Curse

Dahl · May 30, 2007, 02:42 PM // 14:42

I don't want the best of the best. I don't want this generation of specs. I want AMD, because they were the best AWHILE AGO, that means they aren't expensive. I want the x1950 pro because it was the best AWHILE AGO, that means it isn't expensive. I don't think you people understand that I DON'T WANT CUTTING EDGE TECHNOLOGY, I JUST WANNA BE ABLE TO PLAY GUILD WARS ON HIGH SETTINGS. Guess what, my mother's laptop which is on the ATI x1300 series runs guild wars at max settings (mind you without AA) and can almost consistently keep up to 60 fps except for places like the Ring of Fire mission with the special effects of the ethers, or in the desolation. Both of which only bring the fps to about 40. I think an x1950 will be JUST FINE!

We've discussed PSU's prior to this topic. I know that there's more to it than the wattage, but since I don't ACTUALLY HAVE IT IN MY HANDS, I can't tell you which one I want! I don't care how great or heavy the 400w one is, 400w IS NOT ENOUGH FOR THE X1950. I will pick out my own 550w-600w psu, and I will pick a good one because I'm not stupid enough to think that it's JUST the wattage that counts!

Easyg, $400 sounds JUST FINE for a processor.

I don't wanna play games that come out in friggin 2010, I wanna be able to play what I have RIGHT NOW and possibly warhammer online which will be out shortly.

Besides my mother's laptop, which I use rarely, I have NO gaming system whatsoever. I can't enter guild wars on this PC because it freezes or restarts. The specs are way too old and the entire system is corrupt due to blowing the fuses so many times in my old apartment.

I honestly do not care about having this year's BEST equipment. I don't care, I really don't. Heck, even the x1950 is MAJOR OVERKILL for the things I want to do. I want what was good maybe 2 years ago.

Understand?

I came in here thinking that I could have a discussion with a handful of adults about something simple like what kind of specs I should get for my particular needs. Instead, I come in here and all I get is "THIS IS THE BEST" "NO THIS IS THE BEST" "BUT THIS DOES THIS SO IT'S BETTER"

nagisaki · May 30, 2007, 04:18 PM // 16:18

Probably the biggest reason why this thread has gone much farther away from what you wanted would have to be due to the fact you listed the system you did at $1200. Not only did this inspire people to want to do better things with that money, but also had people wanting to save your mortal soul for nearly falling into that deal XD

Now, since you've made it very clear with this last post exactly why you were going after older technology (though I am sure many will want to burn you at the steak for it), I'd be glad to make suggestions based on your needs.

my biggest concern about the system that was originally listed is the price. I'm not sure about shipping rates or taxes, but purposingly choosing the highest end versions of the parts you listed (since you didn't list any model numbers) I was only able to get about $750 CAD on newegg.com for the components, that includes an unnecessarily fast shipping method. What I recommend doing is either finding another system builder who will not charge such a ridiculous markup, or maybe buying the parts yourself.

Dex · May 30, 2007, 04:29 PM // 16:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dahl

I don't want the best of the best. I don't want this generation of specs. I want AMD, because they were the best AWHILE AGO, that means they aren't expensive. I want the x1950 pro because it was the best AWHILE AGO, that means it isn't expensive.

Not to knit pick here, but just because something is no longer the best doesn't mean it's the best value. That does happen a lot of the time, but not always. The reality of it is that right now the lower-end and midrange Core 2 Duos provide very good "bang for the buck". Honestly they (AMD and Intel) seem fairly even in that realm right now. Example:

Core 2 Duo E6600 @ Newegg = $224.90
Athlon X2 6000+ @ Newegg = $229.00

Core 2 Duo E6600 PCMark 2005 - CPU score = 6168
Athlon X2 6000+ PCMark 2005 - CPU score = 6146

6168 / 224.90 = ~27.4255
6146 / 229.00 = ~26.8384

Pretty close, however I'd go with the Intel just because there's a better upgrade path in sight. We're still yet to see AMD's future plans truly materialize.

As far as the x1950 Pro, it was never "the best". In fact, it's a newer card than the x1950xt. It was specifically designed to be a value (read: cheap) alternative to the XT. Now that the XT as gone down in price it's definitely worth it to go to the XT. The XT is just a better value. The XT is not "CUTTING EDGE", it's just better value for the money.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dahl

I think an x1950 will be JUST FINE!

