^ biggest difference? 128-bit (8600) vs 256-bit (8800), IIRC

without a doubt, the 8800 is going to offer a significant increase in performance...that said, i really think the average user would be better off saving $100+ and going with an 8600GTS

[Edited on February 23, 2008 at 2:13 PM. Reason : .]

2/23/2008 2:10:43 PM

Alright, I updated it a little there, $900 is a bit more than I was hoping to spend though, anybody know of any better deals on some of that stuff?

2/23/2008 2:14:25 PM

Also, can anybody tell me if that RAM has to be paired? Like if i got 3x1GB sticks, would that work?

2/23/2008 2:40:41 PM

One more thing guys, sorry, somebody mentioned on the last page that I might want to get 4GB instead of just 2. I thought that 32bit XP/Vista couldn't recognize more than 3.3gb or something weird like that? Can 32bit do 4GB?

2/23/2008 3:22:40 PM

XP can't, but I think NT4 can, but that's an old OS.

2/23/2008 3:47:13 PM

Quote :

"I thought that 32bit XP/Vista couldn't recognize more than 3.3gb or something weird like that?"

correct

2/23/2008 3:56:58 PM

I'm looking for a computer around 700$ that's good for music, pictures, and internet. Any recommendation on building something?

2/23/2008 4:13:56 PM

anyone want to comment on this:

my goals are workstation type, a ton of parallel code runs, etc, but it will also be my primary system maybe some gaming if it will work ok, ill dual boot vista 64 and some flavor of linux, maybe ubuntu 7.10 desktop

i have to have the max amount of RAM

i want the full size case for space and i have about 3-4 optical drives and there will be 4 hard drives in RAID 10, probably the new ES.2 seagates with 32 MB cache, but im going to pick those up retail, ive had problems with OEM drives failing on me



just let me know if i can improve specs for the same price or same specs for cheaper

thx

2/25/2008 2:53:32 PM

looks good to me, 8GB of memory on x64 Vista runs very very nice i must say.

if you are near a micro center B&M, they have the Q6600 for $200

2/25/2008 3:03:50 PM

sweet

so there shouldnt be any problems powering all that plus 4 hdds and possibly 4 optical drives with that power supply?

[Edited on February 25, 2008 at 3:14 PM. Reason : 

2/25/2008 3:14:19 PM

IMO you're pushing that power supply. I could be wrong though.

2/25/2008 3:28:03 PM

i don't know, i'd say you should look carefully at the amps and such.

a good 550W PSU with 82% efficiency and (3) 12V rails at 18A each is pretty good.

i have a 500W PSU @ 80% efficiency and (2) 12V rails at 22A and this is my machine:

E8400 @ 3.0Ghz
2 DIMM's
2 7,200rpm HDD's
1 10,000rpm HDD
1 optical drive
8800GTS
(6-8) USB devices

and my PEAK load is measured at 240W (100% cpu / gfx load)

the machine you spec'd would only be 70W-80W more than mine, but may have significantly more amps required.

2/25/2008 5:35:00 PM

hard drives use about 10W at full load for each one. I doubt it would stress a 550 watt PSU. The quad core will eat more power, but you should be good, unless you SLI...

2/25/2008 7:59:13 PM

nah

no plans for SLI

2/25/2008 8:15:30 PM

*jealous*

2/25/2008 8:26:12 PM

eh, i havent had a new desktop in 5.5 years now

i really need someone to stop me from pulling the trigger on it

2/25/2008 8:54:20 PM

Quote :

"The quad core will eat more power, "

its not as bad as you would think. I had a stock Q6600 system with two hard drives and integrated video that was only using 150 watts with the proc running folding@home (100% CPU utilization).

2/26/2008 8:55:49 AM

What do you guys think about this build? It's my new laptop:

Intel Core 2 Duo T5450, 1.66GHz, 667Mhz, 2ML2 Cache
3GB, DDR2, 667MHz 2 Dimm
Anti-glare, widescreen 15.4 inch display (1280x800)
Intel Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator 3100
250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive for I1520
Microsoft Windows XP Pro

2/26/2008 11:25:38 AM

Macbook Pro ftw

2/26/2008 11:26:11 AM

^^looks good, it looks like storage was a priority with a 250GB drive, but I probably would've opted for a slightly smaller 7200rpm drive and something with a dedicated graphics card.... but that's just me... what you have will be better for battery life though.

who let the apple fanboi into tech talk

[Edited on February 26, 2008 at 11:46 AM. Reason : .]

