# Help Culhwch buy a new computer!



## Culhwch (Oct 13, 2008)

Right, seeing as how my laptop is giving me the supreme fill-in-the-blanks, taking forever to do anything and freezing at the drop of a hat, I'm in the market for a new desktop. And seeing as how the taxman is being ultra kind and giving me a big fat refund this year (I know, who'd have thunk it?) I can even get it sooner than I had planned!

So I've been checking out some systems at the place where my wife bought hers not so long ago. They have base systems but you can modify the components. I don't really know much about what goes with what and what the result is, so that's where your advice comes into the picture. Mainly I'll be using it for day-to-day stuff, internet, Office, all that stuff, but I'm also doing a fair amount of photo editing now, so I'd like something with enough grunt to make sure that runs smoothly and quickly. Additionally, I'd like to be able to play some recent-ish games on it, stuff like the newer Call of Duty games (newest would be nice, but that might be out of my price range) and similar, Medieval: Total War II, maybe Oblivion, that kind of thing. I've fiddled around with a couple of basic 'gamers' packages and come up with two systems around my price range, which is $A750-$A850 for the basic box. $A900 tops - I could _probably_ convince my wife to let me go that high. So:

System Uno:

AMD Phenom 9550 Quad Core CPU 
Gigabyte AM2+ GA-MA78GM-S2H Motherboard 
DDR2 2GB Generic 800MHz RAM x 2
500GB Western Digital AACS 7200rpm 16M SATA HDD
ASUS 9500GT 512MB PCIe Video Card 
(plus case, optical drive, etc...~$762)


System Duo:

Intel S775 Core 2 Duo E8500 3.16GHz CPU 
ASUS S775 P5K-SE-EPU Core 2 Motherboard (P5K SE/EPU) 
DDR2 2GB Generic 800MHz RAM x 2
500GB Western Digital AACS 7200rpm 16M SATA HDD 
ASUS 9600GT 512M PCIe Video Card 
(plus case, optical drive, etc...~$851)

I'd very much appreciate any thoughts, comments, suggestions, and whatever else you have to give...


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## The Ace (Oct 13, 2008)

XP or Vista ?  A lot of gamers _hate _Vista and there's also the fact that it tends to be bundled with only a trial version of Office, so there's another wodge of cash lost a little further on.


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## Culhwch (Oct 13, 2008)

It'll be XP, because that's what my wife is running and our network won't work if it isn't. Already got Office 2007, as well, so no dramas there...


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## Happy Joe (Oct 13, 2008)

While I am an AMD fan; they are in the process of discontinuing the AM2+ CPU interface (to be replace by the AM3 interface).  This means that there will probably be only one more generation of AM2+ CPUs (if future upgradeability is a consideration for you).
Personally, I plan on holding off my next build until the second revision of the AM3 motherboards (with DDR3 ram) become available.

Enjoy!


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## Lacedaemonian (Oct 13, 2008)

I anticipated one of those 'Nigerian gold in a Swiss account' type of posts and feared that I would have to ban you. 

Both systems are great.  I have an AMD processor but most of the lads in my gaming clan swear by Intel these days.  I think Intel have left AMD behind recently with better performance.  Depends on how serious you are about your gaming.  I think COD5 will be the same spec as COD4 - which was pretty high.  However, most gamers dumb down their graphics setup to maximise their fps etc etc.  Those specs are much better than my spec and my rig runs COD4 at a constant 300fps (I have it set at 300 max).  

Shame you live in Oz as we could have gamed together and improved our love of one another.  I wanted to call my baby Cullhwch but could not convince my woman.  He remains the greatest character in literature.


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## tangaloomababe (Oct 13, 2008)

Cul 
I just want to say whatever you get I will be envious.  I am running on spare time at the moment.  I have been using my son's super fantastic, fast, responsive computer for the last 10 weeks whilst he has been away training.  He's back on the weekend and plans to take it back to base with him, so now what do I get?

My old one step up from a 486 (ok not quite but close) lets go make a coffee and it might have woken up computer.

