Buyer's Guide II: Extreme, High-End, Mid-Range, Budget, and Entry Level Systems

[I love Mods]

Hi guys..

If building a com ourself, after picking the parts, does it come with ethernet port, usb ports and other ports, wireless too>

Kindly reply

Each motherboard has different specifications but things like ethernet ports, USB ports, IEEE, E-SATA should come out of the box for most motherboards that are in the mainstream now. Wireless functions come as a premium and I believe it only comes with some like DFI or ASUS motherboards from what I know. These have special names and specifications to differentiate them like WIFI AP@N for DFI. To know if the motherboard of your choice has the ports you want, you can check the websites of ASUS, Gigabyte,MSI or DFI for specifications of the motherboards. Alternatively, you can read reviews on motherboards like on hardwarezone as they give details regarding the motherboards and its performance and price even. If you are stuck, there are always search engines available. I hope this information helps you!

 

[I love Mods]

Hi experts.. any suggestions for the following 1.5k gaming rig?? thanks

Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3P with E8500 or Asus P5Q-PRO with E8500 <-- Which one's better?
Toss a coin
Kingston DDR 800 (2 X 2GB)
ASUS DK 1Gb 4870 or Palit HD4870 1GB Sonic Dual Edition <-- Which one's better?
DK is a beautiful GC but I prefer Palit got two fans
WD640Gb 32MB black cache
Samsung SATA 22X DVD Rewriter
Aerocool 650W modular
Cooler Master CM690 casing

[/QUOTE]

For your motherboard, it should come down to price versus the functions that you want it to have like speical ports as these motherboards have the same chipset so the differences are quite negligible unless you are overclocking than stability comes into play. Have you read the motherboard review of the UD3P here yet? the cooling seems to be better and that is something any computer wants. I go with the 2 fan solution from Palit as well although you may want to compare reviews on other sites as well. I hope this helps answer some of your questions

 

[I love Mods]

i`m actually looking at asus maximus, rampage or striker.. any comments?

Wow, are you a serious overclocker to need that powerful hardware? A cheaper mainstream motherboard(P45 series?) could do fine but crossfire support comes into play here. Do you intend to get a second 9800GTX+ in the future?If you do intend to do so, power supply and SLI support comes in as well. SLI is not supported natively by most motherboards except some of the X58 series and most come at a premium.What games are you also intending to play? A 9800GTX+ may not be the card for you if you want to game heavily on high settings and other cards may futureproof your computer a little more than if you had a 9800 GTX+. A GTX 260+ is a good card that can serve most gaming needs. Alternatively, look at some 4870 reviews and keep your options open. I hope this helps you Jeremy

 

[adrianlee]

thanks a lot.

also is a P43/45 chipset much better than a P35 one? besides pci-E 2.0 what other new features does it have?

Intel P45 Express vs. Intel P43 Express
http://xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/asus-p5ql-e.html#sect0

 

[NewbInBiscuit]

I have a qn regarding the casing. If I'm not planning to install additional fans, should I still go for the CM 690 over CM 534/ Centurion 5? What are the advantages of CM 690 besides the extra spaces for fans?

 

[adrianlee]

I have a qn regarding the casing. If I'm not planning to install additional fans, should I still go for the CM 690 over CM 534/ Centurion 5? What are the advantages of CM 690 besides the extra spaces for fans?

Air circulation of CM690 is better
If you have a 9600GT or HD3870 just get a C5
But if you have a HD4870 I suggest a CM690 with additional fans

 

[NewbInBiscuit]

Air circulation of CM690 is better
If you have a 9600GT or HD3870 just get a C5
But if you have a HD4870 I suggest a CM690 with additional fans

Oh ok thanks for the info. So I should just get the CM 690 if I'm getting HD4850?

 

[A7997A]

This is what i feel.
Corsair, CM 690 and 4850 instead of 4670.
Up ur budget abit?

What can the 4850 do for a user that do not game?
Warm his hand in the winter?

 

[Adilogy]

What can the 4850 do for a user that do not game?
Warm his hand in the winter?

Sorry my mistake. Miss out on that part.

 

[alienphua]

You dun game at all can get far cheaper rig

E7300 + Gigabyte G31M-S2L = $271 (Tradepac)
Acbel 470 = $64
2 x 2gb DDR2 800 Kingston CL5 = $74 (PCT)
WD 640 Black = $135
Asus DVDRW SATA = $38
Silverstone SG-02F = $99 (Chamoxna)
Palit HD4670 Super = $139 (Bell)
$820

I noticed u recommended a SFF casing. However my desk space is limited, so i can't take a cubic form. How about recommending a tower SFF? Is silverstone TJ08 good?

