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Aerosol's shopping list.


Aerosol

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After moving to the states, I decided once and for all that i need a decent computer. One that doesnt slow down in vice city when an automatic weapon is fired. On that doesn't give me lip when trying to play dvd's. One that is capable of scoring higher than 5 on 3dmark!

What I really want to know though, is whether or not the parts I have chosen are all compatible and whether or not they are any good.

CPU: http://promotions.newegg.com/AMD/AMD_mobo/index.html

Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813138247

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145026

Video Card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/CustratingReview.asp?item=N82E16814150130

Sound Card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16829102003

Thanks beforehand!

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It's a 64-bit processor, so you might consider getting in on the slightly-more-expensive-than-the-usual-Windows-XP, Windows XP 64-bit edition.

In any event, I'd say to double up on the Ram and thats about it. It'll be decent. Not top of the line mind, but it'll probably score well enough on 3D mark to not be completely disappointing.

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There is nothing inherently better about a 64-bit CPU, however it's more "future proof" (won't become uselessly obsolete as quickly).

CPU - Good. Especcially with that combo deal.

Mainboard - Not bad. See warning about video card, though.

RAM - You'll want more for a gaming rig.

Video card - WARNING! This card is PCI Express x16, but the Biostar Mainboard does not have a PCI Express slot. Select either a mainboard that has a PCI Express slot, or an AGP video card.

Sound card - Not bad, but the Mainboard you selected has onboard sound. If you don't have expensive sound equipment, or don't deal with high-end audio softeware, this is likely to be a waste of money. Use your descretion...

Now...

I've been playing a little game about once a month... I try to build the best PC for under the least amount of money. Here's the one I built yesterday which just happens to use Newegg stock:

Case w/ 350W PSU: $24

MSI Mainboard: $77

GeForce 7600GS/256MB Video card: $109

Dual core Athlon 64 3800+ CPU: $153

2 GB RAM: $139

250GB SATA HDD: $78

DVD+/-RW drive: $29

Keyboard + optical mouse: $10

Total: $618.88

Complete details: http://smidge204.homeftp.net:84/TheoreticalPC02.htm

Since I came in under my $700 budget, I might as well add this badass heatsink to the deal.

=Smidge=

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yea that's not too much for me. An extra week of saving isn't bad at all.

edit: @eraysor: i usually buy them for MIDI ports. in england they are only about & pounds so it wasnt a big deal to get one incase i needed the midi port.

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"I haven't tried it yet, because I'm not sure a free trial is worth wiping a hard drive for."

xD

Smidge: Woah. A DVD burner is that cheap? ... I should buy one. Then I could burn dual discs. Not sure why I'd need to do that, but I could. And that's the point of having crap (points at the TV show "Cribs"). I guess if stuff is that cheap on there I should get a 15" monitor and a wireless mouse too.. although.. chances are that will cost a bit more because it's "wireless." Psh.

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30 bucks! I should get one too, cause that is totally in my budget.

Scatta:I was actually out mouse shopping just last week. I got an HP rechargable mouse for $40, but if you're willing to buy batteries all the time I think the normal ones are around $20.

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"I haven't tried it yet, because I'm not sure a free trial is worth wiping a hard drive for."

xD

Smidge: Woah. A DVD burner is that cheap? ... I should buy one. Then I could burn dual discs. Not sure why I'd need to do that, but I could. And that's the point of having crap (points at the TV show "Cribs"). I guess if stuff is that cheap on there I should get a 15" monitor and a wireless mouse too.. although.. chances are that will cost a bit more because it's "wireless." Psh.

Yea I got mine for $30, be warned though that it just comes with the drive, no software or plugins.

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Here goes..

Note that NewEgg is ____ and doesn't carry any decent new parts, but I will try to use them as much as possible.

CPU: Intel Core 2 Extreme X6800

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=2341239&sku=CP2-DUO-X6800

Heatsink: (not that you even need one with the Conroe) Zalman CNPS9500 LED

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835118223

Motherboard: None. Wait until the nForce 590 chipset is released for Intel.

Videocard: 2x XFX GeForce 7950 GX2 M570 1GB DDR3 XXX in SLI.

Good luck finding a link.

RAM: 2GB of PC26400 Corsair XMS2

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145034

HDD: 1 WD Raptor X for main drive. 1 Seagate Barracuda for storage.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822136011

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148133

Sound: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite 7.1

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16829102191

I don't care what you do for optical drives. They are useless.

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Truth is, until most of the manufacturers jump on the 64-bit bandwagon, Linux is still the 64-bit desktop's best friend. But get 64-bit Windows anyway if you don't mind slight wonkiness at times (after all, I'm typing this post on my MacBook via Boot Camp, and lemme be the first to tell you, the touchpad is mega-wonky).

And while you can get USB MIDI interfaces these days, sometimes it's just Worth It to get a sound card. Depends on the quality of the integrated sound, though.

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Remember 32-bit software will run perfectly fine on 64-bit hardware. This is why 64-bit architectures are probably not a bad investment - they are useful for all your old stuff, and is ready to run new stuff as it's available.

@Koray: Optical drives are not useless :P

Also, I personally don't want to invest in anything that hasn't been on the market for at least 6 months or so. Not only does the cost generally drop a fair amount, and there's no sense trying to keep up with the bleeding edge tech, but there always seems to be one or two tweeks that get made that makes buying the first devices off the line a little more risky.

=Smidge=

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Wait for WWDC (this week) to be over, man. Just wait, Papa Steve is 99.9% sure to reveal the Intel Core 2 Duo-running Macs.

Oh, and Mr. Smidgey... the only real good reason for getting bleeding-edge stuff is to anticipate the end user of a finished product. Everything else is marketing-driven futureproofing paranoia and gamecrufty e-c0q.

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... the only real good reason for getting bleeding-edge stuff is to anticipate the end user of a finished product.

...but I am the end user! Therefore, the real argument is marketing - people want to hear that they are getting the best, not something that's 6 months obsolete.

=Smidge=

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Tentril: I've got a charge, and a few rechargeable batteries lying around somewhere- they're double A, but I also have a AAA charger that my gamepad sits on.. I could just use that. So yea.. thing is I SAW a $20 one and immediately convinced myself that it probably wouldn't work on my computer which is why it was so cheap. Damn I think too much. xD

SG: Then how would you go about hooking it up and getting MS to recognize it? And umm.. I saw a retail one (I believe that comes with everything for about $30 on NewEgg not including shipping.

Meh.. my year old computer does me just fine, and whenever I get a monitor for my Compaq Presario 6000 desktop I'm sure I'll be happy with it. The only reason I'll need a new computer will be for college, and that's not until winter next year. >.>

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