Mal told me he would buy me a laptop for christmas but it won't be the same as this beast.


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## Dave (Oct 13, 2008)

Just don't buy a DELL!

I guess I owe you the whole story, but they are still continuing to drive me up the wall even today. I need some time to chill first.


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## AE35Unit (Oct 14, 2008)

Well seeing as you want to do hi feed gaming you'll want a seperate graphics card,avoid a system that has AGP graphics as it means it uses the RAM and the processor to crunch the graphics out. I personally wouldn't touch an AMD,heard too much bad stuff about them-we've always had Celerons but its a personal choice. Also if you buy the bits you need and assemble it yourself,as we did,you can save a bundle-its possible to get a 500 quid PC for 300 quid that way. Ours is an Asus motherboard,specced out how we wanted it. Would try and get XP too as Vista is a pile of poo!


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## Happy Joe (Oct 14, 2008)

Intel is the top of the heap right now.
However the AMD chip that you spec will probably do for gaming (I'm currently running crysis and warhead on a AMD dual core 6000 @ 3Ghz without issue).
I like XP as an operating system but run and have had no problems with vista on my older socket 939 chip (ran it on the dual core as a trial also with out problems) principally for the media center as it is the HTPC.
If you want to run the hardware intensive games be certain to get enough video card (the 9500 might be a tad on the iffy side).
The hierarchy chart;
Graphics Card Heirarchy Chart - Tom's Hardware : Best Video Cards For The Money: Oct '08

shows it to be roughly equal to a 7800gt which I found to be largely inadequate (barely usable) for crysis and warhead.

Enjoy!


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## Culhwch (Oct 14, 2008)

Thanks for the advice, guys! Might have to do a little reading about video cards and such, though mostly that goes over my head... Oh well, I'm on night shift tonight, so what else am I going to do with my time? Work?


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## Pyan (Oct 14, 2008)

No need for all that fancy stuff, Cul - get yourself one of these, man!


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## Majimaune (Oct 15, 2008)

If price didn't matter I would say Mac Pro, nuff said. But as it is different I shall say different.

Even if your not planning on running Vista (because it is sheite, if you will excuse my language) I would recommend 2 gig of RAM at least. Plus a decent sized hard drive, 500 gig, if its not too expensive, never goes amiss.

Would love to advise you on graphics cards but unfortunately I don't know too much about them.

And a decent sound card is always good.


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## Culhwch (Oct 15, 2008)

Majimaune said:


> If price didn't matter I would say Mac Pro, nuff said. But as it is different I shall say different.
> 
> Even if your not planning on running Vista (because it is sheite, if you will excuse my language) I would recommend 2 gig of RAM at least. Plus a decent sized hard drive, 500 gig, if its not too expensive, never goes amiss.
> 
> ...


 
Ew, Macs. [shudders] Did you see the articles recently about the Pros causing cancer?

Both systems have got 4GB of RAM and 500 GB hard drives...


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## TheEndIsNigh (Oct 15, 2008)

I'm with Pyan on this. This technology stuff is all well and good but those computer things will never catch on. 

Bah, you'll be telling me next I can get to London from Manchester in less than five weeks.

The trouble with the Mac is it's the favourite of the criminal fraternity. Apparently there are plenty of %"£ $%^$%£$ %^&^ $$$$%%%$ 's out there that will buy them even if the $%£ $%$££$$£ "£$£"ard selling them has no proof of ownership.


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## Happy Joe (Oct 15, 2008)

> Both systems have got 4GB of RAM and 500 GB hard drives...


 
Anything more than 3 gig of ram is a waste on 32bit operating systems (common XP/XP Pro) due to addressing constraints within the software. Note; a extra gig can be installed (4 gig total) but normally has no benefit or penalty. 64 bit operating systems (available in both XP and Vista flavors; not very popular) can use more ram but there are relatively few 64bit applications available. The 64 bit OSs can use 32bit software but there is no significant advantage.
Look for operating systems to lean increasingly toward the 64 bit side in the future as there can be performance benefits as long as 64bit applications are used. (I have 64 bit vista and see little to no advantage at this point).

