Ordered my stuff from Newegg today. With 3-day UPS shipping, I ought to be hunched over the case nekkid by early next week at the latest. Wish me luck, you guys.
Ordered my stuff from Newegg today. With 3-day UPS shipping, I ought to be hunched over the case nekkid by early next week at the latest. Wish me luck, you guys.
Other than size, are there any compatibility issues to know about with power supplies?
As far as the connection to the motherboard, no not any more. All power supplies use 24 pin jacks these days. The thing you should worry about is the connection to your video card and the overall wattage. If you plan on running two cards then you'll want a PSU with 2 6-pin PCI-E connections. Another thing is the size. Don't screw up and get a PSU that won't physically fit in your case. This shouldn't be too much of a problem, though, just don't bother looking at a PSU for a server or small form factor case if thats not what you need.
The things you need to look at for a power supply is quality and the easy way to do that is by brand name. I personally like Antec and Corsair. Others have their own favorites. Another thing is quiet vs. performance. You can have an icy cold power supply but if you can't stand for your PC to sound like a jet engine than you may want to sacrifice a little power for quiet.
Really power supplies should be the easiest part to buy unless you are into hardcore efficiency. Browse the reviews and pick the one that matches the parts you want/have. For me power supplies are the last thing I buy for my builds.
I'm just going to go ahead and cross post this question here because this thread is all about computer savvy people.
So I've got an older computer that's host to a software based raid array.
The windows install is acting a fool and I'm thinking it's time to format this puppy.
will my windows 7 created software raid die if I reformat the OS?
ps: the OS is installed not only on a separate partition, but a separate physical drive.
Drive 1: 60gb - Operating System drive
Drive 2-5: 4x 500gb drives in a 2tb raid 0 array set up through windows 7.
Never a GTX 465. Ever. A GTX 460 1GB will throw down with a 6870, so you'll probably get more mileage out of it, but both are great cards. Entirely up to you.
Looks like Sapphire reccomends a 500w PSU. If you got a good, efficient model, you could easily go as low (if not lower) then that.
your cart is empty! or at least, that's what the link is telling me.
Tamin on
0
HalibutPassion FishSwimming in obscurity.Registered Userregular
edited January 2011
Hey guys, just wanted to pop back in here and thank everyone for their help! I ordered the parts on Tuesday, they arrived Thursday at noon, and by 3 PM I had a new PC!
It's a huge step up from the 6 year old POS I was using previously. And it's so quiet I can barely tell it's on.
i'm looking at (spec'd at local microcenter):
intel Ci7 950 - $230
Asus Sabertooth x58 1366 ATX - $200
6GB RAM DDR3 Kit - $120
OCZTech 600W MODXSTREAM PRO APFC (modular power supply) - $75
EVGA Nvidia GTX460 - $190
4x1TB Seagate Drives for RAID5 - $70ea, $280
Coolmaster HAF922M Mini ATX case - $125
Using one of my many optical drives laying around
What should I be looking for spec wise when it comes to power supplies other than the wattage?
Thanks alot for the advice btw.
You want to look at efficiency, and how many amps are on the 12v rail. (There's also other things, like ripple along the rail, but you can really only find that out by reading a review)
And Joe, it looks fine to me. If you wanted to overclock, you could get an i7 920 instead, and save some money on your cpu, but otherwise it looks fine.
i'm looking at (spec'd at local microcenter):
intel Ci7 950 - $230
Asus Sabertooth x58 1366 ATX - $200
6GB RAM DDR3 Kit - $120
OCZTech 600W MODXSTREAM PRO APFC (modular power supply) - $75
EVGA Nvidia GTX460 - $190
4x1TB Seagate Drives for RAID5 - $70ea, $280
Coolmaster HAF922M Mini ATX case - $125
Using one of my many optical drives laying around
Total: $1220 for HW.
any comments?
You sure all that is gonna fit in a Mini-ATX case? Especially if you ever want to OC - and thus need to stack an aftermarket cooler on the processor - you're gonna find space to be awfully limited.
You sure all that is gonna fit in a Mini-ATX case? Especially if you ever want to OC - and thus need to stack an aftermarket cooler on the processor - you're gonna find space to be awfully limited.
