wanting a new pc

anyone know much about pcs

i want to buy one that is really fast and has lots of memory

and will be mainly using it for music production and downloading

anyone know stuff about pcs ?

I'm building this myself this week or next:

E6750 $223 (processor)
p5k pro epu $155 OR X38 $269 (motherboard)
Ram $74 (2Gig @1066)
Thermaltake Soprano VX w/psupply $119 (case - not sure on this yet though)
8800gt $269 (vid card)
HD 500gig $106 (Hard drive)

Total cost is $1060 with the better motherboard.


I've looked into getting a mac, which is I'm sure what some on here are likely to recommend, but I just can't justify the extra money.

This machine will be pretty fast, especially considering the $1000 price tag.

You could go for the quad core (4 slower cores rather than 2 faster ones) Q6600 processor if you just wanna make tunes - hopefully the program you use will be able to use all of the cores. I play games so I want faster clock speeds (most programs use one core - therefore having four slower cores is no good for playing just one game - but it is good for having four separate programs open at once...). The Q6600 is $275.

You may need some stuff I already have though. This will include a dvd drive ($35) and a good sound card if you wanna make tunes ($200 up if you're serious). You'll also need a display (preferably 2). And you might want to buy a copy of XP if you want a legit one. Or you could get vista. If you get vista you'll want 4 gig of RAM straight away. But don't get vista anyway.

In very simple terms, the motherboard, the processor, the ram and the video card are the bits you need to worry about for a fast computer.

Check these prices: http://www.msy.com.au/Parts/PARTS.pdf and if you've got more $$$ than me you can go up and up and up in spec to your hearts content.

Hope this helps, I've done heaps of research lately because I'm buying my own.



Upgrades I'd like would be:

Double the ram (will have that within weeks though).

RAID hard disks = 2 or more disks set up to either: mirror each other (good because you won't lose anything if one fucks up) OR you can read data from both disks at the same time (FAST!).

Flat screen monitors x2 (mine are crt's but do the job fine)

Buying a PC is like buying a car. You need to know the maximum you want to spend then go as close to that limit (without going over if you can help it).

Give us a $ figure and we'll go from there!

just went over an old friends house last night and he has a 1T file server and laptop and wireless network with adsl2+ and hdmi card with a widescreen projector.


i like this file server at home with a laptop idea.

well i mainly be using it for downloading and burning big files and running music programs
i have a sony vaio laptop to do everything else like searching net etc

would be looking at spending around 1000 to 1500 bucks

the Soprano is pimp but you have to open an annoying front door on the case to get to the drives

not ergonomic

yeah, every good pimp knows he needs a mackin computer case

Not with the VX model I don't think.

http://www.thermaltake.com/product/Chassis/midtower/sopranoVX/vd6000bns.asp

Or should I get this one:

http://www.coolermaster.com/products/product.php?act=detail&id=21

For what you've said you'll be using it for I'd say you would be best off getting a quad core CPU and 4GB of RAM to start off with. I recommend Asus motherboards - they have the best reputation and I've had a great run with them.

RAIDing drives isn't a bad idea, but it is not a replacement for a good backup system. If you accidentally delete something it will not help you at all. It's designed for performance and redundancy only.

Having multiple displays is an excellent idea. If you have the room on your desk get at least 2x 20" LCDs, or if you can justify it get the 24" ones from Dell (1920x1200 on each). You'll also need a video card with dual DVI output to do this.

where is a good place to get someone to build my pc or to go buy one

Personally I like Getright computers in the city, but if you need help building it to save money I'm sure many people on here would help. I'd do it for free but it's been a while since I build a computer so you're probably better off getting Oli or someone to do it for you.

*edit*: Don't go to IT Warehouse in the city, there are a couple of good people there but most of the people that I've come across there are tossers.

I used to build systems pretty often for people (and have built them for a few people on here) I have kind of moved on a bit now to doing stuff that can earn me more. At the moment I am very busy so sorry; I can't really help you there.

Getright are probably decent though, or Hypernet on the top of Grange Road would be good as well since their prices are competitive and they will build you a system.

I know this name is taboo around here, but Cale is pretty good with that kind of stuff as well.