Apple computers (Mac) are really not worth considering for any but specialty applications (they have a niche market) or Fanboys.

Sound cards are really not necessary as most on-board sound today is fine for any but audiophile ears and sound systems (you most likely won't be able to tell the difference with computer speakers, especially playing mp3s). You can always add a sound card later if you decide to. I recommend trying the on-board sound first rather than spending the extra money up front for a sound card.

Enjoy!


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## Culhwch (Oct 16, 2008)

I was definitely going on-board sound all the way, I'm trying to keep the price down! And with the RAM - would you then recommend 3 gig, or would 2 suffice?


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## Majimaune (Oct 16, 2008)

Culhwch said:


> Ew, Macs. [shudders] Did you see the articles recently about the Pros causing cancer?
> 
> Both systems have got 4GB of RAM and 500 GB hard drives...


I didn't hear about it at all. Chuck us a link?


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## Happy Joe (Oct 16, 2008)

> RAM - would you then recommend 3 gig, or would 2 suffice?


 
I run 3 on my 32bit hardware; but I tend to run memory intensive games and apps. With the price of memory (at least here in the states) so low I would look for the best deal considering the cost difference between your 4 gig and 2 and 3 one gig sticks and one 2 gig stick. 2 gigs is enough for most apps and you can add more later (as long as your motherboard has extra slots). 

If paying someone to assemble your box (getting one prebuilt) you will likely not get away as cheaply so I would price all of the options and make a spread sheet to help determine the best cost point.
I normally recommend that folks consider assembling their comps themselves; especially if they have an old box and OS software (the cost of the operating system is, usually, enough to make a discount/preassembled comp worth considering) (if it has most of the options you want and a PCIe video slot). Note; a couple of years ago Microsoft changed the licensing agreement so that you can no longer transfer new OS software between machines; however, this does not apply to older software.  (My most recent junk pile machine uses 4 year old e-machine XP Home software and is 100% legal).
Certainly I would price all of the parts to see what you are paying for an assembler.

Enjoy!


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## Culhwch (Oct 17, 2008)

Majimaune said:


> I didn't hear about it at all. Chuck us a link?


 
Okay, so I may have exagerrated a bit, but I still wouldn't want one:

Rotten smell raises Apple toxin fears - Articles - Laptops - Digital Life


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## Culhwch (Oct 29, 2008)

Here's a question: what's a quad core CPU going to do for me that a core duo isn't? I've just noticed they are the same price, it's the motherboard that is pumping up the price of the next system up...


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## Happy Joe (Oct 29, 2008)

Multiple cores typically enable better performance when multitasking and when using the (relatively few) applications that can effectively multi thread. For gaming purposes they have a small advantage on most games as yet (in the future expect more applications and games to better utilize more cores).
I am still using a dual core but expect to go quad on the next machine. It does give me some benefit in games over a single core and it significantly improves performance when processing video (if for no other reason than housekeeping tasks can run on one core while the game can have a core mostly to itself).

I would go with the fastest multi core processor (with the most on chip memory) that does not cause a high price impact. If going AMD be aware that some/many boards do not reliably support the 140 watt quad core, it draws too much power for the traces/power/ground planes.
Occasionally deals can be found on the AMD black editions; these have unlocked multipliers and often can easily be boosted to give the performance of a higher priced chip (very good for overclockers not great for others).

Enjoy!


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## Wybren (Oct 30, 2008)

Just spoke with my other half, who sells the stuff and is a mega gamer, He reckons the second one but change the video card to a ATI 4850 because its newer, Faster and supports direct x 10.1 for only a bit more than what the other card costs, And if you get a motherboard that allows crossfire you can put put another one in furtherdown the track and run them both at the same time.

Apparently also with processors what you want to look for is clock speed not amount of cores, the core 2 duo has a  higher clock speed than the quad core and most games still dont require a core 2 let alone a quad core.

He also said look at Computer Alliance or MSY ( which is in Brendale)


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## Culhwch (Oct 30, 2008)

Yeah, those are both Computer Alliance. We had a good experience with them when we bought my wife's new PC, so I thought I'd go with them again. I'll have a look into MSY, though, seen as though it's a bit more local! Thanks for the input...


