What would you do with $600?

[noobz1lla]

I was just thinking about the possible future of my system.

Calculating the difference in price of a core I7 system and a core I5 system.



My ostentatious I7 system comes in at $1,950. It's basically an 160gig SSD, I7/mobo/ram combo, GTX 480, and a few other parts.

Vs.

The frugal system for $1,350 which includes a SSD,i5/mobo/ram, GTX 470, and a few other parts.


The difference in the two systems is basically $600. What would you do with $600?

 

[idejason]

Buy a new video card.

 

[noobz1lla]

Buy a new video card.

Lol, Both systems already have video cards.
My question was really meant to open it up.
It doesn't have to be computer related. You could spend the $600 on tacos if you wanted. I just wanted to know what you guys would do with that money.

Other options.

-Go to the casino and try to make it $1200

-Buy a handgun/rifle

-go to Vegas

-Save it (ehhh)

-buy a water-cooling setup

 

[Wolfshadw]

Scrap the SSD and go with a standard hard drive. With the $300 - $350 saved there plus the $600 saved on the I5 system, I'd be REAL close to getting a 1080p projector.

-Wolf sends

 

[anonymousdude]

Get a second gtx 470 or take the money from both the cards and get dual 5970's. Either that or use it to get a kick ass monitor to compliment your new system.

 

[noobz1lla]

Get a second gtx 470 or take the money from both the cards and get dual 5970's. Either that or use it to get a kick ass monitor to compliment your new system.

What monitor would you suggest? I've been using a 50in 720p plasma for the past 4 years as my PC monitor. Do you think using a HDTV as a monitor is as good as say using something like a Dell Ultra-sharp?
What's better for gaming LCD at 120hz or Plasma at 600hz?

 

[noobz1lla]

Scrap the SSD and go with a standard hard drive. With the $300 - $350 saved there plus the $600 saved on the I5 system, I'd be REAL close to getting a 1080p projector.

-Wolf sends

I kind of wanted to wait for SSd's to get cheaper but I've read a lot of people's reviews that say a SSD is the single biggest upgrade that they could notice on a daily basis.

 

[cobot]

What monitor would you suggest? I've been using a 50in 720p plasma for the past 4 years as my PC monitor. Do you think using a HDTV as a monitor is as good as say using something like a Dell Ultra-sharp?
What's better for gaming LCD at 120hz or Plasma at 600hz?

If you're planning to keep using that 720p plasma as your monitor, both systems you have proposed are so much overkill it aint even funny.

I vote for a new monitor...

 

[noobz1lla]

Yes I want to get a new monitor but I can figure out if Plasma or LCD is better for gaming.

 

[noobz1lla]

get rid of the ssd and get this: http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/products/Displays/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=bsd&cs=04&sku=224-8284

My question is will an LCD like that perform much better than say a top-of-the-line LED/LCD HDTV when it comes to color and motion?

Also i like that 2560X1440. But will most games even support that resolution in the video settings?

 

[OvrClkr]

I would keep the SSD for the OS and games, buy a 1TB 64mb Caviar Black and buy a second 470. With the change I would buy a full tower case that can keep both 470's nice n cool.

That is IF you have a monitor to push both cards, if not then I would opt for a nice 27" LCD/1TB hard drive and save the change for a game or two...

 

[brennon7]

Three monitors. ditch the 480 or 470. they require 2 cards to run 3 monitors. Get a 5870 and 3 1080p monitors.

 

[noobz1lla]

OK thanks guy. I guess I'll be getting another Panasonic plasma. I just need to decide which one. And I guess if I'm playing at only 1920/1080 then a GTX 470 will run just fine. No need to opt for the 480 unless I get a 2560/1600 monitor.

I mean I really like PC monitors it's just that I use my PC as a HTPC and as a gaming machine. So I don't have a desk setup where I could put a PC monitor. I mean unless I built two machines. Kept my old PC as a HTPC hooked upto my plasma and built my new PC hooked upto a 24in Dell.

Hmmmm..

 

[OvrClkr]

Three monitors. ditch the 480 or 470. they require 2 cards to run 3 monitors. Get a 5870 and 3 1080p monitors.

3 decent monitors and a single 5870 will come out to around 1k$.

The OP's budget is not enough

And the fact that a single 5870 will not push all 3 monitors with high xAA and xAF.

 

[i4yue]

I was just thinking about the possible future of my system.

Calculating the difference in price of a core I7 system and a core I5 system.



My ostentatious I7 system comes in at $1,950. It's basically an 160gig SSD, I7/mobo/ram combo, GTX 480, and a few other parts.

Vs.

The frugal system for $1,350 which includes a SSD,i5/mobo/ram, GTX 470, and a few other parts.


The difference in the two systems is basically $600. What would you do with $600?

invest it??? invest $600 and in 10 years it'll turn into 10k.

what would you do with 10k?

 

[noobz1lla]

invest it??? invest $600 and in 10 years it'll turn into 10k.

what would you do with 10k?

Oh please tell me how to invest $600 and make it into 10k in 10 years without doing anything illegal?

