Gaming Buyer's Guide - November 2004
by Jarred Walton on November 21, 2004 5:54 PM EST- Posted in
- Guides
Additional Components
The remaining components will not have as much of an impact on performance, but they are still important. A cheap display, for example, will limit your maximum resolution in games. The low-end power supplies that come with many cases can cause instabilities that are difficult to track down. Your hard drive might also run out of space if you find yourself installing numerous games at the same time, ripping CDs to MP3 format, and/or storing movies on your system. Here, then, are the remaining components, in no particular order.| Hard Drives | ||
| Target Segment | Component | Price |
| Budget | Seagate Barracuda 80GB EIDE model 7200.7 (PATA Hard Drives) | 59 |
| Mid-Range | Seagate 160GB SATA 7200RPM 8MB Model ST3160023AS (SATA Hard Drives) | 93 |
| High-End | Western Digital Raptor 74GB SATA 10000RPM 8MB Model WD740GD | 173 |
| High-End | Maxtor 300GB SATA 7200RPM 16MB Model 6B300S0 | 207 |
The two major factors in the hard drive segment are capacity and performance. We recommend 80 GB 7200 RPM models with 8 MB of cache as the bare minimum for any hard drive, as getting less than this can noticeably affect performance while saving only $10 or $15. With the more expensive models, you get increased capacity, except with the Raptors, which instead go for faster access times and sustained transfer rates. RAID 0 is also an option for increasing transfer rates, but our testing has shown that you are not likely to notice the difference in many tasks.
| Optical Drives | ||
| Target Segment | Component | Price |
| Budget | Lite-On 16X DVD-ROM Model SOHD-167T | 30 |
| Mid-Range | NEC DVD+/-RW Drive Model 3500A (DVDR Drives) | 72 |
We have only listed two optical drives, a 16X burner and the other, a 16X DVD-ROM. 8X and 12X DVDR drives are also sufficient and can save you a bit of money. We suggest that anyone building a system should add in a DVDR these days, as they are very handy for doing large backups of critical data. If you're sure that you don't need the capability to burn CDs and DVDs, we prefer DVD-ROM drives. They only cost $10 more than CD-ROM drives and we are starting to see more games shipping on DVDs. It is much more convenient to install from a single DVD than from multiple CDs.
| Cases and Power Supplies | ||
| Target Segment | Component | Price |
| Budget | Athenatech A602 Black/Silver with 350W PSU | 62 |
| Mid-Range | Antec SLK3700-BQE with 350W | 91 |
| High-End | Antec True480 480W PSU | 95 |
| High-End | Antec Lanboy Aluminum | 96 |
| High-End | Ultra X-Connect 500W PSU | 98 |
| High-End | Thermaltake VA3000 Dream Tower Tsunami with 400W PSU | 135 |
| Mid-Range SFF | Shuttle XPC SN95G5 (AMD socket 939) | 299 |
Depending on your personal tastes, a case can be simply a box to hold your components or it can be a fashion statement. Some cases are built to be more accessible than others, but once a system is assembled, that doesn't matter anymore. The only factors that you will notice are the noise level and appearance. For appearance, SFF cases are a reasonable suggestion, while noise levels are harder to address. Some people can tolerate higher noise levels than others, and you can always try to find lower RPM fans or install a fanbus in order to reduce the noise levels. Larger 120mm fans can also reduce the amount of noise emanating from your case by moving the same amount of air as a faster spinning 80mm fan. The power supply will also contribute to the noise levels, but more importantly, a low end power supply can actually cause a high end system to crash. The AntecTrue480 and the Ultra X-Connect are both high quality parts that should allow even the most powerful systems to run reliably. They won't improve performance, but we value stability over performance.