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## Wybren (Oct 30, 2008)

No problems 

Yeah my husband gets most of his stuff from either of those, Umart is cheap but the service is non existant. We have been getting a bit from MSY since they opened up here, its local, and the prices are good, and I think they open till 6:30. We just upgraded to the ATI R4870 which we got from MSY.


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## Culhwch (Nov 5, 2008)

MSY looks good for parts, but I think I'll go with Computer Alliance for the system. I looked into the ATI 4850 but it's a more than a little dearer then the 9600, at least at CA, so I'll probably go with the latter. I can always upgrade down the track...

I've been looking into monitors the last few days - can anyone recommend a good brand? I have my eye on three at the moment - a BenQ, a Samsung and an ASUS. Thoughts or opinions?


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## Wybren (Nov 5, 2008)

Samsung no question about it, the last 3 monitors we have had have all been Samsung and they have all been great, the only other brand my other brand my hubby would consider is LG as they are the only two in Australia with a 3year 0 dead pixel warrenty.


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## Culhwch (Nov 20, 2008)

Well, I've bought my monitor. It's currently sitting beside my desk, still in its box, as I hit something of a financial roadblock with my system. So now I'm thinking about buying parts piecemeal and building it myself. Surely it can't be that hard? I've built Ikea furniture before, it can't be too different...


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## dustinzgirl (Nov 20, 2008)

Culhwch said:


> Well, I've bought my monitor. It's currently sitting beside my desk, still in its box, as I hit something of a financial roadblock with my system. So now I'm thinking about buying parts piecemeal and building it myself. Surely it can't be that hard? I've built Ikea furniture before, it can't be too different...



No, its not. Get an 'empty box' off E-bay you can get a strong AMD Dual Core mb/cpu pretty cheap. Get your drives, ram, hard drive, sound card, video card off of Newegg or Frye's---not Ebay. You can build a pretty dang good comptuer for less than a grand. 

On the other hand, I can say its not hard cuz I watch the hubby do it and he is very fast and efficient. I've never actually done it, but thats because I tend to break things when I touch them and I'm a clutz.

Get an AMD Athlon 64 at least.


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## Wybren (Nov 20, 2008)

What monitor did you end up getting?

Yeah its not that hard to build a computer, just some bits are a bit fiddly like attaching the cpu to the mother board and the heat sink to the cpu, but if you have friends who are tech minded I am sure they would be happy to help out. As before, Computer Alliance and MSY are places my other half recommends for our area.

This is a really good site for checking out reviews of parts and getting expert advice
[H]ard|OCP - www.hardocp.com


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## Wybren (Nov 20, 2008)

Oh and this is a good one as well
Latest OCAU News - Overclockers Australia


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## Culhwch (Nov 23, 2008)

Maybe I should change the title of this tread to 'Help Culhwch build a ew computer'...

There are just so many options, my head is swimming. I was leaning towards AMD, because they are quite a bit cheaper than the Intels (though I know they don't quite match up...). I'm thinking about the AMD AM2 Athlon 64 X2 6400+, though I'm stll wavering over paying a little more for a Intel ATX E7400 CORE 2 DUO... Decisions, decisions!


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## Happy Joe (Nov 25, 2008)

AMD will be coming out with the next generation processors in January... Hold on as long as you can (the prices of the existing am2+ processors and boards should drop).

BTW; the next generation of AMD CPU, the AM3 socket chip, is rumored to be close to Intel performance. (Been running an AMD AM2 6000 x2 (3GHz) for the last year without any need to upgrade or overclock; plays crysis and warhead fine (8800 GTS vid card), works very well for amateur video and audio work too).

Enjoy!

Assembling your own has definite financial/quality advantages; my last couple have been assembled in old Emachine cases. Ask around and see who may have an older; dead, slow, virused or broken down comp (be sure to to get an ATX case) that might have been running XP pro or home software (you need the case, the software and the number off of the Microsoft sticker on the case). The operating system software is one of the more expensive components, but if you can get an original that is old enough, it can often be transferred to the machine that you are building.