2/26/2008 11:43:42 AM

Aficionado... you may want to take a look at something like this - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811124129

comes with the Enermax Infiniti 650W PSU which ALONE is $180 and one bad ass PSU

2/26/2008 12:28:03 PM

^^ Uh oh is the hater trying to deny that the Macbook Pros are up to par, and even better than equivalent vendor builds?

Here comes the internet argument from the dawn of time.

Here are the specs for the MBP

Quote :

" 15-inch MacBook Pro 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 3MB on-chip shared L2 cache running 1:1 with processor speed; or 2.5GHz or 2.6GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB L2 cache 15-inch MacBook Pro * 200GB or 250GB 5400-rpm Serial ATA hard drive; optional 200GB 7200-rpm drive3 * 8x slot-loading SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW) Maximum write: 8x DVD-R, DVD+R; 4x DVD-R DL (double layer), DVD+R DL (double layer), DVD-RW, DVD+RW; 24x CD-R; 10x CD-RW Maximum read: 8x DVD-R, DVD+R, DVD-ROM; 6x DVD-ROM (double layer DVD-9), DVD-R DL (double layer), DVD+R DL (double layer), DVD-RW, DVD+RW; 24x CD 15-inch MacBook Pro NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT graphics processor with dual-link DVI support; 256MB of GDDR3 memory on 2.4GHz configuration; 512MB of GDDR3 memory on 2.5GHz and 2.6GHz configurations 15-inch MacBook Pro Height: 1.0 inch (2.59 cm) Width: 14.1 inches (35.7 cm) Depth: 9.6 inches (24.3 cm) Weight: 5.4 pounds (2.45 kg) Connections and expansion * One FireWire 400 port at up to 400 Mbps * One FireWire 800 port at up to 800 Mbps * 15-inch MacBook Pro: Two 480-Mbps USB 2.0 ports Wireless Built-in AirPort Extreme Wi-Fi wireless networking2 (based on IEEE 802.11n draft (specification); IEEE 802.11a/b/g compatible Built-in Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate) Built-in 10/100/1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet (RJ-45 connector) Audio * Built-in stereo speakers * Built-in omnidirectional microphone (located under left speaker grille) * Combined optical digital audio input/audio line in (minijack) * Combined optical digital audio output/audio line out (minijack) 15-inch MacBook Pro 15.4-inch (diagonal) antiglare widescreen TFT LED backlit display with support for millions of colors; optional glossy widescreen display Supported resolutions: 1440 by 900 (native), 1280 by 800, 1152 by 720, 1024 by 640, and 800 by 500 pixels at 16:10 aspect ratio; 1024 by 768, 800 by 600, and 640 by 480 pixels at 4:3 aspect ratio; 1024 by 768, 800 by 600, and 640 by 480 pixels at 4:3 aspect ratio stretched; 720 by 480 pixels at 3:2 aspect ratio; 720 by 480 pixels at 3:2 aspect ratio stretched Input MacBook Pro showing keyboard. * Built-in full-size keyboard with 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) keys, including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys (inverted “T” arrangement) * Backlit keyboard with ambient light sensor for automatic adjustment of keyboard illumination and screen brightness * Solid-state trackpad with Multi-Touch gesture support for precise cursor control; supports two-finger scrolling, pinch, rotate, swipe, tap, double-tap, and drag capabilities "

[Edited on February 26, 2008 at 1:22 PM. Reason : m]

2/26/2008 1:18:48 PM

Yeah, I used to argue against apple..then I got one and they really are quality.

and yes, a smaller 7200rpm drive really is a better idea IMO, its quite a noticeable difference in speed.

2/26/2008 1:20:40 PM

Quote :

"MacBook Pro Starting at $1999"

2/26/2008 1:53:34 PM

^^^good gosh, i never said anything about apple, it's just that half of your first 10 posts were about apple products, i'm not a hater, just not a fan of fanboi's that post about apple products without being relevant to the discussion at hand, AxlBonBach had a question and what was your response?... "Macbook Pro ftw."

not everyone can afford a $2k laptop, hence why it's not always the final answer

[Edited on February 26, 2008 at 2:34 PM. Reason : .]

2/26/2008 2:33:59 PM

would you like me to post more about tits to even out the ratio? Or do all of your perceptions involve user post stalking for internet profiling and predjudice?

The APE was relevant to that thread.

I wasnt aware of his budget ITT so please provide that.

2/26/2008 2:38:16 PM

i'd prefer you stop posting all together. of your 19, the 3 or 4 in this thread are not indicative of anything productive. so far you fail at not being a dick.

