I'm in process of buying new pc, since my last one was stolen when house was broken into.

I've been out of loop for quite sometime and dont know whats what..The pc will be mainly used for photoshop work due to my photography. Will also be used for music and movies, just need alot of processing power.

What would be recommened for cpu, m'board, video card and ram to be used?

I have small budget, but enough for good items.


cheers

damo

For all the computers ive built i normally just go here and use their systems, then if i need something extra just mix and match a bit. They're updated pretty regularly and i dont constantly watch for all the latest hardware coming out so i figure they'd know better than me.

Also highly recommend MSY to buy from, provided you know exactly what you want...just email them asking if they've got it all in stock and they'll put it all aside for you, they've got the best prices ive come across.

another vote for msy.
the graphics cards in those whirlpool systems aren't really that great.

Nah they're more "all rounder" type of pc's i think, but for convenients sake its easier for me to look at them then upgrade certain parts from there if they want to use it for games n shiz.

How much do you want to spend Damo?

Moved to Tech Section

So it IS you on QGL!!

yeah..german is my old alias..

typical people on qgl..waste of timers ahah

my budget is bout 1500-1200..could go over just a tad though..

are the prices listed on msy's latest price page for all stores?

just build one? I can build you one via my business for $1500 top of the range. I built myself a work machine the other day..

2 x 17" LCD Monitors
AMD AM2 Athlon 64 X2 5200+ Dual Core
1GB DDR2
90GB HDD
DVD-RW
Digital TV Tunercard
512MB Videocard (Very good quality)

etc.. etc..

As far as i know it is latest, if you are not sure then call them up and confirm (that is assume that you have a list handy and ready before calling).



Surely 90GB HDD is a mistake......

Samsung 80GB SATA II 3Gb/s NCQ HDD - 7200rpm, 8MB Cache rather

o..k... For a system used with photoshop, movies and music.. I am not sure how long an 80GB hard drive will last... but up to the OP I guess.

I figure if I run out of space, I'll put another HDD in

80gb isnt even enough room for my porn collection, let alone an OS, movies, Mp3s, etc :S

pyrotix, whats ya business?

I'm planning to build one, but because i've been out of pc loop for couple years so i dont know what's good for processing power and is stable.

hdd will be 400gb seagate...so hdd is sorted so is sound card.

I've had amd and intel chips..know amd is better for low heat, but intel always seems to be better at processing power..

Intel core 2 duo is definatly the way to go for cpus at the moment. 40% more energy efficeint (run cooler and quitere) and 40% faster! More Cache too! and it is dynamic cache. (E6400 CPU or E 6600 CPU)

As for the mainboard
Intel 975XBX2 Mainboard, these things kick ass
Go with some Hynix DDR2 800 Ram and in these 3 components you have now a kickass system .

Make sure u run a good psu in the system too (tru Watt PSU)

If you want any advice on specking you new pc send me a pm i build pc's like these everyday!

Also if you are going to be purchasing legitimate windows go media centre! that way you get a free express upgrade to windows vista premium!

whats good bout the intel board..i've always stayed with asus, never had any problems and also surpassed expectations.

hynix..never heard of them, how long they been around?

is corsair still good?

also just purchased legit xp before pc was stolen..

it used to be the other way round for CPUs, i spose Intel have gotten themselves back ontop since AMD had the throne for so long.

damo,

Intel mainboards are very stable. also the best for warranty. No to mention the particular mainboard 975xbx2 is very overclockable for the new core 2 duo's

Corsair is good ram too by the way!

Hynix is the chip manufacturer for the ram too good stuff and not as dear as the Corsair ram with same/better reliability.

don't see anyone selling the intel board..

only see 975xbx..

where is it for sale and how much?

also..stuck on what case to get, only need small one, nothing flash.

I had a big thermaltake one last time..was un-needed..

Antec are nice..

Feel free to shoot me down in flames, but I sure love Dell PCs So well built, and the CPU heatsink/fan combo is crazy huge on them. Nice big vents on the front, good flow through the box to a big grille on the back - fantastic.

I bought an SC430 a while back when they were stupid cheap, and the thing only turns off if we lose power (3 x 60 day uptimes so far). Its uber quiet and moves quite a few gb of data a day from 5 HDDs without a drama. I've also bought 3 x desktop PCs for friends and family, and theyve all had the same build quality.

Downside? Anything performance orientated will cost ya. Considered buying a low-ish spec Dell, and adding aftermarket parts later? So long as the board and CPU are big, you can go skimpy on the RAM/HDD/video card and upgrade them later while still having a well built box with more than adequate (and silent!) cooling.

cheers trk..was looking at lian li, antec or thermaltake..letting my bro in law choose on that one.

cpu - Intel e6300
m'board - asus p5b deluxe
s'card - audigy 4
v'card - ?
hdd - seagate barracude 400gb and 100gb(os drive)
ram - 1gb corsair(2x512mb) (upgrading to 2gb in couple months)

Agreed. We use Dell desktops here and have nothing for praise for them. Good solid working systems and they make a half decent 17" lcd screen that usual comes with them. Laptops on the other hand are bollocks especially the new D420 lightweight ones. Nothing but issues with them, if you were considering a laptop from the the D620 is the pick of the bunch.

