Magruter January 10, 2003 Author Share Magruter Member January 10, 2003 Hey gunny wanna make a few extra bucks on the side?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[Mmmm]Homer January 10, 2003 Share [Mmmm]Homer Member January 10, 2003 Magruter - here are some resources to help you decide what to get: Sharky's Guides: Extreme Value Pick and chose what you want, but it will give you an understanding of what's current. Tom's Hardware a GREAT resource for reviews. JNCS is a grea small shop that alot of people including myself have done business with and have always been satisfied. They have that small shop feel and individual atttention when building a full system. Not as expensive as an Alienware or Falcon system, but not as cheap as a Dell either. They use off the shelf components, easy to upgrade later. Alienware high-end systems, nice stuff. You pay for it, but nice. They use off the shelf components, easy to upgrade later. Falcon NW if you really want to spend some money, but they eek out that extra .73234 FPS from the machine. They use off the shelf components, easy to upgrade later. All that has been said about Circuit City, HP, Compaq, etc is generally true. They use proprietary cables, screws, cases, etc. that are impossible to 'pain-in-the-arse' to work on or upgrade. A friend bought an Emachine a year ago and brought it to me to upgrade, her boyfriend wanted to play games and the onboard video wasn't cutting it. The cute little case offered zero room for any component to be added, so I had to tell her it would take a new case to make things fit. I ended up bulding a AMD XP2000+/Radeon8500 along with some other spare parts I had for them for $400. Nice beginner gaming rig and they have 2 PCs now. Moral of the story is those prebuilt systems most likely have a catch. When that GeForce7 comes out that you want to upgrade to so you can play CS2 there likely won't be room. Or the onboard sound doesn't cut it, but there is no room for a sound card. More RAM? Sorry, no slots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asphyxiator January 10, 2003 Share Asphyxiator Member January 10, 2003 Check out Falcon Northwest, they rank up there with alienware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest [c2d]a t 0 g! January 11, 2003 Share Guest [c2d]a t 0 g! Guests January 11, 2003 magruter.... if you seriously want to buy a prebuilt... then go out and get an issue of PCGamer.. and look at all them adds.. they have Coldcathodes, windows, everything predone lol But, personally, i would recommend building your own computer.. not only A) you can build a REALLY nice AMD coimputer for pretty low price.... you can be like, yea, i BUILT that. ha ha. you bought yours lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ZDamage January 11, 2003 Share Guest ZDamage Guests January 11, 2003 This is what you do. Talk to a friend that you know that can put one together if you are not sure. It isn't hard at all really. Just make sure you have "grounded" yourself to prevent static which can destroy parts with ease. Customer built is cheaper in the long run. Why? Pre-built like an e-machine or dell or HP are not very upgradable. So when they get out dated, you are off to buy another whole computer With a customer built, given you have a decent case, you do not need to buy a whole new machine. In most cases you can keep your HD, your Power Supply, the case, the cd-rom and floppy drives, the cables, which all add up when buying a pre built PC. In the long run, customer built is cheaper. The catch is knowing how to do it yourself correctly. The only part that I can find to be at all difficult is the CPU and CPU FAN/Hitsink being put on. A lot of times they are tough to get on. Other times there are capacitors too close or it is a real tight fit and you have to push hard with hopes of not breaking your board. This is not an often issue but can happen sometimes. Do not be afraid to ask questions and for help. I will be glad to answer any questions you have about putting one together and possible purchase decisions. And yes Gunman, you got a descent system there for the price. =) good bargain shopping Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJ Premier January 12, 2003 Share DJ Premier Member January 12, 2003 I have a different point of view but zero's idea isn't that bad. You can get the "learning" and a good PC at the same time. But if not, then here's my approach... MrX is right, Dell makes the most impeccable machines out there. I know many ppl with Dell PC's and they have no problems. Now given that, if your friend can get you a GREAT deal on a PC, it may be worth taking him up on that offer. PC's from Circuit City will last you about a good year of gaming before you'll need to upgrade SOMETHING. But if the cost is worth it to you to have a platform you can learn on for little money, I see no harm done. It's all economics, personal situation and your aptitude to learn. Figure out what is important to you for now and go with it. You may realize it was a great choice or a horrible one in the end, but just go with what you feel is right given all the input provided here mixed with your own thoughts. If you do that, you'll have no regrets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOFX January 13, 2003 Share NOFX Member January 13, 2003 bah no computer is different than the others. It all depends what you want to do with a machine. No company is better than another. Everything on the inside is pretty much the same. But I guess if i was going to get a whole new comp. It would probably be cheaper to buy one prebuilt. But if you already have one, it would be dumb to buy a prebuilt one. Cuz sometimes a video card can make all the difference in a machine. A PIII-700Mhz with 512 ram or less and a geforce2 can run cs great. If i was going to buy a prebuilt system. Here is the path i would take. Go to pricewatch check out the barebones systems. Go to the website and most of them will let you add anything you want to it. Be sure and keep this in mind....Just becuase you have a fast processor, it doesnt mean anything. All of your good graphics comes from the vid card. Ex: I have... +1800(1.53) overclocked to about a +2000, it runs around 1.7. 768 megs of ram asus mobo geforce4mx 440 Now I score only score about 6000 on benchmarks. but some dude that has a AMD Duron 1.1Ghz 256-512 meg of ram and a geforce4 Ti can score about 11000. So your video card is something that you dont wanna go cheap on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOFX January 13, 2003 Share NOFX Member January 13, 2003 oh and about the PC from circuit city....So how does everyone know whats inside the machines at circuit city?? Theres no law or rule saying it will last you so long. Just look at the components inside it....The three main things you want to take into consideration for you gaming power will be processor speed, RAM and Vid Card. If your going to buy new stuff and dont want the cheap and want your comp to last a while. Just be sure your comp has a Geforce 4 Ti and not a Geforce 4 Mx(the Mx's are already obsolete, would be pointless to buy one now, if your trying to get a NEW comp) or get one of the new Ati Radeon 9500/9700. And at least 512 Megs of RAM and you should be golden. