Buying a PC..Which one? Help!!

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Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 3:48:34 AM

Phatguy

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From: Buffalo,ny
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Which one will give me better bang for the buck? I'm procrastinating too much and the wife is getting on my case to just go buy one.

Every thing else is pretty much interchangable

AMD Phenom II x6 3.2GHz
8gb ddr3 1333
1 TB SATA III
6950 2GB Radeon
USB 3.0 ports
Blu-ray drive
$1399.99

AMD Phenon II x6 3.2
8 gb ddr 3 1600
1 TB SATA II
6850 1GB Radeon
USB 2.0
$999.99

Intel i5 2.8GHz
6gb ddr3 1333
1 TB SATA
x2 5670 1GB Radeon ( crossfire mode)
USB 2.0
1349.99
weak-ass 525w ps so it would need eventual change.... the other two have 800w ps's..

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 4:13:22 AM

gunny

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those AMD processors beat out the i5, not by clock speed so much as cores per thread. So that narrows it down. I like ATI, and more video memory wins. Years ago video memory was everything for gaming, today it still helps permormance in most gaming vs processor power.

Yeah the first system with the 6950 radeon and AMD X6 is best.

To me the blue ray is ++$ for something I wouldn't use, and blue ray is going the way of the dodo. IMO if you could get that changed for a cheaper DVD drive could save some $.

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 4:36:58 AM

Phatguy

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The system is "as is" so I cant change out parts.I never had a blu-ray so it isnt one of those things that grab me.

Not a big fan of intel and I prefer ATI too. The third machine is in there mainly for the twin cards...

I dont see much difference for me in the SATA II and III versions and the USB ports but am a bit surprised that the more expensive beastie has slower ram.

Basically it comes down to this...Is there enough "oompf" between the two top machines to justify the 400 bump? I'm tending to lean to the 1st machine.

< Message edited by apathetic lurker -- 3/27/2011 4:39:35 AM >

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 11:22:26 AM

rhondabrwn

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I'd go with option #1.

I'm not hot on blue ray either and these days SATA DVD drives are dirt cheap. Maybe you could pull the Blue Ray out of it and sell it on ebay, replacing it with a regular DVD drive (or two).

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 3:39:38 PM

Phatguy

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quote:

ORIGINAL: rhondabrwn

I'd go with option #1.

I'm not hot on blue ray either and these days SATA DVD drives are dirt cheap. Maybe you could pull the Blue Ray out of it and sell it on ebay, replacing it with a regular DVD drive (or two).

Actually, found out its a combo drive with good ole regular features seen in dvd drives and bluray..so I guess that works.....

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 7:00:04 PM

Jeffrey H.

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I don't think I'll ever buy or build another desktop machine, laptops are nearly as good in performance. Of course they cost more but hey, I'm worth it. right ?

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 7:07:13 PM

rhondabrwn

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I can't see that for me... I want to be able to go into the guts of the machine and make my own repairs, replacements, and upgrades. Hate the keyboards, hate the small screens (comparatively speaking), trackpads etc etc. Of course, yes you can plug in keyboards, mice, and external monitors, but if you are going to do that... why have a laptop anyway?

Just showing that as old age sets in I'm becoming a Luddite

And I'm not just sayin', I have a new school issued MacBook Pro that I work on daily, but still hate it.

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 7:46:43 PM

Phatguy

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From: Buffalo,ny
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I went with number one.......I also hate laptops, mainly because I despise those trackball things...My wife has an older system and I refuse to do anything on it unless she hooks in a mouse...

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 8:04:51 PM

doomtrader

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Probably I will never buy desktop as a set. There is always at least one crappy part that you have to replace.

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 8:47:32 PM

Phatguy

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Better one part than the whole system

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 10:25:49 PM

Zakhal

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Ive built my own PCs since the 90s. Best value for money that way. My current PC is over 2 years old and its still highend. The only replecement I did was changing dx10 GTX280 to DX11 GTX580. Id like to build a totally new pc but there is no need. For now it seems my current pc will stay highend for many years more.

My lg dvddrive is 7 years old but works perfectly. I dont see any need for blueray drive.

< Message edited by Zakhal -- 3/27/2011 10:31:01 PM >

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/27/2011 10:52:29 PM

Phatguy

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My present one is still decent enough to run anything out there but my teenrager is getting uppity and wants her own..She can have the hand-me-down.....

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/28/2011 1:57:11 AM

gunny

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just a foot note about the crossfire. Its true 2 X 1gb cards in crossfire or SLI is better than 1 X2 gb card "in theory" due to multiple piplines. But in reality most programs are not optimized to take advantage of this and the niche has really fell by the wayside.

Handme down computers run facebook just fine, unless ofcourse you can covert your daughter into a wargamer and set up your own local network.

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Post #: 13

RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/28/2011 3:52:51 PM

KGrob

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From: Yuba City, California
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quote:

ORIGINAL: Zakhal

Ive built my own PCs since the 90s. Best value for money that way. My current PC is over 2 years old and its still highend. The only replecement I did was changing dx10 GTX280 to DX11 GTX580. Id like to build a totally new pc but there is no need. For now it seems my current pc will stay highend for many years more.

My lg dvddrive is 7 years old but works perfectly. I dont see any need for blueray drive.