Not sure why it says Mini-ATX on Joe's list, but an HAF 922 is a mid-tower with pleeeeenty of room.
I have a 6870 in mine, and a Venomous-X as my cpu cooler with plenty of room to spare.
So, I moved to the UK and had to leave my awesome gaming desktop behind in Canada (for at least a few years) and I'm going through PC gaming withdrawal. I could only bring over my laptop, which, when I bought it was only intended to be a a computer used for internet, some media playback and the like. I knew it had an integrated video card when I bought it, to save money. It's a Sony Vaio VGN-NS190D, does anyone know if the video card can be upgraded on these things? How would I find out if I could upgrade it?
I've spent a little time trying to google your specific model without any luck, but generally speaking you cannot upgrade the graphics card in a laptop. And, even if you could, the trouble becomes finding someone to sell you a mobility chip. Seeing as how your model only has an integrated card, and not a standalone mobility card, I would say chances are pretty good that you wouldn't be able to upgrade anyways.
You sure all that is gonna fit in a Mini-ATX case? Especially if you ever want to OC - and thus need to stack an aftermarket cooler on the processor - you're gonna find space to be awfully limited.
Not sure why it says Mini-ATX on Joe's list, but an HAF 922 is a mid-tower with pleeeeenty of room.
I have a 6870 in mine, and a Venomous-X as my cpu cooler with plenty of room to spare.
It's quoted as a HAF922M, which prbly is a MicroTower, and dingos prbly right, a mid or full tower (for some reason i love these) might make a lot more sense, especially if i want anything resembling hotswappable RAID5, but then i think that i'm talking about a different motherboard and case entirely for the hotswappiness. but mid or full, great suggestions.
as for the 920 vs 950, the 950 is on the latest socket, so I should have a better upgrade path with processors. i really wish that intel would keep on the same socket/northbridge/southbridge for a little longer to give me more opportunities to upgrade processors. This quest started out as an attempt to upgrade my LGA775 from a Pentium-D dual to a quad core2 that was an incredible price, but alas, they kept the same socket, and changed everything else and my mobo was incompatible. And then I started looking at mobo changes, realized I'd need a new power supply to support the video card that i wanted to throw in, and came to the conclusion: time for new box, this one is too old to squeeze anything else out of.
so, the i7 950 uses a different, newest socket, and intel has better processors for it already. there's one with that socket that's $1k today, and maybe in a year, I'll be able to upgrade to it for $150.
I've never overclocked, the heat dissipation problems (and yes, I know there are mega-cooling methods) lead to hardware failure. You lose something like 1/2 the MTBF of the processor for every degree C you run it above spec.
It's quoted as a HAF922M, which prbly is a MicroTower, and dingos prbly right, a mid or full tower (for some reason i love these) might make a lot more sense, especially if i want anything resembling hotswappable RAID5, but then i think that i'm talking about a different motherboard and case entirely for the hotswappiness. but mid or full, great suggestions.
as for the 920 vs 950, the 950 is on the latest socket, so I should have a better upgrade path with processors. i really wish that intel would keep on the same socket/northbridge/southbridge for a little longer to give me more opportunities to upgrade processors. This quest started out as an attempt to upgrade my LGA775 from a Pentium-D dual to a quad core2 that was an incredible price, but alas, they kept the same socket, and changed everything else and my mobo was incompatible. And then I started looking at mobo changes, realized I'd need a new power supply to support the video card that i wanted to throw in, and came to the conclusion: time for new box, this one is too old to squeeze anything else out of.
so, the i7 950 uses a different, newest socket, and intel has better processors for it already. there's one with that socket that's $1k today, and maybe in a year, I'll be able to upgrade to it for $150.
I've never overclocked, the heat dissipation problems (and yes, I know there are mega-cooling methods) lead to hardware failure. You lose something like 1/2 the MTBF of the processor for every degree C you run it above spec.
The i7-920 is on the same socket as the 950. Both are LGA-1366. If you don't feel like overclocking, that's one thing, but if you have decent cooling, a mild overclock will never stress your chip beyond its parameters.
