HALP ME BUY COMPUTER

[Human Snorenado]

I can spend about $500ish.  Laptop, desktop, whatever.  It doesn't need to play games so much as it needs to not die in a year.  I would prefer not putting it together myself because I am fuck lazy and have never attempted that.  Yes, I realize I could look at other threads but shit gets outdated so fast and blah blah blah etc.

[Mupepe]

come to Houston, stay the night at my place and we'll figure this out brochacho. 

[Tieno]

ipad

[Phoenix Dark]

ipad

shut up donnie

real talk only. apple shit not allowed

[Howard Alan Treesong]

ipad

he said "computer"

[Brehvolution]

Start here:
http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?oc=fddobw1&c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&model_id=inspiron-570

[demi]

$500? Go buy one from goodwill

[Tieno]

ipad

he said "computer"

it computes like no other

[Human Snorenado]

Ok, after looking at my finances again I can possibly spend $650-700.  I understand that could potentially purchase a lower end gaming rig if I put it together myself... like I said I don't want to do that but I *DO* want to play Diablo 3.  So hit me up with links, dawgs.

[TripleA]

Ok, after looking at my finances again I can possibly spend $650-700.  I understand that could potentially purchase a lower end gaming rig if I put it together myself... like I said I don't want to do that but I *DO* want to play Diablo 3.  So hit me up with links, dawgs.

Look into this machine: http://www.frys.com/product/6138899?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

And this card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102873

Assuming Diablo III is out within the next 12 months, the above should run it without breaking a sweat.

Also (just to let you know) building a computer is ridiculously easy nowadays. You can literally put all the parts together and have Windows installing in less than 2 hours.

[Powerslave]

Thread would have been way funnier if you spelled it 'computar'.

[Eel O'Brian]

the actual putting together of the hardware should be pretty easy (it was for me, and i am a general dumbass when it comes to electronics) - most everything is labeled nowadays, and every component comes with a fairly easy to understand installation manual

i dropped the ball on installing windows, but that was my own fault

give me a sort of overview of what you're looking for, i'll put together a couple of different builds for you tomorrow and post them here (after doing it for a solid week before i ordered my stuff i, uh, actually enjoy it now)

[Madrun Badrun]

I always thought Drinky was one of the most knowlageble people about hardware here.  I am disapointed.

[Bloodwake]

I always thought Drinky was one of the most knowlageble people about hardware here.  I am disapointed.

He hasn't posted yet.... ?

Drinky - Van Cruncheon

[Madrun Badrun]

I just realized that I was thinking that both Van and Creepy where drinky, without thinking that two people were drinky.  Stupid icon name changes.    Who is creppy then?

[Fresh Prince]

Triumph

[Eel O'Brian]

answer these questions to give me an idea of what to look for, please:

1.  what will you primarily be using this pc for?
2.  approximately how much gaming (percentage-wise) do you think you'll be doing?
3.  what is/will be the resolution of your monitor?
4.  what components do you already own? (monitor/kb&m/hdd/etc)?

[naff]

Biff Kommieslayer?


$750

spoiler (click to show/hide)

Processor
AMD Phenom™ II X6 1045T (2.7GHz/9MB cache)
Operating System
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium 64-Bit
Monitor
No Monitor
Memory
Up to 6GB3 Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1333Mhz - 4 DIMMS
Hard Drive
1000GB4 SATA hard drive (7200RPM)
Optical Drive
16X DVD+/-RW Drive
Security Software
McAfee SecurityCenter, 15-Months
Warranty
2 Year Basic Service Plan

[close]

[Human Snorenado]

answer these questions to give me an idea of what to look for, please:

1.  what will you primarily be using this pc for?
2.  approximately how much gaming (percentage-wise) do you think you'll be doing?
3.  what is/will be the resolution of your monitor?
4.  what components do you already own? (monitor/kb&m/hdd/etc)?

