DAE Work in computer sales and look at the "builds of the month" and laugh a little?

[Lathais]

Some of the more modern cases don't have the option to install an optical drive. The NZXT S340, for example, doesn't which is why it's as small as it is while also allowing a tremendous amount of real estate for front-mounted 240mm AIO liquid coolers.

Personally, I think it's easily one of the best design shifts along with the shrouded PSU chamber. If you still use an optical drive it's obviously not a case for you but it's literally been years since I used mine so it wasn't a problem to go this route.

I had one that I moved from build to build for years and years just because. Only reason it is not in my current builds is it was IDE and new build does not have IDE ports. Now I have an external so that I can move it to whatever PC I need it one when my daughter wants to watch a DVD on the PC.

[Kokolums]

Is there something preventing you guys from starting your own "build of the day" threads? I mean i applaud Chaud for the effort because it opens him up lots of criticism and he gets nothing in return. Maybe some of you in here could try doing some builds yourself?

[DeltrusDisc]

Is there something preventing you guys from starting your own "build of the day" threads? I mean i applaud Chaud for the effort because it opens him up lots of criticism and he gets nothing in return. Maybe some of you in here could try doing some builds yourself?

We've shared thoughts and criticisms with him before and he's really never said anything in return.

He could ask us for advice, seeing we are more eyes and do this more than he does, but he is set in these ways. So... oh well. =/

[Hoofey]

Is there something preventing you guys from starting your own "build of the day" threads? I mean i applaud Chaud for the effort because it opens him up lots of criticism and he gets nothing in return. Maybe some of you in here could try doing some builds yourself?

Since he pretty much invited us to the computer forums in that post, I'm sure he's able to handle the criticism we throw at him.
All we're saying is that the builds have room for improvement, especially the builds that has non-OC and OC parts mixed together.

Another thing I would like to add is that headphones\headsets are more relevant than speakers for most gamers.

[Fascinate]

Documented consistent performance reflective of benchmarks in actual gaming scenarios. If the depth of your analysis of is "it works like a PC" then you're really in no position to actually evaluate its performance or the benchmark accuracy. It wouldn't even be close to the first time AMD released something that looked great in a sterile testing environment yet displayed issues or failed to meet that standard of performance in practical application.

"Documented consistent performance". So you want someone to make of log of their daily gaming FPS? I honestly have no idea what you are on about.

[Kagthul]

Is there something preventing you guys from starting your own "build of the day" threads? I mean i applaud Chaud for the effort because it opens him up lots of criticism and he gets nothing in return. Maybe some of you in here could try doing some builds yourself?

We do. Some times multiple times daily.

We aren't Chaud, though, so they dont appear as recommendations on the front page.

- - - Updated - - -

Re: Optical drives...

just grab a USB3.0 external. You can get a DVD-RW drive from LG that is slim-line and bus-powered for like 25$.

Now you can use it wherever you need to, and even if it has to sit on your desk, its small and slim. (actually, if i needed to regularly use mine.. i'd probably command-strip it to the wall or the side of the book case that abuts my desk).

[Fascinate]

I am not being funny when saying this, i used the dvd drive one time in 6 years in my old pc, and that was only because my printer was so old (from windows xp days) no driver existed online.

One of the things i wanted in a case was no slot for an optical drive, id much rather have an intake fan in its spot.

[Remilia]

It is pretty much made and maintained by chaud, the only influence I got was putting a monitor on the list (U2414H), lol.
That said, should always just post here for recommendation. Sales as mention fluctuates and sometimes it makes some other stuff a better buy, it's really only a broad guideline.

[Barnabas]

Is there something preventing you guys from starting your own "build of the day" threads? I mean i applaud Chaud for the effort because it opens him up lots of criticism and he gets nothing in return. Maybe some of you in here could try doing some builds yourself?

I could do that but this is on the front page. None of us could post there. He should read this thread.

