Hi everyone 
!
So I finally decided to save up money and buy a new computer, because my current computer is finally starting to slow down and it can't handle the newer games and expansions for games I'm playing. (World of Warcraft, Modern Warefare 2, Team Fortress 2, Starcraft 2) And I play on the lowest settings.
I've been researching as much as I can about computers recently so I can make a smart purchase considering I plan on spending at least $2,000 on a computer, which will take me a few more months to save up for. I'm definitely headed in the right direction but I NEED your help. I'm going to start off by providing the specs to my current computer and the items I made a wish list of on newegg, and then tell you my intentions with the new computer so you can help me out.
This is my current computers specs. It's 5 years old. I spent about $1,100 on it buying parts from newegg and a friend helped choose all the parts and helped me build it. Also the graphics card, RAM, and power supply were upgraded about 2 years ago in an attempt for me to (fix it) play some of the newer games I liked.
Current Computer
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Operating System
Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Service Pack 3)
Motherboard
Abit AN8 Series(NF-CK804)
Processor
AMD Athlon(tm) 64 Processor 3800+ (A single Processor)
2.41GHz
Graphics Card
NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT <---Upgraded
Memory
G.Skill NS 1 GB DDR (x2) <---Upgraded
Hard Drive
Seagate ST380817AS (80GB, SATA150, 3.5", NCQ, 8MB Cache)
Monitor
Older flatscreen monitor with max resolution 1280 x 1024 Max resolution.
Power Supply
~650W <--- Upgraded
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So you can see my computer is starting to get outdated. It actually runs some games surprisingly well(at minimum settings) for how old it is. Here is the computer I made with pieces on newegg.
New Computer
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Operating System
Windows 7 Home Premium
Motherboard
EVGA P55V 120-LF-E651-TR LGA 1156 Intel P55 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
Processor
Intel Core i7-860 Lynnfield 2.8GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I7860
Graphics Card
EVGA 015-P3-1482-AR GeForce GTX 480 (Fermi) SuperClocked 1536MB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI
Memory
G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory
Hard Drive
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Monitor
ASUS MS227N Glossy Piano-Black / White 22" 2ms Ring Stand & Ergo-Fit Widescreen LCD Monitor
Power Supply
Rosewill Xtreme Series RX950-D-B 950W Continuous @40°C ,80 PLUS Certified, ATX12V v2.2 & EPS12V v2.91, SLI Ready CrossFire
Sound Card
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio PCI Interface Sound Card
Case
COOLER MASTER HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
Keyboard
Razer Lycosa Mirror Special Edition
Mouse
Razer Orochi
Mouse pad
Razer Sphex
Headset
Sennheiser PC 350
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So this is what I have come up with. Right now the Keyboard, Mouse, and Mousepad are pretty much fillers because I know Razer is a popular gaming brand and I will most likely love what they provide.
My intentions for this computer...
To have a computer that can run all the games I play at a very minimum of 30 fps at max if not near maximum settings(Hopefully 60+ fps). I would like to have a computer that can also run these games flawlessly while running the web browser in the background so I can stream Pandora, and consistently alt + tab(keeping browser tabs open) without it effecting gaming performance. I want to have a computer that can also run Fraps so I can record game play footage and make videos, so I need it to be able to run all these applications at a minimum of 30 fps, and have enough space to store and edit these very large clips.
Games I plan on playing...
(World of Warcraft: Frozen Throne/Cataclysm, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Starcraft 2, Diablo 3, Warhammer Online, Team Fortress, and any new amazing FPS or RPG games in the near future)
If I'm spending all this money I want exceptional performance, so I'm willing to spend the extra money for a better monitor with faster refresh rates or better visual quality for gaming(and quality is better then size so anything in the 20" through 22" area is perfect). This also means I would love to have exceptional audio so I can enjoy listening to high quality music, in game music and sound effects, and use Ventrilo or other VOIP software with a quality mic.
Concerns/Reasoning for the pieces I chose:
-I wanted to make sure my power supply had enough watts to power my system.
-Will all the pieces fit in a mid tower? Will the air flow be sufficient to keep the system cool?
-Is the system powerful to run on a monitor with a max resolution of 1920 x 1080, I heard it can affect the performance of your system/video card quite a bit which is why I chose a lower resolution monitor.
-If I choose a higher resolution monitor should I use SLI or Crossfire? Is it worth the money?
-I heard a high contrast ratio is very important, but there aren't a lot of monitors with this.(60,000:1+)
(When I think of more I'll add them)
If you respond and can help me make better choices on my new system please try and respond with not only which piece is better, but a link to the piece, an explanation on why it's better, the cost difference from the piece I have and the "better piece", and the possible performance increase/decrease if I switch pieces. I'd would love to keep learning so any additional information you can provide would be awesome.
If you would like to know anything more about me, the computer, or have questions about the thread just ask about it in your reply and I'll gladly update my thread with more information. Just a reminder, it will take me a few months to save up enough money so if you guys know of any new processors, video cards, etc. that will be released soon and are worth waiting for I would love to see them cause I will most likely end up waiting for their release if it seems worth it. Just leave links to articles or anything talking about it.
Thank you guys so much for your help.