| Displays | ||
| Target Segment | Component | Price |
| Budget | Samsung 793DF 17 Black/Silver CRT (1280x1024@75 Hz) | 139 |
| Mid-Range | Samsung SyncMaster 997DF 19 CRT | 234 |
| High-End | Samsung 172X 17 LCD | 429 |
| High-End | NEC/Mitsubishi FP2141SB-BK 22 | 634 |
| High-End | ViewSonic VP912B 19 LCD 12ms | 710 |
Like the case of your system, displays can either be a functional unit or a statement of style. The latter generally requires the use of an LCD panel, as it is hard to consider a bulky CRT as stylish. If you can afford it and have the desk space, a large 22" CRT still provides what is arguably the best gaming experience. Whichever path you choose, remember that a high quality display can easily last through three or more computer upgrade cycles. The initial investment may be painful to bear, but $600 for six or more years of quality use is a good investment.
| Speakers and Sound Cards | ||
| Target Segment | Component | Price |
| Speakers | Logitech Z-640 5.1 | 52 |
| High-End | Creative Labs Audigy 2 ZS | 75 |
| High-End | M-Audio Revolution 7.1 | 92 |
| Mid-Range+ | Logitech Z-5300e 5.1 THX Certified | 159 |
| High-End | Logitech Z-680 5.1 THX Certified | 236 |
Finally, we come to the sound category. For most users, integrated audio is more than enough to handle even the most recent games. If you're something of an audiophile, we recommend spending more on speakers before you look into purchasing a better sound card. Once you're at the $200+ speaker price point, however, a separate audio card can provide a noticeable difference in sound quality. If you happen to notice a high-pitched hiss coming from your speakers, an add-in card can also cure that ailment. While the audio codecs and sound processing capabilities are usually sufficient with integrated audio, some motherboards do generate a lot of noise.
Of these parts, the only areas that we would really suggest that you take a look at are the displays and hard drives. Capacity is our primary concern with hard drives, so if you store a lot of movies and music on your system in addition to games and other documents, a larger hard drive would be almost a requirement. For the displays, given their longevity relative to the rest of the system, upgrades can be with you for years to come. For gaming, we definitely recommend getting a display that can handle the highest refresh rates possible. Enabling VSYNC (Vertical Synch) will avoid tearing, but it can have a massive impact on frame rates. Running with VSYNC disabled, on the other hand, will result in noticeable tearing in many games. (Tearing is what you get when the frame buffer is updated while the monitor is in the middle of refreshing the screen's content.) At refresh rates of 100+ Hz, tearing is very difficult to notice; however, at 60 to 75 Hz, we definitely feel that it results in a loss of image quality.
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blckgrffn - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
At Newegg, sorry.blckgrffn - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
$35 shipped, 420W thermaltake silent purepower w/18A on the +12 rail - can't beat that. No sense in not upgrading to it in my opinion. Also has two SATA power connectors. It may not be the best, but it is a good brand for low dough, and it regularly retails for under $40. I see no reason not to reccommend it as an alternative, at least.Just my $.02 :-)
JarredWalton - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
I was gone for the weekend due to a personal matter, which is why I have not commented much yet. Basically, the budget segment is extremely difficult to target without cutting some corners. The PSU is definitely one of the corners that was cut. I will certainly agree that a cheap PSU is not the best option, but for a moderate system it should do okay. We do not build and test every one of the systems we recommend here, although we do test the majority of the parts. For the budget system, even a moderate PSU is going to add $50 to the price. It might be worth it, but I would go with the generic for a little while if you're on a tight budget.The mid-range use of the SLK3700-BQE case and PSU is a different story. The 350W Antec PSUs are actually quite good and when paired with that setup I have yet to experience any issues. If you're going to add in a second hard drive and optical drive and try overclocking, it could present a problem, but for the stock recommendation it will work.
I thought I made the PSU situation clear in the article, but looking back I guess it was sort of relegated to a few comments made in the high-end and component summary pages. A good PSU is never a bad investment. Trying to convince someone to spend $75 on a name-brand 400W+ PSU instead of upgrading some other component is difficult to do, unfortunately. I'll make sure I don't overlook this in the future - particularly on the mid-range systems.
Gorion: The component summaries were arranged in order of price, with my suggestion of what budget each component falls into. You'll note that many of the parts do not match up directly with the system we put them in, for example we had to use a "mid-range" priced motherboard for the Intel budget setup. The graphics cards in particular are where we "overspent" - which makes sense for gaming.