 

I like Getright, and have bought heaps of stuff there, but I wouldn't recommend it for buying parts for a cheap system.

The exact same system will cost way more - for example the video card that I'm getting costs $265 at MSY or $299 at Getright. Every price of everything I need is lower at MSY.

I would recommend doing the research online (this thread should tell you all you need to know by the time a few people have said their opinion) then going and grabbing the parts from MSY and either getting someone to build it for you or getting MSY to build it for you ($70 - but u'll need to get a legit copy of windows and stuff or they won't test it). Or Getright will do it for $80.


Lets say you go with oli's setup:

Pentium Q(aud)6600 processor - $275
4gig ram - $92
ASUS P5K Pro Motherboard - $155
500Gig HD - $113
Case and power supply - $108
DVD burner - $34

Basic system is $777 but u'll need a vid card:

Gigabyte 8800GT - $265 (awesome card) OR save some $$$ and grab a cheaper on (I wouldn't recommend it but it wouldn't hurt too much)

Thats now $1042

And you'll need a mouse and keyboard - $20

Brings us to $1062

leaving you with whatever you wanna spend on monitors. ($239 for a 20" LCD).

And another $70 if you want someone to build it for you, and another $169 if you want a legit XP pro copy.

Easy.

Take a look at Hypernet's (PDF) price list. Their prices on most components are very close to MSYs. They usually have stock and they will build the system for you as well.

I've probably spent over 20K on stuff from them and really have nothing to complain about.

If you aren't going to be playing games spend a bit more on a better power supply rather than the video card. After hard drives power supplies are the next most likely thing to die in my experience.

sweet gonna get this sorted asap so i can get back in to my music production

i dont see the worth in quad cores yet until software catches up with multi processor architecture.  Feel free to comment Oli, im sure you have done your research. 

To be honest I have not done that much research because:
a) I moved to Mac about 8 months ago and am staying with this platform for now.
b) Since I haven't been building systems with my business for about 9+ months I am not staying on the ball with PC hardware.
c) Am doing more software work now (web development) so have other areas to 'research'.
d) When I build systems now (for myself) I have other priorities over CPU performance as they're used primarily for other things (data storage) and they aren't running Windows anyway, but Linux - which definitely does have proper multi processor support...

That said if you are your average user who keeps a PC for 2 to 3 years (or more) buying a quad core system now is going to future proof you better even if only a minority of applications are fully supporting your system now.

Look at the price of quad core CPUs now compared to 6 and then 12 and then 24 months ago. I'd say based on this alone it's worth assuming that developers of all types of PC software are going to be making things quad (or more) core aware in the near future. How many single core CPUs can you buy now? I am sure dual cores will be just as uncommon in 3 to 5 years.

Ok I looked:

processor = $37 more
Ram = $40 more
HD = $19 more
vid card = $17 (generic) more
burner = $6 more
Motherboard $15 (P5K-SE) more
Case = $-1!!!!!! the thermaltake martrix is $1 cheaper! Yesssssss. Win!
XP Pro = $16 more

So thats $149 more just for those bits.

I guess if they build it for you it's not too bad, but still...

Big ups to  you for doing the legwork. I hadn't gone that far to do a direct comparison and I seemed to recall the prices being much closer. My bad!

Well, in your defense, the prices probably are closer if you've spent $20,000 there already!

I'm no fanboy, I've just been doing heaps of research lately due to my own build.

It comes down to two things in my opinion.

If you are comfortable with IT gear and know how to troubleshoot if something goes wrong go to MSY.

If you dont know how it all fits together and there is a possibility you will need some after sales support buy from Getright/Hypernet as they are going to be there for you.

In Ambo's situation I would suggest he goes with the likes of Getright or Hypernet, $1-200 in the grand scheme of things is bugger all to pay for piece of mind which at MSY you will not get.

Agreed.

Can't debate that!

any leezee can make it for me  to earn some cash

 Yeah just go to any of em, they are all pretty much the same imo

haha

get a shop who will warranty the build to do it.  you don't want to have to be hassling an AMer when your rig shits itself.  getright build for a reasonable price, theres a mob called paramount on marion road who are probably in the same league as that hypernet mob, again as said previously vs. saving a few bucks you get someone who will take responsibility for fault finding failed fings

Ambo- Mac Mini or STFU:


All you need is one of these badboys, an audio interface, MIDI controller, nearfields, pimp screen, etc. and your set.


