My Linux gaming PC
| 4 min read
A couple of days ago my Power Supply finally arrived so I could install the upgrade parts. That is - An Asus Nvidia Phoenix GTX 1660 Super. Yep, that's 2nd hand, just like the basic PC I bought. Both are refurbished through an Amazon reseller program or something. I'm not sure how that works exactly, but I have 1 year amazon warranty. It sounds pretty neat. So here is what I built.
Hardware Specs
CPU: Intel Core i5-10500 @ 3.1Ghz RAM: 16GB (single stick) GPU: Asus Nvidia Phoenix Geforce GTX 1660 Super (6GB vRAM) Display: Hisense 43A65NV TV (4k, 60Hz) Storage: 256 m.2 nvme (Boot/system) + 500GB m.2 nvme (Games/data) Operating system: Pop!_OS 24.04 Network: Gigabit LAN
I've used a Hewlett Packard ProDesk 600 G6 (Tower) as the base computer. I choose the tower model so that it would fit graphics cards better. The SFF version is too low profile for most expansion cards.
But even the tower model is too small for the Graphics Card - So I had to get an 180 degree angle plug thingy. Just to make the Power Supply plug go the other way and save that centimeter of height.
For the time being I added a USB Wifi dongle. Some generic AC1200 module that I happened to have. Once my house is finished I'll wire it up properly on a gigabit connection.
I'm also still on the fence with a Keyboard and Mouse. Earlier hardware I bought came with a "gaming keyboard" and I already had a Logitech M100 mouse. The keyboard works, it's fine. If you like pressing sponges and flashy RGB crap. But since I'll be controlling the PC from the couch, I'd like to have a wireless setup this time around. So I'm on the lookout for a decent set.
Last week I bought a Rii K22 Bluetooth keyboard with a trackpad built-in. Pretty cool, but the trackpad was so bad I had to send it back. Now I'm considering a Logitech K400. This is another keyword with trackpad. And I'll probably want a separate mouse for gaming. I haven't decided on what to get yet.
Software and Gaming
Overall, I think it's a neat PC. Decent enough specs for what I intend to do with it. I've been tinkering with Wine and Proton for a few days and installed Settlers 4, Sin, GTA5, Shogo Mobile Armor Division and some other stuff on it. It all mostly works. Though not as easy as people would have you believe. Partly my lack in experience and patience, partly the age of the games. But mostly Linux just being stupid and inconsistent.
I'm not sure what to make of Linux yet, but there are moments I wish I would've gotten a Mac Mini instead. Until I remember that I want to break from the Apple mold. So I'll continue to struggle with Linux - One day I'll master it... Maybe.
The other main purpose, as you probably guessed from me using a TV for the display, is to watch movies and tv-series. No, not to 'consume media,' you don't consume any media. You look at it, maybe interact with it!
Anyway, I've installed Jellyfin. This mostly works fine. I have this epic server setup going on with a universal conversion script in bash so that the neither server or client has to work really hard to play any file. Just straight up directplay streaming it's super efficient. You can read about that setup elsewhere on the website. Just search for Jellyfin.
Linux overall is kinda fun. I like how it looks. The Pop OS theme is nice. Just the right kinds of dark, and rounded corners. But the software function and how it performs, the quality maybe (?) is quite questionable. But I can open Steam, play my game, no problem at all. Then the next day do that same thing, same game and it'll crash 3 times in an hour. That is, if steam opens at all... That's not really a Pop OS problem though, more a linux problem.
It's very frustrating. And this kind of weirdness makes me question why anyone can say things like "I've been using Linux for years, it's perfect!"
It's not perfect. So very much not! I don't even know if it's truly better than Linux from 2006. Which is the last time I seriously used Linux on a laptop. Ubuntu 4 or 6 or something I think that was. Sure hardware compatibility has improved. And for sure gaming with Proton and such is a huge step forward. But if I still run into the same clunky shitty features and weirdness from 20 years ago, what truly has improved over all those years?
But, I'll march on and keep trying to like it.
Anything better than Windows I suppose.