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[MiniBossman]

I give your anime a 7.5 out of 10.

Actually its my sister-in-law's. She has the good-ish taste. I'm just borrowing.

 

[Smokey]

Here is my finalized build, even posting from it now. Hadn't yet messed with overclocking it, but its running like butter so far.

goddamn that case looks like a beast

Have you seen the SLI 460 numbers? Hardly, "a few more FPS". Remember, it's not about having insane max frames, but the minimum being high as well.

As good as the 480 is by itself, you're not going to see 60fps 1080p 8xAA gaming for a every game. Those wanting that framerate consistency at the very best IQ, will see great value in adding a second 460. ~$400 for performance that blows by even the incredibly overpriced 5970? That's a helluva deal.

I don't remember seeings SLI 460s "blowing by" a 5970? I know that they are above a single GTX 480 and I've considered going that route too, so for the time being I just leave the 480 in for estimate purposes.

 

[Mairu]

I don't have that specific LCD but I have two other Dell LCDs and I'm very pleased with both of them.

 

[Shuusui]

^ Totally respect your sister after seeing Ergo Proxy in that image.

Anyway, I'm a first-time builder. Here is what I THINK my final build will be. Hopefully I've made it so everything will be compatible and awesome. Budget = $950. Monitor and optical drive already owned. Got two HDD's so that I can install my system disk (C:/ drive) on a seperate physical unit from my games. Here's the tally:

So, $943.91. I think this'll be much better than my 5-year old out-of-the-box Dell. Ideally, I'd like to be able to run Mass Effect 2 well.

 

[Mutagenic]

I don't have that specific LCD but I have two other Dell LCDs and I'm very pleased with both of them.

Thanks, sir.

 

[Hazaro]

Ahh, thanks for that.

So I just put in my zip code and apparently Newegg has a station in Memphis, TN... where I live. So there's a 77 dollar sales tax added on. Looks like I may be buying from Amazon with this one. Unless there's a cheaper route for me.

Also, here's my current build. Basically Hazaro's build but with a bigger HDD and different case. One question though: Why go with the Phenom II x4 955 instead of the 965? Is there a noticable performance difference between the two? Also, my products seem to be missing your awesome rebates and savings.

I'd just bite the tax and order it from Newegg. If you can find stuff from Amazon you can order some stuff you find from them.

Here is my finalized build, even posting from it now. Hadn't yet messed with overclocking it, but its running like butter so far.

I don't see any guts :[

Will that motherboard let me add a media reader without having to install a pci card with an onboard USB? The specs on newegg say "Oboard USB: 3 x USB connectors support additional 6 USB ports" That means I'm good, right?

That board oozes bandwidth and with USB 3.0 you should be solid (pretty sure it allows more current as well)

Damn I'm a fudgelord, posted my shopping cart :lol .

What I'm actually getting: http://secure.newegg.ca/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=14033472

http://i.imgur.com/A55hA.jpg

Sub in the Antec Sonata + 500w (should just be a tiny bit more), get the GB mobo under budget section, get ram with heatsinks (same price), get a gtx 460 with the saved money, and possibly pick up a CPU cooler. A 5770 at $170 is ROBBERY.

Does anyone have this monitor? I'll mainly be playing SCII, but I haven't bought an LCD ever for a computer. Halp.

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/products/Displays/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=320-0921

Dell has nice monitors.

^ Totally respect your sister after seeing Ergo Proxy in that image.

Anyway, I'm a first-time builder. Here is what I THINK my final build will be. Hopefully I've made it so everything will be compatible and awesome. Budget = $950. Monitor and optical drive already owned. Got two HDD's so that I can install my system disk (C:/ drive) on a seperate physical unit from my games. Here's the tally:

So, $943.91. I think this'll be much better than my 5-year old out-of-the-box Dell. Ideally, I'd like to be able to run Mass Effect 2 well.

You should be able to combo the CPU+mobo ($20), and the antec + RAM ($15). If you can't combo the antec and RAM you can combo a corsair 650W + the 1TB F3 ($15).
Use that moeny saved to get a 1GB GTX460. It's much more worthwhile than the 768MB in the long run. I suggest the Gigabyte 1GB.

 

[MiniBossman]

goddamn that case looks like a beast.

Its really not too big. It actually fits under my desk, but I left it sticking out for airflow's sake. I think bad airflow is what really killed my old box.

