Attention people looking to build themselves a new computer for Vista/H2V

[legionaire45]

I figure we will have a lot of "will this setup run Vista/H2V/the internetz well?" threads, so why not have a section where newbies to computers can get some suggestions on what hardware they should buy. I've also included a link to each piece of suggested hardware on newegg so that the user can have a direct link to something they should get and so that people can find model numbers, etc. if they live outside the US.

Here is a little bit of important information regarding Windows XP, Vista and Ram. If you have above 3 (or 3.5, not sure which) gigabytes of ram then you will need a 64 bit OS. Right now you can get 64 bit versions of Vista by first buying the standard retail version(32 bit version, all retail copies except for ultimate are this, I will talk about that in a sec) of your choice/budget and then ordering the 64 bit version on DVD. I believe you will need a reinstall in that case unless you are getting a 64 bit upgrade disc, in which case I guess you upgrade to it. If someone would like to make sure all that info is correct I will be greatful.

Anyways, about Vista Ultimate. It comes with the x86 and x64 (32 bit and 64 bit) version on 2 separate DVDs (at least the retail version does). I am currently using 4 gigs of DDR2 and Vista x64 with no success: The memory is fine according to Memtest, the windows memory test thinger and I have individually tested all 4 Dimms in a separate system with all of them working. The OS doesn't seem to like 4 gigs and simply will not boot and BSOD's when you try and install/reinstall. Its a Microsoft problem and it probably will not be fixed until a service pack comes out (aka an eternity) knowing them. Because of this, I have marked all affect systems with blue text over the ram, which means you should consider this when purchasing Vista. Remember though that this may not always happen, I'm just giving you a warning in advance of what happened to me.

"For the Financially deprived" ($400 +/- $20)
$95 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820161030) -Wintec AMPX 2gb PC26400 (DDR800)
$89 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150231) - XFX Geforce 8500 GT
$69 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103046) - AMD 64 X2 3600+ 65nm socket AM2
$53 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813135011) - ECS RS485M-M (V1.0) skt AM2 Radeon Xpress 1100
$41 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148236) - Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 80 gig drive
$29 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147046) – Rosewill R6421 B w/ 350 watt PSU
$33 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827152079) - Sony NEC black 12X DVD-RAM SATA burner
notes: will probably run Vista mearly ok. Dont expect very good frame rates off a budget system like this in a new game like H2V. Could possibly be put into a mATX case for portability. Will not be as fast as a socket 775 system with a Core 2 Duo, but if AMD gets their act/hardware together and pwns Conroe you can upgrade (mb). Is DirectX 10 compliant though.

Low End ( ~$700 ) - DirectX 10 on the cheap
$230 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115003) - Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4 GHz CPU 4 MB L2 Cache LGA 775
$130 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131142) - Asus P5N-E SLI Nvidia Nforce 650i LGA775
$95 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820161030) -Wintec AMPX 2gb PC26400 (DDR800)
$89 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150231) - XFX Geforce 8500 GT
$68 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148142) - Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 250GB
$29 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147046) – Rosewill R6421 B w/ 350 watt PSU
$33 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827152079) - Sony NEC black 12X DVD-RAM SATA burner
notes: nothing fancy. good step-up platform to a more powerful system in the future. SLI in the future if needed.

Mid range ( ~$1000 ) - Will run Vista pretty well great and should play H2V just fine.
$323 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115002) - Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 2.66 GHz CPU 4 MB L2 Cache LGA 775
$137 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127286) - MSI 8600 GT
$130 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131142) - Asus P5N-E SLI Nvidia Nforce 650i LGA775
$99 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817194003) – Enermax Liberty 500 Watt PSU 2x22A rails
$95 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820161030) -Wintec AMPX 2gb PC26400 (DDR800)
$68 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148142) - Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 250GB
$50 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811147038) - Rosewill R5601-BK ATX Case
$33 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827152079) - Sony NEC black 12X DVD-RAM SATA burner
notes: Basically a heavily upgraded version of the low end setup. Still has potential for upgrade =D. However, you would need to buy 2 NV cards to get dual GFX cards.

High End (~$1500) - Will run Vista great. DX10 too. Good price to performance ratio.
$323 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115002) - Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 2.66 GHz CPU 4 MB L2 Cache LGA 775
$259 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130082) – EVGA Geforce 8800 GTS 320 MB
$200 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188012) - EVGA 122-CK-NF68-T1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI
$190 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820161030) -2 sets Wintec AMPX 2gb PC26400 (DDR800)
$130 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817341002) – OCZ GameXstream 700 watt 4x18A 12V rail PSU
$130 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16829102005) - Creative XFI Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Series
$80 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811125448) - Chenming CMU-AL-602-BK-W Black Aluminum Server Computer Case
$80 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148140) - Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB HDD
$33 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827152079) - Sony NEC black 12X DVD-RAM SATA burner
notes: Good setup. Will play current games very well and should play DX10 games fine. SLI in the future if needed.

Uber(~$3000) - for those powered off of raw caffiene and counter strike.
$1,100 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814122017) – Dual Leadtek WinFast PX8800 GTX TDH GeForce 8800GTX 768MB 384-bit GDDR3
$323 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115002) - Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 2.66 GHz CPU 4 MB L2 Cache LGA 775
$299 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817341006) – OCZ ProXstream 1000 watt 4x20A 12V rail PSU
$299 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148152) - Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 750GB HDD
$215 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813188010) - EVGA 122-CK-NF68-AR LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI
$190 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820161030) -2 sets Wintec AMPX 2gb PC26400 (DDR800)
$165 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811133037) - Thermaltake Armor Extreme Edition VA8004BWS
$150 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16829102005) - Creative XFI Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Series
$66 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827152079) - Dual Sony NEC black 12X DVD-RAM SATA burner
notes: Great setup. Will play current games very well and should be quite the gaming machine for a while. Still has a little bit of upgrade headroom left.