[DeltrusDisc]

It is pretty much made and maintained by chaud, the only influence I got was putting a monitor on the list (U2414H), lol.
That said, should always just post here for recommendation. Sales as mention fluctuates and sometimes it makes some other stuff a better buy, it's really only a broad guideline.

And you're a bloody moderator, to boot!

Sadly, most people don't know that they should post here... they take his word and typically come to us when they're disappointed after they've built it and all...

He makes those suggestions - but then doesn't really give follow-up advice. We make suggestions and we give follow-up advice.

[Serhan]

The lists are a really nice way for me to get a heads up on what's what nowadays. I built my first PC in 2001, my second in 2009, and this year will be my 3rd build. I don't monitor the market during those off years. Many things change. The list(s) give me a really good baseline for where to start before I start browsing PCP, Newegg, etc. Of course I'll start monitoring some forum chatter for more specific thoughts on current hardware but going into those conversations on 7 year old knowledge is rough.

[DeltrusDisc]

The lists are a really nice way for me to get a heads up on what's what nowadays. I built my first PC in 2001, my second in 2009, and this year will be my 3rd build. I don't monitor the market during those off years. Many things change. The list(s) give me a really good baseline for where to start before I start browsing PCP, Newegg, etc. Of course I'll start monitoring some forum chatter for more specific thoughts on current hardware but going into those conversations on 7 year old knowledge is rough.

How about going into them without any understanding at all?

That's how I first showed up back in late 2010.

Best thing to do? Just ask questions!

[Serhan]

How about going into them without any understanding at all?

That's how I first showed up back in late 2010.

Best thing to do? Just ask questions!

I just don't get into it like most people. I'm a PC gamer for life, but beyond the gaming I don't have a passion for the Intel/AMD, Nvidia/ATI debates that have been raging for close to two decades. If I'm not in the market, I have little to no desire to talk about it. When I'm preparing to actually build, the less I have to discuss it, the better. If I go into things with little to no information, that's more back and forth chit chat I have to do. As you can see by my post count, chit chat is not my strong suit.

*edit* I will add that I was disappointed to see no consideration or discussion for the Ryzen 5. I was really excited about a second option coming out right as I was looking to build.

[ComputerNerd]

Good point on other countries, has not thought about that.

Even if they did that, you are still trying to shoehorn a whole bunch of people in to 4 different builds, no in between. The superior option is almost always to get someone to help you tailor your rig to your current needs.




Even still, do you not think that it would be better for them to start a thread in the build sub-forum and get people to tailor a build to their specific needs?

The problem there is opinions.
Rarely will there be a definitive answer.
Certain components like the CPU and GPU are more likely to have agreement, but less so with the rest.

I think such builds are perhaps better aimed at a certain expectation or user, and described as such.
I find the names currently offered for the tiers to feel tacky to be honest.
They might have been a novelty once, but now I think they could be more useful.
Or at least if they were consistently associated with a certain type of user, one made clearer in the description.

[DeltrusDisc]

I just don't get into it like most people. I'm a PC gamer for life, but beyond the gaming I don't have a passion for the Intel/AMD, Nvidia/ATI debates that have been raging for close to two decades. If I'm not in the market, I have little to no desire to talk about it. When I'm preparing to actually build, the less I have to discuss it, the better. If I go into things with little to no information, that's more back and forth chit chat I have to do. As you can see by my post count, chit chat is not my strong suit.

*edit* I will add that I was disappointed to see no consideration or discussion for the Ryzen 5. I was really excited about a second option coming out right as I was looking to build.

Fair enough.

Though, you can always read the forums without posting, we have several lurkers that I know about. ^_< And, not to mention, post a question and leave it at that, read the responses, make from it what you will.

Either way, you do you.

