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Re: Building a Gaming PC - I need help!

@simmerlucy02  Do you really want to build the PC yourself, or are you open to a custom build or even a prebuilt system?  In your price range, buying the components separately would probably cost more, unless you wanted to spend several months looking for the best possible deals.  Custom build companies buy in bulk and make various deals to bring prices down further; the manufacturers of prebuilt computers have their own suppliers that go even cheaper.

If you're set on building this computer yourself, I can try to find the best options for your budget.  But £600 doesn't go very far when you're buying components separately.  Just let me know your preferences.

2 Replies

  • simmerlucy02's avatar
    simmerlucy02
    5 years ago

    I’d definitely be open to looking at pre-built PCs! As long as the specs are good for what I’m looking for :-)

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    5 years ago

    @simmerlucy02  Sorry for the late reply.  I wanted to check both pre-built options and custom build sites, and I only finished just now.

    In terms of what you can get for your budget, I think the custom build sites are the best way to go.  They give you a bit more flexibility both now and for future upgrades, so you can get what you need now and make it significantly better in a year or two.

    There are two basic options I saw in this category.  I think I found the cheapest options, but I'll double-check if you are in fact interested in either or both.

    The first is a base model from CyberpowerPC.  It's fine as-is (£525 including VAT), although I would at least upgrade the power supply to a Corsair 650W Bronze (+£11).  It has 8 GB RAM now, which you could upgrade to 16 GB now (+£36) or later.  The hard drives are negotiable.  The processor isn't particularly strong, but it would do the job, and you could swap it out for another 9th-gen Intel CPU at some point.  The graphics card is fast enough to run Sims 4, all current packs included, on ultra settings, with some room to spare.  This is the default configuration:

    https://www.cyberpowersystem.co.uk/system/CYBERPOWER-i3-Gaming-PC-CONFIGURATOR

    There's a lot of info, so feel free to ask me about any particular component.  Most of the default options are fine though.

    The second option is to get a computer without a graphics card and add one later.  For example, this PC would be £515 with only integrated graphics.  The graphics chip in the processor should run Sims 4 on medium-high settings, and you could add the card of your choice when you wanted.  The total cost would be more than the first one, but you'd have flexibility.  I'm not sure whether the configuration I picked out is going to show up, so I'll list the components:

    • Ryzen 5 3400G
    • 16 GB 3000 MHz RAM
    • no graphics card
    • 1 TB HDD (256 GB SSD is automatically added)
    • Windows 10

    https://www.box.co.uk/Cube-Gauntlet_2477545.html?config=2335908,2343948,2472017,2647984,2725847

    Again, these are more to give you an idea of what you could get than the confirmed very best options.  Let me know if you have more questions, or want to see something different.