Absurd (~$8000 :v) - You can go on vacation or you can buy this. Good choice.
$1,520!!! (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814143079) - Dual BFG water cooled 8800 GTXs in SLI
$1,196!!! (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148152) - 4x Seagate Barracuda ES 7200.10 750 GB drives in Raid
$970 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115011) - Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700
$558 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820227184) - OCZ Flex 4 GB (4 x 1GB) DDR2 1150 (PC2 9200)
$540 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817703007) - PC Power and Cooling 1000 Watt continuous 72-78A 12V Rail PSU
$530 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827106037) - Lite-On Blu-Ray Burner SATA
$339 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131074) - Asus Stryker Extreme Edition Nforce 680i
$279 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811163073) - Silverstone Temjin TJ09-BW
$260 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16829102191) - Creative Labs XFI Elite
$210 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822136011) - 1 Western Digital Raptor X (boot/app drive)
$90 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827140021) - dual HP Lightscribe 12X DVD-RAM IDE burners
~$250-$350 - Custom Water cooling setup using 2x Apogee GT's, a triple radiator and 2xDD Lange D5 pumps. Also tubing costs, etc.
notes: If you have a gripe with this system you really need to be kicked in the face. I'm positive you can PWN vista with this. And H2V. Probably 2 instances of it. Can possibly do SLI-physics in the future if NV gets their act/drivers together. Has bling-bling factor. lots of it. Can scare neighbors/eat their cats as long as you clean up the mess.
last updated May 05, 2007
Caffeine Level: [][][]/[][][][][]

PM or Xfire me for more suggestions (legionaire45). I will try and keep this updated whenever something new comes out =D.

Don't know how to build a PC? ask these guys or email me and I can give you a hand:
http://pr0n.encyclopediadramatica.com/images/7/76/Futurecats.jpg

[Reaper Man]

"will this setup run Vista/H2V/the internetz well?"
From what I've seen, a mac will run vista well, Safari is by far the fastest browser I've ever used, and now it seems that macs are now using graphics cards that only PCs could, previously, use. http://www.hivclan.org/forums/style_emoticons/default/spin.gif

[rossmum]

Stop turning into a fanboy. D:

Can this rig run Vista well?

LOL NO NEVER <33333333

[Reaper Man]

D: I is becoming a mac fanboy. DON'T LOOK AT ME! DON'T. I FEEL DIRTY.

[Limited]

Why does that beefy pc not have a quad core?

Quad core will rape the crap out of crysis with the rest of those parts :D

http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/pcrange.html?ANN
one on the right is tasty

[Edward Elrich]

hm... on the whole "will this rig run vista?" thing, Microsoft has made an app that can tell anyone with an xp comp if they can switch to vista or have to replace stuff first. Oh, and omgwtf who spends $4000 on a single computer?? That's just crazy!

[Cortexian]

hm... on the whole "will this rig run vista?" thing, Microsoft has made an app that can tell anyone with an xp comp if they can switch to vista or have to replace stuff first. Oh, and omgwtf who spends $4000 on a single computer?? That's just crazy!
My new PC is going to cost about $4000... whats wrong with that? I wont have to upgrade for awile.

[itszutak]

I have to upgrade soon, and I havea comp that I think was around $1000 a year ago. >___<

It sucks to pop in a new game and get a FPS of ~15-5 with full settings. :(

[legionaire45]

I updated it a little bit. What the vista upgrade advisor doesn't have is experience with computer upgrade cycles =D. Or what hardware to specifically buy.

[Emmzee]

My computer will run it fine, for I have 1 512 MB Geforce 7600 GT.

[legionaire45]

updated more. Needs more sticky tbh.

[TheGhost]

Hey, great list you've compiled there. +rep

I'm somewhere between the "high-mid" and "absurd" ranking.

[mR_r0b0to]

Mid range ( ~$1000 ) - Will run Vista pretty well great and should play H2V just fine.
$320 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115003) - Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4 GHz CPU 4 MB L2 Cache LGA 775
$160 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150209) – XFX 7900 GS
$135 MIR (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817341002) – OCZ GameXstream 700 watt quad 12V rail PSU
$140 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131142) - Asus P5N-E SLI Nvidia Nforce 650i LGA775
$88 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145539) Corsair XMS 1 GB DDR2 675 (PC2 5400) 4-4-4-12
$75 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148142) - Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 250GB
$50 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119068) - Cooler Master Centurion 5
$28 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827152076) - NEC black 12X DVD-RAM burner
notes: Basically a heavily upgraded version of the low end setup. Still has potential for upgrade =D. SLI in the future if needed.


change the power supply to this (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817194003)
and get this RAM (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145153) instead.

[legionaire45]

thanks Ghost :D

its been updated once again, nice finds mR_r0b0to. Later I'll write something for the $1500 - $8000 range. sleepy time now :-3

oh, and I fit roughly between the low-end and mid-range setups.

[Cortexian]

I'm at around mid range, the Intel Core Extreme's have a horrible price to performance ratio right now, I'm setting for the E6600 2.4GHz (http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.php?PageTag=&page=file&memx_menu=EmbedProductDetail.php&DisplayProductID=8655&SID=) Duo for my new system, Its going to cost me about $2700 when I'm done, eVGA 680i MoBo, BFG 8800 GTX, dual LG "super-multi-zomgtacular-everything burners, a couple of 500 gb hard drives in RAID 0 for more speed, 2 gb of RAM to start with...

This: http://68.147.211.67/HRclanSTUFF/downloads/Computer%20List%2007.doc

[legionaire45]

That system has a horrible price to performance ratio tbh. But if you have that much money to spare on something that will be outdated in 6 monthes, then I dont think it matters xD.

oh, and after homework i'll fill up that big ol' price range gap.

oh, and im not sure if newegg shps to canada but you can get that C2D from newegg for a lot cheaper.

