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Recommend a Good Desktop Computer
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2017-09-28 at 1:52 AM UTC
Originally posted by aldra Typically you'd get the best value out of building your own, but if that's out of the question there are plenty of other options.
If cost is a concern it's possible to get second-hand ex-workforce workstations for cheap, otherwise:
For typical browsing, word processing, office etc. an Intel i5 processor will be fine - current generation is best but not necessary. I7s are significantly more expensive and you'd be unlikely to see a difference in performance, i3s are eh, price difference isn't that much but I'd only really recommend them for applications where you're concerned about power usage.
If you're running Windows 8GB should be plenty of RAM, but considering how cheap it's getting you might want to go with 16GB (will possibly help with photo/video processing depending on what sort of work you do).
Windows 10 is a nightmare in relation to 'privacy', but Windows 7 and 8 weren't really all that much better - they've just gotten that much more blatant about it. If privacy is a concern your only real option is the *nix operating systems like Linux and BSD.
If you're going to be working with media, I recommend you get a computer with a dedicated graphics card. You don't need to shell out for a 1080 or something ridiculous like that, but depending on what sort of media work you do, you will likely find the processor's integrated graphics insufficient.
I'll find a few examples to give you an idea on price
yes, building one is out of the question.
im pretty sure my several-years-old computer has an i7 now, and 8gb RAM. with 8gb im able to have several 6mb pics up at the same time before things start to bog down. another issue is im planning to buy a new camera with a significant file size increase over my current cameras to the point im going to need a large increase in capacity for that. ive been looking on photography sites for info on the basics to be able to support that camera but theyre not helping very much.
i definitely will need a decent or even high end graphics card. -
2017-09-28 at 1:56 AM UTC
Originally posted by Esplender Nigga just build your own
Originally posted by Captain Falcon Are you willing to build it yourself? It's not hard. Prebuilts are basically just shit.
Use this list to pick parts:
http://www.logicalincrements.com
then use pcpartpicker.com to cross check multiple sites for price and availability.
building my own is out of the question. i have too many projects going on as it is for something i need to be 'serviceable'...not a 'work in progress' like several other works in progress i have being worked on.
that...and the last time i built a computer was in the 90s before plug-and-play was the norm. no one that has built a computer with pnp can possibly appreciate what its like to suffer through such atrocities that building a PC were back in those days. i literally had a sticker on my desk that said something like 'what is the 'intel' sticker for? a warning label.'
edit: another reason i have for getting a prebuilt and from dell is that ive had problems in the past with computers and being able to call them to unfuck something is something ive become heavily dependent upon. a few years ago (2010?) their customer service improved exponentially over what it was from about 2005 or so...give or take.
Post last edited by infinityshock at 2017-09-28T02:02:23.595418+00:00 -
2017-09-28 at 1:57 AM UTC
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2017-09-28 at 1:59 AM UTC
Originally posted by Captain Falcon But I am pretty skeptical of the benefits of water-cooling.
the PC i have now is water cooled...but no way to check the coolant level, much less refill it. previously when i used to have high-strain files open the fan would kick on but now, recently, the fan has started kicking on sooner and at a higher speed. im suspicious that the water cooling system has failed but theres no way to find out without destructive diagnostics. -
2017-09-28 at 2:01 AM UTC
Originally posted by infinityshock yes, building one is out of the question.
im pretty sure my several-years-old computer has an i7 now, and 8gb RAM. with 8gb im able to have several 6mb pics up at the same time before things start to bog down. another issue is im planning to buy a new camera with a significant file size increase over my current cameras to the point im going to need a large increase in capacity for that. ive been looking on photography sites for info on the basics to be able to support that camera but theyre not helping very much.
i definitely will need a decent or even high end graphics card.
With RAM, a standard ATX or mini-ATX sized motherboard (ie - 90% of them) will have 4 RAM slots, and you can get a single stick of RAM of up to 16GB. If you start with 8GB or 16GB and find that it's not enough for what you want, you can easily buy another stick and plug it in.
