Buying a new PC [NL]

[MasterCalaelen]

1. What is your budget and does that include shipping/taxes?

I'm looking at a budget of around € 1.000,-, excluding shipping/taxes.

2. Where do you live (Please list if possible town, state, and country)?

The Netherlands

3. What do you need this computer to do (like gaming, Photoshop, and so on)?

Gaming, video editing, graphics work (Photoshop primarily) and watching movies.

4. What parts will you need for the computer? Please list what parts specifically.

Getting a completely new computer, so I'll be needing all the parts.

5. Are you reusing any parts for this computer? If so please say what parts.

Not re-using anything.

6. What kind of monitor/resolution do you have or want to get to use for the computer?

I want a monitor with the highest possible resolution (which is 1900x1200 if I'm not mistaken, not including 2560x1440 monitors which are crazy expensive). I want to spend a maximum of € 350,- on a monitor (preferably closer to € 300,- though) and was thinking of getting a 27". I'm however not sure if 27" monitors are worth getting over a 24" in terms of price/quality.

7. Do you have a legit OS? If so what OS and is it 32-bit or 64-bit?

I'll be needing a new OS, as I'm currently using XP, and want to pick up 7 (or 8 if you think it's worth it).

8. What are you looking for the motherboard to have feature wise? Like SLI, Crossfire, Firewire, USB 3.0, Sata 6.0 Gb/s, and so on.

Not too familiar with some of those things, anything that I would need to properly do what I want to do on my computer would need to be on it.

9. Any plans to overclock the CPU or GPU?

I don't know how to overclock or how safe it is to do, so unless it would save me money or get me a huge performance advantage by doing so, probably not.

10. What time kind of time frame are you planning on ordering these parts?

My current computer is dying rather fast I'm afraid (getting quite some issues with it) so between now and a month from now, give or take.

Website I'd be using would be www.4launch.com (Dutch website) as that's where I got my current computer. Although I'll be looking to compare it with some other places to see what place is cheapest.

I want a DVD-Burner as well as a case with ports at the front (at least 2 USB ports)

[Mutant]

highest possible resolution

3840 × 2160 × 30 bpp @ 60 Hz needs 16.00 Gbit/s from a 4-lane DP1.2 link of 17.28 Gbit/s

I quite like this one for €7,999
http://www.kelkoo.nl/p-lcd-tv-100311...5zl2b-19800743


On a serious note, you can get a 27" 2560x1440 within your €300 budget;
http://www.ebay.nl/itm/New-ACHIEVA-S...item19ce366ec8

review

[Goku]

I'm putting a build together right now on that site he linked. The budget he gave me is going to be lacking a lot to have a proper GPU to drive that resolution.

You are either looking at a Core i5 3450 and GTX 560 Ti with those screens that are more expensive like that one Mutant linked or a the same CPU+GTX 670 with a entry level IPS like this for a bit over your budget. Neither of those include the OS, but what I recommend you do is try out Windows 8 with the current build release and see if its anything you want. If not just buy Windows 7 at another time.

You could always increase the budget by roughly 100-200 to allow for a proper GPU. Your work with video editing and Photoshop would also benefit from an i7 and more ram, but that seems out of the reach atm.

[MasterCalaelen]

I honestly don't know what price I'd be looking at for a decent computer, so I put down € 1.000,- to see what that'd get me.

I want to get a solid computer that won't have issues running the latest games or software in 6 months from now. And thinking realistically about what my current setup cost 8 years ago, the budget I put down is a little too optimistic.

Say I up the budget to € 1.500, is that going to help in getting something better put together?

I thought the resolution I put down is the standard these days, yet you say it would require a high-end GPU, is that resolution not that common after all or .... ?

In regards to Windows 8, you suggest buying that? Or can I try it for free somewhere? Cause I don't feel like paying for W8 and than ending up having to buy W7 when it turns out it's not that great.

