New PC for my bro....

2008-09-01 02:53:46

#1

Sup3r_Dr4gon: Boat sig is not there anymore; +214|6595|Australia

My brother is looking to get a new PC. He uses his comp to make/edit music, and his current machine - Single core Celeron (2.66), 2GB DDR400, random Asus mATX board - isn't holding up too well. Hes looking into getting something new, and asked me too look into it.
He already has a k/b, mouse, monitor, HDDs and sound card but needs everything else replaced. I plan to keep it under $1000, so this is what I'm looking at:

CPU: C2D E8400 3.0GHz $209
RAM: Kingston DDR2-800 4-4-4-12 $72
MoBo: Asus P5Q $159
PSU: Corsair 450W $90
Case: Antec 300 $94
GPU: 8500GT $89
Optical: LG GH20NS15 SATA $33

TOTAL: $746

(I'm going with a C2D instead of a C2Q, as the music editing program he uses doesn't like quad cores, they make it crash)

So, what do you guys think of the system? Anything I can do make it better?

2008-09-01 02:59:38

#2

Jenspm: penis; +1,716|7000|St. Andrews / Oslo

you could have a lot of fun trying to make it as silent as possible.

https://static.bf2s.com/files/user/26774/flickricon.png

2008-09-01 03:00:42

#3

Varegg: Support fanatic :-); +2,206|7077|Nårvei

My first thought is the PSU might be to weak ... when building a new system these days i wouldn't go for anything less than 750W

Wait behind the line ..............................................................

2008-09-01 03:11:13

#4

Cheez: Herman is a warmaphrodite; +1,027|6706|King Of The Islands

CPU:	C2D E8400 3.0GHz	$199
RAM:	(2x1GB) Corsair DDR2-800 4-4-4-12	$60
MoBo:	Gigabyte EP45-DS3	$138
PSU:	Thermaltake 600W	$160
Case:	Antec 300	$76
GPU:	Gigabyte 8600GT (SilentPipe II)	$78
Optical:	LG GH20NS15 SATA	$33
TOTAL:		$744

I have that exact PSU with a GTS 640, so all is fine in that regard. In fact 8600's run fine on the stock PSU that comes with Coolermaster Elites (ThermalMaster 450W fyi).

My state was founded by Batman. Your opinion is invalid.

2008-09-01 03:12:06

#5

Jenspm: penis; +1,716|7000|St. Andrews / Oslo

Varegg wrote:
My first thought is the PSU might be to weak ... when building a new system these days i wouldn't go for anything less than 750W

Enermax Modu82+ 620W ftw tbh.

2008-09-01 03:43:12

#6

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6465|Winland

Varegg wrote:
My first thought is the PSU might be to weak ... when building a new system these days i wouldn't go for anything less than 750W

No. A quality 500W is more than enough for anything, except for the super-top-end. That computer will run fine on that VX450, and will have plenty (40%+) to spare.

Last edited by Freezer7Pro (2008-09-01 03:48:31)

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-09-01 03:45:21

#7

.Sup: be nice; +2,646|6721|The Twilight Zone

Freezer7Pro wrote:
Varegg wrote:
My first thought is the PSU might be to weak ... when building a new system these days i wouldn't go for anything less than 750W
No.

Superior response is superior.

https://www.shrani.si/f/3H/7h/45GTw71U/untitled-1.png

2008-09-01 03:49:22

#8

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6465|Winland

.Sup wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
Varegg wrote:
My first thought is the PSU might be to weak ... when building a new system these days i wouldn't go for anything less than 750W
No.
Superior response is superior.

Had to post quickly, I'm in class. See edit.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-09-01 03:50:23

#9

Jenspm: penis; +1,716|7000|St. Andrews / Oslo

Seriously, go wild with silencing it - great fun.

2008-09-01 03:52:15

#10

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6465|Winland

Jenspm wrote:
Seriously, go wild with silencing it - great fun.

It is.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-09-01 04:16:24

#11

Varegg: Support fanatic :-); +2,206|7077|Nårvei

Freezer7Pro wrote:
Varegg wrote:
My first thought is the PSU might be to weak ... when building a new system these days i wouldn't go for anything less than 750W
No. A quality 500W is more than enough for anything, except for the super-top-end. That computer will run fine on that VX450, and will have plenty (40%+) to spare.

NO. 500W is not enough for anything, might be enough for the setup he is planning as of now but i'm sure he is going to upgrade further later on thus why I said I wouldn't go for anything less than 750W.

Wait behind the line ..............................................................