I've recently upgraded my PC to a E6750 2.66GHz Core2Duo overclocked to 3.2GHz, Gigabyte P35-DS3P mainboard, 2x Kingston 1GB DDR2/800 memory, Gigabyte 8500GT 512MB fan-less videocard (I don't play games so meh), etc etc. Not bad for a little over $500 from MSY.

And you know what: when its running Windows - I despise it.
I dual-boot OSX on the PC; so indeed its a Hackintosh, yet the inflamed rash doesn't go away.

Pffft @ GetRight. What a stupid name as well. After working at numerous hardware suppliers and stores, there is not one maker in Adelaide that I can honestly recommend. Even Adrenalin were dodgy (not to mention having gingers working for them).
I've witnessed too many self-proclaimed 'pros' make blatantly stupid mistakes to the point where nowadays I would rather buy a fucking Dell if I'm not building it myself.

If you really need a PC, get the parts from MSY or whatever and I can build it for ya. I'll do a burn-in to make sure its stable, and not to mention tickle its vagina.

Sorry to all the Thermaltake case owners, but I'm still yet to see one that doesn't suck. I'm not a fan of their ugly designs, flimsy doors, screws not lining up, etc. Antec all the way, I highly recommend them if your working with audio. My system is pretty much silent except for the 500W PSU which I will be replacing shortly.

have you had any problems with hackintosh mylo?
i wanna build one very soon, but its all a little confusing for me trying to get the right parts.

Yeah Antec cases are a class above Thermaltake in terms of build quality. They cost a little more though as well...

If you want something really sweet looking (that isn't a Mac) get a Lian Li though.

It works so far  Using the Kalyway 10.5.1 DVD

I researched which parts were compatable with 10.5.2 at http://wiki.osx86project.org/wiki/index.php/HCL_10.5.2 before buying them. I chose the Gigabyte mainboard because all hardware except for the onboard sound (which I don't use anyway) is supported by OSX out the box, and also has 3x FireWire ports (2x at rear, 1x internal).

The only things I've found not to be supported are my Audiophile 2496 PCI simply because there are no Intel Macs with PCI slots (M-Audio won't support Hackintosh users obviously), and my Leadtek HDTV card.

All I need now is a FireWire-based audio interface so I can use it on both the XP/Hackintosh PC and my iBook.



I like Lian Li stuff, but Antec is the mack daddy. I've had one of these badboys for about 4 years and I wouldn't replace it with anything but another Antec; their engineering is excellent.

BUT still not as sexy as a Mac Pro..

right.  how much did you spend building it up?

I already had case, 500w power supply, hard drives, optical drive, monitor, etc so this is all I needed to buy:

Intel Core2Duo E6750 2.66GHz ... $223
Gigabyte P35-DS3P ... $163
Gigabyte 8500GT 512MB ... $77
Kingston DDR2-800 2GB kit ... $51
= $514 =

Very minimal system but it does the trick. I could have down-specced even more, but the money would not be as well worth spent.

If it's anything like my Soprano I just unscrewed the door and took it off! Problem solvered!

I brought basically the same system except already had a vid card and got an E6550 instead, $420...  Hackintosh stuff sounds interesting, but ive got a PCI 2496 card too... 

 I tripped over mine and broke it off

that is what ali and i are going to be doing in about a month or so.

Get a mac

I'd stay far away from a crappy Power Supply Thmeraltake bundles with the case, I think it would run that PC horribly (maybe not at all) , Grab a 430 watt Antec Earthwatts or a Seasonic S12 430watt, sure it will cost a hundred more bucks but I'd rather pay that than having the risk of being underpowered.

EDIT: It says on 90% load it'll run on 241watt's (this PSU calculator has reputation for rating close to spec), I guess it would run on the Thermaltake but it's just my opinion that he should get a better PSU because Thermaltake have a bad Reputation for their Power Supplys and I would never let my computer run on one, if he gets an Antec PSU he should be able to upgrade in the near future too.

