New computer help

[Dead Eye]

I love PC's and consider myself an enthusiast, which is why my machine is one of my pride and joys (I've spent more on it than any of my cars and bikes...)

The "speed" of a computer depends entirely on what you are doing and on many many factors which can make explaining a tad complicated.


The CPU / Processor: Great for computationally demanding tasks

RAM / Memory: Stores information that can be accessed very quickly. In other words, great for working on large documents, images, videos or other intense programs. A quick analogy would be to consider your registration plate of your bike; if it is in memory and someone asks you, you can instantly tell them. Otherwise, you've got to go look for the damn thing (in this case, your computer goes and fetches it from your Hard Drive for example). As for matching the "sticks"; it is recommended but not required. Matching pairs will work faster together, but the system will always run as fast as the SLOWEST stick (this is not the same as capacity). Should you be concerned? For a home PC, probably not. For gaming, more so.

Graphics Cards: A more specialised computational calculator. Functions on very similar principles to a CPU, but is more refined to doing fewer tasks, but very well. In this case, calculating and displaying graphics / images / videos. Don't be tempted to be fooled by the "GB" of Graphics Cards - this isn't always a good marker especially when comparing dedicated to onboard.


Intel's current line-up consists of the "Core Series" which are grouped as i3, i5 and i7. Simple enough. After that you get a set of 3 or 4 numbers and a final letter. If it is 3 numbers, it is a first generation chip from before 2010. If it's 4 numbers then the first is the series e.g. a Core i7 2700K is a 2nd generation processor from around 2011. The higher that latter 3 numbers, the better it is (typically). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_In...processors


There is much more to it than this, but these are vague guidelines. What would I recommend? A simple i3 should be man enough; it's what I use at work. 16GB of memory? I can't see why you would need it personally, 4GB is probably doable for the here and now, but 8GB would be better.

This is the site I use when making comparisons between various CPU's and Graphics Cards ( http://www.cpubenchmark.net/ ). It gives a benchmark score so that you can compare


And for the nerds who may care, here are the technical specs of my home PC;

Intel Core i7-4770K
ASUS Z87-WS
SoundBlaster 3DRecon PCIe SoundCard
Corsair Dominator 16GB (4x 4GB) DDR3 2400Mhz
2x nVidia GeForce GTX 760 in SLi
Twin Loop Water Cooling for CPU and GPU's
3x Samsung 840 256GB SSDs
3x Samsung F1 Spinforce 1TB HDDs
2x Samsung F3 Spinforce 1.5TB HDDs
CoolerMaster HAF 932 Case
CoolerMaster 1000W Silent Pro Gold Power Supply
Logitech G910 Orion Spark Keyboard
Logitech G500 Mouse
Acer GD245HQ 24" 3D Ready Monitor
BenQ 24" Monitor
Berylium Xtensions 5.1 Surround Sound

[smg id=2688 type=preview caption="Phoenix"]