Official 2008 "I Need A New PC" Thread

Stryder said:
nvm, dumb question.
Thanks for the tip regarding 64-bit and 4gig.. will go for that and upgrade my license.
Click to expand...
Check on MS's website first. I might not be right. I know it USED to be like that, at least.

winnarps said:
64-bit will get way more out of that 8GB ram than 32-bit, that's for sure (if you've got a quad core, of course).
Click to expand...
Wait, what? I don't think having four cores really comes into that equation...
 
winnarps said:
If I have a copy of Windows XP Pro 64-bit and I get a quad core, should I use that over, say, a 32-bit version of Windows Vista Home Premium for now?
Click to expand...
Spend the $10 to get a 64-bit license for Vista like zoku88 said. Vista 64 is miles better than XP 64.

Quad-Cores don't have anything to do with ram allocation by the way.
 
Ugh. Just took the plunge. Haha.

Stuff I bought:
Antec Sonata III 500 Black ATX Mid Tower Case w/ 500W Power Supply
ASUS P5K PRO LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard
ASUS EN8800GT/G/HTDP/512M GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz LGA 775 Quad-Core Processor
OCZ SLI-Ready Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel

$670 after mail-in rebates

Stuff I already have:
160GB HDD
Windows Vista Business 64-bit
DVD-ROM drive

Should have everything by next Tues/Wed. Age of Conan on max settings, here I come!
 
winnarps said:
Ugh. Just took the plunge. Haha.

Stuff I bought:
Antec Sonata III 500 Black ATX Mid Tower Case w/ 500W Power Supply
ASUS P5K PRO LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard
ASUS EN8800GT/G/HTDP/512M GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz LGA 775 Quad-Core Processor
OCZ SLI-Ready Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel

$670 after mail-in rebates

Stuff I already have:
160GB HDD
Windows Vista Business 64-bit
DVD-ROM drive

Should have everything by next Tues/Wed. Age of Conan on max settings, here I come!
Click to expand...
AOC is gonna fill that tiny hard drive on its own =[
 
That memory should be compatible. However, the pc already has 3 GB of memory installed, which means that three out of four memory banks are used. If you want to add the memory you showed you have to take out one of the currently installed (1GB) modules, so you'll end up with 6 GB total. Also, 3 GB is more then enough for a desktop nowadays.

For the Graphics card I'd recommend an 8800GT or if that's too expensive a 9600GT. The motherboard is compatible with it. The only thing that I'm missing from the specification is the power supply. I'd recommend calling HP before ordering to make sure that it is good enough (I'd say around 400-450W to be safe).
 
I had really bad luck with my PC the other day :(

I have bought a new graphics card three days ago a (512MB 8800GT) and it worked fine for some days, and then while installing a new fan for the CPU somehow the motherboard killed itself, the CPU, one of the memory AND the graphics card. And while trying to figure otu what the hell was wrong I accidentally hit the fan of the graphics card while it was running and one of the fan blades was broken. Now the reseller refuses to take back the graphics card and replace it because it has "physical damage" and that I have to buy a new one and they will give me 5% rebate on it. I am so pissed off right now.

When are the new graphic cards coming out? in June?
 
Does anyone know how to get a proper version of RivaTuner 2.09, it keeps saying it needs a signed driver, yet every RivaTuner before that worked fine for me on Vista.
winnarps said:
Ugh. Just took the plunge. Haha.

Stuff I bought:
Antec Sonata III 500 Black ATX Mid Tower Case w/ 500W Power Supply
ASUS P5K PRO LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard
ASUS EN8800GT/G/HTDP/512M GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz LGA 775 Quad-Core Processor
OCZ SLI-Ready Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel

$670 after mail-in rebates

Stuff I already have:
160GB HDD
Windows Vista Business 64-bit
DVD-ROM drive

Should have everything by next Tues/Wed. Age of Conan on max settings, here I come!
Click to expand...
Get yourself a nice 1TB drive, AoC + Vista is gonna take a massive chunk out of that ;P Also, get a decent aftermarket cooler and OC that CPU to 3GHz (at least).
 
thorns said:
I had really bad luck with my PC the other day :(

I have bought a new graphics card three days ago a (512MB 8800GT) and it worked fine for some days, and then while installing a new fan for the CPU somehow the motherboard killed itself, the CPU, one of the memory AND the graphics card. And while trying to figure otu what the hell was wrong I accidentally hit the fan of the graphics card while it was running and one of the fan blades was broken. Now the reseller refuses to take back the graphics card and replace it because it has "physical damage" and that I have to buy a new one and they will give me 5% rebate on it. I am so pissed off right now.

When are the new graphic cards coming out? in June?
Click to expand...

14th and 18th for ati and nvidia, respectively. I wouldn't hold too much of a grudge, as no vendor would give you a replacement for that sort of thing. I would be happy with the 5%, tbh.