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## Highlander II (Nov 25, 2008)

Yeah - I keep thinking about just 'rebuilding' my current PC, but I want to have something else - like a laptop - to play with while I'm rebuilding, so I'm not w/o a machine for an extended length of time.

And, yeah, that whole 'operating system' bit is a pain.  I just wish that Microsoft would build a new OS that's NOT based on W2K or ME, but on the 98/XP framework.  I *hate* Vista and don't want it, but if I get a laptop now, I'm stuck w/ it b/c that's all they come with, unless I build that myself too and I don't think I can do that. =)


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## Culhwch (Nov 25, 2008)

Happy Joe said:


> AMD will be coming out with the next generation processors in January... Hold on as long as you can (the prices of the existing am2+ processors and boards should drop).
> 
> BTW; the next generation of AMD CPU, the AM3 socket chip, is rumored to be close to Intel performance. (Been running an AMD AM2 6000 x2 (3GHz) for the last year without any need to upgrade or overclock; plays crysis and warhead fine (8800 GTS vid card), works very well for amateur video and audio work too).
> 
> ...


 
Actually I was thinking of stepping down to the 6000, because I can get it a bit cheaper and without postage from a local supplier. I was looking at getting a motherboard that was AM3 ready (or so the manufacturer touts) and then upgrading down the track, if I was so inclined. I'll probably end up buying a new case and XP as well, because otherwise I can't get my hands on what might be termed a 'legitimate' copy. I've sourced it fairly cheap though, as far as these things go...

With the processor, though - both those AMD processors say they're 125W versions, so am I going to need a bigger PSU? The case I've earmarked comes with 460W, which I assume will be plenty, but I'm wondering how much power the video card is going to pull. I'm looking at either a 9600GT or 9800GT...


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## dustinzgirl (Nov 25, 2008)

Our AMD's have never failed us, even the older slower ones. They actually do pretty good for gaming, but of course you have to have the ram and video card to support it. If you are wanting to piece-meal a computer, definitely start with an AMD.


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## Happy Joe (Nov 26, 2008)

> I was looking at getting a motherboard that was AM3 ready (or so the manufacturer touts)


 
AM3 is a different socket and as I understand it the socket AM2+ 6000 won't work (probably won't fit) in an AM3 socket... that said, the motherboard maker is probably talking about an AM2+ socket board (which is compatible with the various, 2 that I know about, current AM2+ 6000 chips) and AMD is going to be making at least one pass of an interim, next generation, Phenom II, processor compatible with the AM2+ socket and DDR2 memory. The AM3, Phenom II, processors will have a different on-board memory controller (DDR3 memory) and will not be compatible with the AM2 socket or DDR2 memory.

AMD is doing this to give current users some future upgrade-ability, although look for the AM2/AM2+ socket to fade away over the next few years (like the socket A, the socket 939, etc).

Confusing... no? 

I encounter similar confusion/stress whenever I change out a mother board/processor. With technology changing so rapidly, its hard to know when to actually make the change. For the last couple of generations of chips I have just gone for a processor that has a significant performance jump and purchase a motherboard to match. On the average I get 2 to 4 years out of a given combination and by that time the technology has normally made both motherboard and processor obsolete.

Enjoy!

(EDIT) For power supply; you need to determine what you have (pull the case and look at the power supply label). If it is not in the 400 watt range (350 might work) you are a candidate for a new supply. There are a couple of sites that you can go to to help determine power supply size for a given set of components, I will do a google and see if I can find some.

This one looks pretty good;
http://www.journeysystems.com/?power_supply_calculator

More up to date;
http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp


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## Culhwch (Nov 26, 2008)

Happy Joe said:


> AM3 is a different socket and as I understand it the socket AM2+ 6000 won't work (probably won't fit) in an AM3 socket...


 
Now see, that's what I thought, too... Bears more research, I think.