It will. In fact, it's just about the best GPU out there without moving up to the 8800. It's certainly better than the nVidia 7900 series.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dahl

We've discussed PSU's prior to this topic. I know that there's more to it than the wattage, but since I don't ACTUALLY HAVE IT IN MY HANDS, I can't tell you which one I want! I don't care how great or heavy the 400w one is, 400w IS NOT ENOUGH FOR THE X1950. I will pick out my own 550w-600w psu, and I will pick a good one because I'm not stupid enough to think that it's JUST the wattage that counts!

You're right. Get at least a 500w - 600w PSU from a good brand. When you see a model you might want, Google up some reviews and look at the specs. You don't need to "have it in your hands." No offense, but why are you taking everything so personally? Nobody is calling you "stupid." You started an advice thread. Why are you getting angry that people are posting in it? People are going to give their opinions, you don't have to agree with them.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dahl

I came in here thinking that I could have a discussion with a handful of adults about something simple like what kind of specs I should get for my particular needs. Instead, I come in here and all I get is "THIS IS THE BEST" "NO THIS IS THE BEST" "BUT THIS DOES THIS SO IT'S BETTER"

Woa, there. I'm not sure you're understanding what people are posting here. I think people (most of us) are trying to have a mature discussion with you about your needs. I'm not sure why you get so upset in all of your threads. There are going to be people that don't read the posts and just post random thoughts. Just ignore them. It's not worth getting mad about it.

One last thing: if you have a calculator handy you can check prices on Newegg.com (I know that you're in Canada, but it's a good baseline). You can also check places like TigerDirect.ca and other Canadian distributors. Online reviews (and other info sources) and online retailers can provide you a ton of good information on what you're looking for if you prefer not to take advice from other individuals.

snomis79 · May 30, 2007, 05:25 PM // 17:25

In Canada, check prices on ncix.com. They usually have good prices. I'm from there, I consider them equivalent to newegg in the US. Based in BC if I remember correctly.

I'm going through the same process of building a machine right now. It's really complicated. One thing I learned is to get what you can afford right now, not thinking too much about upgrading and all that stuff. Just because technology sometimes moves faster or slower than we can predict it.

Dahl · May 30, 2007, 06:37 PM // 18:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by snomis79

In Canada, check prices on ncix.com. They usually have good prices. I'm from there, I consider them equivalent to newegg in the US. Based in BC if I remember correctly.

I'm going through the same process of building a machine right now. It's really complicated. One thing I learned is to get what you can afford right now, not thinking too much about upgrading and all that stuff. Just because technology sometimes moves faster or slower than we can predict it.

Thanks for the reference, but I went on there just now and the first thing I went to was the video cards. http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...ure=S APPHIRE

There's the sapphire x1950 pro, but it's marked way up at $299. I know for sure that this card can be easily obtained for $199, and the layout of this website really reminds me of tiger direct, which I know for sure is a huge price mark-up site.

See, this doesn't bother me like everyone elses post. This was a suggestion and a reference to a website. It wasn't a "this is better and this is what you have to do, and you'd be stupid not to do it" post.

Thanks very much for the help. I'll check out the other components, they may have a sale on something good, but the vid card is marked up too high here.

Syntonic · May 30, 2007, 06:55 PM // 18:55

I'm not in Canada but DirectCanda, Canandacomputers, and NCIX are some good places to shop online that are mentioned often. There is Tigerdirect.ca and a few others that serve Canada and the US. Memory Express (Canadian) was also mentioned a few times as well but there are more stores recommended solely based on locale so shop around and ask around to see if you can find a store near your area. This requires some work on your part though since you have to build the machine yourself and do the work of troubleshooting the assembly process. It's not very difficult really so if you feel up to it, you could do so even if it's your first time.

As for an AMD solution, I'm not terribly sure on AMD motherboards but any AM2 socket nforce 500 series motherboard doesn't seem like a bad buy for entry level enthusiasts. I'm not terribly sure about the specifics on the problems you might encounter with a m2n sli deluxe but it doesn't look like a bad choice from first glance - it really depends on how much you are paying for both the motherboard and processor. You might want to hang around the asus m2n boards for a glance at some issues people encounter just in case though. Keep in mind that while AM2 does offer some future path for AMD it seems, complete future proofing is relatively impossible no matter how much money you put down.

Anything else was really covered by other people and their posts, so see above for concerns etc. The prices are of the most concern since if you aren't getting some cheapo monitor, keyboard, mouse and speakers with WinXP or Vista (or any combination of those), you almost might as well go for a system branded computer (AMD or whatever.) Then again, I'm not hugely familiar with prices in Canada nor taxes and shipping costs however US prices would get you a similar system for slightly under (before tax)/around (after tax)/above (better individual components) 1000 USD with some/all of the above amenities without assembly but also not system branded (ex: Dell or other companies that come preloaded with utter junk or don't give you a physical copy of the OS etc.) Perhaps Canadian system builders could chime in with more information since as you may have surmised, the US side of this equation thinks you are definitely getting shafted in this deal.