Now with guts:

I need to get some better cable management action going on in there.

 

[DrForester]

goddamn that case looks like a beast

Cooler Master HAF Cases are huge, but it's so easy to work with inside. I liked the one I had for a while.

 

[Smokey]

Are the HAF cases pretty heavy?

 

[Hazaro]

Are the HAF cases pretty heavy?

922 = 19.2 lbs.

Newegg has the weights for cases. The manf. websites should have them too.

 

[1stStrike]

Mm pictures. This is my current setup (it's a work in progress). I have some wall posters and stuff on the way and I'm getting myself a carpet for the floor soon. But, this is where I work from now. Just put together the desk today.

The PSU is on the bottom of this case (similar to the previous one) with the two fans on the top. It's pretty sweet. I have crappy cable management right now, so no point in showing off the insides of the case. I'll get in there and beautify it one of these days.

On top of my case is my work headset (my music ones are the Sennheisers on the desk) and my groovy headphone amp that was built by a fellow gaffer. There's about $450 in parts crammed inside of that thing. It rocks.

 

[Smokey]

922 = 19.2 lbs.

Newegg has the weights for cases. The manf. websites should have them too.

Got ya. Maybe it's the angle but that case looked like a full tower that's why I said it looked like a beast but apparently its a mid.

 

[h0pper]

I love seeing beast pc's on clean desks.

I'm such a nerd.

 

[Elfish]

Not really. There is no point in getting a new mobo, just check if your mobo can accept AM2+ CPUs. If it does, pick up a Phenom II quad core and a GTX 460.

I've changed my mind I was thinking of buying this configuration instead.

I think this is the best solution for me.

Already have a powersupply, my 630 watt raidmax is enough.

edit: scrap that mobo it seems outdaten and crappy, going for an ASrock instead with an 890 chipset.

 

[Stormtrooper30]

Alright, can someone tell me why this build is so damn expensive. I remember doing this for $800 earlier.

I feel like the mobo is the problem.

 

[DiabolicalBagel]

Your $800 build had a microATX board which would've accounted for most of the difference.

 

[Hazaro]

Alright, can someone tell me why this build is so damn expensive. I remember doing this for $800 earlier.

I feel like the mobo is the problem.

You had a x4 955 (-50) and a cheaper mobo (-20)

But you do have $55 in MIR.

 

[Stormtrooper30]

Alright. My appologies for spamming the thread with giant screenpics.

Bagel found me a cheaper mobo with a greater MIR.

Total after tax and shipping (and $70 in MIR) is now $870. Wonder if buying peices on Amazon will bring the cost down. Also, I have relatives nearby in Mississippi, so maybe I could ship the parts to them?

If anyone has any Newegg coupon codes, I'd be appreciative.

 

[IrishNinja]

Generally anything with integrated graphics is not going to run the games you want it to. Any amount of discrete graphics memory is better than a crapton of integrated graphics memory.

ok, so i should only concern myself with the memory # attached to the vid card itself, then? i guess what im wondering, from this link, again is: is the difference in the $500 system price ive got in mind significantly better in this dept for say $600? because if its more than that, it'd be cheaper to just upgrade my home PC video card and make peace with not playing diablo 3 or newer games on the lappy, though obviously not preferable.

4) Prospective laptop buyers please fill this out and ask their forum as well.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/wha...ould-i-buy-form-must-read-before-posting.html

what is this i dont even
oh, ok

General Questions

1) What is your budget?
$500 ideally, really shouldn't go higher than 600

2) What size notebook would you prefer?
d. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
e. Desktop Replacement; 17"+ screen
again, my vision's not so great (especially after long work hours) so the bigger, the better.

3) Where will you buying this notebook? You can select the flag of your country as an indicator.
Best buy, USA

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
i dont like the ones that are considered shitty on this thread and typically get responded to with say :lol

5) Would you consider laptops that are refurbished/redistributed?
if i had to? planning on getting a service plan anyway, so there's that.

6) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
porn sweet porn comics, movies, browsing, gaming

7) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places, leaving it on your desk or both?
taking to work, primarily, and used around the house. i already have a case.

8) Will you be playing games on your notebook? If so, please state which games or types of games?
gaming via emulators and my steam games which even if you tack on the wishlisht aren't very high demand
though again running diablo 3 and mebbe ps2/GC emulation would be sooooo cool.

9) How many hours of battery life do you need?
the more the better but honestly, its likely gonna be plugged in most times, so this isn't too big a concern at all.