[Mutant]

Originally Posted by MasterCalaelen

In regards to Windows 8, you suggest buying that? Or can I try it for free somewhere? Cause I don't feel like paying for W8 and than ending up having to buy W7 when it turns out it's not that great.

Windows 8 Release preview is available atm.
I am using it on my gaming box atm, its fine for any non critical use.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/w...iew?SignedIn=1

You will then need to buy it when windows 8 goes gold likely in 3-4 months.

[Goku]

You either are looking at 192x1080 (monitor I linked) or 2560x1440 (mutant's). The 1920x1080 will run flawlessly on a GTX 670, even that card will have issues at times at 2560x1440 unfortunately. Going a resolution that high will require more frequent vga upgrades. Unless you have the money for that I wouldn't do that imo.

Next budget. Doing that will allow a 3770, 16GB of vram, and even a SSD. Maybe able to come in under that to be honest. Just depends on the screen you want.

Windows 8 you can download for free, since its like a open beta currently. Come the release you will have to look into 7 or 8 by then though for what you want to use. Make sure there isn't any issues with 8 currently with the programs you run most commonly.

[MasterCalaelen]

I thought you were refering to the 1900x1200 resolution I mentioned I wanted when you said it would require a beast of a GPU, that's why I was surprised.

I don't see any benefits for my computer use to get a 2560x1440 resolution monitor, other than that it will look slightly better, so it's definitely going to be a 1900x1200 (or 1900x1080).

What's your opinion on 27" vs 24", are 27" monitors equal in price/quality as 24" these days? I don't want to sacrifice quality for a little more size.

In regards to the monitor you linked, it has a 5ms response time. From my limited knowledge, that seems rather slow?

[Mutant]

24" vs 27" is not really a break in itself, if you have the space arguably larger is always better.

what you need to compare are;

Resolution (higher is better as you can always run games in a lower res, but pixels cost money)

Input lag (lower is better, but unless you are a pro gamer anything under ~ 50ms will be fine so that is almost all monitors around but worth checking)

Image quality (largely down to panel type today this is TN vs IPS. IPS is much better for image quality - ie Color representation and viewing angles, but ISP costs more and often takes a hit on input lag but not always.)



1920x1080 24" TN Acer S240HLbid 24" £130<-- good value
1920x1080 27" TN ASUS VE278Q 27" £210<-- extra size for not too much extra
1920x1080 24" IPS Dell Ultrasharp U2412M 24" £230<-- exchange the extra size for best on image quality
2560x1440 27" IPS Dell U2711 Ultrasharp 27" £520<-- best at everything and most expensive

Then you get this odd ball that i pointed out in my previous post;
2560x1440 27" IPS Achieva ShiMian QH270-Lite 27" £200<-- best at everything and great value but risky as sold from South Korea.


BTW Sorry for working in £, much easier for me.

[Goku]

Here is what I have put together:

2x Corsair 2x4GB DDR3 Memory - €79.80
EVGA GTX 670 - €371.90
Intel Core i7 3770 - €273.90
LG DVD/RW Drive - €16.70
MSI Z77A-G43 - €93.90
Samsung 1TB HDD - €75.70
XFX 550W Power supply - €56.90

Total = €968.80 that includes any kind of tax as far as I can tell

Cases you can choose from:
Corsair Midi Tower Obsidian 550D - €114.90
Corsair Carbide 500R - €98.60
Cooler Master Midi Tower CM 690 II Advanced - € 101.90
Fractal Design Midi Tower Define R3 - € 85.90
Corsair Midi Tower Carbide 300R - € 79.00
Cooler Master Midi Tower CM 690 II Advanced (different version) - € 73.90
Antec Midi Tower One Hundred - € 45.90

Sorry if you didn't know what IPS is. That has far better picture quality verse a TN monitor which mostly everyone has. I figured, since you are doing Photoshop this would benefit you. I have one and I notice the difference in games in terms of how crisp the image looks, PS2 especially.

