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  • Getting a new PC - need help with specs please :)

    My current PC is going on four years old and hardware issues are starting to surface... time for an upgrade methinks. Problem is, I know almost nothing about hardware so I'm hoping you guys can help me out so I don't end up with something excess to my needs when I talk to a sales dude (probably Scorptec as they were nice to me last time and will also build it for me).

    I work in and study graphic design, so the new PC needs to be able to run the entire Adobe Creative Suite as well as the typical stuff like web browser, office suite, etc at the same time, and do so efficiently. I intend on not upgrading for another 3-4 years if possible. I don't use my PC for gaming at all any more. I like my peripherals though so the more USB ports the better. USB 3.0 preferably. Want a decent monitor too with impressive resolution. At least 22", maybe 27". Not picky about colour or picture quality (I do all the colour sensitive stuff at work). 2TB of hdd space is plenty as I don't download a lot of movies etc. SSD would be awesome but they're still crazy expensive, right?

    As an idea, my current PC which I bought in 2008 is quadcore (2.4gHz), 1TB 7200rpm hdd, 8GB DDR2 RAM, and uh... I forget the rest.

    Budget: $1500 (yeah, I know this is a bit modest!)
    Last edited by Brookie23; 24-05-12, 09:23 PM.

  • #2
    Hey Brookie, I just built a Gaming Tower for my mate which all up including shipping and parcel protection was $764, specs are as below aswell benchmark test.

    AMD FX-4100 unlocked 3.6ghz Quadcore CPU, 8gb 1600mhz DDR3 corsair RAM at 9-9-9-27, ASRock 970 Extreme 4 MBoard, 700W Thermaltake non-modifiable PSU, 500gb Sata 3 HDD, NVidia GTX560 1gb Overclocked

    Plays BF3 on High Graphics at Anti-Aliasingx2 1920x1080 Resolution at 40-50FPS.

    With slight modifications can change it to a Core I5 2500k Unlocked at 3.3ghz but will probably cost an extra $100 since Intel Cores are a little more expensive.

    But this here though to say, is a rough idea of how much it costs to build a cheap Value-for-Money gaming Tower which actually runs really well so if your just after something for graphic design, will be pretty darn cheap even including a SSD and Monitor/Keyboard/Mouse accessories.

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    • #3
      I suppose utlimately though its whether or not you are after a Custom-built Desktop or so, I know a few people doing graphic design with the Adobe CS6 series and they are using 3ghz Quad-cores and 8gb's of 1600mhz RAM and a 120gb SSD which are decently priced.

      Edit: Doing a rough-estimate now though to build a full custom-computer setup for Graphic-Design with a Quad-core 3.3ghz processor, 8gb's of 1600mhz ram, a 2TB Sata HDD and a 60GB SSD, including a 23" Dell HD Monitor with a decent power supply with keyboard/mouse, your looking around $800-850 without shipping.
      Last edited by NewbiTLorD; 24-05-12, 09:32 PM.

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      • #4
        Yeah I'd prefer custom built. Where'd you get the parts from, or who would you recommend? Keeping in mind I can't build it myself... but would happily pay someone from here if they were willing to do it. Those specs sound good but won't I need something slightly better if it's to last me 3-4 years?

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        • #5
          Click image for larger version

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          still have not finished i would say save a bit more

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          • #6
            Thanks for that Todd. Could cut costs by just having fan cooling and smaller SSD - after all, all I'd probably need an SSD for is the OS and maybe Adobe suite. And 16GB DDR3 RAM! Wow, haha. I was thinking 12 at the most... if it's a) already faster than my current DDR2 and b) my current 8GB set seems fast enough. I know I said it needs to last 3-4 years lol, sorry to be picky, but my current PC has lasted me that long and wasn't much more than an above average machine at the time.

            Thanks for the input guys, now I have a bit to work with if I have a chat to Scorptec tomorrow.

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            • #7
              Had a quick squiz at the Scorptec PCs, nothing really stood out as being exactly what you want.

              Few ideas - if the budget allows, get at least as ~128GB drive, preferably a ~256Gb, you'd be surprised how quickly it fills up once you load a bunch of apps and a few files to edit. I've got a 128GB and am down to 25-30GB, have to manage it fairly carefully and offload a bunch of stuff to my RAID drives to keep it at this point.
              Buying 16GB RAM may seem ridiculous now but fast forward 4 years at it may not seem so extreme. DDR3 prices are incredibly low at the moment, the extra 8GB is only $60-70, in fact I think prices have gone up since I last looked a couple of months ago.

              As for screens, I reckon you should check out one of these. They may look dodgy and that's because they are dodgy (only a little bit). They're basic monitors built around factory second panels from the Apple iMac 27" which MIGHT have 1-5 dead pixels (95%+ of the people who bought them report no defects at all). There are now quite a few models built on that panel to choose from. They have the benefit of being a nice bright, clear screen with 2560x1440 resolution, awesome if you do video or photo stuff at 1:1 pixels. I bought one of those panels Crossover screens with a rotatable stand which you're welcome to come and have a look at (I have several other screens here you can compare it to). All the prices I've seen include shipping from Korea and delivery is very, very fast, took one week from Korea -> Darwin.

              Anyway, good luck with Scorptec, the systems I've seen built by them have been pretty decent.