I've built seven PCs now. It's not as hard as it might seem if you've never done it and it's actually less expensive. Plus you learn a lot.

Get a good box, and it will last you 10+ years. Get the latest OS that can be moved from computer to computer and it's good for a long time (same for copies of things like Word, etc...just move the license to the new computer). From that point on, all you need to do to upgrade is replace one or two parts at a time.

The best part is that you can review every single part you purchase and can get the absolute best bang for your buck...you're not stuck with a blah-drive just because the manufacturer bought 10,000 of those for cheap.

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/28/2011 3:58:48 PM

Phatguy

Posts: 1348
Joined: 3/1/2006
From: Buffalo,ny
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quote:

ORIGINAL: KGrob

quote:

ORIGINAL: Zakhal

Ive built my own PCs since the 90s. Best value for money that way. My current PC is over 2 years old and its still highend. The only replecement I did was changing dx10 GTX280 to DX11 GTX580. Id like to build a totally new pc but there is no need. For now it seems my current pc will stay highend for many years more.

My lg dvddrive is 7 years old but works perfectly. I dont see any need for blueray drive.

I've built seven PCs now. It's not as hard as it might seem if you've never done it and it's actually less expensive. Plus you learn a lot.

Get a good box, and it will last you 10+ years. Get the latest OS that can be moved from computer to computer and it's good for a long time (same for copies of things like Word, etc...just move the license to the new computer). From that point on, all you need to do to upgrade is replace one or two parts at a time.

The best part is that you can review every single part you purchase and can get the absolute best bang for your buck...you're not stuck with a blah-drive just because the manufacturer bought 10,000 of those for cheap.

I thought about going that way but as my wife rightly pointed out, I have a tendancy to blow anything electronic or electric to kingdom come. Ask the last toaster and two electric can openers....lol

Plus the laziness factor come into play.....

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/28/2011 4:31:03 PM

KGrob

Posts: 186
Joined: 11/8/2002
From: Yuba City, California
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: apathetic lurker

quote:

ORIGINAL: KGrob

quote:

ORIGINAL: Zakhal

Ive built my own PCs since the 90s. Best value for money that way. My current PC is over 2 years old and its still highend. The only replecement I did was changing dx10 GTX280 to DX11 GTX580. Id like to build a totally new pc but there is no need. For now it seems my current pc will stay highend for many years more.

My lg dvddrive is 7 years old but works perfectly. I dont see any need for blueray drive.

I've built seven PCs now. It's not as hard as it might seem if you've never done it and it's actually less expensive. Plus you learn a lot.

Get a good box, and it will last you 10+ years. Get the latest OS that can be moved from computer to computer and it's good for a long time (same for copies of things like Word, etc...just move the license to the new computer). From that point on, all you need to do to upgrade is replace one or two parts at a time.

The best part is that you can review every single part you purchase and can get the absolute best bang for your buck...you're not stuck with a blah-drive just because the manufacturer bought 10,000 of those for cheap.

I thought about going that way but as my wife rightly pointed out, I have a tendancy to blow anything electronic or electric to kingdom come. Ask the last toaster and two electric can openers....lol

Plus the laziness factor come into play.....

That's the story of my life...lazy. :)

But sure, everything is a factor and every person must do what is best for their situation.

I was very hesitant the first time I tried this. But the parts typically assemble only one way. To be honest, the software is much harder to get right than the hardware is (at least for me). Just FYI, I normally go with the AMD stuff...if you're willing to back off the super-killer-leading-hot performance, you normally get more bang for your buck from AMD, in my humble opinion.

Anyway, good luck whatever you decide. I hope it works out just as you hope it will.

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Post #: 16

RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/28/2011 5:08:24 PM

Phatguy

Posts: 1348
Joined: 3/1/2006
From: Buffalo,ny
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went with first option.... I've put pc's together back in the dark ages and while I know its easier now I prefer some other schmuck to do it for me...

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/29/2011 4:49:23 AM

rhondabrwn

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From: Snowflake, Arizona
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quote:

ORIGINAL: apathetic lurker

went� with first option.... I've put pc's together back in the dark ages and while I know its easier now I prefer some other schmuck to do it for me...

Congratulations on hitting 1,000 posts!

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My old Piczo site seems to be gone, so no more Navajo Nation pics :(

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/29/2011 3:46:55 PM

Phatguy

Posts: 1348
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From: Buffalo,ny
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Thank you.....but now I have nothing to look forward too....well, maybe 2000...

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/31/2011 2:07:00 AM

rhondabrwn

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From: Snowflake, Arizona
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quote:

ORIGINAL: apathetic lurker

Thank you.....but now I have nothing to look forward too....well, maybe 2000...

Yea, I slowed down a lot after I hit 1,000.

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Love & Peace,

Far Dareis Mai

My old Piczo site seems to be gone, so no more Navajo Nation pics :(

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RE: Buying a PC..Which one? Help!! - 3/31/2011 11:18:18 AM

Phatguy

Posts: 1348
Joined: 3/1/2006
From: Buffalo,ny
Status: offline

What we need is someone annoying (brings to mind a certain someone with the first letter R) to quickly raise my post count...hehehe

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Post #: 21