On a seperate note (perhaps you Pyrotix), Im chasing a pretty much bare bones box setup in the future for work (gotta love writing shit off through work). Needs to be able to handle min 2gb ram (come with 1gb min) no hard drive needed, multiple pci slots (old school for the win!) and run a decent speed ecu/motherboard combo. Onboard video is fine (I dont play "girly games" ) and tower style case preffered with adequate cooling.

HSV leave it with me, i'll send you a pm when I get in to work with some specs.

new pc is in and fusking fast!!


faster than a mexican after eating a burrito for dinner.

Hehe good to hear. What specs and the total cost did you ended up with, if you dont mind me asking?

I help me friend bought two complete pc's parts a couple of days ago and are in the process of building it for him so interested in some comparisons

e6300
asus p5b deluxe wifi
corsair 1gb (2x512)
160 and 400gb seagate sata hdd
asus dvd burner
audigy 4
asus en7600gt

bit under 1700

The thing bout where i got it from, is that i have time to pay it off and if something breaks i get replacement while other part is being fixed or heaven forbid replaced.

Hey mate, Have a really good offer, Build ur own computer www.umart.com.au

Very easy and if not i could help u out if u live near Brisbane area

Nice.

I build the two below for me friend (he paid for it of course ).. one for him and another was his xmas present for his mum.

For me friend:

CPU: Intel Core Duo E6400 2.13GHz 775-Pin
Motherboard: Asus (P4-775) P5B Deluxe DDR2 Motherboard
Memory: 2 x Samsung 512MB DDR2 667 PC5300 RAM A grade memory
HDD: Seagate 320GB SATA II
Case & PSU: Antec Sonata II w/ 450W Smartpower PSU
Video card: 256MB Gigabyte 7600GT DVI PCI-e VGA card
Optical Drive: Pioneer 111D Black/Silver
Display: 19” Proview FV926-5ms Wide Screen 850:1 2 x D-Dub, 1 x DVI
K/B & Mouse: Microsoft Cordless Desktop 1000

~1630



For his mum:


CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6300
Motherboard: Foxxconn P9657AA-8EKRS2H i965
Memory: 2 x Samsung 512MB DDR2 667 PC5300 RAM A grade Memory
HDD: Seagate 200GB SATA
Case & PSU: Foxconn TSAA891 Tower Case with 350Watt
Video card: 128MB (Physical memory) Sapphire ATI Radeon X550 DVI PCI-Express PCI-E Video Card
Optical Drive: Pioneer 111D Black/Silver
Display: 19” Proview FV926-5ms Wide Screen 850:1 2xD-Sub, 1 x DVI
Microsoft cordless Desktop 700 Black
Floppy drive

~1150

The asus and the antec case is a breeze to work on, would definitely recommended to anyone that is looking at building a pc. The
Foxxconn motherboard is not too shabby to work on (the usual pain of connecting the case's connectors to motherboard still applies), but the case is a pain to work on (nearly slice me finger trying to remove the "integrated" steel pci cover off ) guess you get what you pay for.

Oh btw anyone thinking of getting the awesome proview 19", it no longer comes with both the normal D-SUB cable and DVI cable only the D-SUB is included now.

I guess while on the topic ill add mine.

Built this one a few months back for my brothers mate:

CPU: Intel Core Duo 2 E6400 2.13GHz 775-Pin
Motherboard: Gigabyte 965-DS3
RAM: 1GB Corsair DDR667
HDD: Seagate 250GB SATAII
Case & PSU: Antec Sonata II w/ 450W Smartpower PSU
Graphics: 256MB Leadtek 7900GT
Optical Drive: Benq DW1650
Monitor: 19" Chimei CMV-938 5ms DVI Wide Screen LCD
Speakers: Logitech X230 2.1
Tuner Card: DTV2000H Digital TV Tuner Card
OS: OEM Microsoft Windows XP Home

$2150

And just recently this one for brothers, mates, sister inlaw:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 1.86GHz 775-Pin
Motherboard: ASUS P5B (Wanted the foxcomm one but MSY was out of stock and couldnt get anymore untill early january)
RAM: 512MB Samsung DDR2-533
HDD: Seagate 80GB SATA
Case & PSU: ASUS TA881 w/ 350W PSU
GPU: 128MB Sapphire X550
Optical Drive: Pioneer 111D Black
Monitor: 17" Benq FP71G+ 8ms DVI LCD
OS: OEM Microsoft Windows XP Home

$1076

Very similar to your 2. Have to agree that the Antec Sonata II case is a dream to work on, just screw on those slot things and everything just slides straight in, nice looking case as well, fucking quiet too...definately getting an Antec case when i build my own.

Thought I'd add it in here rather than making a whole new thread..

Getting new video card today, it's 2nd hand(only one month old) but it's bit of an upgrade from my current card which is an asus EN7600GT.

Following link is for my new card

XFX NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 320MB DDR3 XXX Version

Hey mate how much did you pick that up for if you don't mind me asking?

Remember the 8800GT's are out now! (if you can get your hands on one)

I'm paying $300 for the card, it's only one month old..so not a bad buy..