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              • #8
                Yeah you're right. I remember 8GB seemed a lot when I got my current PC so it was built with 4GB and I ended up buying more later. I'm sure I can get something within my budget though coz I remember my current PC cost me $1500 all up without having to compromise. Will look into the 16GB and that monitor, thanks.

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                • #9
                  Item: Intel Core i7-2600K 3.4Ghz 1155pin Boxed CPU Unit Price: $325.00 Order Qty: 1 Subtotal: $325.00
                  Item: AsRock Z68-Pro3-M Intel Z68 DDR3 HDMI SATA3 1155pin Motherboard Unit Price: $118.00 Order Qty: 1 Subtotal: $118.00
                  Item: G.Skill-NT 8GB Kit (4Gx2) DDR3 1333 ram (Intel 1156, AM3) Unit Price: $43.00 Order Qty: 2 Subtotal: $86.00
                  Item: Patriot PYRO Sanforce SF-2200 60GB SATA3 SSD Solid State Drive Unit Price: $129.00 Order Qty: 1 Subtotal: $129.00
                  Item: ASUS 1536M GTX580 PCI-E VGA Card Unit Price: $518.00 Order Qty: 1 Subtotal: $518.00
                  Item: Antec DF-30 Dark Fleet Gaming Case no PSU Unit Price: $109.00 Order Qty: 1 Subtotal: $109.00
                  Item: Samsung B2240W 5ms DVI LCD Monitor Unit Price: $129.00 Order Qty: 1 Subtotal: $129.00
                  Item: Thermaltake ToughPower-XT 875Watt PSU Unit Price: $169.00 Order Qty: 1 Subtotal: $169.00


                  Is what I got November last year. I skimped on the RAM and Mobo because they are just it, it works for what it does. 8GB of RAM IMHO is more than enough - not going to use any where neer 16 with what I do. Running PS in the background may be a little more intensive but then again you don't use as many browser tabs as I would. When I am working from home I have at the end of the day 50 - 200 tabs open with work that I started but didnt finish, and even then it barely takes 3gb of RAM.

                  Should be able to get current range stuff for similar price.

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                  • #10
                    Thanks Krystin. I've sent Scorptec a custom PC request so I'll see what they come up with and compare it to what you posted. I'm a bit of a tab whore too - around 20 tabs open usually, but nowhere near 200! Haha.

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                    • #11
                      And always check the prices with staticICE - Compare Prices - Australia - Price comparison for gadgets and computer hardware just to make sure your not getting ripped off.

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                      • #12
                        They've just come back to me with a quote of $1477 including building, 1yr warranty, shipping etc. Not sure about that graphics card - if it's only $150 it can't be very good for graphic design applications, right? Also, I'm sure I already have that exact hdd in my current PC but it's a year or two old. Is it a good idea to keep using that and save $100, or get a new one? Anything else that's a bit off? I would call Scorptec about it, but our phones are out. No stress if you guys can't be bothered analysing my PC specs any further

                        CPU Intel Core i5 3550 (3.30Ghz / 6MB / LGA1155 / Quad Core) $225.00
                        Motherboard ASRock H77 PRO4/MVP MB, LGA 1155, Intel H77, 4x DDR3, PCIE 3.0, VGA, DVI, HDMI, SATA3, 7.1 Ch, Gb LAN, USB3.0, RAID, Quad CrossFireX, ATX $99.00
                        Memory Kingston 16GB Kit (4x4GB), PC-12800 (1600MHz) DDR3, HyperX, CL9, 1.65v, XMP, Quad Channel Kit $115.00
                        Hard Disk #1 Sandisk 240GB Extreme SSD, 2.5", SATAIII, Read 550MB/s, Write 520MB/s $249.00
                        Hard Disk #2 Western Digital 1TB, Caviar Green, up to 7200RPM, SATA-III, 64MB Cache, IntelliPower $99.00
                        Case Cooler Master Elite 372, Black, ATX, NO PSU, Side Window, USB3.0, HD Audio $55.00
                        Video Card Sapphire Radeon HD7850 (860Mhz), 2GB GDDR5 (4800Mhz), PCIE3.0, DVI, HDMI, Dual Mini DisplayPort $265.00
                        Power Supply OCZ ZS Series 650W 80+ Bronze Power Supply, SLI/Crossfire Support $85.00

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                        • #13
                          you said the card is $150 but your post shows it as $265? For graphic design, your biggest thing with the card should be the video RAM - sure the bigger cards can run filters a bit faster, but mostly it's the RAM letting you work on larger files. PS: I would go an nvidia card (not just because ATI is shit) but also because there's plugins that <3 CUDA Photoshop CS5: CUDA : Adobe CS5: 64-bit, CUDA-Accelerated, And Threaded Performance

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                          • #14
                            Yeah, typo Upgraded the quote to i7 and 2TB hdd so it's $1650 total now and definitely leaning towards excessive. Yeah I've got an nvidia at the moment, will ask Scorptec to revise the quote.

                            Edit: On second thoughts, all the 2GB nvidia cards are like $500+... think I'll stick with the ATI :S
                            Last edited by Brookie23; 25-05-12, 03:30 PM.

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                            • #15
                              Originally posted by Aegis View Post
                              For graphic design
                              And HDD speed, HD Greens aren't all that flash when it comes to accessing decent sized files. Look to getting a Black. (kek).

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