So, some decisions have been made. The computer parts are purchased. I am using the monitor now. The CPU and RAM are all that are left to create a functional machine, and they are both on the truck for delivery. I'm going to have to find an excuse to go home from work early today! Ahh, who needs an excuse. I'll just take the time off. =)
Another time I'll go into how and why (fun and less $$) I build my own computer.
Today I'll jsut tell you all what components I'm putting into it.
As I stated in my post a while back, I was really thinking that having a core 2 duo would be fantastic. Once I saw how much they go for, I decided to build a computer around it. (check here for some general pricing)
I decided to get the mid-range 2.13 Ghz core 2 duo chip that (I think) I linked to in my previous post. I ended up getting this one, though I ordered it for a few bucks cheaper previously from another company. This was last thursday evening. On monday morning the CPU still hadn't shipped and wasn't going to until tuesday, so I called them and cancelled. ZipZoomFly had it for free shipping, so upgrading it to overnight (so it got here today, wednesday) was only $12. Worth it to have it a day or two early.
So, I had the processor, but which motherboard to choose? I looked around a bunch, but couldn;t find many straight answers until I came to a good article on AnandTech. They did the hard work of testing the viable options of motherboards and such. I believe it was in that article that helped me NOT make a couple mistakes buying a motherboard and at the end they suggested this motherboard for a reasonable price. I was sold.
The other tough choice was the video card. I selected a GeForce 7600 GT after everything else was ordered. Again Anandtech had a great article about current video cards. For the price, the 7600 can't be beat right now, at least in my price range. I just refuse to spend more than $300 on a video card.
Most of the components are easier to find and not as essential.
I wanted good RAM, so I picked up two gigabytes. This wasn't lowest or highest price and seemed to have very few bad reports. Two Gigabytes seem like a lot, but especially while playing games I've hit the wall with my current 1 gig, so I thought I'd push it to two. Last time I only bought half of what I wanted at first and regretted it -- eventually upgrading to the full amount. May as well start with the stuff I want since I'm spending money like I have too much of it.
The rest was pretty straightforward. I needed a new case and a power supply that was 400 watts or greaeter, so I chose this one. A blue neon tiger. Wooooooo! Kind of silly, but hey, I'm sure it impresses someone. The kids like it anyway. =)
I got a super duper all in one DVD/CDR burner that appears to do it all. I thought about getting 2 drives, but it was cheaper to get them all together. If I burned more CDs or DVD's I may have gotten two, but it'll mostly be for backups and such. I'm really not much of a pirate anymore.
My old computer had a 40 gigabyte hard drive that was in 3 partitions -- Two 10 gig partitions and a 20 gig one. Boy was that cramped. It'll be nice to have a 250 gig SATA drive and not worry so much about space.
The Mouse and Keyboard are pretty standard.
And the monitor. Just... WOW. I never realized how big a difference going from 1024x768 to 1680x1050 could be! Good stuff. I can't say enough good things about this monitor and it's one of my favorite parts of all of this.
I'll post more about the software side later, due to this post's length and me actually making another post this week. I'm too busy playing to do much else...
until then.
7 comments:
For some reason I didn't see this post until today.
I also build my own systems. Only once have I bought a brand name system, it was a Sony. I no longer buy any Sony products.
Nice monitor!
I had a strange issue last summer with my computer. It would reboot at random, generally under high CPU loads. Didn't seem to be a temperature issue. Ended up throwing out my Enermax 350W power supply and replaced it with a Seasonic that had PFC and a much higher efficiency. It fixed the problem, plus the power supply is nearly silent.
The link for the mobo didn't work so don't know what you got. I've been running MSI boards the last couple times and my system is rock solid. Usually use Crucial RAM. And ATI video cards, even though I'm not a huge fan of ATI. Their drivers are bloatware.
BTW, I picked up a copy of Civ 3 last night at Walmart for $9. Looked like Civ IV was going to push the limits of my old AthlonXP 1900 and for sure won't run on any of my other computers. I'll probably try it out in the next couple of days.
Nobody: You'll like Civ 3. That runs fine on my old 450Mhz machine.
Dadguy: how come it took 3 days for your post to show up? I didn't see it until Friday too.
I think that the post shows that date because I saved it as a draft on wednesday. Kind of wierd, it was unexpected ofr me as well.
I love my monitor. Worth every penny, and pretty darn cheap at $300.
I'll update the motherboard link. It was a DFI Infinity.
I ahve used both ATI and NVIDIA cards. I've always had issues with ATI's drivers, even a year or so after their cards are released, so I lean away from them. Not sure how it is nowadays, it's been about 4 years.
I didn't play civ3 much, but I enjoyed what I played.
Yesterday I got Oblivion which is the sequel to Morrowind if you've played that. As my wife would say, it looks purdy. It seems as though it will be a time sink as well. I'll have to be careful. =) Maybe I'll post about the software if I get time on the weekend. Probably not until sunday night though.
So I have that post, a post abotu slycrel, post about the basement, post about MAME... geez, I'm getting behind.
Less playing more posting!
Less playing more posting!
Quoted for truth
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, looked sweet, I've turned slightly green.
I have to say... I was excited for a new machine in terms of faster, better, cooler. I hadn't thought about how the thing would physically LOOK, but boy is it spiffy looking on our wee cheepo 'puterdesk!
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