New Desktop - Whaddayathink?

naeem

naeem

Well-known member
Ok, So, reading from some of the posts here I'm leaning to get my system either from Fry's or maybe from Monarch Systems (online).

Here's the config - help me make the right choice!

I will be using this system for video editing (DV) usng Premiere Pro and After Effects.


Here's the specs:
http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?

Basic Configurations
  • Case - Antec Sonata Piano Black Quiet Mid Tower w/380 Watt Power Supply
  • Motherboard - Asus P5GD1 915P Audio, GB-LAN, USB, PCI-E, SATA, DDR-400, 800-FSB, ATX
  • Processor- Intel P4 560J 3.6 GHz LGA775 1MB 800 FSB (HT) (Retail Box-w-Fan)
  • Memory - 1 GB (2 pcs 512) DDR (400) PC-3200 Corsair (TWINX1024-3200XL)
  • Hard Drive - Western Digital Caviar SE 250 GB SATAII 16MB Cache 7200 RPM (WD2500KS)
  • DVD-RW - NEC ND-3540A 16X Dual Layer DVD±RW (Black)
  • Floppy - Mitsumi Floppy 7-in-1 USB Card Reader / Smart Media
  • Video Card - ATI (Connect3D) Radeon X800 XL 256MB DDR/PCI-E/TV-Out/VGA/DVI
  • Industry Standard Upgradable
  • 2x USB, Audio In/Out, and IEEE FireWire Ports on front of case
  • Free 1 Year Warranty - includes tech support
  • (2-3 year on-site service warranties available - see options below)

Code: 90369
Price: $1,349.00
FedEx Ground: $35.60
Ships in 8-13 business days

I will be adding the following to the system:
  • AOC 19" .294mm DVI LCD Silver/Black (LM929) (Monitor) - $331.00
  • Logitech Cordless Desktop EX100 Keyboard and Mouse Combo (Black) - $38.00
  • Zonet ZFN2600 IEEE1394 Firewire PCI Adapter - $13.90

Order Total: $1,820.90


Is there anything I am missing? Performance-wise I am expecting this thing to do very well - do you agree?

Thanks!
_naeem
 
Hey
You might want to add another internal hard drive or get an external while you are at. That hard drive space fills up fast once you start working on 10 different projects.
Brian
 
should perform quite well. a couple of things, though:

1. definitely get another internal hdd. maybe get a couple of identical SATA drives and configure them into a RAID0 array.
2. Maybe get 2 sticks of 1 gb ram instead of two 512's.

Other than that, it should be a solid system. One other thing to consider is that Windows Vista is going to be coming out, and while it will run on 32-bit systems it will run much better on a 64-bit platform. No, it's not out now, but you want this computer to be future-proof, right? And if you have Monarch build you a 64-bit AMD system, they'll load XP Pro 64-bit on there for ya.

something to think about anyway.
 
Is it just for editing or do you play games as well? If games then you will absolutely want a different graphics card. Everything these days is mass shaders now which the cheap cards don't handle at all.
 
About the 2nd HD - I already have an external 400 Gig - so shoudl be good with that.

I was also thinking baout getting 2 Gigs, instead of 1 for the RAM. Does everyone else go for 2? Is it not overkill?

No games - wish I had the time!
 
in all honesty, you'll be just fine with what you've already picked out. 2 gigs ram is nice for having lots of high end applications open at once. but how often does that happen for you? you can always add ram later if you need to.
 
Hey Sirus Doggy is right they are great monitors im running 3 of them 17 inch makes life so easy !
 
pretty good price on the monitors!

ok, so I checked out Micro Center store here in Dallas, spoke with a pretty knowledgeable guy about Video Edit.

He introduced me to the Pentium "D" chip versus the Pentium 4. He says he did some rendering on this versus the Pentium 4, and it beat the pants off it!

So, now I'm thinking of this system here: http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=191180

Anyone, look into these new chip sets? The biggest diff is that they are DUAL-processors ( 2 die's on 1 chip) versus 1 single chip with hyperthreading....

Anyone buy one of these yet? How do you like it?
 
Sirius;

The more I'm digging into this new Pentium "D" - the more I'm impressed. Take a closer look at some benchmark tetsing here...

http://www.intel.com/performance/desktop/mainstream/index.htm

Mind you these were done by Intel.... but still, the differences between "regular" P4 with HT and this Pentium D are HUGE!!!

.. still researching some more, and will post any other comps I come across. Also, I contacted Monarch, and they don't carry them yet.., they'll have them in a few weeks - so I think they are out...
 
