Rig for "Gamer girl", eldest daughter of other friend?

[krumme]

Larry.
What does she game? How much space is actually needed?
Take your favorite gear talk and let it rest until all is clarified.
Then the selection of parts is easy.

Perhaps present 3 different options at different price levels for the father. Not the gear but what it can do. Eg:

1. For 500 you can xx
2. For 700 you will be able to xx
3. ..

 

[DigDog]

since she's a gamer girl, she's want to boobstream; don't forget to budget for a nice high-rez camera and a microphone.

 

[krumme]

She can probably benefit from 12 threads while father dont notice if he only gets 4 threads.
Its like kids todays do at least 3 different things at the same time with their pc.

 

[VirtualLarry]

since she's a gamer girl, she's want to boobstream; don't forget to budget for a nice high-rez camera and a microphone.

Not sure how the father would feel about that. She's still in HS and under 18. LOL. But yeah, she probably does.

Anyways, I spoke to my friend, and he said he wants to "go all out", and build something that will "last for years and years". So, it looks like an 8700K build to me.

I told him that something like that would run $1200-1500. He said: "I know, I'll have to see in the next few weeks if I'll have the money."

I think that she'll need a monitor, which brings up the whole AMD FreeSync 2 versus NV and G-Sync ecosystems for gaming monitors.

I'm going to say that I don't think that my friend intended this to be a 4K Gaming build, that's way out of his price range. ($3000+)

But would there be merit in getting a 4K FreeSync monitor, even if the user is going to game at 1080P or 1440P?

I don't game much at all these days, but I went 4K UHD last year, and it does wonders for my desktop screen real-estate. I honestly don't know how I got along without it all of these years.

How bad is non-native-res gaming, and can that be alleviated by using GPU scaling in settings?
Edit: I guess I could test it myself, except that PC is acting up after I installed 1709 on it. The start menu no longer responds.

Something like this Asus 4K UHD 28" FreeSync monitor for $350:
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=24-236-688&Tpk=24-236-688

 

[DigDog]

i'm still divided. i LOVE shadowplay, but i don't like the ridiculous cost of GSync ... but i DO want to have a high-refresh monitor.

i was going to post this, buy i wanted for a while to bask in the glow of having posted something of such brilliance as "boobstream".

I would spend a considerable amount of money on peripherials. Without making it complicated, a Hyper-X headset, a full microphone WITH stand AND pop filter, a Silent Monsters XXL mousemat, a G902 mouse OR Zowie EC-2A, a decent chair, good PC speakers (no need to go all high-end here, but no 2W banana peel) ... and then there is the question without an answer, which monitor??

 

[VirtualLarry]

since she's a gamer girl, she's want to boobstream; don't forget to budget for a nice high-rez camera and a microphone.

I put that in the title; hope that the mods don't crucify me for it....

 

[moonbogg]

Oh boy this thread is going to get some views now. Larry struck thread gold here.

But yeah, boobstreaming then. I'd switch the CPU to a 1700X or 8700K, but really the threads are more important I think for streaming without stutter, so 1700X might be a little better? Tough call.

 

[Aikouka]

I think that she'll need a monitor, which brings up the whole AMD FreeSync 2 versus NV and G-Sync ecosystems for gaming monitors.

...or just don't get any adaptive sync monitors. You don't need one for gaming, and people that want to play at higher levels are generally fine with reducing some graphics settings to maintain high framerates. Keep in mind that adaptive sync is for when your FPS falls below the monitor's refresh rate. People playing games like FPS do not want that to begin with. The whole reason why I use high-end GPUs is so I can maintain 200+ FPS in FPS games with high settings at 2560x1440.

EDIT:

And by the way, my "who cares about it" opinion comes from someone who has owned an ASUS ROG Swift G-Sync monitor since they came out.

 

[Crono]

OP, You give way too many unnecessary details, we just need to know the requirements and budget. This isn't OT; "Gamer girl", "Boobstream"... really? Just say it's for a gamer.

 

[DaveSimmons]

What about an 8700 instead of a K? Turbo is only 100 MHz less at stock, and the current inflated prices it's $60-80 less than the K.