> (EDIT) For power supply; you need to determine what you have (pull the case and look at the power supply label). If it is not in the 400 watt range (350 might work) you are a candidate for a new supply. There are a couple of sites that you can go to to help determine power supply size for a given set of components, I will do a google and see if I can find some.
> 
> This one looks pretty good;
> http://www.journeysystems.com/?power_supply_calculator
> ...


 
Yeah, I found that second one when I was ordering my pre-built system. It was telling me that the case and PSU I'd picked were more than adequate, but the salesman was insisting on upgrading both to the tune of $150, which I thought was overkill... It looks like I'm covered this time around, though.


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## Wybren (Nov 27, 2008)

Cul, a few questions if I may... First what sort of games are you playing and wanting to play and secondly how much are you willing to spend? That would probably give us better scope as to what to advise you on.


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## Culhwch (Nov 27, 2008)

Looking to spend as little as possible! I'd say a thousand at the most, anything less is a bonus. I'm mainly looking to play games that I've missed out on over the past couple of years - namely Medieval: Total War 2 and the Call of Duties - but I'd be keen for something that is going to run new games at least semi-well for a year or two...


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## Happy Joe (Nov 27, 2008)

To get by most cheaply; you should consider recycling your old parts (or parts from another old computer into the next one.

What are your existing parts; 
ATX style case?  If not; how are your metalworking/rattle can (painting) skills?
Power supply, brand and rating (does it have a PCIe connection for the vid card)(if not does it have 2 spare molex plugs for an adapter (can you get a PCIe connector adapter easily/does one come with the vid card))?
CD ROM, CD burner or DVD burner?
What kind of memory (SD, DDR, or DDR2) and how much do you have?
Size of existing disk drives?
Current OS?

Which mother board are you considering?

For the vid card I would go with the 256/512 9800GT (coming down in price and roughly the same as my 8800 if you get the G92 or newer variant) or the equivalent ATI product (the specs will be a little different but the actual performance/feel will be similar).  

With new games its always a bit of a gamble as to whether someone is going to release a game that existing hardware will have problems with (like Crysis last year).  If DX10, through 10.2 is important to you then you will need Vista or the (to be released next year) Windows 7 for an operating system (Windows XP only supports DX9 and will not be upgraded/updated/supported further; so far, it makes little difference).  To consider this is to move up the price curve but you will likely be buying a new OS any way...  The decision; to gamble that XP will work for games/applications for the next couple of years (very probable)  until after the first service pack release for Windows 7, or to bite the bullet and live with Vista.

If you can save enough; the change over to a new processor/motherboard/heat sink/memory/vid card takes a couple of hours.
(Download the newest drivers before you take apart the computer).
Installing new OS then takes another couple of hours... Note; if you do not have XP then you will need to back up your existing data (recommended in any case) as you will need to reformat the drive.  Figure a hours and hours; if backed up to CDs or DVDs, an hour or so if dropped to another drive or computer (depends on the amount of data).  Backing up is no big deal, you can start today instead of making a last minute marathon of it.
If you do have XP how old is it?  If it is old enough (how old will take some research) you can legally change out the hardware and not buy another copy, just re-register it.

Enjoy!


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## Culhwch (Nov 27, 2008)

My current computer is a laptop, so no, I don't have a lot of exisiting parts. I'll be pretty much building from scratch. I'm going to pull the DVD writer I installed in my wife's old computer last year or the year before, but the rest of that machine is ancient, so there's not much else salvageable. So other than an optical drive, I need everything...


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## Wybren (Nov 27, 2008)

I will ask the other half when he gets home, he builds ours and is a _HUGE_ gamer plus until 3 weeks ago when he got a cushy government job he was the assistant manager of one of the bigger computer stores in the city.


