Wanting to hear some ideas about some worthwhile peripheral buys from different opinions. :)

[Gone2tokyo]

Hello everyone!
Hope you're having a great day/night! I'm Randall and I'm 32 and happily married but at a point of losing my passion for hobbies because of health problems depleting my energy of enjoyment...period.

I have a decent self-build with a i-5 4430, ASUS H87M-E, 16 GB of Vengeance PC3-10700, GeForce GTX 970 OC, 6 TB in RAID 0, air cooling (quiet and cool as a cucumber), cheapo Sentey case (Building a desk to contain the components currently) and a Ultra Hybrid Series 750 W. Not a bad setup for the gaming I do and the menial tasks otherwise. I wanted to look into getting some cool and impressive/functional peripherals though to kind of complete finish the build.

I constantly spill beers on my keyboard, which would be a no-no of drinking beer at the computer if I bought a nice KB. I'm interested in buying a simple, accurate and comfortable mouse. A Keyboard with some cool gimmick to it (perhaps, LED keys[?]).

And a better set of speakers than my Logitech Z313 ( I have my KRK Rockit 8's for my music production).

Also just silly things like cool mouse pads for smoothness and better accuracy, fun useless USB devices for show, etc...

I'd be happy for anyone who'd take the time to talk to me personally for an hour or so to show me some neat stuff. I know this is an odd request but to anyone who considers it, thank you in advance. It's not that I'm lazy but I'm juggling so much right now that I feel like I can't think straight and need some advice from someone who is really up to date on these types of things.

I spent the last year in and out of the hospital with pancreatic problems/surguries, kidney problems, liver failure and the shit never seems to end. I'm not loaded or anything but my wife just wants me to buy some stuff to make me more comfortable while I fight through this uncomfortable pain and insomnia, which has turned into 18 hours of computer use a day (give or take) Anyway, thanks again for listening and I appreciate any help in advance
Long time reader of GPU and CPU charts on TH,

Randall
P.S. Thanks
P.P.S. Sorry for the sob story

 

[ssddx]

assuming this is a call for help and not a way to gain attention.

accepting donations or payment such as you're asking us to do is not something we do here on tomshardware. all advice given here is freely given and we want to keep it that way.

while we appreciate the sentiments (though could do without the story) i will have to decline on behalf of everyone here in terms of accepting reward.

i've edited your post to reflect this. again, thanks for the sentiment but its not something we accept.

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as for some peripherals to use.. are you looking for gimmicky and pretty or something that is actually practical. there are tons of gimmicky products that might seem interesting and unique however are not very practical in the long term. i'm of the opinion myself that things you purchase should be practical and offer enough performance gain to be worth the pricetag.

a few ideas:

keyboard
you might want to consider a mechanical keyboard, however be very aware that cherry mx switches do NOT tolerate liquids being spilled into them at all. i've had a $130 wasd mechanical killed this way. the design of the keyswitches is such that things drain into them (i liked the old model m's because they had a drip tray but sadly things are not built that way anymore). corsair has some decent looking aluminum keyboards, coolermaster's arent terrible as well. razer has some fancy boards though quality is not superb. there are high end brands like wasd, ducky, das and deck as well. if you're into oldschool stuff unicomp has replicas of the model m for sale. another thought would be to use a gamepad like the razer orbweaver or tartarus. now, you do not need to go mechanical.. rubber dome (membrane) style keyboards are nice in their own right as they are silent. mechanical has some advantages sure but this does not mean they are better.

mouse
i use a razer deathadder myself given it fits my hand although there are plenty of other nice mice such as the logitech proteus, roccat kone, some mice from gigabyte and a few other products. if you are into mmo style games there are mice with more buttons on them which may be viable although for general use a standard mouse with only a few extra buttons is suggested.

pad
i would not pay more than $15-20 for a pad as this is a waste of money. razer has some cheap(er) gaming pads you might like although there are certainly others. amazon/ebay have sellers who will put a custom image on a large 11x17 pad for you (perhaps one way for you to get excited).

speakers
pc speakers are only so good. you might want to think about using the powered monitors you have now or using something from the home theater category to up your sound. depending on budget there are certainly decent options.

headset
if you like using headsets, a good upgade would be entry level hifi headphones, a soundcard and a separate microphone.

