APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: A.S.A.P. My solid four year vaio laptop took a nasty fall and the only computer I have access to is very slow and does not support my needs.
BUDGET RANGE: $750 or less after rebates/combos/etc and including OS cost. I have an XP key, but I might upgrade to windows 7.
SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Online Poker, Browsing/Steaming video, gaming, multi-tasking?
PARTS NOT REQUIRED:
Monitor?: I have a Sanyo ~23" HDTV that should be able to work as a monitor although it does not have a VGA port. So far as I can tell it only supports HDMI and S-video. Is there a cord to support my needs? A guy at walmart said they didn't make a cord for me... I took his opinion with a grain of salt because I'm pretty sure it exists.
Optical drive?: I believe I have an extra cd/dvd RW drive from a mid grade Dell that was purchased in the late 90's. From what I've read I won't really be saving much to buy a new one since I'm not sold on having to have a Blu-Ray player so I haven't ruled out buying a new cd/dvd rw.
Networking Card?: Integrated is preferred.
Sound Card: I think this is over kill for my needs.
Mouse/Keyboard/Speakers: I'll window shop at best buy.
PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: New Egg/Tiger Direct/Amazon?
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA
PARTS PREFERENCES: I am thinking about going with:
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ955FBGMBOX
MOBO: AM3 8xx
HD: I'd like to have two HDs. My main is preferred 10,000 RPM for fast reboots/core programs and small to mid storage space. Second HD is really just about $$$, the cheaper the better, I'm even considering an external. All in all i've never used more than 30GB of space and I've been using computers for 6+ years.
RAM: 4-6?GB
OVERCLOCKING: Not now, but in the future possibly.
CROSSFIRE: Only if future proofing seems wise.
MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1600x1200-1920x1200 on two or more monitors
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I think I have future proofed the core of my system but it is still a consideration.
Stability is a MUST so I don't mind making sure my system runs cool but I doubt water cooling is in my budget and/or capability.
I don't expect that I will need some uber dank graphics card for my needs and since this can be updated in the future. I am curious about using integrated graphics for the time being to save some money but it feels like I'm going to have budget room. The games I plan on playing are old RPGs like Baulder's Gate - Never Winter Nights plus Star Craft II and
Diablo III. I've been running dual monitors on my old laptop and will like to continue using two or more as time goes on.
I know that most online poker isn't very resource intensive but I do play multiple tables at once as well as run multiple programs in the background like MS word, MS excel, firefox, adobe reader, various poker calculators, and Hold'em Manager. Hold'em Manager requires another program to run in the background which added about 5 processes for my last PC. Also, HEM searches through hand histories which can be quite extensive. If anyone needs an idea of usage/consumption I can probably find some data on twoplustwo.com or Hold'em Manager's website. My old laptop with its 1.8(?) ghz duo core and gig of RAM ran all of this pretty well seamlessly.
XP or windows 7?
I have put together three PCs in the past as well as make minor tweaks to a few other computers, however, I've never installed all of the drivers from scratch. I'd like for easier hardware to install, but I feel I can goggle/read my way though some things if this is an issue.
Thanks in advance,
-Ren
BUDGET RANGE: $750 or less after rebates/combos/etc and including OS cost. I have an XP key, but I might upgrade to windows 7.
SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Online Poker, Browsing/Steaming video, gaming, multi-tasking?
PARTS NOT REQUIRED:
Monitor?: I have a Sanyo ~23" HDTV that should be able to work as a monitor although it does not have a VGA port. So far as I can tell it only supports HDMI and S-video. Is there a cord to support my needs? A guy at walmart said they didn't make a cord for me... I took his opinion with a grain of salt because I'm pretty sure it exists.
Optical drive?: I believe I have an extra cd/dvd RW drive from a mid grade Dell that was purchased in the late 90's. From what I've read I won't really be saving much to buy a new one since I'm not sold on having to have a Blu-Ray player so I haven't ruled out buying a new cd/dvd rw.
Networking Card?: Integrated is preferred.
Sound Card: I think this is over kill for my needs.
Mouse/Keyboard/Speakers: I'll window shop at best buy.
PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: New Egg/Tiger Direct/Amazon?
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA
PARTS PREFERENCES: I am thinking about going with:
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ955FBGMBOX
MOBO: AM3 8xx
HD: I'd like to have two HDs. My main is preferred 10,000 RPM for fast reboots/core programs and small to mid storage space. Second HD is really just about $$$, the cheaper the better, I'm even considering an external. All in all i've never used more than 30GB of space and I've been using computers for 6+ years.
RAM: 4-6?GB
OVERCLOCKING: Not now, but in the future possibly.
CROSSFIRE: Only if future proofing seems wise.
MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1600x1200-1920x1200 on two or more monitors
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I think I have future proofed the core of my system but it is still a consideration.
Stability is a MUST so I don't mind making sure my system runs cool but I doubt water cooling is in my budget and/or capability.
I don't expect that I will need some uber dank graphics card for my needs and since this can be updated in the future. I am curious about using integrated graphics for the time being to save some money but it feels like I'm going to have budget room. The games I plan on playing are old RPGs like Baulder's Gate - Never Winter Nights plus Star Craft II and
Diablo III. I've been running dual monitors on my old laptop and will like to continue using two or more as time goes on.
I know that most online poker isn't very resource intensive but I do play multiple tables at once as well as run multiple programs in the background like MS word, MS excel, firefox, adobe reader, various poker calculators, and Hold'em Manager. Hold'em Manager requires another program to run in the background which added about 5 processes for my last PC. Also, HEM searches through hand histories which can be quite extensive. If anyone needs an idea of usage/consumption I can probably find some data on twoplustwo.com or Hold'em Manager's website. My old laptop with its 1.8(?) ghz duo core and gig of RAM ran all of this pretty well seamlessly.
XP or windows 7?
I have put together three PCs in the past as well as make minor tweaks to a few other computers, however, I've never installed all of the drivers from scratch. I'd like for easier hardware to install, but I feel I can goggle/read my way though some things if this is an issue.
Thanks in advance,
-Ren
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