2/26/2008 2:44:24 PM

Quote :

"I wasnt aware of his budget ITT so please provide that."

2/26/2008 3:21:07 PM

read the OP

Quote :

"It's my new laptop"

2/26/2008 3:44:32 PM

Macbook, or thinkpad

2/26/2008 4:06:04 PM

Thanks Prospero. I paid $800 for it so I think I got a great deal on it.

And yes, storage for me is a priority.

2/26/2008 4:08:45 PM

So my Antec P180 case arrived yesterday. Whats the benefit (if any) of having the power supply on the bottom of the case? I haven't installed anything in this case yet but idk if I like that being down there.

2/28/2008 11:28:53 AM

Heat, by placing the HDD's and PSU in the lower chamber, the heat from the PSU & HDD's never reaches the rest of the system, it's a MUCH more efficient air flow.

2/28/2008 12:17:08 PM

^but doesn't heat rise? Makes the case bottom heavy? lol idk.

2/28/2008 1:42:24 PM

The bottom compartment is sealed off from the rest of the components keeping that heat in a "wind tunnel" per say. And I would rather have a bottom heavy (more stable) PC than a top heavy one since I take my PC to lan parties. But if it sits on the floor all the time it will not matter.

2/28/2008 1:48:57 PM

^yeah i really like the design of the P180 series cases. The removable HD bays are awesome too. It's also pretty neat how you can remove both side panels and weave the cords behind the mobo instead of all around it. Makes for a very organized case set-up.

2/28/2008 3:32:40 PM

nice, i think ill get one of these when i finally throw together a new build this summer

3/3/2008 2:27:23 PM

Is ibuypower.com a decent place to put together a desktop for gaming? I play everything from the original Fallout to whatever is out today. I dont do any online gaming, but Im sure I will in the future. I would also like to stick to XP, and then switch to Vista in a few years. Thanks.

3/3/2008 9:57:23 PM

8800gt
2gigs ram
prefferably a Core 2 Duo

should do you. the other stuff is dependent on taste/money

personally i'd get a pair of 500gb drives but that's just the storage whore in me.

the only reason anyone should have for putting vista on their machine is for work right now, one can only hope dx10 never takes off and vista dies a painfully slow death (like Me)

but that's just my opinion

3/3/2008 10:53:44 PM

http://www.tomshardware.com/2008/03/18/nvidia_geforce_9800_gx2_review/

dannng it's up to 50-70% faster than the 8800 ultra on some tests.

3/18/2008 11:39:05 PM

sweeeettt...

3/25/2008 9:32:21 PM

.bump. for all the n00bs to tech talk

4/21/2008 12:09:12 PM

I've currently got an ATI x1300 (pro...haha). What would be the most cost-effective (and cheapest, hopefully) upgrade from that, gaming-card-wise? 8800GT, 8800GTS, 9600, 9800? How do the related ATI cards compare to Nvidia?

4/22/2008 9:10:29 AM

^^^ holy carp

4/22/2008 9:12:01 AM

^^any of the mentioned cards would do great.

i think the 8800GT is still the most cost effective, along with the 9600GT

for ATi your only comparable card would be the HD 3870 or 3850

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/desktop-vga-charts/overall-all-games-fps,572.html?p=1618%2C1616%2C1595%2C1590



[Edited on April 22, 2008 at 4:47 PM. Reason : l]

4/22/2008 4:46:56 PM

4/25/2008 10:15:30 AM

4/25/2008 5:18:32 PM

not new thread worthy i suppose. i just got a new Seagate external harddrive since i had a $100 circuit city GC laying around. the whole interface and setup is annoying and pisses me off. (its not complicated i just dont want it) i just wanted an extra external harddrive to back up my music.

If i reformat the drive, will it then appear as just a regular drive when i hook it up? or am i doomed to have to have some preloaded bloated UI to access files on this external harddrive? (or return it for something else)

[Edited on April 26, 2008 at 5:20 PM. Reason : ]

4/26/2008 5:16:56 PM

yeah harddrives don't require softare. I hate all that shit they put on them. Just reformat it and you'll be able to use it w/o all that crap.

4/26/2008 5:20:07 PM

word. i was pretty sure i could. just wanted to ask before i messed with it, because otherwise i was going to return it. i didnt even pay attention that it had software. all the ones ive gotten in the past were just plug and play drives. this thing was trying to synch up wit my documents and outlook etc.

[Edited on April 26, 2008 at 5:35 PM. Reason : ]

4/26/2008 5:34:14 PM