It's just that I have had people go on the Computer Forum I go on fry some of their parts because they were running on a bad PSU, it's happened, I know, but it's a rare thing.

There not called Pentium's anymore
 man, there called Core 2, Originally I thought the Quad Core would be called a Core 4 But it's Core 2 Quad, not sure what the 2 means anymore though 

2 stands for second generation multicore I believe.

Original dual cores were called simply "core duo"

or Pentium D, but there are new ones on this new interface LGA770 (old was LGA 775) or something still called Core 2.

I disagree, these new intel processors are far more efficient than equivalent amd's and older intels. The thermaltake psu should handle the load easily. Sure he could upgrade for piece of mind, but I doubt he would get anywhere near the quoted max the psu can handle, even under full load.

Totally agreed, it would probably run 2 systems and leezee's usb arse vibrator at the same time.  Antec are overpricey for what you get IMO, although their stuff does look good...

Wow I heard they draw a lot of power as well. Must be a very good PSU.

**touches nose**

Maybe you should think about upgrading?

 

Thermaltakes power supplys don't output the amount they say they do, no where near the amount, sure the new nm process they use is more efficient, but it's all up to him, it's a pretty beefy system, I wouldn't ever run a computer on a Thermaltake PSU.

The Power Supply's like the heart of a computer  , you don't want to run it with a shitty one that doesn't put out the rated watts.

No power supply will run constant at claimed power, as it is only a maximum power output. Rarely they will even get near that number. Take this for example (from techreport.com)


The test PC was similar to leezee's soon to be specs, sata hdd, 2gb ram, decent video card etc
At full load, only 171w power consumption. I think even the cheapest of the cheap PSUs can handle that.

http://techreport.com/articles.x/12737/13

I'd still get the better power supply anyway, yes I know there is no power supplys that run at 100% efficiency, but the Antec/Silverstone/Seasonic PSU's come very close.

I'll check on the PSU calculator an estimate on Leezee's wattage on load, you have to get a PSU that will run on full load just to make sure you CPU doesn't shit out when your Decoding stuff or benchmarking.


EDIT: It says on 90% load it'll run on 241watt's (this PSU calculator has reputation for rating close to spec), I guess it would run on the Thermaltake but it's just my opinion that he should get a better PSU because Thermaltake have a bad Reputation for their Power Supplys and I would never let my computer run on one, if he gets an Antec PSU he should be able to upgrade in the near future too.

It's just that I have had people go on the Computer Forum I go on fry some of their parts because they were running on a bad PSU, it's happened, I know, but it's a rare thing.

To be honest I think the advantage of a better power supply is simply that it will last longer. The wattage thing is not really all that relevant anymore since the current generation of CPUs (except for those Athlon FX ones obviously) all use much less power than the last generation (Pentium-D's were horrible in this regard).

If you're building a basic system with not more than a couple of hard drives and a mid to high (but not very high) end video card I think you'll be fine with whatever PSU comes in a decent quality case.

But, if you intend to add multiple hard drives down the track or get the latest and greatest video card that's when the PSU is more important.

The only times I've spent up on a PSU is for my two servers cause they have 8 and 13 (and 3 hardware RAID controllers) hard drives in them respectively... And even then it wasn't cause I was worried about power usage but just because replacing a PSU in a packed case with so many hard drives is a bloody headache.

its not about efficiency dude, PC psu's are regulated power supplies, they only give out what the pc needs. Sure many cheap PSUs won't be able to put out a constant 400w or whatever for long, but it doesn't matter because this PC isn't going to need that much power all the time. Max power on a PSU is as ambiguous as watts pmpo when it comes to audio amplifiers.

The PC tested runs at 171w at full load, with CPU usage at 100% constantly during a rendering task. It would have been tested using a wattmeter over the rails of the psu so it will yield far more accurate results than any PSU calculator can.


EDIT: yes its true a shit psu can fry your parts, however this is more due to the build quality of the psu as opposed to rated power. Also, I wouldn't entirely trust what people on pc forums say about psu's, more often than not they have no idea what they're talking about.

I don't think it's exactly like Leezee's though, I wouldn't class the 8800GT as decent, it's almost nipping the heels of high end when you think about it, there's about 3 nvidia cards infront of it IIRC.