[ExAm]

Specs on my nonworking PC as of now:
-AMD Athlon 64 4000+ 2.4ghz
-ATI Radeon X1300XT 512mb VRAM PCI-E(screw ATI for making the 800 I ditched better than the 1300! higher number is supposed to equal better! I lost a good card because of you!)
-(RAM pending)
-(Motherboard pending)
-Creative Sound Blaster Audigy SE
-Airnet 500w PSU
-Rosewill 600 series case w/ air duct, front filter, 1x 120mm rear fan, screwless closure, front audio in/out
-(hard drive pending)
-Samsung 18x CD/DVD drive w/ DVD Burner
-Ye olde floppy

Total: ~$530 (estimated)

If Ross's computer is Vista Ready, mine sure as fuck is.

[Cortexian]

Sorry, i forgot to mention that those are in CAD dollars, its the cheapest you can get those parts for in Canada.

And that won't be out dated in six months, its fairly upgradeable.

[legionaire45]

yeah, I was more or less exaggerating on the Absurd system, although in a year or so there will definitely be some far better stuff out

[TheGhost]

I'm setting for the E6600 2.4GHz (http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.php?PageTag=&page=file&memx_menu=EmbedProductDetail.php&DisplayProductID=8655&SID=) Duo for my new system ... eVGA 680i MoBo, BFG 8800 GTX ... 2 gb of RAM to start with...

Yes, this is exactly what I have right now. It's excellent. Plus, you can overclock the processor to 3.0+ GHz easily.

[Cortexian]

Yes, this is exactly what I have right now. It's excellent. Plus, you can overclock the processor to 3.0+ GHz easily.
With 8800 GTX? Pix, now!

EDIT: Btw, from these, what case do you think I should buy?

http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.php?PageTag=&page=cat&memx_menu=70&SID=

I really like the Aspire X-Discovery Case w/ Side Window, Black (http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.php?PageTag=&page=file&memx_menu=EmbedProductDetail.php&DisplayProductID=8454&SID=), or the NZXT Lexa Classic Series Aluminum Chassis (http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.php?PageTag=&page=file&memx_menu=EmbedProductDetail.php&DisplayProductID=7245&SID=).

[legionaire45]

At that price range go for an armor. Unless you like carrying your computer around. Or if you want a mid tower then the Aspire looks like a good choose. The Lexa looks kind of ick.

[DaneO'Roo]

is that $8000......US......dollars??

sup $14000 Australian dollars for a computer.......

O_O You people are out of your fucking minds D:

[Cortexian]

At that price range go for an armor. Unless you like carrying your computer around. Or if you want a mid tower then the Aspire looks like a good choose. The Lexa looks kind of ick.
I like Mid Towers over Super Towers, So I duno, I like the Aspire.

[I_Am_Error117]

I want to build something similar to your 8000 one heh. poor neighbors. Ah well.

RIght now I have a e6300 a geforce 6 sumtin a 120 gig hd not all that great nad I just built it. Il probably save up and sell this comp adn maybe anothe comp and that old IBM PS/1 :lol: :D

Edit: Dont know if I can part with my 5.25 inch floppy though :)

[legionaire45]

you could probably get a good bit of the performance of the rig for a fraction of the price to be honest. hence why I labeled it absurd. Oc'ing FTW.

[legionaire45]

Updated some more, im going to get a $2000 and a $5000 rig up there tomorrow. I'll also work on a laptop section maybe =D.

[Cortexian]

Laptops still haven't got to the point were you can build the whole thing yourself yet though, so just list some pre-built ones... BTW, the R600 looks retarded, ACTUALLY retarded compared to the 8800.

[legionaire45]

um...based off of what? The fact that ATI got their act together on the driver front? The fact that this thing out performs the 8800 while on a similar power draw level? The fact that the R600 on a hardware level supports up to 4096 mb of Vram and on the consumer boards will have around a gig? Mind you, this is blazing fast GDDR4. Give me a reason better then "it looks retarded" and I may take this post back.

Oh, and Bare bones laptops are woot, I was looking towards getting one and buying a CPU, HD and RAM but my parents said no even though I have the money D=.

[ExAm]

Wait, they have barebones laptops now?

[legionaire45]

High end setup now has an 8800 GTS with 320 mb VRAM. If anyone objects go ahead and post =D. Shave off $50 which could go into a better more ventilated case. Ive used one of those cases, and have seen them dropped from good heights. They are impossible to break.

these (http://www.xoticpc.com/) guys have some barebones laptop kits. I was looking at the Compal HEL-80S, which is a steal. 15.4" screen @ 1680 x 1050, great airfloor, 7600 Go, C2D, its great. There are tons more though.

[Cortexian]

Dude, I'm literally going by looks here, I know it has out performed the 8800 in benchmarks, but I'm talking looks, it's fucking huge. Way to long.

I might actually switch to a crossfire MoBo if the price on the thing is resonable.

[StankBacon]

my pc runs vista great, people HIGHLY exaggerate the specs needed to run vista well.

look at my specs in profile.

[legionaire45]

Yes, but that doesn't mean that it a computer can run vista and play a demanding 3D game like H2V will be. Judging by the fact that a lot of people will upgrade for H2V when it comes out I figured that I might as well put out a list for all of those less technically aware then us ;D. I'll update it some more after homework, maybe get a $5000 in there.

[Cortexian]

Another thing, my grandparents HP can run Vista fluidly. It has never frozen up or even had little graphical glitchs. I'm inclined to agree with Bacon on this.

BTW, its a HP a1320n (http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/product?product=1818050&lc=en&cc=us&dlc=en&submit.y=0&submit.x=0&lang=en&cc=us) Media Center PC, and has no upgrades.

