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

[Aikouka]

That's a good point, I can see if my friend can have her over when we're picking out parts.

I don't think it's terribly important to have her over to pick out the technical parts. I'm assuming that as long as the execution hardware (CPU, GPU, etc.) are capable of playing the games that she plays at a good level, then they're fine. However, you might want her input on one area that is arguably rather cosmetic... the case. The case is an area where you can spend very little, or blow a huge chunk of your budget; however, the case is also one of the most visible aspects of a computer. There are a few ways to go about this. You could get a case that looks cool to her, or go the slightly crazier route and get a custom paint job on a simpler case. Just be wary about one thing... a lot of recent case releases seem to push form over function. For example, Gamers Nexus saw something like a 12C drop in temperatures just from removing the front panel on the Cooler Master H500P due to the poor airflow characteristics.

On the same side, if you'd like to go with RGB or something like that, you might want to grab a board that allows you to sync everything. Getting an ASUS motherboard and an ASUS video card does make it easier since they will all sync together. In fact, ASUS's Aura Sync seems to have the largest compatibility of all RGB things that I've seen. So, if RGB is something that you want (or think she'll want), you may want to consider ASUS.

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.

If she seems interested or has expressed interest in hardware and the building, then I think it would be interesting to have her help. Perhaps there might be a way to let her help without letting her know who it's for? Imagine how interesting it would be after the building and stuff, you get to the Windows setup, and you just pass the keyboard to her when it asks for a username. "Just put in whatever you want here." "Wait... why?" "It's your computer." (This is the reality show part where they freak out. )

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.

As a quick note, given that Twitch is the most popular streaming service, streaming in undergarments (bra + panties or boxers/briefs) or swimsuits is not allowed unless it is relevant to the content. That caveat is really just if someone is livestreaming a party by a pool or something like that where swimwear is normal. As noted, this does apply to men who are also barred from streaming shirtless. I do see that women tend to stream in things like tanktops and such, which do usually show off some cleavage. Although, from what I can tell, most of these women would wear that stuff in public anyway. Essentially, they're just not putting on extra clothes before streaming.

 

[DigDog]

Boobstreaming isn't porn. It's just cute girls with a bit of cleavage being cute and playing videogames; it's called boobstreaming because, well, they are a bit crap as gamers, and are mostly followed by sub-14 teenagers who drool at the slightest hint of nipple.

i mean, not that i was any different.

depending on what time of the day you ask me, i'll tell you that it's a bit of harmless fun, or that it's a cancer that is destroying society.

girls will be girls and they like the attention. and no, your daughter won't be the one in a million that gets a stalker*. if anything, she only risks becoming famous.


but then i'm aaaangry that a bunch of attention seeking whores take away honest views from honest gamers.... and by whores i don't mean girls with their tits out, because i put pewdiepie and yogscast in the same group.




but that's what youtube is right now. aaand that's really what their world will be like. you need to help her, not stop her.
And that's the limit of advice that i'm gonna give to someone else on how to raise their daughter. Make up your own mind.




*disclaimer: your daughter has a 1/1.000.000 chance of having something with a probability of 1/1.000.000 happening to her. SCIENCE !

 

[Campy]

Larry, I still don't think you've mentioned what kind of games she plays, which is kind of important. If she plays overwatch, csgo, or other shooters a 144hz 1080p monitor is pretty mandatory in my opinion. BenQ 2411 is the go-to monitor that most csgo players use, unless they have one of the new true 240hz monitors. If she doesn't care about 144hz then a 1440p 60hz monitor might be a better choice. Since the build will be for streaming that makes me want to recommend a R7 1700 or a 8700K. I think you're on the right track looking at gtx 1070 level gpu and above.

 

[gregoryvg]

I'm still reading the thread, but here is a good budget gamers build for $1k including Windows 10 64-bit in the price. There are trade-offs, but for $1k that's waht you're gonna get.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/3fZ7m8

 

[VirtualLarry]

Larry, I still don't think you've mentioned what kind of games she plays, which is kind of important.

I honestly don't know what games she plays, but I'll try to get that info from her dad.
Edit: And for the actual build prices, or PCPartPicker links, leave off Windows, just list the hardware. I've got some Windows licenses, and can get others fairly cheap.

