Com-pu-ter?

[Real_Wolf]

Its not particularily hard, renegade master lines it up nicely, aim for a decent CPU with at least dual core, find a good Mobo with enough of the slots you want (definitely want a PSIE graphics slot, at least 4 slots of ram, and some SATA ports, personally for my one I also wanted an IDE port or two for my old hdd so my mobo isn't quite as good as others, but this was years ago).

A good low-range graphics card, (ie not top of the range, but still decent) is usually available, dunno bout the radeon cards but from the geforce, the 9600GT is brilliant and incredibly cheap

[Gremlin]

A package computer from whoever, even if its just the tower, is going to be better for most people out there.

Why? Because when it has a problem, you have a warranty (or at least, you should have got one) and really... for your average computer, the tower is not more expensive than building your own.

However, if you do know the insides of a computer, what a bios is, and does, etc then feel free to build your own. Equally, if you're wanting a high end rig, yes, it will be cheaper to build yourself, but you have the joys of figuring out issues, because your average pc technician wouldn't have a clue where to begin.

In short, don't skimp on the power supply. They're crucial to the running of your system, too many people try to cut costs there. A struggling power supply will give you an endless list of mystical problems. Beyond that, decide what you want to do with the machine, and your budget.

Intel C2D, C2Q is probably good budget wise, realistically, AMD is too much trouble to get running smoothly, Intel will 99/100 times run straight out of the box. Motherboard, don't go for the cheapest piece of crap that you can plug stuff into. Quality costs, but pays dividends in terms of reliability.

Me... a recent upgrade on motherboard, CPU, graphics cards, ram etc cost over $2k ex gst, excluding hard drives, power supply etc and I'm in the business, with good buy prices.

Constant upgrades are not a cheap way to enjoy computing

[Slyer]

/agree gremlin. If you don't want to put it together yourself but still want to get a cheaper pc, buy it from a place like PBtech or playtech.
HP and Dell etc are great for businesses, as they need the extra and quick support etc, but I wouldn't get one for home use. They're just too restricted in what you can do with them.

People underestimate the importance of a motherboard, selecting the best chipset for you is criticial. Go with Intel chipsets first, Nvidia chipsets second and avoid VIA chipsets like the plague...
It's not just a matter of what fits.

[Gremlin]

People underestimate the importance of a motherboard, selecting the best chipset for you is criticial.

Previous hardware was an AMD based 590 SLI... rma'd 3 times, and it still had problems (despite their denials). Nvidia raid was a very big mistake too

If your motherboard keeps falling over... you have a fantastic coaster... an expensive one, but can also serve as a great paperweight.

[PirateJafa]

Buy a far BETTER motherboard than you currently need.

Since everything else plugs into the motherboard, it's easier/cheaper to upgrade each of those when and if you need to, rather than having to upgrade them AND get a new motherboard etc because your old mobo is too shite to run what you want to put in it.

Power supplies are important too, but you can always add extra ones in later if you're getting low on the electrickery.

And the best thing you can do is buy yourself a 24" screen. Definitely the best upgrade I've made to my computer since I upgraded from the Celeron to my old Pentium 4.

[motorbyclist]

Im not a computer expert but it seems to buy a pre made desktop is crazy as they are so expensive for their respective performance.

Get a mac.

Get a decent mac.

arument invalid

BTW Trade me seems expensive for computers and components for some reason??

trademe sellers are as retarded (or unscrupulous) as trademe buyers.

www.pricespy.co.nz

I dont know the difference between brands though i.e. why intel is better than amd or vice versa

oh i just love this one

*dons battle hat and prepares keyboard for battle*

[ital916]

mmm but I have a brand spanking new 22" high def monitor sitting on my table, double mmmm.

Buy a far BETTER motherboard than you currently need.

Since everything else plugs into the motherboard, it's easier/cheaper to upgrade each of those when and if you need to, rather than having to upgrade them AND get a new motherboard etc because your old mobo is too shite to run what you want to put in it.

Power supplies are important too, but you can always add extra ones in later if you're getting low on the electrickery.

And the best thing you can do is buy yourself a 24" screen. Definitely the best upgrade I've made to my computer since I upgraded from the Celeron to my old Pentium 4.

[bogan]

definetely pricespy the components, ascent is one of the better online shops i reckon. Brandwise, I always go for asus motherboards, they havent let me down yet, with a nvidia or intell chipset, basically intel gives more bang per processor cycle, 3ghz amd is equivalent to a 2.4hz intel or summat (didnt actually research the number but you get the gist of it). 9600GT is a brilliant card, thought Ive never tried any ATI stuff, cud be just as good. I agree with gremlin, dont skimp on the power supply.

[motorbyclist]

Intel C2D, C2Q is probably good budget wise, realistically, AMD is too much trouble to get running smoothly, Intel will 99/100 times run straight out of the box.

I have never had any problems with any of my AMD processors, despite numerous shots at overclocking and general idiocy.


Historically, AMD has always undercut Intel, often by a considerable margin. The reliability has been no different and both the AMD and intel motherboard will support the same things.

Currently, Intel has the technological/performance edge over AMD - that is they make the fastest chip, but when it comes to buying a chip you can actually afford on a student budget, AMD always has and hopefully always will offer more bang for your buck.

Long live the Duopoly!

[motorbyclist]

Brandwise, I always go for asus motherboards, they havent let me down yet, with a nvidia or intell chipset,

+1

Asus are a great brand

I'd recommend Enermax for power supplies too.

By decent ram - I'm a Corsair fan but there are other good manufacturers out there.

I have been running an asus built 9600gt for a while now and it's great

basically intel gives more bang per processor cycle, 3ghz amd is equivalent to a 2.4hz intel or summat (didnt actually research the number but you get the gist of it). .

garghshfa!

get a benchmark to find two similarly performing processors in your chosen applications, then compare the price - with different architectures and todays' multi core processors you can't fairly make any such claim.

[bogan]

Currently, Intel has the technological/performance edge over AMD - that is they make the fastest chip, but when it comes to buying a chip you can actually afford on a student budget, AMD always has and hopefully always will offer more bang for your buck.

Long live the Duopoly!

I did some research bout a year ago, intell prices were more bang for buck than amd when looking purely at the cpu, but intell supporting mobos were more expensive, so it worked out that amd was slightly cheaper.

[motorbyclist]

One more thing; don't underestimate the shop built computers: while Dell and HP are known for making their own custom connectors to shaft any consumers looking for a reasonable upgrade/repair avenue, many small shops make great packages that are tested working, carry a warranty, and are no more expensive to buy than to build

[motorbyclist]

*heads into the interwebs to see how the market has changed lately*

[bogan]

garghshfa!

get a benchmark to find two similarly performing processors in your chosen applications, then compare the price - with different architectures and todays' multi core processors you can't fairly make any such claim.

i compared the performance on cpubenchmark website, and intell consistently outperforms amd for a given processor speed, I said intell gives more bang per processor cycle, so price did not come into it, as price change all the time

[hutchy52]

Why? Because when it has a problem, you have a warranty (or at least, you should have got one) and really... for your average computer, the tower is not more expensive than building your own.

You get a warranty on your parts anyway, no different to having a warranty on the full system