Need new PC: what specs? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Vronsky · #1 08-25-2009, 04:02 PM

Fella's,
I'm considering buying a new PC ro replace my current one (P4)
What key specs (processor etc) do I need to look out for, to do average PC tasks, incl. average gaming (yeah, a ten-year-old in the house..

) so it will last for the next 3-4 years ??

Thanks,
V.

iwrock · #2 08-25-2009, 04:07 PM

What price bracket?

Ara T. · #3 08-25-2009, 04:28 PM

I just upgraded my computer by buying a motherboard (asus m4a78), cpu (AMD Phenom 2 X3 710) and 4gb of ddr2 ram. That's all I needed because I am reusing my 8800gt video card. Total cost? $250. ALso reused my 250gb HD (there's actually a terrabyte internal HD on amazon for about $70). The AMD CPUs are great for the money.

If you are gonna want it to last for 4+ years I'd probably go for a quad core. AMD makes very affordable triple core processors too.

Vronsky · #4 08-26-2009, 05:29 AM

My feeling is that spending a little more money will make it a little longer future proof, so somewhere between 600-800 USD
I'm not needing any super computer to do video editing, 3D Gaming etc, but I don't want a bare-bones unit either. Upgrading components will likely take (me) so much time, that it won't be worth the hassle.
I notice that AMD processor machines are cheaper than Intel ones, is there anything against AMD compared to Intel?

THANKS

Ara T. · #5 08-26-2009, 06:02 AM

The intel chips are a bit faster and usually consume a bit less power, so to counter-act that, AMD slashes their prices. The last 3 or 4 years have been ugly for AMD, they are just now starting to be competitive again.

#6 08-26-2009, 07:01 AM

Cheap but good computer build goes as follows new AMD phenom 2 X4 with socket AM3 motherboard, 4 gigs of ram, 750 gig hard drive, corsair powersupply, ati 4870 video card

BobK · #7 08-26-2009, 08:03 AM

I am writing this on a POS AMD PC. If the company would let me, I would consider giving you this slow machine. Actually, I wouldn't, as I have too much respect for you to be so mean. Pay the extra bucks and get an Intel CPU. We bought this as a test machine and I'm actually glad we did. Sure proved the wisdom of sticking with the better Intel CPUs.

Zeus · #8 08-26-2009, 08:41 AM

Vronsky - PCs are cheap now. I build my own, so it's hard to price it but if you shop around and find a smaller, indy PC shop, you can get a nice machine for $400 (without monitor, etc.). If you buy Dell, Gateway, etc. you might pay a tad more for the branding. Those PCs also come bundled with all kinds of proprietary software crap that you'll have to spend some initial time getting rid of (they will bog resources down a bit).

I've been using AMD processors for over a decade now. Absolutely nothing wrong with them in comparison to Intel. You are paying a tad more for Intel's name/rep. They make a good chip, but so does AMD. AMD seems to have finally shed its 'newcomer' status and is OE in many PCs now. Both have merits but if you look at detailed comparisons of both chips, they are so close it is negligible, and each can excel in different areas. This isn't as aspect of a PC that is generally going to hamper performance. Most apps/games won't even make full use of a quad core. RAM and a good motherboard are more crucial, IMO.

Go for a quad-core and buy all the RAM you can fit in the motherboard. If you get a 32-bit version of windows, don't buy more than 3GB ram. It you go for the 64-bit version, get all the RAM you can. Most PCs will bottleneck at the RAM point FAR before the CPU gets used to capacity.

Vronsky · #9 08-27-2009, 07:42 AM

Thanks all

#10 08-27-2009, 09:13 AM

I have built in the past 6 months an intel i7 gaming rig and a new AMD phenom 2 quad core gaming rig and have to say the i7 is faster but not as much as I thought. The AMD build also came in several hundred dollars less.......just my .02..ohhh and the AMD does run hot so get an aftermarket cooling solution....and yeah get a good mobo and ram....

Ara T. · #11 08-27-2009, 07:08 PM

Over 4gb RAM is overkill. The average person will never use over 4gb.. so IMO save your money. Plus many motherboard manufacturers say they support 16 gb of RAM but once you fill all the DIMM slots with memory, things tend to get a bit glitchy. Before Core2Duo CPUs about 5 years ago, AMD was actually dominating the CPU market. AMD has just about recently started to become competitive again on a basis other than price.

Zeus · #12 08-27-2009, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ara T.

Over 4gb RAM is overkill. The average person will never use over 4gb.. so IMO save your money. Plus many motherboard manufacturers say they support 16 gb of RAM but once you fill all the DIMM slots with memory, things tend to get a bit glitchy. Before Core2Duo CPUs about 5 years ago, AMD was actually dominating the CPU market. AMD has just about recently started to become competitive again on a basis other than price.

Depends what you are doing. RAM is cheap now and 4GB may seem like a lot now, but in two years, with quad cores all around, 64-bit Windows 7, it likely won't...

#13 08-27-2009, 08:05 PM

actually vista uses a lot of ram just to run itself.....and if any kid is going to be using this you will need ram...music apps, vidoe games ect

Zeus · #14 08-27-2009, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by helpplease

actually vista uses a lot of ram just to run itself.....and if any kid is going to be using this you will need ram...music apps, vidoe games ect

Yep. A regular PC running Vista should have 2 GB RAM minimum, if you're going to be gaming, a good vid card and 3GB RAM min. is preferred. IMHO.

Ara T. · #15 08-27-2009, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zeus

Depends what you are doing. RAM is cheap now and 4GB may seem like a lot now, but in two years, with quad cores all around, 64-bit Windows 7, it likely won't...

4GB is perfect. I am running 4gb of RAM with Windows 7 x64 on my AMD triple core and it is smooth as silk. Boots insanely fast compared to Windows XP. I said over 4GB is overkill. 16GB of RAM isn't going to be used, and will be insanely expensive if the RAM being purchased is DDR3 (RAM is not cheap right now actually, unless you can find a new motherboard that supports DDR2 as I did). For example I can have Itunes and 10 firefox windows open and am still only using 1.5 gb of RAM or so.