Purchasing a new PC.....

[GDW1982]

Apologies if this isn't the right section to post it in, wasn't really sure where else to put it. :)

 

Been looking around for a while now at getting a new computer. Come across a couple of good ones on eBay from what seems to be a great seller, with 3000+ Positive reviews.

 

I would like my PC to be able to run 3D rendering programs such as Daz Studio and Poser Pro. Which require Open GL 3.0 or above. I am not a hardcore PC gamer, only Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 http://forums.mg-rover.org/images/smilies/lol.gif .

 

My current PC ran the above very well. My Graphics card (GeForce 8600GT) decided to blow a power cap last night and scared the live poop out of me.

 

So anyway, couple of the PC's I was looking:

 

1]

 

AMD AM3 Quad Core X645 + Processor

 

8 GB of RAM DDR3 1333 MHz

 

1TB SATA Hard Drive

 

DVD/RW, Card Reader, 6 USB, ATI Radeon HD3000 Graphics, On Board Graphic Max. Memory Share Up to 512 MB, Support ATI Hybrid Crossfire, 1 x PCI-E x16 2.0 Slot For future Upgrades, 5.1 channel surround sound. £245

 

or

 

2]

AMD Quad Core X640 + Processor4 GIG of RAM DDR3 1333,

500GB SATA Hard Drive

NVIDIA GeForce 8200 GPU, On Board Graphic Max. Memory Share Up to 512MB

Pci 16x slot for future graphic upgrades

5.1 surround sound output

and as above with DVD drive, media slots, etc. £220

 

I'm thinking the first one as it has more "beefyness" to it, but don't want anything too crazy. But maybe what with most modern programs requiring a more powerful rig, that is the way to go.

[Plastic Nev]

Well, I tend to agree as the first does have more RAM, however a little disappointing that both of them seem to only have one PCIE 16 slot, as I think you may find that with the graphics based programs and game, you may need a decent graphics card, especially if that one that went pop isn't repairable. (I would be having a try, just remember to check and replace the old capacitor with the new one, is the same polarity when fitted)

 

Nev.

[GDW1982]

Well, I tend to agree as the first does have more RAM, however a little disappointing that both of them seem to only have one PCIE 16 slot, as I think you may find that with the graphics based programs and game, you may need a decent graphics card, especially if that one that went pop isn't repairable. (I would be having a try, just remember to check and replace the old capacitor with the new one, is the same polarity when fitted)

 

Nev.

 

That's not my sole reason to upgrade though. My PC has a P4 Processor, which doesn't support Windows 64 bit. I have seen many cards that are PCI-E x16 compatible. One I was thinking of getting, as adviced by Novatech, was with DDR3 ram.

[Plastic Nev]

Yes, I understand what you mean, I was only thinking that with only one slot on the mother board and you use that for a graphics card, you have no further upgrade path if say you require a sound card for example as well.

64bit though is the way to go, it is quicker and if it has W7 installed, providing the mother board will support it, you can also go up on the RAM too.

I still think the first is the best of the two though.

 

Nev.

[GDW1982]

Ah apologies, I see what you mean. It does state that there is 5.1 surround sound, so I am guessing it has a pretty good sound card already, maybe already the PCI slot is used already for that purpose? My current PC has a PCI Slot and a PCI-E X16 slot, but it has intergrated audio front and back.

 

Many thanks though :) I have found a load more PC's on eBay, 98% of them all supporting 64bit Windows. Currently I have a P4 2.93ghz CPU, not compatible with 64bit. Would I be right in assuming, that anything from an Intel/AMD Dual Core and up, would be far quicker then my current PC? Money can't stretch to an I3 or above unfortunately, but so long as I get something with a quicker CPU, one with equal or better graphics card (I'd like everything new, including a new extra Graphics card if possible).

 

Friend suggested repairing this one that blew its power cap, but then agreed it would be better to start all fresh, as who knows how much longer any of the other caps will last.

[Plastic Nev]

First, your friend does have good point, unfortunately nothing lasts forever these days does it.

