Author Topic: I'm Going to Build a PC. Suggestions? (Read 46465 times)

iphigenie · « **Reply #25 on:** March 31, 2012, 04:27 AM »

my opera had no problem
maybe the print link will work better? http://www.globalcom...95&Sku=A466-2214
-iphigenie (March 31, 2012, 03:22 AM)
Still not working (ends in some 404 page, according to the name in the final link), maybe because I'm not in the US of A?

edit: Even when opening www.globalcomputer.com I get that page...
-Ath (March 31, 2012, 04:19 AM)

very weird, works here from the UK. maybe something is happening at your ISP

Carol Haynes · « **Reply #26 on:** March 31, 2012, 04:40 AM »

Works in Chrome here.

Personally I would find 21.1" a bit small these days (no 'double entendre' intended)

How about this one: http://www.globalcom...90492&CatId=4420 (24")

or a few dollars cheaper here: http://www.amazon.co...onitor/dp/B005BZNDS0 (lots of good reviews too)

iphigenie · « **Reply #27 on:** March 31, 2012, 08:08 AM »

considering they all end up having the same resolution, i tend to find 24" less "crisp" than smaller screens

never quite understood how they managed to make everyone focus on screen size rather than resolution, but here's t hoping that the ipad3 reverse that trend.

You could find 15" and 17" screens that did 1920x1600 10 years ago, you cant find a 21" near that resolution nowadays (even adjusted for 16:9/16:10)... let alone the equivalent in detail per inch...

Carol Haynes · « **Reply #28 on:** March 31, 2012, 08:11 AM »

Given that 1920x1080 is the standard resolution for HD and screens of 60" show BluRay in all of its 'glory' I doubt there is much difference in crispness between a 21.5" and a 24" screen.

Or maybe it is just my eyesight!

Innuendo · « **Reply #29 on:** March 31, 2012, 08:44 AM »

Looks like I'm late to this party and I just skimmed the thread, but I'll try to interject some points that I don't think anyone else covered.

Re: graphics cards...this is tricky. There's nothing preventing you from running PhysX on an AMD card. However, PhysX is owned by Nvidia and they put little checks in their PhysX drivers that only allow GPU-acceleration on Nvidia GPUs. This yields better performance & in a lot of cases enhanced PhysX effects in your games. Another consideration outside of games is Cuda. That's an Nvidia exclusive as well & if you have any software that takes advantage of Cuda acceleration you might do well to consider Big Green.

However, things aren't so bad on AMD's side of the table. Per dollar spent you usually get more horsepower for your money with AMD & their cards are definitely more power-efficient than Nvidia's. AMD's cards handle a few esoteric video formats/codecs better than Nvidia as well.

If going with an Intel platform new chipsets are coming out touting the new PCIe v3.0 standard which are promising optimized data pathways for greater throughput. You can find this new standard in the new H77, Z77, and X79 chipsets. While PCIe v3.0 won't future-proof your new PC it might in the long run help you get a greater life-span out of it.

Now as for monitors, go big or go home. Try to find something with the ever-increasing more rare 16:10 aspect ratio. You won't notice much difference if watching movies at your desk, but you'll really value the extra screen space when you switch gears to productivity software.

MilesOhToole · « **Reply #30 on:** April 01, 2012, 11:48 AM »

OK, I hear you guys.

How about this monitor? Oh, and a link in case that one doesn't open for our friends across the pond here.

I have never heard of I-Inc but most of the online reviews I've seen are positive and, as mentioned by Innuendo, it has a 16:10 aspect ratio.

mouser · « **Reply #31 on:** April 01, 2012, 11:53 AM »

A 28" monitor sounds really nice.. BUT if it were me, personal preference, I'd rather have two 21" monitors.

MilesOhToole · « **Reply #32 on:** April 01, 2012, 12:15 PM »

A 28" monitor sounds really nice.. BUT if it were me, personal preference, I'd rather have two 21" monitors.
-mouser (April 01, 2012, 11:53 AM)

Hey, mouser. Yeah, I use multiple monitors (4, in fact) at work and it's really neat. I don't think I'd really like to play games on multiple monitors, though, due to the slight separation between them.

