Gaming Rig Time
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Well, the time has come, I need to start assembling a serious, but not crazy, home gaming platform to be used for video games, home entertainment and some virtualization lab stuff. I've been holding off on that for a while but now I need to do it. I figured I would post here so that @Mike-Ralston and @Dominica and I can discuss the plans and design in real time.
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The problem with adding the virtualization lab stuff to me is that I always end up actually using VM's so that kills the gaming resources.
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@JaredBusch said:
The problem with adding the virtualization lab stuff to me is that I always end up actually using VM's so that kills the gaming resources.
Been thinking that through. Only going to use VirtualBox in this case so that the VMs can be shut down and use no resources.
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@scottalanmiller So, gaming rig, huh? Alright. What's your budget, do you want to stick to certain manufacturers, what kind of resolution do you want to push, and do you want the rig to hold to a color scheme or theme? I can whip you up a list of parts in a pretty quick time frame if you drop me those bits of info. Also, I would suggest the aforementioned VirtualBox, or just spending more money if you want to support even just 1 VM.
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Sorry I got distracted on this one. So the goal is a mid-range gaming rig that is also useful as a business desktop and for virtualizing some test workloads. So needs to be x86 based, run Windows 8.1 Pro and have, I would think, 16GB of RAM. CPU can be anything that makes sense but I am assuming that means Intel these days as the single threaded performance advantage beats the extra AMD cores for gaming and either is fine for everything else. SSD, of course, for the main drive. Don't want to go crazy, want something reasonable. Shooting for the $800 range with a small, quiet case. That orange one that you found earlier looks pretty sweet. I'll stick with NVidia for the GPU.
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Get a mid-tower case, ASUS motherboard. The micro-sized boards they have are truly amazing stuff. AMD Octo-core. I think Michael will agree with me that the price difference between an AMD octo and quad is almost nothing. Obviously not the same level octo-core as quad but it'll do what you need and then some. If you want to skimp on the board, get one with 2 slots for RAM and get 2x8GB chips. You're getting 2x8GB either way so figure out where you stand near the end and go from there. Don't spend more than $125 on the GPU, for what you need and the games you play. Honestly, all this sounds like a great reason to get an HP Probook from the Outlet center
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http://h71016.www7.hp.com/html/hpremarketing/daily.asp?jumpid=in_r2910_bizoutlet/remarketing/smbclearance&a=a#SMB1The Outlet center sold me my laptop for under 700, I had the SSD and HDD caddy (and HDD actually) already so figure $100 for an SSD and you're golden. Get a Probook 6000 series model. Mine is a freaking beast with 12GB of RAM, an i7 at 3.0GHz, I bought the docking station for 200. Get a HDD caddy off Amazon for $10 and drop a 1TB in the spot the optical drive goes and you're golden.
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Asus would be my recommendation too. They are very high end for build it yourself systems and have crossed over into making a lot of commercial gear too (they do contract manufacturing for HP!) Going with their boards gets you halfway from the hobby boards to almost having a commercial level system but with lots of customization.
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I would highly recommend a small case, Asus or MSI Motherboard, Intel over AMD anyday (though you'll pay more for similar performance with Intel), 8 or 16GB of RAM, and depending on the gaming you want to do, a GPU anywhere between $100 and $250. SSD's are almost a must nowadays for a gaming setup. Let me go whip you up several options from that price range and see what we can do.
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@ajstringham I've noticed that you have a large amount of loyalty towards HP and Laptops. Any particular reason for this? I find that even with similar On-Paper specifications, a laptop will run slower and cost more than a comparable desktop, though it's still more efficient.
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@Mike-Ralston said:
@ajstringham I've noticed that you have a large amount of loyalty towards HP and Laptops. Any particular reason for this? I find that even with similar On-Paper specifications, a laptop will run slower and cost more than a comparable desktop, though it's still more efficient.
Scott and @Minion-Queen queen are quite the opposite of me. I keep all my devices very segregated. My phone is a smart phone because I need one. It's mobile, fits in my pocket, gives me web browsing, FB, YouTube, etc. I can make and take calls, send and receive texts and have a few basic apps, especially email. I do not have a tablet, nor do I want one. I HATE having to keep track of what file is on what device in what location. My mobile is mobile. Now, I use laptops because I will not, cannot do, two computers, for the previously mentioned reasons. I wanted one computer I could carry around when I desired but also use as a desktop-replacement when I wanted. My Probook and docking station combo does just that. I have the power of most desktops on the market outside of high-end custom gaming builds, combined with laptop portability. I have my server that I use for...downloads...that was a laptop I did a P2V on but all the files are stored in a central location on my NASes so that I can access them from any machine. I've worked very hard to have my folder structure be meticulous for music, videos, and even somewhat pictures and documents. If I want a file to be accessed from multiple devices, I put it in my dropbox. Everything is methodical and has the goal of reducing clutter and lost files or having stuff in limbo where it's one place but not the place I need it. That's why laptops. As far as HP, well, you can thank Priscilla (an alias) at HP for that bit. I'm a diehard fan because I always liked HP stuff, but she pushed it over the edge to fanboy level. Great support when I need it, and a person I can reach out to directly if I'm not being treated right. Even for some part reference questions I can't find an answer to myself, Priscilla will search the HP Intranet for me.
