New computer - need recs

[AshCohen]

I don't know what is standard in terms of computer specs nowadays, but I'm looking at something like this:

- Intel Quad Core Q8400 set to 3.2GHz
- Pioneer or Samsung 22x Dual Layer DVD-RW
- 8GB DDR2 PC-6400 Corsair TwinX RAM
- 1TB SATA2 Seagate or Hitachi HDD
- Nvidia 9500GT 1GB Memory video card
- Gigabit network adapter: Broadband ready
- Intel chipset P43 DE Motherboard (1600FSB)
- 8 Channel HD Audio (Optical out for Dolby/DTS)
- 600W Power supply

It's not self built btw, its pre built. is it good for the long run? I'll get a number of years out of this right? anything else i should know? not heavily computer savvy and last time i bought a computer 1gb of ram was pretty average.

[Boboluckshot]

Yep, you can definitely post forum topics about 1/8th of a second faster.

[Darkside7000]

At 10/4/09 01:09 AM, Boboluckshot wrote: Yep, you can definitely post forum topics about 1/8th of a second faster.

If you're not going to be helpful then get out.

[andale524]

yes, you have a good computer there.

[Peacekid]

Seems overkill, but what games are you planning to play?

[Tinkco86]

A 9500gt is not all that great. I would go with at least a 9600gt, but even today that is kinda low. See if you can get an option with a better graphics card and less of an overkill CPU. Quad core isn't that necessary you know.

[AshCohen]

At 10/4/09 01:22 AM, Tinkco86 wrote: A 9500gt is not all that great. I would go with at least a 9600gt, but even today that is kinda low. See if you can get an option with a better graphics card and less of an overkill CPU. Quad core isn't that necessary you know.

Oh really? OK, I'll look into it. What graphics card would you recommend?

[TheWolfe]

At 10/4/09 01:28 AM, AshCohen wrote:

At 10/4/09 01:22 AM, Tinkco86 wrote: A 9500gt is not all that great. I would go with at least a 9600gt, but even today that is kinda low. See if you can get an option with a better graphics card and less of an overkill CPU. Quad core isn't that necessary you know.

Oh really? OK, I'll look into it. What graphics card would you recommend?

9800GTX+ for me works great, and if you can find a good deal on it it'll be around $100.
If you're willing to spend more, get the 260

[Cani]

If your considering graphics cards Id stick to Nvidia brand because of the "Physx" option in the newer cards, basiclly it handles all of the physics in games like fog, destrucion of scenerey etc all on your graphics card instead of your cpu so it dosent take up Fps. Radeon cards can do it as well but not without taking 20-30 fps off your current. =[

[Wuggawoot]

I'm not helpful, but here to brag about my computer instead.

Quad set to 6.5, glycerin bath cooled, can be clocked up to 19ghz if I turn on the freezer (Demanding on power though)

1400 watt power supply x2,
32gb RAM, ddr2
GTX290 x2

Case looks like shit though, it's in an aquarium with (Literally) an air matress pump blowing the glycerin around. I've got parts to an old refridgerator stuffed in there with the heat generating end of the rig next to an air conditioner. It's a trade off.

[Teh-Undead-Guy]

At 10/4/09 01:05 AM, AshCohen wrote: I don't know what is standard in terms of computer specs nowadays, but I'm looking at something like this:

- Intel Quad Core Q8400 set to 3.2GHz
- Pioneer or Samsung 22x Dual Layer DVD-RW
- 8GB DDR2 PC-6400 Corsair TwinX RAM
- 1TB SATA2 Seagate or Hitachi HDD
- Nvidia 9500GT 1GB Memory video card
- Gigabit network adapter: Broadband ready
- Intel chipset P43 DE Motherboard (1600FSB)
- 8 Channel HD Audio (Optical out for Dolby/DTS)
- 600W Power supply

It's not self built btw, its pre built. is it good for the long run? I'll get a number of years out of this right? anything else i should know? not heavily computer savvy and last time i bought a computer 1gb of ram was pretty average.

I wouldn't get it prebuilt, I've heard of prebuilts that have shipped in dead. Also, the 1TB hard drive is a little too much. I would get a gigabyte hard drive instead of an intel. Maybe, if you are going to game on your computer, get an ATI HD5870/ Nvidia GTX295. That is all.

[Darth-Zanuha]

At 10/4/09 01:05 AM, AshCohen wrote: I don't know what is standard in terms of computer specs nowadays, but I'm looking at something like this:

- Intel Quad Core Q8400 set to 3.2GHz

That clock speed is very good, could run crysis i think. And with quad, you will be able to run many heavy programs at the same time without loss of speed.

- Pioneer or Samsung 22x Dual Layer DVD-RW

Average.

- 8GB DDR2 PC-6400 Corsair TwinX RAM

That is, i think, even too much. Does it have Vista or XP? Coz XP cant use any more than 4 gigs.

- 1TB SATA2 Seagate or Hitachi HDD

Yeah. Get a Seagate.

- Nvidia 9500GT 1GB Memory video card

No clue about the card itself, but 1gb of its own memory is very capable.

- Gigabit network adapter: Broadband ready

Woo.

- Intel chipset P43 DE Motherboard (1600FSB)

Again, no clue.

- 8 Channel HD Audio (Optical out for Dolby/DTS)

Is it integrated, or its own sound card? Separate sound cards have superior sound.

- 600W Power supply

Enough for pretty much anything.

It's not self built btw, its pre built. is it good for the long run?

After a few years, you should still be able to use it for newer games on lower settings.

I'll get a number of years out of this right?