Do you think that will benefit you? Otherwise you can get by with a cheaper TN panel. These do have a lower response also, but I don't think its going to make a major difference when it comes to even FPS gaming. If I had to choose the U2412 is a good option IMO.

In terms of overclocking you are looking at another €30 for the K version of the 3770 that allows you to OC plus another €20 to €40 for a proper cooler. Performance boost really depends on the game/program you are using. If it doesn't sound beneficial I wouldn't worry about it. That 3770 is a great little processor.

It does look like you may have the room for a SSD if you think that is worthwhile. Like this 256GB or 128GB SSD. The prices on these are dropping like crazy, so you may be better off just waiting for the larger capacities to get at a better pricing so you don't get stuck with a 128GB.

[MasterCalaelen]

First off, thanks a ton for the help so far Goku and Mutant. I'll be taking a close look at the hardware you two have suggested when I have time to sit down and focus on it.

Overclocking: I have never done it, and don't have a clue if it would be worth the performance gain or if it would benefit me in my computer use, so I guess it's best to leave it be for now.

SSD: I'll have to look into it, but they do look rather expensive for the storage size still, so I might wait it out a bit till at least the 256G drops in price.

Monitor: Read something about ISP monitors not being able to display back, and therefor suffering in contrast, is this true, and if so, really noticeable?

What's you guys' opinion on 120Hz monitors. Would it be worth it for what I plan to use my computer for?

Sound: Is the on-board soundcard on that mobo decent, or do you recommend getting an actual seperate soundcard? I find good quality audio important, but don't know how good on-board soundcards are these days.

Thanks again for all the work so far, wouldn't know where to start without you guys!

[Goku]

Concerning the monitor. Not sure on black levels, I have heard people talk about that. I can't say blacks look like shit on mine or something along those lines. However the color difference is amazing IMO. 120 Hz is a iffy one. Some people notice the difference and others don't. Keep in mind you will have to have both high minimum frame rate not just a good avg in order to notice the difference. This means you will be turning down the settings depending on the game in order to have the actual high FPS (100+) to take advantage of the refresh rate. Other then gaming it won't have any impact on anything else.

Sound I always have a dedicated sound card. Do you have one right now? You maybe better off just trying the onboard and if it isn't to your liking just getting a one after.

[MasterCalaelen]

I won't bother was 120Hz than, as I don't game that much (will change with PS2 most likely though!) and the games I've played over the last few years were RPGs, and from what I've read up on 120Hz is a benefit mainly for FPS games.

I'm currently using an onboard soundcard. The sound is good, but it does start sounding distorted when I turn it up, or my speakers shut down, but I think that's just an issue with my speakset. I'll take your suggestion on trying the onboard one and than deciding if I want a dedicated card or not.

[Goku]

What do you think of IPS or are you going to stick with TN?

Sounds good on the VGA.

What case do you like currently?

[MasterCalaelen]

Originally Posted by Goku

What do you think of IPS or are you going to stick with TN?

Going to look into the black/contrast thing with IPS a bit further, but I am leaning towards an IPS from everything else I've read/watched.

Originally Posted by Goku

What case do you like currently?

This one looked nice, but it doesn't seem to have ports on the front, which is a must.

And I'd also like a Firewire port, which I thought would be pretty standard but only one of the cases you listed has it. Unfortunately, it's the worst looking case of the bunch, so I'm not quite sure yet to be honest.

Did you suggest those cases because they are the only ones that would fit the hardware you listed, or was there another reason?

[Vancha]

Originally Posted by MasterCalaelen

This one looked nice, but it doesn't seem to have ports on the front, which is a must.

And I'd also like a Firewire port, which I thought would be pretty standard but only one of the cases you listed has it. Unfortunately, it's the worst looking case of the bunch, so I'm not quite sure yet to be honest.

Did you suggest those cases because they are the only ones that would fit the hardware you listed, or was there another reason?

What's your taste in cases? Do you prefer boring, or tacky? I'm guessing this case is going on a desk, since you need the ports on the front? Would front-bottom be better than front-top?