IMO, the 920 is the better deal, but it's your money.
so, the i7 950 uses a different, newest socket, and intel has better processors for it already. there's one with that socket that's $1k today, and maybe in a year, I'll be able to upgrade to it for $150.
so, the i7 950 uses a different, newest socket, and intel has better processors for it already. there's one with that socket that's $1k today, and maybe in a year, I'll be able to upgrade to it for $150.
The i7 920 and 950 are both on the same socket.
i must be confusing it with like the 870 or something. where can i find the performance difference between the 920 and 950. i'd much rather a touch less performance if it will save me significant cash. i mean, if intel keeps the mobo compatible for a while, i can always upgrade to a better core.
So I got a new HP SlimLine for christmas and I'm looking to upgrade the graphics card. I don't want anything too crazy, just something that'll run WoW at pretty high settings. What would be the best card to get to do this. I believe it's a PCI, and it's currently running the NVIDIA GeForce 6150 SE card. Any suggestions?
The 6150 SE is an integrated graphics chip on the motherboard, just so you know. I imagine your computer probably does have an open PCI slot you could put a better card in.
So I got a new HP SlimLine for christmas and I'm looking to upgrade the graphics card. I don't want anything too crazy, just something that'll run WoW at pretty high settings. What would be the best card to get to do this. I believe it's a PCI, and it's currently running the NVIDIA GeForce 6150 SE card. Any suggestions?
I had a computer with that and it could run source games at lowest settings and at lowest resolution. I recommend getting a dedicated card, just a cheaper $80 one would work. I would also disable that intergrated card because I know some of the 6150 have had overheating problems where it will just kill the entire system. Happened to my HP laptop so just watch out for that.
so, i got me a brand new palit GTX 460 1GB sonic. it ain't the platinum version, so i know it's got the crappy heatsink, but it runs cool so i'm not especially worried. how's palit's reliability/reputation in general, though?
curly haired boy on
Registered just for the Mass Effect threads | Steam: click ^^^ | Origin: curlyhairedboy
Sandy Bridge has been officially announced. Funny thing for Korea is that the new motherboards are out today but the chips aren't on sale yet.
Review are out. Anandtech was able to get their unlocked Sandy Bridge CPU to 4.4ghz on air using the stock low profile cooler! Bit-tech overclocked their 2500k to 4.9ghz on air but didn't specify which cooler they used.
Also, Antihippy, you will not be able to run a new sandy bridge on a p55 board. They moved a ton of features onto the chip which is not supported by the older chipset. The P55 board is LGA 1156 while the new Sandy Bridge chips are LGA 1155.
krapst78 on
Hello! My name is Inigo Montoya! You killed my father prepare to die!
Looking for a Hardcore Fantasy Extraction Shooter? - Dark and Darker
so, the i7 950 uses a different, newest socket, and intel has better processors for it already. there's one with that socket that's $1k today, and maybe in a year, I'll be able to upgrade to it for $150.
The i7 920 and 950 are both on the same socket.
i must be confusing it with like the 870 or something. where can i find the performance difference between the 920 and 950. i'd much rather a touch less performance if it will save me significant cash. i mean, if intel keeps the mobo compatible for a while, i can always upgrade to a better core.
It doesn't matter, apparently, because Intel has eliminated the 920 sku in favor of the 950. So have at it.
-intel core i5 760
-Asus P7p55
-kingston 1333 4gb ram
-powercolor hd 5770
-SATA Asus DVD burner
-Thermaltake qfan 500W
-Seagate 500gb
- NZXT M59 case
Honestly, now that Sandybridge is out you should really consider just moving to the new chipset instead of going with Lynnfield. Price wise it will be equivalent but you will get much much better bang for the buck now. Right now even the mobile versions of the Sandybridge chips are outperforming the i5s from the previous generation.
krapst78 on
Hello! My name is Inigo Montoya! You killed my father prepare to die!
Looking for a Hardcore Fantasy Extraction Shooter? - Dark and Darker
So I'm hoping someone can help me make a solid plan/build here.
