[kwlug-disc] New Linux PC Build Advice

[Doug Moen]

Linux Mint Debian Edition? Based on Debian, no Ubuntu.
"choosing LMDE might be beneficial for those looking for a more Debian-centric experience without frequent updates."

On Mon, Oct 23, 2023, at 4:47 PM, Jason wrote:
> Hey all,
>
> My current desktop PC is 12 years old, and it's time for an upgrade.
> I use it for gaming and development, and I want something fairly
> balanced, but leaning more towards gaming performance.
>
> More details in this thread:
>
> https://old.reddit.com/r/buildapc/comments/16yh3b4/need_advice_12_year_old_gamingdevelopment_pc/
>
> I wanted to solicit advice on a few things:
>
> =========================
> 1.  Hardware
>
> I put together a parts list, and I've started picking up items, but if
> there's something glaringly wrong, I can always return parts in the
> next few weeks.  I'm planning on buying most of the parts around Black
> Friday in November.
>
> https://pcpartpicker.com/user/theoneblackmage/saved/#view=tQdh99
>
> I've already picked up the CPU, RAM, and Hard Drive(s).  Jason E had
> mentioned at the last in-person meetup to RAID-0 the drives, and I got
> two 4TB SSDs, so that's probably what I'll do.
>
> I bought the PSU as well, but it's not on the site list to choose:
> -Corsair RMx Shift 1200-Watt PCI-E 5.0 ATX Modular Power Supply
> -Hopefully this is proper ATX 3.0 (it says certified)
> -Sounds like it has the proper power connectors for modern GPU
>
> For brands, I prefer to stay away from Asus and AsRock.  Favoring
> Gigabyte and MSI.  I've heard a few bad things about Gigabyte warranty
> support, but nothing concrete.
>
> I'm thinking a full AMD system makes sense for a lot of reasons,
> mainly AMD EXPO and AMD Smart Access Memory.
>
> =========================
> 2.  Linux Distribution
>
> I've been using Linux Mint with XFCE, but I want to get away from
> Ubuntu.  I do like Debian, but I'm not convinced I could keep up to
> date with newer packages/kernels on Stable. Any advice on staying with
> a pure Debian setup would be appreciated, but it it doesn't make sense
> I can bite the bullet.
>
> I'm debating switching to Fedora and using GNOME with Wayland.  I
> haven't used Wayland before (XFCE still uses X11 and is only
> roadmapping Wayland support).  From what I've read, AMD supports
> Wayland a bit better, and I like the idea of the open source drivers.
>
> I've used Amazon Linux quite a bit, so switching to Fedora wouldn't be
> a huge stretch and I wouldn't mind the extra hand-on experience with
> it.  Amazon Linux 2 was based on CentOS, and Amazon Linux 2023 is
> based on Fedora.
>
> =========================
> 3.  Gaming
>
> I don't expect I'll be playing a lot of games with Ray Tracing, and
> that's one of the reasons I'm pretty comfortable not going with an
> Nvidia GPU.
>
> I plan on gaming at 1440p as close to 144Hz refresh as possible, since
> I have three LG Ultragear 27GL850-B 27" monitors.  I usually only game
> on one, and have other things open on the other monitors.
>
>
> I mainly play older titles and I've got a pretty hefty backlog of
> games on Steam, Battle.net, Epic Games, Good Old Games, Humble Bundle,
> etc.  There are some "newer" titles I want to play.  Advice on the
> best way to get these working would be appreciated.  I know I can use
> Proton for a lot of them, and Lutris or Bottles for others.
>
> -Daily Driver:  World of Warships (Wargaming.net Launcher) - annoying
> to update though
> -Blizzard Games:  Overwatch 2, Diablo III/IV, Starcraft II
> -Open World RPG:  Fallout 4, Starfield (not for a while), The Outer Worlds
> -FPS:  Borderlands 3, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, DOOM/Doom Eternal, Deus Ex
> -Other:  Minecraft, Nier Automata
>
> =========================
> 4.  Streaming
>
> I stream games sometimes using OBS.  Mainly Jackbox, but it would be
> nice to be able to stream other games.  Want to make sure my setup
> won't have issues with that.
>
> I usually use Twitch, but I could stream on Youtube - it looks like
> they have better encoding options:
>
> https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/2853702?hl=en
> https://help.twitch.tv/s/article/broadcasting-guidelines?language=en_US
>
> Does NVIDIA NVENC make a huge difference?  Looks like maybe I could
> use my old GTX 1070 to offload encoding?
>
> =========================
> 5.  Other considerations?
>
> Nothing specific here, just anything else I should consider.  I will
> be doing some dev work on this computer, but a lot of it is deployed
> in the cloud, and would just be tested locally.
>
> I appreciate any advice or recommendations!
>
> Thanks,
> Jason
>
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