Help needed with gaming PC for my son

C

CPTBoy

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Dec 1, 2011
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I hope the forum can guide me to the correct purchase for my son's gaming PC.

I haven't build a PC in probably 20 years, so I'm looking for a pre-build solution or we can probably do it ourselves ( might be a fun activity ).

I've got a couple of questions:
1. Having read lots of horror stories online with some online shops, which online shop would be the "best" in terms of overall price but also warranties etc.
2. I have a budget of about 20k - 23k.
3. We don't need a monitor, keyboard, mouse or operating system.
4. Are the Ryzen 5 CPU's good enough these days?

He's currently got a 1080p screen, but would like to be able to future proof a bit to a 1440p screen, so the correct GPU is important. Obviously we are not looking at the best of the best ( He's only 13 now ), but motherboard might be important for future CPU / Memory / GPU upgrades.

Running 1080p at a very good quality / frame rate and maybe medium settings for 1440p would be first prize.

Some online options I've seen:
https://www.wootware.co.za/wootware...-2-ssd-windows-10-home-64-bit-desktop-pc.html

https://www.evetech.co.za/ryzen-5-3600-rtx-2060-super-8gb-oc-gaming-pc/best-pc-deal/6483.aspx

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks
 
|tera|

|tera|

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For that budget, I would rather buy a gaming laptop.

That's just me though.
 
ponder

ponder

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CPTBoy said:
Any advice would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

Stay far away from evetech!

Look at places like wootware, titan ice, rockinit it etc.

On my way to braai so will get back to you later wrt build suggestions.
 
maumau

maumau

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CPTBoy said:
I hope the forum can guide me to the correct purchase for my son's gaming PC.

I haven't build a PC in probably 20 years, so I'm looking for a pre-build solution or we can probably do it ourselves ( might be a fun activity ).

I've got a couple of questions:
1. Having read lots of horror stories online with some online shops, which online shop would be the "best" in terms of overall price but also warranties etc.
2. I have a budget of about 20k - 23k.
3. We don't need a monitor, keyboard, mouse or operating system.
4. Are the Ryzen 5 CPU's good enough these days?

He's currently got a 1080p screen, but would like to be able to future proof a bit to a 1440p screen, so the correct GPU is important. Obviously we are not looking at the best of the best ( He's only 13 now ), but motherboard might be important for future CPU / Memory / GPU upgrades.

Running 1080p at a very good quality / frame rate and maybe medium settings for 1440p would be first prize.

Some online options I've seen:
https://www.wootware.co.za/wootware...-2-ssd-windows-10-home-64-bit-desktop-pc.html

https://www.evetech.co.za/ryzen-5-3600-rtx-2060-super-8gb-oc-gaming-pc/best-pc-deal/6483.aspx

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks
Click to expand...

I thought we weren't supposed to buy from Evetech?

EDIT: Ponder got in first.
 
B

Brenden_E

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Aug 30, 2006
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If you want an honest opinion, 23K is way overkill for a 13 year old - he won't notice the difference on something cheaper. To game on 1080p you can get away with cheaper options. Don't spend your budget just because you can.

However, what might change that perspective if you plan to upgrade to a 4k screen later. Then you're going to need a fat graphics card and good processor.

Another thing to keep in mind is Nvidia is about to release their next gen and then prices of the previous generation is sure to fall. So if you can wait a few months you can get the same components for less.

Here's a breakdown that should be in your price range:

See if you can find the same components locally. It's much more personal and I'd think he'd appreciate it more if you guys build it yourself. Then it's truly "your" PC.
 
LazyLion

LazyLion

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Mar 17, 2005
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Wootware's Own Brand gaming laptops are awesome, and my 20 year old son was very happy with his.
Plays everything on it, and never complains. Budget was R17K.

If you want to save a bit of money, then just focus on the RAM, the NVMe Drive and the Graphics card.
 
A

Ancalagon

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I second the selection of Wootware - you can't go wrong with them.

I will say that I'd recommend 1TB of storage space for gaming. Games are large these days, frequently 70GB or so, so 256GB will just be an exercise in frustration. It doesn't need to be a 1TB SSD, could be a 1TB HDD to save costs, but 1TB total storage minimum.

One thing to think about is whether you can find games to play together. That would be difficult with a monitor though - connecting the computer to a TV is better suited to that. Or, buying computers for both of you so that you can play together.
 
dabbler

dabbler

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Apr 15, 2006
Messages
3,512
I have a micro-atx motherboard with a i5 CPU together with a AMD Radeon RX470 gpu and very happy. 8GB Ram. 1080p Dell monitor.
 
|tera|

|tera|

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MightyQuin said:
One word: Overheating
Click to expand...
The same can be said for a Gaming Desktop as well.
The OP can buy what he sees fit, I'm just giving my opinion.
I'm not saying everyone needs to agree with me.
As I said, different strokes for different folks.
I've had my Dell laptop since 2013 and it hasn't BSOD or had overheating problems thus far. :)
 
TheMightyQuinn

TheMightyQuinn

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|tera| said:
The same can be said for a Gaming Desktop as well.
The OP can buy what he sees fit, I'm just giving my opinion.
I'm not saying everyone needs to agree with me.
As I said, different strokes for different folks.
I've had my Dell laptop since 2013 and it hasn't BSOD or had overheating problems thus far. :)
Click to expand...
You're taking this way too personally, man.

A laptop is not built for gaming, regardless of the amounts of RAM and GPU power crammed in there.

There is not enough room or circulation inside a laptop chassis to provide for the same levels of cooling as inside a desktop chassis. And that leads to inevitable heating issues, that causes other damage over the long term.

It is also less value for money...for e.g. R 20k you get less gaming power in a laptop than in a desktop.
 
|tera|

|tera|

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Messages
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MightyQuin said:
You're taking this way too personally, man.

A laptop is not built for gaming, regardless of the amounts of RAM and GPU power crammed in there.

There is not enough room or circulation inside a laptop chassis to provide for the same levels of cooling as inside a desktop chassis. And that leads to inevitable heating issues, that causes other damage over the long term.

It is also less value for money...for e.g. R 20k you get less gaming power in a laptop than in a desktop.
Click to expand...
Nope. I'm not taking it personally.
I just don't agree with you.
There's a reason why Alienware (Dell) and Asus, MSI etc. all manufacture high-end gaming laptops.
I doubt they would manufacture products that get returned a while later due to heating issues.
TBH, I've never heard this argument before (heating, long term damage).
The components are specifically designed for small form factor systems.
 
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