Sinzer
Prominent Member
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- May 25, 2002
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Definately get a good PSU and motherboard, that will really set you up.
Can I ask exactly what you are requireing this PC for? By the sounds of it you also want it as a gaming PC? The TFT will it be used for gaming or are you hooking up to a projector?
To not upgrade a PC for 3 years will be a tough job if you want it to play the latest games decently, really 18months-2 years is the most you will get out of some components.
On the motherboard front I too have gone through two MSI mobos and wouldn't touch them with a barge pole. ASUS all the way for me, might not be the fastest off the block but I have never had one problem with any ASUS board I have owned, I still have an old P5 churning away. Features and reliability are what I look for.
Do you really need to pay the premium for 939? You could knock off over a hundred quid off the price to get a 754, considering that the new BX form factor should be out shortly, the current incarnation of mobos are going to change drastically, so I doubt you will see that much upgrade advantage with the 939.
The X800 I would also question, although it is most probably a good buy, it may be worth waiting to look at the new X700 or 6600GT the mid range cards about to be launched. Looks like they should retail for about 150 quid and are not that different in performance.
I am not sure I agree on the HD performance, fast IO is not that important to a home PC. If you were running an 2 Terabyte Oracle Database server (not that you would on windows!) then IO becomes nearly the most important factor. But in a home PC ATA will not affect your performance, it might have a slight bearing on load times, but you will be able to stream movies fine. It is often wise going for a slow drive on a HCPC as it generates lower temperatures and requires less cooling. Size is also key and if you plan on storing DVDs on your HD you won't be able to with a 74Gb without running out of space soon.
I would be extremely hesistant buying a 19" TFT screen, these screens are still known to show blurring in motion. I currently use a Hercules 920 Pro 17" TFT, these have the 20ms Hydis screens which are still rated as the best TFT screen on the market. I have no problems with it and game on it most days
Sorry if I have come in and upset your decision, I hope not as that is a really good spec PC. However, it is worth considering what price/performance ratios are like. Paying double for a component when it only yields say 5-10% performance increase is not money well spent. I would imagine you could pay at least 300 quid less and be unable to tell the difference between that PC and your current spec under normal operating conditions.
Usually the biggest leaps in performance are when you change a generation of components, not when you simply upgrade within a generation.
Can I ask exactly what you are requireing this PC for? By the sounds of it you also want it as a gaming PC? The TFT will it be used for gaming or are you hooking up to a projector?
To not upgrade a PC for 3 years will be a tough job if you want it to play the latest games decently, really 18months-2 years is the most you will get out of some components.
On the motherboard front I too have gone through two MSI mobos and wouldn't touch them with a barge pole. ASUS all the way for me, might not be the fastest off the block but I have never had one problem with any ASUS board I have owned, I still have an old P5 churning away. Features and reliability are what I look for.
Do you really need to pay the premium for 939? You could knock off over a hundred quid off the price to get a 754, considering that the new BX form factor should be out shortly, the current incarnation of mobos are going to change drastically, so I doubt you will see that much upgrade advantage with the 939.
The X800 I would also question, although it is most probably a good buy, it may be worth waiting to look at the new X700 or 6600GT the mid range cards about to be launched. Looks like they should retail for about 150 quid and are not that different in performance.
I am not sure I agree on the HD performance, fast IO is not that important to a home PC. If you were running an 2 Terabyte Oracle Database server (not that you would on windows!) then IO becomes nearly the most important factor. But in a home PC ATA will not affect your performance, it might have a slight bearing on load times, but you will be able to stream movies fine. It is often wise going for a slow drive on a HCPC as it generates lower temperatures and requires less cooling. Size is also key and if you plan on storing DVDs on your HD you won't be able to with a 74Gb without running out of space soon.
I would be extremely hesistant buying a 19" TFT screen, these screens are still known to show blurring in motion. I currently use a Hercules 920 Pro 17" TFT, these have the 20ms Hydis screens which are still rated as the best TFT screen on the market. I have no problems with it and game on it most days
Sorry if I have come in and upset your decision, I hope not as that is a really good spec PC. However, it is worth considering what price/performance ratios are like. Paying double for a component when it only yields say 5-10% performance increase is not money well spent. I would imagine you could pay at least 300 quid less and be unable to tell the difference between that PC and your current spec under normal operating conditions.
Usually the biggest leaps in performance are when you change a generation of components, not when you simply upgrade within a generation.