1. Surfing the intertubes.  Stealing various forms of media (at least I'm honest about it).  Occasionally gaming.  Possibly homework.
2. It depends, really.  I haven't owned a pc capable of playing recent games in forever.  I would estimate anywhere from 25-50%, but probably closer to 25%.  A lot of the "gaming" would probably be playing Magic Online, which doesn't really push hardware very hard.
3. No clue, I'll check when I get home.  It's and older (and heavier) than dirt NEC.  edit: apparently the resolution is 1280 x 1074
4. I own the aforementioned crappy monitor, a keyboard and a pretty decent mouse.  Nothing else.

[bork]

What about a netbook?

[Human Snorenado]

What about a netbook?

I could totally afford a netbook, but don't really need one.  Really, I don't even need a laptop to be honest, unless I go back to school in which case I would just buy a shitty cheap netbook to take notes in class with, and I would cross that relatively inexpensive bridge when I came to it.  I'm more looking for a good desktop that will last me for a couple of years and play Diablo 3 reasonably well.

[Arbys Roast Beef Sandwich]

http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0339400

    *  AMD® Phenom™ II X6 1035T Processor
    * 8GB DDR3-1333 RAM
    * 1.5TB Hard Drive
    * 16x DVD±RW SuperMulti Drive
    * Multi-in-One Digital Media Card Reader
    * ATI Radeon™ HD 5750
    * 10/100/1000 Network
    * 802.11b/g/n Wireless
    * Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
    * Display Not Included

[Van Cruncheon]

http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0339400

    *  AMD® Phenom™ II X6 1035T Processor
    * 8GB DDR3-1333 RAM
    * 1.5TB Hard Drive
    * 16x DVD±RW SuperMulti Drive
    * Multi-in-One Digital Media Card Reader
    * ATI Radeon™ HD 5750
    * 10/100/1000 Network
    * 802.11b/g/n Wireless
    * Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
    * Display Not Included

fucking a, that is a killer deal. phenom x6  and a 5750 for $680? that'll play yer diablo 3 no prob.

[Human Snorenado]

http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0339400

    *  AMD® Phenom™ II X6 1035T Processor
    * 8GB DDR3-1333 RAM
    * 1.5TB Hard Drive
    * 16x DVD±RW SuperMulti Drive
    * Multi-in-One Digital Media Card Reader
    * ATI Radeon™ HD 5750
    * 10/100/1000 Network
    * 802.11b/g/n Wireless
    * Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
    * Display Not Included

fucking a, that is a killer deal. phenom x6  and a 5750 for $680? that'll play yer diablo 3 no prob.

It does kind of look like a winner, but it kind of stretches my budget with shipping and taxes and shit.  But if I got that pc I'd be happy with it for years to come you think?  I do kind of want to see what Eel throws together, and my boss mentioned wanting to help me out tonight as well.  He even volunteered to put anything I bought together- he's weird that way.

edit: also, is a 300w power supply seriously enough to run that sucker?

[Van Cruncheon]

yeah, barely. the 5750 has less draw than some mobile chipsets, and the phenom's no power hog.

[Eel O'Brian]

honestly, i can't beat or match that microcenter pc arby's posted for specs/price (it's a great deal), but i'll come up with a couple of alternative builds which will be lesser-specs but have room to expand in the future

[Arbys Roast Beef Sandwich]

It does kind of look like a winner, but it kind of stretches my budget with shipping and taxes and shit.  But if I got that pc I'd be happy with it for years to come you think?  I do kind of want to see what Eel throws together, and my boss mentioned wanting to help me out tonight as well.  He even volunteered to put anything I bought together- he's weird that way.

edit: also, is a 300w power supply seriously enough to run that sucker?

I meant to post some more stuff about it but my fucking phone deleted the stuff I wrote below that apparently.

Anyway, my boss bought this thing for one of our graphics guys and it's a damn beast. Runs really quiet too and is surprisingly tiny for the amount of awesome shit that's inside. You'll be happy with this thing for years and years I'm sure.