I'm building this, end of story, I already started buying parts (I bought the Aspire X-Discovery case in black and my power supply already):

http://68.147.211.67/HRclanSTUFF/downloads/Computer%20List%2007.doc

Should be fun, I'm getting the Asus Striker Extreme Motherboard because the eVGA one fails compared to it.

[JDMFSeanP]

On the 1500 dollar one, is the 700W power source really needed?
BTW, does anyone know is the 1500 dollar one could run crysis or what kind of a machine you would need to run crysis at near full?

[Pooky]

Yes, but that doesn't mean that it a computer can run vista and play a demanding 3D game like H2V will be. Judging by the fact that a lot of people will upgrade for H2V when it comes out I figured that I might as well put out a list for all of those less technically aware then us ;D. I'll update it some more after homework, maybe get a $5000 in there.

I still don't understand why H2V should be a demanding 3D game, any more than I understood why Halo PC was. You can tout the new features all you want, It's still a really old Xbox game running on a dated engine.

[Hotrod]

Many people want Halo 2 Vista because 1. It's Halo. 2. You can create your own MP maps without having to download a program and you can download other peoples maps when you join their server. 3. You can play online without having to pay.

As for Halo PC, it came with new content and you could play online. It doesn't matter if its an outdated engine, it's the fun that you get when you play counts.

[legionaire45]

You can tout the new features all you want, It's still a really old Xbox game running on a dated engine running on a bloated OS that is a huge ram and cpu pig compared to XP.

Add onto that the fact that a good number of people are running on 2+ year old hardware that can barely run Vista and then rethink that post for me.

Not everyone upgrades their rig every 2 weeks like you, Atty and I ;D.

[legionaire45]

On the 1500 dollar one, is the 700W power source really needed?
BTW, does anyone know is the 1500 dollar one could run crysis or what kind of a machine you would need to run crysis at near full?

Sorry for the delayed response, but the 700 watt PSU doesn't draw 700 watts continuously. It only draws how much the components inside use. The 700 Watt is intentionally overkill for most people for upgradability down the road.

And the $1500 PC will run Crisis, however no one except Crytek knows exactly how well it will run on hardware of that level ;D.

[JDMFSeanP]

ah ok, thank you.

My friend seggusted the 640mb GTS at least for the video card, he said he heard 320 aren't as good for hardcore gaming, is this true?

[Cortexian]

Get the 640mb! Last Generation cards had at least 256, most had 512, you don't want less RAM then a last gen card do you!

[[MT]Slayer]

aww man, i wish i had a PCI-E slot. I could by good gfx cards that could play vista.

But this is for me in the future, near future, sometime b4 june:

i have Dell Dimension 1100 (i think its that one)
ATI Radeon 9250 PCI bus 256 MB
Upgrade GFX: Visiontek ATI Radeon X1300 PCI 256 MB
Intel Pentium D 2.53 GHz Processor GPU
a CD-ROM drive (i don't think i need a dvd rom drive, altho i'm getting vista ultimate, never really burn any cd's or dvd's or watch movies on comp)
19 inch monitor Envision (thats ok, a decent 1280 X 1024 resolution)
Dell keyboard and mouse
4 USB ports (2.0 i think)
really bad internet

i think my comp will be good enough after i upgrade my GFX, a comp with Windows Vista, a 2 GHz + processor cpu, direct X9 graphics card, and 1 GB + RAM.

2.53 GHz
Visiontek ATI Radeon X1300 PCI 256 MB
1.024 GB RAM
Windows Vista Ultimate (i'm not gonna use business features or DVD/CD Burner Copying features)

[legionaire45]

Slayer;36842']aww man, i wish i had a PCI-E slot. I could by good gfx cards that could play vista.

But this is for me in the future, near future, sometime b4 june:

i have Dell Dimension 1100 (i think its that one)
ATI Radeon 9250 PCI bus 256 MB
Upgrade GFX: Visiontek ATI Radeon X1300 PCI 256 MB
Intel Pentium D 2.53 GHz Processor GPU
a CD-ROM drive (i don't think i need a dvd rom drive, altho i'm getting vista ultimate, never really burn any cd's or dvd's or watch movies on comp)
19 inch monitor Envision (thats ok, a decent 1280 X 1024 resolution)
Dell keyboard and mouse
4 USB ports (2.0 i think)
really bad internet

i think my comp will be good enough after i upgrade my GFX, a comp with Windows Vista, a 2 GHz + processor cpu, direct X9 graphics card, and 1 GB + RAM.

2.53 GHz
Visiontek ATI Radeon X1300 PCI 256 MB
1.024 GB RAM
Windows Vista Ultimate (i'm not gonna use business features or DVD/CD Burner Copying features)
you'll be cursing yourself many times over if you get the X1300 PCI. Your best bet is to hold out longer and get a cheap PCI-E setup later.

[legionaire45]

I've updated the prices a little bit, in April there will be new DX10 midrange cards so until then i'll leave this thread alone.


ah ok, thank you.

My friend seggusted the 640mb GTS at least for the video card, he said he heard 320 aren't as good for hardcore gaming, is this true?

There is no real performance difference in most games until you start hitting resolutions above 1920 x 1200 according to numerous DirectX 9 based benchmarks. When a true DX10 game hits I imagine the extra texture memory wont hurt but for now there isn't a massive performance delta.

I read an article somewhere that said that at very high resolutions like 1920 x 1200 and above Crysis lags on a single 8800 GTX so my guess is that Crysis will be playable at or around 1600 x 1200 for the 8800 GTS. This is with maxed settings btw.

[Kornman00]

=o

how much are the kitty upgrades ^_^?

[Spnkr]

Hmm... how would a 256MB NVIDIA 6800 and 1GB RAM deal with H2V? Am I too optimistic for 1280 x 1024 on medium settings?

[legionaire45]

=o

how much are the kitty upgrades ^_^?
Most cats will do it for free. Just open your computer up, throw your cat in and close the door. I can guarantee that your computer will be fixed or fucked within the hour.