---

a few ideas on how to become a bit more entertained...

play some new games of a genre you enjoy. or, better yet get involved in mmorpgs and join a guild/community and work towards bettering it. mmos suck quite a bit of time and with the right community you can certainly feel a part of it and forget about some of your problems in reality. many are free (for the most part) although there are some nice paid ones as well.

use a tv instead of a monitor. while it takes some getting used to this makes games and video much more thrilling given everything is larger than life. i made this switch myself years ago.

if you can not get excited by games, start posting on web forums. i myself do not get as excited by nor maintain as much enthusiasm to play games for endless hours anymore. i find i am more excited by discussing things on web forums.

find a hobby, better yet something you and your wife can do together to enjoy the time. talk to other people who have the same hobby and share ideas. take on projects of interest and see them through.

 

[jimmysmitty]

Keyboard: I can say that I love my Corsair K95. The aluminum makes it feel like a quality keyboard and the keys are raised instead of recessed so it is easier to clean. Still a no-no with liquids so if you are bad with spilling them I suggest a sippy cup

Mouse: Depends on what you do. Do you game? Do you do MMOs or FPS or RTS or a mix of them all? I currently have a Logitech G502 and I love it. Overall it works great for everything although for MMOs I did love my (which I still have) G600 which has G keys on the side that can be programmed for keys or macros. I personally have only used Logitech but they are one of the best brands.

Pad: I use the Corsair MM200. I have my old Razer Goliathus at work but its texture was a bit annoying. There is also the Corsair MM400 which has a fabric side and a hard side, depending on what you like, and they are pretty massive.

Speakers: Different to different people. I have been using a pair of Creative I-treague L3800s for a very long time, over 10 years, and for 2.1 speakers they are loud and clear.

 

[Gone2tokyo]

Sorry about about the sob story again. I suppose I was feeling emotional. Thanks for putting me in check in an honest yet compassionate way. I appreciate you editing the text to reflect what may seem to be false intentions. Your opinion and advice has been taken into account for future posts. Also, not trying to gain attention. Entering hospital again today for who knows how long this time. I should have left all of that out but I suppose I've isolated myself so badly that I just let loose on any form of communication possible. Thanks again for looking out for a brother.

Jimmy, lol on the sippy cup. I'll look into the K95. Gaming: I mainly play FPS but I don't like fumbling around with a million buttons and because of arthritis form factor is probably the biggest concern other than PPI and fluidity. I'll look at the G502 because I had a G5 once and it was great. It had a nice turtle shell finish to it. Loved that mouse! On the mouse pad, massive is fine. I'll have a look at both pads but the idea of hard or soft playing field is intriguing. On the speaker end I think I am looking for something at least 5.1 up to 7.1 but thanks for the advice for maybe a spare set of speakers for when the misses is sleeping.

Thanks for the warm welcome guys and I'll try to keep it PC related conversation only. Sorry if I made anyone uncomfortable.

Randall

 

[jimmysmitty]

If you had a G5 then the G502 is the best replacement for it. A bit different but a great mouse. I had a G5 and a few in between it and I wouldn;t change from my G502 unless they made a better G502.

And the MM400 is what I wanted but when I got my MM200 it was all they had and I was tired of my Goliathus.

If you don't like the extra buttons, get the K70 instead. The K95 has macros that you wont need. The K70 is the same minus the macro keys.

 

[ssddx]

if you have arthritis perhaps look at trackballs. i hear they are wonderful for arthritis sufferers. takes a little getting used to though (you wouldnt need a mousepad then either).

they make keyboards for arthritis sufferers as well. perhaps the wave keyboard or natural keyboard. or, if you want something for gaming perhaps the zboard which has a gaming layout on the side.

budget for speakers?

 

[Gone2tokyo]

If you had a G5 then the G502 is the best replacement for it. A bit different but a great mouse. I had a G5 and a few in between it and I wouldn;t change from my G502 unless they made a better G502.

And the MM400 is what I wanted but when I got my MM200 it was all they had and I was tired of my Goliathus.

If you don't like the extra buttons, get the K70 instead. The K95 has macros that you wont need. The K70 is the same minus the macro keys.

Awesome advice bro. Going to try to find a retailer within distance with a G502 and look at the others online. I like to cycle through things so if anyone has a difference of opinion of Jimmy here, please speak up. I may get multiple units.