That sucks though.
 
Antagon said:
That memory should be compatible. However, the pc already has 3 GB of memory installed, which means that three out of four memory banks are used. If you want to add the memory you showed you have to take out one of the currently installed (1GB) modules, so you'll end up with 6 GB total. Also, 3 GB is more then enough for a desktop nowadays.

For the Graphics card I'd recommend an 8800GT or if that's too expensive a 9600GT. The motherboard is compatible with it. The only thing that I'm missing from the specification is the power supply. I'd recommend calling HP before ordering to make sure that it is good enough (I'd say around 400-450W to be safe).
Click to expand...
thanks for that. lot of help
i was googling the power for the desktop to no avail.
i guess with a low power a good graphic card is a no-no
 
thorns said:
I had really bad luck with my PC the other day :(

I have bought a new graphics card three days ago a (512MB 8800GT) and it worked fine for some days, and then while installing a new fan for the CPU somehow the motherboard killed itself, the CPU, one of the memory AND the graphics card. And while trying to figure otu what the hell was wrong I accidentally hit the fan of the graphics card while it was running and one of the fan blades was broken. Now the reseller refuses to take back the graphics card and replace it because it has "physical damage" and that I have to buy a new one and they will give me 5% rebate on it. I am so pissed off right now.

When are the new graphic cards coming out? in June?
Click to expand...
Are you sure all those components are dead? That problem seems very fixable.
 
Spy said:
I'm kind of set on the parts I chose and I know GAF will not like this but I ditched the 8800GTS for the 9800GTX.

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16814130349

I don't want to upgrade this computer for a long time. I may get a 24' monitor eventually.
Click to expand...

Alright so here's the dead God honest truth. You're wasting your money if you get that 9800GTX card in the next couple of weeks.

Why? Because the new cards are coming out in 3-4 weeks.

Also it sounds like you're going to be gaming at 1680x1050 resolution. So I'm assuming you have a 22" LCD right now.

Your best bet is to wait out the new GPU cards and see what the prices are on the new Nvidia/ATI cards and if you can, go SLi with two of the decent ones to get solid frame rates at that resolution you want to run. I don't typecast you as the type of person that wants to spend $450+ bucks on a graphics card to have it last two years--- however if you want to, then that's fine.

Either way, if I were you (which clearly I'm not) I would wait and see what's available here in the next couple of weeks before solidifying your choice.

Take me for example, I built my Quad-Core PC about 2 months ago. I bought a 9600GT because it was too good of a price to pass up and came with CoD4. I knew going in that the card wasn't the biggest or the baddest card I could buy, but I knew that the new tech was on the horizon. I plan on buying a 2nd/3rd Gen GTX card next spring/summer of which should tide me over for another couple years of PC gaming. Right now the 9600GT is holding up fine, but again, I knew the 9600GT was temporary. Your purchase of the 9800 GTX right now would not last you more than 6-12 months but the newer ATI or Nvidia cards would hold up better... say 12-18 months.

Just my 2 beans worth of advice.
 
MoxManiac said:
does Vista 64bit have compatability issues? I don't want to have issues with older games and emulators...
Click to expand...
Most people here haven't had any problems with Vista 64-bit... but what specifically are you going to try to be running?
 
After thinking about it yesterday I decided on something new. I don't know what everyone is going to think of this but...

APEVIA X-TELSTAR-BK Black Aluminum ATX Full Tower
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811144184

FSP Group FX Series FX760-E ATX12V V2.2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817104026

Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz LGA 775 65W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115036

EVGA 512-P3-N845-AR GeForce 8800GTS (G92) KO 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130337

CORSAIR Dominator 4GB (4 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145179

2x Seagate Barracuda ES.2 ST3250310NS 250GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148309

Creative 70SB046A00003 7.1 Channels 24-bit 192KHz PCI Interface Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102014

The Intel P45 comes out in a week or two so I plan to do a good amount of overclocking when I get it. Would this system be able to run pretty much all games on max settings (1680x1050) besides Crysis? I'm mainly interested in BioShock, Mass Effect, Age of Conan and Team Fortress 2 right now.

Latest edit: I switched out the old power supply for a better one, ditched the 8GB of RAM and decided to get 4GB instead, and switched the RAM to DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500).
 
Spy said:
After thinking about it yesterday I decided on something new. I don't know what every is going to think of this but...

