Computer shopping-help me find one!

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Silence

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Hello, one and all.

I'm in the process of trying to find a new desktop to use as an all-purpose computer. By all-purpose, I mean one that can do fairly well with games, (I hope to be able to play stuff like HL2, L4D, Modern Warfare, and like games--I don't need to be able to play Crysis on high setting, but I'd like something that is good for most games.) I also need it for schoolwork like paper writing, PowerPoint, etc,etc.... Also, I do a lot of video and audio work, with programs like Ableton Live, Cubase SX3, Sony Vegas, Adobe Premiere Pro, and the like. I'll be using my laptop for live performance, but I'll be doing a lot of video and audio pre-setup on my desktop.

The catch is, I'd like to spend no more than $800 on computer and monitor. I'd prefer to spend even less, but I am flexible. I'd thought about this setup from newegg.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.206216

or this one, if I want the extra bit of screen space
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.206215

I'd prefer more mainstream brands, like HP or Dell, but I'm open to anything that works for my demands and budget.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Aaron aka Silence
 
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You're going to want a Quad Core and 4-8GB's of RAM for Video and Audio editing. You'll also want a 9600GT or better graphics card. I'll look around and see what I can find. A system and a monitor that can do everything that you want it to do(and do it well) is going to be tough to find for that price. A good monitor is like $200, so that limits the PC to $600.

Here's one that I found. The graphics card isn't the best but it can play the games at decent settings. It also has a monitor. $750
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883103217

Here's another. No monitor. $650
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883103218

Another, not the best graphics card as well, but still enough to play the games at (somewhat)decent settings. No monitor. $589
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229110
 
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that acer is a nice buy with the monitor for a prebuilt.

OP, would you consider building it yourself if we helped you pick out the parts? You could get more computer for less money if you are willing to assemble it and install the OS yourself.
 
Definitely build it yourself. It's a lot cheaper and not very difficult as long as you read the manuals.
 
Thanks for all the help so far! I am definitely intrigued about building one myself. I haven't done it before, and I know very little about actually building a computer. Where should I start if I want to do it right? From what I can gather, it doesn't seem all that difficult, and besides, it's a skill that I could benefit from learning. Again, thanks for the help!

Aaron/Silence
 
As for picking out the parts, post your preferences for Nvidia/ATI, AMD/Intel, how much RAM, hard drive size, etc and we can help you pick those out.
For the physically building aspect, I got a feel for how things were supposed to go together by watching youtube videos on the subject, just search "How to build a computer" and hopefully you'll find some good videos of people assembling computers. The drawback of that is, the parts of your potential computer could differ from the person in the video's, but you'll be best off just reading through the manuals that come with the parts thoroughly.
 
I'm pretty open as far as certain hardware brands go. My only real experience with the different brands has been with AMD and ATI, so I'm not sure which would be better for my needs. It seems like those two brands are generally on the cheaper side, which works with my budget. However, I don't know all that much about the price differences between Intel/AMD and NVIDIA/ATI.

It looks like 4GB minimum is the way to go, so I'd go with that. I'd also like a HD size of around 640GB, as that is just about right for what I'm wanting to do.

I've started to snoop around youtube and google, looking for tips on how to build my own computer. It looks like it's not all that hard, which is great for me. I'll probably also ask for some help from my uncle, who's been building computers for longer than I've been alive. Again, thanks for the great advice! I've got the computer building bug now, especially since it fits my budget.

Aaron/Silence

P.S., if possible, I'd like to keep the total cost ceiling around 800-900 dollars. I'll have to buy a new OS, so that's around 150-200 dollars right there. Again, thanks for the tips!
 
I think you'll find building your own is a very satisfying experience. Here is what I would recommend for you, based on what you mentioned you needed.

