PC Update 2008, budget-minded tower

[FuryFox]

Well, I just nabbed a big check, and it seems like it's time to update this crazy old computer of mine.

Well, here's my original thread when I needed help, and you guys ended up doing right by me.

http://www.the-nextlevel.com/board/s...ad.php?t=33906

The computer I made from your advice there is still kicking, and frequently seems faster than my girlfriend's much newer Vista laptop. However, there are times when processing big images in Photoshop CS3, Illustrator, and Painter IX is just getting sluggish. Processor-intensive tasks in particular seem to be falling behind the software curve.

So, I haven't kept up at all in the last 4 years. I know dual-cores are the thing now, and that AMD isn't the default go-to, but otherwise it beats me. All I use the computer for is my digital art and typical stuff...I don't game on the PC, but I'll want to play SC2 and Diablo3 when those come out.

My budget's $600-750 for the tower alone (although if anyone has any LCD suggestions, I'm no that impressed by mine). If people know of any good computer shopping/building guides, you could just point me that way too. I pretty much just want the 2008 version of that computer I got in 2004, but whole-box solutions are fine too if the market has come up with anything good.

Thanks again!

[Dyne]

My quick 2 cents.

Processing in those types of apps hit the ram and hdd the most. If using a 32 bit environment you want 3 gig of system ram. As much as you can fit if 64 (preferably anything ABOVE 4 since the OS uses at least a gig by itself).

Buy a Raptor for your main drive, use the other as a scratch surface/dump drive.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...me=10000%20RPM

The Intel Q6600 is the best for the price cpu right now. Granted 4 cores only really benefit multitasking but for $160-180, you might as well.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115017

Video, the best bang for buck is the Ati 4850 (512M flavor). It's at or under $200.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...on%20HD%204850

Don't skimp on the psu if you get a quad and a 4850. I trust PC Power and Cooling but they're on the pricey side.

Mobo I leave up to you. The P35 based motherboards are pound for pound the most rock solid and mature you can get. Sure there's better, but you don't seem like you'll want to overclock anyway. I still use the Abit IP35 pro. Plenty of room for growth. Plus it has a PCI-E x16 slot for the 4850.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813127030

This is my recommendation. Sure you could get a Core 2 and a 7200 rpm hdd, but when you could have something so much better for $30-50 more per part, it becomes a no brainer. Most will say "Get a lot of ram and a fast cpu". I just can't stand people coming back and saying later "oh I shouldn't have skimped".

[FuryFox]

Thanks a lot, I really appreciate the information.

Is it worth it to move to 64-bit Vista? Is it even worth using 32-bit Vista, or just stick to XP at that point?

[Dyne]

My two cents since I'm in a bit of a pickle myself. I have Vista 64 on my Raptor and XP 32 on a seperate drive. Quark Xpress and the Adobe Updater do not like Vista 64 (as do a lot of wireless pci cards). I have XP for the Adobe issues. I have 4 gig of system ram but a 4870 video card with a gig of GDDR5 on that as well. Needless to say it's sweet as hell with Vista. It doesn't slow down XP per se, but it's really not a good setup for a 32bit environment. From what I've read, CS4 will have a 64 bit version but only for Vista and will also have extra gpu support through the CUDA drivers which is NVIDIA only right now for video encoding.

Don't get me wrong, having the extra ram a 64 bit OS allows is nice and there are workarounds for Adobes lack of fixing their updater, but it's a bit of a pain for the average user. Other than that it's a great OS. Even back before beta 1 I never once had a major hardware issue with it. Personally I wouldn't get Vista if you're sticking with 32 bit. There's really no reason to.

[FuryFox]

So, looking at my options here (in the Canada), it seems like the best place to get parts is at NCIX. In addition to the rebates, these things are on sale this week (not reflected in the links)

Monitor: BenQ 24 in
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...nufacture=BENQ
CPU: Intel Q6600
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...ufacture=Intel
Mobo: Gigabyte EP45-DS3R
http://www.ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=30495
Hard Drive: Samsung Spinpoint F1 Series 1 TB (this will probably change)
http://www.ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=28171
Graphics: HIS Radeon HD 4850
http://www.ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=30488
This is the one they picked, but I'd probably grab a Diamond or Gigabyte instead just because I've never heard of HIS.
Power: Corsair 750W
http://www.ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=26415
Memory: 4GB G.Skill (?) PC2-6400
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...acture=G.SKILL
Case: Antec Mid Tower Gamer Case 900 ATX
http://www.ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=21123
Optical: Samsung whatever DVD burner
http://www.ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=30738
OS: Vista Home Premium 64-bit (is there a cheaper way to get this?)

It's ~$1500 in US currency, but a third of that is the monitor (I really hate TN screens), so that seems reasonable. For $50 they'll put it together and slap a comprehensive 1-year warranty on it, plus w/e all the manufacturer's have...seems worth it.

If you have any other observations Dyne, I'd appreciate it, else I'll probably place the order soon.

[cka]

that G. Skill ram is the most generic you can get (I'm talking staples shelf-brand generic here), and that psu is a bit overkill, but otherwise it looks like pretty decent list

and if you haven't ordered from ncix before, you more than likely won't be disappointed... everything I've ever bought from them (I've spent at least $1500 myself there over the years) has arrived on time and in perfect condition, 5 provinces away

[FuryFox]

Nice. A location is very close to me, so I just drop in, which really slanted my decision to go with them (service and w/e much easier). When I went originally, I showed him the parts Dyne recommended, and we built close to what I listed. He chose the RAM and cards, so maybe I'll need to specify a bit more. Everyone I know has been buying Corsair RAM since who-knows-when, so I'll try to find something like that.

[Dyne]

I've used G Skill in my last three builds and never once had a problem. Usually overclocks well too. If you're going 4 gig, make sure it's 2 x 2gig sticks so you can add more later. Like I said, 4 gig in a 64-bit OS isn't the best situation since the OS takes over a gig anyway (leaving you with 3, which doesn't really benefit your going to 64).

[FuryFox]

I still haven't bought it, but RAM can be upgraded anytime I suppose. What's the ideal then, maybe 6? RAM's so cheap right may as well just buy whatever is optimal.

[Dyne]

I still haven't bought it, but RAM can be upgraded anytime I suppose. What's the ideal then, maybe 6? RAM's so cheap right may as well just buy whatever is optimal.

With 6 gig you would need 3x2 gig or 2x2 gig + 2x1gig, either one resulting in an odd number or sticks, or an unnecessary mismatching (why use 1 gig sticks when you can get 2?). With current processors you get a small bonus called dual channel when you have matching pairs, ie all slots filled or 2 slots filled. So i would go for 4 gig now with 2x2gig and get another 2x2gig down the line.