hmmm....$400(us)...what to buy?

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gamenutt

Guest
Well I have a little over $400(us) to spend on some stuff for my computer and dont know what to buy. Right now these are my specs.

Asus p4s8x mobo
p4 533 fsb 2.53 Ghz
2 x 512 mb ddr pc2700 ram
60 Gb Maxtor ata 133 7200 rpm hard drive
40 Gb Western Digital ata 100 7200 rpm Hard drive
30 Gb Maxtor 7200 rpm hard drive
TDK 52x cd/rw
toshiba dvd-rom 8x
sound blaster live audigy 2 platinum w/live drive
cambridge soundworks fps2000 digital 4 point surround sound speakers
geforce 4 ti 4200 8x agp
Pinnacle studio deluxe card

hmmmm not upgrading mobo or cpu....memory I think is enough I do a lot with video though so not sure about that. Speakers and sound card are good pinnacle board is fine. Burner is good . So what to buy was thinkin maybe a high capacity serial ata drive. Or maybe a dvd burner but havent looked at them for awhile dont want to pay a lot for it and have a new burner come out thats twice the speed the next month. Maybe save up for a lcd screen. How far down have those 3d lcd screens come down. Im fine with geforce 4 for now. I dont know need some suggestions
 
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Jonty

Guest
Hi gamenutt

Your system looks pretty good, to be perfectly honest. If you absolutely had to upgrade something because the money is burning a hole in your pocket, then I'd probably upgrade the graphics card. However, if you don't play first person shooters or other graphically intensive games, then you may not get the full benefit of a $400 card.

LCDs have come down a lot in price. You can, for example, get a good 17" LCD (roughly the same viewing area as a 19" CRT monitor) for around $400. As for rewritable DVD drives, there are currently a lot of different formats flying around, and the speed of the drives is still fairly low. Things are getting better, with drives that support multiple recording formats at fairly high speeds, but I'd still be tempted to wait a while as the technology is still quite expensive. Otherwise, yes, you could go with a S-ATA setup, if your motherboard supports it.

Not very helpful, I know ;) Personally I'd go out and enjoy yourself, or make someone else happy with the money: there's more to life than computers :D hehe.

Kind Regards
 
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TheJkWhoSaysNi

Guest
If you really want to spend that money, I can give it a good home :p
 
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nath

Guest
Well, the multi format dvd writers are pricey, but you can pick up a DVD-rw 4x pioneer 105 jobby for under a hundred squid.

I have this drive, I can assure you it is the nuts.
 
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throdgrain

Guest
Yep TDC is right. My card is a bit better than the one you've got, and Im thinking of replaceing it.
I take it the 9800 Pro is the absolute best card to buy at the moment ?
 
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Testin da Cable

Guest
imo damn right Throddy. I have the 9700pro myself and all the initial misgivings I had about ATI have been put to rest. those cards rock!
 
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Jonty

Guest
If you want the absolute best, then the GeForceFX 5900 Ultra is pretty much the undisputed champion at the high end. However, the 9800 Pro, as Embattle will testify too, rocks just as much, even if benchmarks show it to be fractionally behind nVidia's card in many tests (and, in all honesty, you'd need benchmarks to be able to tell). Alternatively, the 9700 Pro is dropping in price and is still a great card, regardless of the 9800 Pro. One word of warning, though, if you do buy a 9800 Pro, go for the 128Mb, and not 256Mb, model unless money really isn't an issue. All the reviews state that the extra cost of the 256Mb card just isn't worth it in today's applications.

Kind Regards

Jonty

P.S. If you're a Doom³ fan, then nVidia's 5900/NV35 card is almost developed with that game solely in mind :)
 
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Testin da Cable

Guest
doom3 mate. it's going to suck some serious ass. HL2 on the other hand...will be like pure sex, distilled and injected directly into your brain.
 
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nath

Guest
I really didn't want to be the first geek to say that, but yes. Yes it will.
 
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Embattle

Guest
As stated many times, its a game designed to sell an engine ;)
 
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Jonty

Guest
Sorry gamenutt, your thread has been hijacking :( hehe. For what it's worth, I think most people believe upgrading your graphics card, if you really want to spend your money, is the way to go.

Kind Regards
 
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PR.

Guest
I have yet to find a 5900 for sale in the UK. I was gonna build a new system but I'm waiting for the new P4 Prescotts in October so I need a new Gfx card to keep my machine decent for HL2
 
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nath

Guest
Embattle, when you say that I assume you're talking about Doom 3?

It's true, Id games have beel all about the engine, recently. Half life 2 will be a far better single player game, and the engine itself seems like it has been much better designed too. The physics are stunning, and it does look fantastic. Plus the designed it with mod makers in mind, so we should see lots of great things come from it. The new counter strike should be lovely :D


Edit: Sorry for hijacking, on topic: buy a graphics card :)
 
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Jonty

Guest
Hi PR.

You're right that the 5900 Ultras are not yet available in the UK as yet, but they will be very soon. Anyway, if you're waiting for Intel's next kit, then I'd buy your whole system later on in the year. By this the nVidia's NV40 and ATI's R420 graphics cards will be around, both of which (it is assumed) will support PCI Express. The 64bit technology will have become a little more established by this time too. Also, if Half-Life 2 does slip, there's an extremely strong chance it will be launched in November instead, as that would mark the fifth anniversary of the original game's launch :)

Kind Regards
 
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nath

Guest
I can't imagine them waiting 4 years to tell us about a game they've had in production all that time, then let it slip. That'd be silly :D
 
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Jonty

Guest
Originally posted by nath
... That'd be silly :D
Click to expand...
Nah, Duke Nukem Forever is silly ;) (and yes, I am a Duke fan :rolleyes: ). It just seems they have rather a lot to do between now and then. But, if they say September 30th, then September 30th it is :D

Kind Regards
 
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nath

Guest
I dunno, from the demo I saw, it looks fairly complete.
 
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gamenutt

Guest
haha I can see people have made good use of my thread. But thanks on info I think I will probably upgrade graphics card soon and probably buy dvd burner when the speed increases a little more. Oh and I think HL2 is most likely gonna be the better game. The engine is looking great. And with the previous success of Half life, being that a ton of people still play it and counterstrike, I think it will definetly be a more successful game.
 
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nath

Guest
4x dvd burner is what you want, gamenutt. I have one, it's fantastic. Burns a full 4.3GB dvd in 15 minutes :D

Plus the pioneer one is dirt cheap :D
 
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gamenutt

Guest
yea but u nothin new has really come out recently with dvd burners somethin has to be comin out in the near future. But yea 4x aint bad and pioneers is dirt cheap. Any compatibilty issues with pioneers.
 
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nath

Guest
Nope. It doesn't support DVD+R or DVD Rom, but for 94 quid, who cares!

DVD-Rs are the cheapest, afaik, and seem to work very well. I've had 0 problems with mine so far (touch wood :D)
 
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Greef

Guest
Your PC sounds great! You could buy me a new graphics card though :D 9700pro would be fine :D Like this one!

Or you could maybe get yourself one!
 
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gamenutt

Guest
lol hmmm get u one.......get my self one.......well not that hard of a choice........





........so where should I ship it to.
 
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