10) Would you prefer to see the notebooks you're considering before purchasing it or buying a notebook on-line without seeing it is OK?
prefer hands-on but if its a great deal, ill take online and wing it based on you guys' say-so.

11) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista or Windows 7), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
Win 7 64-bit only

Screen Specifics

12) * Actual resolutions: 1440x900 and 1600x900
the former is the res i use on this work PC, but the screen's bigger...something around here, possibly larger.


13) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
which one's better for scratches? im not too concerned here, i can adjust lighting at either place.

Build Quality and Design

14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
i'm gonna be honest: im totally gonna put a big 3-eyed smiley on it like Transmetropolitan either way.

15) When are you buying this laptop?
hopefully september

16) How long do you want this laptop to last?
foreverrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
i hate upgrading shit, so uh, what's standard here? is 4-5+ years unreasonable?
Notebook Components

17) How much hard drive space do you need; 80GB to 640GB? Do you want a SSD drive?
SSD is likely way out of my price range; i like the models im looking at with 500 GB, but i can make do with less, its just not ideal.

18) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a CDRW/DVD-ROM, DVD Burner or Blu-Ray drive?
DVD burner's kinda standard, no? that'd be great but not a deal-breaker.

 

[Mairu]

Everything finally came at around 6pm today and a friend and I got started. It's all together now, but the heatsink I bought, the Cooler Master Hyper N520, came with a defective clamp for the motherboard. So I had to install the stock CPU heatsink, unfortunately. Hyper N520 going back to amazon.

I gotta say thanks Hazaro for the case recommendation, this case is awesome.

 

[Hazaro]

Alright. My appologies for spamming the thread with giant screenpics.

Bagel found me a cheaper mobo with a greater MIR.

Total after tax and shipping (and $70 in MIR) is now $870. Wonder if buying peices on Amazon will bring the cost down. Also, I have relatives nearby in Mississippi, so maybe I could ship the parts to them?

If anyone has any Newegg coupon codes, I'd be appreciative.

I'd really try to get a mobo with SATA 6/USB 3
It's not a deal breaker since you can always drop in a PCI card for that, but it's nice to have.
Regardless of that little issue it looks quite nice.

You might consider dropping in a GA-P55A-UD3 which has USB 3 and SATA 6, I think it's the same price after combo.

*Which case was it?

 

[Mairu]

COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

I didn't even realize it had USB/Audio/Firewire/esata ports on the top of the case. That was a pleasant suprise

 

[Irnbru]

Thar she blows! My new baby, the motherbrain!

 

[Najaf]

EDIT: nevermind, I'm going to put together some specs for review. I just can't pass up microcenter's $200 i7-930.

 

[The Shift]

Considering these two builds for now -

MSY -

Asus P7P55D-E-Pro 4DDR3 FSB2133(OC)RAID GBLAN PCIEx16 SATA3 USB3.0 ATX
Intel Core i5 750 Processor LGA1156 2.66GHz 8MB Cache CPU
G Skill 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Dual Channel [Ripjaws] F3-12800CL8D-4GBRM
Asus 5770 1GB ATI EAH5770 HDMI DVI PCI-E Video Card
Western Digital 1TB Blue 32MB SATAII WD10EALS
LG H22NS50 SATA 22X+- Super Multi DVDR Black
Lian Li Lancool Dragon Lord PC-K56 Black
Antec ATX TruePower 550W
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 32bit OEM

TOTAL : $1184

UMart -

Asus P7P55D-E-Pro 4DDR3 FSB2133(OC)RAID GBLAN PCIEx16 SATA3 USB3.0 ATX
Intel Core i5 750 Processor LGA1156 2.66GHz 8MB Cache CPU
G Skill 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Dual Channel [Ripjaws] F3-12800CL8D-4GBRM
Sapphire ATI HD5770 Vapor-X OC Ed 1G GDDR5 PCI-E
Western Digital 1TB Blue 32MB SATAII WD10EALS
LG H22NS50 SATA 22X+- Super Multi DVDR Black
Lian Li Lancool Dragon Lord PC-K56 Black
Antec ATX TruePower 550W
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 32bit OEM

TOTAL : $1251

Prices are current Australian dollars.

This PC is only needed for EVE Online primarily, Sins Of A Solar Empire, ARMA I/II(at mid settings) and maybe some older stuff. It will also need to run Cubase 5, EZ Drummer, Guitar Rig and a few other music production apps.