Thanks for the input!

 

[A7997A]

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400
Gigabyte EP43-DS3L
Palit HD4670 DDR3
Corsair XMS2 DHX PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL4 4GB or Kingston ValueRam PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL5 4GB (help me choose)
Cooler Master Centurion 5 or CM690 Black ATX (help me choose)
Enermax 525W PSU
Western Digital Caviar® Blue™ 640 GB

Is the above setup ok? I do not game at all except for maybe facebook games, and my com is used mainly for music, movies, surfing and documents. I do want a fast and quiet PC. I've got a monitor and DVDRW drive already. Please comment if some of the specs are overkill.

Quite overkill for almost everything

E8400 is a processor costing close to $300. What you using the PC for can be handled with a entry level processor like Intel E5200 or AMD X2 4800+. These are fast enough to decode movie in software and can handle all your mentioned task.
Gigabyte EP43-DS3L has no onboard graphics. And given that you don't really play games, you don't need discrete graphics card. Got to say AMD is much better in this department though. U can get mainboards with HD decoding capable ones at $115, $55 lesser than this board you have chosen. Intel's HD decoding boards are using G45, or the Nvidia 9300/9400 which are not available yet.
4670. Since you don't play games, save the $139 and use IGP.
Value Ram good enough.
Considering that you have space constraint, I'll suggest u get matx board with matx casing.
Something like the enlight 2417 or Gigabyte GZ-M series. Or even smaller ones if u prefer.
Enermax 525W is a good PSU, but is an overkill for you. What you need can be settle in 250-300W.

 

[Tornesoul]

Hi guys, im intending to get this rig as below

Intel 8400 + CF Motherboard
Kingston DDR2 PC6400 2x2GB
640 GB HDD
HD4870 512mb
650W 80plus PSU
22x DVD/RW
Vista Home Premium
Creative Xtreme Audio

right now im not sure about the casing, am deciding between an elite 333, centurion 5 and a CM 690. As per adrianlee said, CM690 will have the best ventilation, but how bout between the centurion 5 and cm333? cause i cant decide on these 3, as kinda on a budget. will a 333 be able to handle the heat generated from my com, taking into mind i might cf in the future? Wont be oc-ing and using default fans.

 

[gameboyz]

It WILL handle the heat. I've never heard of cases where by the system overheats on default cooler (without overclocking) because of poor ventilation. But maybe with a better chassis, the temps will be down by 1 or 2?

 

[adrianlee]

Hi guys, im intending to get this rig as below

Intel 8400 + CF Motherboard
Kingston DDR2 PC6400 2x2GB
640 GB HDD
HD4870 512mb
650W 80plus PSU
22x DVD/RW
Vista Home Premium
Creative Xtreme Audio

right now im not sure about the casing, am deciding between an elite 333, centurion 5 and a CM 690. As per adrianlee said, CM690 will have the best ventilation, but how bout between the centurion 5 and cm333? cause i cant decide on these 3, as kinda on a budget. will a 333 be able to handle the heat generated from my com, taking into mind i might cf in the future? Wont be oc-ing and using default fans.

I hate to recommend a C5 or Elite 330 for a HD4870
2 x HD4870 is definitely a no no in a C5 or Elite 330
I can feel the heat from the CM690(HD4870 inside) with default casing fans. I am going to install three more 120mm casing fans
If I were you I will delay setting up the rig until I have the funds for CM690 and HD4870 1GB
Check this out. The Radeon HD 4870 1GB: The Card to Get
There are rumours of price cut of the HD4870 in Europe. If true, you should see lower prices soon

 

[adrianlee]

What Hardware Should I Buy? - Dec 2008

We've put together systems aimed at mid range, high end and premium budgets and looking at every piece of hardware you need to build a system, from processors to motherboards, cases to coolers, power supplies to hard disks. All of the recommendations made in this guide are based entirely on either our personal experiences or on our own reviews, or even occasionally good rumblings and recommendations from trusted community members. With this in mind, you know that by picking the hardware we've recommended, you’ll be getting high quality products.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2008/12/01/what-hardware-should-i-buy-dec-2008/1

 

[batuchka]

I noticed u recommended a SFF casing. However my desk space is limited, so i can't take a cubic form. How about recommending a tower SFF? Is silverstone TJ08 good?