Thats why I bought my TT Armor. I have a huge fatty cat xD.

Hmm... how would a 256MB NVIDIA 6800 and 1GB RAM deal with H2V? Am I too optimistic for 1280 x 1024 on medium settings?
According to the minimum specs someone posted you actually should be fine because you have a higher end 6 series card, although I'm not too sure whether the card will play it well. I'll go ahead and say yes because you are asking for medium settings and this card performs roughly the same as a 7600GT.

[Spnkr]

According to the minimum specs someone posted you actually should be fine because you have a higher end 6 series card, although I'm not too sure whether the card will play it well. I'll go ahead and say yes because you are asking for medium settings and this card performs roughly the same as a 7600GT.

Wow :) . Guess I don't really need to upgrade yet. Thanks for the help!

[legionaire45]

Quickly updated to have low and mid range DX10 stuff. Its a quick list, if people want to suggest stuff I would be appreciative. From what I hear the 8600 GTS performs pretty disappointingly considering its price point so I don't know how well the GT handles games compared to it, but it is slower. However, it currently is the only thing in it's price range that is DX10 for now.

[legionaire45]

UPDATED. Things are cheaper now ^_^.

[ExAm]

Wow. Prices go down fast.

[legionaire45]

Wow. Prices go down fast.
Every 6 months is secksi time for me and Atty =D.

[Leiukemia]

:( It's depressing to know that I could get a reasonably good computer now for the same price of mine that can barely run battlefield 2 (sometimes not even on multiplayer). Stupid 6 month rule, mines lik 9 months old. Sais windows vista compatible, but it woudlnt be worth it. Thanks for all this, I might get a new computer once I start working again.

[mR_r0b0to]

E6600 is just $230 now :(
Quad core Xeons are pretty cheap too...

[Kornman00]

Quad core will rape the crap out of crysis with the rest of those parts :D

just because you have like 1337 cores doesn't mean your game will run 1337x better, the developer has to actually code good MT technology into their game. Luckly bungie started writing more MT code in halo2

[Atty]

iwantz build pc for e-peen how i do it



Entry Level AMD

The great thing about purchasing a computer right now is that you can get a serious amount of performance for a reasonable price. Our entry level configuration will look to keep price as low as possible without making any major compromises. However, without spending a bit more money it is impossible to purchase a basic computer that will do everything well. The biggest compromise we are making is in the graphics department, where the use of integrated graphics basically means that gaming performance is going to be crippled. For the many people out there that don't care about games, that shouldn't present a problem. It is also relatively simple to upgrade a computer with a discrete graphics card in the future should the need/desire arise.

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m315/iAtty/amdentry.jpg

Prices on AMD's dual core processors are now so low that we see little reason to avoid them. You could shave another $20 off the price by going with a single core Athlon 64 3000+, but that extra $20 buys you potentially twice as much performance. Dual core and multi-core processors are the future, and for those planning to purchase an inexpensive computer and use it for years to come we would just spend the extra money now. The Athlon X2 3600+ (Brisbane core) runs at 1.9GHz and comes with 512K cache per core. Do not confuse this with the 2.0GHz 256K version (Windsor core); the extra cache will almost certainly prove more useful than the extra 100 MHz. For those looking to really cut costs, if you don't want a dual core processor you might as well drop all the way down to the Sempron 64 3000+ (1.6GHz 256K cache) that costs a mere $33. Just don't expect that processor to handle the demands of many applications in three years' time.

Perhaps the most difficult component to get right in any custom-built system is the motherboard. This is particularly true when looking at the budget sector. Buying the least expensive option is rarely the best course of action as features, reliability, stability, and performance can all be compromised. Luckily, the situation is generally better now than it has been in the past, and the integrated memory controller on AMD's processors usually means features and reliability are the only major concerns. For the current cost, the features and performance offered by AMD's 690G chipset put it at the top of our list. Besides a reasonably performing IGP solution - arguably the fastest currently available, though that isn't saying much - you can get VGA, DVI, as well as HDMI video outputs. The ASUS M2A-VM is a micro ATX solution with most of these features, available at a bargain price of only $77. Adding HDMI support will increase the price about $20. It certainly isn't one of the "everything but the kitchen sink" designs, though you can't usually find that without moving beyond the budget sector. This motherboard should also allow at least a moderate amount of overclocking if that's of interest, but that isn't a primary concern here.

We chose DDR2-800 memory, simply because the cost is now at parity with other slower DDR2 memory (i.e. DDR2-667). Memory prices have also become much more reasonable since the beginning of the year, and we're back at the point where 2GB of RAM is available starting at just over $100. We decided not to go that far on entry level configuration, but if you're thinking about running Windows Vista as opposed to Windows XP we would strongly recommend upgrading the memory. On the bright side, at least even micro ATX motherboards are generally offering four DIMM slots these days. For the majority of users, memory timings and overclocking definitely aren't concerns in the budget sector, so we selected an inexpensive Wintec AMPO kit.

For the remaining items, we tried to keep the price down while keeping features and performance as high as possible. We could certainly trim things a bit further (for example getting a 160GB or even 80GB hard drive can save $15-$20), but we prefer to spend slightly more if possible. Getting a less expensive case is something else to consider, and of course those who prefer a little bling have plenty of budget options available. Provided you just want to stay with the basics, you can basically get any cheap case plus power supply and not have any difficulties, but we would still pay attention to user reviews and experiences and do a bit of research first.

The only other major component remaining is the display, and here we were presented with several options. 17" LCDs are the least expensive choice right now, but once you factor in mail-in rebates it really only costs a few dollars more to get a 19" LCD. Some people might actually like the slightly smaller LCD for whatever reason, but we would definitely take a larger LCD first. Looking at the 19" LCDs, you then have to decide between standard aspect ratio and widescreen offerings. We like widescreens for the most part, but it seems like corners are being cut on the panels in order to keep costs down, and actual surface area is slightly larger on a standard aspect ratio display. Hanns G is one of many display manufacturers that most people aren't familiar with, but the reality is that there are only a few actual panel manufacturers. The quality of LCD panels has also reached the point where even the budget offerings look good and perform well. Long-term quality and support is a bit harder to judge, but the average user consensus is that this particular LCD is a very good budget option.






