Top Value PC and Graphics Cards Thread

Well, in Hyper, every few days, the inevitable "Which graphics card should i get, I have $X to spend", or "My grandfather wants to get a new system, so he can play train simulator* and go on msn. What should he buy?"

So, I figured we could stick a whole bunch of suggested systems, and graphics cards, and this would hence, save us a lot of effort each time.

I'll start off with one for tonight, and add more later, after sleep. Feel free to post your own...

*No kidding, Microsoft Train Simulator is a real game. My mate has it!

Systems

Initial Notes: These systems do not include monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc. as you can make those decisions fairly easily ourself. This includes just what is in the box itself.

Value Sub-$1000 System
Case: Omni 9980 Black case & 400W PSU (Side window w/ side 80mm LED fan) $95
CPU: AMD Athlon XP 2600+ (Barton model) $139
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-7N400-L $99
Memory: 512MB Kingston KIT DDR PC3200 400Mhz $164
Hard Drive: Western Digital 80G 7200RPM ATA-100 (8Mb buffer) $110
Floppy Drive: 1.44Mb 3.5" Panasonic BLACK Floppy drive internal $22
DVD Rom: 16x LG Retail $59
CD Burner: LG 52x 32x 52x CD REWRITER RETAIL $56
Video Card: Auriga 128M ATI 9200 TV/DVI/VIVO $135
Modem: D-Link DFM-562IS 56K v.90 internal $29

Total in parts: $905
Likely total if you are getting system built: $950

Parts and prices taken from Computer World

Budget System Notes: This is simply a budget system. It may not play the newest games at high frame rates. If you are looking for a system that will play at higher frame rates buy an ATI Radeon 9600XT Graphics Card, and add around $130 to the price.

Graphics Cards

EDIT: Thanks guys, I'll edit this post at the top to include your systems soon. Damn homework! *runs off as his break is over*

here, i'll help out a little by adding the mid range system for you :D
mid range-
cpu: p4 'c' 2.8ghz $256
mobo: gigabyte 8ipe1000 pro 2 i865 $147
ram: 512mb kingston ddr 400 $145
HDD: Seagate 120gb 8mb buffer $128
vid card: 128M HIS ATI 9800Pro “IceQ” $430
dvd rom: gigabyte 16x $45
cd rw: Benq 52x32x52 $45
kb + mouse: Logi-tech Cordless MX DUO $125
case: antec lanboy (with 350w antec true power) $169 (from digital power computer centre)
speakers: logitech Z-640's $110
FDD: panasonic $15
total:$ 1615 assuming you build it yourself (all prices from msy except for case)

Err, $8,000+ Budget (see sig)

:P

Well I may as well help for the $4500 budget future system, as there is no point in buying a high end computer now.

Athlon 64 3800+ $450
Socket 939 Mobo $300
1GB DDR 466 Ram (or nearest specification) $350
2x 160GB Hitachi Desktar SATA 7200RPM HDD $350
ATI Radeon X800Pro (AGP 8x) $699
Samsung 172X LCD monitor. $800
DVD +/- RW Dual Layer 12x $320
SB Audigy 2ZS gamer $190
Logitech Z-680 Speakers $470
Senheiser PC150 headphones
Logitech Elite MX Duo $130
Antec P160W case with window + 550W Antec PSU $400
Total $4,629

I may have missed something, although that should be about right.
Edit: forgot Monitor
Prices off the top of my head, but that is roughly how much it will all cost/

hitachi actually just released their 400gb deskstars! they're around $400 each... :P

I didnt even know dual layer burners were on the market yet, let alone going at 12x and for only $320!!!!!!

where did you get this info from? <_<

They ain't, its his "future" pc...

Yep, that is correct, and I have the prices there simply due to knowing the market for a while, and how prices will start off and fall to.

Oh, but the bit about the dual layer burners is almost true (they are $350 though), most of the rest is still just over the horizon though.