Thanks for the input!

Hmm best if u state your L X B X H so we can better reco an appropriate casing ^^

 

[Thony]

Hi there, trying to build a PC for my GF, below are the spec

Gigabyte G31M-S2L VGA/GbE/A + E7300 core 2 duo - $275
2 x 2GB PC 6400/800 Kingston DDR2 CL5 - $72
WD 500GB 16MB HDD (5 Yrs 1 to 1) - $90
Samsung S223 22x DvD+-RW SATA - $36
Cooler Master Centurion 5 - $68
Vantec Ion2 450W - $67
Microsoft Vista Home Premium SP1 - $176

She don't game match, mainly The SIM or Maple
Most of the time will be for music, movies and web browsing
Just a question, is the integrated VGA card able to support some of her gaming and movie watching?

Is there any other suggestion or other improvment??

 

[A7997A]

Hi there, trying to build a PC for my GF, below are the spec

Gigabyte G31M-S2L VGA/GbE/A + E7300 core 2 duo - $275
2 x 2GB PC 6400/800 Kingston DDR2 CL5 - $72
WD 500GB 16MB HDD (5 Yrs 1 to 1) - $90
Samsung S223 22x DvD+-RW SATA - $36
Cooler Master Centurion 5 - $68
Vantec Ion2 450W - $67
Microsoft Vista Home Premium SP1 - $176

She don't game match, mainly The SIM or Maple
Most of the time will be for music, movies and web browsing
Just a question, is the integrated VGA card able to support some of her gaming and movie watching?

Is there any other suggestion or other improvment??

1) AMD/Nvidia IGP are far better for light gaming and movie watching. You might wanna consider that, something like a Palit AA-780G w AMD X2 4800+

2) WD 640GB has better perforamance. Depending on requirements it might be a better choice.

3) Personally I have better experience with LG drive than Samsung drive.

4) Centurion 5 is a big casing, generally girls prefer smaller ones, and this setup doesn't require a big casing.

5) PSU might wanna consider either blue storm II 400W @$59 or Seasonic M12 II 430W @$90.
Both has higher efficiency.

 

[Tornesoul]

I hate to recommend a C5 or Elite 330 for a HD4870
2 x HD4870 is definitely a no no in a C5 or Elite 330
I can feel the heat from the CM690(HD4870 inside) with default casing fans. I am going to install three more 120mm casing fans
If I were you I will delay setting up the rig until I have the funds for CM690 and HD4870 1GB
Check this out. The Radeon HD 4870 1GB: The Card to Get
There are rumours of price cut of the HD4870 in Europe. If true, you should see lower prices soon

Thx adrian for ur advice, i've changed the 640gb hdd to 500gb hdd, to make up slightly for the cost of changing the elite 333 to cm690. Fear of overheating my rig finally got to me

 

[Thony]

1) AMD/Nvidia IGP are far better for light gaming and movie watching. You might wanna consider that, something like a Palit AA-780G w AMD X2 4800+

2) WD 640GB has better perforamance. Depending on requirements it might be a better choice.

3) Personally I have better experience with LG drive than Samsung drive.

4) Centurion 5 is a big casing, generally girls prefer smaller ones, and this setup doesn't require a big casing.

5) PSU might wanna consider either blue storm II 400W @$59 or Seasonic M12 II 430W @$90.
Both has higher efficiency.

I have thought so as well, AMD is cheaper and from reading the past post 780G seems like a better mobo, but you know la, girls hear ppl say this say that so she only wants an Intel chipset

So does it means that i better get a cheap GPU for her, like Leadtek PX9500GT 512MB DDR3 because the integrated GPU sucks?

thanks for the HDD selection, will upgrade it to WD 640Gb

As for the casing i suppose she will have to go down and do the selection

Because i plan to buy at PCT, and i dont see any seasonic or bluestorm PSU over at their price list

Gigabyte G31M-S2L VGA/GbE/A + E7300 core 2 duo - $275
2 x 2GB PC 6400/800 Kingston DDR2 CL5 - $72
WD 640GB 16MB HDD (5 Yrs 1 to 1) - $118
LG GH22 22X DvD+-RW SATA - $38
CM Elite 340 *pending* - $68
Vantec Ion2 450W - $67
Microsoft Vista Home Premium SP1 - $176