PC Buying Guide May 2009

^ Good you consider it necessary. So do i. :)

But general public doesn't. :p
That's why the term 'optional extras'. :)
That cannot be added to the main price and those who are smart enough to get one will know how to mix and match stuff as per budget. :)
 
great guide, but not too sure if the audioengine AE2 will suit the home theatre enthusiast demographic. I think the good old MX 5021 or something dedicated should be a better choice :)
 
^Exactly. The AE A2s are suited strictly for music and no movies/games. The bass would be on the lower side due to the absence of a dedicated s/w.

The MX5021 should be in its place. Or better still for an entry level 5.1 system, consider the Z5300 from Logitech.

Besides, I see no mention for an entry-level gaming rig nor the good ol' Gigabyte G31 motherboard anywhere? Why dont you consider something like E5300 + G31-S2L + 4gigs + 500GB + Bijli + CM460W + 4770?
 
Gannu said:
^Exactly. The AE A2s are suited strictly for music and no movies/games. The bass would be on the lower side due to the absence of a dedicated s/w.

The MX5021 should be in its place. Or better still for an entry level 5.1 system, consider the Z5300 from Logitech.

Besides, I see no mention for an entry-level gaming rig nor the good ol' Gigabyte G31 motherboard anywhere? Why dont you consider something like E5300 + G31-S2L + 4gigs + 500GB + Bijli + CM460W + 4770?

+1.. MX-5021 > AE2 Overall

E5200 + G31-S2L + 4gigs + 500GB + Bijli + CM460W + 4770/4670 should be in guide... One of May's best budget-performance configs indeed.
 
Motherboard: GIGABYTE G-31-ES3G 2.3k
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E7400 5.7k
Cooling: OCZ Vanquiser 1.2k
RAM: Transcend 2x2GB DDR2 800MHz 2.2k
GPU: Zotac 9600GT DDR3 5.5k
HDD: Seagate 7200.12 500GB SATAII 3k
Cabinet: Zebronics Bijli 1.1k
SMPS: Zebronics Pro Series 450W Rs.1.5k
Optical Drive: L.G. GH22NS30 SATA/Samsung SH-S22F SATA 1.1k
Speakers: Altec Lansing VS4121 2.8k
Monitor: Dell/Samsung 19" LCD 7.3k
Keyboard: Logitech Multimedia .5k
Mouse: Basic Logitech 0.3k

I believe this would be a better config.
1> You don't need a MX518 for an entery level gaming.
2> The Zebronics RealWatts 450 is same if not better then an CM 460W HEC OEM :)
3> I feel Zebronics Bijli is a better choice better looking + more fans pre installed.
4> The Gigabyte G31 and P31 offer the same features especially if your gonna OC with stock cooler. Infact the G31 has advantage of onboard GPU.
5> With the money saved one could get a 9600GT and a OCZ Vanquisher for a better OC / Could upgrade to a bigger screen.

Also for the mid-end gaming RIG a 4770 seems to be underpowered as it hardly produces playable frame rates at FullHD resolution. I'd rather see a GTX 260 or a 4850 atleast.

Drop the Sunbeam CCF and get an OCZ Vanquisher which can easily handle the PII at about 3.4-3.5ghz. Speakers should also be Logitech Z5300 as the purpose would be mainly gaming and movies.
 
Gannu said:
The AE A2s are suited strictly for music and no movies/games. The bass would be on the lower side due to the absence of a dedicated s/w.

Not debating this due to lack of personal experience but when did you hear the AE2s gunna? :)
 
Med End Gaming Rig (Budget 88k)

Motherboard: Jetway Hummer HA07 790GX 6k
Processor: AMD Phenom II X4 955BE 14k
Cooling: Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme 2.8k + CoolerMaster 90CFM 120MM .45k
RAM: Corsair Dominator 2x2GB 1066MHz/OCZ Reaper 2x2GB 1066MHz 4.5~ KMD
GPU: Palit GTX 260 Core 216 Sonic 11k
HDD: Western Digital 640GB SATAII 3.8k (Seagate 7200.11 750GB 4.7k)
Cabinet: NZXT Tempest 5.8k
SMPS: Corsair TX 650W 7k
Optical Drive: L.G. GH22NS30 SATA/Samsung SH-S22F SATA 1.1k
Speakers: Altec Lansing MX5021 6.5k
Monitor: Dell 24" S2409 14.5k
Keyboard: Logitech Multimedia .5k
Mouse: Logitech MX518 1.4k
Mouse Pad: SteelSeries QcK Solo 1.4k
I fail to understand why someone who spends 88k on a GAMING rig would spend just 11k on the graphics card while spending 14k on the processor,6.5k on speakers and 5.8k(!) on cabinet..The gpu is far more important than cpu for gaming and at least 25% of the total budget must be reserved for the gpu while making any gaming rig.An 88k rig should contain 2 GTX260s in SLi.
A single GTX260 is barely enough for gaming on a 24" monitor with details turned up.
 
You are spending total 30k on gpu(16k)+cpu(14k).If the same budget is reallocated as :
GPU:2xPalit GTX260 Core216 in SLI-22k
CPU: Phenom 9950BE- 8K
I think that the final performance will be considerably superior to that of your configuration.GTX275/Radeon 4890 are only marginally faster than GTX260 Sonic but command a premium of 5k which makes them much less VFM cards.
 
Dude, just a small suggestion, y is there a branded PC in the image. Can u change the pic to some assembled PC, as we r talking here abt assembled PC:)

BTW, nice config's.
 
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