{"id":563472,"date":"2023-03-14T14:00:59","date_gmt":"2023-03-14T11:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/"},"modified":"2023-03-14T14:00:59","modified_gmt":"2023-03-14T11:00:59","slug":"5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/","title":{"rendered":"#5 Tips for Building a Gaming PC on a Budget"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2783765b682\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2783765b682\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/#%E2%80%9C5_Tips_for_Building_a_Gaming_PC_on_a_Budget%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;5 Tips for Building a Gaming PC on a Budget&#8221;<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-2' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/#Save_on_Labor_Costs_By_Building_It_Yourself\" >Save on Labor Costs By Building It Yourself<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/#Get_a_Friend_to_Build_It_With_You\" >Get a Friend to Build It With You<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/#Save_Money_on_Used_Components\" >Save Money on Used Components<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/#Be_Realistic_and_Understand_Where_Your_Money_Is_Best_Spent\" >Be Realistic and\u00a0Understand Where Your Money Is Best Spent<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/#Plan_Your_Upgrade_Path\" >Plan Your Upgrade Path<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/#Save_Money_on_Games_Too\" >Save Money on Games Too<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9C5_Tips_for_Building_a_Gaming_PC_on_a_Budget%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;5 Tips for Building a Gaming PC on a Budget&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width: 1920px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"type:primaryImage size-full wp-image-877114\" data-pagespeed-no-defer=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/52675805605_bc97840e53_k.jpg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"Closeup of an MSI Motherboard.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"type:primaryImage imagecredit\">Jason Fitzpatrick \/ How-To Geek<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Save money by building yourself, or at least getting a friend to help you, and scour the used market for second-hand parts. Prioritize components that deliver the performance you want, and skimp on those that don&#8217;t. Reuse parts from old PCs where possible, and avoid superfluous purchases like fancy cases and RGB lighting. Lastly, make sure you plan an upgrade path.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s never been a better time to get into PC gaming, but hardware is expensive. If you haven\u2019t got a massive budget you\u2019re probably looking to cut some corners and save some money. Good <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a>!<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Save_on_Labor_Costs_By_Building_It_Yourself\"><\/span>Save on Labor Costs By Building It Yourself<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Being in charge of your PC build puts you in a great position to save money. Right out of the gate, you\u2019re not paying for labor costs since you\u2019ll be doing the work yourself. If you already possess the skills to build a PC you\u2019ll know that it should only take you a few hours at most to get everything up and running.<\/p>\n<p>If you have little to no experience putting a computer together, you may be put off by this prospect. Fortunately, there are plenty of great resources online including How-To Geek articles, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=BL4DCEp7blY\">YouTube tutorials<\/a>, online PC-building tools, and even the instruction manuals you\u2019ll find in the various boxes to help you along the way.<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pcpartpicker.com\">PCPartPicker<\/a> is a great place to plan your build. This website will help identify components that will work together (and flag any incompatibilities), plus it\u2019s constantly suggesting parts and builds that others have used and completed. Ask questions and read comments from others on the helpful <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/buildapc\/\">r\/buildapc<\/a> sub<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reddit<\/a> too.<\/p>\n<p>On top of saving labor costs, building your own PC gives you flexibility. You can change your mind mid-build if you encounter a hot sale, parts shortage, or sudden change of mind.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Get_a_Friend_to_Build_It_With_You\"><\/span>Get a Friend to Build It With You<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Alternatively, you may prefer to have the guidance of someone who has done this before. Getting a friend to show you the ropes can help boost your confidence and reduce your risk of breaking something (which is already fairly low). You may want to enlist a friend for the more fiddly parts of your build, like mounting the CPU or <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>lying thermal paste.<\/p>\n<p>If you want to develop your PC-building skills, it\u2019s important that you get your friend to help you, rather than doing everything for you. Building a PC is a relatively straightforward process. Learning how to do it yourself will give you skills you can use in the future when upgrading or building a new machine.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Save_Money_on_Used_Components\"><\/span>Save Money on Used Components<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Building a PC yourself (or enlisting someone to help) means that you can buy any components you like. Buying a pre-built PC usually means buying all-new parts, which come at a premium. Of course, these parts also come with a warranty so your investment may carry a little less risk.<\/p>\n<p>The second-hand market can save you a <em>lot<\/em> of money, particularly if you know what you\u2019re looking for. There are some basic rules to follow in terms of which PC components should be purchased second-hand\u00a0and which should be avoided. <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General<\/a>ly speaking, used CPUs, RAM, and monitors are considered relatively safe purchases.<\/p>\n<p>Buying a used GPU is also something you should consider. Though second-hand GPUs may have been used in mining rigs (which\u00a0<em>may<\/em> shorten their lifespan), there are plenty out there that have simply been used for gaming. Knowing what to look for when buying a used GPU will help. Investigate the card\u2019s history, test and inspect where possible, and always use buyer protection when purchasing online.<\/p>\n<p>Motherboards are another component that you may be able to buy used. The savings here aren\u2019t so compelling since many new no-frills motherboards are budget-friendly. If you\u2019ve decided to buy an older used CPU you might have to resort to the used motherboard market if your CPU is incompatible with newer models.<\/p>\n<p>You should avoid buying a used power supply altogether, the risk isn\u2019t worth it. A \u201cbad\u201d power supply can damage your whole system, so make sure you\u2019re using a quality PSU from a trusted brand. Used storage devices like hard drives are also not worth the hassle, particularly since new drives have significantly come down in price. Peripherals like a mouse and keyboard can save you money, but consider hygiene when purchasing.