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wammie
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? [MECHANICAL MUSIC!] Posted: Sat May 16, 2009 8:41 pm |
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Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 4:14 pm Posts: 1437 Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
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wammie
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? [MECHANICAL MUSIC!] Posted: Sat May 16, 2009 9:06 pm |
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Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 4:14 pm Posts: 1437 Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
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wammie
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? [NEW $750 PC FROM NEWEGG] Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 12:50 am |
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Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 4:14 pm Posts: 1437 Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
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I've been pricing out a new PC build on Newegg, with a target maximum price of $750. This will be my main desktop PC. I don't do a lot of gaming, but want to be able to run DirectX 9 or DirectX 10 flight sims with high detail, sometime in the future. I have a Logitech ball mouse that I plan on keeping, so do not necessarily need one. This item list includes some extras or freebies such as an 8 GB flash drive, Acronis True Image Home 2009 (free), Call of Duty game (free), and a few LightScribe disks. I have a Creative Labs Audigy 2 ZS sound card that I like quite a lot and would probably transfer over from my current PC, but I understand the onboard audio on the new motherboard will likely work just as well. Please, if anyone has a comment on how I might reduce cost or increase quality with substitutions, please post (anyone have some Arctic Silver to spare?). This is what I've come up with. Some of the combo deals here are only valid until May 31, and I want to act quickly on ordering and "making" this creature. Thanks! ZALMAN CNPS9500 AT 2 Ball CPU Cooling Fan/HeatsinkLogitech Black KeyboardG.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop MemoryAntec Sonata III 500 Black Computer CaseArctic Silver 5 Thermal CompoundGIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P ATX Intel MotherboardMicrosoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System BuildersOCZ CrossOver 8GB Flash Drive (USB2.0 Portable)EVGA GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 896-P3-1255-AR Video CardNvidia Gift Call of duty - World at warWestern Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Hard DrivesAcronis True Image Home 2009 OEMSAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black IDE Model SH-S222LPHILIPS 4.7GB 16X DVD-R LightScribe (Version 1.2) 25 Packs DiscTotal: $752.88 Shipping: $15.30 Grand Total: $768.18[Mail-in rebates will theoretically get me a $45 refund]
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Newegg Order.jpg [ 178.32 KiB | Viewed 593 times ]
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_________________ 612-293-MAKE World Community Grid Team Page | Blog | Promo Flyers | Dues Info Active Topics | Twitter Page | TCM Photos | View Your Posts | YIM waynoid | AIM wammie777
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Theo
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 8:34 am |
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Joined: Wed Jan 28, 2009 9:53 am Posts: 928 Location: Eagan, MN
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Well, you've done a good job targeting the Newegg discounts & combo deals. I am not a fan of Antec power supplies, though; in my experience their quality control is miserable. I've never had an Antec PSU which I didn't need to replace, even right off the shelf (though to be fair, one was because my power needs outgrew it when I added a video card later on). And you're opting for the cheap PSU that Antec has bundled with that Sonata case, at least with this parts list. If you want to go for a budget PSU, I've had good luck with ThermalTake, though I'd opt for a model with active PFC and an efficiency rating of at least 70%. My advice: It doesn't pay to scrimp on the power supply. As far as reducing the price tag on this list, my eye goes immediately to the video card. Microsoft Flight Simulator X is not DX10, and actually has remarkably modest hardware requirements. So, even though that video card is really a nice deal (and I've used EVGA video cards quite happily), if all you want is a decent flight-sim system, it's more GPU than you need.
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Theo
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 8:41 am |
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Joined: Wed Jan 28, 2009 9:53 am Posts: 928 Location: Eagan, MN
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Also, ummm... what about a CPU? (Core 2 Quad / Core 2 Extreme / Core 2 Duo / Pentium Extreme / Pentium D / Pentium 4 Extreme / Pentium 4 / Celeron)
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Theo
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 8:56 am |
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Joined: Wed Jan 28, 2009 9:53 am Posts: 928 Location: Eagan, MN
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OK last thoughts for now, I need to do more yard work... I do have Arctic Silver. MS Flight Sim X Deluxe Edition is cheap enough these days that I'd consider getting it myself. (haven't been buying any new games) You'll probably want some control peripherals; keyboard & mouse don't really cut it for flying. I have an HOTAS (Hands On Throttle And Stick) setup from Saitek & it's good for "combat" type sims. You might want something more like this, though.
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wammie
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 9:05 am |
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Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 4:14 pm Posts: 1437 Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
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Theo
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 9:27 am |
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Joined: Wed Jan 28, 2009 9:53 am Posts: 928 Location: Eagan, MN
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wammie wrote: I don't want to sacrifice quality. I usually do a PC upgrade about every four years, so if the cost is more than $750 it would still be considered, as the cost over the time frame isn't that great. OK, in that case, I'd suggest getting a decent case without a bundled PSU (you don't already have one?) and picking a solid third-party power supply. In fact.... maybe check out this combo. Good PSU, good GPU, $195 before mail-in rebate.
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wammie
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 10:45 am |
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Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 4:14 pm Posts: 1437 Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
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Theo wrote: OK, in that case, I'd suggest getting a decent case without a bundled PSU (you don't already have one?) and picking a solid third-party power supply. In fact.... maybe check out this combo. Good PSU, good GPU, $195 before mail-in rebate. Before seeing this post, adding the CPU and without spending too much time on alternate trade-offs, I get the order shown below. Shipping would be $13.02. I have a cream colored case, but I would now like black. I'd keep my current case for a file server. This combo is attractive, but I don't think I can use Radeon GPUs to run the Boinc client for World Community Grid. Also, what does everyone think about trying Windows 7 RC? I'd have to reimage for M$'s newer releases, but it would be doable. Also there's no guarantee that M$ would NOT charge for an OS upgrade when Windows 7 is released.
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Newegg Order 2.jpg [ 139.13 KiB | Viewed 566 times ]
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_________________ 612-293-MAKE World Community Grid Team Page | Blog | Promo Flyers | Dues Info Active Topics | Twitter Page | TCM Photos | View Your Posts | YIM waynoid | AIM wammie777
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Theo
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Post subject: Re: So...what are you working on? Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 12:03 pm |
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Joined: Wed Jan 28, 2009 9:53 am Posts: 928 Location: Eagan, MN
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wammie wrote: I have a cream colored case, but I would now like black. I'd keep my current case for a file server. OK, makes sense. wammie wrote: This combo is attractive, but I don't think I can use Radeon GPUs to run the Boinc client for World Community Grid. Well sure you could. The BOINC client mostly runs on CPU cycles, not just CUDA. (But yeah, I take your point.) You could just not worry about it, and run WCG on both your new PC and your fileserver PC. wammie wrote: Also, what does everyone think about trying Windows 7 RC? RUN THE F**K AWAY. 
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