Yeah. I'd say 3-4 years.

anything else i should know? not heavily computer savvy and last time i bought a computer 1gb of ram was pretty average.

Get info on the case itself. You need to know how many extra fans or at least holes for them there are, how many USB ports, Where the hard drive is placed (It has to be in a well cooled spot) and the sound level. If you are going to a store to buy it, ask the guys to open it up for you to see.

[WackyAnimation]

At 10/4/09 01:05 AM, AshCohen wrote: I don't know what is standard in terms of computer specs nowadays, but I'm looking at something like this:

- Intel Quad Core Q8400 set to 3.2GHz

shit i wish i had anything close to that. yea you can run heavy games with that

- Pioneer or Samsung 22x Dual Layer DVD-RW

so-so but personally i dont care about how fast my burner is.

- 8GB DDR2 PC-6400 Corsair TwinX RAM

this is a good ammount if you can afford it. as long as you run a 64 bit OS it will work, otherwise 32 bit only picks up 3 1/2 Gb

- 1TB SATA2 Seagate or Hitachi HDD

seagates last a good while.

- Nvidia 9500GT 1GB Memory video card

GDDR

- Gigabit network adapter: Broadband ready

Woo.

- Intel chipset P43 DE Motherboard (1600FSB)

Again, no clue.

- 8 Channel HD Audio (Optical out for Dolby/DTS)

look for a sound card. it does not sound like its built into the motherboard but i would make sure either way.

- 600W Power supply

If the computer is coming premade this will be enough.

The only thing i have to point out is the fact that Direct X 11 video cards are coming out so you may not be able to get the best graphics out of upcoming games. Direct X 11 comes out the end of this month.

[Bacchanalian]

Well now I have to step in...

At 10/4/09 03:25 AM, Darth-Zanuha wrote: That clock speed is very good, could run crysis i think. And with quad, you will be able to run many heavy programs at the same time without loss of speed.

5 Minutes on Google

By Golly... not a single cpu in the line up drops below the 100 fps mark on crysis, not even the 76$ AMD Athlon II X2 250.

- Pioneer or Samsung 22x Dual Layer DVD-RW

Average.

Then is anything more than average possibly worth it? What is this... a computer specifically for burning DVDs?

- 8GB DDR2 PC-6400 Corsair TwinX RAM

That is, i think, even too much. Does it have Vista or XP? Coz XP cant use any more than 4 gigs.

Windows XP supports up to 16 if you're using a 64 bit version. Vista doesn't support more than 4 if it's 32 bit.

Vista or XP. God I want to smack you.

You guys. Windows 7 comes out in less than a month. (Oh and guess what. The 32 bit version of windows 7 can't use more than 4gig of ram either.)

- Nvidia 9500GT 1GB Memory video card

No clue about the card itself, but 1gb of its own memory is very capable.

5 Minutes on Google

The 500's are budget lines. The extra ram isn't going to do much good on a gimped chip.

But really. It depends what the hell this computer is for.

- 600W Power supply

Enough for pretty much anything.

Actually... it'd pay to check out the rail voltage if he's looking to actually use a high performing video-card. But since this is pre-built, we can assume the actual builder understand this.... which makes me wonder...

To the OP...

... who the hell's building this thing? Or is it already built? Do you have options?

Yeah. I'd say 3-4 years.

If the OP is looking to game, he's behind the curve. The video card under-performs the medium range card of 2 generations past.

[GodsBitch]

At 10/4/09 01:05 AM, AshCohen wrote: It's not self built btw, its pre built.

How much will you be paying for that system?

You would be cheaper buying the parts and building it yourself. If you need any help I'm sure they will welcome you over at the Computer Construction Crew. They gave me a lot of help when I needed advice on building my rig, although I'm not sure I'm still going through with the plans.

[tigger448]

That looks very powerful, so yes, it will last a few years.

[EgoistXIV]

That 9500 GT of yours is a bad bottleneck. You're not playing anything published this year with full settings at a respectable resolution. What I would do in your position is to wait until Nvidia brings out their next gen cards. That will make ATI 5800's much cheaper. Get a 5870 or 5870X2.
On to your CPU. The Core2 family doesn't support DDR3 memory and it's all the rage nowadays. Then again most i7's are ridiculously expensive. I'd take the i7-920, a reasonably priced 1366 socket mobo and six gigs of DDR3.
When it comes to PSUs, I'm not so sure what to pick but you should be ok with 650 watts.

[Minty-Hippo]

www.canIrunit.com

Click a few games you know, and want to play and it should tell you what is needed for these games to play on your computer, this should give you an idea of where to shoot.

[Greenfrost6]

Yes, that is a pretty nice setup.

[tdobbin]

A Nivida 9800 GT is fine...

[066pop]

Seems good, should play games well. I have a 3.2ghz dual core and a 1gb 9500GT card (this one). I think it should be fine for a few years at least.

[robin1232]

At 10/4/09 01:05 AM, AshCohen wrote: - Intel Core i7 3.0 GHz
- Pioneer or Samsung 22x Dual Layer DVD-RW
- 8GB DDR2 PC-6400 Corsair TwinX RAM
- 1TB SATA2 Seagate or Hitachi HDD
- NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GT 2GB
- Gigabit network adapter: Broadband ready
- Intel chipset P43 DE Motherboard (1600FSB)
- 8 Channel HD Audio (Optical out for Dolby/DTS)
- 600W Power supply

here, this one is a tiny bit more powerful.

more text because the quote is pretty big

[robin1232]

At 10/4/09 08:19 AM, robin1232 wrote: here, this one is a tiny bit more powerful.

oops, forgot to include the DDR3 motherboard