PC help

[Stormblade45]

So, for a couple months now i've been searching for a medium end gaming computer. One that could run vanilla skyrim and other games well, but still have room for mods and other things. due to my laptop being ancient. i was just wondering if anyone could point me in the right direction or even suggestions

thanks in advance!


P.S. if i didn't put this thread in the right topic, super sorry! i'm still learning how to navigate the site lol!

 

[Sah]

giggles.............*gives Stormblade45 a blank map*.....tap 3 times with your wand & say, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good"

Stormblade45 welcome to the Skyrim Forums

are you building it your self or getting a ready made PC?

this one has a modest rig, built it my self 3 years ago.......its my baby

CPU: i5 2500K
MOBO: ROG Maximus IV geneZ
VGA: GTX 660ti (ROG)
SSD: 250GB & 2TB HDD
PSU: 850W (silverstone)

this rig allows me to play Skyrim in Ultra settings easy,
I use over 25 active mods & can record @ 50fps with no lagging, BUT I drop from Ultra to the High settings.......card is working between 70 - 90% depending
I don't use any Environment Texture MODS........need a upgrade for that

hopes this one helped​

 

[shadowkitty]

My knowledge comes form building custom rigs every day.
Unless you are into some serious gaming or work with graphics, web building, then don't let anyone tell you you need an i7.. it's serious over-kill.

i5CPU is fine. And depending on what you have available in your country, that will dictate what sort of motherboard, graphics card and ram you will use. I recommend an ASUS motherboard (Or a ROG - Republic of gaming).

Ram I recommend you have no less than 8GB. Don't cheap out on ram, buy the best brand. I personally use Kingston.

SSD's are good, make booting up quicker but for the love of Talos...BACKUP everything regularly on an external HDD. Once a SSD craps itself, there is NO WAY to recover your data. Where as a HDD you can (depending how damaged it is). I would recommend having two HDD's in your rig. One for all your program files and one for backing up.

Also chuck in a couple of extra fans into your case. HEAT IS YOUR ENEMY! Cool that sucker down! Have the fans on out-take to suck out the hot air. (I also have a front one that sucks IN cool air).

When installing a game, always get the 64bit software. Dedicate how much ram your pc will use to run the game...eg: games like minecraft you would dedicate around 5 to 6GB (If you are modding)

And finally peripherals matter.. these include your monitor, keyboard and mouse. Don't cheap out on a monitor. Do some research to find the best one suitable for your needs. Same goes for the keyboard and mouse. You can live with a cheaper KB and Mouse, but you will be better off getting something that is more suited to the gamer.

 

[Stormblade45]

Thank you both so much! I might just buy one due to my technical skill not being anywhere close to 100 xD

But then again, i feel like the challenge of putting it together would be satisfying. one last thing, any website recommendations for parts and etc.?

Oh and "I solemnly swear I am up to no good"

 

[shadowkitty]

There are plenty of web sites out there that can sell you all sorts of things. But that's all they do. SELL SELL SELL! I might suggest though, that you seek out a small independent IT shop who builds pc's. You can get the right advice and tips from them and, if they are reliable and reputable, you will also be able to order any parts from them to. Web sites kill the small business owner. It might be easy and cheaper, but in the end, when you need help, it's the retailer whom you will turn to. Support your local businesses.

 

[shadowkitty]

They are relatively easy to put together. Just follow this simple plan, and read any instructions you get with your parts carefully:
Case: get it ready, take off both side panels, sort out power cables, clip in the back plate for your ports, attach any extra fans etc..
Motherboard: rest it on something soft, like a piece of foam. Attach the CPU/fan, Ram then fit the MB into the case (Taking note of any extra posts that are needed, some cases differ)
Knock out front plate where your DVD drive is going and put that in.
Then put in your HDD/s.
Knock out back plates where your Graphics card, PCI express card(if you are going to go wireless for internet) are going and attach them to.
NOW plug in all your cords and the SATA cables that go into the DVD Drive and Hard Drives/s. Make sure none will get caught up in any fans. This can be a little tricky for a beginner. Follow your Motherboard's user manual. It will show you where each cord needs to be plugged into.

I would then recommend you fire that beast up before you cable manage, just to check you put everything where it should be. Then do the last step.

CABLE MANAGE..this is tidying up all the loose cables and tying them all together (Plastic cable ties are the best, NEVER use metal) DON'T tie the SATA cables in with the rest. Leave them free.
Put your side panels back on and now you should be ready to install software and drivers (for the hardware).

Of course there are many more tips I could write here but I don't want to scare you off building your own rig. It is quite fun and very satisfying when it comes together. Plus you would save a lot of money putting it together yourself.