So there is your answer, Whew that was a lot to type. LOL
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I agree that HP has some of the best support. I've had a little bit better experience with Lenovo products and Customer Support, but I do like HP. I agree, for your usage, a Laptop is the absolute best device for the job. But, as an avid gamer and enthusiast system builder, I find laptops to be a bit underpowered and pricy for what you get. For my usage scenarios, I don't believe a laptop exists with enough power. But, I will admit, the Desktop market is getting stale, while laptops are still making huge technological leaps. @scottalanmiller I whipped up a rig for you that's an absolute gaming beast for the price, but I also found a VERY interesting solution. Here is the Rig - http://pcpartpicker.com/p/mrjddC and here is the other option I found - http://www.neweggbusiness.com/Product/Product.aspx?gclid=Cj0KEQjwr-KeBRCMh92Ax9rNgJ8BEiQA1OVm-BILG_Yv_HZE3S6_-VumT2lVcpRoFN60WbDnYu6CV8AaAmlf8P8HAQ&Item=9B-56-164-018&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleBiz&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleBiz--pla--Mini+%2f+Booksize+Barebone+PCs-_-9B-56-164-018&ef_id=UxIUvAAABeKoNKcP:20140730165355:s
Done quite a bit of research, and as long as you keep this thing cool, it's on par with a similar PC. Also, notice the VESA wall mount compatibility. It can be snuck behind and attached to a TV or Monitor, meaning it's nigh-invisible. -
@ajstringham ah. You are using a few devices because you keep your data all local. Files sharing frees you from that. I have my files on any device I go to. So I can use the optimum device for the task.
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I have an Ipad, desktop, IPhone and Surface that I use and I have all my documents everywhere. OneDrive for business is awesome not to mention drop box etc.
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But we're talking about gaming PC's here.
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OK, this looks pretty darned cool.
http://www.neweggbusiness.com/Product/Product.aspx?gclid=Cj0KEQjwr-KeBRCMh92Ax9rNgJ8BEiQA1OVm-BILG_Yv_HZE3S6_-VumT2lVcpRoFN60WbDnYu6CV8AaAmlf8P8HAQ&Item=9B-56-164-018&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleBiz&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleBiz--pla--Mini+%2f+Booksize+Barebone+PCs-_-9B-56-164-018&ef_id=UxIUvAAABeKoNKcP:20140730165355:s
my only complaint is that it only had HDMI ports (oh and a display port -ug).
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Crazy horsepower, even as compared to what Mini ITX was a few years ago. I understand the complaints about HDMI, it's an obnoxious standard, but whatever is wrong with DisplayPort? It's currently the most stable display transmission method, and unless you're using one of those Thunderbolt-Monitor setups, it's currently the highest bandwith. HDMI, being the next highest, can only support a 4K stream at 30Hz, whereas DisplayPort does it at 60Hz. The next revision of DisplayPort is going to be able to run a theoretical 8K at 120Hz. DisplayPort also supports technologies like G-Sync, and it really is THE choice for gamers. VGA, the most used standard, has a maximum pixel output of 537,600 pixels at 60Hz, whereas DisplayPort is 8,294,400 at 60Hz, almost 16 times as much. VGA is outdated and outclassed, though DVI-I and DVI-D still have a bit of lifetime left, as they can stream 1080P at 60Hz.
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I just really dislike convertor cables. The off the shelf monitors still primarily are VGA with a few DVI sprinkled in there, and on occasion you MIGHT see one HDMI available. I've never seen a native Display Port monitor on the shelf (though I have seen a few online - Damn the price).
I'm more like AJ, I use relatively inexpensive monitors so I can't take advantage of 4k let alone the upcoming 8K monitors - and personally I just don't see the need. 4K at 120hz always looks a bit funny to me when I've watched those TVs.
Scott wants his new gaming rig to be less than $800, I'm assuming this means he doesn't want to spend an additional $400 for a sorta OK mid-high monitor. You're looking at $800+ to look at low-highend monitors.
What monitor are you running?
Do the gamers in this thread run expensive super nice monitors on their gaming rigs?
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@Dashrender I'm currently only running two monitors @ 1080P 60Hz, but as soon as the Asus PBQ Swift launches, I'll be getting one of those. It's a TN Panel, running in 2560 x 1440P at 120HZ, and it also will support G-Sync. It's the first monitor of it's kind. And then I'll be running the two I already have on either side of that one, to make it a productive setup, yet still have it gaming oriented. Been considering getting a 21:9 Monitor and having that above the Swift and have that used for work as well, but it's too expensive to justify. I feel like most gamers here are going to be running on 1080P or 1200P monitors, probably TN and nothing fancy like IPS or PLS, or even OLED or ANALED. Unless you're some sort of Enthusiast builder or Content Creator, spending money on an expensive monitor I have to admit IS kind of pointless. If you don't have a large amount of money invested into your PC, the benefits of a good monitor will be less apparent.
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Which brings me back to my frustration over display port - do we really need it? In specialty cases, yes, in general? probably not.
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You need it if you want 4K at 60hz.