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## Wybren (Nov 29, 2008)

OK Cul, spoke to my other half and this is what he said he would get if he had a tight budget to work on, its all good stuff not the generic, so you could probably get the generic a bit cheaper or these parts cheaper looking about but this is just a quick nock up from the umart catalogue to show you

Intel ATX E7300 CORE 2 DUO 2.66G 3MBCache 1066FSB LGA775
Asus P5Q-E ExpGATE S775 P45 DDR2 FSB1600 3xPCIE RAID GBLAN 2x1394a ATX
Corsair DDR2 Twin2X (2048MB Kit)  6400C4 2048Mb (2X1024MB)
Western Digital 1TB SATAII HDD Green Power
Sapphire HD4850 512M 256-BIT GDDR3 PCIE2.0 2*DVI TVO HDMI
CoolerMaster Centurion 534 Aluminum Bezel Case Black with 460W (RC534KKRB)

All came to $1150 and will run all the games that you want to play. 
He also said that while he isn't loyal to any make as far as Intel or AMD he said at the moment Intel give you more bang for your buck atm.


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## Culhwch (Nov 29, 2008)

Cheers, Wy! I'm at work today and it's dead quiet, so I'll have plenty of time to check out suppliers and prices...


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## Wybren (Nov 29, 2008)

No problem Cul, Like I said until 3 weeks ago he was doing it for a living - and he hates seeing people given the wrong advice by sales people out to make there commision and not listening to what the person wants.


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## Culhwch (Nov 29, 2008)

Slightly off-topic but I just went upstairs to my desk on my lunch break, and my shiny new iMac has been installed. Horrid, unnatural thing it is, too...


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## Wybren (Nov 29, 2008)

OOO they gived you a Mac, we had a mac laptop for a while, and yeah unnatural things they are indeed


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## Culhwch (Nov 29, 2008)

I don't see the point, because we're not doing anything that actually requires a Mac - they're going to running Windows, for crying out loud. I think the big boss has an Apple fetish. Ever since he started it's been iPods and iTouches and iPhones and Air Books and now iMacs...


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## Wybren (Nov 29, 2008)

I think it is an academic thing, all the uni's I have attended seem to have this preference for Apple though I don't understand why, macs only account for 5% of the market, everyone else is a PC user and even the Ipods etc you can use with a PC anyway


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## Culhwch (Nov 29, 2008)

Actually I think we may be the first at UQ to go with Macs. Certainly one of the first. But I have heard that they're gaining massive ground in the tertiary sector, particularly in the US...


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## Wybren (Nov 29, 2008)

WOW, No when I was at SCU the majority of the computers for student use were macs, same with at UNE and from what I saw of QUT there were way too many Macs there too. My lectures at UNE seem to like the Macs too. Maybe they like inflicting the Macs on the students because they cant really play games on them so the figure the students can only do study on a mac cause there is bugger all else they can do


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## Culhwch (Nov 29, 2008)

I like that theory!


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## Wybren (Nov 29, 2008)

Its the only thing I can think of, I mean what good is a mac otherwise than to keep people away from the fun stuff. Sure they say they are good at graphics and media stuff but its nothing you cant do with a good video card and a decent amount of ram.


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## Happy Joe (Nov 29, 2008)

Wybren; good, solid recommendations, seems a bit pricey though... (not certain of the exchange rate).
Here the same system with XP would run about US $745.

I'm not an IMac fan, there seems to be only a core of die-hard/ignore the advantages of alternatives, fan-boys who prefer them locally.

(I wish that PCs were available when I went to Uni, we had to make do with punch cards, and an IBM 360 (there were a few H/P mini computers, program it yourself in Basic, in racks scattered around the departments)... when I started slide rules were the standard calculator).

Enjoy!


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## Wybren (Nov 29, 2008)

Happy Joe $745USD is $1138AUD so really $1150 is only $12 more than what he'd pay if it were over there.

The company my grandfather worked for was one of the first places in the country to get a computer, he said that the room it was stored in was huge because it was so huge, and he alway is amazed at how small the computers are getting compared to that one.


