Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

Commonly, motherboards targeted at the G4M3Z D00DZ market don't have any on-board video driver at all, as they expect that the buyer will be installing their own graphics card anyway.

As for WiFi, don't let that be a concern. Desktop boards with on-board WiFi are highly uncommon, and add-on WiFi adapters, be they PCIe or USB, are cheap and plentiful.

Erat

iTrader: (5)

I agree with Joe. You're going to want an addon card for wifi.

Couple reasons, when / if it stops working, it's easily replaced. Most of them have antennas, multiple antennas, some even are hooked to wires so you can put them up high and get a good signal. Plus they're easier to find, and motherboards with them are usually poopy.

UnknownPerson

True this. I once bought a cheap-*** Coolermaster PSU and it started sounding like an airplane after a month or so of use. I ended up selling it for more than I bought it for Gotta love online deals...

Although, my wife's computer has been running of a no-name 400w PSU for over a year now with no hiccups. Lucky, I suppose.

Good cases are definitely worth it. If you can find a nice looking case that has a tool-less design (no screws for installing expansion cards, hard drives, etc.), you're golden. Upgrade internals forever and win.

I don't agree with the side windows, water cooling, and cold cathodes for my own personal computers. I like a clean look.

I, personally, would never use a TV as my main monitor. I can't stand how TVs display for computer stuff. I have a HD 40" Samsung LED TV that I have hooked my laptop up to... didn't really like it. Maybe some other TVs would be alright and possibly with HDMI. I used VGA - not the best.

True this ^ 7750 would be a overkill for you. Either a cheap *** video card with HDMI or just a motherboard with HDMI would do.

This is usually true with dual-channel supporting motherboards but a lot of newer DDR3 motherboards support triple-channel. If triple, 3x2GB or 3x4GB (probably too much) works great. Either way, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, whether dual or triple channel will suffice nicely for your requirements.

Wireless is not nearly as bad as people make it out to seem. Desktops can require wifi when you are out of range of your router/internet connection and you don't want to string a cable for 100ft. My wife's desktop has been on wifi for the past 3 years with no issues - you wouldn't be able to notice the difference between her computer and my hardwired computer. Just make sure to get Wireless N (router and adapter) and follow Erat's advice below. Add-on is the way to go. USB makes it easy to replace as well.

This ^

Erat

iTrader: (5)

Luck of the draw i guess.

I have a coolermaster in mine. I've had it for ages, it's the first PSU i bought when i built my current rig. At least 6 or 7 years ago. It's been through dual core, overclocking, SLI 8800gtx , quadcore now, 4 internal hard drives, liquid cooling. Honestly, i want to kill this PSU but it just won't die. The only reason i don't have 2 gtx560's right now is because i don't have enough plugs. haha, but power wise it should run it.

It really is luck of the draw sometimes with hardware. Same could be said about segate. I'll never buy another one just like you probably won't buy another coolermaster.

viperormiata

iTrader: (24)

Alright, well, back to square one.

First thing: No WiFi needed anymore. I have the second wall adapter with an ethernet outlet. So I am good on that.

OKAY!!!!!! I guess I'll pass on that combo deal and stick with my original plan.

-Corsair Vengeance case or Antec Sonata III (comes with 500W power supply)
-Antec power supply (if I get the Corsair Vengeance)
-8GB ram
-Some motherboard with HDMI out***
-Seagate (or whatever brand) 500GB hard drive. (maybe 1TB for kicks)

***I am still clueless on how to read specs for hardware. I feel like I'm looking at Borg Warner S400's when I should be shopping for T25.

Edit: for the person saying don't use a TV for a monitor, I used my friend's 40" Samsung as a monitor for his laptop via HDMI today.....and it was beautiful. I can seriously get used to that.

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

Don't worry about all of the exotic specs. When it comes to shopping for a motherboard for someone in your situation (non-gamer) there are really only two specs that matter:
1: Does it have the correct socket for the CPU you wish to use?
2: Does it have the video out interface you want?

Seriously, that's it. Nothing else matters. You don't care about which chipset they used in the LAN controller, or whether it supports 1394a, or whether it's capable of driving 3 cards in CrossFireX mode or only two (or not at all.) For 95% of users, pretty much any motherboard which had the correct slots / connectors to support the required hardware is just fine.



It's your call. If you don't find the lower resolution of an HDTV set to be objectionable, and it's what you want, then so be it.

Erat

iTrader: (5)

3. He's also going to need to make sure it's some type of ATX form factor.

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

Heh, well, yeah. It needs to physically fit into the case.

Many (most?) cases these days will support more than one motherboard form-factor, being downwards-compatible with smaller designs. Many will even support ITX motherboards, although I have no idea how common this is.

