Buyer's Guide - Entry Level, October 2004
by Jarred Walton on October 6, 2004 12:05 AM EST- Posted in
- Guides
Miscellaneous Components
We have covered all of the parts necessary for building a computer with a few exceptions. Network and audio are provided by the motherboard, and there is no reason to purchase a separate card to handle those duties. A Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS might make a nice addition to the gaming system, but we have already pushed the price of the budget gaming system up far enough. We also feel that the $80 that the Audigy 2 ZS costs could be put to better use in the graphics department, as that tends to be far more of a bottleneck than the sound processing.While it is not required, there are still instances where having a floppy drive comes in handy. Whether you want to spend the extra $10 or so is up to you, but many of us still insist on including a floppy drive in every PC. As long as you do not need to use it, you could probably care less, but for those rare occasions when you do need it, it can be a real life saver. BIOS flashing and installing hard drive controllers for XP are a couple of examples that often benefit from the presence of a floppy drive.
The last items that every computer needs are the keyboard and mouse. As before, we do not want to give a specific recommendation, as personal preference plays a large part in this area. However, we do like the Microsoft and Logitech models quite a lot. Products from both companies tend to have very good out-of-box support from Windows XP, which may not be the case with some of the other alternatives.
For the keyboard, office users might want to look into getting an ergonomic split keyboard in order to reduce the strain due to typing - most serious typists swear by them. Our one comment is that we really dislike keyboards that have the large enter key with the back slash moved elsewhere - people who have written any code or HTML can be very unhappy when certain keys are moved to the "wrong" location. If that sort of thing bothers you, remember to pay close attention to that detail when selecting a keyboard.
The only comment that we have to make about the mouse is that we really like optical mice. If you are used to an optical mouse and have to go back to an old rubber ball mouse, it can be an unpleasant experience. The precision and responsiveness of optical mice still varies, so you probably should not just get the cheapest mouse that you can find.
You can find mice and keyboards in both wired and wireless versions, and depending on your tastes, you may prefer one over the other. Wired versions are nice in that you never have to worry about batteries, but you still have to deal with the cords. Most likely, you already know what you like, so unless you are itching to try something new, you can stick with that.
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skittlekiller - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
One thing that may be useful to inform buyers of is Miscrosoft's basic $15 optical mouse. I work with these very often, I find them to almost compete with Mice like my personal MX510. They're very nice, comfortable, and cheap. They'll do everything you want them to do, and will last you forever.JarredWalton - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
ksherman - even inexpensive SFF cases can cost $200 or more, and they are usually more difficult to work with (since they're cramped). For first time buyers, it is difficult to recommend a SFF. If you know what you're doing, though, go for it. We're still looking into recommendations for a SFF System. Stay tuned.We could also cut the gaming system down to $750 while sticking with the 9800 Pro if we go with a cheaper case, monitor, 80GB HDD, and socket A. The performance will suffer a lot, though, especially in the most recent games. A 9800 Pro is still 50% faster (or more) than a 9600XT, so the extra $70 is money well spent, especially if you have any interest in gaming. If you get a 9600XT, high detail modes really are not an option for the latest generation games (Doom 3, HL2, Far Cry, etc.) That's just our opinion, though, and we do mention the 9600 Pro/XT as an option.
JarredWalton - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
I made a few minor tweaks after reading the comments. I remember reading before that the A7N8X-X was single-channel only, but it's easy to forget with the similarity in names. Still, it's not like the single-channel mode really hurts performance, but with the suggestion of dual-channel RAM, we ought to stick with a board that supports the feature. Sorry for the confusion.Regarding case and monitor, I tried to make it clear that there are a LOT of options out there, and I don't think any two components are as personal a choice as those items. If money is an issue - and on a budget sytem, it almost certainly is - check out some local computer shops. You have to pay taxes, but you save on shipping, so it usually equals out. Searching for displays - both CRT and LCD - at local stores is also a good idea, especially if you have any large electronics stores like Fryes, CompUSA, or similar in the area. They often have sales on parts that can beat any online purchase.
ksherman - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
I think that $900 for an entry level gaming system is a little much... why not use a 9600XT (which still kicks, but costs signifigantly less) and an AMD XP 2600, that only costs $75 and still performes well for games. Also, a SFF computer should be considered as an entry level PC, and should have been inluded... but otherwise, i like the review!Ballistics - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
If you are looking for a 17" CRT monitor that can do high rez at high refresh rates look no further than the Viewsonic G75F. 1600 X 1200 @68 Hz and 1280 X 1024 @ 80 Hz. Natch!thebluesgnr - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
This article shows socket A is not quite dead yet - I wonder why AnandTech completely ignored the KT880 chipset.For what it's worth, I'd recommend ASRock's K7V88 instead of the ASUS A7N8X-X. Save almost $20 for a stable board with SATA support, better sound codec.
btw, the A7N8X-X doesn't support dual-channel like page 4 of the article says.
MemberSince97 - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
Very clear and informative Jarred. A concise guide for they noobler and confused first time PC builder...jensend - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
Seagate's recent PATA drives have all been the sucks. See storagereview.com. For PATA, go Samsung P80- same price, 3-year warranty, significantly better performance (25% or greater difference in every DriveMark 2002 test), lower noise (for details on that, see silentpcreview.com). Seagate's SATA drives are considerably better and I'd call them a dead draw with Samsung's (slightly faster than the P80 SATA drives, slightly louder and slightly more expensive).Spacecomber - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
"... the NEC FE771 is the same display [as the NEC 770] only with a beige enclosure."Actually, I believe that the NEC 770 is a shadow mask monitor, and the NEC 771 uses the Diamondtron aperture grill tube. Both models came in different colors.
Just being picky. I enjoyed reading the write-up.
Space
Illissius - Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - link
Solid recommendations. Why, though, do you insist on presenting two completely seperate price guides under the guise of a single one? It would be much simpler to, rather than have two pages for everything within the same guide, seperate it into two.