PC build help?

While i'm saving up money and digging around for parts i thought i'd ask you, fellow RTS heads, what you had to say on the matter. I'd like to stay true to linux, and if i understand things right nvidia with proprietary drivers should do well. So all my questions are with that in mind, how should i build to optimise for linux and PA?

Budget isn't set in stone but €1200 $1500 £1000 -ish.

As per the previous graphics card thread i'm leaning towars the gtx 770 with 4gb vram but that's about as far as i've gotten. My first issue is what i need to get to get the most out of that card, so i don't put it in a mother board that won't let it work it's potential. I'm looking for resources on how i check up on these things (what cpu for what mobo / what mobo for what gpu et.c) as well as your advice and experiences.

Thanks!

edit: link to gpu thread https://forums.uberent.com/threads/what-video-card-should-i-buy-for-pa.53739/

edit2: build is decided and all parts on the way, i don't need any more help but further discussion is always appreciated. might post some pics when built and ready... thanks again for all the help.

You could try to get advice over at tomshardware.com - they have a lot of build suggests/etc - but I don't know how well they focus on Linux.

The one question people around here might have a good answer for is which graphics company has the best working Linux drivers for PA - beyond that, it's mostly numbers.

Could be good to hold out a bit for a ddr4 computer. Would imagine £1000 would get you a more future proof system.

Question is how i'd have to wait then? From what i read i might be a while before everything catches up to the new standard. But future proof is nice. Argh, decisions decisions...

Also to clarify, i know about a few resources that list hardware and compares them but it is compatibility i am looking for help with. Apart from optimising to linux and PA ofc

edit: reddit thread on ddr4 doesn't sound too optimistic http://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/comments/1qtto6/is_it_worth_waiting_for_ddr4_to_come_out/

Do you have anything you can use from your current system?

Nope, build from scratch!

Peripherals too?

Yepp

I did 2 $500ish builds (both dual booting Windows 7 and Linux Mint) this summer (one for me and one for a friend). I've included a short list of things I found to work well during those builds.

My tips:

• Newegg has great prices and fast and cheap shipping (in the US at least, I don't know about shipping to other countries).
• AMD A-series APUs are very nice. I have an A6 (dual core, 3.8GHz) in my build with no separate graphics card and it plays PA on medium settings quite well. For you I'd suggest the A10 and a separate graphics card in the AMD Radeon dual graphics configuration.
• For memory, I'd HIGHLY suggest G.Skill. I got this package from them and never looked back.
• For motherboards, I'd go with anything from Asus because of their great BIOS and great features.
• I really like the Samsung SyncMaster T22B350 for my monitor because of it's HDMI, multiple inputs, and great built-in speakers. Newegg only has refurbished ones of them now, but I'd go with something similar.
• Lastly, here are a few epic cases:
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133188
    
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811553008
    
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119245
    
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811144288
    
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811156292

I'm assuming you at least have a mouse and a keyboard. Objections?

Pay attention to OP - the plan is to spend at least £1000 (which is currently near $1600).

That said - I'm surprised you could build a system for $500 that includes a windows 7 OEM license.

Back to original thread - I don't think you want to wait for DD4 - unless there is a specific architecture/CPU socket you think will be future proof. If you plan on saving up for a while, then I would highly recommend shopping for a system after you have the funds saved up, as tech continues to change, and today's prices will not match the future.

About future proofing - I've never had good experience in the past trying to add much to an older motherboard. Old motherboards just don't typically support CPUs with significant changes. Small increases, sure, but nothing significant. I've only found graphics card upgrades to be the most beneficial most of the time over the past 15 years I've been building PCs. The only exception to this was adding in SSD or increased RAM when my system was too short on RAM.

