Thread: Maybe a new puta needed - help with bewildering amount of choices please?

Cool, try repair & see if it asks for more money.

Originally Posted by Cliff Rogers

Cool, try repair & see if it asks for more money.

All good. It offered a couple of options for another few bucks, but i ignored that.

NCArcher sent me a link to a mob called JW, so I've specced up a couple of PCs for comparison: an i5 and an i7 both intermediate speeds. PDF of the two systems attached.

I kept the various other components as similar as I could (HD, graphics card etc).

The differences between the two system are
Quad Core i5-4460 Processor 3.2Ghz (6M Cache, Max Turbo Frequency 3.4 GHz)
23.6" monitor
End price $1759

and
Quad Core i7-4790 Processor 3.6Ghz (8M Cache, Max Turbo Frequency 4.0 GHz)
27" monitor
End price $2039

It doesn't say what brand the monitor is but they only carry two brands in 23.6" and they are Samsung and AOC. I suspect it's a Samsung.

The other specs which are common to both are:
RAM Latest 8GB DDR III 1333 MHz Premium
MOTHERBOARD Asus or Gigabyte H81 Chipset Motherboard S1150/2DDR3/2USB3(upgrade)
GRAPHICS CARD 1GB nVidia Geforce 210 - DDR3 - VGA - DVI - HDMI Minimum Requirement for Dual Monitor Display(upgrade)
WIRELESS Wireless AC1200 Dual Band (2.4GHz & 5.0GHz) Internal Card - Maximum Coverage & Speed(upgrade)
HARD DRIVE 1TB Serial ATA Solid State Hybrid Drive - SSD Performance. HDD capacity(upgrade)
SSD 120Gb(upgrade)
OPTICAL DRIVE Dual Layer DVD Rewriter - Supports Dual Layer (8.5GB) - Bundled with CD/DVD Burning Software
POWER SUPPLY Widetech 650W Silent PSU, 140mm Cooling Fan, 2 x 6 Pin VGA PCI - Express, 4 x SATA, 5 x 4 Pin IDE (upgrade)
COOLING FAN UPGRADE Arctic Cooling Silent Processor Fan/Sink Higher Cooling Capacity Than Standard Intel Fan (upgrade)
WINDOWS VERSION 7 Home 64 Premium bit (upgrade)
Norton 1 year anti virus (upgrade)
Logitech MK710 Wireless Multimedia Keyboard and Mouse - LCD Dashboard - 3 Yrs Battey Life (upgrade)
Logitech Z213 2.1 Channel Speakers - With Subwoofer & Control Pod (upgrade)
Warranty Standard JW 36 Month RTB (Return to Base) Including Parts and Labour (upgrade)

BLUETOOTH - not mentioned
USB 2 & 3 ports - not mentioned


So, it boils down to the bigger screen being an extra $139, and i7 being an extra $141


There's a couple of things I'm sure are worth uppgrading or not:
Motherboard (went up one level)
Graphics card (stayed with basic)
Power supply (upgraded)

For one reason or another the 27" screen wasn't an option on the i5.


So, what we do we think of those specs and prices?

I went with a similar speced PC from JW. I added a gaming mouse and a pretty good graphics card but I want to play high end games.
The silent PS is well worth the few extra dollars over the standard. My PC makes no noise at all. I got a 24" monitor, Asus brand.
I compared prices from a few different Sydney stores and I found JW to be the best value package, IMO, if not always the cheapest individual components.
I would recommend them. Service was very good and they have a real walk in store. Not just online.

Originally Posted by NCArcher

I added a gaming mouse

I can think of three little black critters that would like that.

Maybe see if you can get an optical drive that can read/play a BluRay disk.
I got caught out the other day when I bought a cheap music DVD, it was BluRay & I couldn't play it.

You seem to be spec-ing a lot of gaming bling in that buildout without being a gamer... Keep in mind that most of it is really just bling, unless you are looking at trying to be top-level competitive in League of Legends or top 120 actions-per-minute in Starcraft.

And wireless keyboard/mouse have always seemed like an answer in search of a question (it's not like you are going to be controlling your PC from further away!)

And I'd solidly recommend Windows 8.1 with no Norton/other antivirus - Windows 7 has already hit end-of-life and is in the extended support phase. And you'd have to pay me - a fair amount of cold hard cash - to even think about installing Norton's.

I'd only consider an i7 if I was already using application that was CPU-bound and taking hours to complete complex tasks such as 3D fluid simulation, and that would be after doing things such as upgrading any disc storage to SSD.

The hybrid 1TB SSD - Do you really need it, with 120 gig on an SSD? The SSD will still beat the pants off a hybrid so it makes sense to store frequently used stuff on the SSD and keep a standard hard drive as bulk storage (I run off a 256 gig SSD, with 6 terrabytes of hard drives for all the stuff that doesn't benefit from fast access - ie movies, tv, books, install files for games.)

Originally Posted by Cliff Rogers

Maybe see if you can get an optical drive that can read/play a BluRay disk.
I got caught out the other day when I bought a cheap music DVD, it was BluRay & I couldn't play it.

Yeah, maybe Cliff. I have a Blu-Ray player hooked up to the tele. I thought long and hard about it last time and decided agin it - haven't regretted it.

However, BluRay would allow for bigger backups.

