuff.

anyway thank you all for all the feedback / praises. please note that i'm not paid for this guide. i'll update it only when i see there's some change (decently significant wan la) in the PC HW industry.

Nice guide from mod
AMD fans will like it but no offence. Budget of RM3000 still go for AMD X2 3600+ and only RM4000-5000 will switch to E4300/E6320. Maybe becoz gamming rig will more rely on gfx, not proc. Im noob anyway.
Btw Silverstone Strider 560W retail price is RM320 for some shop in lyp, maybe u refered to C-zone' price list (they sell RM390-400).
Thanks for the guide.

actually, processor is the biggest bottleneck to a graphic card in general. if you have a weaksauce proc (pentium 4, for example) but an uber gf8800 ultra, the ultra is gonna perform somewhere around the level of a geforce 7 or less but with dx10 capability*.

hell, my own system is a living proof. i tried the human head tech demo on the 2.0 thingy setting (forgot what it was again), lag like hell (slideshow, and even background music distorted) . but recently i did some oc on my quad core from 2.66 ghz to 3.1 ghz, only minimal lag (low fps only)

if i do 1.8 and below, no problem. btw the tech demo is meant for 8800 ultra, im on 8800GTX. but this is merely to show how bad a cpu can bottleneck your GPU

*please note that the figure here is not accurate as it is a mere example

=edit=
supersampling btw

where were u when i was lost? sobs

hey goldfries..
nice to have a new thread for guide here..

EDITED by goldfries : yeah i went to your thread already. removed the OT part.

yeah it is.

nowadays GPU is so powerful, CPU can't produce enough to keep up.

here's an article for reference.
http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/geforc...md_cpu_scaling/

Do u have a reference or website on hardware compatibilities? Which processor for which mobo, etc., and which part suits other parts the best? Noob here..

sorry i don't have such site references.

generally processors just need a motherboard with the right socket and a chipset that supports it.

i'd say the more fickle part of the computer would be the RAM.

want to ask,which is better for gaming?

AMD 4200 X2 with 7950GT or
INTEL C2D E4300 with 7950GT?

both will use 1Gb value ram....

if u can afford..ofcoz the C2D E4300 will be a good choice

just get X2 4200, then the balance get another 1gb ram..

After seeing your guide and my own research, I came out with these:

AMDx2 3800+ RM265
Asus M2A-VM RM280
1GB Corsair DDR 667 x2 RM120x2
Seagate 160 SATA2 RM175
Colorful 8600GT Solid Capacitor RM445
Sony DVDRW IDE G170A NEC CS RM100

Total RM1505 (Price from pczone 9/6/2007)

What ya guys think? Which PSU should I get?

u are not intto OCing..takes CM or Acbel (true power at least 450W) if hardcore OCing...got Silverstone,OCZ, Enermax or u can refer to this topic

true2, even my chapalang PSU still survive with my OCed pentium 4 until I exchanged it with acbel PSU, worry that it will blown up and bring along other components.

-adios-

hi guys. i want to buy a new gaming rig. Budget RM 5000. I don't have any idea what to buy as i am so confuse right now.pLEASE HELP ME. Thanks.

Shall I contribute?

OK.

Let see. How do we determine what to buy, for what purpose, at what budget suits our pocket?

Here say.

There are six main components that make a PC, well a PC.

1) Motherboard
2) CPU (microprocessor) and its heat spreader - fan and heatsink
3) RAM (memory modules)
4) Graphics card or built-in video adapter
5) Power Supply unit
6) A chassis/casing

What to concern about buying a PC components? Well, the purpose of building/buying one and your budget are the first two concerns.

How do we determine what best for us, in purpose and budget sense? The first step is to understand, what's best for your usage and budget. Next, you need to understand some bullshit and jargons involved in buying PC components.

Do not be intimidated of what your friends' have. Their budgets and requirements are not the same as yours. Just dump the things they say about OC (overclocking) ability and stuffs. You just need a PC that works for you.

OK, what else, go read or ask people who know better about PC hardware, but do your own reading too, to avoid boasted/biased statements from the one you are asking stuff for.

fren. you POSTED here, and the guide is already in Post #1. didn't the guide even give you a bit of idea what to get yet?

Hi there! Thanks for the guide. Its SO useful. But i notice there's nothing about cooling.

I've got some bad experience with computers sometime hanging, crashing, blue screen of death.... Most of the time, the service guy just say overheat lar. So how can i prevent this? I certainly don't want to spend a bomb on water cooling or coolant. I mean, its a computer, not a car.

Someone mention that having adequate power supply will reduce heat. Is this true? Or he just trying to cheat me into buying more stuff i dont need.