APEVIA X-TELSTAR-BK Black Aluminum ATX Full Tower
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811144184

APEVIA WARLOCK POWER ATX-WA750W 750W ATX12V
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817148035

Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz LGA 775 65W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115036

EVGA 512-P3-N845-AR GeForce 8800GTS (G92) KO 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130337

4x CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145038

2x Seagate Barracuda ES.2 ST3250310NS 250GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148309

Creative 70SB046A00003 7.1 Channels 24-bit 192KHz PCI Interface Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102014

The Intel P45 comes out in a week or two so I plan to do a good amount of overclocking when I get it. Would this system be able to run pretty much all games on max settings besides Crysis? I'm mainly interested in BioShock, Mass Effect, Age of Conan and Team Fortress 2 right now.
Click to expand...

If you're OCing this monster, then yes. :D
 
Ok. time to toss my hat in, I am looking to build a machine in the next few weeks.

Here is what I am aiming for.

Price around $600


Video:
Machine will not run windows, so let's not factor in stuff like Crysis and whatnot, though I still want a decent card to whip around the games I do play in Linux. Nvidia over Ati.

Speed:
I'd like to spend the Bulk on speed and ram, storage is taken care of via my SAN and other devices. 2 to 4gb or ram, would be fine. I've been eyeing the tricore AMD's and they seem like a good option

Case and PSU:
Case would be Mid-tower, and psu has to be modular. I would prefer quietness over looks

Etc:
Lan/sound are fine onboard for me, if I can get wireless and bluetooth without going to external devices that would be a bonus. Hdd again doesnt have to be massive, but storage is cheap, dvdr drive is also fine, no need for blu quite yet.

If someone wants to take a stab at building a rig based on this..I'd love to see what people can cook up.

Thanks in advance to anyone who takes a crack at it.
 
VAIL said:
Ok. time to toss my hat in, I am looking to build a machine in the next few weeks.

Here is what I am aiming for.

Price around $600


Video:
Machine will not run windows, so let's not factor in stuff like Crysis and whatnot, though I still want a decent card to whip around the games I do play in Linux. Nvidia over Ati.

Speed:
I'd like to spend the Bulk on speed and ram, storage is taken care of via my SAN and other devices. 2 to 4gb or ram, would be fine. I've been eyeing the tricore AMD's and they seem like a good option

Case and PSU:
Case would be Mid-tower, and psu has to be modular. I would prefer quietness over looks

Etc:
Lan/sound are fine onboard for me, if I can get wireless and bluetooth without going to external devices that would be a bonus. Hdd again doesnt have to be massive, but storage is cheap, dvdr drive is also fine, no need for blu quite yet.

If someone wants to take a stab at building a rig based on this..I'd love to see what people can cook up.

Thanks in advance to anyone who takes a crack at it.
Click to expand...

VAIL,
I would look at the following:
Intel chip (AMD.... big Meh this generation). For multi-tasking, a Q6600 G0 step, nice and cool and super fast. For $200 bucks, can't really beat it.
P35 Intel ATX board. The Gigabyte boards are top heavy for features and a great bargain for the price. Usually can be had for around $100 bucks.
Memory : DDR2 PC6400 2x2GB should be around $70-80 bucks. 4GB total.
Case and PSU - Look for a mid-tower with at least a 500W PSU.
Bluetooth & Wi-Fi onboard--- Those are more expensive boards in the $200+ dollar range. Add-ons might not be a bad thing.
Hard drive - 500GB drive is around $120 bucks now
DVD+-RW Burner - $30 bucks for a SATA drive.
GPU - 8800GT or 9600GT would be good for gaming for you, just depends on your price point.

Should be around $600-700 bucks depending on where you source the parts + shipping. Best of luck.
 
People easily do 4.2GHZ with the E8500. I'm figuring I'll be able to hit 4.6GHZ with the Intel P45 but maybe not! I hope I can though.
 
BoboBrazil said:
Quick question, why are people still buying the q6600 over the new 45nm quad cores Intel recently released like the q9450?
Click to expand...
Price and the new 45nm aren't that OC friendly if you're into that.

Me, a Q6600 G0 step @ 2.4GHz stock is good enough. :D
 
This isnt really the thread for this but I'd rather not make a whole new one. I just reformatted my old desktop and installed XP. Now I'm hunting down drivers. I just installed the latest drivers for my GeForce FX 5200 but resolution reverts to 640x480 and color goes down to 4 bit. Am I doing something wrong?
 
Jamesfrom818 said:
This isnt really the thread for this but I'd rather not make a whole new one. I just reformatted my old desktop and installed XP. Now I'm hunting down drivers. I just installed the latest drivers for my GeForce FX 5200 but resolution reverts to 640x480 and color goes down to 4 bit. Am I doing something wrong?
Click to expand...

It means the driver possibly didn't work and defaulted to the normal VGA mode.

nVidia drivers actually has the resolutions listed in the INF file so you might want to check that as well!
 
Spy said:
People easily do 4.2GHZ with the E8500. I'm figuring I'll be able to hit 4.6GHZ with the Intel P45 but maybe not! I hope I can though.
Click to expand...
If your going to overclock anyways, why spend more for the 8500 when you can get the 8400 for much less?
 