Originally Posted by Master Splinter

You seem to be spec-ing a lot of gaming bling in that buildout without being a gamer... Keep in mind that most of it is really just bling, unless you are looking at trying to be top-level competitive in League of Legends or top 120 actions-per-minute in Starcraft. Yep, definitely don't need gaming bling, and definitely not in any kind of competition

And wireless keyboard/mouse have always seemed like an answer in search of a question (it's not like you are going to be controlling your PC from further away!) Hmmm. Basically trying to de-wire the desktop - errr, the timber desktop. However, I don't use a mouse (at all) and the LogiTec keyboard I have now is quite ok, although it does have rather a lot of sesame et al seeds under the keys. In any case, I can add a new keyboard later.

And I'd solidly recommend Windows 8.1 with no Norton/other antivirus - Windows 7 has already hit end-of-life and is in the extended support phase. And you'd have to pay me - a fair amount of cold hard cash - to even think about installing Norton's. Noted.

I'd only consider an i7 if I was already using application that was CPU-bound and taking hours to complete complex tasks such as 3D fluid simulation, and that would be after doing things such as upgrading any disc storage to SSD. Noted.

The hybrid 1TB SSD - Do you really need it, with 120 gig on an SSD? Probably not.
The SSD will still beat the pants off a hybrid so it makes sense to store frequently used stuff on the SSD and keep a standard hard drive as bulk storage (I run off a 256 gig SSD, with 6 terrabytes of hard drives for all the stuff that doesn't benefit from fast access - ie movies, tv, books, install files for games.)Noted.

Yes, just the kind of thing I want to hear MS. Thank you.

I'll do another spec and see how it comes out. In the customise section of those pages it offers a certain amount of options. On the "build your own" page there is a plethora of options, but I doubt i need that at all.

My dislike of wireless keyboards stems mainly from the fact that I have a number of battery powered doodads that take a range of batteries, from 9v to AA to AAA to a half-dozen different types of button cell and smaller than AAA thingies, and given that most of them have the batteries die of old age rather than use, it's useless keeping spares of anything but AA on hand. So I feel like I'm always having to go "Oh drat, the battery is flat, I've got to go and buy a battery so I can use (doodad)," which really annoys me!

Protip: A good smear of Vaseline on the spring/contacts of all those use once in a blue moon devices means you don't have to scrape old battery goo off them from the last dead battery.

Quad Core i5-4460 Processor 3.2Ghz (6M Cache, Max Turbo Frequency 3.4 GHz)
End price $1494 (so a saving of $265 over the previous i5 spec)

RAM Latest 8GB DDR III 1333 MHz Premium
MOTHERBOARD JW Standard H81 Chipset Motherboard with Integrated Audio and Lan
GRAPHICS CARD 1GB nVidia Geforce 210 - DDR3 - VGA - DVI - HDMI Minimum Requirement for Dual Monitor Display
WIRELESS Wireless AC1200 Dual Band (2.4GHz & 5.0GHz) Internal Card - Maximum Coverage & Speed ($75 upgrade - to get AC)
HARD DRIVE 1TB Serial ATA
SSD 120Gb($89 upgrade)
OPTICAL DRIVE Dual Layer DVD Rewriter - Supports Dual Layer (8.5GB) - Bundled with CD/DVD Burning Software
POWER SUPPLY Widetech 650W Silent PSU, 140mm Cooling Fan, 2 x 6 Pin VGA PCI - Express, 4 x SATA, 5 x 4 Pin IDE ($49 upgrade - maybe I don't need this either - just get a quieter fan)
COOLING FAN UPGRADE Arctic Cooling Silent Processor Fan/Sink Higher Cooling Capacity Than Standard Intel Fan ($29 upgrade, but not sure if it's needed with that power supply)
WINDOWS VERSION 8.1 64 bit
23.6" monitor
No Keyboard and Mouse
No anti-virus
Logitech Z213 2.1 Channel Speakers - With Subwoofer & Control Pod ($33 upgrade)
Warranty Standard JW 36 Month RTB (Return to Base) Including Parts and Labour ($159 upgrade from 12 months - not sure about this....)

BLUETOOTH - not mentioned
USB 2 & 3 ports - not mentioned

The $265 saving would pretty much cover a new 802.11AC Modem/router and a wireless headset (which is the number one wireless bit i need).


BluRay reader $79, read/write $109, but either may require a motherboard upgrade.


I reckon the thing to do is mosey down to a shop (nearest is Blacktown) and see what they have to say about the various bits.

For anyone nterested this is the build your own page.

Originally Posted by Master Splinter

My dislike of wireless keyboards stems mainly from the fact that I have a number of battery powered doodads that take a range of batteries, from 9v to AA to AAA to a half-dozen different types of button cell and smaller than AAA thingies, and given that most of them have the batteries die of old age rather than use, it's useless keeping spares of anything but AA on hand. So I feel like I'm always having to go "Oh drat, the battery is flat, I've got to go and buy a battery so I can use (doodad)," which really annoys me!

Protip: A good smear of Vaseline on the spring/contacts of all those use once in a blue moon devices means you don't have to scrape old battery goo off them from the last dead battery.

Good tip.

I NEVER run out of AA/AAA batteries. Far too many things around here that use them.

Me tooP_20150406_155112[1].jpg

I've got one of those (from Aldi but a different charger, same batteries) but I've never been happy with the grunt they deliver. It costs a fair whack to get enough batteries to go around too.