[Notdev]

Cause i do. pretty much every month. now, granted, some of them have been pretty good. but then i see really bad decisions on some of them

this months for example:

IntelIntelIntelIntel

LolWat. you guys have heard that the Ryzen 5's have launched at this point, right? Quad core/Sextuple core, Hyperthreaded with Lots more cache compared to intel's 8mb cache? for less money? and good benchmark scores? the deliberate exclusion of a Ryzen build on the list seems planned almost.

Puppy: you totally don't need a 212 evo for an i3. or a Z270 board! step those parts down and use the excess budget to pick up a 120gb ssd for a boot drive!

Dolphin build looks all right.

Narwhal: The HAF cases are great if you want a Giant ugly box that's gonna scream like a jet engine all damn day. pick an NZXT (s340), Fractal (Define S) or Corsair (400 series) instead.

Unicorn: Again, not sold on the case. better brand at least.

All 4: DVD Drives? rly? i know you can mix and match and exclude parts and etc but damn dude, why even suggest these things? imo complete waste of budget.

I post on the front page post monthly, reminding people that the list is pretty terrible, not thought out, and just thrown together because MMO-champ uses affiliate links to get paid whenever someone buys an item from amazon using those links.

[DeltrusDisc]

I post on the front page post monthly, reminding people that the list is pretty terrible, not thought out, and just thrown together because MMO-champ uses affiliate links to get paid whenever someone buys an item from amazon using those links.

wtf I never knew that!

That kinda pisses me off...

[Moozart]

Cause i do. pretty much every month. now, granted, some of them have been pretty good. but then i see really bad decisions on some of them

this months for example:

IntelIntelIntelIntel

LolWat. you guys have heard that the Ryzen 5's have launched at this point, right? Quad core/Sextuple core, Hyperthreaded with Lots more cache compared to intel's 8mb cache? for less money? and good benchmark scores? the deliberate exclusion of a Ryzen build on the list seems planned almost.

Puppy: you totally don't need a 212 evo for an i3. or a Z270 board! step those parts down and use the excess budget to pick up a 120gb ssd for a boot drive!

Dolphin build looks all right.

Narwhal: The HAF cases are great if you want a Giant ugly box that's gonna scream like a jet engine all damn day. pick an NZXT (s340), Fractal (Define S) or Corsair (400 series) instead.

Unicorn: Again, not sold on the case. better brand at least.

All 4: DVD Drives? rly? i know you can mix and match and exclude parts and etc but damn dude, why even suggest these things? imo complete waste of budget.

I 100% agree with you. its like whoever is doing these builds is just slapping random shit together on PC Parts Picker

[Lathais]

wtf I never knew that!

That kinda pisses me off...

It pretty clearly states it:

Build of the Month - April 2017
Each month or so we will post a couple of hardware setups for those of you who are thinking of upgrading their computer!

All of the parts on this page are Amazon affiliate links. When you purchase your parts through them it helps support the site!

This month
The current SSD prices are fairly flat right now, with most SSDs under $0.50 per gigabyte when on sale.

Depending on how much you want to overclock, you may need to spend a bit more for a better CPU cooler like the NH-D15.

Unless you are doing a lot of video rendering or streaming, you do not need the 7700K and would get more performance from spending that money elsewhere.

Make sure to keep your AMD and Nvidia drivers up to date.

Don't forget to visit the Computer Forum for any extra questions!

But yeah, seeing as many of us just know they are kinda crap builds and put builds together ourselves, it's pretty easy to miss. So not only does the BOTM give questionable advice on the specific hardware, they are not necessarily from the cheapest site available, all just so the site can make a few bucks. I mean sure, the site needs money to run, but is the right way to make money really to give people poor advice and have them spend more money than is needed? Sure offer it as an option, so if people want to help support the site they can, but at least give pcpartpicker links too, so people have the choice.

[Notdev]

wtf I never knew that!

That kinda pisses me off...

Whenever there's a link to a product on the front page there's a 90% chance that it's an affiliate link. I know it states it but still, funneling people to amazon 100% of the time for these posts is straight up bad advice. They aren't putting the posts up out of the goodness of their hearts.