PC Discussion Thread II - All PC related discussion goes here.

[Derbysieger 11]

Fair enough. It's just everytime I read recommendations like ohh no you need a 700W minimum (weedkiller) my head goes to the desk^^

I'm sure that a good 450W PSU will run said PC fine. It just doesn't leave room for future upgrades.

SSDs don't need much power btw. It's usually 2W-5W per SSD ;)

[PuFu 4600]

I don't know if you noticed, but that PSU not really a branded one (rosewill - never heard of them - 34$). Do you actually think that outputs 450W to begin with?

@Addict: get a proper one - Enermax, OCZ, Corsair, Antec, Nexus, 80+ certified. Don't try to save money on PSU, just get a proper good one (no need to get the most expensive either)

[Derbysieger 11]

That's why I wrote "a good PSU". Perhabs I should've made it clearer ;)

Edited September 20, 2011 by Derbysieger

[Tonci87 163]

I have a Cougar 550 CMX and I´m very happy with it. I think it has enough Potential so that I can replace my Sapphire Toxic HD5850 when Arma 3 gets released. At least I hope so...

http://www.cougar-world.de/en/products/power-supply/cougar-cmx.html

[Derbysieger 11]

Should be no problem, what are your specs?

[Tonci87 163]

MB: Asus P8P67 Pro Rev 3.1

CPU: Intel i7 2600k @3,9Ghz

Ram: 12 GB Corsair

GPU: Sapphire Toxic HD5850

Two Hard Drives

[Derbysieger 11]

I don't see why you shouldn't be able to upgrade your GPU for Arma 3. The best upgrade for your system atm would be a SSD btw. It's just so much fun to work with it. everything's smooth and superfast. I love it. No more PC without a SSD for me.

Ohh and when you get one you really need to control the urge to constantly restart your computer :D

[PuFu 4600]

nvm..

[Frostburg 10]

Hey there folks,

As my titles suggests, I am in the market for a new laptop.

I know absolutely nothing about computers and want to purchase

a good quality one. Money really isn't an issue for me.

My current one has problems and I am thinking about

replacing it.

It said that it was made by Altec Lansing.

There are some other stickers on it that say:

Intel Centrino Duo, Windows Vista, NVIDIA, and lightScribe.

I bought it in 2007 or 2008.

It works fine for the most part, but I can't watch any type

of internet video such as youtube or whatever.

It is generally slow.

It always freezes up.

Not only that, but whenever I try to type in a username or password

for my email or facebook, a little box always comes up that says

something like "please enter in your password".

I think it wants to automatically store my name and password

for each site so I can automatically access them.

Sorry folks, but I like entering in my passwords the old fashioned way.

In addition, my MsWord sucks, and it makes it so that my printer

doesn't always print when I want it to.

Anyways, I know most of you tech gurus are probably wondering,

what do you want the laptop for?

Well, being a college student, I need a laptop for college stuff.

I need to be able to type up papers on MsWord, conduct internet

searches through google and google scholar. I probably also need Excel, and Powerpoint for various class presentations and whatever else. I need to be able to view internet

videos. I would also like to listen to music on the internet.

Pretty much anything a college student would need.

I also would like something that I can try some video games on perhaps.

I have many photographs and videos from my time in the military

and I would like to save those.

I also have a nice background picture that I want to keep.

I also want to keep all my word documents and papers and such.

So I probably need a pretty big memory on a powerful computer.

I want something nice, and also something that wont constantly act strange.

I have more dinero than I can use, so price really isn't an issue.

I tried looking this stuff up on google and came up with mixed results.

Sorry about the composition of my message, I don't really know much.

---------- Post added at 08:33 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:31 PM ----------

This is a response by PuFu.

for M$ Office Suite, internet and HD movies, any of the current 500$-1000$ would work for you. Most come with CPUs that are above what you would normally need from your average laptop, and same goes for ram and HDD space.

On the other hand, no every laptop can run games on. Most laptops have crappy GFX cards (on board or not). That said, a gaming laptop can reach up to 3000, even 4000$ range, although for about 1000$ you would get the same or better specs on a PC.

My suggestion: get an average laptop you can use (i would go for HP, or Lenovo/IBM if you are in the States, you can find good deals there) and get a gaming rig on top of that if money is not an issue. Otherwise, you need to make up your mind and see how much you are willing to spend on a gaming laptop, that would most definitely be a lot heavier and hard to carry around you...

[froggyluv 2136]

He's right (Pufu), most any half decent lapper will do you fine for all college needs -my wifes a professor and uses Word/Excel/Powerpoint everyday with her $700 Vaio I5. Also, you had Vista which sucks imo, you'll be happier with Win.7.