<\/p>\n<p>Do you really want a keyboard that\u2019s full of crumbs and other people\u2019s hair when you can buy a mechanical keyboard for less than $40? Even a budget gaming mouse can be found for around $20 if you can stomach a non-wireless version.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re replacing an older PC with a new build, you might want to consider using some of the old parts (assuming you aren\u2019t passing the old PC on to someone). Save money by reusing the old case, fans, your power supply (since you know the history), storage, RAM, or cooler.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Be_Realistic_and_Understand_Where_Your_Money_Is_Best_Spent\"><\/span>Be Realistic and\u00a0Understand Where Your Money Is Best Spent<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Acceptance is an important part of building on a budget, whether it\u2019s a house or a computer. Your money is only going to go so far, so make sure you budget correctly so that you aren\u2019t disappointed. Being realistic can help you make better decisions about where to spend your money so that you get better performance.<\/p>\n<p>You can use tools like\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pc-builds.com\/fps-calculator\/\">PC Builds FPS Calculator<\/a>, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/howmanyfps.com\">How Many FPS<\/a>, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cpuagent.com\/fps-bottleneck-calculator\">CPUAgent FPS and Bottleneck Calculator<\/a>\u00a0to understand what your potential build is capable of. Use these tools to get an idea of what sort of frame rates you can expect in popular <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a>s and which components make a difference.\u00a0This can help you fine-tune your setup and make better choices.<\/p>\n<p>For example, everyone\u00a0<em>wants<\/em> 64GB of the fastest RAM they can afford, but how much of a difference will it make? Realistically you\u2019ll probably only need 16GB of RAM for gaming\u00a0and you\u2019re better off spending the remainder on a better GPU to improve performance.<\/p>\n<p>The same is true of a monitor. If your desired setup delivers a smooth gaming experience at 1440p, you probably shouldn\u2019t spend more money than you need to on a 4K monitor. If you\u2019re not getting 240 or 360 frames per second in the games you want to play, don\u2019t waste your money on an ultra-high-refresh-rate monitor.<\/p>\n<p>You can also save money on storage. A fast M.2 NVMe drive is great as a boot drive, but you can save a lot of money by using slower SATA SSDs and even cumbersome old hard drives for \u201cdeep storage\u201d purposes. And while many gamers desire as much RGB lighting as they can get their hands on, this is purely decorative and should be the last thing on your mind while building on a budget.<\/p>\n<p>You should also be aware of all the little things which can cause the cost of your build to add up. You\u2019ll need a decent cooler for your CPU and while it may be tempting to buy an all-in-one (AIO) liquid-cooled radiator, you can get similar or better performance from a cheaper air cooler. Air coolers don\u2019t have to be noisy either, and understanding the fundamentals of good airflow can greatly improve your PC\u2019s thermal performance.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Plan_Your_Upgrade_Path\"><\/span>Plan Your Upgrade Path<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Choosing a PC over a Mac or a console gives you all manner of upgrade opportunities, especially if you build it yourself. This is especially important if you\u2019re on a budget since it allows you to plan the build around future upgrades. You can buy what you can afford right now, and add to it in the future when you\u2019ve got more disposable income to spare.<\/p>\n<p>This is why it\u2019s so important to pick \u201cgood bones\u201d in the first place. Don\u2019t skimp on your\u00a0motherboard or CPU. While most games also desire a performant and fairly modern GPU, you may even be able to limp on with an older model for a few months and purchase something flashy when your budget allows.<\/p>\n<p>During the pandemic-induced semiconductor shortage, many gamers had little choice but to use whatever they could get their hands on. This included old cards and even APUs (CPUs with combined GPU abilities) until the market recovered enough and GPU prices began to fall.<\/p>\n<p>The same is true of RAM and storage. While not having enough RAM can introduce a bottleneck, it can very easily be overcome by spending marginally more in a few months. If you don\u2019t need several terabytes of storage right away, buy a fast boot drive right now and add more in the future (it\u2019s one of the easiest upgrades to perform).<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Save_Money_on_Games_Too\"><\/span>Save Money on Games Too<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>If you\u2019re building a gaming PC on a budget, you\u2019ll probably want to save some money on the games you\u2019ll be playing on it too. We\u2019ve got some\u00a0tips gaming on a low (or zero) budget. One of the best-looking games in the world is free-to-play, a great starting point to put your graphics card to the test.<\/p>\n<p>On top of this, you might want to give Game Pass for PC a shot, which gives you access to a catalog of games for as little as $1 for your first month.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n setTimeout(function(){\n  !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n  {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n  n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n  if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n  n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n  t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n  s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s) } (window, document,'script',\n  'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n   fbq('init', '335401813750447');\n   fbq('track', 'PageView');\n  },3000);\n<\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/874705\/5-tips-for-building-a-gaming-pc-on-a-budget\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;5 Tips for Building a Gaming PC on a Budget&#8221; Jason Fitzpatrick \/ How-To Geek Save money by building yourself, or at least getting a friend to help you, and scour the used market for second-hand parts. Prioritize components that deliver the performance you want, and skimp on those that don&#8217;t. Reuse parts from old&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":563473,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/52675805605_bc97840e53_k.jpg?height=200p&trim=2,2,2,2","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-563472","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/563472","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=563472"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/563472\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/563473"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=563472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=563472"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=563472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}