AMD Gaming Platform

When we leave the budget sector behind and start looking at midrange configurations, the amount of customization that can be done becomes far more significant. We basically doubled our budget, but that doesn't mean you actually have to spend anywhere near $1500 to get a reasonable midrange configuration. It should be quite easy to cut back a few areas in order to get the price closer to $1000, if that's the target budget. For the AMD platform, we decided to focus on putting together a good gaming solution.

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m315/iAtty/gamingamd.jpg

CPU performance can still be a factor in many games, particularly RTS games where lots of units might be in action at the same time, but graphics horsepower is still far more important in the majority of titles. We made a moderate upgrade to the processor selection, going with the Athlon X2 4800+. That should offer more than enough power for any current games, and it leaves us plenty of money to spend on the GPU. Overclocking is always an option, although most AMD AM2 processors seem to top out in the range of 2.6-2.8GHz so we would either go with a less expensive CPU for overclocking purposes or else simply spend the extra money in order to get a guaranteed minimum performance. If you want something faster than a 4800+ and you don't want to move to Core 2 Duo, the 5400+ is worth a serious look. Priced at $200, that processor comes with 1MB of L2 cache per core and a default clock speed of 2.8GHz - basically what used to be the $1000 FX-62. Just don't expect it to greatly improve your gaming performance except at lower resolutions/detail settings.

For the motherboard, looking at prices we decided the ability to support dual X16 PCI-E slots was a reasonable addition, as the price isn't much higher than the dual X8 PCI-E alternatives. The nForce 590 SLI chipset has been well-regarded since its launch last year, and prices on such boards have dropped substantially. This also gives us the option to move up to SLI graphics cards in the future to improve performance, and while that tends to be beyond the realm of midrange computers it's not inconceivable that some people will want to spend a couple hundred dollars a year from now to improve performance. Taking a look at the current 590 SLI motherboard offerings, EVGA comes out on top with some of the best features while maintaining the lowest price - under $100 after rebate! The EVGA motherboard is actually the same reference design as the Foxconn nForce 590 SLI board that garnered our Silver Editors' Choice award last year, right down to the inclusion of FireWire 1394b support, and it costs $35 less than the Foxconn board before rebates.

As we mentioned, the graphics card is going to be the primary concern in just about any gaming system. Right now, without blowing our budget by moving up to the 8800 GTX, the GeForce 8800 GTS is the most reasonable solution. Having settled on that chip, you then need to decide whether you want to get the more expensive 640MB version or stick with the basic 320MB offering. There are several games out that are using a lot of textures, which can start taxing 512MB cards, so opting for the larger memory version seems to make the most sense in terms of serious gaming. It's also a lot easier to find factory overclocked cards in the 640MB models without paying too much of a price premium. The Foxconn 8800 GTS comes clocked at 575/1800 (stock is 500/1600) and after rebates it ties several other cards as being the cheapest 8800 GTS 640MB. Lowest priced card with higher factory clock speeds? We'll take it, especially considering all of the GeForce 8800 cards use the same NVIDIA supplied circuit board, so the only real differences will be factory clock speeds, warranty/support, and potentially modified cooling solutions. XFX and EVGA may come with better warranty policies, but Foxconn certainly isn't a bad company to deal with in our experience.

Before you rush out and purchase this particular graphics card, however, it is worth noting that AMD's new Radeon X2900 XT/XTX cards are scheduled to launch in the next month. The rumors have it that these cards will offer performance better than the 8800 GTX at prices starting around $400 for the XT model. Whether or not the availability and drivers are going to be up to snuff is a complete unknown - NVIDIA is still working on G80 driver issues, particularly in regards to Windows Vista, and we don't have any DirectX 10 enabled games yet - but it certainly wouldn't hurt to wait another month and see what happens. Should you choose to get one of the new AMD graphics cards, you might also want to skip the EVGA SLI board and pick up an ASUS M2R32-MVP 580X CrossFire enabled motherboard instead.

For the memory, this time we did upgrade to 2GB of RAM. We didn't bother with anything fancy - 5-5-5-12 memory is only a few percent slower than 4-4-4-12 memory and costs quite a bit less - and again we are quite pleased to see that memory prices have dropped a long way since the beginning of the year. Transcend JETRAM is one of the many memory providers that offers "average" performance. If you're looking to set speed or overclocking records, you could certainly spend more money and get RAM that is capable of running at much higher clock speeds with better timings, but for the cost you would be far better off spending the extra money on a faster graphics card or processor first. We generally only recommend exotic memory solutions for the high-end market.

Most of the remaining components have received minor upgrades relative to our entry level configurations. The hard drive is slightly larger, we chose 5.1 speakers, and we selected a different case with a "more powerful" power supply. The power supply probably isn't all that great, but if you aren't going to push your system with overclocking, multiple graphics cards, or a bunch of hard drives the 500W PSU included with the Athenatech case will work fine.

The display once again presented us with a dilemma: do we want to go with a higher quality offering or do we want a larger display? In reality, most of the 22" and smaller LCDs tend to have fewer features and lower quality. For example, TN panels are standard on every 22" LCD we've seen so far, and they are also used on most of the other smaller displays. It's possible to find S-PVA panels on some of the 20" displays, but you will end up paying more than the 22" Acer that we selected. The AL2216W is a decent quality display, and the price makes it particularly attractive. Acer also has a newer and slightly less expensive AL2223W offering, although that is a 6-bit panel that approximates 16.2 million colors via dithering whereas the AL2216W is an 8-bit panel.