2008-09-01 04:18:22

#12

^*AlphA*^: F*ckers; +3,135|7006|The Hague, Netherlands

Varegg wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
Varegg wrote:
My first thought is the PSU might be to weak ... when building a new system these days i wouldn't go for anything less than 750W
No. A quality 500W is more than enough for anything, except for the super-top-end. That computer will run fine on that VX450, and will have plenty (40%+) to spare.
NO. 500W is not enough for anything, might be enough for the setup he is planning as of now but i'm sure he is going to upgrade further later on thus why I said I wouldn't go for anything less than 750W.

600W will do just fine

running 2 HD, 8800GTX, Q6600 on it.

https://bf3s.com/sigs/36eac2cb6af70a43508fd8d1c93d3201f4e23435.png

2008-09-01 04:40:36

#13

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6465|Winland

Varegg wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
Varegg wrote:
My first thought is the PSU might be to weak ... when building a new system these days i wouldn't go for anything less than 750W
No. A quality 500W is more than enough for anything, except for the super-top-end. That computer will run fine on that VX450, and will have plenty (40%+) to spare.
NO. 500W is not enough for anything, might be enough for the setup he is planning as of now but i'm sure he is going to upgrade further later on thus why I said I wouldn't go for anything less than 750W.

Even if he does, that VX450 could probably take a 4850. Corsair makes really great PSUs, one of "their" Watts is about equal to 1.5 "standard" Watts.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-09-01 04:55:06

#14

Surgeons: U shud proabbly f off u fat prik; +3,097|6757|Gogledd Cymru

Running 8800gts oc'd e8500 oc'd 3 hardrives fine on a 520W supply, I doubt it even uses 400W.

2008-09-01 05:00:20

#15

Varegg: Support fanatic :-); +2,206|7077|Nårvei

Freezer7Pro wrote:
Varegg wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:

No. A quality 500W is more than enough for anything, except for the super-top-end. That computer will run fine on that VX450, and will have plenty (40%+) to spare.
NO. 500W is not enough for anything, might be enough for the setup he is planning as of now but i'm sure he is going to upgrade further later on thus why I said I wouldn't go for anything less than 750W.
Even if he does, that VX450 could probably take a 4850. Corsair makes really great PSUs, one of "their" Watts is about equal to 1.5 "standard" Watts.

I call serious BS on that last statement, 1W is 1W no matter how you twist and turn it Freezer ...

Wait behind the line ..............................................................

2008-09-01 05:06:00

#16

FatherTed: xD; +3,936|6768|so randum

Varegg wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
Varegg wrote:

NO. 500W is not enough for anything, might be enough for the setup he is planning as of now but i'm sure he is going to upgrade further later on thus why I said I wouldn't go for anything less than 750W.
Even if he does, that VX450 could probably take a 4850. Corsair makes really great PSUs, one of "their" Watts is about equal to 1.5 "standard" Watts.
I call serious BS on that last statement, 1W is 1W no matter how you twist and turn it Freezer ...

Small hourglass island
Always raining and foggy
Use an umbrella

2008-09-01 05:11:20

#17

Jenspm: penis; +1,716|7000|St. Andrews / Oslo

I think I remember reading somewhere that the different PSU manufacturers used different methods of measuring the wattage of the PSU, thus giving different results.

Don't quote me on this though.

2008-09-01 05:13:01

#18

Mitch92uK: aka [DBS]Mitch92uK; +192|6503|United Kingdom

FatherTed wrote:
Varegg wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
Even if he does, that VX450 could probably take a 4850. Corsair makes really great PSUs, one of "their" Watts is about equal to 1.5 "standard" Watts.
I call serious BS on that last statement, 1W is 1W no matter how you twist and turn it Freezer ...

i call bs on that tbh ... 2 examples for instance.

Sumvision 550W 20+4pin SATA 2x 80mm Fan PSU - Retail Box - £15 - http://www.ebuyer.com/product/120676

BFG MX-550W Modular PSU - 3x PCI-E 6x SATA 13.5cm Fan - 5 Year Warranty - £80 - http://www.ebuyer.com/product/148497

It's all about the amps!

2008-09-01 05:22:36

#19

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6465|Winland

Varegg wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
Varegg wrote:
NO. 500W is not enough for anything, might be enough for the setup he is planning as of now but i'm sure he is going to upgrade further later on thus why I said I wouldn't go for anything less than 750W.
Even if he does, that VX450 could probably take a 4850. Corsair makes really great PSUs, one of "their" Watts is about equal to 1.5 "standard" Watts.
I call serious BS on that last statement, 1W is 1W no matter how you twist and turn it Freezer ...

Hence the quotation marks. If you calculate the wattage of 90% of modern PSUs, it's several hundreds of Watts under or over the real wattage.

