Hi Guys,
Its coming up to new build time and looking at the possibility / practicality of all-in-one multimedia setup for my flat after the July quad core price drop.
Budget £2500.00
Vista 64 bit quad core O/C games machine 24"+ W/S
HD TV / HD Home theatre
Music THX/Dolby sound 5.1
Console use at 1080p if possible?
As quiet running and good value as is practical considering requirements:-
Monitor: I lean towards LCD monitors over HDTV's for high res gaming, but can be persuaded otherwise considering the costs. 24" widescreen upwards, not too large as it will be used for desktop comp work/games (at 3 to 5 feet back) as well as viewing TV/DVD's at 10 - 15 feet. Needs to be able to handle high definition
TV/DVD's/console use (PS3). Sound will be handled separately so that’s not important. I'm hearing 1080p is the new standard is this possible with a PC setup?
CPU - Intel Quad core after price drop (I estimate around £300+ do you agree?).
Mobo/Ram - Will be overclocking so happy to pay more for a good mobo and good stable RAM. I here more than 3 gig RAM is counter productive is that true?
Graphics - Need guidance here. Needs to handle high res to a 24" monitor or higher. The 8800 GTX seems the best to go for but I’m not sure how the new AMD cards are being received? I'd rather not go SLi due to cost/budget.
TV - I've never used a PC for TV but I’m guessing a separate tuner card is needed. I have Telewest cable TV ATM so it'll need to handle that input then display through the graphics card?
Drives - Fast access for the OS (Raptors?) and a second large drive for data storage? Standard DVD drive as I’ve found I never backup to disk. I hope to use a PS3 for Blu-ray?
Cooling - The big one, I want to try my first water cooling setup. Whilst i understand that you can get all in one kits to this I read (like PC building) its best to hand pick the cooling components yourself for best results? Any advice here would be greatly appreciated.
Case/PSU – I’m going to need a PSU with enough power for everything with some left over for later additions. A good practical case with functional access (I prefer function over fashion. No pretty lights for me)
Mouse/keyboard etc... - I liked my old intelimouse and the razor I’ve being using since. I see there is a HABU mouse combining the two so that a no-brainer unless you suggest otherwise?
Keyboard wise I'm not fussy, just a good responsive one for gaming. Wireless is not necessary (I hate buying batteries) I hear Sietex are good?
Sound/Amp/Speakers - I want a good sound setup for gaming/movies etc.. I'm a firm believer in a stand alone sound card over on board sound so a Creative card seems a no brainer? I currently have a set of Logitech Z-640 6 Surround Sound speakers but would consider an upgrade if needed. My main thoughts are on handling all multimedia outputs and wondered if I should consider a small Amp to plug in the consoles, tv etc...?
Software - Vista Ultimate. - I know its taking its usual time to get up to speed but since im upgrading i might as well take the plunge and a few months of pain until the DX10 games start appearing. I'm currently running win 2K.if you can believe that
One last concern is the generated heat and component reliability as the system would be running quite a lot of the time for its various uses. Do you think it’s a practical to use an overclocked PC for all this?
It seems I’ve rambled on a bit here sorry. I’d love to hear any pointers of advice
Thanks
Ian
Its coming up to new build time and looking at the possibility / practicality of all-in-one multimedia setup for my flat after the July quad core price drop.
Budget £2500.00
Vista 64 bit quad core O/C games machine 24"+ W/S
HD TV / HD Home theatre
Music THX/Dolby sound 5.1
Console use at 1080p if possible?
As quiet running and good value as is practical considering requirements:-
Monitor: I lean towards LCD monitors over HDTV's for high res gaming, but can be persuaded otherwise considering the costs. 24" widescreen upwards, not too large as it will be used for desktop comp work/games (at 3 to 5 feet back) as well as viewing TV/DVD's at 10 - 15 feet. Needs to be able to handle high definition
TV/DVD's/console use (PS3). Sound will be handled separately so that’s not important. I'm hearing 1080p is the new standard is this possible with a PC setup?
CPU - Intel Quad core after price drop (I estimate around £300+ do you agree?).
Mobo/Ram - Will be overclocking so happy to pay more for a good mobo and good stable RAM. I here more than 3 gig RAM is counter productive is that true?
Graphics - Need guidance here. Needs to handle high res to a 24" monitor or higher. The 8800 GTX seems the best to go for but I’m not sure how the new AMD cards are being received? I'd rather not go SLi due to cost/budget.
TV - I've never used a PC for TV but I’m guessing a separate tuner card is needed. I have Telewest cable TV ATM so it'll need to handle that input then display through the graphics card?
Drives - Fast access for the OS (Raptors?) and a second large drive for data storage? Standard DVD drive as I’ve found I never backup to disk. I hope to use a PS3 for Blu-ray?
Cooling - The big one, I want to try my first water cooling setup. Whilst i understand that you can get all in one kits to this I read (like PC building) its best to hand pick the cooling components yourself for best results? Any advice here would be greatly appreciated.
Case/PSU – I’m going to need a PSU with enough power for everything with some left over for later additions. A good practical case with functional access (I prefer function over fashion. No pretty lights for me)
Mouse/keyboard etc... - I liked my old intelimouse and the razor I’ve being using since. I see there is a HABU mouse combining the two so that a no-brainer unless you suggest otherwise?
Keyboard wise I'm not fussy, just a good responsive one for gaming. Wireless is not necessary (I hate buying batteries) I hear Sietex are good?
Sound/Amp/Speakers - I want a good sound setup for gaming/movies etc.. I'm a firm believer in a stand alone sound card over on board sound so a Creative card seems a no brainer? I currently have a set of Logitech Z-640 6 Surround Sound speakers but would consider an upgrade if needed. My main thoughts are on handling all multimedia outputs and wondered if I should consider a small Amp to plug in the consoles, tv etc...?
Software - Vista Ultimate. - I know its taking its usual time to get up to speed but since im upgrading i might as well take the plunge and a few months of pain until the DX10 games start appearing. I'm currently running win 2K.if you can believe that
One last concern is the generated heat and component reliability as the system would be running quite a lot of the time for its various uses. Do you think it’s a practical to use an overclocked PC for all this?
It seems I’ve rambled on a bit here sorry. I’d love to hear any pointers of advice
Thanks
Ian