Need a new comptuer...what to get? - Page 3

**jim777** · #31 10-25-2005, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fettouhi

NOT

Regards

André

If you need to keep 40 thousand up and running all at once, you can't get better.

megadeth · #32 10-25-2005, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jemsite

They're good if you never expand them beyond purchase though and never need a repair or to call india for support.

http://uploads.ungrounded.net/192000/192820_tech.swf

kennydoe · #33 10-25-2005, 10:32 PM

I'm pretty confident that this is what i need right now, based on my budget.

The Light Scribe is cool and when it's time to put out my CD, I'll probably invest in a new drive.

Andre recommended a dual-layer drive, it's got one. - it's got the PCIe slot (i'd never even heard of this before today :-p) and it's expandable up to 4GB RAM in 2 slots. THe only thing it's missing is a FireWire port, but i can always get one if i need one. I don't do that much video and my other computer is doing the music stuff. I LIKE the idea of 7 USB ports

I've heard that eMachines have improved significantly as of late because they are now made by Gateway. I have an advantage over average-joe computer user since i can fix stuff myself. Usually i don't have to. Knocking on wood.

Thanks again for your help guys!
~K

kennydoe · #34 10-25-2005, 11:19 PM

ok boys..one more comparison...just found this one. can't make heads or tails of the specs though. Too many numbers for my brain.

eMachines T5010 $499
http://emachines.com/products/produc...Machines_T5010

eMachines T6412 $499
http://www.emachines.com/products/pr...Machines_T6412

fettouhi · #35 10-26-2005, 03:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jim777

If you need to keep 40 thousand up and running all at once, you can't get better.

True their servers are good, but their laptops aren't that great IMHO.

Regards

André

m0p · #36 10-26-2005, 03:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jemsite

the cheap dells suck as far as expandability with no AGP/PCIe slots, etc. They're good if you never expand them beyond purchase though and never need a repair or to call india for support. FYI - power supplies are $30. Not an issue with a PC that will be all MOBO powered anyways.

But the mobo draws power from the PSU, duh. Plus, wattage and rail ratings aren't everything, quality is important too. I've owned some PSU a while back rated for 700w, but the quality was terrible and it crapped out after a few weeks. :P

kennydoe · #37 10-26-2005, 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kennydoe

ok boys..one more comparison...just found this one. can't make heads or tails of the specs though. Too many numbers for my brain.

eMachines T5010 $499
http://emachines.com/products/produc...Machines_T5010

eMachines T6412 $499
http://www.emachines.com/products/pr...Machines_T6412

Still waiting for somebody to tell me which of these systems is better for me. Don't care about hearing this HP/Dell crap.

Thanks.
~K

PS: Just be happy i'm not asking which pickups to put in my RG550. :roll eyes:

**jemsite** · #38 10-26-2005, 11:01 AM

Kenny, those PCs are essentially identical except one used AMD Processor and associated motherboard whereas the other is Intel Processor & Motherboard. Real world performance will be similar.

The intel will give you more video memory (you can configure it up to 224MB shared memory for the card vs max of 128 of the AMD pc) but remember that comes out of total RAM so 1GB now becomes ~775MB RAM.

It doesn't say if the Intel one has PCIe or AGP however and never assume with these PCs.

Quote:

Originally Posted by m0p

But the mobo draws power from the PSU, duh. Plus, wattage and rail ratings aren't everything, quality is important too. I've owned some PSU a while back rated for 700w, but the quality was terrible and it crapped out after a few weeks. :P

if it crapped out after a few weeks Bestbuy, CircuitCity would remove them from shelves to avoid many, many unhappy customers. Business 101.

700w PSU is an electricity hog and unnecessary for 99% of the general PC users.

Honestly, low-end MOBOs & CPUs don't require much wattage or anything special for power supply. 350w would suffice. Total hype the parts resellers spew. It's when you add powered video cards, audio cards (that draw power from the bus AND require a powered connecion) where you might run into trouble but again the cost of a power supply is negligible. You pay for more geek factor, noise and specialty size requirements... glen

**jim777** · #39 10-26-2005, 11:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fettouhi

True their servers are good, but their laptops aren't that great IMHO.

