Doom3 Capable Budget Upgrade? Update: Bought Xbox Instead, But New Dell Deal Linked

[AIWGuru]

For an Elite member you sure are uninformed.
You don't know ANYTHING about power supplies. Dell does not use a cheap powersupply. They use a highly efficient one. You can do the same thing.
I have a T-bred B which runs an order of magnitude cooler than my P4 northy. Also, they will never burn up since they now feature on die monitoring (mandated to mobo manufacturers) which will prevent thermal death.
PCI videocard won't even run today's games such as C&C generals and NFU, HP2. They say right in the system requirements that PCI cards don't cut it because of the high verticies traffic. I can verify this from my AIW VE. Don't even think about it!
Get yourself an Asus board with nforce 2, an XP 2500+, 512MB PC2700, some case, an antec power supply. You'll be happy. Just stick whatever videocard you can in there and then upgrade when the game is released. For what it's worth, the 128bit memory GeForce FX 5200 is about as fast as a vanilla GeForce 3 (faster than ti200) and will probably run the game just fine although not with 4Xaa etc. It's also fanless and silent
I would have to say that, you sir, are playing from a very, very old rulebook.

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: AIWGuru
For an Elite member you sure are uninformed.
You don't know ANYTHING about power supplies. Dell does not use a cheap powersupply. They use a highly efficient one. You can do the same thing.
I have a T-bred B which runs an order of magnitude cooler than my P4 northy. Also, they will never burn up since they now feature on die monitoring (mandated to mobo manufacturers) which will prevent thermal death.
PCI videocard won't even run today's games such as C&C generals and NFU, HP2. They say right in the system requirements that PCI cards don't cut it because of the high verticies traffic. I can verify this from my AIW VE. Don't even think about it!
Get yourself an Asus board with nforce 2, an XP 2500+, 512MB PC2700, some case, an antec power supply. You'll be happy. Just stick whatever videocard you can in there and then upgrade when the game is released. For what it's worth, the 128bit memory GeForce FX 5200 is about as fast as a vanilla GeForce 3 (faster than ti200) and will probably run the game just fine although not with 4Xaa etc. It's also fanless and silent
I would have to say that, you sir, are playing from a very, very old rulebook.

i agree for the most part.

however...

get the shuttle instead of the asus board, its cheaper and just as good. i have used both multiple times so dont say im a fanboy

get pc-3200. its only a little more and will let you OC your 2500 into a 3200

just look at my first post in this thread....

 

[Booster]

I second the Dell idea. I built my PC myself and now I regret not getting a Dell or something. The thing is, looks are important for me and my box doesn't look nearly as good as a ready made one. Not to mention tons of unnecessary problems I had while building it, the time I spent building it, and the result wasn't satisfactory at all. So I don't think I'd ever built anything myself since it doesn't look good, it's not nearly as quiet even though there are only 2 fans in it and one of them is an Intel retail fan. It's still about twice louder than some big name system. Sigh. A lesson learned.

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: Booster
I second the Dell idea. I built my PC myself and now I regret not getting a Dell or something. The thing is, looks are important for me and my box doesn't look nearly as good as a ready made one. Not to mention tons of unnecessary problems I had while building it, the time I spent building it, and the result wasn't satisfactory at all. So I don't think I'd ever built anything myself since it doesn't look good, it's not nearly as quiet even though there are only 2 fans in it and one of them is an Intel retail fan. It's still about twice louder than some big name system. Sigh. A lesson learned.

so because YOU cant properly assemble a computer, other people should buy dells too? you do know that he wants to play doom 3 on this PC that has NO AGP slot right? im beginning to see how dells makes so much money....

 

[Booster]

so because YOU cant properly assemble a computer, other people should buy dells too? you do know that he wants to play doom 3 on this PC that has NO AGP slot right? im beginning to see how dells makes so much money....

I don't care about the inside, I'm talking outside looks I couldn't find a decent looking case, so I had to settle for an Inwin case. And it's far, far away from Dell as far as looks go. And it isn't much worse than the majority of cases on the market (I don't think you can buy an authentic Dell case).

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: Booster

so because YOU cant properly assemble a computer, other people should buy dells too? you do know that he wants to play doom 3 on this PC that has NO AGP slot right? im beginning to see how dells makes so much money....

I don't care about the inside, I'm talking outside looks I couldn't find a decent looking case, so I had to settle for an Inwin case. And it's far, far away from Dell as far as looks go. And it isn't much worse than the majority of cases on the market (I don't think you can buy an authentic Dell case).

no where in my post did i mention your choice of case...

 

[arod]

Originally posted by: Booster

so because YOU cant properly assemble a computer, other people should buy dells too? you do know that he wants to play doom 3 on this PC that has NO AGP slot right? im beginning to see how dells makes so much money....

I don't care about the inside, I'm talking outside looks I couldn't find a decent looking case, so I had to settle for an Inwin case. And it's far, far away from Dell as far as looks go. And it isn't much worse than the majority of cases on the market (I don't think you can buy an authentic Dell case).