It's really too bad this is probably for xmas or before, since the cheaper CFL chipsets and motherboards would save even more to put towards more storage or other upgrades.

 

[epsilon84]

The i5 8400 is "faster" but I'd almost rather have the 12 threads of the 1600. Call me crazy, but I think 6/6 might choke in a few years, or right now if playing Assassin's Creed Origins. R5 1600X with DDR4 3000 gets my vote with a 1070Ti. Imagine in a couple years being able to just drop in a faster AM4 based CPU? Higher clocks, maybe more cores and similar price? Siiiiiick.

Nope, 6C/6T performs exactly the same as 6C/12T in ACO: http://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/assassins-creed-origins-pc-performance-analysis/2/

I think 6C/6T is good for a few years yet. ACO is pretty much a 'worst case' scenario in terms of current AAA games needing threads. You can always drop in a faster i7 8700K (or whatever the fastest CFL chip ends up being) down the track you know? And there is absolutely NO guarantee that Ryzen 2 will actually be faster than current CFL i7s for gaming.

 

[moonbogg]

Nope, 6C/6T performs exactly the same as 6C/12T in ACO: http://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/assassins-creed-origins-pc-performance-analysis/2/

I think 6C/6T is good for a few years yet. ACO is pretty much a 'worst case' scenario in terms of current AAA games needing threads. You can always drop in a faster i7 8700K (or whatever the fastest CFL chip ends up being) down the track you know? And there is absolutely NO guarantee that Ryzen 2 will actually be faster than current CFL i7s for gaming.

What you don't show is that 6/6 is 100% pegged in this game. If you're comfy with that, good for you. I wouldn't be and 6/6 doesn't seem as wise as 6/12 or 8/16 in today's gaming world.

 

[s44]

No AMD vidcard, esp. if she plays Overwatch... drivers have been crashing the game for four months now.

If she plays mostly singleplayer, 1440p is nice, but if it's multiplayer, 144hz above all. Fancy sync again not important for that since you're talking about games you'll hit 144 on all the time anyway.

 

[VirtualLarry]

So, would a GTX1070ti and a 144Hz Gaming LCD monitor be better for Overwatch, than a 4K Freeync display?

How about this one?

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824475003

 

[Arachnotronic]

So, would a GTX1070ti and a 144Hz Gaming LCD monitor be better for Overwatch, than a 4K Freeync display?

Yeah. Overwatch is a fast paced FPS, so you want high refresh rate.

 

[TahoeDust]

Skip the 1070ti and just get a 1080...you can find them for close enough to the same price.

 

[Crono]

What about an 8700 instead of a K? Turbo is only 100 MHz less at stock, and the current inflated prices it's $60-80 less than the K.

It's really too bad this is probably for xmas or before, since the cheaper CFL chipsets and motherboards would save even more to put towards more storage or other upgrades.

I'm pretty happy with my 8700 and 1070 Ti, but I don't have a high-refresh rate monitor (yet) and I got them both for at or not too much over MSRP ($315 and $450, respectively). Played some PUBG and Wolfenstein II today and getting good framerates at 1200p, though.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I'm pretty happy with my 8700 and 1070 Ti, but I don't have a high-refresh rate monitor (yet). Played some PUBG and Wolfenstein II today and getting good framerates at 1200p, though.

Is that combo enough to push 144FPS in most twitch shooters?

 

[Crono]

Is that combo enough to push 144FPS in most twitch shooters?

For 1080p definitely. Probably for most at 1440p as well.

 

[tential]

Not sure how the father would feel about that. She's still in HS and under 18. LOL. But yeah, she probably does.

Anyways, I spoke to my friend, and he said he wants to "go all out", and build something that will "last for years and years". So, it looks like an 8700K build to me.

I told him that something like that would run $1200-1500. He said: "I know, I'll have to see in the next few weeks if I'll have the money."

I think that she'll need a monitor, which brings up the whole AMD FreeSync 2 versus NV and G-Sync ecosystems for gaming monitors.

I'm going to say that I don't think that my friend intended this to be a 4K Gaming build, that's way out of his price range. ($3000+)

But would there be merit in getting a 4K FreeSync monitor, even if the user is going to game at 1080P or 1440P?

