My new computer

Discussion in 'Computer Science & Culture' started by Adam, Feb 20, 2003.

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  1. Adam §Þ@ç€ MØnk€¥ Registered Senior Member

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    Okay, I'm on the prowl for a new system. Please give me comparisons, and your own personal opinions, of different:
    - CPUs
    - Hard drives
    - Power supplies
    - RAM
    - OSs
    - Et cetera...
     
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  3. lixluke Refined Reinvention Valued Senior Member

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    CPU:
    P4 - 2.4 is the cheapest processor with a 533 bus.
    P4 - 3.0g is the cheapest processor using ht technology.
    (Make sure it comes with heatsink and fan. That way you'll get the heatsink/fan that is specifically designed for that chip instead of purchasing a seperate clone.)




    Motherboard:
    Weather or not you get a hyperthread processor, get a motherboard that supports it if you eventually wish to upgrade.
    Go to the Intel website to find the motherboard you want.

    Consider purchasiong a motherboard with onboard audio/video/LAN.

    This allows you to have very good audio/video without purchasing a soundcard or videocard.
    You'll never have to add a video or sound card unless you're into A/V production.

    If you require proffesional video or sound editing capabilities, you can get high quality products from:
    Matrox
    M-Audio

    I use the Intel D845GEBV2L because it has the onboard a/v/l, lots of room for expansion, and is designed to work well with lots of video.
    I don't know too much about Asus or other motherboards.




    HARD DRIVE:
    Western Digital, 120gb, 7200rpm, 8mbcache, 8.9ms is a great hard drive.
    I recommend anything from Wedtern Digital for quality hard drives.




    POWER SUPPLY:
    Don't get anything that isn't a well known brand name.
    Antec is a very stable brand name.
    Do not get a Duro. You will fry your computer.




    CASE:
    Don't get a mini tower because you will have no room for anything.
    I have a generic atx size tower. It appears to be an average sized computer on the outside, but it's quite capacious.
    It contains 4 CD drive bays, 2 floppy drive bays, and 5 internal hard drive bays.
    Make sure you get a case with a cooling fan, and a front firewire and USB2 slot. (Just incase you have to plug something in such as a camera.)
    I personally use a completly rectangle plain looking case with no curves or special designs.




    RAM:
    I went with a generic, but you probably know more than I do.




    MONITOR:
    I highly reccommend using at least an 18"- viewable.
    (Most monitors are not measured in viewable inches. A 19" monitor usually has an 18" viewable screen.)
    Also make sure it's a Flat Screen.
    (CRT flats are much bulkier than LCD flats, but they are much more cost effective.)
    Don't get anything less than a grade A.


    *********************

    My specs:
    Power Supply: Antec 350W ----- $0

    CASE: Generic 4-drive bays, 2-floppy bays, 5-hidden bays, power chord/misc. ----- $36

    Cooling Fan: Antec ----- $0

    EXHAUST FAN: Vantec ----- $15.66

    MOHTERBOARD: Intel D845GEBV2L audio/video/LAN, hyperthread, 6-expansion, 2-mem(DIMM333) ----- $109

    PROCESSOR: Intel Pentium 4 2.4gig, 533bus, w/heatsink/fan ----- $189

    RAM: Generic DDR, 512mb, PC2700, CL2.5, w/heatsink ----- $87.49

    HARD DRIVE: Western Digital, 120gb, 7200rpm, 8mbcache, 8.9ms ----- $144.79

    DVD: Toshiba DVD -r/-rw, CD r/rw ----- $180

    FLOPPY: Sony -----$10.43

    KEYBOARD: IMB soft touch, wrist mount ----- $10.48

    Optical Mouse: Memorex PS2 only ----- $21.19

    MONITOR: Grade - A refurbished IBM P202 (Sony G500 clone), 21" (19.8"-viewable) flat screen, 2048x1546, .24mm ----- $250.00

    SPEAKERS: Altec 5.1 6-piece ----- $103.72

    SURGE PROTECTOR: Rayovac 6 outlet + 1transformer outlet + 1 phone outlet ----- $19.07

    ********************

    If you order anything from a U.S company, stay away from:

    Infinity Systems - The only thing they can guarantee is that your order will be screwed up.
    They have the worst customer service as well.

    Merkor Tech - They sell refurbished monitors for resellers that do not grade them correctly or specifize their exact blemishes. I received a monitor that was supposedly grade B, but it had so many defects, it should have easily been classified as a grade c.

    Any company could make such a mistake, but after speaking with the owner, and learning about how they operate, I found that they really are a dishonest business.
     
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  5. wet1 Wanderer Registered Senior Member

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    Hmmm, I disagree with the on board sound. This I had. It was so limited as to be unusable for anything but recording a 30 second wav file. Do get a seperate sound card.

    On the other hand, I am quite happy with the Altec setup. It rivals and beats many supposedly home stereo systems. With honest bass that you can feel. (in the floor and the walls)
     
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  7. lixluke Refined Reinvention Valued Senior Member

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    I'm not sure what you mean, wet1.
    The onboard sound connected to my speakers are quite crisp.
     
  8. Rick Valued Senior Member

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    Adam,
    come to IRC.

    irc.box.sk

    Port:6667

    channel Name:#bsrf

    if you wanna have some fun with experienced people.



    bye!
     
  9. wet1 Wanderer Registered Senior Member

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    8,616
    The sound was ok, cool skill, till I needed to record wav files. That was when the limitations showed up. The on board sound was not capable of doing that for longer than 30 seconds.

    If you ever want to convert your music to mp3 and it is not in digital format, you will need the capability.
     
  10. lixluke Refined Reinvention Valued Senior Member

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    I agree wet1, that purchasing a sound card is necessary if you require decent sound capture.

    The onboard sound on some of the latest motherboards is sufficient for playing sound, minimal capture, and everyday computing.
    With good speakers, you get very good sound for movies, games, and audio.

    However, if sound capture and more sophiosticated audio abilities are necessary, a good sound card is a definite must.

    I conducted extensive research and correspondance with various audio and video card companies.
    These companies include creative, m-audio, pinnacle, ati, and matrox.
    I wouldn't waste my time with soundblaster or anything from creative.

    Here is a repost of links I provided above for top of the line sound and video.
     
  11. immane1 Registered Senior Member

    Messages:
    306
    Adam,


    CPU: I prefer Athlon. I am currently running an 1800xp and a 1700xp. You can not beat the cost/performance (value?)ratio. One can purchase these with heatsink and fan for around 60 dollars.

    Hard Drives: Assuming you are going the ATA route, any new name-brand in-the-box drive should be OK. (Yes, I made an unwise computer show purchase.) Make sure it is at least 7200 rpm. This can greatly affect overall speed. I hear WD has a new 10,000 rpm ATA drive. Can't wait to get one of those!

    Power Supply and Case: Antec. Affordable and reliable.


    RAM: 1/2 Gb of DDR or more and you should fly.

    Monitor: For overall picture quality it is tough to beat a flat face Trinitron. They are practicly giving away used ones at computer shows.

    Motherboards: I have had good luck with MSI and A-OPEN so far.
    Both have good performance and many tweaks can be made in their bios's.

    Mouse: Optical a must if you game. Even if you do not, they are cheap enough and should be used anyway. You will not be diappointed.

    OS: Windows and Red Hat 8.0. If you only want to install one, I guess Windows. I personally dislike Windows, but you can not beat them for games and apps.

    Video Cards: Nvidia and ATI both make high quality affordable cards. Get at least 64Mb of video memory.

    ETC.: All else, other than cd/dvd speed have little to do with performance.

    Good Luck and have fun!
     
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