If you buy a computer for looks you might as well get a mac

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-119-029&catalog=7&manufactory=BROWSE&depa=0
This is the case Im getting for my new PC and nothing dell has even comes close to the sweetness of this case.

 

[Booster]

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-119-029&catalog=7&manufactory=BROWSE&depa=0
This is the case Im getting for my new PC and nothing dell has even comes close to the sweetness of this case.

Yeah, that's a good looking one. But it's also $127...

 

[Cerb]

Originally posted by: nick1985

Originally posted by: AIWGuru
For an Elite member you sure are uninformed.
You don't know ANYTHING about power supplies. Dell does not use a cheap powersupply. They use a highly efficient one. You can do the same thing.
I have a T-bred B which runs an order of magnitude cooler than my P4 northy. Also, they will never burn up since they now feature on die monitoring (mandated to mobo manufacturers) which will prevent thermal death.
PCI videocard won't even run today's games such as C&C generals and NFU, HP2. They say right in the system requirements that PCI cards don't cut it because of the high verticies traffic. I can verify this from my AIW VE. Don't even think about it!
Get yourself an Asus board with nforce 2, an XP 2500+, 512MB PC2700, some case, an antec power supply. You'll be happy. Just stick whatever videocard you can in there and then upgrade when the game is released. For what it's worth, the 128bit memory GeForce FX 5200 is about as fast as a vanilla GeForce 3 (faster than ti200) and will probably run the game just fine although not with 4Xaa etc. It's also fanless and silent
I would have to say that, you sir, are playing from a very, very old rulebook.

i agree for the most part.

however...

get the shuttle instead of the asus board, its cheaper and just as good. i have used both multiple times so dont say im a fanboy

get pc-3200. its only a little more and will let you OC your 2500 into a 3200

just look at my first post in this thread....

...that's the Shuttle MN-31N, right...? I can't recommend the AN35N-Ultra to anyone who doesn't have or plan on getting, a nice sound card. WAY too much noise, and I don't know about the MN31N. The Abit NF7 (or better, NF7-s) is much better is this regard.

 

[Cerb]

Originally posted by: Booster

so because YOU cant properly assemble a computer, other people should buy dells too? you do know that he wants to play doom 3 on this PC that has NO AGP slot right? im beginning to see how dells makes so much money....

I don't care about the inside, I'm talking outside looks I couldn't find a decent looking case, so I had to settle for an Inwin case. And it's far, far away from Dell as far as looks go. And it isn't much worse than the majority of cases on the market (I don't think you can buy an authentic Dell case).

Looks + quiet + easy to work on + good construction = Antec SLK-3700-BQE, Sonata.
I personally care about looks, too...that's why there is an unfinished drawer in the den. The cheap Dells are no beter than the cheap eMachine PCs (though are better than HP and Compaq), and offer practically no upgrade path. You wil not be able to expand unless you ge a Dimension 4600. The 4600 will cost 15-30% more than if you build (inluding monitor and software), and won't be quite as fast.

 

[Bonesdad]

hmmm...I don't think ornery is coming back to this thread...

 

[Ornery]

Well, let's see how far back my most recent build was.... ummm, the CUSL2 in that Celeron rig was only a few months old, so I guess that's about the 2001 era. I've got four rigs running here, and all are older than that. I bought quality components, so they're all still running without a hitch. At that time, AMD had so GD many issues, I wouldn't even consider one. That, and the fact that all my rigs, and family members had Intel based PCs. I swap parts from one PC to another, and pass outdated CPUs down the line, so throwing an AMD into the mix would halt that.

There was also chipset issues. No interest in VIA for an Intel based system, or AMD. SIS may or may not be good, but I don't want to be a guinea pig. As I recall, the nForce boards were about to be released, and when they finally were, they were too expensive, buggy and behind the curve.

I've always bought the best quality mobos, though not soon after their release. My PC uses an AOpen AX6BC, my other son has an ASUS P3B-F, as well as the CUSL2 we want to upgrade now. Not sure who makes the most reliable boards today, but I'd very much prefer to stick with an Intel chipset.

Thanks for the info on AMD's much needed improvements. Not sure whether I should buy a whole case, or just the power supply. I was hoping to go with an ASUS P4 mobo that supported the older PS, but I guess they don't make them anymore.

If I wait for the Dell deal, it will be the 4600, since you all mentioned that no current PCI based card will cut it. I REALLY didn't have the time to get back up to speed on all this for this birthday, but I will do more research while waiting for a Dell deal. That is unless I can slap something together pretty cheap and stable, but it's not looking good so far...

Thanks Again!

 

[nick1985]

some peopel are just stuck in their ways...

and whoever said nforce boards are buggy? you? i have dealt personally with 10-15 and have had 0 problems. how many nforce boards have you dealt with? and you dont want to get an AMD because your family uses intel? man, you are really digging deep to come up with excuses to not get an AMD, although its obviously the better bang for the buck here.

 

[NFactor]

A Dell 4600 that will ever be able to properly run Doom 3 is a rare and rather expensive beast. I would think i may be able to throw together two computers that could run the game for that price

 

[Ornery]

Do we need to work more on nick's reading comprehension, or my upgrade?

