Prebuilt PCs

[icepac]

I was using a phone for a hotspot for many years.

[AKIron]

Daughter up in north Idaho near Lake Pend Oreille was paying big dollars for Hughes wireless which really sucked. Elon Musk to the rescue and now they have a great connection with Starlink.

[Volron]

I was using a phone for a hotspot for many years.

That actually can hold up pretty well.  Too bad it's so limited that you really can only limit yourself to a single game, and one that doesn't eat up the BW at that.  Games that have constant updates are a definite no go.

[Tumor]

Daughter up in north Idaho near Lake Pend Oreille was paying big dollars for Hughes wireless which really sucked. Elon Musk to the rescue and now they have a great connection with Starlink.

I got Starlink a year before I was in the "Service Area" (according to their map).  Had to agree to having a spotty connection.  And, it was great.  I could game consistently (a little over an hour) and speeds were awesome.  I've been stuck on ADSL for a decade, which isn't terribly bad, but becoming so with the size of games and such (like an MSFS or DCS update) requiring an overnight DL.  So, I knew I had an obstruction to the NNE, a massive  old Oak (9ft around) that blocked just a small portion in that direction.  Since I was having some logging done already, I had it taken down.  Wouldn't you know, in that same time frame they threw up a bunch more satellites AND deprecated the PC (Router) based interface AND I found I was IN the service area.... that's when my conx went to toejam.  The antenna is now looking a LOT more to the West, and what's there?  Yet another (bigger) old Oak that blocks a full 1/3rd of the required area.   Hard Disco every 15min.  To add a little icing, the Butt-cut of White Oak is "too big" for the Stave company to pick up.  Oh they'll buy it, but ~I~ have to figure out how to haul it 150mi.  I'm cursed I tell ya.  Cursed.   

Starlink is 100% awesome.  It's even good if you have obstructions.  BUT, you ain't gaming with it unless the antenna has a very clear view.

[Maverick]

I will be honest, I am totally surprised you can do online gaming with starlink. I had Hughesnet for several years while traveling the country. It was OK for browsing the net and e-mail but that was all. Went to tethering my phone to the PC once it got to 4G everywhere.

Really unhappy with windstream internet but that is all that's available in my location and I need it because I'm also in a cell dead zone and the verizon cell booster requires an internet connection.

[Eagler]

I can't see how starlink doesn't have a lag to it ...

Eagler

[Tumor]

I will be honest, I am totally surprised you can do online gaming with starlink. I had Hughesnet for several years while traveling the country. It was OK for browsing the net and e-mail but that was all. Went to tethering my phone to the PC once it got to 4G everywhere.

Really unhappy with windstream internet but that is all that's available in my location and I need it because I'm also in a cell dead zone and the verizon cell booster requires an internet connection.

Never had Windstream or Hughes (or whatever), but I did use it some via work.  Starlink is a whole other universe.  Granted, I've never had fully unobstructed reception, but it ~was~ very good before they upgraded... once they upgraded, I got a new obstruction that was WAY worse than what I had before.  It's nuts, but even now the conx is very good in between the 15min (appx) disco.  Even then, I barely notice it unless I'm gaming.  Youboob vids will occasionally hiccup but it's barely noticable... like a 5sec pause.  DL's are fine, when it discos it auto-resets anyway.

Here's a comparison (Ping to HTC)

ADSL: Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
    Minimum = 67ms, Maximum = 104ms, Average = 83ms

Starlink: Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
    Minimum = 77ms, Maximum = 99ms, Average = 88ms

[AKIron]

I can't see how starlink doesn't have a lag to it ...

Eagler

Those are LEO (Low Earth Orbit) satellites. A lot of satellites. My grandson plays First Person Shooters over that connection and is happy.

Scroll down to "How Starlink Works"

https://www.starlink.com/us/technology

[Volron]

I keep hearing good things about Starlink.  I'll need to speak to a few folks I know who's net is.....let's just say "less than stellar", but are stuck with the crap they got now.  Might be something they could get into.

[Eagler]

I keep hearing good things about Starlink.  I'll need to speak to a few folks I know who's net is.....let's just say "less than stellar", but are stuck with the crap they got now.  Might be something they could get into.

My 85 year old father in law loves his ..but he doesn't game...his AOL has never been better..

Eagler

[Banshee7]

Hey, it's me again.  I finally got around to purchasing a PC.  I was about to order the parts, and I noticed this prebuilt on sale on Newegg.  It is almost the same build, but I can get it a little cheaper than the parts in my cart.

https://www.newegg.com/skytech-gaming-desktop-pcs-geforce-rtx-5070-intel-core-i7-14700f-32gb-ddr5-2-tb-ssd-st-azure2-1817-w-al-white/p/3D5-000Z-002G1?Item=9SIA1HJKEV3145&_gl=1*97xn02*_gcl_aw*R0NMLjE3NTM4MDY2MDEuQ2owS0NRanc0cUhFQmhDREFSSXNBTFlLRk5ONndPZHFrUnRzZWpfRHh0OWcxUHNKZGNreU02RG5lVUZNczRfdDhidTE0ZXVxVDBHcXZSSWFBc0pCRUFMd193Y0I.*_gcl_dc*R0NMLjE3NTM4MDY2MDEuQ2owS0NRanc0cUhFQmhDREFSSXNBTFlLRk5ONndPZHFrUnRzZWpfRHh0OWcxUHNKZGNreU02RG5lVUZNczRfdDhidTE0ZXVxVDBHcXZSSWFBc0pCRUFMd193Y0I.*_gcl_au*MTQ5MTA0MzU0OS4xNzUzNzk4OTY0*_ga*MTAzMzcxMDM4MC4xNzUzNzk4OTY0*_ga_TR46GG8HLR*czE3NTY0ODA3NTckbzgkZzEkdDE3NTY0ODA5MTIkajYwJGwwJGgxNDEzMzgyMDg1

Here are the parts in my cart:

Intel i7-14700KF
MSI Z790 Motherboard
Corsair Vengeance DDR5 RAM - 32G
MSI Ventus GeForce RTX 5070
NZXT H9 Flow Case
MSI MAG A850GL PSU
Samsung 990 EVO PLUS 2TB
Corsair Nautilus 360 RS120 Liquid Coolor
Windows 11

Should I save a few bucks and buy the prebuilt, or should I try building my own (this will be my first build)

[uptown]

I'd buy the prebuilt rig, if nothing else because it's hassle free. Let the computer nerds do the work. You can always upgrade at a later date if you want to. 

[AKIron]

I bought a Skytech build several years ago when that was the only way you could get an RTX 3000 series card. I was happy with it. Still have it, mostly.

[AKIron]

Skytech may vary but I think they use ASRock MB a lot. Quality board but no frills. Only thing left of the original in that pic is the case and case fans. I am using some of the original components in another machine.

[AKIron]

I was on a couple of waiting lists for RTX 3070 boards. I gave up waiting and bought that machine. Within a few days my name came up for two cards. I bought both. Sold one for a grand. The guy asked why I was selling it so cheap.