[Emma Louise Adams]

I think you'd be pleased with Sennheisers...

http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-515-Audiophile-500-Headphones/dp/B0001FTVDG
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16826159419
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826106306
http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-212-HD-212-Headphone/dp/B000065BPA/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

If only those two, then the Creative one.

I have the Sennheiser HD 202, and they are great. The cord is extremely long so I can even plug it into my TV and play games or watch movies with it from my bed. :goodjob:

[Sara Lee]

Smaller case? Can you be a bit more specific with that description? I mean is this some kind of slim-line case where you can only use half-height video cards? Got a brand name and model number of the PC??

Acer Aspire M1202

It's just a stock case and everything.

[Riky Carrasco]

Acer Aspire M1202

It's just a stock case and everything.

The Aspire M1202 uses a full-width mini-tower case, so it will take full-height cards. I'm not sure about depth, though: some of the high-end cards are very long (10-1/2 to 11 inches). But there is a good selection of shorter cards, mostly from ATI. An ATI 4670 (or even a 5670, if you want DirectX 11 now) would fill your need without overtaxing the power supply.

[Hearts]

That's asking for a crap-shoot of suggestions. The reality is, a monster gaming PC including the works can be built for $1.5K - $2K. It eventually gets to the point where you begin seeing diminishing returns with the higher budget and more expensive parts. PCs that cost something insane like $5K is just overpriced and overkill. Within one or two year's time, newer stuff will be out that performs the same and more efficiently, yet cost less. And of course there will be faster stuff that fills in the high budget sector again. This is why it doesn't make sense to spend oodles of money on one machine at one point of time. If you're seriously into PC gaming, upgrading pretty much becomes common practice.

So even if I had an unlimited amount of money, I actually might end up building multiple PCs. Then again, I'm always looking for deals...I'm not rich. If I was to indulge though...


CASE: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139001
CPU+MOBO: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.324969
RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231247
HDD1: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136456
HDD2: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139010
GPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102863&cm_re=radeon_5970%2d%5f%2d14-102-863%2d%5f%2dProduct
DVD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136181
HSF: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608018
OS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116758
SOUNDCARD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829271004...or...http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829156005
SPEAKERS: http://www.xoxide.com/logitech-z5500-surround-speakers.html
MOUSE: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104318
KB:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126034
LCD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889005064...or...http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001VKYAKO/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_2?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B001VKYAL8&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1VA2SZGKE95HEK354531...quick repsonse time S-IPS panels.

Probably under $4K for all that. A single Radeon 5970 would max everything under the sun at 1920x1080 resolution, so don't see much point in getting another for quadfire. Again...diminishing returns.

If I had unlimited money to buy a computer, I'd definitely get one of http://www.artlebedev.com/everything/optimus/. Because it's not overkill at all!


Alright, now for a serious question. Recently my hard drive has started making noises. They aren't loud, just a faint little scratch or ticking noise, like a needle against metal. I feel like this is a sign of my hard drive failing, would I be right in that? Is there some way to test it to see if it's failing or am I just going to have to wait for it to bite the dust? I have all my important files backed up to an external drive already, luckily.

[Samantha hulme]

If I had unlimited money to buy a computer, I'd definitely get one of http://www.artlebedev.com/everything/optimus/. Because it's not overkill at all!


Alright, now for a serious question. Recently my hard drive has started making noises. They aren't loud, just a faint little scratch or ticking noise, like a needle against metal. I feel like this is a sign of my hard drive failing, would I be right in that? Is there some way to test it to see if it's failing or am I just going to have to wait for it to bite the dust? I have all my important files backed up to an external drive already, luckily.

Try http://www.hdtune.com/

[Emily Rose]

I have the Sennheiser HD 202, and they are great. The cord is extremely long so I can even plug it into my TV and play games or watch movies with it from my bed. :goodjob:

I've got a pair too, and the sound quality is excellent. Definitely recommended.

