subject: Designing A Custom Pc Gaming System [print this page] Many game fanatics won't settle for just the basics when it comes to their choice of personal computers. If you like gaming, then you should carefully select the hardware and software you will use to build your own PC, which is not that difficult if you already know what you need.
Here is a good question to start off with: what type of monitor works best for gamers? As you may already know, display is a vital element if you want to maximize your gaming experience. If you would recall your very first PC monitor, you can only imagine how huge and bulky it appears compared to the cool LCD monitors of today.
Not only will this new kind of monitor give off brighter colors, but it's easier on the eyes and yourself too, because it doesn't give off as much radiation and that much heat when in use, even during long periods of use. It is lightweight, and can be easily transported from one spot to another. And it is streamlined- to fit the most minimum of space requirements.
As for the graphic display, aim for at least 512 MB- then ask if you can still upgrade this later on if you are not satisfied with the game play. It all boils down to the number of slots in the motherboard, and whether the system would be able to cope with other added hardware in the future.
Now let us move on to the hard disk for your gaming PC. Your hard drive should also have a lot of space available. Did you know that at the least, 300 GB is needed to support gaming? A large disk space lets you install lot of games as well as save several important files like sound files, video clips, and many more. Here is a bit of a factoid: some games actually take up as much 3 GB when installed, and the virtual memory needed to support game time should also not be ignored.
Then of course, you would want a good DVD-R. If you are the one with original games (the ones from boxes, anyway) then get a good brand- LG or Sony. You can try the ones like LiteOn but be forewarned that sometimes the cheaper brands conk out ever so often and without warning. That is bound to be a headache.
When there is a discussion on the type of processor needed for gaming, power and speed are top priorities. You should try to get the Intel Skulltrail, Intel Core Duo, or at least Pentium 4 for this. Anything less than Pentium 4 simply cannot support the type of gaming experience you look for.