Any recommendations? Need to keep the pricing at $1300 max.

Cheers for any advice

 

[Chaser]

That 5770 is a bad value. You would be better off in dropping down to a 500GB and switching to a gtx 460.

Hm, I might try this.
It's likely I'll need the extra space though. Is there anything less or as expensive as the 5770 that's considered a better deal? I wouldn't mind if its performance was slightly worse, either.

Also, do you (or anyone else really) object to the power supply?
I figured 600W would be sufficient, but I'm not positive and I know next to nothing about brands.

As always, thanks for the help.

 

[Ravenn17]

Is there anyway to get this PSU to work with this video card?

 

[Mr_Brit]

Is there anyway to get this PSU to work with this video card?

There should be an adapter in the GPU's box to convert two molex plugs into a PCIE cable.

 

[1-D_FTW]

EDIT: Fixed. Although if anyone thinks their sound is dull and lifeless in 7 using an Audigy 2 card (or maybe anything), go into the sound settings and set the treble and bass to 0db. Those things were set at like -8db as the defaults for me.

 

[alanias]

ok, so i should only concern myself with the memory # attached to the vid card itself, then? i guess what im wondering, from this link, again is: is the difference in the $500 system price ive got in mind significantly better in this dept for say $600? because if its more than that, it'd be cheaper to just upgrade my home PC video card and make peace with not playing diablo 3 or newer games on the lappy, though obviously not preferable.



what is this i dont even
oh, ok

General Questions
Answers

I don't believe there is a decent gaming laptop that can be had for 600 bucks... I may be wrong though. Something like this
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220715
Would do the job.
Read up on which mobile GPUs are halfway decent and then narrow it down by models that contain that GPU or higher. That should help with your search.

 

[coopolon]

So I'm kind of liking Newegg's shell shocker deal this morning for htpc lite desktop for my gf: An e5400 and mini-itx(?) zotac nvidia geforce 7050 mobo.

http://www.newegg.com/Special/ShellShocker.aspx?cm_sp=ShellShocker-_-458479-_-08042010

My thought is I'll throw my 4850 into it, and buy a gtx460 for myself. Basically then I just need a psu, ram, and case (I already have everything else.)

What do you guys think? This should be more then sufficient for streaming hd off the net and playing back blu-ray rips right?

Edit: Ehhh, maybe not. Doesn't have a PCI-E x16 slot to even support a 4850.

 

[DrForester]

Stuff arrives tomorrow.


Question about hard drives. I know I'm going to have to reformat the drive with the OS on it, but for my second Hard Drive, will I just be able to plug it in and go? Going to spend today backing htings up and such but it'd be nice if I just had to plug in, and move stuff off my main HD

 

[JudgeN]

I'm just giving a shout out to the Coolmaster HAF X full tower case, I got this couple of days ago and it is amazing.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119225

Totally recommend for people looking for a full tower with all the latest features. This being my first full tower case, I will never go back to a mid sized case again and with this case I won't have to upgrade for a while.

 

[Shuusui]

You should be able to combo the CPU+mobo ($20), and the antec + RAM ($15). If you can't combo the antec and RAM you can combo a corsair 650W + the 1TB F3 ($15).
Use that moeny saved to get a 1GB GTX460. It's much more worthwhile than the 768MB in the long run. I suggest the Gigabyte 1GB.

I cannot seem to combo the CPU with my desired mobo... any good/compatible alternatives to the one I listed?

 

[Stormtrooper30]

I'd really try to get a mobo with SATA 6/USB 3
It's not a deal breaker since you can always drop in a PCI card for that, but it's nice to have.
Regardless of that little issue it looks quite nice.

You might consider dropping in a GA-P55A-UD3 which has USB 3 and SATA 6, I think it's the same price after combo.

I don't suppose that mobo supports SLI does it? Although not a deal breaker, a mobo with USB 3, SATA 6, and SLI support that is cheap would be awesome. But then again, SLI may be too much of a hassle to deal with down the road.

 

[desh]

I cannot seem to combo the CPU with my desired mobo... any good/compatible alternatives to the one I listed?

Isn't this it:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.466018

 

[1stStrike]

I got my Logitech Performance MX mouse in today. Haven't gamed with it yet, but so far I like it. Feels really solid in my hand and having those forward/back buttons on the side again is nice. Only thing I don't particularly care for is the scroll wheel as it's a bit too loose for my liking.