Entry Level Intel

Our entry level Intel configuration contains many of the same components as the AMD configuration. The only actual changes are in the choice of motherboard and processor. However, trying to make the systems "equivalent" was simply not realistic. We could either cut the costs of the processor dramatically by going with an older Pentium D offering - not something we would recommend these days - or we end up spending more due to higher prices of Core 2 Duo parts. Intel should be releasing some additional budget offerings in the future, including some single core chips that use the Core architecture. Regardless, if you're looking at Intel-based computers these days we would invariably opt to spend the money and get a Core 2 Duo.

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m315/iAtty/inteentry.jpg

Given that price is a major consideration for any budget computer, there was really only one reasonable choice for the processor given the above statements. The Core 2 Duo E4300 is still more expensive than what we would generally classify as an entry level component, but that doesn't mean it isn't worth the money. In pretty much any benchmark you throw at it, the E4300 is going to end up faster than the Athlon X2 3600+ we used in our AMD configuration. Of course, if you were to go out and purchase a $135 AMD part, the performance advantage will likely swing the other way.

Not only do you have to generally spend more money on the processor for the Core 2 Duo platform, but motherboards also tend to cost more than roughly equal offerings from the AMD camp. Since we're using integrated graphics for our entry level configurations, things get even trickier. The IGP offerings for socket AM2 are at present much better than the IGP offerings for socket 775. They perform better, and perhaps more importantly they do so while costing less money. That's not to say that you can't find inexpensive Core 2 Duo compatible motherboards; there are quite a few VIA chipset solutions. For overall quality and reliability, however, we prefer to avoid those if possible, as they can be a bit quirky at times. Motherboards are simply too critical of a component in our view.

Given the choices, we eventually decided to stick with the standard Intel G965 chipset. Graphics performance is subpar compared to the current AMD and NVIDIA offerings, but even then it's still sufficient for most tasks. Intense 3D gaming is not one of those tasks, and even at low resolutions and low detail settings there are so games that won't work properly on this chipset. The X3000 graphics core is supposed to be much improved over previous Intel solutions, but our own opinion is that it remains a lackluster offering. Outside of gaming, however, there are very few applications that require more graphics processing power.

Looking at the G965 motherboards currently available, even the most basic models start at closer to $90, with some of the better equipped models costing as much as $130. The MSI G965M-FI we selected is one of the least expensive offerings but it still does quite well in the features department. Naturally the motherboard supports all Core 2 Duo processors currently available, though it lacks overclocking support in the BIOS at this time. This MSI board also includes FireWire support, something that our entry level AMD platform lacks.

The Gigabyte GA-965GM-S2 would be a better choice for IGP and overclocking, typically reaching moderate FSB speeds. The E4300 processor should be able to run at 2.4GHz (9x266) quite easily and perhaps even 3.0GHz (9x333). Overclocking certainly isn't our primary concern, but the low-end Core 2 Duo chips manage it so well that it deserves mention.

The remaining components are the same, and the bottom line is that the Intel configuration ends up costing about $70 more than the AMD setup. The base performance will definitely favor the Intel platform in processor tests, while graphics tests will favor the 690G IGP over the G965. If you were to spend the same amount of money on both platforms, you could move up to an Athlon X2 5000+ which would certainly put the AMD platform in the lead in virtually all benchmarks. Overclocking would still favor the Intel platform for CPU performance, but for your typical budget PC right now we would give the edge to the AMD platform offerings.



Intel Overclocking Platform

Our midrange Intel platform focuses on overclocking as a primary consideration, but we aren't looking at achieving maximum clock speeds or performance. Instead, we wanted to focus on a platform that would allow us to get the largest overclock relative to the basic clock speed. Gaming is a second consideration, and while the final result might be slower in some games compared to the AMD configuration listed on the previous page, it's certainly no slouch.

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m315/iAtty/inteloverclocking.jpg

The least expensive Core 2 Duo processor ends up being the most sensible choice for getting the largest percentage overclocks, so compared to the entry level Intel configuration you don't even have to spend more money on this area. The E4300 has a base clock speed of 1.8GHz but uses a 200 MHz front side bus, whereas the more expensive E6300 has a 266 MHz front side bus. What that means is we don't need a motherboard or memory capable of running at insane bus speeds in order to get perhaps as much as a 100&#37; overclock. The E6320 and E6420 will increase the amount of L2 cache while keeping the same clock speeds and bus speeds as the E6300 and E6400 respectively, but the new chips aren't available yet. Prices should also be dropping a bit more in the near future on Intel processors, so if you wait a few weeks you might be able to save another $20 or so. If you can spare the extra change, moving straight up to the E6600 can get you the best of both worlds - more cache and the ability to still reach 3.6GHz and beyond - but while that's a good choice for stock or overclocked systems, the E4300 remains the best bang for the buck in terms of pure overclocking ability.

To aid in overclocking, we added an aftermarket heatsink. The Thermalright Ultra 120 currently sits on top of our heatsink performance charts, so it was the logical choice. In truth, the Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme is the best air cooler we've tested so far, but we still couldn't find it in stock anywhere. It should be arriving any day now, and it shouldn't cost more than a few dollars more than the stock Ultra 120, so if you can find it in stock we would recommend that instead. Either way, CPU temperatures shouldn't be the limiting factor when it comes to overclocking with these heatsinks.

Given our selection of processor, we can pretty much choose any of the midrange performance motherboards on the market and come close to our target 3.6GHz. While nForce 650i Ultra motherboards have started to show up at retail, it's a bit early to say whether or not they are truly better than the P965 platform, especially when it comes to overclocking and maturity. Since the chipset first launched six months ago, Gigabyte's GA-965P-DS3 has been a popular motherboard in this market. The latest revision improved overclocking in terms of maximum bus speeds, but here you can choose to save $15 and stick with the earlier revision, unless you plan on selecting some other parts that might allow you to reach a 500 MHz FSB. This Gigabyte board earned our Silver Editors' Choice award, and for the price it remains one of the best P965 offerings.