... Hypothetically speaking, is it dangerous for me to use liquid nitrogen to cool a CPU? Or would it cause the metal to become brittle/weird conduction effects/build up of gaseous N2, etc?
 
SRG01 said:
... Hypothetically speaking, is it dangerous for me to use liquid nitrogen to cool a CPU? Or would it cause the metal to become brittle/weird conduction effects/build up of gaseous N2, etc?
Click to expand...
usually that's only for speed tests and I'm not sure (or I'm not aware) of anyone using as a full time cooling solution.
 
SRG01 said:
... Hypothetically speaking, is it dangerous for me to use liquid nitrogen to cool a CPU? Or would it cause the metal to become brittle/weird conduction effects/build up of gaseous N2, etc?
Click to expand...
It's technically possible with the right setup. Of course you couldn't apply it directly to the chip's metal, but you can indirectly apply it to a heatsink by cold convection.
Warning: EXTREMELY NERDY!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWLBguVxetY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwAsIQKx-_A&feature=related

Spy said:
Modified a few things with my build, let me know what you think.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=11384809#post11384809
Click to expand...
I still think you need to save money on the CPU.
 
Just getting finished up on updating my PC. I was hoping to save money on my PSU but theres no way its gonna work with what I'm upgrading to

The minimum requirements on my 9800GTX are confusing me slightly though. I usually just took note of the total output wattage, but it says I need a combined 12V current rating of 24A or more. Could anyone show me a few examples of a PSU that would work well in my system? Also what I need to look at that tells me its 24A+

other specs: Q6600 @ 2.4Ghz, 8GB Ram (667Mhz), with 4 SATA drives (2xHDD, BD-RW, DVD-RW)
 
PirateSean said:
Just getting finished up on updating my PC. I was hoping to save money on my PSU but theres no way its gonna work with what I'm upgrading to

The minimum requirements on my 9800GTX are confusing me slightly though. I usually just took note of the total output wattage, but it says I need a combined 12V current rating of 24A or more. Could anyone show me a few examples of a PSU that would work well in my system? Also what I need to look at that tells me its 24A+

other specs: Q6600 @ 2.4Ghz, 8GB Ram (667Mhz), with 4 SATA drives (2xHDD, BD-RW, DVD-RW)
Click to expand...
Get at least a 750W PSU for that setup.
 
SRG01 said:
I think I might try designing a dry frozen-CO2 system then.
Click to expand...
Not worth the hassle. Might look into Vapochill (don't know if they are a current company any more, it has been awhile) or watercooling.

Speaking of watercooling, seeing as I already have radiators, shrouds, piping, and the such, when I build my next system I might just watercool it... What is the best pump/cpu block at the moment for intel chips?
 
rhfb said:
Not worth the hassle. Might look into Vapochill (don't know if they are a current company any more, it has been awhile) or watercooling.

Speaking of watercooling, seeing as I already have radiators, shrouds, piping, and the such, when I build my next system I might just watercool it... What is the best pump/cpu block at the moment for intel chips?
Click to expand...

Yes, yes, I know water has better thermal transfer properties than air, but I can easily convert a heat/wind tunnel system to vent cold air. Of course, I'd have to make it a sealed system since condensation of water vapor would be a huge issue.

I'd personally prefer flowing liquid N2 since I know how to design one, but I'm not sure if I want a laboratory setup in my room! :lol
 
So I decided to build another Machine. The only thing holding me back is knowing there is a new Vid cards just around the corner.

So far I will be using the following:

E8400 for the cpu or the Q6600.

XFX 780i for the Mobo (or should I wait for the new p45 mobo? also any suggestion for a good air HSF for decent OCing?)

4 gig of G. skill or OCZ sli 4 gig rams

Raid-0 raptor drives X 2

Now for the Vid cards I was planning on SLI 2 8800 GTS cards. Or use my old 7800gt that is sitting around until the new cards come out and decide then. A note on the 2 8800 GTS card, a friend is selling me these for 300 bucks. I do not want to get the 9800 GX2 knowing there is a new card right around the corner and "waste" 500 bucks.

My main objective will be for gaming. So should I go with the E8400 instead since I hear it is better for current games? Any one has experience with the XFX 780I? I apologize for the run on :P I am at work and its Friday so not thinking too clearly.
 
Spy said:
From what I saw the Corsair Dominator sticks only come in 4 x 1GB.
Click to expand...
Any reason you have to go to that kind?

I think for future purposes, get just two sticks is better (easier to upgrade, yadda yadda)
 
Don't even attempt to OC the e8500 if you are going to use stock cooling. TRUE with a good 120mm fan will be the only way an e8500 even goes pass 4.2.
 
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