Now if money aint really an issue this guy looks pretty decent for gaming:

http://computers.toptenreviews.com/gaming-laptops/asustek-computer-inc/asus-g74sx-review.html

as well as the Battalion listed tho a bit steeper price (better CPU).

[Frostburg 10]

Froggyluv,

That laptop you linked to looks cool. I don't really know.

The price is $1,630.

Don't take this as bragging, but that's pocket change for me.

However, I am not really looking for something for videogames.

I did buy one video game last year that I thought looked interesting

and I only played it for like two weeks. I lost interest because noone

else played it.

I just don't think that I'm big into video games. That doesn't mean I don't

want to try one. I see my college buddies playing them ALL the time.

Sometimes I feel like I want to join them just so I can be "in" on their

hobby/hobbies. To me, it would be more of a social thing

to bond with my college friends by learning about their hobbies.

The one that my two good buds play is this star wars game.

Basically they can pick between these three types of creatures. Insect

aliens, high tech aliens, and human(Marines). They control hundreds

of soldiers and send them to fight other players on the map.

It is a birds eye view type game. I tried it once as the Marines

and quickly got killed. The game started up and I decided to send what

I thought were my combat units on a little reconnaissence/combat patrol

and they all got destroyed by the bugs.

Then my one building at my base got attacked and I lost. After talking

to my friends, apparently I mistook my worker-bees who collect resources

for combat troops.

Anyways, they didn't tell me how to play. I just tried it after many days

of watching them. I just sat at their computer when the game was on, and

they were busy drinking, and setup a game for myself.

Anyways, it is always interesting watching them play. They both

have their separate laptops in their one room and play against each other

or as a team against others.

Anyways I like how deeply involved they are in their game. They get

really excited and shout things to each other like "My base is getting

attacked! Help!", or "My guys are coming to you in like 2 secs".

Haha, it's just cool to see the interaction in these games and meeting

people who play them and watching them play.

Like I said, I want a laptop mostly for academic/college things.

My main thing is I want it to be high end/high quality so that I don't

have to constantly deal with issues like I am having with my current

laptop. I want to be able to do all the things I ever would want to

do for school/extracurricular stuff. If I want to create flyers for my

club or society, then that would be cool.

Also, I don't want to get a laptop, and then realize a month down

the road that there is something that it cannot do that I would

like to do.

I soon may have to create advertisements/flyers for my psychology

club, I may want to have the capability to make/edit videos for events,

I will definitely need to do presentations, make posters, manage

club/organization finances, make logos/emblems, view all sorts of media

on the web or through other means, watch DVDs, play music in my room,

write research papers, etc...

You get what I'm saying.

And as I stated earlier, I know NOTHING about computers.

Like PuFu was mentioning things that I don't know about like "CPUs, ram, HDD,

GFX cards etc.

I definitely don't know about any of those things or what they mean.

Once I buy my laptop, I will have one of my tech geek friends teach me

how to use it for my purposes. I know one guy in my dorm who's door

I regularly knock on for help with my daily shit. I try not to be too

much of a pain when he is busy. But sometimes, I just have no clue

what to do.

Another thing. I want it to be light and portable, and have good

battery power. My current one will die within like 15 minutes if it is not

plugged in.

Hope this helps. Keep those suggestions coming.

Thanks

[PuFu 4600]

if that asus seem cheap for you, then go to http://www.originpc.com/eon17-s-gaming-laptop-features.asp and customize your own:

EON-17-S High Performance Laptop

$1,854.00 $1,854.00

Customizations:

Laptop Exterior: Laptop Exterior: Sabot Grey

The ORIGIN Difference: Truly Custom PCs. Want a component that is not on our site? Call or email us and we will include it in your system.

Included

Chassis and Primary Display: EON17-S platform with B3 stepping - 1920 x 1080 17.3" LED Backlit Glossy Screen

Included

3D Glasses: None

Included

Graphics Card: Single 2GB GDDR5 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580M Overclocked (2GB of Total GFX)

$588.00

Processor: Overclocked Intel Extreme Edition Core i7-2960XM Quad-Core Processor (4.1GHz - 4.8GHz with Turbo Boost), 8MB Cache

$1,074.00

Memory: 16GB Kingston HyperX Dual-Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1600MHz - 4 X 4GB

$162.00

RAID Configuration: None

Included

Hard Drive One: 256GB Crucial M4 - Solid State Drive

$446.00

Hard Drive Two: 750GB 7200rpm SATA 300 Hard Drive

$104.00

Optical Drive: 6X BD-R Blu-ray Burner/8X DVD+/-R/2.4X +DL Super-Multi Drive with Power DVD 7