Let me take for example, my "ColorIT" 520W rated PSU, that's huffing in my folding rig.

+3.3V@28A = 92,4W
+5V@35A = 175W
+12V@25A = 300W
= 567,4W

And my Corsasir HX520, rated at 520W:

+3.3V@24A = 79,2W
+5V@24A = 120
+12V@40A = 480W
= 679,2W

In theory, both PSUs are way underrated, but the Corsair is still theoretically able to output over 100W more than the ColorIT. Still, neither of these PSUs will be able to output that much.

On top of that, it also matters a lot on which rail it is that has got the power. The ColorIT has 35A on +5V, which will never be used, while the Corsair has 24A on +5V, and almost twice as much current on the +12V rails, which are the ones that matter. I've hooked up the ColorIT to my gaming rig. It didn't even start.

PSU Watts =/= real Watts.

Last edited by Freezer7Pro (2008-09-01 05:23:14)

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-09-01 05:59:38

#20

Varegg: Support fanatic :-); +2,206|7077|Nårvei

That's just calculations if you trim the PSU witch most are not into ... the Ws listed is the standard preset in the PSU if you just hook it up with no tweaks witch again most will not tamper with.

With that said different manufacturers have different settings witch can vary the specs and Corsair have some of the best imho, my point however is if you don't fancy changing PSU everytime you upgrade your PC you simply buy a bigger PSU that you can use for a long time, it will save you money in the end ... so buying a 450W PSU now would be a waste of money in the long run tbh ...

Wait behind the line ..............................................................

2008-09-01 06:19:32

#21

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6465|Winland

Varegg wrote:
That's just calculations if you trim the PSU witch most are not into ... the Ws listed is the standard preset in the PSU if you just hook it up with no tweaks witch again most will not tamper with.

With that said different manufacturers have different settings witch can vary the specs and Corsair have some of the best imho, my point however is if you don't fancy changing PSU everytime you upgrade your PC you simply buy a bigger PSU that you can use for a long time, it will save you money in the end ... so buying a 450W PSU now would be a waste of money in the long run tbh ...

No, those are the ratings written on the side of the PSUs, which reflect reality more than the rated wattage. I'm not doing some crazy tweakage.

Buying a powerful PSU for future use is pretty much wasted for the time being. Right now, PSUs don't have a very long life span (3-6 years), and the only thing that is really eating power is the graphics card, which is bound to improve soon. A VX450 will handle most things today can throw at it, especially since this guy isn't a gamer.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-09-01 06:24:07

#22

Cheez: Herman is a warmaphrodite; +1,027|6706|King Of The Islands

So... Upgrading your brother's computer huh? Cool, cool.

My state was founded by Batman. Your opinion is invalid.

2008-09-01 08:37:55

#23

molotov<bf2>: Member; +15|6712|uk

V x I = VA (the apparent power)

V x I x power factor = W (the true power)

simply multiplying the volts by the current doesn't give you true power (Watts) only the apparent power (VA). apparent power is a function of the relative magnitude of the true power from the circuit's resistive components & the reactive power from the circuit's inductive & capacitive components.

if you know the PSU true power, you can calculate the power factor (electrical efficiency) by transposition:

PF = W / VA

hope this helps.

Last edited by molotov<bf2> (2008-09-01 08:43:19)

2008-09-02 03:03:26

#24

Sup3r_Dr4gon: Boat sig is not there anymore; +214|6595|Australia

Thanks everyone for the input.

One other thing - although I'm planning on getting a 2x1GB kit, my bro wants to know if it would be more worthwhile to get 4GB. He'll be running 32-bit XP and the GPU has 512MB of memory, so he won't use the full 4 gigs. I think just sticking with the 2GB would be better, but I'm not 100% sure so I thought I should ask here.
What would be better: 2GB of 4GB? And would 4GB be better in 4x1GB sticks, 2x2GB sticks, or is there no difference?

2008-09-02 03:09:38

#25

Cheez: Herman is a warmaphrodite; +1,027|6706|King Of The Islands

Sup3r_Dr4gon wrote:
would 4GB be better in 4x1GB sticks, 2x2GB sticks, or is there no difference?

Here we go agaaain
/hands everyone a flamesuit

2GB will be fine for XP. 4x1 theoretically has more bandwidth, 2x2GB C4 doesn't exist (in Corsair(?)).

My state was founded by Batman. Your opinion is invalid.

BF2S Forums New PC for my bro....

Varegg wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

.Sup wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Jenspm wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

FatherTed wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Varegg wrote:

Sup3r_Dr4gon wrote:

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