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ZDamage January 13, 2003 Share Guest ZDamage Guests January 13, 2003 No company is better than another. Everything on the inside is pretty much the same. This isn't true. A dell or HP or what not will be basically the same parts. Cheaper breands are not any good. E-Machine which is sold often at circuit city are basically straight up trash. Depends on the make and what is in it. Most of the time you are paying too much for a name. And in the end, it isn't upgradable at all. My previous post points this out. Even a video card is hard to upgrade when there is only 2 centemeters of space to move in a tiny HP case. If it is at all possible, get custom made. If you live near a CompUSA, have them build you a custom machine. May be a little more than an HP but the case is ATX and all parts can be upgraded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[Mmmm]Homer January 13, 2003 Share [Mmmm]Homer Member January 13, 2003 Well, I also take exception to the "it's all the same on the inside" rationale. Here are a few shortcuts that gamers expecially should be aware of, since we often demand top-notch stuff: 1. Onboard sound. It's getting better, but still isn't as good as a card. You might not know that guy coming up behind you is on the left or right with onboard sound. 2. Onboard video. Does not compare. Avoid at all costs. 3. Slower bus speed. Intel has been phasing out their 400mhz bus processors with the 533mhz bus ones. AMD is going 333mhz bus. When changes like this happen you'll likely get the slower speed if you don't know to ask for better. 4. Slow hard drives. 5400rpm vs. 7200rpm - I only get 7200rpm stuff. The difference is noticable. The hard disk is the biggest bottleneck to overall performance. When you've watched that windows screen load 1000000 times and get a faster hard disk you'll really appreciate it. 5. Small PSU. Like 300w or lower. Even 350w is marginal. These just don't cut it with current systems, especially if you upgrade or plan to upgrade. 6. Case. This has been mentioned, and it really does make the difference in upgradability. Cute cases are for Apple users. Get something functional. As a side benefit you'll get better airflow if the case isn't crammed with stuff. That curved color font bezel will look dorky when you add the beige CD/DVD/sound hookups to the front of the case. 7. Slower RAM. In conjunction with the bus speed above, lesser vendors will give you what they have left from their giant order of RAM. The so-called "sub-$1000" market is full of crappy RAM. 8. The larger the company, the more CRAP they preload onto your PC. Want that AOL subscription? Mickey Mouse's Playtime Adventures? Fine, order a pre-built from a large manufacturer. I think requesting a clean no-frills install of Windows isn't even an option. Some stuff is fine, but they tend to target the "Stoopid American Bottom Common Denominator Consumer" when picking this stuff out. 9. "Lite" or trial versions of software. A 90-day trial of Norton Antivirus is worthless. Get something usefull like the full version of Norton Systemworks 2003. 10. Cheap monitor. The default monitor option is frequently the cheapy model to keep the bottom line price looking low. The monitor will last you several computers, so if you are buying one get a good one. A 19" quality monitor will last you for years. It's not worth it in the long run to get a low-refresh rate one, you'll get fatigued quicker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magruter January 13, 2003 Author Share Magruter Member January 13, 2003 Who around here would be willing to put a computer together for, There are some really intelligent people that i know would love to help a brother out. Let me know if you are in the market for making a couple bucks on the side. BTW if possible live near Illinois. I know this is huge thing to ask but if you are interested let me know. aim: MmmmMagruter E-mail: player4311@aol.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ZDamage January 13, 2003 Share Guest ZDamage Guests January 13, 2003 Good Job Homer. Perfect check list. The only exception is the onboard sound. If you are getting an Nforce-2 motherboard, the onboard sound is excellent. Right now the Asus is going for like 130 on New Egg. That is great since you do not need a network card or sound, both are onboard. And this board is an over clocker's paradise. And Asus is a great brand name. Their RMA policy is the worst in the industry though. In regards to RAM, make sure it isn't DDR 266 over clocked to DDR333. Many scams like that. One more thing about the video, make sure it isn't a budget card. Spend the extra money on a middle ground video card. The MX cards may run CS really well, but that is about it. They are heavily stripped down cards. For example, the GF4 MX are not really GF4 cards. They are GF2. Why? The DirectX 8 stuff is stripped out. That is not good. The best deal for the money right now is the Radeon 9500 Pro. You can get it on new egg for as low as 130 bucks. That is kick donkey. AGP speeds mean nothing really. 8x and 4x difference hardly exists. At this time it is only a selling gimick. It will ultimately be needed but with current video card speeds and what not, it is useless. Good Luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConGregation January 13, 2003 Share ConGregation Member January 13, 2003 Who around here would be willing to put a computer together for, There are some really intelligent people that i know would love to help a brother out. Let me know if you are in the market for making a couple bucks on the side. BTW if possible live near Illinois. I know this is huge thing to ask but if you are interested let me know. aim: MmmmMagruter E-mail: player4311@aol.com What you need to do is get with a knowlegable person and have them tell you what to buy and where. Then they can walk you through putting it all together. AIM is a wonderful thing for stuff like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[Mmmm]Homer January 13, 2003 Share [Mmmm]Homer Member January 13, 2003 Building Your Own PC, Part 1 Building Your Own PC, Part 2 Reader How Tos: Building For Stability Magruter, some guides on building a PC on Tom's Hardware with lots of pics. It is easy once you've done one, and you can upgrade at will and fix your PC. Scope out those articles and see if you're up for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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