It's long past time to replace my current (horrendously outdated) system. I think I'm nearly ready to order, but I'm having trouble deciding on a monitor, so I have two questions about the build that follows:
1. Is the proposed system good bang for the buck, or are there some swaps I should make to get better performance or better future-proofing? I was hoping to get a Q9450, but can't find them in stock anywhere, so I ended up settling on an E8400 for the time being.
2. What resolution can this machine reasonably handle in modern games not beginning with "C" and ending with "rysis"? Should I be looking at 20"-22" (1680x1050) monitors, or would a 24" (1900x1200) be a good buy? And any suggestions for good LCDs I should investigate?
Following is the current plan. I'll be dual-booting Vista and Ubuntu.
You probably won't want to be running Crysis at full resolution because of the low framerates you will get on high or medium/ high. So the choice is up to you, and if I had the choice, I would say bigger is better. But many people would disagree. Flip a coin or something.
Most games would run great with a 22" 1650x1050 screen with the 8800GTS.
What monitor to get depends on your budget.
For around $300 you can get a good Samsung 22" screen (Touch of Color).
For around $500 you can get a Samsung 245B (24" 1920x1200).
More 24":
Dell 2408 FPW
Samsung 245T
HP 2465
If you like to watch movies I recommend the 24" screen (FullHD).
