MY FINAL CONFIGURATION!!!

[Toocool]

AMD 64 - 3500+ (64 bit 939 pin)
ASUS A8N-E
512MB-DDR-400 ( 2 )
Seagate 160GB - SATA ( 2 )
Lite-On DVD Writer 16xD 16x, Dual Layer
Sony DVD-Drive 16x DVD + 52x RW
SMPS (and Cabinet) 500 watts (Power Safe)
Logitech SET - C.Less Blk Total Cordless w/Opti M
Samsung TFT Monitor 17"
Logitech z5300 (5.1 Speakers)
Geforce 6600 (Big)

This is my final config.. Need help regarding a few issues..

The price difference between AMD 3500+ and 3200+ is around 2k.. worth it?

DVD writer is between Sony, BenQ and Lite-On.. Which is the best one?

What is the cost of a cheapest Antec Cabinet and SMPS.. Please gimme seperate price..

Cordless or with cord keyboard and mouse?

I dont have too much of an idea about speakers.. The price of Creative 5.1 speaker is around 4.5k whereas the price of Logitech z5300 is around 11k.. Is it worth spending nearly 7k more? Are there any other good speakers in this range? Altec Lansing etc?

I am not too much into gaming... But after i get my New rig.. i want to try out a few games.. Decided upon the Big Geforce 6600.. Digit gave the particular Graphics card a high rating.. What do u say abt it? Any other suggestions?

And last but not the least about the Headphones (with mic) which is the best.. I dont need a cordless one.. People recommend altec lansing.. If yes then which model?

Any other suggestions? Please post it.. It will be of great help..

Note that i am not into gaming.. But i am mostly into web designing and graphics (i use photoshop a lot) But i am gonna try out a few games like Counter Strike, doom3 etc once i get my new rig..

I hope someone can help me with my questions..

Thanks in Advance..

Cheers

 

[Keith Sebastian]

Lite-On DVD Writer 16xD 16x, Dual Layer
Sony DVD-Drive 16x DVD + 52x RW

Do you need both? BTW, Sony and Liteon are same drives (Sony=Liteon rebadged). Both have slow detection (once you stick in the disc, it takes atleast 8 secs to start reading). Not many problems otherwise. Pioneers make high quality, vibration free, smooth drives. Excellent quality, but not the fastest.

Keith

 

[Toocool]

Lite-On DVD Writer 16xD 16x, Dual Layer

Sony DVD-Drive 16x DVD + 52x RW

I am going for a DVD writer and a DVD-CDRW combo drive..

 

[Chirag]

Keyboard and Mouse shld be corded bcoz of the battrieds in them they becomes heavy. And u r not going to sit away frm pc with ur keyboard. If u want u can go for cordless mouse but i prefer corded mouse and keyboard.

Cheers

 

[Toocool]

Thanks.. Can i please get answer for my other queries please???

 

[mohit]

@toocool

No use buying a separate dvd-rw and combo drive. buy a separate dvd-rw and a dvd-rom if u want to keep 2 drives. as ur dvd-rw will also write cd's. and ya sony dru-810a is the best model at present. go for sony drives (both dvd-rom n dvd-rw).

both the 3500+ and 3200+ have 512 KB L2 cache , so i dont suggest spending 2k more just for 200mhz increase in speed. do take others suggestions also here.

For smps powersafe is decent but then antec is d best. An Antec True Power 2.0 400W will be around 3500/- . the cheapest antec cabbies are the sonata series for around 3000/- (approx). Use any cabinet but buy an antec smps.

Cordless KB/Mouse if u have the money else stick to corded.. doesnt make sense for me as i will neva be comfortable operating my system sitting on my bed. it all depends on ur pereferences.

Speakers i suggest the following , all are 5.1 setups ,
around 6000 = Altec Lansing VS3151R
around 8,000 = Altec Lansing GT5051R (these are amazing)

BIG cards are very decent and perform well too. they are sourced from the same supplier of BFG which are the best worldwide. I suggest going for a 6600gt though instead of a vanilla 6600. BIG 6600GT 128MB DDR3 is for 8500+taxes. Save on your procc , speakers , cordless kb setup and buy a decent gpu. it will be a better decision.

Make sure u buy the Samsung 710 N TFT and not any other model.