I'm looking to upgrade my 4 or 5 year old desktop. I'm considering 3 different plans:
1) Get a powerful gaming laptop of some kind, one meant to run most current gen games and hopefully somewhat future-proof
2) Get a gaming desktop, and also pick up a netbook or something that would at minimum run World of WarCraft in addition to standard office and internet applications
3) Screw the portable stuff and just get the gaming desktop
I'm pretty far out of the game when it comes to building PCs, so I'm floundering a bit here on deciding, let alone making actual builds. If anyone has any advice, it'd be greatly appreciated. I'll try to answer the prescribed questions here:
[*]What is your total budget?
Probably in the $1500 range, for either or both the machines in question [*]What has to be included in that budget? Just an upgrade, just the computer itself or a computer with monitor, mouse and keyboard? Do you have parts from your old computer that you can use?
Monitor, mouse, and keyboard are already taken care of. The age of the actual computer is such that I doubt any of the parts will be of use. [*]Is this computer just for gaming and casual computer use or do you have other computationally intensive tasks in mind?
Definitely gaming. I'm unlikely to do anything too intense besides that, but I am a game programmer so I expect to do some personal projects as well. [*]What resolution to you plan on gaming at? Mostly this should be the native resolution of your monitor.
Current monitor is 1680x1050, which has served me well. I'd like to have the OPTION of increasing that though, as I've been watching for new, larger monitors to go on sale. [*]Do you feel the need for cutting edge performance in the most demanding games (*cough* Crysis) or is good performance in most games and "good enough" performance in the most demanding games? Any particular games or upcoming games you care about?
I'm a "not quite cutting edge but close" kind of guy. As soon as the ratio of cost increase to performance increase starts to diminish, I'm not interested. [*]Are you biased towards either ATI/NVidia or Intel/AMD?
No, I've switched back and forth through the years. I go with whatever is currently better in my price range. [*]How long do you want this computer to last, i.e. do you want to pay extra to try and "future proof" your computer so it won't have to be upgraded or replaced quite as soon?
A little bit of future proofing would be excellent. I like my computers to last several years at least. But I don't want to go too overboard. [*]How important is being able to upgrade your computer at a later time?
Not incredibly important. I've pretty much always bought an entirely new box because whatever I was upgrading was so old.
Only other thing of note is that I'm in Canada, so good websites for Canadian deals are appreciated. NCIX is currently my primary contender, but I've been told www.ibuypower.com is a good alternative as well.
so, the i7 950 uses a different, newest socket, and intel has better processors for it already. there's one with that socket that's $1k today, and maybe in a year, I'll be able to upgrade to it for $150.
The i7 920 and 950 are both on the same socket.
i must be confusing it with like the 870 or something. where can i find the performance difference between the 920 and 950. i'd much rather a touch less performance if it will save me significant cash. i mean, if intel keeps the mobo compatible for a while, i can always upgrade to a better core.
It doesn't matter, apparently, because Intel has eliminated the 920 sku in favor of the 950. So have at it.
Indeed, I thought the 930 was still around, but apparently not. I guess 950 it is.
Fats on
0
kaliyamaLeft to find less-moderated foraRegistered Userregular
So I'm hoping someone can help me make a solid plan/build here.
I'm looking to upgrade my 4 or 5 year old desktop. I'm considering 3 different plans:
1) Get a powerful gaming laptop of some kind, one meant to run most current gen games and hopefully somewhat future-proof
2) Get a gaming desktop, and also pick up a netbook or something that would at minimum run World of WarCraft in addition to standard office and internet applications
3) Screw the portable stuff and just get the gaming desktop
You can get a good gaming laptop for $1500 but i'm hesitant about you being able to future proof anything. The best bang for your buck is a regular desktop, and you can upgrade piecemeal and probably get 4-5 years out of it. Query whether you need a laptop: do you do anything for work or school where it would be a good thing to have?
So I'm hoping someone can help me make a solid plan/build here.
I'm looking to upgrade my 4 or 5 year old desktop. I'm considering 3 different plans:
1) Get a powerful gaming laptop of some kind, one meant to run most current gen games and hopefully somewhat future-proof
2) Get a gaming desktop, and also pick up a netbook or something that would at minimum run World of WarCraft in addition to standard office and internet applications
3) Screw the portable stuff and just get the gaming desktop
You can get a good gaming laptop for $1500 but i'm hesitant about you being able to future proof anything. The best bang for your buck is a regular desktop, and you can upgrade piecemeal and probably get 4-5 years out of it. Query whether you need a laptop: do you do anything for work or school where it would be a good thing to have?