I don't game much at all these days, but I went 4K UHD last year, and it does wonders for my desktop screen real-estate. I honestly don't know how I got along without it all of these years.

How bad is non-native-res gaming, and can that be alleviated by using GPU scaling in settings?
Edit: I guess I could test it myself, except that PC is acting up after I installed 1709 on it. The start menu no longer responds.

Something like this Asus 4K UHD 28" FreeSync monitor for $350:
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=24-236-688&Tpk=24-236-688

Freesync my friend.
Gsync/Nvidia is a premium. I really think a person should actually spend that themselves personally. That's my own OPINION, but man, let the woman earn her GTX 1080Ti/Gsync monitor gotta give them something to strive to. Just go 1440p/144hz screen with Vega 56/RX580 GPU.

4k isn't worth it due to the refresh rate loss IMO. I'm a 4K user, but if she is going to game, she should just upgrade to 4k 144hz later. 4k 60 hz is just meh especially on AMD.

That's my recommendation.

 

[Lordhumungus]

@VirtualLarry I'm not going to dive into details on parts here since you don't have a solid budget, but one suggestion I would make is abandoning your more frugal/budget sensibilities for this particular build. I think it's pushing you in odd directions such as considering not incorporating some sort of SSD (which IMO is a must these days for any even remotely serious rig). You may be able to save a few bucks on things like case, cooler, motherboard (particularly if overclocking isn't planned) all of which won't really impact performance, but for the heart and soul of a gaming build in the CPU, GPU, storage and to a lesser extent RAM, just shoot for the best deal within the appropriate range, not the absolute dirt cheapest thing you can find. Based on your postings I think this might be a bit of a change of mindset for you, so I think it's worth pointing out for you to hopefully consider.

On a more personal note, I'm of the opinion that we don't have enough females in our beloved hobby and think this is an awesome opportunity to possibly add one. Have you considered talking with your friend to see if said daughter would be interested in helping learn about what makes the PC tick and helping pick out components and put together her own as part of the gift? It could be 1) an excellent learning experience, particularly if she is of a high school age where it might inform her career/college decisions and 2) might allow her to personalize and customize it in way that is meaningful for her. In either case, I feel like at least asking/offering will go a lot further than the "lol boobstreaming" mentality which seems to be the prevailing attitude in the thread.

 

[VirtualLarry]

That's a good point, I can see if my friend can have her over when we're picking out parts. It won't be much of a surprise then, so kind of a trade-off. Though, it could be cool to have her build it, but I have my reservations about that too. If it were an entry-level rig, and the parts were cheap enough to buy another board or something if she screwed it up, then I wouldn't care. But if she drops or static-zaps a GTX1070ti, well, that gets pricey.

Now that my friend has confirmed an above-$1000 price range for this rig, I think it's a pretty safe choice to include an SSD as well.

 

[Mockingbird]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($193.67 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock - AB350 Pro4 ATX AM4 Motherboard ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: *G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($122.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: *SanDisk - SSD PLUS 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: *Hitachi - Ultrastar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($39.88 @ Amazon)
Video Card: *Zotac - GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Mini Video Card ($399.88 @ OutletPC)
Case: Rosewill - NAUTILUS ATX Mid Tower Case ($23.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Thermaltake - 750W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $979.37
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-11-06 00:48 EST-0500

 

[epsilon84]

Is that combo enough to push 144FPS in most twitch shooters?

No chance in BF1 64p and PUBG. You're looking at min fps of around ~60fps for those games with an i5 i8400. No GPU will solve that problem as its a CPU bottleneck. A highly overclocked 8600K/8700K @5GHz may yield higher min fps into the 80s but thats still nowhere near 144fps.

 

[whm1974]

since she's a gamer girl, she's want to boobstream; don't forget to budget for a nice high-rez camera and a microphone.

Not to go off topic but I was thinking of underage HS girl livestreaming topless while gaming, very different then the same girl in her bra/bikini/sports bra/low cut top... showing a great deal of cleavage.

Yeah if I had underage teen daughter doing that I think I would be very upset with her.
Anyway back on topic.