 

[Campy]

Here's my (temporary) contribution until we have more information about usage: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Hqmzqk

That is what I'd be aiming for if I were building a gaming/streaming machine.

I know it's above budget, but note the expensive monitor. You could also shave a few dollars off on motherboard, power supply, and ssd if necessary.

 

[VirtualLarry]

How does game-streaming on Twitch work, if you're gaming on a 144Hz (possibly FreeSync) monitor, and have a 30FPS webcam hooked up for overlays. Twitch streams at 30 or 60FPS, right? How does that all break down?

 

[Campy]

You choose the fps you want to stream at in the streaming software. It does a screen or program capture, adds the overlays, and encodes it at the fps you chose and streams it. It doesn't matter what fps the original components run at, the only thing that matters is the frame rate you choose in the software. That's how I understand it at least.

 

[Lordhumungus]

I understand it the same way as Campy. You are essentially setting a target for the encode and if it can't meet that target due to lack of available CPU resources, it will start dropping frames. This is one area that Ryzen did really well at as compared to the i7 7700k since it was faster at gaming, but didn't have additional available cores for the encoding and could start dropping frames pretty heavily.

 

[Campy]

From the test GN did, right? That test was a very heavy test though, as not many people stream at 1080p60 10mbps. However it's plenty apparent that gaming and streaming at the same time on a quadcore is a bad idea, and will likely have a negative impact on either the gaming experience, the streaming experience, or both. It's especially obvious it's a bad idea when you can get a octacore for the same price as the 7700k.

 

[frozentundra123456]

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

Seriously? This post is enough to make one's head explode. You did read the thread right? It is for a high end build. Ryzen 1600 is an absurd choice for this. In fact the availability of Coffee Lake has moved the 1600 from a very viable *budget* gaming cpu to a very difficult processor to recommend, IMO. Even the i5 8400 is faster. Not to mention the availability of the 8700 and 8700k. In fact, a high end build screams for an 8700 or 8700k. The only possible advantage Ryzen has is the availability of 8 slower cores, which *might* make it relatively more competitive in streaming, but my choice would still be 8700 or 8700k, without a doubt. It will be a clearly superior gaming processor in everything but streaming, and with 6 fast cores with hyperthreading, I think streaming performance will be very good as well.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Seriously? This post is enough to make one's head explode. You did read the thread right? It is for a high end build. Ryzen 1600 is an absurd choice for this. In fact the availability of Coffee Lake has moved the 1600 from a very viable *budget* gaming cpu to a very difficult processor to recommend, IMO. Even the i5 8400 is faster. Not to mention the availability of the 8700 and 8700k. In fact, a high end build screams for an 8700 or 8700k.

I mean, if money is no object, then sure, you're right. But ratchet things down a bit, and if you don't need "max First-person shooter FPS", then a 1600 is a viable, if budget, choice, especially including streaming. Because, remember, Ryzen is a wider arch than Intel, and gains more with SMT than Intel does with HT. So for the extra "oomph" for streaming, it's probably not that bad. Certainly better than the i5-8400 which lacks HT altogether. Though, without streaming included, the i5-8400 might be superior for FPS, depending on resolution.

And I wrote 1600 there, but really, if one is getting a 1600 for gaming, might as well spend the $20 more and get the 1600X, if nothing else, for the better binning and a better chance of hitting 4Ghz, or even running it at stock with a higher turbo.

I think that the i7-8700 is superior to either the R5 1600/1600X or i5-8400, but then, price and availability issues with that make it less than a perfect choice as well.

 

[Crono]

What's the budget (assuming I didn't miss it - thread is getting long)?

 

[VirtualLarry]

Well, I mentioned that a "five year rig" would cost $1200-1500 to my friend. So, I'd like to present him with that option, as well as a $1000-and-under option.

So, maybe an 8700 rig, and a R5 1600X or 1700 rig?

Edit: And the whole streaming thing was something that digdog brought up, but ... if this rig is meant to last through her 18th birthday, I agree, she'll probably want to do some streaming.

 

[Campy]

Considering the budget, the "no OC" stipulation, and streaming, I thought the R7 1700 would be a very good choice here. Oh and the availability of 8700 cpus too.