By the way, do you think you'll be able to get donations through Amazon shortly? If not, I'll just mail you a check.

mouser · « **Reply #33 on:** April 01, 2012, 12:19 PM »

By the way, do you think you'll be able to get donations through Amazon shortly? If not, I'll just mail you a check.

We supported amazon for the longest time, then suddenly they sent me an email saying they have blocked our account because 1) they don't support "membership" clubs, and 2) because we offer lifetime guarantee. Been impossible to get help from them after that. I am still hoping that I can put up an alternative page that would allow people to "pay" through amazon as long as they are willing to think of it in their mind as a purchase without a lifetime guarantee $:-\$

Carol Haynes · « **Reply #34 on:** April 01, 2012, 12:43 PM »

OT - Could you not just offer a range of electronic thank you cards on Amazon for a range of prices (aka donations) ?

Innuendo · « **Reply #35 on:** April 01, 2012, 09:13 PM »

A 28" monitor sounds really nice.. BUT if it were me, personal preference, I'd rather have two 21" monitors.
-mouser (April 01, 2012, 11:53 AM)

I think it all depends on how you work/play. I'd rather have one huge monitor rather than two smaller ones.

Okay! Okay! I'd rather have two huge montors.

Seriously, though, since Miles plays games it might be best to stick with one monitor. A lot of games don't work well with multiple monitors.

Carol Haynes · « **Reply #36 on:** April 02, 2012, 02:54 AM »

A lot of games don't work well with multiple monitors.
-Innuendo (April 01, 2012, 09:13 PM)

I have three monitors and have found very few games that don't play well. For the couple of games that don't play well pressing Win + P and choosing just one monitor to play on invariably fixes the problem.

MilesOhToole · « **Reply #37 on:** April 02, 2012, 03:26 AM »

Hey, Carol, I just ordered that case from Amazon, where I saved $27 on shipping from the link you provided.

http://www.amazon.co..._o00_s00_i00_details

Um...that is the same case, right? I'm looking at both pictures and it looks like the same one but the Amazon listing isn't as informative as the one you linked.

I'm pretty sure it's the same one but I'm getting a little paranoid, as my budget is shrinking fast.

4wd · « **Reply #38 on:** April 02, 2012, 05:15 AM »

Yes, same case - Antec Three Hundred.

Carol Haynes · « **Reply #39 on:** April 02, 2012, 06:44 AM »

Yes that is the one. By the way one minor frustration of that case is that it doesn't come with an external 3.5" bay. You can buy a caddy from Antec if you need one, or if you don't mind losing the look of the front facia too much you can buy cheap 5.25" to 3.5" converters.

For example: http://www.amazon.co...er-300/dp/B001CIOJAG

Other than that it is a great case with plenty of room for ventilation and good fans built in. It also has loads of space for adding internal hard disks (mine has 4 at the moment but I think it takes up to 6 not including the visible 5.25" slots).

Innuendo · « **Reply #40 on:** April 02, 2012, 08:59 AM »

Yes that is the one. By the way one minor frustration of that case is that it doesn't come with an external 3.5" bay.
-Carol Haynes (April 02, 2012, 06:44 AM)

Not much need for an external 3.5" drive bay these days. In these parts, it's hard to find anyone with a 3.5" floppy drive anymore.

Innuendo · « **Reply #41 on:** April 02, 2012, 09:04 AM »

I have three monitors and have found very few games that don't play well. For the couple of games that don't play well pressing Win + P and choosing just one monitor to play on invariably fixes the problem.
-Carol Haynes (April 02, 2012, 02:54 AM)

Glad to hear that gaming has finally caught up with multiple monitors. Now if the game developers would let us hook up enough for a 360 degree view.

Carol Haynes · « **Reply #42 on:** April 02, 2012, 11:42 AM »

Yes that is the one. By the way one minor frustration of that case is that it doesn't come with an external 3.5" bay.
-Carol Haynes (April 02, 2012, 06:44 AM)

Not much need for an external 3.5" drive bay these days. In these parts, it's hard to find anyone with a 3.5" floppy drive anymore.
-Innuendo (April 02, 2012, 08:59 AM)

Not so much if you want a floppy - but if you want to add a multi card reader or an eSATA caddy for plugin drives ...