Phenom II X4 940 and Biostar 790 Motherboard $205 - $20 MIR

Coolermaster Centurion 5 and Coolermaster 600W power suply $140

XFX Ati 4870 1GB $147

G.Skill 4GB DDR2 1066 $50

WD Caviar Black 750GB HDD $80

Hanns G 22" Monitor $140

Total: 761.93
Shipping: 10.06 (to midwest, YMMV)

Grand Total: $771.99 - $20 MIR

Now, I didn't include an OS because that will be up to you as to what you want to buy. Also, right now newegg has oddly poor selection of dvd burners, but any one will do, and shouldn't cost you more than 20-25 bucks.

I like this system for you because it has a really nice quad core processor for all of your video work. The monitor is admittedly on the cheap side, but it saves you some money for a much nicer graphics card. If you need it cheaper, we can find a different graphics card that will suit you, but the 1gb 4870 for $150 is a very very good buy right now. 4GB should do you for now, but you'll want to go to 8GB eventually. Case is plain, and powersupply is nice at $40 off with the combo.

If anyone sees anything that they don't agree with, please let me know! Also, don't bash the biostar motherboard because it is a biostar, they make some nice boards, and the only reason it has 4 eggs right now is because newegg combo'd it with the 955 am3, which needs a bios update before it will work, which will upset some people. Overall, it's a great deal with the free motherboard.
 
Thanks for the suggestions, Ryken!

After doing some research, I've substituted in a couple of my own picks, based on your suggestions.

Phenom II X4 940 and Biostar 790 Motherboard--$205 - $20 MIR

NZXT Apollo SILVER case with Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit---- $185

NZXT PS-NT-PP600-R 600W PSU---- $70

XFX Ati 4870 1GB --- $147

G.Skill 4GB DDR2 1066 --- $50

Hanns G 22" Monitor ---- $140

Samsung Black 22X DVD burner --- $25

For the hard drive, I'm going to check around town for one around $80 and similar to the one posted by Ryken: I'm a little hesitant about sending away for a hard drive.

If there are any holes in my setup, please let me know! I'm new to this whole thing, and I don't want a $900 garbage pile on my hands!

Thanks,
Aaron/Silence
 
Looks pretty solid. I would suggest considering another power supply though; that one isn't 80 PLUS certified. PC Power & Cooling and Corsair are two of the most reliable power supply manufactured. I believe PC Power & Cooling has a 610W for just $20 more than the NZXT PSU.
 
Corsair 520W PSU

Give that one a ton of consideration. I know it looks like it isn't as strong due to it being 520W compared to 600W, but it has 3 12V rails that run 18A, compared to 2 12V rails that run 21A. The corsair will deliver more even power, is more efficient, and will be much better at balancing the load between the rails. All of this is much more important than the total watts that ends up getting advertised. It's only $80 after MIR, and I would recommend it even if it was $30 more than the NZXT.

If you go local for a hard drive, see if you have a Micro Center near you. They sell OEM hard drives at prices that are +-$5 from Newegg. There is a growing contingent that doesn't like how ups ships their hard drives, I've never had a problem with the one they shipped for me.

Everything else looks good, except I'm an old fart now and don't like that style of case, but to each his own.
 
Silence said:
Thanks for all the help so far! I am definitely intrigued about building one myself. I haven't done it before, and I know very little about actually building a computer. Where should I start if I want to do it right? From what I can gather, it doesn't seem all that difficult, and besides, it's a skill that I could benefit from learning. Again, thanks for the help!

Aaron/Silence
Click to expand...

when i decide to buid my 1st pc i was really scared about doing stuff wrong, but it ended up taking me only like 4hrs and i had no problems

also there are alot of guides on the internet to help you
 
The worst thing that could happen would be if you forgot to put risers and shorted out everything :P


Or not applying thermal grease...
 
Not a bad setup Ryken i might use that myself lol. I just bought that case/PS combo i love the simpler look.
 
thanks repo, i actually own that case, and it is a great case for the money. After building a P182, however, I' personally will go with something pricier the next time around. I love the look of lian li, antec, and coolermaster, but the money aspect can kill the budget on a budget rig.
 
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