Well if they support well built PSU's they know what they're talking about.

Anyway, the sites Atomicmpc.com.au, it's quite a large Australian Computer Forum so I think most of them know what they're talking about

The difference in power consumption between both cards would be negligible- it would have to use say over 150w extra at full load to cause any strain on the psu.

more often than not you will find they are young adolescent boys with no real idea of how a power supply works and will just say brand A  is better than Brand B because everybody else does 

Yep, maybe 40 watts difference on the cards but still not enough to fry anything.

I've run my Thermaltake Soprano bundled power supply since day 1 for 4+ years. RAID 0 setup (2 SATA II HDDs), completely full PCI slots including a beefy TV Tuner card, neon lights/big neon fans and run an eSata external hdd. So I would say pretty close to maxing the shit out of the PSU, and it's gone like a champion, never an issue, thrashed to death with torrents etc. as well. Sure they're not as good a bundled PSU with an Antec case for instance but I wouldn't rate Thermaltake as junk as you are claiming dude!

I'm sure whatever power supply I get will be fine, especially for the time being.

Three choices of case now:

Antec: http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=96580 $135 *won't fit 8800GTX if I ever want one.

Coolermaster: http://www.coolermaster.com/products/product.php?act=detail&id=21 $108

Thermaltake: http://www.thermaltake.com/product/Chassis/midtower/sopranoVX/vd6000bns.asp $119


GO!

I wouldn't call torrents a thrashing dude , they will last if you don't peak them too much but they do shit out at times, all I'm saying is that I wouldn't let a Thermaltake PSU run Leezee's pretty much gamer PC, I mean everything else is high quailty, why is the thing that puts power through the whole thing and give it life not?

Soprano without a doubt. But I'm sure the PSU would be fine. It's really not going to make a huge difference unless you decide to benchmark and overclock etc. which in my opinion is pointless anyway.

My choice would be the Antec NSK6580, I think it's 130 with an Antec 430watt PSU and I think it's big enough to fit an 8800GTX (I wouldn't get one now, I'd rather get the newer 9800GTX or 9800GX2 from America, I'm pretty sure it smokes the 8800GTX), all problems solved, you get a High Quailty Antec PSU and A nice case for pretty much a bargain I don't know how they pull off.

Only difference is that it doesn't have a see though side-panel, but when you think about it your not going to be looking at your PC, you'll be looking at your screen.

Hey I'm lucky to even know about this and all the other things I know at twelve 

It isn't.


I don't care about that. Plus wouldn't a full metal case provide better em shielding?

Anyway they are all virtually the same. I'm going to get the one that looks prettiest. 


OK NEXT:

G-B EX38-DS4: http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Products/Motherboard/Products_Spec.aspx?ProductID=2754 $220

OR

ASUS P5E-X38: http://www.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=11&l3=572&l4=0&model=1873&modelmenu=2 $269


They seem virtually identical, except the GB has 2 firewire ports with support for three vs 1 port with support for two. And $50!

GO!

Asus. I've never had any problems with Asus, and I've never had anything but problems with Gigabyte. It's definitely worth the extra money to get a MB that you know won't cark it in a couple of months.

*edit* for example my current Gigabyte K8N-SLI Pro doesn't let you use RAID, hence causing me to waste a couple of hundred dollars on Hard Drives which I can't use.

   found out that the hard way

I'm very happy with my Hackintosh's Gigabyte P35-DS3P. Like I said, the money shot was the amount of FireWire ports. Dual eSATA ports are a good gesture also.

Leopard runs very nicely. 

I need to get rid of my 8500GT though - I only bought it because there were no 8600GT's available at the time and it was cheap.

Those boards are usually for overclockers and gamers, you won't go wrong with either, just depends if you're an Asus or Gigabyte fanboy .

All that matters is that the Motherboard has what you need on it, and those motherboards pretty much have everything on them 

Whatever goes for you man, just putting in my 2c.