!So I finally decided to save up money and buy a new computer, because my current computer is finally starting to slow down and it can't handle the newer games and expansions for games I'm playing. (World of Warcraft, Modern Warefare 2, Team Fortress 2, Starcraft 2) And I play on the lowest settings.
I've been researching as much as I can about computers recently so I can make a smart purchase considering I plan on spending at least $2,000 on a computer, which will take me a few more months to save up for. I'm definitely headed in the right direction but I NEED your help. I'm going to start off by providing the specs to my current computer and the items I made a wish list of on newegg, and then tell you my intentions with the new computer so you can help me out.
This is my current computers specs. It's 5 years old. I spent about $1,100 on it buying parts from newegg and a friend helped choose all the parts and helped me build it. Also the graphics card, RAM, and power supply were upgraded about 2 years ago in an attempt for me to (fix it) play some of the newer games I liked.
Current Computer
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Operating System
Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Service Pack 3)
Motherboard
Abit AN8 Series(NF-CK804)
Processor
AMD Athlon(tm) 64 Processor 3800+ (A single Processor)
2.41GHz
Graphics Card
NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT <---Upgraded
Memory
G.Skill NS 1 GB DDR (x2) <---Upgraded
Hard Drive
Seagate ST380817AS (80GB, SATA150, 3.5", NCQ, 8MB Cache)
Monitor
Older flatscreen monitor with max resolution 1280 x 1024 Max resolution.
Power Supply
~650W <--- Upgraded
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So you can see my computer is starting to get outdated. It actually runs some games surprisingly well(at minimum settings) for how old it is. Here is the computer I made with pieces on newegg.
New Computer
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Operating System
Windows 7 Home Premium
Motherboard
EVGA P55V 120-LF-E651-TR LGA 1156 Intel P55 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
Processor
Intel Core i7-860 Lynnfield 2.8GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I7860
Graphics Card
EVGA 015-P3-1482-AR GeForce GTX 480 (Fermi) SuperClocked 1536MB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI
Memory
G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory
Hard Drive
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Monitor
ASUS MS227N Glossy Piano-Black / White 22" 2ms Ring Stand & Ergo-Fit Widescreen LCD Monitor
Power Supply
Rosewill Xtreme Series RX950-D-B 950W Continuous @40°C ,80 PLUS Certified, ATX12V v2.2 & EPS12V v2.91, SLI Ready CrossFire
Sound Card
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio PCI Interface Sound Card
Case
COOLER MASTER HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
Keyboard
Razer Lycosa Mirror Special Edition
Mouse
Razer Orochi
Mouse pad
Razer Sphex
Headset
Sennheiser PC 350
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So this is what I have come up with. Right now the Keyboard, Mouse, and Mousepad are pretty much fillers because I know Razer is a popular gaming brand and I will most likely love what they provide.
My intentions for this computer...
To have a computer that can run all the games I play at a very minimum of 30 fps at max if not near maximum settings(Hopefully 60+ fps). I would like to have a computer that can also run these games flawlessly while running the web browser in the background so I can stream Pandora, and consistently alt + tab(keeping browser tabs open) without it effecting gaming performance. I want to have a computer that can also run Fraps so I can record game play footage and make videos, so I need it to be able to run all these applications at a minimum of 30 fps, and have enough space to store and edit these very large clips.
Games I plan on playing...
(World of Warcraft: Frozen Throne/Cataclysm, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Starcraft 2, Diablo 3, Warhammer Online, Team Fortress, and any new amazing FPS or RPG games in the near future)
If I'm spending all this money I want exceptional performance, so I'm willing to spend the extra money for a better monitor with faster refresh rates or better visual quality for gaming(and quality is better then size so anything in the 20" through 22" area is perfect). This also means I would love to have exceptional audio so I can enjoy listening to high quality music, in game music and sound effects, and use Ventrilo or other VOIP software with a quality mic.
Concerns/Reasoning for the pieces I chose:
-I wanted to make sure my power supply had enough watts to power my system.
-Will all the pieces fit in a mid tower? Will the air flow be sufficient to keep the system cool?
-Is the system powerful to run on a monitor with a max resolution of 1920 x 1080, I heard it can affect the performance of your system/video card quite a bit which is why I chose a lower resolution monitor.
-If I choose a higher resolution monitor should I use SLI or Crossfire? Is it worth the money?
-I heard a high contrast ratio is very important, but there aren't a lot of monitors with this.(60,000:1+)
(When I think of more I'll add them)
If you respond and can help me make better choices on my new system please try and respond with not only which piece is better, but a link to the piece, an explanation on why it's better, the cost difference from the piece I have and the "better piece", and the possible performance increase/decrease if I switch pieces. I'd would love to keep learning so any additional information you can provide would be awesome.
If you would like to know anything more about me, the computer, or have questions about the thread just ask about it in your reply and I'll gladly update my thread with more information. Just a reminder, it will take me a few months to save up enough money so if you guys know of any new processors, video cards, etc. that will be released soon and are worth waiting for I would love to see them cause I will most likely end up waiting for their release if it seems worth it. Just leave links to articles or anything talking about it.
Thank you guys so much for your help.
