Forbidden Donut

Buying a new computer computer to run a game made in 98. Seems odd to me. I think you can pick one up at a pawn shop for $20 that will do that.

Would like a new computer regardless, the CS is just an added bonus.

I just picked up a new PC from Dell a few weeks ago. Can't remember the exact specs but it was something like:

2.9 GHz Processor
500 GB Harddrive
6 GB RAM
Windows 7
Printer/scanner/copier
3 Years of anti-virus
No Monitor
Free shipping
Price with tax around 550

The AV was included on the deal and not really a selling point for me -- but everything else met or exceeded what I need. I'm no longer downloading music or videos and am not playing any games -- just using the computer for working at home. Throw in a version of Office 2010 through my employers Home-Use program for 10 bucks and I have everything I need.

are you upgrading hdds,vid cards, cd/dvdrom as well or just the cpu/ram/mobo?

Starting from scratch.

I'm building a comp for skyrim in a month or two. I guess I'll share whatever I read on them thar warbles with ya. I was planning to start research in Sept...

You make any progress yet?

If you have a Microcenter near you, they have Phenom II x4's that come with a free mobo. All current games are more GPU intensive than CPU intensive so spend the most on the graphics card.

$100-150 for CPU/Mobo combo
$200 for GPU
$70 on PSU (Never cheap out on this, heart of the rig.)
$50-$70 for HDD.
$50 on case.

built a new PC last week; my graphics card alone cost about 500 haha

coffee could you list your components and prices? along with maybe some of your thought processes that led you to decide on each? i may be building a rig soon as well and that would be an awesome starting point for my planning.

processor: Intel Core i7-2600K
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070
-One of the best and fastest processors around.

board: ASUS P8P67 DELUXE
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131701
-Good with lots of features. Occasional problems like unable to wake from sleep. In hindsight I would not go with an ASUS board.

RAM: Patriot Gamer 2 Series 8GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220558

Graphics: EVGA Nvidia GeForce GTX 580
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130587

SSD: Patriot Wildfire 120GB SATA III
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220599

Power Supply: Corsair HX650
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139012

Case: Silverstone Raven 3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163180
-Weird case design; was tough putting everything in - only real con. Very spacious and accomodating, good airflow, cable management (runs most cables through the back) is great, very clean.

Cooler: (couldn't find on newegg) Thermalright Silver Arrow
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX31202(ME).aspx
-Necessary for the processor. Works well with the case I chose by pushing air in the same direction as the fans (away and upward)

I bought local and came out to around $1800

Pretty big waste of money if you ask me, unless you're rich. You'd be better off buying a $800 computer and then buying another $800 in 2 years.

I definitely agree with @b1lly on this one. That computer is well beyond what is necessary these days, and it will be obsolete in two years anyway. You'd be better off buying cheaper computers more often.

don't come in here trying to ruin my high priced pc boner. i just went on ibuypower and it's amazing how fast you can get up to $5k configuring a pc without a budget in mind.

I'd rather build a really good computer now and be set for like, the next 10 years , only making minute upgrades where necessary instead of constantly having to buy new systems. I know in 2 years it won't be cutting edge; it'll still run adequately run every game that comes out in the next 2 years and beyond. The last time I bought a new computer was 2004 so it's about damn time

<---- sad panda, rockin an '06 comp, with an '08 GPU, and too broke to shovel out even the $500-$800 it would take to get myself more up to date.<br />
That being said, where do you guys go to get Windows? I'm still running XP, and would love to get Windows 7, but again, cannot afford to dish out the dough. I know that we don't talk about pirating things, and I'd prefer to avoid that risk anyway, but if you guys know of any good alternatives to paying the 200 for it (I would need the full version) I would greatly appreciate it.

Well, whatever works for you then. We all have different expectations for our computers.

Anywhere near a 10 year expectation for a computer in this day and age is pretty irrational, though. Computers just don't work like that anymore. This is even more true now that the emphasis on computing hardware is shifting from CPUs to GPUs; the improvements we'll likely see with GPU technology over even the next couple years could be extraordinary, so your $500 purchase today may be next to worthless very rapidly.

10 years lol come on dude.

@Redbone: Windows 7 isn't $200. http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0361170

Okay. Doing research for a new PC is making me feel old. I'm looking on newegg and i don't recognize half the brands that make this shit anymore. So MSI, Gigabyte and EVGA are now reputable brands? Anyone have any experience with ASRock? Coffee why no love for ASUS? I thought ASUS was a pretty great company for almost anything.

Motherboard shopping is where I'm stuck at. There are so many new features other bullshit, it's hard to make sense of it all and prioritize what i really need in a board.

I love asrock, they are a (slightly) cheaper subsidiary of asus, and often will put some of the more experimental stuff in their boards before they end up on asus products. I've used them for 3 different builds now. If you are building a computer with older and newer parts they are perfect, because they implement connectors for both. One of the first boards I bought from them had an agp slot and a pci express slot, as well as the functionality for adding an upgrade board to go from 939 slot processors to the am2 series.

Regarding your shopping though, start with a processor and whatever new/old hardware you have and build a board around that. You may want to invest in a board that supports usb3 as that will eventually be the new standard.

awesome. thanks for the input, frat.

0.o i didnt know that there were boards that had connectors for both...

My graphics card is still somewhat up to date, what i'm really lacking is processing power. You're telling me there are boards out there that I can take my old graphics card, sound card, and power supply, and then put a new processor and ram in, and I could actually make that work?

apparently i knew way less than i thought i did. I was sitting here under the impression that my ati radeon 4850 wouldnt be compatible with newer mobos, but it is. And it looks like the soundcard slots are the same.

so right now i'm looking at getting these 2 things, possibly in a couple months after i've had some paychecks roll in
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157281
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103727

does this look like a reasonable, and fairly up to date pair?

@Redbone

The board is definitely new/up to date. Definitely has upgrade potential if you are building your pc part by part.

The CPU is less up to date (they are starting to work on rolling out 8 core processors now!!!) but is a good solid choice regardless. I'm using the 945 quad core version in the build i have right now which is slightly less powerful than the one you have here.

It's a good idea to wait for black friday to buy this shit, eh?