Go for a SATA 2 HDD instead of SATA. SATA 2 is available from Hitachi n Samsung. The price diff is neglible.

 

[Toocool]

Wow.. thanks a lot mohit..

Will search around for the Altec Lansing GT5051R if they are good looking then i am happy with them..

yeh i am buying the Smasung syncmaster 710N..

Also as i run lot of applications at a time.. Would you suggest me to wait for say a month and get the dual core processors (amd 3800+ x2) For example i run Macromedia Dreamweaver, Photoshop, flashFXP (ftp client) at a time.. Sometimes i have to run those applications along with all the 3 browsers (firefox, IE and opera) at a time.. And over that all the Instant messengers (yahoo, msn, aol, google talk) are alwayz running in the background too.. What do u say?

 

[Toocool]

The wireless remote in Altec Lansing GT5051R is cool.. But not happy with the look of the speakers.. If the speakers are indeed very good and can match logitech z5300 then.. I will go for it..

 

[mohit]

if u can wait then do wait and get a dual core procc .. but they will be costly .. almost double the price .. keep that in mind. i think the current rig will suffice. if u want even more speed then increase the ram further or go for ultra low latecy modules such as the kingston hyper x series or corsair low latency series. they are priced around double the normal price of ram but offer amazing perfomance. corsair had probs with this particular asus board so i suggest kingston here.

 

[Toocool]

I guess AMD 3800+ x2 will be priced at around 17k right? The price of AMD 4200+ has dropped too.. Its around 23k..

 

[mohit]

I guess AMD 3800+ x2 will be priced at around 17k right? The price of AMD 4200+ has dropped too.. Its around 23k..

yup those are the approx prices. and hey i found the altec lansing gt5051r real neat n space saving. anyways upto u buddy. do take a demo of the speakers before buying them.

 

[Toocool]

Ok cool.. Any other speakers u suggest? what about Lansing GT5051R vs logitech z5300 which one would u suggesT?

 

[mohit]

umm i have no first hand experience on both of them .. so cant really suggest here. do wait for somebody else to reply. or pm suave_guy , he is the best when it comes to speakers ...where r u suave ??

 

[Toocool]

can u gimme more info on SATA 2.. Seagate sata 2 HDD are available?

 

[mohit]

can u gimme more info on SATA 2.. Seagate sata 2 HDD are available?

Nopes Seagate hasnt yet made available any SATA 2 drives. SATA 2 offers double the transfer rate of SATA i.e 3Gb/s (Gigabits/sec) . Hitachi is a very decent brand offering 5 years warranty. Hitachi 160 GB SATA 2 is for around 4800/- and 80GB SATA 2 for around 3500/-. Do check them out.

 

[Toocool]

Yeh sure will check them out.. thanks a lot mohit for helping me out..

 

[mohit]

u r most welcome ..happy computing

 

[Toocool]

and u know what.. altec lansing gt5051r has been rated as the Best Performance (gold award) from Chip-India magazine (august issue).. thanks..

 

[Toocool]

hey and one more thing... altec lansing GT5051 is a 2.1 speaker???

 

[mohit]

hey and one more thing... altec lansing GT5051 is a 2.1 speaker???

nopes it is a 5.1 setup but with some real advanced technology. they have the rear speakers right on top of the front ones. u can se them in any mode 2 channel , 4 channel or 5.1.

The GT5051 is a genuine 5.1 surround sound system with a twist. The "rear" speakers sit on top of the "front" speakers, so there are no rear speaker wires to deal with. Altec Lansing’s patent-pending Side- Firing Surround™ technology enables vertical stacking because it provides the reflected surround sound that makes music or sound effects rich and immediate. The top speakers are situated at the optimal angle to deliver the clashes, the zooms, and all the sonic nuances—complete with sharp highs and clean midtones. Full-bodied sounds come from the bottom or "front" speakers. A center channel offers crystal-clear movie dialog, while a ported subwoofer completes the sound spectrum with low-frequency, full-throated bass you can feel. Whether you’re a gamer, movie aficionado, or music lover, you’ll appreciate the elegant simplicity and no-holds-barred sound quality of the Altec Lansing GT5051 speaker system.

thats what their website says, check the following link,
*www.alteclansing.com/product_details_intl.asp?pID=GT5051R&region=asiapac&country_code=in