Hi guys, here goes one of those threads: buying a new desktop computer. First thing is about my current computer. It's a laptop 850Mhz P3, 256 MB RAM, 16MB VRAM. I have used this laptop for almost three years. It is currently in a stable state, but it has its own crash history, including random hardware malfunctioning, bad sectors, etc. I have run into those hardware limits several times. I can't play any 3D games here (or develop one), or even displaying any bit of animation on the screen because then the fans would start spinning like crazy and (used to) eventually crash if I kept on doing it. Even a simple thing such as click and drag the line tool on MSPaint for just a bit too long will cause the fan to start spinning. It's time to upgrade. Budget: <$1000. I am not looking for the next gen desktop computer. As a matter of fact, I have been looking at those premade $300 desktop computers. I am assuming those computers are already 5x faster than this one. As long as I can have some 3D stuff on screen without the computer going crazy I am fine (because apparently all game development tools are in 3D mode right now). Graphics Card: I am not a graphics programmer, so I won't be able to utilize a $500 gfx card if I ever had one. I don't play new games a lot either. Games I play are older games. So any gfx card is fine, as long as it supports some version of pixel/vertex/geometry shaders (2.0 maybe?) that if I download and buy some game development tools, I can at least use their shader engine. RAM: RAM is a necessity. I am aiming for 1GB and more here (2GB or 4GB). I have the free Business edition Vista laying on my desk right now waiting to be installed. Oh, I am planning on installing Linux, but that's no problem. Processors: And absolutely some type of multi-core processors that I can peek and poke on. I heard it's the next 'thing'. So fellow GDNetters, if you have any recommendation on the above items, please let me know. I need as much input as possible. I don't want to upgrade this computer, ever. Upgrading takes a lot of time and effort, and most of the time it's not worth it. So, I'll buy this computer, and use it for another 3-4 years, then buy a new one. If you know any deals that doesn't include Vista/XP (because I already have one) but it includes other sweet deals such as monitors or printers, then I'd be interested to know too.

Moving to the hardware forum.

oh sweet, we have a hardware forum now!

An update:

I am scouring newegg right now making selections and estimating price. I haven't been in touch with this whole hardware stuff for years, thus things such as RAID and DDR2 would confuse me a little. I have two questions regarding RAM.

1. Some of them are sold as one piece, others are sold as a pair. I seemed to recall that if you buy the paired RAM, you can't install only one or mix-and-match with other RAM. They go together. Is this correct?

2. If I buy the individual pieces, will I be able to buy a second one and pair them together (same brand, type, etc, just bought separately) ?

First list:


(1) Shuttle XPC SK22G2B AMD Socket AM2 AMD Athlon X2 / Athlon 64 FX / Athlon 64 VIA K8M890CE Barebone - Retail


(1) ASUS 16X DVD±R DVD Burner with 12X DVD-RAM Write and LightScribe Black E-IDE/ATAPI Model DRW-1612BL-BK - OEM


(1) Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS (Perpendicular Recording Technology) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM


(2) ViewSonic Value Series VA902b Black 19" 8ms LCD Monitor - Retail


(1) Leadtek WinFast PX7300GT TDH 128MB DDR3 Extreme Geforce 7300GT 128MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail


(2) CORSAIR XMS2 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model CM2X1024-6400 - Retail


(1) AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ Brisbane 2.3GHz Socket AM2 Processor Model ADO4400DDBOX - Retail


Total price before tax: 1159.94
After tax + s/h: 1285.25

A little too pricey for me, but that's because of the dual LCD monitors. Two of them cost $400, so the actual price of the system itself is around $800.


What do you guys think?

I would rather take an Intel Core 2 Duo CPU.

Quote: Original post by simply
I would rather take an Intel Core 2 Duo CPU.

Seconded. Check out the Core 2 Duo E4300 and E6300 processors.

You also forgot to list a motherboard, I would suggest an Intel P965 mobo or an ASUS P965 mobo.

EDIT: Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 is also a good board. Here is a review of various 965 boards.

Quote: Original post by nts
You also forgot to list a motherboard, I would suggest an Intel P965 mobo or an ASUS P965 mobo.

Barebones systems include the mobo.

Quote: Original post by alnite
An update:

I am scouring newegg right now making selections and estimating price. I haven't been in touch with this whole hardware stuff for years, thus things such as RAID and DDR2 would confuse me a little. I have two questions regarding RAM.

1. Some of them are sold as one piece, others are sold as a pair. I seemed to recall that if you buy the paired RAM, you can't install only one or mix-and-match with other RAM. They go together. Is this correct?

2. If I buy the individual pieces, will I be able to buy a second one and pair them together (same brand, type, etc, just bought separately) ?

You may be thinking of the old RDRAM.

Now, it is usually safe to mix and match RAM, just be aware that it will all run at the speed of the slowest stick.

#2 is absolutely yes. Your best bet is to get identical sticks of RAM. It doesn't matter whether they are packaged together or not, just that they are the same. You want to buy matched sticks if you want to run your RAM in dual-channel, but you don't have to buy a "dual-channel RAM kit" to be able to run in dual channel, just matched sticks.

Also, I'd recommend sticking with the maximum speed your motherboard supports, to a point. (Last I've seen), anything above DDR2 800 costs too much to warrant the speed increase. As for brand, I strongly support Corsair, I've never had problems with their RAM, but Kingston and Crucial are good, too. (I suppose part of it is that "pirate" RAM is cool [smile])

Thanks guys. Except the processor, this looks like a good list.

Quote: Original post by nts

Quote: Original post by simply
I would rather take an Intel Core 2 Duo CPU.

Seconded. Check out the Core 2 Duo E4300 and E6300 processors.

You also forgot to list a motherboard, I would suggest an Intel P965 mobo or an ASUS P965 mobo.

EDIT: Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 is also a good board. Here is a review of various 965 boards.

Intel Core 2 Duo almost cost twice as much as the AMD. Is there a really good reason to have this?

edit: nvm. I picked the wrong CPU. It's now $1300 total.

[Edited by - alnite on February 27, 2007 12:12:13 AM]