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Newbie assembling a Desktop
Purple Pudding Oct 2, 2016
Linux gaming is slowly becoming more demanding (that means more AAA games, yeah!)...
The future Valley & Deus Hex, and even Shadows of Mordor require more from my pc (a laptop buyed 4 years ago) even in the minimium requirements so... It's time for a new computer!

Since I never built a Desktop computer (buying the pieces separately and assembling them), I think it's time to learn how to do it!

I'm not asking (only) some pieces to build a durable pretty Desktop (not a Pro one), I want to learn how to choose the best pieces for the price and how to build one... so ANY sites, sources, suggestions, ideas and warnings are welcome!

Since it will run Linux, I'm going to buy the pieces with the max compatibility...
I want a desktop to be easy to assembly and powerful enough to run games for the next 4-5 years... I do not seek Ultra graphics or other Pro things, I only want to enjoy my games without problems.

Keep in mind that the PC will be used to do other things beyond gaming (so no SteamOS or couch PC) but no too graphics-demanding things beyond games (I think).

A modern & powerful Desktop needs the right monitor, so I'm accepting suggestions here too!

For keyboard, mouse & gamepad, I'm going to recycle an old bluetooth keyboard, a mouse (or buy a normal one) and use my old ps3-like gamepad & a new Steam Controller.

So, ANY suggestion is welcome... and I have no rush!

Thanks to anyone!

PP
MaCroX95 Oct 2, 2016
First thing!

I suggest you to use Intel/Nvidia build since it seems that they have way better driver support for gaming on Linux and also work for everything else as well.

Here is my build that I built a few months ago for exactly the same thing:

MSI B150 gaming M3 motherboard
Intel core i5 6600 (Skylake)
Gigabyte GTX970 OC edition
16GB HyperxFury DDR4 RAM from kingston
700W power supply from Coolermaster
1 TB Toshiba HDD drive
240 GB Toshiba SSD drive
& The cheapest ATX case availible that looks awesome :D

I also added two fans to the case so I keep the airflow (I took them from 2 old power supplies, they were the right dimensions)

Everything works great, Gaming is smooth and I guess that I will be able to run games for quite some time, I do plan to upgrade my GPU after a few years and have this PC for some more time...

I bought everything from retailer in our country that sells computer parts and it did not cost me more than paying for every part in different stores so I am extremely happy with my new build!
LinuxGamesTV Oct 2, 2016
I tell you: Wait for build a new PC now. Wait on AMD Zen CPU /Vega GPU and the coming Benchmarks.
Intel is overpriced.

Can AMD Zen and Vega his promise not hold, can you still buy an Intel/Nvidia System.
Blurps Oct 2, 2016
You should start watching steam machine components.
Most important is Motherboard (chipset) / CPU / Graphic card / RAM

Intel/Nvidia has the best support. Some games does not support Intel or AMD.


MSI P67A-GD65 (Rev B3)
Intel Core i5 2500K
RAM 2 x 4 Go
MSI GeForce GTX 660
Seasonic X-Series 660
SSD Intel 180 Go + 1To HDD
manero666 Oct 2, 2016
As BdMdesigN said, you should really wait the Zen release late this year, especially if you don't want to upgrade for the next 4-5 years.

Even if then you won't buy a Zen system, it's most likely that you would be able to build a Skylake system for less than the current prices. The hype is high for Zen, Intel will surely answer back with a price cut.
MaCroX95 Oct 2, 2016
Quoting: manero666As BdMdesigN said, you should really wait the Zen release late this year, especially if you don't want to upgrade for the next 4-5 years.

Even if then you won't buy a Zen system, it's most likely that you would be able to build a Skylake system for less than the current prices. The hype is high for Zen, Intel will surely answer back with a price cut.

Yeah processor wise it's not much of a difference whether it's AMD or Intel just intel has better performing CPUs with worse specs on paper, however I'd suggest him to go with Nvidia for the GPU because they have far superior driver support on Linux than the AMD at the moment. I do hope that AMD fixes their drivers so that we can have both markets equally relevant.
GustyGhost Oct 2, 2016
Do not buy anything with the expectation that you will cherish it for years and years. Things will age, things will break. Your tastes will change. I guarantee that you will want to replace parts not long after you build (from a relative perspective). The only way you will really settle on a design you like is by trying different things.

Just make certain that as you buy these parts, that they are confirmed compatible with the help of online resources:

Linux-Hardware-Guide.com

h-node.org (Free Software Foundation)

And of course, by searching the term "Linux" in hardware reviews.
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