Well unfortunately I'm leaving these forums for good. :o

(See thread in off-topic).

You can delete this topic and get somebody else to take over the thread if you like, as I can't really be updating it anymore.

Catchas on the flipside... B)

If you lot can bring yourselves to contemplate a level of poverty that makes $8000 computers rather out of the question, how about suggesting what sort of gaming PC I could get for around $2200, or an absolute maximum of $2400?

i cbf putting a full system together right now, but i'd say you'd be able to get something like an athlon 64 3000+, a gig of ddr400 ram and a new x800 Pro if you wanna wait ~2 weeks :D

Heh... yeah, I can wait two weeks. I'll be waiting a good few months just to scrounge the cash together.

Since I'm on the subject, would anyone care to explain to me, in words of one syllable (or less!) the pros and cons of AMD vs Intel? Everyone seems to have a different opinion. Or, if you can't be arsed explaining, how about a link to somewhere that's simple to understand?

Mucho appreciato.

It is to my understanding that Athlons are more of a gaming CPU, while the Intel chips are better for multitasking.(i.e. running Photoshop and 3dsMax at once)

The biggest difference is heat and price. AMD gives you far more bang for your buck and with the Athlon 64 are quite furture proof with new software. AMD also runs hotter(mostly) then simlarly performing Intel chips. This won't be a problem if your case is cooled well(a fan to blow out the heat near the top is fine if not overclocking and the case is not very messy). Intel chips are, if your making this yourself, easier to work with as all of them have a heat spreader over the core while only the Athlon 64 do. Making mounting a HSF on a Athlon XP a little tricky(just being careful is fine but careful you must be). Ones not really better then the other just different. One way to make the descion might be to look at motherboards and there features make a choice there. Well hope that helped. Atomic mag is very useful for this stuff and there website even better.

Here grasshopper learn well.

Yeah, that pretty much sums it up.

Also, the in the newer gen CPUs, the Intels have been found to run hotter than the AMDs! Who would thunk it!!

Realistically though, there is no reason why you would want an Intel solution over an AMD one.

Indeed the Prescotts are staggeringly hotter than an Athlon, but they both have their good and bad points, AMD's is the lack of overclocking power, while Intel's is it lack of speed / performance in games (well it aint that much, a few fps here or there). But they both cancel each other out, producing chipsets that will keep people happy which ever way you choose.

Blergh... I'm afraid I'm still none the wiser, to all intents and purposes. I like the sound of AMD's better gaming suitability, and I couldn't care less about its lack of overclocking ability, as I barely even know what overclocking is. But the two local computer shops I respect the most (one of which is also an Internet cafe run by serious gamers, the other of which is run by a guy with an indecent obsession with flight sims... when I was talking to him he kept referring to his 'squadron'... but I digress...) sell exclusively Intel processors, which they claim are more reliable. And reliability means a lot to me; I don't have the know-how to deal with any problems that may arise.

How about video cards, then? How much difference is there between the very newest cards and the slightly older ones? Is the price differential worth it?

Again, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

In normal circumstances, there is no difference between an AMD and Intel system in terms of reliability. That guy and his "squadron" need to get out abit more.

As for Video Cards, the main difference between newer and older ones is how fast they run games, and what technologies they support.

Newer video cards have a higher clockspeed and more RAM than their previous variants, so they run games faster. The main benefit of newer cards though, is their technology support to make you games look better. These include such things as pixel shaders and effects that will not be present in a game when using an older card.

The drawback of new videocards though, is the fact that they're so ridiculously expensive. Not much for the avid tech fan with a full time job, but way too much for someone with a low budget who wants to play games relatively well.

The best option for someone with a low budget in regards to video cards is, go for the gen just prior to the one that has hit the shelves now. You'll notice that those cards can still run games very well but wont cost you an arm or a leg.