Yeah, I've not been optimistic about finding a really useful gaming laptop in my price range. I do not currently have a true 'need' for the portability a laptop brings; it would be more of a nice perk. I've definitely been leaning towards the desktop + possible little netbook thing to run WoW if I decide I really want it. But focusing on the desktop for now.
As someone who made the "gaming laptop" compromise while I still needed portability and space savings at school, I would definitely advise you to go with the desktop if you have no compelling need for a laptop.
My MSI gaming laptop fulfilled my needs about as well as anything could have, but now a year and a half later it's reaching the limits of its capabilities with no way to upgrade to extend its lifespan, and of course I spent significantly more on it than I would have spent on a desktop.
I don't regret buying the MSI, there weren't really any better options at the time (I mean, besides gritting my teeth and accepting not being able to do any gaming until I was out of school, but that was never going to happen), but unless you're in a similar situation to the one I was in a gaming laptop is probably just a bad investment. Custom-built gaming desktop + netbook for uility/coffee shop runs/etc is definitely the way to go.
Sandy Bridge has been officially announced. Funny thing for Korea is that the new motherboards are out today but the chips aren't on sale yet.
Review are out. Anandtech was able to get their unlocked Sandy Bridge CPU to 4.4ghz on air using the stock low profile cooler! Bit-tech overclocked their 2500k to 4.9ghz on air but didn't specify which cooler they used.
Also, Antihippy, you will not be able to run a new sandy bridge on a p55 board. They moved a ton of features onto the chip which is not supported by the older chipset. The P55 board is LGA 1156 while the new Sandy Bridge chips are LGA 1155.
Posts
Post pics!
Steam profile.
Getting started with BATTLETECH: Part 1 / Part 2
As far as the connection to the motherboard, no not any more. All power supplies use 24 pin jacks these days. The thing you should worry about is the connection to your video card and the overall wattage. If you plan on running two cards then you'll want a PSU with 2 6-pin PCI-E connections. Another thing is the size. Don't screw up and get a PSU that won't physically fit in your case. This shouldn't be too much of a problem, though, just don't bother looking at a PSU for a server or small form factor case if thats not what you need.
The things you need to look at for a power supply is quality and the easy way to do that is by brand name. I personally like Antec and Corsair. Others have their own favorites. Another thing is quiet vs. performance. You can have an icy cold power supply but if you can't stand for your PC to sound like a jet engine than you may want to sacrifice a little power for quiet.
Really power supplies should be the easiest part to buy unless you are into hardcore efficiency. Browse the reviews and pick the one that matches the parts you want/have. For me power supplies are the last thing I buy for my builds.
Steam profile.
Getting started with BATTLETECH: Part 1 / Part 2
Also, should I go for a hd 6850 or a gtx 465? The store seems to have both at around the same price but I'm not sure which is better.
Looks like Sapphire reccomends a 500w PSU. If you got a good, efficient model, you could easily go as low (if not lower) then that.
A gigabyte GTS 450 is still an entirely acceptable card right? or a HD 5770?
Also going for a case which comes with a 500W power supply is pretty much the same as buying the case and power supply separately right?
Also what should i go for in a NIC and soundcard?
And yes and no. Generally speaking, cases that come with power supplies have junky power supplies.
Thanks alot for the advice btw.
https://www.pcdiy.com.au/shopping_cart.php?osCsid=0182199ed2858a2395a52cad9d326ab9
your cart is empty! or at least, that's what the link is telling me.
It's a huge step up from the 6 year old POS I was using previously. And it's so quiet I can barely tell it's on.
So, thanks again!
intel Ci7 950 - $230
Asus Sabertooth x58 1366 ATX - $200
6GB RAM DDR3 Kit - $120
OCZTech 600W MODXSTREAM PRO APFC (modular power supply) - $75
EVGA Nvidia GTX460 - $190
4x1TB Seagate Drives for RAID5 - $70ea, $280
Coolmaster HAF922M Mini ATX case - $125
Using one of my many optical drives laying around
Total: $1220 for HW.
any comments?