$137.00

Audio: Integrated High-Definition Audio with THX TruStudio Pro and up to 7.1 Channel support

Included

Networking: Wi-Fi Link 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN Module with Bluetooth - Up to 300 Mbps

Included

Web Camera: Built-in 2.0 Megapixel Video Camera

Included

Operating System: Genuine MS Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Edition

Included

Warranty: 3 Year Part Replacement and Free Shipping Warranty with DVD image and Lifetime Support/Labor

$269.00

No Dead Pixel Guarantee: No Dead Pixel Guarantee

Included

ORIGIN Maximum Protection Shipping Process: ORIGIN Wooden Crate Armor

$35.00

Additional Charges:

Free ORIGIN T-shirt: ORIGIN T-shirt XLarge

Keyboards: Razer Lycosa

$80.00

Mouse: Razer Mamba

$169.00

Headsets: Razer Carcharias

$79.00

Product Subtotal: $4,997.00

Edited October 4, 2011 by PuFu

[Daniel 0]

Hey guys,

I'm completely out of the loop concerning hardware and have been for some years.

Right now i'm after a fast rig for Windows 7 and photo and HD video editing. Then i'll be wanting to upgrade it as necessary for Take On and Arma 3 next year. My current tower is a bit of a shed and sounds like it's trying to reach escape velocity, I think i'll be better off starting from scratch.

Any advice concerning what CPU, RAM, GFX, etc I should be aiming for these days?

Cheers.

[PuFu 4600]

I for one would be waiting till next month, sandy-e and bulldozers are close to release.

Nowadays rig:

CPU: intel i7 2600k (photo and video editing will take advantage of the hyperthreading)

MB: Z68 chipset (i would go for asus or gigabyte)

RAM: 8GB is a minimum (1600mhz). ram is dirt cheap these days. 16GB if you have the pennies

HDD: get a fast one - if possible a SSD would be great for OS. Get a 7200/64bit buffer one for storring stuff. Ideal SSD 120-256 (aim for high read/write) and at least 1TB hard. Z68 supports a hybrid mode between SSD and normal HDD

GFX: 560TI (eventually the 2gb version) and upwards.

[maddogx 13]

MB: Z68 chipset (i would go for asus or gigabyte)

Does the Z68 add anything of real value over the P67 chipset?

[Daniel 0]

Thanks for the advice PuFu, appreciated.

[Frostburg 10]

if that asus seem cheap for you, then go to http://www.originpc.com/eon17-s-gaming-laptop-features.asp and customize your own:

EON-17-S High Performance Laptop

$1,854.00 $1,854.00

Customizations:

Laptop Exterior: Laptop Exterior: Sabot Grey

The ORIGIN Difference: Truly Custom PCs. Want a component that is not on our site? Call or email us and we will include it in your system.

Included

Chassis and Primary Display: EON17-S platform with B3 stepping - 1920 x 1080 17.3" LED Backlit Glossy Screen

Included

3D Glasses: None

Included

Graphics Card: Single 2GB GDDR5 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580M Overclocked (2GB of Total GFX)

$588.00

Processor: Overclocked Intel Extreme Edition Core i7-2960XM Quad-Core Processor (4.1GHz - 4.8GHz with Turbo Boost), 8MB Cache

$1,074.00

Memory: 16GB Kingston HyperX Dual-Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1600MHz - 4 X 4GB

$162.00

RAID Configuration: None

Included

Hard Drive One: 256GB Crucial M4 - Solid State Drive

$446.00

Hard Drive Two: 750GB 7200rpm SATA 300 Hard Drive

$104.00

Optical Drive: 6X BD-R Blu-ray Burner/8X DVD+/-R/2.4X +DL Super-Multi Drive with Power DVD 7

$137.00

Audio: Integrated High-Definition Audio with THX TruStudio Pro and up to 7.1 Channel support

Included

Networking: Wi-Fi Link 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN Module with Bluetooth - Up to 300 Mbps

Included

Web Camera: Built-in 2.0 Megapixel Video Camera

Included

Operating System: Genuine MS Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Edition

Included

Warranty: 3 Year Part Replacement and Free Shipping Warranty with DVD image and Lifetime Support/Labor

$269.00

No Dead Pixel Guarantee: No Dead Pixel Guarantee

Included

ORIGIN Maximum Protection Shipping Process: ORIGIN Wooden Crate Armor

$35.00

Additional Charges:

Free ORIGIN T-shirt: ORIGIN T-shirt XLarge

Keyboards: Razer Lycosa

$80.00

Mouse: Razer Mamba

$169.00

Headsets: Razer Carcharias

$79.00

Product Subtotal: $4,997.00

Dude, I understand you are trying to help by posting info on good laptops, but

I really didn't understand any of it.