Glad to hear that.



what OS were you using then? ever since i got to WinXP, i've not been facing it unless i tweak around. hang and crash may happen some times, due or not due to hardware depends on what's the conflict.

if you refer to my guide, i did not recommend any third party cooling. why? because processors that are in the guide are very cooling for usage. so you wouldn't have to worry about the cooling for the processor, just choose a casing that allows decent airflow.



false. just take a look at the threads around this forum. when people recommend a better PSU, it's because it reduces the risk of electrical mishaps happening to your machine while maintaining a more steady / stable flow of power - NO cooling.

Mr goldfries just giving out the basic idea in setting up a whole PC within budgets. For basic and normal usage, I think there's no problem from the guide. Other than that, maybe you need to find your own

Mr goldfries, I like the way you recommend ppl

haha, i'm waiting for your guides for laptops..

this one's a little harder.

there's so many laptops available, and so many configurations. i can't recommend any configuration setup but i could do a guide i suppose.

will take a bit of research as well....



my policy is simple
amount $ spend vs amount performance gained.

IF ever i want to show off, i'd rather be the person who boasts that i spend minimal to get A LOT out of it instead of being the person who boasts of deep pockets.

yeah those rigs are for normal usage and if you look at the specs, almost all over them can be used for overclocking too! (yeah, i do consider those who intend to try out OCing).

goldfries will do la, no need Mr like i oldman or uncle.

Mr is a sound of respect

Anyway, yes basic setup that can OC as well, especially for beginners who's still learning

erm... because better PSU have higher efficiency, thus the higher percentage of power will be used to power the PC, comparing with lower efficiency of PSU, some may go hotter because of more energy wasted in the form of heat.

dattebayo, you're talk about power efficiency but from what AdrianA posted - it looks like that someone wasn't talking about what you are talking about.

here's his phrase.



note the word adequate, when i see that word in there, i'm under the impression that he's saying the guy is telling him to get PSU of higher wattage so it'll be adequate. and furthmore, the word reduce - which is different from "generating lesser heat".

if the word was efficienct then it's a different story altogether, it'll be like what you said. and that also we didn't even touch on efficiency vs temperature gain yet.

if the guy said a better PSU has additional fans that could aid in air-circulation then it's fine as well.

PC BUYING GUIDE UPDATED!!!

* Added more details / explanation about the guide.
* Interface change : Streamlined for less confusing display of contents.
* Interface change : Toggle view for easy comparison.
* New banner and various images.
* Specifications change : Processor changes on most of the specifications to bring better value.
* Specifications change : more RAM on some specifications due to price drop.
* Specifications change : ATi Radeon X1950 Pro instead of nVidia GeForce 7900GS.
* Specifications change : ATi Radeon HD 2900XT instead of nVidia GeForce 8800GTS(640MB).
* Specifications change : ABIT IB9 instead of BIOSTAR 6100-AM2.
* Specifications change : RM 2,000 rig is now RM 2,250 rig as a halfway point between RM 1,500 and RM 3,000 rig.
* Added the For your consideration part in comments to highlight what are the other possible components to take consideration.

goldfries thx for the sharing... the information is very clear and reader friendly...

this really save me lots of time thinking what I suppose to do and what I need to include...

Btw does all shops provide the same price?

i believe the prices stated at goldfries guide is the roughly taken as moderate price..u could plus minus with it..

and usually different shops come with different prices

Yup, normal price around most PC shops should be around that figure.

p/s: I'm linking your buying guide in my college forum, hope you don't mind. <-- bgtau lepas kantoi

too late!!!!

if you notice in your college forum, i've already posted there. you see what time was the post.

That's why I said, I let you know after 'kantoi'

Will follow if there's any update as well

hehe ok. anyway i've reconsidered the options and decided to use


GIGABYTE P965-S3 instead of BIOSTAR TFORCE 965. cheaper mah.

You've changed from Biostar TF 965P to Gigabyte P965-S3, it is cheaper but is it a good board to OC compared to TF 965P?

have a read.
http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=2871

please note that in my guide, it's not about OCing. it's about cheap but quality boards. of course i try to include an OCable board in there in case people want to try it out.

bro, ur blog is down?

yeah server down for now.

site is up - please use the logo / image on my siggy (the one below) as indicator of site availability.

bro goldfries. i notice in your guide to get an lcd that can support dvi input. may i know wat is the advantage of dvi input? can use for what purpose?

cards these days are using DVI port already, most cards bought will give you DVI > VGA converter.

by using DVI port, you're using digital signals rather than analogs. you get clearer output on your monitor.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Visual_Interface

goldfries,

Just wondering, why do you recommend Acbel 450watt? Is it really good PSU? Needed to know cause i have someone who wanted to assemble a rig and i am using yours as a reference to get the best stuff..LOL..

it's cheap and decent brand.

i'm using CoolerMaster, which later i found it AcBel manufactures for them. you can go for Silverstones too.

just try not to stick to iCute or whatever cheapo PSU. i admit, i use iCute, powerlogic and unknown PSUs too but i use them with knowing th risks. just that when it comes to recommendation, better recommend better product la. hehe.