Just a small clarification. I'd appreciate the build advices even more if you'd include a few words on about why you'd choose one part over the other and how it relates to linux and / or PA. I am trying to learn a bit too

Sorry about not clarifying that. The prices did not include the cost of software (like win 7). And I'd second those notes about DDR4 and future proofing.

pcpartpicker.com should help you out a lot, you select parts and it removes non compatible bits to help you select a rig

ok, fair enough. Here's an edited version of my above tip list with that added:

• Newegg has great prices and fast and cheap shipping (in the US at least, I don't know about shipping to other countries).
• AMD A-series APUs are very nice. (Mainly because they are cheap, powerful, and have a built in GPU.) I have an A6 (dual core, 3.8GHz) in my build with no separate graphics card and it plays PA on medium settings quite well. For you I'd suggest the A10 and a separate graphics card in the AMD Radeon dual graphics configuration.
• For memory, I'd HIGHLY suggest G.Skill. I got this package from them and never looked back. (Fast and cheap again, but I've also had bad experiences with Corsair so I've found G.Skill to be better.)
• For motherboards, I'd go with anything from Asus because of their great BIOS and great features.
• I really like the Samsung SyncMaster T22B350 for my monitor because of it's HDMI, multiple inputs, and great built-in speakers. Newegg only has refurbished ones of them now, but I'd go with something similar.
• Lastly, here are a few epic cases:
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133188
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811553008
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119245
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811144288
  • http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811156292

And I'd be happy to answer any questions!

Care to elaborate on why you'd go for amd a10 over the gtx 770?

I haven't had much experience with higher end graphics, but from what I've read and experienced it seems that a AMD dual graphics setup between an AMD APU and Radeon card is more bang for your buck. The biggest advantage is that you can just get the APU (this is what I did) and have a machine with medium graphics without the cost of a card. Then if you decide you want better graphics later all you need to do is pop in a compatible AMD card.

And here's another epic case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811148001

Don't wait for DDR4, the first in the series are usually questionable at best as they work out the kinks and bugs.

If you are willing to pay that much, go intel, not amd. AMD makes nice low/mid range stuff but you'll want better than that.

maybe something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1475344
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125462
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817190033
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146068
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA2W00ZD1577
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428 (potentially x 2 if you want 16GB)


Note I just threw the above together quickly as an example, if you were to decide to use any of those components, shop around for better prices and do your research. I didn't include things like mice/keyboard/monitor since those things are very user preference and are better purchased locally where you can physically see what you are buying.

Honestly, I can't help much when it comes to "linux optimal" since I just install linux, it works good and I keep on going, I don't care how optimal it is.

If you are willing to pay in the $1500 range though, optimal for linux is kinda pointless, any system that powerful will work wonders with just about anything.

You could go with a system 76 machine. Already preconfigured and you don't figure out optimal compatibility. Here's two configurations and they're nonstandard. I would suggest going with the wild dog performance one. It might be missing the card you want but it is under your budget. You could also use these configurations to make your own machine.

Leopard Extreme: $2317.00 us
Ubuntu 13.10 64 bit
Intel Core i7-4820K 3.70GHz
16 GB - 4 x 4 GB - Crucial Elite Quad Channel DDR3 - 1866 MHz
nVidia GeForce GTX 770 4GB
120 GB Intel 530 Series

Wild Dog Performance: $1297.00 us
Ubuntu 13.10 64 bit
Intel Core i5-4670 3.40GHz
16 GB – 2 x 8 GB - Crucial Sport Dual Channel DDR3 - 1600 MHz
nVidia GeForce GTX 760 2GB
120 GB Intel 530 Series

If you want to build your own machine from scratch. You should go to distribution's website check out their hardware compatibility list and search there forum to see if there's any problems with hardware well as software. Linuxquestions.org is a good place to help you with the decision. Read phoronix.com reviews on the hardware that will help. Linux distros, forums, wikis, etc would be the best resources. The mac and linux getting started subform here would also be helpful.

http://www.linuxquestions.org
http://www.linuxjournal.com/supportedhardware
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=category&item=Graphics Cards