[T. tacks Rims]

I think you'd be pleased with Sennheisers...

http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-515-Audiophile-500-Headphones/dp/B0001FTVDG
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16826159419
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826106306
http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-212-HD-212-Headphone/dp/B000065BPA/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Well currently my Turtle Beach X3s (designed for the 360 but work perfect on the PC as well) still work fine, although the headband is getting cracked. I love the "virtual 5.1 surround sound effects". Another problem is that they are infrared, which doesnt go well with plasma TVs. All in all Turtle Beach has made the best design I have ever used. I took a look at the linked sets above and the EH-150 looks good, but currently the main one I am looking at is http://www.turtlebeach.com/products/efhpa2/home.aspx for PC which has true 5.1 surround sound. Would it be worth waiting a little while and getting those in a month or so, or just get the EH-150s now. Comfortably and sound quality are very important, I spend a lot of time wearing them. Probably 8 hours a day on an average day.

[Ownie Zuliana]

The Aspire M1202 uses a full-width mini-tower case, so it will take full-height cards. I'm not sure about depth, though: some of the high-end cards are very long (10-1/2 to 11 inches). But there is a good selection of shorter cards, mostly from ATI. An ATI 4670 (or even a 5670, if you want DirectX 11 now) would fill your need without overtaxing the power supply.

Awesome. So my CPU and RAM are good though? No bottlenecking?

[Agnieszka Bak]

Awesome. So my CPU and RAM are good though? No bottlenecking?

With a card like the 4670 or 5670, no bottlenecking. Those are good cards for CPUs less than the big Phenom II x4's. Try to avoid 1GB cards unless they are DDR3/GDDR3 or better memory (with the cheaper DDR2, stick to 512MB).

[i grind hard]

Awesome. So my CPU and RAM are good though? No bottlenecking?

Shouldn't. If you can spend a bit more than $200CAD though, you can get some more horsepower.

GPU: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102865
PSU: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817702010

[ezra]

I've decided on a different build. What do you guys think?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148433
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131366
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153106
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231193
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125294&cm_re=geforce_gtx_260%2d%5f%2d14-125-294%2d%5f%2dProduct

Is there anything better I could get?

Also, if I chose the Radeon 5770 graphics card, would I have to change my power supply to http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153102?

[Daniel Holgate]

With a card like the 4670 or 5670, no bottlenecking. Those are good cards for CPUs less than the big Phenom II x4's. Try to avoid 1GB cards unless they are DDR3/GDDR3 or better memory (with the cheaper DDR2, stick to 512MB).

Gotcha.

Shouldn't. If you can spend a bit more than $200CAD though, you can get some more horsepower.

GPU: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102865
PSU: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817702010

That card looks like a beast. Just looking at my case I'm not sure it would fit lol

[BethanyRhain]

I'm finally getting around to getting the full version of Windows 7 (Been using the RC version for 7 months)

Would you guys recommend HDD partitions? I was thinking about having 1 for the OS (Windows 7), one for games/programs, and one for everything else (Music, movies, documents, downloads, etc.)

Are multiple partitions recommended? I've never had any experience with them, but they'd seem useful. So any insight on partitions is helpful.

Also, what program would you recommend?

[Taylor Tifany]

@egriz10 I use 2 partitions on my SSD, one for my OS and one for programs, pictures and My Documents. I would atleast leave 22-24GB of space for 7x64. I left 35 just in case, but I have never used more than 18GB. Windows 7 has built in partitioning system. http://i438.photobucket.com/albums/qq102/Starforce9/PCdrives1.jpg

[Damien Mulvenna]

@egriz10 I use 2 partitions on my SSD, one for my OS and one for programs, pictures and My Documents. I would atleast leave 22-24GB of space for 7x64. I left 35 just in case, but I have never used more than 18GB. Windows 7 has built in partitioning system. http://i438.photobucket.com/albums/qq102/Starforce9/PCdrives1.jpg

Why do you have 15 optical drives (physical or virtual)? :shocking:

MNOR...!

[MatthewJontully]

Why do you have 15 optical drives (physical or virtual)? :shocking:

MNOR...!

Oh, 2 are physical, I was working on some projects so I had the other 13 there. The ones with games are physical.

[Tha King o Geekz]

Gotcha.