I checked out the website. It looks really cool, but I am not looking to

pay alot extra for a laptop just for "gaming."

Games would be just an "extra" bonus.

What good would such a laptop be if I could play all the new hit games,

yet not be able to get my school work and such done?

I'm not really into games. The last time I seriously tried to sit down and

get into one was little under a year ago.

I just need something high quality for school work/projects that

I wont have to replace in 6 months.

[PuFu 4600]

Does the Z68 add anything of real value over the P67 chipset?

read here: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/z68-express-lucidlogix-virtu-ssd-caching,2888.html

Thanks for the advice PuFu, appreciated.

no worries

Dude, I understand you are trying to help by posting info on good laptops, but

I really didn't understand any of it.

I checked out the website. It looks really cool, but I am not looking to

pay alot extra for a laptop just for "gaming."

Games would be just an "extra" bonus.

I'm not really into games. The last time I seriously tried to sit down and

get into one was little under a year ago.

Maybe i don't get what you actually request here...or why is it that you post on BIS forums, if games are way outside your scope.

Do you need advice or a link to a laptop you want to buy?

I see you have no clue how computers work, maybe you would be better buying a MacBook (pro)(MS Office is available for apple computers as well)...or even a tablet?

What good would such a laptop be if I could play all the new hit games,

yet not be able to get my school work and such done?

I just need something high quality for school work/projects that

I wont have to replace in 6 months.

Why wouldn't the one i linked work for your future (low CPU/GPU and memory demanding) college work? If you would stay it would be overkill, i would agree, but saying it won't work? Really? Care to explain?

I told you before. For M$ Office, you could use a 4 years laptop without any problems. Same goes for web surfing and similar. Hell, i can use my iphone for that.

You current one is either a big piece of garbage, or it is full of bloating making an old piece if hardware act slower/stranger than it should.

If you want further help, post a maximum price you are willing to spend, screen size, as well as how heavy you want your laptop to be...seems once can't ask more from you...

Edited October 4, 2011 by PuFu

[Frostburg 10]

read here: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/z68-express-lucidlogix-virtu-ssd-caching,2888.html

no worries

Maybe i don't get what you actually request here...or why is it that you post on BIS forums, if games are way outside your scope.

Do you need advice or a link to a laptop you want to buy?

I see you have no clue how computers work, maybe you would be better buying a MacBook (pro)(MS Office is available for apple computers as well)...or even a tablet?

Why wouldn't the one i linked work for your future (low CPU/GPU and memory demanding) college work? If you would stay it would be overkill, i would agree, but saying it won't work? Really? Care to explain?

I told you before. For M$ Office, you could use a 4 years laptop without any problems. Same goes for web surfing and similar. Hell, i can use my iphone for that.

You current one is either a big piece of garbage, or it is full of bloating making an old piece if hardware act slower/stranger than it should.

If you want further help, post a maximum price you are willing to spend, screen size, as well as how heavy you want your laptop to be...seems once can't ask more from you...

Ok, I will try to answer each of your questions as accurately as possible.

First off, I started posting here because as a student of psychology in college, I thought it would be interesting to get an idea of how people who

play video games, especially military ones think about things. I have friends who play these alot and just wanted to understand people who play video games. I like this forum and think I will hang around for a while and see what there is here.

I really don't know anything about apples or tablets. Yes, I HAVE heard

of apple computers.

The reason I said that the one you linked to me wouldn't work is because

I need a laptop for college work/activities/extracurricular work, not games.

I am a member and officer of a few student organizations and need to have all the fancy

gadgets and gizmos that college laptops need, such as MsOffice with both Word AND powerpoint, video making or editing stuff, ability to make posters,

and flyers, make spreadsheets, and all that stuff. Being a treasurer for

one organization, I definitely need a spreadsheet program to keep track

of finances. I also need the ability to view internet videos such as youtube

and such. This is why I said that I need a "college type laptop", not a laptop for video games.

I am willing to pay max around $2,000 for a laptop that will have all those

features and will not crap out on me in 6 months.

I want the screen size to be roughly the same size or if necessary, slightly

smaller than mine.

I don't have a ruler or tape measure, so I took a standard piece of printer

paper, and used that to measure. The printer paper wrapping paper states

that the printer paper is 8 1/2" by 11".

I used the long side of the printer paper and measured the length of

my screen. If you take the long side of the paper, divide it into thirds,

then add that third to the original length of the long side of the paper, that looks to be roughly the length of the screen.