Right, in general it is a yes, dual core means twice the processing ability, not necessarily speed directly, but with two cores the queue for information processing gets split to either core so more info gets processed in any given time, making things overall quicker. Same aplies of course for quad or six cores but those above quad do get expensive.

As far as the PCIE slot, at least on those first two machines, it does say they are free, meaning on board graphics and sound, and not as plugged in cards.

At the end of the day, I am no real CPU or graphics expert and only know the general aspects, but at the end of the day, you know what you want, and how much you can afford, so do have further thoughts about what else you can find, and if any further questions do come back, If I can't answer them someone else here will.

 

Nev.

[GDW1982]

Thank you :)

 

Well after much condsideration, I am going to buy a Barebundle from Novatech. The guys down there are very helpful in finding what I wanted with my price bracket in mind, which is only £250, really surprising mind what I can get for the price. :)

 

This PC, before it blew the GFX Card, did just about ok with everything. I can really tell the difference now without the GFX Card installed. Lots of things from Videos to web viewing, has decreased so much :( I miss my card. Even Windows 7 gave my graphics score a 1.0 haha.

 

The barebundle that I shall most probably get is:

 

Intel Pentium G620 - 4GB DDR3 1333Mhz - Intel H61 Chipset Motherboard - 4 Bay ATX Tower Case & PSU

 

[TABLE=align: center]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD]Manufacturer[/TD]

[TD]Intel[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD]No. of Cores[/TD]

[TD]2[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD]Description[/TD]

[TD]Intel Pentium G620 Processor[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD=width: 30%]Cache[/TD]

[TD]3MB[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD=width: 30%]Clockspeed[/TD]

[TD]2.6Ghz[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

 

 

 

 

Memory

[TABLE=align: center]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD]Speed[/TD]

[TD]1333Mhz[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD]Description[/TD]

[TD]2 x 2GB DDR3 1333Mhz Memory[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

 

 

 

 

Case

[TABLE=align: center]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD]Colour[/TD]

[TD]Black[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD]Dimensions[/TD]

[TD]402*180*410[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD]Drive Bays 5 1/4"[/TD]

[TD]4[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD=width: 30%]Drive Bays 3 1/2"[/TD]

[TD]2[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD=width: 30%]Description[/TD]

[TD]ATX Tower Case With 400w PSU[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

 

 

 

 

Motherboard

[TABLE=align: center]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD]SATA Ports[/TD]

[TD]4[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD]Socket Type[/TD]

[TD]1155[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD]USB[/TD]

[TD]6[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD=width: 30%]LAN[/TD]

[TD]Gigabit Lan[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD=width: 30%]Max FSB[/TD]

[TD]Dual channel DDR3 1333/1066[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD=width: 30%]Max Memory Capacity[/TD]

[TD]8GB[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD=width: 30%]Memory Slots[/TD]

[TD]2[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD=width: 30%]PCI[/TD]

[TD]0[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD=width: 30%]PCI-EX[/TD]

[TD]1 x PCIe2.0 x16

2 x PCIe x1[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD=width: 30%]Chipset[/TD]

[TD]Intel H61 Chipset Motherboard[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD=width: 30%]Audio[/TD]

[TD]5.1 channel HDA[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: FFFFFF]

[TD=width: 30%]Form Factor[/TD]

[TD]uATX form factor 9.6 inch x 7.8 inch[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR=bgcolor: EFEFEF]

[TD=width: 30%]IO[/TD]

[TD]1x PS2 KB/MS port.

1x DVI-D port

1x VGA port

1x Serial port

1x RJ45 Lan port

1x audio jack supports 3 jacks.

6x USB 2.0 ports.[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

 

 

 

 

Along with DVD r/w, already have the Hard drive and a GeForce GT430 Graphics card with 1gb DDR3 RAM. Been watching reviews on YouTube about it, seen it when I watched reviews on the GT520 which didn't review to well for what I wanted to do. For the price, it seems to be the right card for me. One reviewer said it was probably 2 times better then the 9600GT, so must be miles better then my old 8600GT 256mb.

Edited October 24, 2011 by GDW1982