I'm listening. In fact I have a more than just $600 to invest. If you could turn 50k into 500k in 10 years I will give you 50k of it. Sound fair?

Please enlighten me. It's just sitting around gathering dust and de-vauling.

 

[brennon7]

3 decent monitors and a single 5870 will come out to around 1k$.

The OP's budget is not enough

And the fact that a single 5870 will not push all 3 monitors with high xAA and xAF.

You're right about the 1k$; however, his build already included a 480 or 470 gtx hence 400 -500 dollars. So 400 to 500 + 600 = 1k$. a 5870 will play most games at the highest resolution without AA. I personally have two 5850s in crossfire and can basically play at the HIGHEST RESOLUTIONS WITH 4X AA on 3 montiors with every game. Crysis on gamer settings and high with no AA

My videos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPk67UmiWp0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjxpGOuW9B4

single 5870 benchmarks on eyefinity

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhAqTecVXbE

 

[OvrClkr]

You're right about the 1k$; however, his build already included a 480 or 470 gtx hence 400 -500 dollars. So 400 to 500 + 600 = 1k$. a 5870 will play most games at the highest resolution without AA. I personally have two 5850s in crossfire and can basically max out 3 montiors with every game. Crysis on gamer settings and high.

My videos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPk67UmiWp0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjxpGOuW9B4

single 5870 benchmarks on eyefinity

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhAqTecVXbE

You didn't max out the game (Dirt2), you gave the game 4x AA, give it 16x and watch your FPS drop =)

You also didn't max out BC2, you gave it "HIGH" settings instead of going into "ADVANCED" settings and raising the AA =)

If you have a 480 why would you not raise the AA? That is the whole point of getting the card, the 480 is superb especially when AA is enabled.

 

[brennon7]

@ OvrClkr- can you tell the difference in 4x AA and 16? NO. Both games are at 4x AA at MAX resolutions. name ONE or TWO cards together that can max out the AA at 5760 x 1080.

You can't! Because NONE EXIST. LOL.

 

[OvrClkr]

That is my point, so NO you are not maxing out the game.

With dual 5870's you CAN max out the game, it all comes down to raising the CPU clock to about lets say 4.3Ghz / overvolting the GPU's by about 7% / overclocking the GPU's by about 14% =)

Yes I can tell the difference between 4x and 16x you just have to make sure you have v-sync enabled for crisper images. Does it matter if you have it between 4x and 16x, NO but it is far from saying that 4x is "maxing" out a game.

BTW, nice setup you have there

 

[tecmo34]

@OvrClkr... Who let you in the Homebuilt Forum?? You doing your newer moderator duties Glad to see you made it to our world of homebuilt PC fun.

@OP... I say invest the $600 in me so I can purchase my third GTX 260 for TRI-SLI and add a second 24" monitor to my setup. This is just my recommendation for you [:mousemonkey:5].

Seriously, I would for most upgrade you monitor. Even though you have a 50" monitor at 720p, I'm getting a crisper image running games at 1920x1200 on my 24" monitor. I have more pixels per square inch which makes the image look better. I have never been fond of gaming on monitor's designed for TV's as the bigger they are with the same amount of pixels, the less "clear" they are in gaming. Plus, I sit a few feet away from my PC and 50" is a lot to look at that close, specially in FPS.

 

[OvrClkr]

@OvrClkr... Who let you in the Homebuilt Forum?? You doing your newer moderator duties Glad to see you made to our world of homebuilt PC fun.

@OP... I say invest the $600 in me so I can purchase my third GTX 260 for TRI-SLI and add a second 24" monitor to my setup. This is just my recommendation for you [:mousemonkey:5]. Seriously, I would for most upgrade you monitor. Even though you have a 50" monitor at 720p, I'm getting a crisper image running games at 1920x1200 on my 24" monitor. I have more pixels per square inch which makes the image look getter. I have never been fond of gaming on monitor's designed for TV's as the bigger they are with the same amount of pixels, the less "clear" theybare in gaming. Plus, I sit a few feet away from my PC and 50" is a lot to look at that close, specially in FPS.

Hey buddy, yea I thought I would pass by the "Homebuilt" forum just to see whats going on

Just trying to help out the OP, it is hard to choose what you would spend the extra change on. Too many options ATM...

As far as gaming on a TV vs an LCD, I would use the TV strictly for consoles and the LCD's for desktops. I have played on my LCD TV and you have to sit too far away to compensate for detail loss just like you pointed out..

 

[noobz1lla]

Yes I would like to game on an LCD instead of a giant HDTV but I also use my PC as a HTPC. When I have people over we watch movies on the screen. And it would be a pain in the arse if not impossible to crowd around even a 30in monitor.

Even though I know LCD monitors will look better I really can't get one. First of all I don't even have a desk

So as far as my options are concerned I can either get a LED/LCD TV or I can get a plasma. I'm leaning towards plasma because from what I understand plasma will handle motion better and have less input lag than a LCDTV.

Either way 1080p will be a huge upgrade from 720p I'm playing at now. And anything has to be better than the 57hz refresh rate my monitor has