Randall

 

[Gone2tokyo]

if you have arthritis perhaps look at trackballs. i hear they are wonderful for arthritis sufferers. takes a little getting used to though (you wouldnt need a mousepad then either).

they make keyboards for arthritis sufferers as well. perhaps the wave keyboard or natural keyboard. or, if you want something for gaming perhaps the zboard which has a gaming layout on the side.

budget for speakers?

No go on the trackball. Brain no thinkie right when me use trackball.
I'm trying to stick with optical mice with functionality, precision and simplicity. I will definitely look at more complex models as well as mishapen mice if they end up suitable for my hand. I use a wrist guard when I play to help with the arthritis, so that helps a bit.
Budget on speakers... hmmm. $200-300 I suppose would be a good starting point. Thanks for the input (no pun intended lol) on the trackball but I've tried and it's just not for me brother. Thanks again though!

Randall

 

[ssddx]

have a look at the energy classic take 5.1 or knock-off of them the monoprice 10565. you can pair them with a HT receiver and have a pretty nice system. its about as nice a system as you will get for $350-550. certainly well worthwhile over "pc speakers" or cruddy "home theater in a box" units (htib)

i would give the deathadder and g502 a good touch and feel locally if possible. i found the deathadder fits my hand better (i've owned both). i'm not arthritic but given my computer use over the years i certainly cramp up easier than some others. the g502 was nice though a bit too narrow for my hands. nice mouse otherwise.

 

[Gone2tokyo]

have a look at the energy classic take 5.1 or knock-off of them the monoprice 10565. you can pair them with a HT receiver and have a pretty nice system. its about as nice a system as you will get for $350-550. certainly well worthwhile over "pc speakers" or cruddy "home theater in a box" units (htib)

i would give the deathadder and g502 a good touch and feel locally if possible. i found the deathadder fits my hand better (i've owned both). i'm not arthritic but given my computer use over the years i certainly cramp up easier than some others. the g502 was nice though a bit too narrow for my hands. nice mouse otherwise.

Yeah, and I have big hands too. The Deathadder huh? I'll check it out just for the dang name! I do like sleek mice which is why I liked the original G5. My favorite for years on end was the Microsoft Intellimouse 1.0. I was a headshot machine with that thing. On the speaker end, So these particular speakers would need a head unit to power the speakers? Am I understanding this right? The Logitech z313 are fine but they sound muddy and there is no EQ so the the bass is so overbearing. You can be taking a shower with the internal bathroom fan on halfway across the house and still hear the documentaries I'm playing but only on the bass side. It sounds like Charlie Brown's teacher talking. Hehe. Also any advice on headsets? I have my eyes on some Sennheiser PC320's for Ventrillo/skype/etc. Any thoughts on that? I'm going to look up the speaker unit's you talked about, earlier, right now.

 

[Gone2tokyo]

have a look at the energy classic take 5.1 or knock-off of them the monoprice 10565. you can pair them with a HT receiver and have a pretty nice system. its about as nice a system as you will get for $350-550. certainly well worthwhile over "pc speakers" or cruddy "home theater in a box" units (htib)

i would give the deathadder and g502 a good touch and feel locally if possible. i found the deathadder fits my hand better (i've owned both). i'm not arthritic but given my computer use over the years i certainly cramp up easier than some others. the g502 was nice though a bit too narrow for my hands. nice mouse otherwise.

Both setups of speakers look great and I have a decent couple of HT Amplifier units (don't know if that's what they are called. I was really hoping for more of a plug and play pc type system with headphones jack up front and all that jazz. You've turned my attention in a different direction and that's a good thing. I'll check out this Tiger Direct store that's about to go Outta Bizznezz. See if I can get a good deal if I fork up for the warranty Keep you updated ssddx.

 

[ssddx]

while pc speakers are certainly convenient for plug and play easy to use connectivity, it is also true that they are inferior sounding as well.

some of the higher end pc speakers arent terrible - but those approach the prices of entry level hifi speakers and yet get blown completely away by them.

the pc320 isnt a bad headset, however you might want to give thought to separate microphone headphones and soundcard/amp. on a low end budget i'd say something like a hd518, with a clip on mic paired with a xonar dg. if you wanted more soundstage but were okay with less bass (advantage in games but perhaps not as fun sounding) the ad500x is a good choice as well.