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Thread ID: 47019	2004-07-13 02:34:00	Where to from here - Upgrades	chiefnz (545)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
251975	2004-07-13 02:34:00	Well I think I finally have my machine more or less where I want it. P4 - 2.8Ghz Prescott Asus P4P800-SE mobo 1GB SD DDR 400 (running in dual channel mode) Gigabyte Radeon 9600XT (128MB) Acer AL511 15" LCD SB Live! 5.1 audio card 120GB Seagate SATA hard drive 80GB Seagate IDE hard drive Samsung CD/RW Samsung DVD-ROM Pioneer DVD/RW dual mode Running Windows XP Home I'm pretty happy with the machine as is. Although I have to say that maybe I need to upgrade the sound card and possibly the graphics card (in a few months.) If I was to upgrade it would definitely be the sound card first although I have no real gripes with SB Live! it's a good solid card and I haven't had any problems with it. Another thing I want to add is 1394 support, it's probably going to be an add-on card but then again if I get an Audigy sound card or somehing I won't have to worry about that. So what do you think guys.. what do you suggest for the next upgrade? cheers chiefnz	chiefnz (545)
251976	2004-07-13 02:35:00	Oh I forgot to mention that i will be installing Fedora on the 80GB drive soon. cheers chiefnz	chiefnz (545)
251977	2004-07-13 02:58:00	The suggestion that you are considering upgrading your graphics card leads me to believe you pay new games, so my only suggestion would be a 17" LCD with a low response time :-)	Marlboro (4607)
251978	2004-07-13 04:16:00	CD Rom wouldnt go a miss as you only have a Samsung CD/RW and a Samsung DVD-ROM and a Pioneer DVD/RW dual mode, do you have two more slots for another gig of ram. ps. let us know if you are selling your old graphics card Rob	Rob99 (151)
251979	2004-07-13 04:35:00	> CD Rom wouldnt go a miss as you only have a Samsung > CD/RW and a Samsung DVD-ROM and a Pioneer DVD/RW dual > mode, do you have two more slots for another gig of > ram. > > ps. let us know if you are selling your old graphics > card > > Rob Why would you need a CD-ROM? I'd actually sell the CD-RW to free up some cash as the DVD-RW should be able to write CD. All that extra drive is doing is wasting power and willing be causing the PATA drive to run at ATA66 speeds. Theres no need to upgrade your sound card unless you can actually hear a noticable differance, id be willing to bet you cant. A good soundcard is only as good as your speakers, perhaps consider a nice set of 5.1's? If your a gamer then that graphics card will be the thing holding you back, its a relatively new chip so im assuming you brought it recently. To get the best preformance out of your system you really want a high end video card as apposed to a mid level card. It would be a good idea to hold off for a while and look at something such as the Geforce 6800GT or ATI Radeon X800pro. Both are new cards and offer roughly twice the preformance of a 9800pro, if they look a lil bit to expensive for your taste the Radeon 9800Pro offers awsome value for money at the moment, rumors have it that both ATI and nVidia are going to release a new mid-range card with 8 pipelines very soon that should offer 9800 performance @ 9600 prices.	Pete O'Neil (250)
251980	2004-07-13 04:57:00	Well you've already got it pretty fast already. You could always overclock a little, as if it isn't fast enough! I would get XP Pro as that's much more efficient than Home edition. Seems like you are striving to waste your money. I suggest saving it for a more worthwhile cause like a holiday overseas :|	kiki (762)
251981	2004-07-13 05:08:00	Thanks for all the comments guys. Yes I do have 2 spare slots for an extra gig of RAM but I think i have enough. I do play a significant number of games but mainly strategy but I do have Far Cry and 1 or two other graphics hogs. I'm also using a Creative Inspire 5.1 speaker system. Well I think I'm going to take kiki's advice... time to save some $$$ and take a long vacation to soak up some sun. cheers chiefnz	chiefnz (545)
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