8800GT will stomp on practacly anything you put it through for awhile anyway when you think about it, you could always get an SLi board and put two together but it's just some games don't scale it.

the Asus p5e isn't on the list of stuff that works with a hackintosh you (mylo) posted on the last page, does that mean that it won't work, or hasn't been tried?

i'd probly go the asus, although i am running a gigabyte board atm and never had a problem with it. I reckon the antec case is most visually pleasing.. streamlined and sleak.... might go well next to the usb arse vibrator!

Asus & Gigabyte are both solid motherboard manufacturers.. you can't go wrong with them, and yep the Antec Case will look good next to the USB Arse Vibrator 

Unfortunately my arse vibrator is huge and veiny, so a streamlined and sleek case won't go well with it at all!

I'll probably go with the Antec, but you have to use screws to put everything in! I hate dropping screws on the motherboard when I'm trying to put new cards in, would love the tool-less feature of the coolermaster...

I got one of those tool-less cases at the moment, its honestly the biggest pain to get things to click into place and even bigger pain to get it apart again. Get a magnetic screwdriver and she'll be golden 

ya reckon? crazy talk! can't fault mine. got an old model too, G-Lite Cooler Master.

ah see mines not coolermaster.. its a fair dodge foxconn i got from roost's shifty mate. Foxconn is the company that manufacture apple ipods so you know its quality  Oh and funnily enough, I replaced the psu with an antec as I was having some problems with the motherboard... had 2 burnt out in less than a year! The 3rd one is a different model and has been going strong for a year or so tho.

Foxconn made some really nice motherboards a few years ago, they've come back with two new ones and they compare pretty well with the Gigabyte & Asus X38 boards.

I know they aren't that taxing on your power levels man, they can certainly destroy hard drives though lol! I was just inferring that I would leave the computer on for 5 day + stints frequently (the 18GB Oz torrent from memory was one long haul) with many hours after work each day gaming, surfing, watching digital TV, encoding/decoding dvd's & avi's etc. Essentially giving a full workout of all the components at high stress levels with no downtime. Maybe I should have clarified my comment with more detail as above...



+1

The plastic fantastic PCI clip system on my Soprano broke when I was putting the build together hahaha! Pissed them off quick smart and went with ye olde trusty metal screws!

Drew says hello 

Ah ok, I get what you mean now.

OK I changed my mind a few times, but ended up with this (if any of you geeks are interested):

Q6600 SLACR
ASUS P5K-Pro
Gigabyte 8800GT
W.D. 500G
2G stick A-Data DDR2 400 (will grab another next week)
Antec NSK6580 case w/psu
Noctua NH-U12P Cooler (Quietest thing in the case, and working wonders with the cooling!)

$1042.

Currently running smoothly @ 3.2 Ghz (33% OC!!), I'm sure I can get more very easily, especially through winter (looks like I got lucky with the chip).

Temps:
C1: 49
C2: 49
C3: 47
C4: 44

@ full load using Prime 95, and no errors in sight. Also running at 1.325V so I've got heaps of temperature and voltage left to play with if I wish.

I shall now donate one of my cores to some distributed computing project and help find a cure for cancer or something. Leezee, the philanthropic nerd.

Oh yeah and does anyone know where the serial code for my Neverwinter nights game that came with the Vid card would be? I can't find it.

In the vid card booklet? On the CD? Something like that looks like a possibility for me. How quiet is the computer as a whole, because if I ever wanted to do any recording I don't particularly feel the need to bring everything into another room.

I would say it sounds like a normal quiet computer. When I turned it on with the case open, roost and I noticed that the only thing we couldn't hear was the cpu cooler. Seriously, we couldn't hear it. The included back chassis fan is too loud on high (but you should never need to use this setting), "normal" volume on medium and very quiet on low. The psu is almost silent. The vid card is relatively quiet.

To me it just sounds like a quiet computer.



Can't find the serial number still btw... 

What was it!? Porn? How could you possibly get from "how loud is it?" to porn in one post! Nice work if you did though! PM me!

No porn. Link to a site for cracks and serials.

BTW if you want some heatsink compound I got some good stuff today. Twelve bucks an 'eight-ball'.

Ah damn. I prefer porn.

The point is that I don't have to do that for this game, It's the only one I own legally!

Most of Antec's cases are quiet, I have an Antec 900 though which is heaps loud though, but you can't blame it, it has 9 fans in it atm.