You're right on the mouse: the MX510 is the wired version. My bad. Basically, get what mouse you like. I have tried the MX510 before, and while not bad, it's a personal taste. I like the 4th and 5th buttons on opposite sides like the "cheap" MS mice. For precision, Logitech may be better, but I am definitely not hardcore enough to be able to tell the difference between mouse precision on these models. :)
Glassmaster - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
#45: I'm not suggesting that a PSU recommendation should account for overclocking, however, on AMD's offical forums, where I help with Athlon 64 troubleshooting, insufficant PSUs are the most common problem. People are having problems with their PSUs handling stock specifications when they do something demanding, like play a modern game. This is a gaming guide after all...That's why I ask if you build and stress test these systems with the latest games before making a recommendation. If you do, and you find that a particular cheap generic PSU (with less than the consensus recommendation of 18-20A on the 12V rail) works well, that would be good to know. However that has not been my experience.
I wouldn't bother to post at all if I didn't respect this site a lot and enjoy reading it--I would just stop visiting.
Glassmaster.
Wesley Fink - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
RE: The Epox budget board. Jarred had originally selected the Epox budget nf3-250Gb for his budget AMD gamer, but I shared many of the emails I had received re: memory problems with that board. Nothing major, but memory compatibility issues and 4-dimm 333 downclocks not seen with the Chaintech board. While we all agree the Epox has a bit better feature set the Chaintech is known to be rock solid and friendly to just about any memory you feed it. That is the reason for the Chaintech choice for Budget. If you know your memory choice works well with the Epox then by all means choose that board.As an overclocker I have learned the hard way how very important the PS is for Athlon 64 and Socket T Intel. However, most gamers are NOT overclockers - they may overclock the video card but they rarely do much with system overclocking. Given that, Jarred's PS choices make more sense, though I do agree budget Power Supplies are the weakest links in most systems. I'm sure those gamers that "system-overclock" will throw some rocks here, and there are exceptions to every generalization.
thegreatbernie - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
I haven't been able to find the Albatron GeFORCE 6800 GT 256MB GDDR3 for $374. Newegg has it for $455.Gioron - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
Jarred:Two nit-picks, the first being the motherboard chart on the component summary page. The third motherboard down threw me for a second, until I realized it was the third budget motherboard, not the mid-range motherboard it was listed as.
Second, the MX510 is a wired mouse, not wireless. The wireless Ligitech mice are the MX700 and MX1000, the MX510, MX500, and MX300 are all wired mice. I'm guessing you're thinking about the MX700 mouse, which I admit is a bit of an acquired taste, but if you haven't used one before, I'd highly recommend trying out the MX510 before dismissing it.
Disclaimer: I personally use an MX1000 as a replacement to my MX700, but I freely admit its not for everyone.
SDA - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
Damn, I hate to double-post, but I just found something interesting while poking around:http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid...
Might be worth a read for those of you that don't understand what I have against low-quality power supplies.
SDA - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
#38, no, I guess it doesn't :( No offense to AT, but I doubt they bother-- after all, the PSU is such a trivial piece of hardware, isn't it? Sigh.. anyway, correct me if I'm wrong, but it'd seem that the PSU in the Athenatech case is an L&C unit. Deer/L&C units aren't exactly.. known for their quality.Now, I don't want to seem like I'm sniping, because overall I think this is a pretty good guide. Everyone's going to have their own suggestions and their own favorite parts. A quality PSU isn't something that one would pick just because of their preference, though, it's something one would pick because of their sanity. I've lost count of the number of malfunctioning systems I've seen fixed with replacement PSUs, not to mention how many cheapo power supplies I've seen fail in amusing ways before their time.. picking a cheap PSU to power a solid system is a newbie mistake, it's a shame to see a pro make it.
bofkentucky - Tuesday, November 23, 2004 - link
#39Except it is overpriced, uses an overpriced processor, uses slow ram and is feature limited (No on board SATA). Dothan has potential, but wait until the 915 based dothan boards hit the streets, then you will see a real performance option.