[Brehvolution]

Wow, that is a great deal.

[Human Snorenado]

Seriously considering the rig Arbys posted, especially since Van Cruncheon's company wants so much for a fucking copy of Windows 7.

[Eel O'Brian]

yeah, that's $100 out of your budget right there, and you need that $100 to go towards hardware to get something decent for $600 total

[Dickie Dee]

How are those AMD chips? I used to be an 'AMD guy' I guess back when I cared about those things but haven't paid attention for years now.

[Eel O'Brian]

i got nothing, go with the microcenter rig, you'll be more than happy with it

amd chips are fine, i almost went with a phenom black instead of the i5 i ended up buying

supposedly the 6-cores are awesome at everything but gaming (where they are completely unnecessary)

[Human Snorenado]

Eh, I think I'm gonna try and put something together.  Honestly, that microcenter rig is more than I need.  I know that's distinguished mentally-challenged, but that's me for you.

[Eel O'Brian]

$63 savings with combo, $15 MiR:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.519245

this video card, $20 MiR:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127521

add a DVD burner:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

add win7 for system builders:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116754

total: $669, $634 AR

that's a much lesser spec'd system for only a $45 savings

that's sort of what you're up against vs that microcenter deal, anything you put together that'll be worth a damn is only going to be $50-75 cheaper, and the lower you go the sooner you'll have to upgrade again

i'll try and see if i can get build together for less

if you can get hold of a copy of win7 somewhere that frees up $100 to put towards better components

[Eel O'Brian]

here's one more:

case + psu + win7 combo, $10 savings:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.437504.11-147-082

triple-core amd cpu + mobo combo, $17 savings:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.526608

MSI Cyclone GTS 450 OC + 4GB RAM, $20 savings, $30 MiR:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.530538

500GB Barracuda HDD:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148395

DVD burner:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

total:  $547, $517 AR

[Human Snorenado]

Looks like I'm getting a copy of Windows 7.  I probably don't want to spend more than $600 if I can help it.

[Eel O'Brian]

go with the first build i put up, then, it'll be $534 after rebates and it'll last you longer than the second

with an am3 motherboard you can upgrade to a 6-core amd cpu later on if you want

[Great Rumbler]

This thread is probably the best place to ask:

I'm thinking of doing a minor upgrade on my computer [somewhere around $200], what's the best graphics card and LGA 775 socket Intel processor I can get for that much money?

Right now I have a GeForce 8800 GT and a Intel Core 2 Duo E6750.

[Eel O'Brian]

you'd have to spend more than $200

you can jump up to a core 2 quad q8300 for $150

for a gpu you could go with a gtx 460 for $170

[Raban]

Increase your budget to AT LEAST $250 and that upgrade can be wonderful.

[Eel O'Brian]

gts 450 - $130

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127527&cm_re=gts_450-_-14-127-527-_-Product

this one is $110 AR

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814134119&cm_re=gts_450-_-14-134-119-_-Product

[Human Snorenado]

So the cyclone is a decent card?

[Eel O'Brian]

yessir, i love my cyclone gtx 460 (same design)

that giant fan is quiet and moves air like you wouldn't believe (idles as low as 28 degrees in my case), and it comes factory overclocked so you don't have to fuck with it

check out some reviews

[Human Snorenado]

alright, after just glancing at a couple of reviews i can tell it's good.  like that it's quiet too.  i'm going ahead and ordering this crap now, thanks dood.

[Eel O'Brian]

hold the phone, at that price point you can get this 5770

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150462&cm_re=5770-_-14-150-462-_-Product

for $125 after rebate

better card

[Eel O'Brian]

never mind, looked a bit deeper, go with the cyclone gts 450, 5770 only beats it in a couple of games and only by < 5 fps

didn't mean to panic or cause confusion

[Human Snorenado]

Whew, glad I had to let my stupid dog out or I would have ordered the other one.  Alright, about to hit submit.