The height of the screen is roughly the same as the long side

of the printer paper, so that would be probably about 11" tall.

Sorry, like I said, I don't have a measuring stick. And I asked my friends

around the dorm. I felt like such a moron lol.

Also, I measured not from the actual "glass" part of the screen, but the whole lid thing including the edge or frame.

I don't want a laptop that is excessively heavy or thick. Average weight or

thickness will do.

Also, I bought my current laptop in 2008 so it is very old.

[PuFu 4600]

all the fancy

gadgets and gizmos that college laptops need, such as MsOffice with both Word AND powerpoint, video making or editing stuff, ability to make posters,and flyers, make spreadsheets, and all that stuff.

There is NOTHING fancy about MS Office. No laptop comes with it preintalled (in fact a lot do, but with a 30 days trial, so you'll need to buy it - student version will do, it is cheaper)

I want the screen size to be roughly the same size or if necessary, slightly

smaller than mine.

I don't have a ruler or tape measure, so I took a standard piece of printer

paper, and used that to measure. The printer paper wrapping paper states

that the printer paper is 8 1/2" by 11".

I used the long side of the printer paper and measured the length of

my screen. If you take the long side of the paper, divide it into thirds,

then add that third to the original length of the long side of the paper, that looks to be roughly the length of the screen.

The height of the screen is roughly the same as the long side

of the printer paper, so that would be probably about 11" tall.

Sorry, like I said, I don't have a measuring stick. And I asked my friends

around the dorm. I felt like such a moron lol.

FPDR - no comment

I am willing to pay max around $2,000 for a laptop that will have all those

features and will not crap out on me in 6 months.

I would actually recommend you go in the nearest Apple Store, and get a 13 inch mac book pro or mac air. Price starts at 1500$/1600$ plus the 150$ for Office Home/Student.

Edited October 5, 2011 by PuFu

[Frostburg 10]

There is NOTHING fancy about MS Office. No laptop comes with it preintalled (in fact a lot do, but with a 30 days trial, so you'll need to buy it - student version will do, it is cheaper)

FPDR - no comment

I would actually recommend you go in the nearest Apple Store, and get a 13 inch mac book pro or mac air. Price starts at 1500$/1600$ plus the 150$ for Office Home/Student.

Are macs different from regular laptops?

I mean I need something that I would be familiar with.

I already know how to use firefox, you know?

Can you play video games on macs? Do they act differently

from regular laptops? I dunno man....

I think maybe the macs are too advanced for me.

I mean maybe if I was a computer science major, but unfortunately

I don't know shit about comps.

If they are no different from an ordinary computer, then that would

be cool.

[jblackrupert 14]

That Apple logo will cost add about 75-100% to the price.

[Frostburg 10]

Are macs different from regular laptops?

I mean I need something that I would be familiar with.

I already know how to use firefox, you know?

Can you play video games on macs? Do they act differently

from regular laptops? I dunno man....

I think maybe the macs are too advanced for me.

I mean maybe if I was a computer science major, but unfortunately

I don't know shit about comps.

If they are no different from an ordinary computer, then that would

be cool.

I went to the apple mac website and liked what I saw in terms

of it saying that macs rarely freeze up and crash, all the software

and hardware are made by the same company, so there are no

compatibility issues, and that it is user friendly as well as

high quality.

I mean I understand that the website was from the apple company

so it is definitely biased, so I will not base my decision on that.

I still don't know.

---------- Post added at 02:39 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:38 AM ----------

That Apple logo will cost add about 75-100% to the price.

Yeah, but if paying extra means I get a better quality laptop

that doesn't constantly shit out on me like my current one, then

that is worth the price in my opinion.

---------- Post added at 03:14 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:39 AM ----------

Speaking of freezing up all the time.

My laptop has frozen twice since my last post

simply because I had a couple different web pages open

at the same time I'm guessing.

Not only that, my current laptop freezes EVERYTIME I try

to watch an internet video such as youtube.

Damn machines!

[Frostburg 10]

Maybe I should just buy a typewriter, like the kind

I used in highschool.

Atleast that way I won't lose my word documents when

the power fails in the dorms. Haha.

[froggyluv 2136]

Yeah, but if paying extra means I get a better quality laptop

that doesn't constantly shit out on me like my current one, then

that is worth the price in my opinion.

I don't believe that to be true. I just went laptop shopping a few weekends ago with the Mrs. and compared specs to price between trendy Macs and PC's. I found the Macs to be obscenely overpriced from a performance to cost ratio.

Of course, some people just love Apple and thats fine - tho I just don't see what all the hoopla is about.