Desktop gaming PC specs

[RedAndy]

My eldest is transferring from a PS4 and Nintendo Switch things to a desktop. hes about to do GCSEs so the additional benefits of a PC over consoles is obvious.

But what to buy? I am so out of touch i have no idea what specs are good/VFM/overkill and what software to use. Please help.

- he wants to run Fortnight and Minecraft in top resolution, plus other games I'm sure he'll grow in to.
- fancies himself as a youtuber so needs video editing capabilty
- getting in to animation/game design so needs something that'll help that as he goes in to college

Any tips or links welcome thanks.

you're going to ask about budget... I have no idea what these things cost so I'm guessing a grand?

[captain_cynic]

Pick a budget and start here

https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/guide/

£900 gets you a decent entry level rig. £1200 is better. £300 extra for a decent monitor if you don't already have one but this is something you can get later.

[Boozy]

I think it might be hard to get highest resolution (4K) for a grand but I could be wrong.

[tixoc]

Have a look on HotUKDeals. Type in 'gaming' and you can usually find something decent. I saw a rig with a rtx3060 for around £600 on there. Overkill for Minecraft, but good for a few years if he wants to play other games and do video editing.

P.s. you don't need the ability to game at 4k. 1080p is good enough for 99% of people.

[Griffith4ever]

Yep 1080p is still superb, and don't ignore 2k.

4k takes you into serious money territory and really not needed at all on a PC for gaming.

[Jasandjules]

I found this

https://www.acpcs.co.uk/collections/available-to-t...

And bought it.... Monitor and mouse/keyboard etc runs to 1k all in.. I think it ought to be fine for your son? It names games it can run on good settings (the GPU is pretty decent for the money and it would be 1300 it seems so...)

[alfabeat]

My sons build gaming PC's and then sell them. They do ok out of it for 13 and 15 year olds!

This is what they are selling currently:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/305141051377?mkcid=16&a...

That is a very good spec for the money.

[tixoc]

I'm surprised that someone would pay so much for such a low spec! Fair play to them if it's working. But compared to the pc in the other link or the one I found on hukd, you have to wonder how they're able to sell any at all.

Edited by tixoc on Monday 25th September 22:11

[Brainpox]

Yep fair play if they can pull it off but to claim it will play all games at high frame rate is a stretch. I guess the appeal is it has everything including peripherals with fancy brand names and a £800 entry fee into PC gaming isn’t horrendous.

[RedAndy]

Jasandjules said:

I found this

https://www.acpcs.co.uk/collections/available-to-t...

And bought it.... Monitor and mouse/keyboard etc runs to 1k all in.. I think it ought to be fine for your son? It names games it can run on good settings (the GPU is pretty decent for the money and it would be 1300 it seems so...)

OP Update - we bought that one too, thanks for the link. Good machine, but the fan is awfully loud! can Hear it downstairs!

[Silverbullet767]

You could try booting into the bios to see if a proper fan profile is loaded. Look for something like silent. Either that or download a program called fancontrol, unless it's not been built correctly there's no reason why the fans should be going full tilt.

[RedAndy]

an is noisy at all speeds (does change speeds so presume it is working properly).

i think cheap plastic bearings are ovalised?

[Silverbullet767]

RedAndy said:

an is noisy at all speeds (does change speeds so presume it is working properly).

i think cheap plastic bearings are ovalised?

What brand are the fans?

[mmm-five]

What's the cooler on that, as I'm sure the 12700 will run quite hot too - so may mean the cooler is running full-speed all the time.

I can only see 1 fan on the back and some solid plastic with a '3d effect' on the front, so am also worried about airflow.

[RedAndy]

no idea fan brand. I Assume it's a cheapy one.

the front plastic X thing is separated from the rest of the box by a 1" strip all around it that is perforated. about 60% of the top of the box is a fine mesh (keep dust out but let heat out) You can feel some warmth being blown about so it is working, but I wouldn't say its "hot".

Always room for more cooling though. Are fans easily changed? Seems to be 4 screws holding it in place - are they universal?

[Silverbullet767]

mmm-five said:

What's the cooler on that, as I'm sure the 12700 will run quite hot too - so may mean the cooler is running full-speed all the time.

I can only see 1 fan on the back and some solid plastic with a '3d effect' on the front, so am also worried about airflow.

Looking at the picture it looks like a stock cooler on the CPU. I'd be looking at upgrading that if that's the case. You don't need to spend a fortune, https://amzn.eu/d/6Y212d0. I'd also look it'll replacing the rear case fan with something branded as well. Just measure the existing.

Edited by Silverbullet767 on Tuesday 13th February 14:20

[Silverbullet767]

RedAndy said:

no idea fan brand. I Assume it's a cheapy one.

the front plastic X thing is separated from the rest of the box by a 1" strip all around it that is perforated. about 60% of the top of the box is a fine mesh (keep dust out but let heat out) You can feel some warmth being blown about so it is working, but I wouldn't say its "hot".

Always room for more cooling though. Are fans easily changed? Seems to be 4 screws holding it in place - are they universal?

Fans are mostly universal, just buy the correct size. I'd make sure they're 4 pin pwm so they can be speed controlled. The quietest 'and most expensive' brand is noctua. They also do fantastic air coolers. When fitting make sure the orientation is correct, fans will blow air towards the hub end, so if you can see the support structure for the middle hub, air comes out that end. It's important for fan direction. You don't want to be sending hot air back into the case.

[Silverbullet767]

If you're not sure, photos of the pc internals would help me guide you in the right direction.