What kind of PC do I need?

[Legion]

Hey guys,

So I've got a MacBook with Bootcamp (running Windows XP), and I use it for all my work, but I keep running into problems. First, most software that I use (such as Adobe Audition, and things like StarEdit) don't run on Mac. Second, my Bootcamped  Windows is obviously not as powerful as a regular Windows PC. I can't play big games like Hellgate on it, and it bothers me. I don't know what Starcraft 2's requirements will be, but I want to be able to still play new games. SO, I decided I should buy an additional PC that can do all my sound designing and play heavy games.

However, I'm totally ignorant when it comes to tech specs. I checked out www.alienware.com and they've got some neat looking machines, but I don't know if they're any good. I want to spend around $800 max on it, and I realize this won't get me the best of the best, but one should be able to get a reasonable PC at that budget, I think.

Thanks in advance.

Legion

[Marco]

I assume you'd want one with a video card already in it Legion?  eBay is the best place to buy, cause sellers have to compete with each other and make as little profit as possible in order to sell.  I should know, its what I do for a living.  Anyways, here are a couple in your price range that I'd recommend:

http://cgi.ebay.com/AMD-PHENOM-9750-QUA ... dZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/INTEL-QUAD-Q6600-4G ... dZViewItem

The second one there doesn't come with an OS, but you should be able to afford one with the money you have leftover.  I'd say the first one.  AMD Phenom isn't the fastest, BUT, there really isn't anything out there besides hardcore movie editing or 3d design that would really tax it, and even then compared to the Intel, you're only looking at an incremental difference.  Good luck, shopping for a new computer is always fun.

[Xenon]

Also be warned that the second one is misleading. 4 2.4 GHz processors is NOT equivalent to 9.6 GHz.

[chris]

get something like this http://www.datakjeden.no/PartDetail.asp ... 35;c:36161 if you want extreme gaming.

get something like this http://www.datakjeden.no/PartDetail.asp ... 37;c:36161 if you want to do mutliple things while playing PC games (chat on msn, listen to music, record yourself playing, etc.)

have a look at the specs, and mirror those out when you try to get a PC.

[Marco]

Regardless of what you decide, 800 is enough to buy a pretty powerful system.  Because the next generation of video cards (the new ATI and Nvidia series) were less than spectacular, the 8000 series (Nvidia) are still just about top notch.  I think there is only about a 5% difference in speed when compared to the 9000 series cards.  I'm sure costs will rise again once the next best thing comes out, but nothing really spectacular has come out since the 8800 series and the Intel Quad Cores, which was all available a year or more ago.

[Anonymous]

Don't even go near Alienware. They're pieces of overpriced garbage. Always get your machine custom built. Unless you like paying out the ass and having to deal with their shitty software.

Head for a Core 2 duo and a high-end ATI card for starters. Something like the HD 3870 or the newer, shinier dudes that are coming out. A 700-800w PSU to go with it for good measure. You'll need to do some research on the mobo. Corsair ram is fairly cheap but extremely powerful and it has served me quite well.

You'll want a sound card as well. Now, I ran into problems with the X-fi series that seem to have something against certain asus or nvidia chipsets so I had to return that and get an Asus d2 xonar which has performed just as well if not better.

Now, $800 is NOT going to get you a system that can run sc2 well. You're looking at around more of the lines of $1500 at least. Blizzard's "scalability" has always resulted in rather poor top-end performance. (WoW needs a rather beefy system to run decently, despite its recommended specs being rather low)

[Legion]

Thanks guys. This information is extremely helpful.

@ Desler: I'm interested in those suggestions. Is it possible for me to order at eBay, me living in Europe?

@ Chris: Is this Norse? I can't read it, but I'll see if I can find equivalents.

@ Xenon: Thanks. I'll try to watch for misleading information.

@ Docter: Thanks for the warning about Alienware. I've also decided to raise my budget to $1000-1100, which I hope will be enough.

I'm currently collecting all the specs and advises you guys gave me. I see now that I need to custom build the machine, which is I something I've no experience with, but I'm excited about trying.

Thanks a ton for this information. I'm probably going to have to ask you more things in the near future, hope that's not a problem.

Bye,

Legion

[Lavarinth]

Alienware is not the place to go unless you want to just showboat the amount of money you have and/or owe.

Mine's custom built from scratch.. But it costs me a lot more than your budget thanks to.. Well.. Let's say my work decided to pay for it without knowing.

But I have to completely agree with Desler about buying from other people. Check out your European eBay and see what they have in stock. Otherwise, I'm sure some would be willing to ship to you.

You could also always just purchase parts individually yourself, but that can start to get tedious and time consuming to get deals.

[Ricky_Honejasi]

If you are mostly just interested in SC2, I suggest to wait until it is released or about to since by the time it does, prices might have dropped and such or have better for the same money.

You also have to realize that even if you get the best, odds are SC2 will probably demand better than it for high-end mods, maps and so on.

Thus, usually it's only 2-4 (1-2 if it's high-end or best) years later of computers that they become good enough to run everything plus it's likely to be more or less "junk" content that would be made by mappers, modders in SC2 pre-expansion.

When you do buy it, I guess it's safe to say that a decent video card and 2+ gig of RAM will be a must.

[AA7Dragoon]

Unfortunately, the MacBook isn't designed for gaming.  It is a low-tier Apple product that focuses on personal entertainment use rather than graphic intensive programs.  If you want to do serious gaming on a Macintosh, you need the MacBook Pro, iMac, or Mac Pro tower.  What model is your Macbook?  It might run on SC2 okay.  Remember, Mac SC2 will be released at the same time as the PC version, therefore, you won't need to use Bootcamp to run SC2.

As for PC advice, I defer to the above.

[WB]

Stay away from Alienware, and also stay away from HP.

[Lavarinth]

Stay away from Alienware, and also stay away from HP.

Which basically means stay away from Dell, who owns both of those.

[Marco]

Thanks guys. This information is extremely helpful.

@ Desler: I'm interested in those suggestions. Is it possible for me to order at eBay, me living in Europe?

It just depends on the seller, some will ship internationally, some won't.  Just read the auctions.  And be sure to check the sellers feedback before buying, I wouldn't buy a computer from anyone with less than 100 feedback and at least a 98% positive feedback rating.

[IskatuMesk]

Stay away from Alienware, and also stay away from HP.

Which basically means stay away from Dell, who owns both of those.

Dell is known to be amongst the worst. So yes, stay away from pre-built computers period.

[Lavarinth]

Work is ALL Dell. Computers, keyboard, mice, monitors, and printers. I think we've gone through a dozen printers in one year for replacements.