Even now people are still trying to build cheap gaming desktops because it is fun to build it yourself. You can however order a gaming desktop from either your local computer store or even online such as Origin but then you will be paying more. Either way, you will probably be paying more for the labor and maybe even the price of some of the computer parts. This is why I like to build my own desktop and customize it to my liking. Each time I make a desktop for clients or even me, I ask myself what do I want to have in my system. I’m an INTEL person myself and will always go with Intel due to the fact that it works really well with Windows and other programs natively. I also ask myself some common questions before I begin my build.
Will it Be Intel or AMD? (To each their own preference)
How much speed do I want to have?
What type of HD will I most likely install it it? (examples: NVME, SSD or HDD)
What type of Graphic card do I plan to have in it if Any? (Nvidia, AMD or no Graphics card at all)
Will I want to have max memory or just the standard 8Gb or 16Gb of memory?
Will it be for Gaming or Work, or Both?
Will I need a lot of power to run this PC?
Will it be Watercooled or Air Cooled?
Will it have RGB on it or will it be non RGB? (This too is a good question because RGB will take additional power but it isn’t going to be a lot)
What Games if any will I most likely be playing on this desktop? (Each Game has minimum requirements that need to be met, so look carefully at the games)
Time to do research
This is where it starts to get interesting because most of the time, I will start with Motherboard and CPU. This is the first place I start looking for the right motherboard and cpu for my needs or at least to start off with. You can always buy a slower CPU and gradually upgrade it as you get more money. So you don’t have to always have the fastest CPU to start off with. It does help but it will also help with keeping it cheap. This is the time you decide if it will be AMD or INTEL and then look for the board that will work with the CPU. Also you will need to pay extra attention to the socket types and how many PCI Slots. If you are going to install a Graphics Card, you will need to have the right PCI slot and also if you intend to install any other peripherals which might need a pci slot.
Buy RAM
Once you’ve bought the CPU and Motherboard, you’ll know which type of RAM you will need to buy to install onto the Motherboard. This is what I usually do anyways and I start looking for RAM being sold on Facebook or other sites that sell used RAM. You’ll just want to make sure the seller is reliable and has some good ratings before buying the ram. The max speed I usually get for any system nothing more the 4000 Ghz, I usually try to limit it to 3200 Ghz because you really don’t find any more speed coming from the memory at higher rates. I think it is due to the limitations of the motherboards but that might just be something else.
Now is the time to buy the power supply, This can seem easy but really it is harder than most will admit to. You’ll want to buy a power supply that can be used with your system and then add a cushion of 30% or more to the power supply needs. So if you need a 500 watt power supply, I’d buy a 900 watt power supply just to be safe. If you can find one that is modular, that is even because then you won’t have cables that you aren’t using. That’s the only thing good with Power supply. Something like the one you are seeing on the left will work just fine. Most of the time it will work even better than you can imagine.
Video Card
This is essential the most expensive part of the build right now. Depending on where or who you talk to. It can be anywhere from a few 100 dollars to even a 1 thousand dollars to buy the video card new. The trick here is to find a video that will work for you right now and then upgrade it as you need to in the future or as you get the money in the future. So I always tell people to go with the Minimum requirements of games and then work your way up to recommended requirements because that way you can save up for the GPU that is recommended and still be able to play the game you are wanting to play. Just remember don’t bottleneck your CPU with getting a better GPU and not upgrading your CPU in the same the process. Look for people who are selling their GPU’s and or places that might sell you a cheap GPU that still will do what you are looking to play or do with it. Even with Nvidia announcing the Low Hash rates GPU’s, You can expect the price of them to be more expensive than what you normally will see for quite some time.
After That you should really be set to put you system and install what operating system you might want into the new desktop. Once that done you are set to start playing your games.