After spending a bit more money on aftermarket cooling, we opted to cut costs in the graphics department. We mentioned the option of purchasing a GeForce 8800 GTS 320MB already, and you end up saving over $100. We'll take that route this time, selecting the PNY offering that is a standard reference card design (500/1600 clocks). If maximum gaming performance isn't a primary concern, selecting one of the newly released and less expensive GeForce 8600 GT/GTS cards is another possibility. Again, waiting to see what AMD has up their sleeve with the R600 graphics card series wouldn't be a bad idea either.

Considering that overclocking tends to stress systems quite a bit more than running at stock speeds, we felt the move from relatively generic power supplies to a quality aftermarket solution was warranted. We tossed around several brands, including SeaSonic and Silverstone, but in the end we selected the Corsair 520W. This power supply is anything but cheap, but we've had enough lesser power supplies fail during overclocking that we decided to be prudent and spend the money upfront rather than waste time and money swapping power supplies in the future.

As an alternative to the 22" LCD we listed on the AMD gaming configuration, the Sceptre X20WC-Gamer is a 20.1" widescreen LCD that has the same native resolution as the Acer 22". With the rebate, you can save about $70 and some might argue that the Sceptre actually looks better. We wouldn't necessarily go that far, as both LCDs are pretty clearly looking to keep costs down. Which LCD do we prefer? One of the 24" LCDs, as they invariably look better and offer more features! Really, though, it's up to the individual to decide which is more important: size, price, and/or quality.

You may have noticed that we didn't list any sound cards on our midrange solutions. Creative's Sound Blaster X-Fi has basically been the undisputed king of gaming sound cards since it became available, but the changes made in Windows Vista in regards to sound make us hesitant to spend any extra money on a sound card right now. We've encountered at least a few systems that simply don't work properly with X-Fi cards under Windows Vista, so if you have any intention of upgrading to the new operating system you might want to hold off and only purchase a sound card once you're sure you need/want it.


Closing Thoughts

As usual, it after configuring four different systems and mentioning a variety of alternative parts, we've hardly scratched the surface of the possibilities out there. There are plenty of additional components that we neglected to cover - TV tuners for example - but the majority of such devices can easily be added to a system after the fact. As far as specific component choices go, particularly in regards to processors, we consider the models we listed in the budget and midrange configurations as being the upper and lower ends of what we would recommend. If you want to spend a bit less or a bit more money and choose a different CPU, by all means feel free to do so.

The one area that we have neglected in this Buyers' Guide is coverage of the high-end segment. We thought about including a high-end configuration, considering it has been quite a while since we last looked at that area, but the truth is if you didn't feel the need to upgrade to an Intel quad core processor when they first became available, we certainly wouldn't do so right now. Intel is readying Penryn and we should also see some dramatic price cuts on quad core processors within the next couple of months. Imagine getting a Q6600 for the current price of an E6600 and you'll have an idea of what's in store. AMD on the other hand really doesn't deserve much consideration in the high-end market right now. The fastest AMD chips are easily outperformed by the top Core 2 Duo/Core 2 Quad offerings. We aren't at all interested in 4x4 at present, so we're basically waiting with baited breath for the launch of Barcelona. We also mentioned the pending launch of AMD's R600 graphics chips, so basically on the truly high-end configurations we think you should wait at least a couple months before deciding how to spend thousands of dollars on a new computer.

Compared to a year ago, things have basically flip-flopped. At that time, AMD's Athlon X2 chips were the undisputed speed champions, but they were more expensive than the various Intel offerings. If you were looking at getting a budget dual core setup last year, Pentium D was quite attractive, but most enthusiasts really wanted to get Athlon X2. Not only was it faster, but it ran cooler as well. Now, Core 2 Duo is faster and runs cooler but Athlon X2 has gotten a lot less pricey. As an inexpensive but full-featured platform, socket AM2 currently holds the advantage over the various socket 775 offerings. Meanwhile, with AMD purchasing ATI, we don't expect to see much in the way of ATI IGP solutions for Core 2, but there's definitely room for someone like NVIDIA to release a serious competitor to G965.

Looking at the last year in retrospect, the one sentiment that trumps all others has to be this: competition is a wonderful thing! Were it not for AMD's successful K8 processor, the best Intel CPUs might still be using NetBurst (and pulling double duty as space heaters). Now we need to see how AMD responds. Competition in the graphics card segment has also been fierce, though unfortunately high-performance midrange solutions aren't as readily available as in the processor market. We hope to see that change soon, and maybe if we're lucky we will actually get some DX10 games to play with.





My friend seggusted the 640mb GTS at least for the video card, he said he heard 320 aren't as good for hardcore gaming, is this true?The 320MB variation's major difference in terms of performance is it's performance at resolutions above 1280x1024 with any Anti Aliasing (AA). If you run under 1280x1024 or use that resolution, the 320MB should be fine, anything over that resolution and you should consider the 640MB.

[Patrickssj6]

just because you have like 1337 cores doesn't mean your game will run 1337x better, the developer has to actually code good MT technology into their game. Luckly bungie started writing more MT code in halo2
STFU

endless loops ftw:XD:

[legionaire45]

K, replaced the Ram with something from Newegg that you can actually buy xD. Im getting myself 2 sets of that (the Wintec AMPX stuff). 4 gigs here I come. :cries at video card:

[Patrickssj6]

K, replaced the Ram with something from Newegg that you can actually buy xD. Im getting myself 2 sets of that (the Wintec AMPX stuff). 4 gigs here I come. :cries at video card:
4 GB?

How exaggerating.

[legionaire45]

4 GB?

How exaggerating.
I'm obviously compensating for something :fail:.