Joe's Stream.
You want to look at efficiency, and how many amps are on the 12v rail. (There's also other things, like ripple along the rail, but you can really only find that out by reading a review)
And Joe, it looks fine to me. If you wanted to overclock, you could get an i7 920 instead, and save some money on your cpu, but otherwise it looks fine.
You sure all that is gonna fit in a Mini-ATX case? Especially if you ever want to OC - and thus need to stack an aftermarket cooler on the processor - you're gonna find space to be awfully limited.
Not sure why it says Mini-ATX on Joe's list, but an HAF 922 is a mid-tower with pleeeeenty of room.
I have a 6870 in mine, and a Venomous-X as my cpu cooler with plenty of room to spare.
It's quoted as a HAF922M, which prbly is a MicroTower, and dingos prbly right, a mid or full tower (for some reason i love these) might make a lot more sense, especially if i want anything resembling hotswappable RAID5, but then i think that i'm talking about a different motherboard and case entirely for the hotswappiness. but mid or full, great suggestions.
as for the 920 vs 950, the 950 is on the latest socket, so I should have a better upgrade path with processors. i really wish that intel would keep on the same socket/northbridge/southbridge for a little longer to give me more opportunities to upgrade processors. This quest started out as an attempt to upgrade my LGA775 from a Pentium-D dual to a quad core2 that was an incredible price, but alas, they kept the same socket, and changed everything else and my mobo was incompatible. And then I started looking at mobo changes, realized I'd need a new power supply to support the video card that i wanted to throw in, and came to the conclusion: time for new box, this one is too old to squeeze anything else out of.
so, the i7 950 uses a different, newest socket, and intel has better processors for it already. there's one with that socket that's $1k today, and maybe in a year, I'll be able to upgrade to it for $150.
I've never overclocked, the heat dissipation problems (and yes, I know there are mega-cooling methods) lead to hardware failure. You lose something like 1/2 the MTBF of the processor for every degree C you run it above spec.
Joe's Stream.
The i7-920 is on the same socket as the 950. Both are LGA-1366. If you don't feel like overclocking, that's one thing, but if you have decent cooling, a mild overclock will never stress your chip beyond its parameters.
IMO, the 920 is the better deal, but it's your money.
The i7 920 and 950 are both on the same socket.
i must be confusing it with like the 870 or something. where can i find the performance difference between the 920 and 950. i'd much rather a touch less performance if it will save me significant cash. i mean, if intel keeps the mobo compatible for a while, i can always upgrade to a better core.
Joe's Stream.
PSN: ChemENGR
I had a computer with that and it could run source games at lowest settings and at lowest resolution. I recommend getting a dedicated card, just a cheaper $80 one would work. I would also disable that intergrated card because I know some of the 6150 have had overheating problems where it will just kill the entire system. Happened to my HP laptop so just watch out for that.
Can I just go for the cheapest 4gb DDR3 set or do I need to watch out for the specs more?
Also is that board compatible with the upcoming sandy bridge processors? Though I won't be upgrading for quite a long time. :P
Registered just for the Mass Effect threads | Steam: click ^^^ | Origin: curlyhairedboy
Review are out. Anandtech was able to get their unlocked Sandy Bridge CPU to 4.4ghz on air using the stock low profile cooler! Bit-tech overclocked their 2500k to 4.9ghz on air but didn't specify which cooler they used.
Anandtech Review
Bit-Tech Review
Also, Antihippy, you will not be able to run a new sandy bridge on a p55 board. They moved a ton of features onto the chip which is not supported by the older chipset. The P55 board is LGA 1156 while the new Sandy Bridge chips are LGA 1155.
Looking for a Hardcore Fantasy Extraction Shooter? - Dark and Darker
Anything else i should consider?
-intel core i5 760
-Asus P7p55
-kingston 1333 4gb ram
-powercolor hd 5770
-SATA Asus DVD burner
-Thermaltake qfan 500W
-Seagate 500gb
- NZXT M59 case
It doesn't matter, apparently, because Intel has eliminated the 920 sku in favor of the 950. So have at it.
