2014-08-14, 12:36 AM
MariettaRC Wrote:*ahem* So I'm still looking. I'm completely new to this, so bear with me here.
For reference, I've been looking at Logical Increments.
When it comes to having a two-monitor set-up, would I be good with 8 GBs RAM or should I aim for 16? Also, how does this affect my choice in a graphics card, if at all?
I'll try to tackle a few things from your two posts.
Your displays shouldn't really affect how much RAM you get, but it does affect how much RAM your video card needs. Assuming you're doing 2 1920x1080 monitors, you almost definitely need at least 1 GB of video RAM and should probably shoot for at least 2 GB. 8 GB of RAM should be plenty for most things, but 16 would be smarter if you're trying to futureproof or intend to run lots of random things concurrently. Other than that, you should probably try to buy a RAM kit with two sticks of RAM (4GB x 2 or 8GB x 2) in case your motherboard/CPU does not support (or optimally utilize) more than two sticks of RAM concurrently (aka dual channel).
For a video card, I'm not too up to date on what's the best deal. I recommend spending somewhere between $250-$400 depending on how demanding your gaming needs are and how long you want to go without upgrading your video card. Here's some reading material to help you choose the best one for you: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gami...107-4.html
I definitely recommend getting both an SSD and a traditional hard drive. The SSD size does not matter a ton, but it should be at least big enough for your operating system (20GB should be fine), or bigger if you want to stick a few key programs on it too. For any kind of storage needs you'll probably just wanna buy a 1-2TB drive.
For monitors, ASUS makes some good ones. I would recommend one of the 1920x1080 24" ones available. There's a bunch on NewEgg, but I would recommend picking your own based on whether you need built in speakers, a webcam, a fast response rate, etc. Last I checked they were about $200 each.