Fortunately, the odds of picking an ITX motherboard at random from the list of all available motherboards is pretty tiny, especially since he seems to be fixating on AMD-architecture machines rather than Intel. A quick check at the 'Egg of AMD mobos shows 113 boards in ATX and micro-ATX, and two in ITX.

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

I object to this Joe!

You don't mean what you say you mean and this departs from your typical extreme pedantry!

The HDTV set has the same resolution of just about any monitor you get in the size ranges most people get (Seriously, try finding a 1900x1200 monitor sometime. It's almost all 1080P now.), assuming the HDTV is 1080P. It's just larger pixels per square inch, or lesser resolution per square inch, although the resolution itself is the same!

Viper, this is part of the reason his HDTV looked so good.

/Soz, I just had to go all pedantic on the pedantry king!

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

Wtf?

I wasn't the one espousing the idea that you absolutely need an uber high-rez monitor or you will die. I'm the one saying "if you don't mind being limited to 1080, then by all means buy an HDTV" While I admit that 1920x1200 monitors are less common today than they were a few years ago when I bought mine, they are still around.

But by all means, go ahead and order the giraffe eating a necktie if that's what you want.

viperormiata

iTrader: (24)

Okay, decided on the Antec Sonata III. Excellent reviews and comes with their own 500W power supply. And it looks good. Can always paint white later if needed.

-Antec Sonata III
-8GB ram
-ATX motherboard (Asus because I r noob)
-1TB hard drive (might as well, price is so damn close) Seagate??? Excellent reviews.

Also, I decided to get a decent monitor for the computer instead of the TV as I just realised how often I'll need to be using both for RPG's.

Erat

iTrader: (5)

Looks solid.

You'll need a cd/dvd drive. and a processor.

thenuge26

iTrader: (2)

Meh, CPUs are overrated.

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

Good to know you've got the color-scheme handled.

Any particular motherboard you're looking at, or just "Motherboard, ATX" in general?


I'm puzzled as to how an RPG involves the simultaneous use of an HDTV and a computer monitor (when I was in high school, the D&D / GURPS crowd used a pencil and many-sided dice.)




The really ironic thing is that this is, in fact, starting to become true. These days, when somebody needs to do brute-force decryption, simulate the behavior of atomic nuclei in a fusion reaction, model the flow of particles in a complex fluid environment, perform heavy physics calculations or lots of vector math, etc., they use a GPU. In fact, lots of respectable labs such as NCSA and STFC are starting to build whole supercomputers around large clusters of gamer-class video cards.

thenuge26

iTrader: (2)

lol, I was making a (bad) joke that he doesn't need a CPU at all.

But I agree. I am going to guess that a lot of people with the i7 SUPER EXTREME OVERCLOCKED GT SUPER EXTREME BLACK EDITION SUPEROVERCLOCKED actually have a choke point somewhere else which negates the extra speed of their CPU.

shuiend

iTrader: (24)

I have an i7 2700k with 16gb or ram, my choke point is my harddrive. I am just to cheap to go to a ssd yet.

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

Yeah, I understood the joke, and noticed the lack of a CPU in Viper's list. Just wanted to add some useless trivia from the "truth is stranger than sarcasm" file.


I have an previous-generation core i5, and on my system, the choke point is a lack of skill when it comes to playing as Demoman in T2.

viperormiata

iTrader: (24)

Recommendations?

Why? Alternatives?

I was told that just about any motherboard will do as long as I make sure it supports the things I like. Such as HDMI, is the correct form for my case and what have you.

Also that I will not need a video/graphics (same thing?) card since a motherboard will take care of my emulator needs.

Do I not need one?

Why would a hard drive slow you down? Is there an advantage to a solid state drive?

RussellT94

iTrader: (3)

What is your current budget? You seem to have expanded your horizons. The original post had a budget of $400, but I get the impression you are willing to spend more as long as the value is there.

thenuge26

iTrader: (2)

CD/DVD drive: the cheapest one you can find. You will use it at least once to install windows, and possibly never again. If you have an old one from an old PC (or can find/borrow/steal one) you can just install the used one.

CPU: You definitely need one, it's what goes in the center of the motherboard and makes the computer go. Think of it as the ECU of your computer. Which is funny because your ECU also has a CPU, so that CPU is the ECU of your ECU.

HDD vs SSD: A Solid State Drive will be much much much faster, however, they are quite expensive, and don't last as long as HDD (Hard Disk Drive, the one with a spinning platter). Generally what people do for baller builds is they have 1 HDD and 1 SSD, since anything over 250GB and you will have to sell a kidney for an SSD.

You don't need one. A regular 500gb or 1tb HDD will be fine for you.