Honestly, now that Sandybridge is out you should really consider just moving to the new chipset instead of going with Lynnfield. Price wise it will be equivalent but you will get much much better bang for the buck now. Right now even the mobile versions of the Sandybridge chips are outperforming the i5s from the previous generation.
Looking for a Hardcore Fantasy Extraction Shooter? - Dark and Darker
I'm looking to upgrade my 4 or 5 year old desktop. I'm considering 3 different plans:
1) Get a powerful gaming laptop of some kind, one meant to run most current gen games and hopefully somewhat future-proof
2) Get a gaming desktop, and also pick up a netbook or something that would at minimum run World of WarCraft in addition to standard office and internet applications
3) Screw the portable stuff and just get the gaming desktop
I'm pretty far out of the game when it comes to building PCs, so I'm floundering a bit here on deciding, let alone making actual builds. If anyone has any advice, it'd be greatly appreciated. I'll try to answer the prescribed questions here:
[*]What is your total budget?
Probably in the $1500 range, for either or both the machines in question
[*]What has to be included in that budget? Just an upgrade, just the computer itself or a computer with monitor, mouse and keyboard? Do you have parts from your old computer that you can use?
Monitor, mouse, and keyboard are already taken care of. The age of the actual computer is such that I doubt any of the parts will be of use.
[*]Is this computer just for gaming and casual computer use or do you have other computationally intensive tasks in mind?
Definitely gaming. I'm unlikely to do anything too intense besides that, but I am a game programmer so I expect to do some personal projects as well.
[*]What resolution to you plan on gaming at? Mostly this should be the native resolution of your monitor.
Current monitor is 1680x1050, which has served me well. I'd like to have the OPTION of increasing that though, as I've been watching for new, larger monitors to go on sale.
[*]Do you feel the need for cutting edge performance in the most demanding games (*cough* Crysis) or is good performance in most games and "good enough" performance in the most demanding games? Any particular games or upcoming games you care about?
I'm a "not quite cutting edge but close" kind of guy. As soon as the ratio of cost increase to performance increase starts to diminish, I'm not interested.
[*]Are you biased towards either ATI/NVidia or Intel/AMD?
No, I've switched back and forth through the years. I go with whatever is currently better in my price range.
[*]How long do you want this computer to last, i.e. do you want to pay extra to try and "future proof" your computer so it won't have to be upgraded or replaced quite as soon?
A little bit of future proofing would be excellent. I like my computers to last several years at least. But I don't want to go too overboard.
[*]How important is being able to upgrade your computer at a later time?
Not incredibly important. I've pretty much always bought an entirely new box because whatever I was upgrading was so old.
Only other thing of note is that I'm in Canada, so good websites for Canadian deals are appreciated. NCIX is currently my primary contender, but I've been told www.ibuypower.com is a good alternative as well.
Indeed, I thought the 930 was still around, but apparently not. I guess 950 it is.
You can get a good gaming laptop for $1500 but i'm hesitant about you being able to future proof anything. The best bang for your buck is a regular desktop, and you can upgrade piecemeal and probably get 4-5 years out of it. Query whether you need a laptop: do you do anything for work or school where it would be a good thing to have?
Yeah, I've not been optimistic about finding a really useful gaming laptop in my price range. I do not currently have a true 'need' for the portability a laptop brings; it would be more of a nice perk. I've definitely been leaning towards the desktop + possible little netbook thing to run WoW if I decide I really want it. But focusing on the desktop for now.
My MSI gaming laptop fulfilled my needs about as well as anything could have, but now a year and a half later it's reaching the limits of its capabilities with no way to upgrade to extend its lifespan, and of course I spent significantly more on it than I would have spent on a desktop.
I don't regret buying the MSI, there weren't really any better options at the time (I mean, besides gritting my teeth and accepting not being able to do any gaming until I was out of school, but that was never going to happen), but unless you're in a similar situation to the one I was in a gaming laptop is probably just a bad investment. Custom-built gaming desktop + netbook for uility/coffee shop runs/etc is definitely the way to go.
overclock3d got theirs to 5ghz on air :O
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=achL4hIAvpo&feature=player_embedded
Registered just for the Mass Effect threads | Steam: click ^^^ | Origin: curlyhairedboy