Hello all,

 

Just in time for my exams, my two year old laptop's motherboard died. I was planning on buying a desktop later this year (unsatisfied with my current performance, which, I must admit is surprisingly okay for my specs...but it is showing its age), so I suppose now is as good a time as ever to buy the desktop, as the repair for the laptop will likely be $500+

 

I guess you could say, in terms of my knowledge of computers, I'm slightly above average- but no more than that. I understand all of the basic components of a computer and their functions, however I lack the skill and/or knowledge to build my own computer successfully. Being a student in my final year of high school, I lack the time to really dive deep into the research involved with building a computer, so obviously a pre-built system looks attractive to me. 

 

That being said, I know that customizing my own system will provide me with the maximum performance/cost ratio. My concern is picking the right components; I'm worried that I may make a mistake, such as buying a motherboard that limits my overclocking, or a cheap power supply, or something that I don't know too much about that may compromise my performance. In other words, I'm scared of being a noob!

 

 

Once again I've gone on and on in a wordy question, so the TLDR version is this: 

 

-Would this pre-built system (link below) be sufficient? (the attractive feature here is the "push-of-a-button overclocking, which I've read the max is 4.1 ghz. Also, I'm split between people's opinions on the gtx770 vs 780..NickN's guide states that there is "no exception" to the 780...is this really true?)

 

http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/product/asus-asus-g30-desktop-pc-intel-core-i7-4770k-3tb-hdd-128gb-ssd-16gb-ram-windows-8-g30ab-ca005s/10254784.aspx?path=0a588d48a4690f4fb4a3f9d612dd02faen02

 

-Or, is biting the bullet and building my own the absolute best way to go? 

 

I suppose that, either way, the performance boost that I'll receive will be well worth it compared to my current laptop (specs on the side <--). In fact, because the laptop is now dead, I suppose it's a matter of good performance vs no performance at all! 

 

Thank-you all in advance, I can never truly express how much I appreciate the help that the AVSIM community gives me!  ^_^

 

 

 I'd highly suggest that you go to Memory Express, they have a few stores around Calgary. They can help you out far better than Futureshop or Bestbuy and will have an awesome selection of components. The guys working there will all know their stuff and will have a much better idea of what you might want or need as well. They also have an awesome price match if you find cheaper components elsewhere nationally.

 http://www.memoryexpress.com/

 

 You could most likely put together a rig very similar if not far better to the one you linked above for alot less money.

Building your own computer has only gotten easier over the years.  Lots of people who do not think that they can do it surprise themselves.

 

Search YouTube for a guy named Carey Holzman.  Watch one of his gaming machine build videos when you have a decent chunk of time to spare (his November 2013 video is a good one to start with). Some of them are a few hours long as he explains everything to you along the way and some of them are sped up and narrated.  There are lots of build videos out there, but I find his to be the best for new computer builders.  You may even find the whole research and building process fun, as I do.  Plus, especially for a higher end PC, you can save a decent chunk of change doing it yourself.

Hello, thanks for your replies

 

It turns out that my laptop's issues was not a dead motherboard, rather it was "malicious software." I'm not too sure what caused it, perhaps I accidentally installed a program from a sketchy source and/or accidentally visited a sketchy website. Either way, a technician is taking a look at it and wiping/restoring the hdd.

 

So, I suppose once I get it back, I'll be with the laptop for a while, provided there are no other issues. I'm paranoid that I've been hacked, and am thus taking care of my personal info more closely.

 

Needless to say, when I do eventually get a desktop, I will build- or at least configure- my own. Memory Express is a great store, I agree. Their online configuration seems to suit my needs.

 

To shift gears a bit, now that I'm paranoid about security, what antivirus suite/software is recommended for use with fsx? I had been using MSE and Malwarebytes, but had no firewall- I installed Comodo firewall, coincidentally just before my laptop's issues started occurring...what programs are recommended that provide significant protection, while not interfering with fsx/taking up too many cpu cycles? 

 

Thanks again, everyone