Gaming pc build for a 10 year old - best components/prices/sources?

[Oisin Greaney]

Hi there folks,

so this is an interesting one; I've been contacted by a parent who's seeking advice for their ten-year-old son who is eager to build his own PC from scratch and has even done some research and put together a parts list. The issue is they don't really know for certain whether the parts are what he really needs and they both have no experience with ordering this kind of stuff: ie which sites are the best to order from.

Anyone have any opinions on the stuff in the list below? Keep in mind that it's a budget build for a young fella who wants to play some games, not, say, mine for bitcoin :-P

Where even is the best place to source computer parts online these days? I've been out of the loop in this stuff for ages. 

See the list below,

Ush

Desired outcome:  720 to 1080 P gaming PC
 
Requirements to build PC:
 
BitFenic Comrade Midi -Tower-Black CASE
 
Segate 1TBarracuda SATTA6GB/s64MB 7200RPM3.5"HardDrive
 
AMD A8-7600 FM2+3.8GHz Socket FM2+4MB Quad Core Processor CPU or Intel I5 (whatever you suggest is best)
 
Crucial 8GB DDR3 CL9 @1.5V Ballistic Sport XT UDIMM 240 pin memory x 2
 
Gigabyte 9700a-UD3P AMD AM3+970A DDR3 ATX Motherboard
 
EVGA 500W Black 80PLUS CERTIFIED PSU Power supply
 
Sapphire 1gb AMD Radeon R7 260x PCle Graphics card

 

Windows 8.1

[Alan Keaveney]

Hi Oisin,

This is the advice from my cousin Oliver Greaney (oli...@gmail.com), 

I'm sure there are many opinions.

Hope this helps:

Alan.

For the processor go for the latest intel I5 4690K etc (or if you can
afford i7) and get a large heatsink like the evo212
amd has lost their way so don't use em at all for cpu or gpu

Get a motherboard that supports intel LGA 1150 processor
what ever motherboard you get check the ram max Memory Clock Speed and
purchase ram based on that

get a solid state hard-drive Intel 730 240GB or Crucial MX100 256GB
still get a cheap 1 or 2 TB mechanical hard-drive for storing data but
install the OS and latest games on the ssd

for the graphics card go for nvidea they have better video drivers
if on a budget go for something like
NVidia 750 GTX 2gb or similar model

get a larger power supply like in the 600w to 700w for future expansion
for example later on you can add a second similar graphics card (sli
cable) and install more hard-drives etc

for the os go for windows 7 (used my most gamers) or try out win 10

some friends of mine used http://www.mindfactory.de/ from Germany for
the parts but i have not used them myself
so cannot vouch for em but the prices are cheapest in Europe at the mo.

anyways if you decide to make all them changes i can check new
components for compatibility before you order

Oliver

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[Bacon Zombie]

Have a look at the KBMOD built guides.
They also do a video podcast explaining their chooses.

http://kbmod.com/category/build-guides/

They link the built to PC Parks Picker with has an option for UK to find the cheapest prices but you may have to swap out one or two bits.

WARNING DO NOT LET THE KID WATCH OR LISTEN TO THEIR PODCASTS. THEY ARE VERY NSFW!!!!!

[Domhnall Walsh]

I'd argue that a dirty word is missing from this conversation... Budget. How much they have to spend will dictate a lot of choices.

[Ruairi McNicholas]

Dohmnall is on the ball, budget will play a big part in any PC build.

If he's 10 I'd suggest picking up an AMD CPU with an integrated graphics card, as I imagine he's unlikely to be kicking off into graphic intensive gaming. If he does he can always pick up a GPU later on, and as Alan said he can get a 600w + PSU for later expansion.

http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/ are based in Germany, I and many of our friends built our computers entirely from parts purchased from them, good service and competitive prices.

PS: Heard mention of 091 Labs in NUI Galway's Class Rep's meeting, NUI are starting a maker-space, their key point being 'We don't charge per month'. Competition's on the horizon! 

[Alanna Kelly]

I agree with Domhnall. Decide budget first, then select parts within this range.

Win 7, 8.1 or 10 are grand. 8 is the only one to avoid.

You can build a very nice gaming PC for €400-600.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/newegg-system-builder-marathon-q3-2015-value-comparison,4293.html

Don't dismiss AMD or last years premium parts either.

You don't *need* an SSD, they are nice but if budget is an issue you can skip it.

You get diminishing returns when budget for a PC build goes above €1000.

[Alanna Kelly]

I'm aware NUIG are starting a makerspace.

When you have the resources of a university behind you it is easy not to charge for membership. A hackerspaces is a club. Most hackerspaces charge membership dues as do most other types of clubs so they can f**k right off with that smugness.

[Oisin Greaney]

Cheers for the suggestions guys, I'll pass them along. I get the impression that budget is definitely a factor, and I'm pretty sure a 10-year-old doesn't need a beast of a gaming PC.

With NUIG's Makerspace the major restriction is that (as far as I know) access is only for NUIG students and staff. We charge a monthly fee, that is true, but we're also potentially open to Galway and beyond. I would hazard a guess that over half to two-thirds of our members and event/class attendees over the years have been non-students. They also don't have the same reliance on member funding that most other Makerspaces do so that really renders moot any comments that were made. The beauty of Makerspaces is that the vast majority have enough mutual objectives to create a vast loose collaborative network of 'Space's that often share members, events and projects. I've chatted to some of the organisers previously and they were very eager to kick off some inter-Makerspace collaborations, which could lead to some exciting stuff. And now Galway has two Makerspaces? Well that's just awesome.

So, Alanna, no swearing at a neighbouring 'Space is necessary, especially when we're on the public list :-P

On Thu, Oct 8, 2015 at 11:19 PM, Alanna Kelly <ala...@091labs.com> wrote:

I'm aware NUIG are starting a makerspace.

When you have the resources of a university behind you it is easy not to charge for membership. A hackerspaces is a club. Most hackerspaces charge membership dues as do most other types of clubs so they can f**k right off with that smugness.

--

[gerryk]

I would suspect there are caveats attached to the NUIG makerspace. For instance, who will own any IP created there? Who will dictate the bounds of what may or may not be worked on?

[Domhnall Walsh]

Never thought of IP as an issue... Yikes...