Spec me a pc....and a laptop??

africano · 14 Mar 2008 at 00:00

Hi to everyone, new here at the forums. Basically Id like everyones advice on what to spend my money on. Id like to buy a powerfull pc and also get myself a nifty laptop.....all for about 1,536 pounds. Now I was thinking of spending some on a desktop and may be investing the rest on a macbook(other type of mac better??). Ive never had a mac and would like to get one. Although Im not too sure and might go for a conventional laptop instead.

Now the pc I mostly use for Multimedia work, Photoshop, 3D graphics work, video editing,etc. Ide like something which can handle these aspects of work...fitting inside my budget.

Ive studied digital media development and have realised lots of jobs requier experience with macs...thats why Ive thought of investing on a macbook, but theyre really expensive so Im not sure......

Well I cant wait to hear all your SPECS, thanks for the help and I appreaciate it a lot,

Cheers.
Jose

steve258 · 14 Mar 2008 at 00:27

Not sure about mac but if you head over to the mac hardware section I'm sure they'll be able to spec you one but AFAIK you'll be looking at about £700 for a Mac book so leaves you just over £800 to spend on a desktop, assuming you need the whole lot including screen, speakers, k/b & mouse, something along the line of:

Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - OEM
£125.99 (£148.04)

OcUK Value L-2041W 20" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black
£99.99 (£117.49)

Corsair HX 520W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU (CMPSU-520HXUK)
£59.99 (£70.49)

OcUK GeForce 8800 GT 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail
£109.99 (£129.24)

G.Skill 4GB DDR2 PQ PC2-8000C5 (2x2GB) CAS5 Dual Channel Kit (F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ)
£59.99 (£70.49)

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
£55.99 (£65.79)

Samsung SpinPoint T 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (HD501LJ)
£52.99 (£62.26)

Samsung SH-S203D 20x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM
£14.99 (£17.61)

Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775)
£14.99 (£17.61)

Logitech Cordless Desktop EX 110 - Retai
£16.99 (£19.96)

Logitech S-120 2.0 Speaker System - OEM (980-000011)
£4.99 (£5.86)

Antec Solo Quiet Mini Tower Case - No PSU
£51.99 (£61.09)

Sub Total : £668.88
Shipping : £14.95
VAT : £119.67
Total : £803.50

radderfire · 14 Mar 2008 at 00:38

Do you really need both? If you get a decent MacBook / MacBook Pro then it should be able to do everything you need. You can run Parallels or VMWare on it if you need Windows Vista.

I'm writing this on a Toshiba Satellite Pro A200 that cost £700, and whilst hardware-wise it's very capable, very speedy can run loads of apps etc, I haven't been overjoyed with the Windows Vista user experience so far, including the fact that the laptop has crashed once after a Windows update.

africano · 14 Mar 2008 at 17:15

Thanks all, Steve cheers for being so specific, just what I need........Now what if I spent 1,155 Pounds and just bought a desktop? Would you spec me the same system?
Would you make any changes?
Would it be wise to invest a little more and get a better system?
** Last time I bought a pc the Dual core processors were out, is the one youve chosen a dual core or what new technology does it use?

billybob89 · 14 Mar 2008 at 17:19

its quad core he has specd

steve258 · 14 Mar 2008 at 22:54

TBH £1000 max is all you need to spend on a desktop.

For the extra cash I'd probably get a better case and speakers, perhaps a better motherboard and a Tuniq Tower 120/Thermalright Ultra-120 if you intend to overclock. If there's any cash left then a 8800GTS 512.

africano · 17 Mar 2008 at 08:07

Ok, I think Ive decided to spend 1000 pounds on a desktop. Please can you spec me something and make any changes that you feel would give me a better system.

What about the processor, any good? is it dual core?

africano · 17 Mar 2008 at 08:34

Im looking around for the components, Cause Im not in the UK so maybe wont be able to buy from Overclockers.... Cant find the Intel COre 2 Quad PRO...can only find Intel Core 2 Quad.... Is there a difference??

What would be a better case,and what else would you change for a better system in my budget of 1000 pounds?

steve258 · 17 Mar 2008 at 13:07

Something like:

Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - OEM
£125.99 (£148.04)

G.Skill 4GB DDR2 PQ PC2-8000C5 (2x2GB) CAS5 Dual Channel Kit (F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ)
£59.99 (£70.49)

Point of View GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (8717344966320)
£137.99 (£162.14)

Samsung SpinPoint T 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (HD501LJ)
£48.99 (£57.56)

Samsung SH-S203D 20x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM
£14.99 (£17.61)

Tuniq Tower 120 CPU Cooler (Socket 478/754/939/940/AM2/LGA775)
£27.99 (£32.89)

Antec P182 Super Midi Tower Case - No PSU (Gun Metal Black)
£78.99 (£92.81)

Corsair HX 520W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU (CMPSU-520HXUK)
£59.99 (£70.49)

Hyundai ImageQuest H22Wd 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black/Silver
£124.99 (£146.86)

Logitech Cordless Desktop S 510 - Retail
£29.99 (£35.24)

Logitech Z-4e 2.1 Speaker System (970175-0120)
£44.99 (£52.86)

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
£64.99 (£76.36)

Sub Total : £819.88
Shipping : £27.29
VAT : £148.25
Total : £995.42

No there is only the Core 2 Quad Q6600 or Q6700 not sure why OCUK feel the need to add PRO at the end. And no it's not a dual core it's a quad core.

Popular cases are the Antec 900/P192, Akasa Zen/Eclipse and Lian-Li PC7. It's more to do with personal preference so you can pretty much pick anything that meets your eyes as long as it is a suitable size, has adequate case cooling and has enough expansion space for your needs.

Again keyboard/mouse, speakers you can pick pretty much what you like.