Regards

André

If you need to keep a huge army of laptops up and running, you NEED to buy Thinkpads. They are the best, and IBMs warranty service is fantastic. I don't know what I'd do if I were buying one, but buying 10 to 10 thousand it has to be the black box. I have an HP NW8000 and a T42 fpr laptops now, and I like them both. But if you have to support them in a corporate environment, HP on the desktop and IBM in your lap is the way to go.

**jemsite** · #40 10-26-2005, 11:59 AM

Jim is right on. HP might get deservedly bad press from geeks for their "media pcs" which are underpowered and woefully unexpandable but think "compaq" when you think HP business/office PC. Kenny matches neither demographic though

...glen

kennydoe · #41 10-26-2005, 12:30 PM

I'm more 'office' than 'geek', but you can start that debate someplace else

~K

rgr · #42 10-26-2005, 12:33 PM

Glen is pretty right on about those PCs being pretty much identical. Comes down to which processor company you want to support. I have an Athlon 64 and really like it, I'm sure I would be just as happy with a P4 as well.

Just for the record, does anyone else here get annoyed when someone asks for advice about a PC in the $350 - $400 range and people feel the need to jump in and say "Get a Mac" or "Get a G5"? Again, look at the price range he asked about, G5s are $2k+... (oops, sorry for the rant)

Roger

m0p · #43 10-26-2005, 09:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jemsite

Kenny, those PCs are essentially identical except one used AMD Processor and associated motherboard whereas the other is Intel Processor & Motherboard. Real world performance will be similar.

The intel will give you more video memory (you can configure it up to 224MB shared memory for the card vs max of 128 of the AMD pc) but remember that comes out of total RAM so 1GB now becomes ~775MB RAM.

It doesn't say if the Intel one has PCIe or AGP however and never assume with these PCs.

if it crapped out after a few weeks Bestbuy, CircuitCity would remove them from shelves to avoid many, many unhappy customers. Business 101.

700w PSU is an electricity hog and unnecessary for 99% of the general PC users.

Honestly, low-end MOBOs & CPUs don't require much wattage or anything special for power supply. 350w would suffice. Total hype the parts resellers spew. It's when you add powered video cards, audio cards (that draw power from the bus AND require a powered connecion) where you might run into trouble but again the cost of a power supply is negligible. You pay for more geek factor, noise and specialty size requirements... glen

You really don't know your basic electronics do you? Just because a PSU is rated for 700w, it doesn't mean it will pull 700w from the mains. That was just an example about why PSU quality is just as important, sometimes more important, than the rail ratings.

kennydoe · #44 10-27-2005, 01:56 PM

well, i got the 6412 yesterday. what a total piece of crap.

I'm totally kidding.

I haven't even opened the box yet. I have NO time this weekend either. <sigh>

I have a bunch of work to do on the 3 computers that i've already got running down here (one for the kids, one for my 'office stuff' and one for my 'music stuff' - shuffling stuff around, exchanging hard drives. it's going to be a while before the system is totally up and running the way i want it.

The one i'm using now is going to go to the kids' mother's house for them to use (they don't have one at their disposal there), but i want to keep the 160GB HD i just put in there for the music computer which only has a 20 GB hard drive. Gotta swap those out...and hope that Windows XP will work in a transplanted environment. I think there's only so many times microsoft will believe that i've installed XP on the same system

Thanks again for the help.

~K

sirN · #45 10-31-2005, 09:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgr

Just for the record, does anyone else here get annoyed when someone asks for advice about a PC in the $350 - $400 range and people feel the need to jump in and say "Get a Mac" or "Get a G5"? Again, look at the price range he asked about, G5s are $2k+... (oops, sorry for the rant)

Roger

Well, since YOU brought it up, iMac G5's start at $1299. Mini Mac's start at $499 G4, but still powerful. I think just because a person asks for pc advice is no reason that others can't suggest buying a Mac. They are great computers for audio/video. Just ask the majority of recording studios. But hey, if you don't like 'em, then get a pc. Oh, and not EVERYTHING comes out for pc first. Particualarly if you're talking about audio software.