I said the FIRST nForce boards out were buggy. All I remember is that they were supposed to be the sh|t, but they were late, had problems, and were overpriced for what they brought to the table. No idea whether they ever panned out over time or not.

I use my cast off CPUs and mobos in my family's rigs, which upgrades them for free. I also swap those parts between my current rigs. If I threw an AMD in the mix, I wouldn't be able to do that. I also prefer the most stable mobos and chipsets. Last I heard, that was ASUS and Intel.

Now see if you can digest all that before posting something else stupid...

 

[AIWGuru]

Originally posted by: nick1985
some peopel are just stuck in their ways...

and whoever said nforce boards are buggy? you? i have dealt personally with 10-15 and have had 0 problems. how many nforce boards have you dealt with? and you dont want to get an AMD because your family uses intel? man, you are really digging deep to come up with excuses to not get an AMD, although its obviously the better bang for the buck here.

I think he meant Nforce 1. It did have a lot of issues but Nforce 2 is amazing. However, I think he is being very foolish here. He could even get an Sis 735 system which is tried and true and rock solid for very little cost.

edit: orney beat me too it

 

[nick1985]

i just configured a 4600 from dell...

2.8C
XP home
512 pc-3200
40 gig 7200
cd-rw/dvd combo
floppy
least amount of software possible
no monitor
cheapo 2 button mouse
standard keyboard
no speakers
9800pro
1 year warranty

for this system, it was $1137

you are going to have to wait for one hell of a 4600 deal to get a system that will run doom3.

 

[Ornery]

Originally posted by: NFactor
A Dell 4600 that will ever be able to properly run Doom 3 is a rare and rather expensive beast. I would think i may be able to throw together two computers that could run the game for that price

Dimension 4600 Pentium-4 2.8GHz $399.00 Shipped

As far as I know, it would only need a video card. What else is missing? And, you could build two better systems for that price? I call BS...

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: Ornery
Do we need to work more on nick's reading comprehension, or my upgrade?

I said the FIRST nForce boards out were buggy. All I remember is that they were supposed to be the sh|t, but they were late, had problems, and were overpriced for what they brought to the table. No idea whether they ever panned out over time or not.

I use my cast off CPUs and mobos in my family's rigs, which upgrades them for free. I also swap those parts between my current rigs. If I threw an AMD in the mix, I wouldn't be able to do that. I also prefer the most stable mobos and chipsets. Last I heard, that was ASUS and Intel.

Now see if you can digest all that before posting something else stupid...

talk to mechbon about "buggy" orgininal nforce boards.

everyone wants a stable mobo and chipset, who doesnt? and i heard plenty of problems with the 865 and 875 when they first came out, does that mean that they are still buggy? no. intel is not the end all for chipsets, and i would go as far as to say nvidia makes better. as far as the best mobo manufactrer, thats open to speculation as well, but i have to agree with you on the asus

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: Ornery

Originally posted by: NFactor
A Dell 4600 that will ever be able to properly run Doom 3 is a rare and rather expensive beast. I would think i may be able to throw together two computers that could run the game for that price

Dimension 4600 Pentium-4 2.8GHz $399.00 Shipped

As far as I know, it would only need a video card. What else is missing? And, you could build two better systems for that price? I call BS...

whats missing is the 800mhz FSB. thats the 533 which doesnt include hyperthreading. your buying yesterdays technology

 

[Ornery]

Well, I have an ASUS in the other room, the P3B-F, and it's giving me problems with a "keyboard not found" issue. After trying different keyboards, and re soldering the contacts on the mobo, it still is acting up. That's a very small problem, but it's frustrating. I'll switch over to Gigabyte, or MSI if they have a good current reputation. I've been out of the loop a LONG time, so I really don't know.

"whats missing is the 800mhz FSB. thats the 533 which doesnt include hyperthreading. your buying yesterdays technology "

I don't need or want the latest and greatest, unless it's really needed. If that's like the difference between DMA 66 and 100, then I couldn't care less. I quit tweaking PCs for eensie bits of performance increases years ago.

 

[AIWGuru]

That dell is over $1000. I could literally build a better system for $500. Whoever said he could too, is probably right.
edit: your ASUS keyboard issue is isolated. I've never heard of it before. I don't think it reflects on the brand at all.

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: AIWGuru
That dell is over $1000. I could literally build a better system for $500. Whoever said he could too, is probably right.
edit: your ASUS keyboard issue is isolated. I've never heard of it before. I don't think it reflects on the brand at all.

i can make a much better computer for about 500 too!

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: Ornery
I've been out of the loop a LONG time, so I really don't know.

this was obvious by your retarded anti-AMD posts.

 

[AIWGuru]

Intel hardly makes devine chipsets. Their 850 and 850e have a problem with PCI where it's effectively limited to bursts of about 90MB/sec. That's pretty crappy. I really think brand loyalty is foolish. You have to look at the individual product to make your decision. Except with VIA. Everything they touch is crap. no exceptions.