That card looks like a beast. Just looking at my case I'm not sure it would fit lol

This is what the guts of an Aspire M1210 look like: http://images.compusa.com/SKUimages/enhanced/A180-4514-call08-or.jpg

The clearance between the PCI-e x16 slot and the DDR2 tabs looks very tight. A moderately long card like that one would fit, but could be a nuisance if you need to change memory sticks after installing the card, as you have to be able to take it out to get at the memory, and you have to be able to get to the PCI-e hold-down, which would be obstructed, to take the card out.

The width of the card is not a concern. The only thing the big cooler would block is the mostly-useless PCI-e x1 slot next to it.

[Marcus Jordan]

I'm finally getting around to getting the full version of Windows 7 (Been using the RC version for 7 months)

Would you guys recommend HDD partitions? I was thinking about having 1 for the OS (Windows 7), one for games/programs, and one for everything else (Music, movies, documents, downloads, etc.)

Are multiple partitions recommended? I've never had any experience with them, but they'd seem useful. So any insight on partitions is helpful.

Also, what program would you recommend?

Personally, I always like to have two partitions. I always have my C drive for my operating system and my D drive for all my data and programs, and it's never troubled me before.

[Tanya Parra]

So how do I figure if a GPU is going to fill up an 8x link?

[DAVId MArtInez]

So how do I figure if a GPU is going to fill up an 8x link?

It won't. The peak rates on PCI-e that real hardware achieves are around 3.2 to 4.8 GB/s. And that's only in contrived benchmarks using nVidia cards running as GPU supercomputers. Real performance is quite a bit lower. That's not enough to cause PCI-e x8 2.0 (8 GB/s) to become a bottleneck.

[Samantha Wood]

It won't. The peak rates on PCI-e that real hardware achieves are around 3.2 to 4.8 GB/s. And that's only in contrived benchmarks using nVidia cards running as GPU supercomputers. Real performance is quite a bit lower. That's not enough to cause PCI-e x8 2.0 (8 GB/s) to become a bottleneck.

So I don't need to worry when Crossfiring to 5970s?

[Marlo Stanfield]

So I don't need to worry when Crossfiring to 5970s?

There are many other things you should worry about before you worry about saturating the PCI-e bus. Like whether the motherboard actually implements Crossfire-X in an efficient way, and whether your power and cooling are up to handling those monsters. You're looking at a power requirement of something like 95A at 12V when both cards and your CPU get fully loaded. And all that gets converted to heat, and that heat has to go somewhere.

Worst case, you'll end up with performance no better than a single 5870 and a massive headache getting it to work at all.

[Stacyia]

So I don't need to worry when Crossfiring to 5970s?

Not that it's really any of my business, but what do you need Xfire 5970s for? A single 5970 pulls very respectable framerates even at 2560x1600, even in games that don't generally favor ATI, like Crysis.

[Tracy Byworth]

I'm finally getting around to getting the full version of Windows 7 (Been using the RC version for 7 months)

Would you guys recommend HDD partitions? I was thinking about having 1 for the OS (Windows 7), one for games/programs, and one for everything else (Music, movies, documents, downloads, etc.)

Are multiple partitions recommended? I've never had any experience with them, but they'd seem useful. So any insight on partitions is helpful.

Also, what program would you recommend?

I have a 1TB HDD, and I'm dual-booting Windows 7 and Ubuntu. I have 3 partitions. 1 partition for Windows (80GB), 1 partition for Ubuntu (70GB) and then one partition for any files I want to be accessible from both OS's (800GBish). If I didn't have the Ubuntu, I'd still probably partition...it's a wonderful thing to do, and really help to organise things

[Sarah Edmunds]

There are many other things you should worry about before you worry about saturating the PCI-e bus. Like whether the motherboard actually implements Crossfire-X in an efficient way, and whether your power and cooling are up to handling those monsters. You're looking at a power requirement of something like 95A at 12V when both cards and your CPU get fully loaded. And all that gets converted to heat, and that heat has to go somewhere.

Worst case, you'll end up with performance no better than a single 5870 and a massive headache getting it to work at all.

Not that it's really any of my business, but what do you need Xfire 5970s for? A single 5970 pulls very respectable framerates even at 2560x1600, even in games that don't generally favor ATI, like Crysis.

I'm not actually considering getting even one 5970, I just felt like asking that.