For a GPU I don't know how much power you'd reasonably need but I'd expect that an nVidia GTX-1050 (or equivalent in the 900 series if you want to go cheaper) would be more than enough. AMD's new Vega cards are nice but they're more expensive and geared toward gayming; they run hot and use an unreasonable amount of power out of the box.
nVidia makes cards geared directly toward graphics work but they're expensive and I wouldn't bother unless you're into high-demand video editing or 3d rendering.
You might be able to get away with a cheap (<$100) workstation card but who knows. -
2017-09-28 at 2:03 AM UTC
Originally posted by infinityshock the PC i have now is water cooled…but no way to check the coolant level, much less refill it. previously when i used to have high-strain files open the fan would kick on but now, recently, the fan has started kicking on sooner and at a higher speed. im suspicious that the water cooling system has failed but theres no way to find out without destructive diagnostics.
if it's one of those AIO sealed systems you can't do much to maintain it - you can replace the fan but taking the pump/tubing assembly apart willfuck it up and it won't reseal -
2017-09-28 at 2:04 AM UTC
Originally posted by aldra With RAM, a standard ATX or mini-ATX sized motherboard (ie - 90% of them) will have 4 RAM slots, and you can get a single stick of RAM of up to 16GB. If you start with 8GB or 16GB and find that it's not enough for what you want, you can easily buy another stick and plug it in.
For a GPU I don't know how much power you'd reasonably need but I'd expect that an nVidia GTX-1050 (or equivalent in the 900 series if you want to go cheaper) would be more than enough. AMD's new Vega cards are nice but they're more expensive and geared toward gayming; they run hot and use an unreasonable amount of power out of the box.
nVidia makes cards geared directly toward graphics work but they're expensive and I wouldn't bother unless you're into high-demand video editing or 3d rendering.
You might be able to get away with a cheap (<$100) workstation card but who knows.
Originally posted by aldra With RAM, a standard ATX or mini-ATX sized motherboard (ie - 90% of them) will have 4 RAM slots, and you can get a single stick of RAM of up to 16GB. If you start with 8GB or 16GB and find that it's not enough for what you want, you can easily buy another stick and plug it in.
For a GPU I don't know how much power you'd reasonably need but I'd expect that an nVidia GTX-1050 (or equivalent in the 900 series if you want to go cheaper) would be more than enough. AMD's new Vega cards are nice but they're more expensive and geared toward gayming; they run hot and use an unreasonable amount of power out of the box.
nVidia makes cards geared directly toward graphics work but they're expensive and I wouldn't bother unless you're into high-demand video editing or 3d rendering.
You might be able to get away with a cheap (<$100) workstation card but who knows.
ive always had gaming computers that i used for graphics/video/photography and from what i could tell the two were interchangeable but from what i was reading, that may not be the case.
and all this 'virtual reality' shit theyve got out now...i dont need that nonsense. -
2017-09-28 at 2:08 AM UTC
Originally posted by aldra if it's one of those AIO sealed systems you can't do much to maintain it - you can replace the fan but taking the pump/tubing assembly apart willfuck it up and it won't reseal
i dont know what it is...its an alienware. but ive scoped it out and there are no connections that are removable without causing some sort of butt fuck rodeo. they used those heat-shrink seal/connectors and id have to cut them off just to see what kind of fittings...if any...are hiding under them. meaning, i dont know if i could use a simple SS worm clamp...or if itd have to be a heat-shrink compression clamp. once this thing shits itself for good, dissecting the liquid cooling system is at the top of my to-do list.
all i can do now is blow out the 'radiator' every once in awhile. -
2017-09-28 at 2:12 AM UTCWould you be fine buying from a "PC builder" or do you just want a straight prebuilt? Customizing something from a site like iBuyPower or Falcon Northwest something can be better for your needs than buying a Dell or whatever. FN has a good relationship for quality and support too.
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2017-09-28 at 2:17 AM UTC
Originally posted by Captain Falcon Are you willing to build it yourself? It's not hard. Prebuilts are basically just shit.
Use this list to pick parts:
http://www.logicalincrements.com
then use pcpartpicker.com to cross check multiple sites for price and availability.
im still reading that list... -
2017-09-28 at 2:18 AM UTCIf you have a Microcenter nearby, their PowerSpec PCs are pretty great value and quality too, but if not, their online store is nearly as good.