This post is mainly meant to address the points frozentundra brought up.

 

[VirtualLarry]

What would a "cheapest Coffee Lake build" look like (no streaming, other than what can be accomplished with the video card).

i3-8100
Z370 Pro4
16GB GSkill DDR4-3200 CAS14
GTX 1060 6GB
case to taste
Seasonic Focus 650W (or whatever wattage is around that)
240GB MLC SSD for OS
3TB HDD for games (as cheap as $70)

?

Edit: Roughly a $1000

 

[Crono]

Here's what I would do with ~ $1,500 https://pcpartpicker.com/list/9Ghpf8/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($339.99 @ B&H)
CPU Cooler: Deepcool - CAPTAIN 240EX RGB 153.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($109.89 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock - Z370 Killer SLI/ac ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($143.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital - Blue 250GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($89.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($71.00 @ Newegg Marketplace)
Video Card: Zotac - GeForce GTX 1070 Ti 8GB Mini Video Card ($448.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: NZXT - S340 (Matte White/Purple) ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($60.89 @ Newegg)
Total: $1494.60
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

 

[frozentundra123456]

Considering the budget, the "no OC" stipulation, and streaming, I thought the R7 1700 would be a very good choice here. Oh and the availability of 8700 cpus too.

This post is mainly meant to address the points frozentundra brought up.

If you are not going to overclock, you certainly need to go to the 1700x. Stock clocks are simply too low on the vanilla 1700.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Chrono, that looks nearly perfect for an Intel Coffee Lake build. I'll run that by my friend.

 

[Crono]

Chrono, that looks nearly perfect for an Intel Coffee Lake build. I'll run that by my friend.

Keep in mind I picked Deepcool because I really like those fans (have equivalent on a different cooler, very quiet), but mainly because RGB. Would be nice to set it to same shade of purple as interior of case. I'm sure Corsair would be prefered by most, though I'd probably go Arctic Liquid Freezer 240 if not going for the bling with Deepcool.

Also a 240mm liquid cooler isn't strictly necessary for 8700, but even the 8700 does get warm at load if not using a high end air or an AIO cooler. Do not use the stock cooler, at any rate.

 

[Campy]

If you are not going to overclock, you certainly need to go to the 1700x. Stock clocks are simply too low on the vanilla 1700.

Yeah I think you're right, I didn't think about that. The 1700 has all core turbo of 3.2ghz stock while 1700X does 3.5ghz.

 

[epsilon84]

If you are not going to overclock, you certainly need to go to the 1700x. Stock clocks are simply too low on the vanilla 1700.

With no OC the the 1700X shouldn't even be in consideration for gaming. You're better off with an i5 8400 (cheaper, faster) or i7 8700 (approx same price, much faster).

You may as well save $100 and get the 1600X instead if going Ryzen as almost no games show any appreciable difference between 6C/12T and 8C/16T

 

[Dukelaking]

I would go with the used market until gpu prices come down. Unless she's playing in 1440p or above. Any last gen flagship will do her fine and still have ample warranty left.

 

[epsilon84]

I would go with the used market until gpu prices come down. Unless she's playing in 1440p or above. Any last gen flagship will do her fine and still have ample warranty left.

Thats a good point, perhaps not necessarily for Larry but for people upgrading or building more budget oriented gaming PCs. For example, I got a used R9 Fury for $230 and it runs DX 12 games great, only about 20% slower than a Vega 56 but at half the price.

 

[Aikouka]

Here's what I would do with ~ $1,500
CPU Cooler: Deepcool - CAPTAIN 240EX RGB 153.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($109.89 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital - Blue 250GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($89.88 @ OutletPC)

I wouldn't mind seeing a cheaper CPU cooler to go with a larger SSD. The thing is that 250GB is more than enough for windows with some programs and all the extra junk that gets tossed on the OS drive. However, when you start adding large games to it, things get a bit harrier. To give you an idea, this PC that I'm typing from uses two 256GB SSDs (one for OS, one for games). Now, it had a recent reinstall of Windows, so the OS drive is quite clean with 197/237GB free; however, the games SSD is 56/238GB free, and it mostly just has the Blizzard games on it! In my last build, I used a 250/500 for OS/Games, and in my latest build, I went 250/1000.