Hey guys quick question. I'm also thinking of buying a new desktop but I've come across a question. I found a pretty good desk top for a really cheap price at Fry's

http://shop1.outpost.com/product/4436706

The only problem is that it is "refurbished." However it comes with a 90 day warranty. Also, I believe I can buy a in store 2 year warranty for 99 bucks. Is it worth it?
 
without looking at the desktop itself, i'll assume you're asking if refurbished parts are worth it. i just bought a refurb'ed ATI X800 Pro graphics card from newegg. there's nothing wrong with it and it was a big discount off new.

that said, i also read that refurbished parts have a vastly greater failure/return rate compared to new parts. that should be obvious, eh? i also read that refurb'ed mobos have the most problems compared to other refurb'ed components.

but since it has a 90-day warranty (all inclusive? make sure about that) then it might be worth a try. it would be a huge hassle, though, if you end up having to return it for reason. is there any way you can find out what exactly was wrong with the machine? don't know if anyone will tell (or even know themselves) but it's worth asking.
 
My previous PC was a refurb... no problems.

If it work in the first 30 days.... no real reason it shouldn't work for the long- term.

Use the heck out of it during the warranty period..
 
Sirius_Doggy said:
The problem may be that alot of the newer software takes advantage of hyper-threading. Not sure about this new dual-core technology.
Click to expand...

The software shouldn't know the difference. It shows up in the hardware layer of the machine, not the application layer. (terminology probably all screwed up).

But, hey, why not hyperthread a dual-core? Then everyone's happy. :)

Dan
 
naeem said:
Sirius;

The more I'm digging into this new Pentium "D" - the more I'm impressed. Take a closer look at some benchmark tetsing here...

http://www.intel.com/performance/desktop/mainstream/index.htm
Click to expand...

That is impressive. And it supposedly runs cooler..... Might be worth looking into.

GodDarnImDaMan said:
Hey guys quick question. I'm also thinking of buying a new desktop but I've come across a question. I found a pretty good desk top for a really cheap price at Fry's

http://shop1.outpost.com/product/4436706

The only problem is that it is "refurbished." However it comes with a 90 day warranty. Also, I believe I can buy a in store 2 year warranty for 99 bucks. Is it worth it?
Click to expand...

Not a bad machine for the price but it's not a machine for editing in my opinion without some upgrades. The video card for one. The on-board 64mb card is worthless (in my opinion).
 
If I was going to go dual core, AMD X2's are the way to go. They work with older model Socket 939 boards and they out-benchmark the competition. Right now my new system I'm building has:

ASUS A8N-SLI MOTHERBOARD ATX NFORCE4-SLI S939 DDR 2PCI-E16 2PCI-E 3PCI SATA RAID LAN SOUND 1394

AMD ATHLON 64 3200+ PROCESSOR S939 2.0GHZ 512KB L2 CACHE RETAIL BOX

OCZ OCZ52012U-520W MODSTREAM POWER SUPPLY PCI-E READY W/ EZMOD CABLE SYSTEM & BLUE LED FAN

CORSAIR TWINX PC3200 1GB DDR DUAL-CHANNEL MEMORY KIT 2X512MB CL 2.5-3-3-6 RAM SINK ACTIVITY LEDS

EVGA E-GEFORCE 6200 256MB DDR 128BIT PCI-E VGA DVI-I TV OUT VIDEO CARD

SEAGATE BARRACUDA 7200.7 160GB HARD DRIVE 7200RPM SATA W/ NCQ 8MB CACHE 8.5MS 3.5IN OEM

SEAGATE BARRACUDA 7200.7 120GB HARD DRIVE 7200RPM SATA W/NCQ 8MB 8.5MS 3.5IN OEM

LG GSA-4163B DVD+RW 16X8X16X DVD-RW 16X6X16 CDRW 40X24X40 DUAL LAYER+R 4X INT IDE BEIGE OEM W/ SW

I'm also looking at getting the new AMD X2 4200+ processor for the computer. If your gonna be doing any 3D Rendering or Video Rendering, AMD 64 bit processors are the way to go. Alias also has a 3D rendering program that runs on 64 bit and from what I've heard its extremely fast.
 
GenJerDan said:
The software shouldn't know the difference. It shows up in the hardware layer of the machine, not the application layer. (terminology probably all screwed up).
Click to expand...
Right. If the software employs multiple threads, it will utilize hyperthreading. If not, it won't. So, a software engineer could optimize the application to take advantage of HT technology.

Mike: If you're going to be using 64-bit AMDs, I would put 1 stick of 1 gig ram, not 2 512's, as you'll be able to add up to 8 gbs to the system if you want it. when you go to upgrade, you'll have more free slots and won't have to sell your 512 sticks. (you'll need XP Pro x64 to address 8 GB of memory. or Vista 64-bit when it comes out.)
 
Well my next upgrade will be to 2 gigs or ram (2-1 gig chips) and I have a version of Windows XP 64 ordered now. Not cheap. But it should work for me for the time being. I have my older computer that, when I upgrade, I can throw the gig of ram in and make it into a render box.
 
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