Hi gang, still doing research and mulling over all the info y’all have provided me with. Lots to digest! I’m still pondering drachillix’s build and his excellent offer. A little nervous about going “off the reservation” (e.g. not going with a well-known brand) for something this big, but I really want to make a smart purchase.
Speaking of well-known brands, is HP considered a bad brand these days?
Superhal: Is it true that buying two $500 systems over four years (hypothetically) would be a better investment than a $1000 system – with presumably fairly top-drawer components – for four years? Seems like this would result in having two so-so systems for four years, rather than one great system for the first two years and a mediocre system for the remaining two. No?
(Yeah, in case you’re wondering, I’m not exactly a genius at budgeting…)
I’m inclined to agree with your assessment on this. Not everything on a computer is oudated that quickly - the power supply and case will be roughly the same and same price in 2 years, the amount of ram will probably stay the same, etc. If you’re talking about building whole new systems (rather than reusing what you can and replacing the motherboard/cpu/etc), you’d end up spending twice on the basics and when you’re trying to squeeze out a $500 system every dollar counts.
I’d rather have the $1000 system for 4 years than two for $500 generally.
Just thought I’d update y’all. Using the sage guidance from everyone here, with special kudos for going above and beyond to Giraffe and SenorBeef (both of whom were truly generous with their advice), I’ve ordered the following system from the very helpful & accommodating drachillix:
AMD x4 955 processor
8GB DDR3 1333 RAM
1TB Western digital SATA 3.0 hard drive
Windows 7 home premium 64 bit
Asus motherboard ASUS M4N75TD - AM3 - GF750a - ATX
eVGA GTX 460 1GB DDR5
Cooler Master Mid Tower case
500W Antec PSU
24X LG DVD/RW
No monitor, keyboard or mouse, since I have 'em already. Though I splurged a bit more than my original budget due to the extra RAM, beefier PSU and full-size motherboard, nevertheless it’s still a very reasonable cost for the machine I’m getting. Most importantly I think it’ll be a system that can keep me in good stead for the next few years, allowing for upgrades when warranted.
Once it arrives, I’ll report back. Be prepared for some GQ posts asking for advice on moving/installing 233 GB of data from my old system to the new one.
Woohoo! Portal 2 and Deux Ex 3, I’ll be ready for you!