The price difference between new and older cards is worth it only if you have the money to spend, and are absolutely anal about how good your game looks. In your case, I don't think it's worth getting a new card (such as the ATi X800 or Nvidia 6800), and you're better off getting a slightly older card (such as an ATi 9800).

If drew isn't going to be updating this thread soon, and nobody volunteers to help update (or make a new one) ill unsticky this.

can i take over as head of this thread? i should be able to update it in a couple of hour...:P

If you are dedicated enough to update it once every month or two, make a new thread. I'll unsticky this and sticky yours.

SUP PEOPLE!

Guess who dropped in to say hi!

And yes, I officially give permission for theghostwhowalks to completely takeoff/takeover/hijack my thread :D

hokeh, now i'm back at evo as well (got too addicted to hyper to do anything else for a little while....) and i'll update the ultimate & average system configurations within the next day or so...:cheese:

Need some advice,
get a new PC or upgrade my existing??

Celeron 2.02 Ghz (grrrr!!!)
256 mb ram
p4 titan 648/sis 648fx chipset
radeon 9200SE gamebuster
errr any other info i might add?
upgrade this or buy anew, what should i do? i want to be able to run games in the future like hl2 and bf2

Greg, you would need to buy new if you can, since your motherboard isn't the best performance wise.

You'd have to be looking at a P4 2.8 or more, 1GB of Ram and a 9800Pro as minimum, unless of course you have the budget to go higher.

I see so my motherboard isn't good after all, can anyone recommend a good gigabyte motherboard?

Im thinking of upgrading cause I'd be getting an Amd athlon 64 3200, 2x 512mb ram, and perhaps a radeon 9600xt.

I wouldn't go as far saying that HL2 won't run ok on anything less than a 9800.

I reckon with the settings on low, it would be without a doubt be playable on at least a 9600. ;)

Dont forget the benchmarks they released before the game was delayed, a 9600 xt ran it fine on high detail. And considering they havnt really done anything major to the graphics, it should still be alright.

That's good news then, but what motherboard can you recommend for a good price?

But what about Battlefield 2 ;)

Although the 9600XT is good, it won't last as long as a 9800Pro, and since the 9800Pros are only about $80 more in cost, there is more value. If you are going to get an Athlon 64 system, wait a little while since the new motherboard sockets are coming out :) (Socket 939)

How much are they expected to cost? The motherboards that is.

Bf 2 apparently has a similar "looking" graphics engine as hl2, im really just waiting for bf2 and counterstrike source

Yeah of course the 9800 pro would be better (especially for the prices they go for right now), i wasn't exactly recommending the 9600 xt as an investment right now as i was just saying that it would be fine on half life 2.

Anyone tell me a good motherboard for under $200?? :blink:

It depends on what system you are gettting it for, P4, Athlon 64? Or for your current CPU, although that will be a big bottleneck for your system. (The Celeron)

athlon 64. But do things start to get complicated when getting new motherboards?

They can get complicated, as you (obviously) should reinstall everything if you are upgrading. Also you need to know what you will and won't need, as getting a cheaper motherboard may not have all the features that you thought that their would be.
http://cworld.com.au/info.php?ID=115333 at $229.00 is a good choice for Socket 754, whilst the gigabyte models are a little more expensive, but still good.

Although I would personally wait for the 939 to be out properly, as they are only available in limited supply currently, as are the CPUs.

wait a sec...george recommended this computer...
http://www.pioneercomputers.com.au/cart/pr...?productid=2316
sound/look good? i think its a good buy.

It ain't that good, the Radeon 9800SE is a really cut down version of the 9800 chipset, so much so it performs worse than a 9600Pro graphics card.

Other that the specs are pretty good, although if you shopped around, you could find a better price or better computer for that price.

It depends on when you are getting the computer; if now, you wont have many upgrade options available.

I have no idea, but it will definately be more than 4 months. Perhaps around Christmas (or later) but before March. (and bf2 anticipated release!)