There are a few recommended PSU threads out there - what to look for or what to avoid on places like the [H] forum on HardOCP, JonnyGuru (reviews mostly high end PSUs though), and a several other larger hardware sites. Granted, most of these places consider $50 USD as entry level into the PSU world with 100 USD being midrange. Just keep that in mind vs what you are going to get. I'm sure you know not to overbuy (though in my opinion, that case is an overbuy) than what you need to though so best of luck!

Dahl · May 30, 2007, 07:12 PM // 19:12

I agree that the case is an overbuy, but it's a luxury that I'm willing to spend an extra few bucks for because it appealed to me more than anything else.

But I've been thinking and I don't think I'm ready to buy a new pc yet. I'm going to go with the new lcd tv and a leather loveseat, and probably pick up a Wii sometime later in the fall after metroid prime 3 comes out. The pc is too much hassle and there's too much I don't know right now. If you were all wondering, this is the site for that provider www.jtgsystems.com, but it's under construction and doesn't really tell you much.

This guy is definately cheaper than the sites you guys have mentioned so far though, cause I know for sure he was giving me the x1950 pro for $200, not $300 as stated in some of those sites, among other things. It isn't worth the frustration anymore. Guild wars is kinda losing it for me now that I've done just about everything anyways, and warhammer won't be out til the end of the year.

Thanks anyways. If a mod is around, please lock the thread or delete it.

Dahl · May 30, 2007, 07:29 PM // 19:29

I agree that the case is an overbuy, but it's a luxury that I'm willing to spend an extra few bucks for because it appealed to me more than anything else.

But I've been thinking and I don't think I'm ready to buy a new pc yet. I'm going to go with the new lcd tv and a leather loveseat, and probably pick up a Wii sometime later in the fall after metroid prime 3 comes out. The pc is too much hassle and there's too much I don't know right now. If you were all wondering, this is the site for that provider www.jtgsystems.com, but it's under construction and doesn't really tell you much.

This guy is definately cheaper than the sites you guys have mentioned so far though, cause I know for sure he was giving me the x1950 pro for $200, not $300 as stated in some of those sites, among other things. It isn't worth the frustration anymore. Guild wars is kinda losing it for me now that I've done just about everything anyways, and warhammer won't be out til the end of the year.

Thanks anyways. If a mod is around, please lock the thread or delete it.

Kyuuba · May 30, 2007, 09:57 PM // 21:57

i believe this are the x1950pro's you are looking for:

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...nufacture=ASUS
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...cture=SAPPHIRE

if you dont feeling like going all out, u can easily make a budget system that will still max out GW with about $700-$800.

i dont know about your situation in regards to ordering online
but i can recommend www.canadacomputers.com
they ship to most parts of Canada and have many local stores in ontario.
and have x1950 pro priced in the proper $190-200 range.

the problem with stores like tigerdirect.ca and ncix is that sometimes they get so many products that are so similar, that they end up marking up once price for the product they received at the launch date and then decreased it back to the msrp

anyways i dont know about your situation interms of how long you want the system to last, upgradability and overclockability.

as u mentioned previous u don't want to void your warranty by overclocking.
many of the more "expensive" products are designed specifically for overclocking.
if you have no plans on doing this, u can easily cut back to mainstream products, you will hardly notice a difference in performance since you are not overclocking.

if you would like to consider a $700-800 budget system say so, i can help draw up a list.

Dahl · May 30, 2007, 10:59 PM // 22:59

Thanks kyuuba, that's probably the best site I've been recommended so far, but like I said I'm gonna put my PC on hold and just get my loveseat and lcd tv instead.

I'll keep that on favourites just in case.

Empedocles · Jun 01, 2007, 12:15 AM // 00:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dahl

We've discussed PSU's prior to this topic. I know that there's more to it than the wattage, but since I don't ACTUALLY HAVE IT IN MY HANDS, I can't tell you which one I want! I don't care how great or heavy the 400w one is, 400w IS NOT ENOUGH FOR THE X1950.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dex

You're right. Get at least a 500w - 600w PSU from a good brand. When you see a model you might want, Google up some reviews and look at the specs. You don't need to "have it in your hands."

Actually, I have NeoHE 430W PSU (which comes with Antec P150) and x1950 pro combo. Works absolutely fine, no problems at all. I can tell - I have it "in my hands".

A more powerful PSU is more future proof, ofc.