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2017-09-28 at 2:19 AM UTC
Originally posted by infinityshock ive always had gaming computers that i used for graphics/video/photography and from what i could tell the two were interchangeable but from what i was reading, that may not be the case.
mostly just a case of raw clock and memory speed for gaming vs. more memory and wider bandwidth for graphics work
it really shouldn't affect you too much unless you're into heavy video work or rendering though; ie. things that require ridiculous amounts of memory -
2017-09-28 at 2:20 AM UTCTell me a price range and I'll give you some good options
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2017-09-28 at 2:20 AM UTC
Originally posted by Captain Falcon Would you be fine buying from a "PC builder" or do you just want a straight prebuilt? Customizing something from a site like iBuyPower or Falcon Northwest something can be better for your needs than buying a Dell or whatever. FN has a good relationship for quality and support too.
there are companies out now that i never even heard of the last time i bought a computer.
the first computer i personally bought was from 'micron' or 'micronusa' or something...and i bought 4 or 5 or 6 from them. after that was a couple POSs i bought at sears that shit themselves...then dell. dell has been around forever and like i said before, theyve been good to me as far as tech help, even after my warranty expired, and giving me free shits. a lot of free shits. but then again, ive bought a lot of, LOT of, computers from them. -
2017-09-28 at 2:22 AM UTC
Originally posted by Captain Falcon Tell me a price range and I'll give you some good options
i dont have one. its cost/value/benefit ratio...but im not buying a $3,000 space-shuttle support computer. on the same note, im not buying a $300 ghetto-shitbox.
an example is cell phones...i 'need' a new one but im not buying the new note-8 for no $1,100. fuck that ridiculousness, i dont care how good they claim it is...ill keep using my stone-age note-4 until they come out with something that isnt absurd. -
2017-09-28 at 2:24 AM UTC$800-1500 I'd guess depending on needs
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2017-09-28 at 2:50 AM UTC
Originally posted by aldra $800-1500 I'd guess depending on needs
I'll go a few hundred over and recommend this as far as previously goes
http://www.microcenter.com/product/479097/G428_Desktop_Computer
The value is more than decent
I made a quick comparable individual build to compare cost here, add +$70 for the 2TB HDD:
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/tNLxpb
Pretty much the best "reasonable" PC you can buy nowadays tbh, without going overboard and having 2x 1080s or whatever... For IS's purposes, it should work great and last him many years. -
2017-09-28 at 3 AM UTC
Originally posted by Captain Falcon I'll go a few hundred over and recommend this as far as previously goes
http://www.microcenter.com/product/479097/G428_Desktop_Computer
The value is more than decent
I made a quick comparable individual build to compare cost here, add +$70 for the 2TB HDD:
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/tNLxpb
Pretty much the best "reasonable" PC you can buy nowadays tbh, without going overboard and having 2x 1080s or whatever… For IS's purposes, it should work great and last him many years.
that one seems decent...with decent reviews...while not being ridiculously overpriced.
im still (still) going through that link of the table with all the components. -
2017-09-28 at 3:05 AM UTC
Originally posted by Captain Falcon I'll go a few hundred over and recommend this as far as previously goes
http://www.microcenter.com/product/479097/G428_Desktop_Computer
The value is more than decent
I made a quick comparable individual build to compare cost here, add +$70 for the 2TB HDD:
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/tNLxpb
Pretty much the best "reasonable" PC you can buy nowadays tbh, without going overboard and having 2x 1080s or whatever… For IS's purposes, it should work great and last him many years.
he's not going to need a 1080ti for photo and video editing; also I'd expect the i7-7700 to be massive overkill -
2017-09-28 at 3:12 AM UTC
Originally posted by aldra he's not going to need a 1080ti for photo and video editing; also I'd expect the i7-7700 to be massive overkill
I think it'll give him convenient longevity. I would be a better value to just build a mid range PC and do mid range upgrades as time goes by but since he's not willing to build, I'm also guessing he doesn't give enough of a shit to upgrade every other year.