Antonimo · « **Reply #43 on:** April 03, 2012, 06:25 AM »

For good up to date information about processors, go to http://www.cpubenchm...t/high_end_cpus.html

For the money, the Intel Core i7-2700K @ 3.50GHz is a very good performer.

I just built a system using AMD FX-8120 Eight-Core on an ASUS M5A786-M/USB3 motherboard with 2 x 4GB DDR3 SDRAM. With the included software, it can be easily overclocked. It is not as good as the Intel I mentioned above, but I shall be passing it on in about 6 months.

Word of warning about the case - Don't get a really cheap one as everything will be more difficult to fit. Especially look for the front connectors that you will want to have.

MilesOhToole · « **Reply #44 on:** April 03, 2012, 01:48 PM »

For good up to date information about processors, go to http://www.cpubenchm...t/high_end_cpus.html

For the money, the Intel Core i7-2700K @ 3.50GHz is a very good performer.

I just built a system using AMD FX-8120 Eight-Core on an ASUS M5A786-M/USB3 motherboard with 2 x 4GB DDR3 SDRAM. With the included software, it can be easily overclocked. It is not as good as the Intel I mentioned above, but I shall be passing it on in about 6 months.

Word of warning about the case - Don't get a really cheap one as everything will be more difficult to fit. Especially look for the front connectors that you will want to have.
-Antonimo (April 03, 2012, 06:25 AM)

If my budget allowed it, I'd go with an i7. And, WOW! $1650 for some of those processors?

So, how much did that PC cost you, if you don't mind me asking.

Carol Haynes · « **Reply #45 on:** April 03, 2012, 02:38 PM »

Core-i7 is more expensive than i5 but this one is probably just about within reach of your budget:

http://www.amazon.co...GA1155/dp/B004EBUXSU

tomos · « **Reply #46 on:** April 03, 2012, 02:58 PM »

I'd spring the extra $35 and get the i5-2500K - these things are probably the best 'bang for buck' CPU around, you can go up to 4.3GHz by just changing the multiplier, all on the stock HSF.
-4wd (March 27, 2012, 06:54 PM)

I'm no expert, but when buying myself (autumn last year) I read a few times that this one was best value/"bang for buck". The extra $80 (comparing with Carols link above) will get you more, but not really a whole lot more by the sounds of it.
So unless you really plan to use that extra, or if you just have the dosh...

Antonimo · « **Reply #47 on:** April 04, 2012, 01:32 AM »

So, how much did that PC cost you, if you don't mind me asking.
-MilesOhToole (April 03, 2012, 01:48 PM)

AMD Bulldozer FX-8120 8 Core 3.10GHz - Asus M5A78L-M USB3 HDMI Motherboard - 8GB DDR3 RAM Bundle cost £222 + VAT and delivery at Amazon.co.uk

iphigenie · « **Reply #48 on:** April 04, 2012, 03:34 AM »

So, how much did that PC cost you, if you don't mind me asking.
-MilesOhToole (April 03, 2012, 01:48 PM)

AMD Bulldozer FX-8120 8 Core 3.10GHz - Asus M5A78L-M USB3 HDMI Motherboard - 8GB DDR3 RAM Bundle cost £222 + VAT and delivery at Amazon.co.uk
-Antonimo (April 04, 2012, 01:32 AM)

not bad. Time perhaps to upgrade another machine...

Carol Haynes · « **Reply #49 on:** April 04, 2012, 05:03 AM »

Strange pricing - maybe it says more about the Bulldozer processor than anything else! I think it is probably worth waiting a CPU generation or two until they get it right.

Even though we have been talking about Intel chips in this thread I still prefer AMD in terms of bang for buck - they are just so my cheaper than Intel offerings - and I have found my Phenom II x6 very good - certainly spending two to three times the price on an i5 or i7 is hard to justify.

The other thing I like is that the Catalyst Drivers for AMD chipsets and AMD graphics card are all part of the same package which makes regular updates easier and it means the drivers are designed to work well together. All drivers have issues but I certainly found nVidia drivers caused more headaches especially if it wasn't an nVidia chipset on the mobo.