- #2018 best gaming pc build upgrade
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However, our experts are dismissive about obsessing over which to go for.
Once again you have two manufacturer options here: AMD or Nvidia, with the latter the most popular choice among gamers. I don’t really have the time or space to get in to RAM timings, so just buy the default 2133MHz stuff.”įor budget builds, Beck specifically recommends Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 2133MHz RAM, and for intermediate builds, the Patriot V4 16GB 3000MHz CL16 DDR4 RAM. Always buy RAM in pairs so you can take advantage of the slight speed improvement you get from enabling dual channel access. You’re not really going to see any need for more than 32GB for a while unless you’re doing something that requires it (maybe certain types of music production or high-end video editing). “I’d prefer 16GB as a minimum, but RAM prices are really high. “8GB is definitely the absolute minimum,” agrees Hannett. So, unless you’re going for a godlike build, leave that extra 4GB for later on.”
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RAM is one of the easiest and cheapest components to upgrade, as you have a free slot.
#2018 best gaming pc build upgrade
“I’d say upgrade to 12GB on a new build unless you’re on a budget. “According to the Steam hardware survey, almost half of their participating users still have 8GB, which will get you by on minimum system requirements for new releases,” says Tannahill. This is where your PC holds the current programs it’s running, and modern games place quite a lot of demand on this element of your machine. “But then we’re getting into double the price for far less than twice the performance.” System memory (RAM)
“I guess i9s are also a thing,” says Tannahill. Tannahill specifically suggests the i7 7820X, while Hannett goes for the i7 8700K. If money is no object, Tannahill, Hannett and Atkinson-Jones also recommend an Intel i7. “A 7600k won’t cost you a whole lot more, but, unless you’re looking to overclock, that money is probably better spent on a superior GPU or extra RAM.”īeck says the minimum he’d spend on a gaming PC would be £800, and at this price he’d suggest an Intel Core i5 7400 3.00GHz Socket 1151 CPU, stepping up to an Intel Core i7 7700 3.60GHz Socket 1151 8MB CPU if your budget allows. “For me, the best mid-range CPU would be the i5 7600,” he says. Tannahill also recommends Intel if you have a little more to spend. I could spend £1,000 on a ludicrous Threadripper or Xeon chip, but I’d probably get higher FPS and more consistent frame times from a high-end i5 costing a third of that.” “But just spending lots of money doesn’t necessarily mean you get better performance. “On average, games have specific requirements that are better met by Intel processors,” says Hannett, who opts for an i3 8100 at the budget level and an i5 7600k at intermediate. “I’d probably go for the AMD Ryzen 3 1300X, which is able to punch so far above its weight that I almost regret not getting it myself.”Īs your budget improves, however, the consensus switches very much in the other direction. “AMD shines at the budget end, with Intel chips often being overpriced or inferior to their AMD counterparts,” says Tannahill. Your choices here are basically between two manufacturers: AMD and Intel. Whether you’re buying a pre-packaged machine, employing a specialist retailer such as Overclockers or Chillblast to construct a PC around your specifications, or hand-crafting your own gaming beast, here are our suggestions for a range of budgets.
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James Hannett is a coder at Frozen Synapse developer Mode7 Nick Tannahill is marketing director at Firefly Studios, creator of the Stronghold series Byron Atkinson-Jones runs Xiotex Studios and Guardian reader Simon Beck has built dozens of PCs over the last 10 years.
So, if you’re thinking about splashing out this year, we’ve pulled together tips and recommendations from a group of highly experienced PC builders. A capable PC that will cope with the latest releases for at least 18 months will start at £600, but, whatever you pay, your quest will involve a series of challenging decisions and compromises. B uying a new games machine is a major investment in these financially tricky times.
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