Need suggestions on a good brand to go with

[fourlevel]

Hi,

I am looking to buy a new system, preferably configured with equal or greater to q9450, 4gig's of ram. I will be using the computer for audio recording and creation. I really want a beast so I have been looking into gaming companies. My budget is around 1,500us$ give or take some. I've found a company called cyberpowerpc, but have seen some bad reviews. I've been using a dell and it's held up for 4 yrs. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated...


Thanks

 

[azbillaz]

4L I feel your pain. I am looking to buy my first computer system ever. THAT'S RIGHT FOLKS! I AM IN MY FORTIES AND I AM ABOUT TO BUY MY FIRST COMPUTER SO IF YOU HAVE NOTHING CONSTRUCTIVE TO SAY PLEASE DON'T REPLY! IN OTHER WORDS = BE NICE BECAUSE I NEED HELP! I've used computers at work for years but never bought one. Geez it is so confusing! 800 DDDR2 which seems to be quickly becoming outdated or DDR3 1333 which seems outrageously expensive? 4 gigs of memory or 8? I definitely want an Intel chip because AMD ain't gonna be around in ten years (I can tell by following the stock/financials) but do I get a Q series, E series, a Xeon? There's no way that I'm paying for a QX9650 or a Skulltrail chip although they seem awesome. Forget Nehalem for now because you have to be a sports star or a US senator to afford one. What about the video card? I like to play the occasional video game. What other benefits does a good video card have? Will it help me watch a dvd or improve the quality of pictures or movies that I make/download? How about the hard drive? One hard drive or two and why? 250g, 500g, raptor, or velociraptor? Do I need an asus p5e3 mobo (which I think is the abbreviation for motherboard) or an nvidia 780 or 790? What would the difference be? How much power do I really need? 425 watts, 850 watts, 1000 watts and why? It's very difficult to find out this info. I called Dell the other day and asked some basic questions after building/configuring a few systems on their website. The guy I spoke to was less than helpful. It was like my questions were too simplistic for him. Like I was bothering him. Sorry buddy but before I shell out 2000 - 3000 bucks I'd like to talk to somebody who knows more than I do and can explain things. I've been to cyberpower, ibuypower, dell, falcon northwest (frag box), and a multitude of other sites. The site/manufacturer that I like best is xicomputer.com. Why you say? Because XI seems to have the most/best choices! With Dell you don't know what the hell you're paying for! They don't tell you what kind of mobo they use. They seem to have low wattage power. Just seems like they're making way too much money off of crappy components - this is my opinion as a layperson - I have no significant knowledge base to back this up. But after a hellalot of web surfing for a new computer, that's my opinion of Dell. Buy a Dell because we're the biggest and have the most advertising. No thanks. And what of all this talk of solid state drives (cost more than their weight in gold for goodness sake) and fsb being a thing of the past in the near future? I am willing to spend anywhere from $2000 - 3000 (for the computer only - no monitor, printer, etc.) but I want a computer that I can enjoy for the next ten years. Is that possible? Just because I'm willing to spend 3000 of my net, after-tax dollars doesn't make me a rich guy folks. It means that I want a quality piece of long-lasting equipment. I really don't want to wait too much longer because I've been thinking about buying one for about a year now. The computer that I'm using now someone gave me and runs a 366 mhz chip and windows 98 (ouch!). It's getting tired. Now I know there's people reading this who are saying to themselves "What are you going to use this computer for?". I understand what you're saying. All I can tell you is that I want to surf the net (doh!), download/create music, pictures and movies (duh), light architectural/enginering stuff, and experience the joys of computing in general. I don't want my system to hold me back regardless of what I want to do within reason. I'll pay the extra $500 if ddr3 1333 will make my computer appreciably faster. I'll pay a bit more for having to wait less. Should I wait a little longer and see what the near future holds as far as major changes go (Nehalem drvivng down core 2 prices, bye bye fsb, solid state drive, ddr3, etc.) Anyone with anything constructive to say please respond. I could really use the insight. Thanks!

 

[rexter]

What you need is a good CPU and a Pro Sound Card if all you need the power is to do Audio Recording/Editing.

 

[ZootyGray]

If you spend thousands you will regret it later. You are not really doing anything - yet. You will eventually upgrade various pieces - u will know when and what and why.

Avoid brand names, buy parts. Everything for 1000ish maybe 1500 max with good monitor.

You need a guide who is tek savvy gamer. Don't mention prices, Just see what the list adds up to. Think - move slowly. Learn.

You already know more than you think - you could really learn if you bought a cheap used and tore it apart. Or rip apart the one you have. They are all the same - only different Take it all apart. Then make it work again.

Avoid brand name case systems. Period.
Avoid the "bleeding edge of technology" $$$$$$$$$$$
Forget the wowee super performance bs.
Find "best bang for the buck" - need a guide.

A case is a bucket! start cheap
Pow supply - get 600 watts
HDD = 1x 500 Gig SATA2
Ram min = 2gigs u can add more EZ if needed = 2x1gig=2gigs DDR2
Mobo + CPU = these work together - almost married (the heart)
Video CARD = ATI HD4850 - DO NOT BUY ONBOARD VIDEO - MUST BE A CARD! well the mobo might havr onboard but you won't use it for gaming usually - it's ok for surfing

kb, mOUSE MONITOR - Whatever you like
DVD-RW
SURGE PROTECTOR = good one about $40 - important!
Cheap HP AllInOne Printer - on sale usually

Forget about it lasting 10 yrs - they are all out of date in 5 or less.
Trying to futureproof is difficult.

Find the good pc shop near you - and do not trust them either

Be your own pc mechanic - tear that old 366 PII and research the net to see if you can find out anything aout the mobo chipset. It's an L? I forget - used to own one. LX? Better ones were BX. probably agp 4x

You will learn a lot of weird stuff. But your looking for everything for less than 1000-1500 - and that will be nice stuff - a rocket!

Make sure it will run Crysis.

DO NOT BUY ALL PARTS IN ONE PLACE.
NO BRAND NAME PC'S = DELL IBM GATEWAY HP COMPAQ ETC ETC ETC
BUY GENERIC - USED TO BE CALLED CLONES - but it's going to be your brand - all yours.

Find a guide to help you put it together and install your O/S
- but YOU DO IT!!!
Partition your HDD into 4 drives min.

Research the net and tek sites - google the whatever you don't know

Learn to read mobo manual = "specifications" IMPORTANT!!! This is how they hide the bs and the good stuff!!!!

Read forums and ask really stupid questions. Like this one

Good luck.