[Eel O'Brian]

plus you get physX with Nvidia cards, for whatever that's worth (not much right now, although batman's cape looks pretty cool in Arkham Asylum)

[Eel O'Brian]

you'd be happy either way, really, they're kind of a wash against each other according to what i've read, 5770 is just a bit older

[Eel O'Brian]

understand that i am the guy who fucked up installing win7 twice on my build, so i'm not an expert by any means

i am just going by the two weeks' worth of research i did before ordering my stuff (and i worked that shit like i was cramming for a final), so i've retained a lot of what i've read

there are others here far more experienced than i who can help you with installation and teach you how to tweak it out once you get everything in

[Raban]

No Eel, you're on the money. The cards are more or less the exact same. I have an Nvidia bias so I'd roll with that one, but really, they're the same.

[Great Rumbler]

It'll probably be a few months, maybe even as far as ahead as next summer before I really start seriously thinking about upgrading, but a GTS 450 would be a really nice step up and will probably be even cheaper if I wait a while longer.

I'd like to get a Core 2 Duo Quad Core for my new processor [as that's likely the best I can get onto my motherboard], but at $150 for the cheapest that's a bit more than I'd really like to pay. Still, it'd probably be worth throwing in a little extra for one of those.

Well, I won't worry too much about it right now, I'll probably check again around the end of the this year or the beginning of next and see what prices are like then.

[Van Cruncheon]

if yer lga775, i'd save up for a full-on upgrade. there's very little that any processor for that bus is gonna net you over an e6750/6850, both of which are faster than the q6600. spend yer money on a better gpu, like a gtx460 or a radeon 5770.

[Great Rumbler]

That's kind of what I was afraid of. 

If I just kept the processor as is and used that extra money to get a better graphics card, would I need to worry about a bottleneck there? Because it seems like Core 2 Duo's are quickly becoming the basement requirement for games these days and I'd really hate to put down a few hundred on a shiny new graphics card just to find out that my processor is pulling the whole thing down.

[Human Snorenado]

I'm just stoked that I can finally get out of the gaming ghetto and upgrade to the PC Master Race. 

I anticipate lots of steam purchases once I get this sucker up and running.  My boss is probably gonna help me put it together, either him or another guy at work as they both were/are cs majors and have put together numerous computers and I am a fucking newb.

[Eel O'Brian]

That's kind of what I was afraid of. 

If I just kept the processor as is and used that extra money to get a better graphics card, would I need to worry about a bottleneck there? Because it seems like Core 2 Duo's are quickly becoming the basement requirement for games these days and I'd really hate to put down a few hundred on a shiny new graphics card just to find out that my processor is pulling the whole thing down.

go with that 450 for 110 after rebate, you'll get a nice little boost in graphics to tide you over if you're waiting the 8 months until next summer to upgrade

by the time you upgrade they might drop in price sans-rebate to around the 80-90 mark, then you can sli another one in there (the cards use one 6-pin power cable and the draw tops out at 106W) for almost double the performance at very little expense

http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gts-450-sli-review/1

[Human Snorenado]

OMG COMPUTER AM SHIPPING

Which is cool, because apparently Newegg accepted my order to ship it to work instead of home.  What's kind of a bummer is that the case is shipping from California and everything else is coming from NJ so that kind of sucks but whatever.

[Mupepe]

Since you'll get the NJ stuff sooner, just put it together in a cardboard box for now!  So you can enjoy before your case gets there!!!

spoiler (click to show/hide)

Don't actually do this.  Please.  Although I've done it

[close]

[Raban]

Since you'll get the NJ stuff sooner, just put it together in a cardboard box for now!  So you can enjoy before your case gets there!!!

spoiler (click to show/hide)

Don't actually do this.  Please.  Although I've done it

[close]

You fool!

[Mupepe]

I did it with a really old computer I put together as a project when my job was throwing out all sorts of equipment.  I took some stuff home and built one for shits and giggles (ended up giving it to a friend).