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## Culhwch (Jan 14, 2009)

Thread ressurection! Well, it's been a long time between drinks, but I've finally pretty much settled on what I'm aiming to get. Now I just need to find the time to order it all and pick it up (and hope that the supplier doesn't suddenly go out of stock on anyhting and derail my progress - again...). For the record, this is what I'm looking at:

- Intel ATX E7300 CORE 2 DUO 2.66G 3MBCache 1066FSB LGA775 
- Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3P P45+ICH10R DDR2 1200 1600MHz PCI-E 2.0 SATAII RAID GLAN 1394a 8Ch ATX 
- Western Digital 500G SATAII 7200 rpm HDD(16Mb Cache)
- MSI ATI R4830 512M OC
- Kingston DDR2 4(2x2G)PC6400 800Mhz - KVR800D2N6K2/4G
- CoolerMaster Centurion 5 RCT05KKR2 with 460w PSU Black

And a DVD burner I salvaged from my wife's old PC. Surely I don't need a floppy drive in this day and age, do I? In any case, the whole rig should set me back just a smidge over $A800, which is about what I was aiming for. Then comes the fun part... piecing it all together!


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## Wybren (Jan 14, 2009)

Ah floppy drive? whats a floppy drive?  I think we just have bit where one could go if we put one in but I dont think it is needed.


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## Happy Joe (Jan 15, 2009)

I have some but they are beige...
The last bunch of floppies that I bought were unreliable (at best).
I like thumbnail drives (USB) for temporary storage and sneakernet transport of data between unconnected machines.
Burn CDs for small storage ~700mb and DVDs for larger backups.

The floppy drive position will hold another hard drive...

Enjoy!


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## Culhwch (Jan 24, 2009)

Culhwch said:


> Thread ressurection! Well, it's been a long time between drinks, but I've finally pretty much settled on what I'm aiming to get. Now I just need to find the time to order it all and pick it up (and hope that the supplier doesn't suddenly go out of stock on anyhting and derail my progress - again...). For the record, this is what I'm looking at:
> 
> - Intel ATX E7300 CORE 2 DUO 2.66G 3MBCache 1066FSB LGA775
> - Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3P P45+ICH10R DDR2 1200 1600MHz PCI-E 2.0 SATAII RAID GLAN 1394a 8Ch ATX
> ...


 
I swapped the 7300 for the 2.8G 7400 for $6 more, and had to change the case to a 534, but I now have a mostly assembled computer on my desk beside me. I have to set up my monitor yet, so I'm going to leave it to the morning to test it all. Hopefully she fires up first go.

The only thing that has stumped me is that there are two single-pin connectors coming from the front panel, twisted together, one marked '+' and the other '-'. The manual is largely unhelpful, and I can't figure out what they are for. I've got the power, reset, hdd light, USB and firewire connectors plugged in. Anyone have any idea?


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## Happy Joe (Jan 24, 2009)

Do they connect to a switch or to an LED or possibly a speaker (though speakers in cases seem to be rare now days).
Most likely they go to either a power led, or effect LEDs.

This case?
Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, Digital Cameras and more!

Does it have mesh or slanted plates for the front vents (the 534+ has the slanted plates), both are supposed to have effect lighting in front (connect to the power LED pins).

Enjoy!


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## Culhwch (Jan 24, 2009)

That's the one. There's a seperate power cable for the two effect LEDs, so it's not that. Oh, well. Time to fire it up and see what happens...


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## Culhwch (Jan 25, 2009)

Well, update time - she's purring like a kitten! I cannot tell you how stunned I am. Switched on first go, no real issues. Well, the HDD light must be plugged in wrong, it doesn't go, but other than that, everything seems to be working as it should. Fingers, of course, crossed, and knock on wood and all that. I've had a long day installing everything and ironing out the the little kinks that have popped up, and I'm yet to get our local connection working. But I've just played through the tutorial of _Medieval II: Total War_, and I'm at this instant a happy man!


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## Wybren (Jan 25, 2009)

The other half says to try turning your HDD light cable around. 

You have the same chip as we do too so should keep you happy for a bit.


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## Culhwch (Jan 25, 2009)

It's all together and sealed up now, so I'll wait until I need to go back inside. I figure there's no rush!


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## Wybren (Jan 25, 2009)

Fair enough, As long as it works right


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## Happy Joe (Jan 26, 2009)

Congrats!

Enjoy!

(Now I find myself contemplating a new machne... Must.. be.. strong... Must.. resist...)


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