Buying a computer

[ThE_JacO]

this kind of threads is for the hardware forum, not GD :)

[ambient-whisper]

moved.

i recently got a new machine ( last week )

asus p5q ws ( though now im thinking i should have gotten the deluxe )
quad core@2.8ghz
xigmatek red scorpion rs-s128 cooling unit
8gb ram OCZ 6400,ddr2 dual channel reaper cl4
geforce8800gts512 ( brought over from older system )
asus xonar dx soundcard ( awesome stuff )
antec 182b case
enermax pro82+ 625W power supply
and a 320gb western digital hard disk
and also brought over the 300gb velociraptor hard drive.

it cost me around $1700 ( after taxes ) canadian all together, and should last a while.


great thing is, this puppy barely makes a sound. its barely audible when theres nothing going on. ( so long as the fans are set to relatively low. ) on medium they are audible, but smooth sounding, and you cant hear it when theres any type of noise in the room. i like it so far. hard drives also dont make a sound, as i have them bolted to the lower section of the case which has rubber attachments.

as for how it handles during gaming, ive played crysis on full, and its smooth, so that should say something :) ( but i dont go too high in resolution which is why im able to handle it ).

[salmonmoose]

asus xonar dx soundcard ( awesome stuff )

Asus make audio hardware now? My life is complete <3

(please keep in mind my desktop is an Athlon 3000+ and my next computer will likely be an EeePC - stupid power just isn't my thing right now).

[Vashner]

Buy the best one you can afford. Find someone locally that's a guru. Or maybe call your local retailer and look for a salesperson that knows there stuff.

[andytw]

Have a look at Chillblast (http://www.chillblast.com) they are gaining a reputation for producing very fast gaming machines at reasonable prices.
A fast gaming machine will usually handle 3D work with few problems .

While SLI/Crossfire will not help with 3D work you could get a (pre-overclocked) 3.4GHz Quad core with either an NVidia 9800 GX2 (or an ATi 4870X2) for under £1500.

An alternative is PC Specialist (http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/).

Other alternatives are Scan (http://scan.co.uk) and Armari (http://www.armari.co.uk/) although both will be more expensive that the first two options.

[Vashner]

You don't need quad core. Dual core is fine.

[ambient-whisper]

but since they are sooo cheap today and they are a lot more future proof than dual cores, i would recommend them over a dual core. rendering benefits greatly.

i would also not recommend going with a x2 of any card. mostly because it eats into the price of the system, it has a high power draw, and you only benefit when playing games.

i would put that money towards something a bit more meaningful, that will show its benefits in everything you do than just gaming.

[DisturbeD2k]

Just seen this thread and just thought I would give some advice.
I just built my latest computer and usually I will save and spend a good amount of cash on a new computer so it lasts for a while. Usually with how technology advances nowadays its not very long :(
Any hows I recently spent 1150 quid on a new base unit. I built it my self and I really suggest learning or borrowing some one to build it and buy the parts seperatly. I say this because usually companys will usually put some terrible components in pre built computers.

Also alienware IMO is far too overpriced and you are paying for the name.

Stats on my latest machine with around the price I paid.

220 quid: Intel Quad core 3ghz (anything any higher is stupidly expensive)
120 quid: 8 gb corsair ddr2 6400 ram (ddr3 was rather expensive with v little improvement. Also ddr3 motherboards wernt cheap)
200 quid: Gigabyte 48x motherboard (Decided to get a decent chipset rather then get aditional cards for everything. So far so good built in sound and lan is fine.)
350 quid: Radeon 4870x2 graphics card 2gb (Was a difficult choice to switch from nvidia to radeon but this card is a monster with 2gb of ram and outperforms all the latest nvidia cards.)
100 quid: 900 watt OCZ power supply unit (needed a beefy power supply when I decide to go cross fire with the graphics. Had my last power supply blow up so decided that I should spend well when buying PSU in the future.)

Addition stuff: I got a stupidly overpriced cpu fan. It looked nice in the picture and I got it purly on inpulse but was rather disapointed when it arrived. Its also a pain to fit into the case and covers part of the psu fan which worries me.
Decided to try S-ATA with my dvd drive and hardive and must say I love it. Very easy and not as scary as I first thought.
I decided to get a fairly cheap case but it has a front USB slot which is always handy. Also several built in fans.

I think thats enough about my computer for one post but just to say you get more for you cash when you build it your self. The part which takes the longest is choosing the parts you need and comparing prices from differnt sites. Which BTW is worth it as I saved quite a lot from shopping around. Around 100 pounds.
I ordered mine from two differnt sites, Dabs and Ebuyer. Both delivered fine.

So thats that. I really suggest learning to built it your self. Take apart an old computer to figure it out. Read a load of tutorials. Find a mate who knows how.

Regards and GL

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