Choosing a Gaming PC: Part 3

Once you determine your PC needs, the next step is to decide what parts you want and where to get them.  With a processor, you have the age old debate of AMD vs. Intel for the top two processor makers.  The basic facts come down to this: AMD sacrifices a little bit of speed and quality for budget factors (cheaper but not quite as good).  This is one of those things that's argued over and comes down to which company you like better.  Personally, I like AMD's budget-friendly options, because unless you're trying to overclock, you won't notice huge differences between the two brands.

The two main video card contenders are nVIDIA and ATI. There's less of a distinction here, really.  I will say that I have not had much luck with ATI cards.  They seem to generally fail sooner.  All the nVIDIA cards I've had have held up for years.  Again, this comes down to a general fanboy debate.  I have no real bias one way or the other, but just would generally recommend nVIDIA over ATI on principal.

 Everything else is just a matter of what you need.  If you have a higher end GPU/processor combo, don't slack on your fans and cooling.  Choose a case you like that can hold all your components comfortably.  And be sure you choose a suitable DVD/CD RW if you need to burn DVDs.

My primary recommendation for finding the best components at the best value is to consult this ebook. Not only does it include lifetime updates so you can always find the best parts, but the author also includes actual consultations when you've chosen parts and need expert advice on what will work best for your PC build.  I used this guide to put together my last two gaming PCs; before that, I had been buying from Dell.  I just prefer the customization options you get when you build your own PC, and as gamers tend to have varying needs (FPS game framerates as opposed to people playing less graphic-intensive games), it helps to know what you need so you can put together the best computer.