Otherwise, it's a big step up from what I had before.

 

[Shuusui]

Isn't this it:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.466018

You're a bloody star.

Edit: Is there a difference between these two, other than the price?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125333&Tpk=gigabyte 1gb 460
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130566

 

[DrForester]

Just go back from Microcenter with a few parts that I didn't get from New Egg.

Cooler Master V8 heatsink (21db max according to specs, hope it's true). Two 120mm fans for the front of my " Yes I splurged but I love the look case " . Also grabbed a front media reader, and since it was on sale for $50 a 1TB Hitachi HD (Might as well use the space in that case )

 

[peakish]

I'm not actually upgrading yet (will probably happen in 6-12 months), but I've been playing around with some ideas this last week. It would be nice to hear if they're actually possible right now instead of being shot down after a year of anticipation so I'll just ask

I'm living in a small apartment and I'm for some reason fed up with large PC cases and stuff. At the same time I've thought about building an HTPC for a while. So I've been thinking about combining the two into one case and just let a case sit under the TV.

I have two questions. I'll first need an HDMI cable ~5m long to connect the PC to my desktop setup. Will this be a problem with response time and stuff? I'll also need connectors for my keyboard and mouse, is that possible (either wireless or wired)?

Second, is it reasonable to expect being able to build an upper-mid-tier powerful PC in a regular HTPC case (say this or this) and have it be pretty quiet during movie playback?

I know there's an HTPC thread but I though this question blended into this topic pretty well. If this setup isn't feasible I'll just have to rethink my solution and build an ordinary PC.

Thanks!

 

[discohiro]

Been hearing a lot of great things regarding the 460. I've been running a 5770 since last November. Is there any reason I should switch to a 1gig 460?

 

[1stStrike]

Been hearing a lot of great things regarding the 460. I've been running a 5770 since last November. Is there any reason I should switch to a 1gig 460?

Do you need it? That's the first question you should ask yourself. Don't upgrade just for shits and giggles unless you have money to throw away. If you need an upgrade, then upgrade.

The 460 is a great card and you can't really go wrong with it. It should be able to play games that come out next year on max or pretty close to max settings as well, so it's future proof too.

 

[desh]

Here is an Core i5-760 build I came up with. Only thing I'm not sure about is the motherboard. What's a good mobo for the i5?

Check it out: $70 in mail in rebates.

Edit: Oh, what's the noise level going to be like with this setup?

 

[The_Inquisitor]

Here is an Core i5-760 build I came up with. Only thing I'm not sure about is the motherboard. What's a good mobo for the i5?

Check it out: $70 in mail in rebates.

Edit: Oh, what's the noise level going to be like with this setup?

GIGAYTE P55A-UD3 is what I got. Excellent board thus far.

 

[Foofaraw]

What is the cheapest way to go about getting an OS for a new computer? I am a student if that helps. I assume I will need to put windows 7 on whatever I build.

 

[The_Inquisitor]

What is the cheapest way to go about getting an OS for a new computer? I am a student if that helps. I assume I will need to put windows 7 on whatever I build.

Are you an engineering major?

 

[1stStrike]

What is the cheapest way to go about getting an OS for a new computer? I am a student if that helps. I assume I will need to put windows 7 on whatever I build.

You can generally get student discounts on software through your college or directly through the vendor. Otherwise, Linux would be your cheapest OS considering it's free.

There's some possibility that you can score a free copy of Windows 7 if you're sly though.

 

[Foofaraw]

Are you an engineering major?

Unfortunately, I am not. I saw that you can get a Windows 7 Upgrade on the cheap with a .edu, but I don't believe that works without having vista or some other kind of windows already.

edit: It appears I can get a $35. Microsoft Windows 7 Professional Upgrade Personal Use. This does not help me unless I can find a near free XP or Vista license.

 

[DrForester]

Asking again. I have 2 drives in my current PC. I plan to format the one getting the OS when I build tomorrow. Can I just swap my 2nd Hard Drive without reformatting?

 

[1stStrike]

Asking again. I have 2 drives in my current PC. I plan to format the one getting the OS when I build tomorrow. Can I just swap my 2nd Hard Drive without reformatting?

If it's nothing but a data drive it's not going to hurt it. The OS will read it and the data normally once you've reinstalled on the new drive.