April 2007 Buyers' Guides: Budget and Midrange Configurations
by Jarred Walton on April 20, 2007 7:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Guides
Closing Thoughts
As usual, it after configuring four different systems and mentioning a variety of alternative parts, we've hardly scratched the surface of the possibilities out there. There are plenty of additional components that we neglected to cover - TV tuners for example - but the majority of such devices can easily be added to a system after the fact. As far as specific component choices go, particularly in regards to processors, we consider the models we listed in the budget and midrange configurations as being the upper and lower ends of what we would recommend. If you want to spend a bit less or a bit more money and choose a different CPU, by all means feel free to do so.
The one area that we have neglected in this Buyers' Guide is coverage of the high-end segment. We thought about including a high-end configuration, considering it has been quite a while since we last looked at that area, but the truth is if you didn't feel the need to upgrade to an Intel quad core processor when they first became available, we certainly wouldn't do so right now. Intel is readying Penryn and we should also see some dramatic price cuts on quad core processors within the next couple of months. Imagine getting a Q6600 for the current price of an E6600 and you'll have an idea of what's in store. AMD on the other hand really doesn't deserve much consideration in the high-end market right now. The fastest AMD chips are easily outperformed by the top Core 2 Duo/Core 2 Quad offerings. We aren't at all interested in 4x4 at present, so we're basically waiting with baited breath for the launch of Barcelona. We also mentioned the pending launch of AMD's R600 graphics chips, so basically on the truly high-end configurations we think you should wait at least a couple months before deciding how to spend thousands of dollars on a new computer.
Compared to a year ago, things have basically flip-flopped. At that time, AMD's Athlon X2 chips were the undisputed speed champions, but they were more expensive than the various Intel offerings. If you were looking at getting a budget dual core setup last year, Pentium D was quite attractive, but most enthusiasts really wanted to get Athlon X2. Not only was it faster, but it ran cooler as well. Now, Core 2 Duo is faster and runs cooler but Athlon X2 has gotten a lot less pricey. As an inexpensive but full-featured platform, socket AM2 currently holds the advantage over the various socket 775 offerings. Meanwhile, with AMD purchasing ATI, we don't expect to see much in the way of ATI IGP solutions for Core 2, but there's definitely room for someone like NVIDIA to release a serious competitor to G965.
Looking at the last year in retrospect, the one sentiment that trumps all others has to be this: competition is a wonderful thing! Were it not for AMD's successful K8 processor, the best Intel CPUs might still be using NetBurst (and pulling double duty as space heaters). Now we need to see how AMD responds. Competition in the graphics card segment has also been fierce, though unfortunately high-performance midrange solutions aren't as readily available as in the processor market. We hope to see that change soon, and maybe if we're lucky we will actually get some DX10 games to play with.
As usual, it after configuring four different systems and mentioning a variety of alternative parts, we've hardly scratched the surface of the possibilities out there. There are plenty of additional components that we neglected to cover - TV tuners for example - but the majority of such devices can easily be added to a system after the fact. As far as specific component choices go, particularly in regards to processors, we consider the models we listed in the budget and midrange configurations as being the upper and lower ends of what we would recommend. If you want to spend a bit less or a bit more money and choose a different CPU, by all means feel free to do so.
The one area that we have neglected in this Buyers' Guide is coverage of the high-end segment. We thought about including a high-end configuration, considering it has been quite a while since we last looked at that area, but the truth is if you didn't feel the need to upgrade to an Intel quad core processor when they first became available, we certainly wouldn't do so right now. Intel is readying Penryn and we should also see some dramatic price cuts on quad core processors within the next couple of months. Imagine getting a Q6600 for the current price of an E6600 and you'll have an idea of what's in store. AMD on the other hand really doesn't deserve much consideration in the high-end market right now. The fastest AMD chips are easily outperformed by the top Core 2 Duo/Core 2 Quad offerings. We aren't at all interested in 4x4 at present, so we're basically waiting with baited breath for the launch of Barcelona. We also mentioned the pending launch of AMD's R600 graphics chips, so basically on the truly high-end configurations we think you should wait at least a couple months before deciding how to spend thousands of dollars on a new computer.
Compared to a year ago, things have basically flip-flopped. At that time, AMD's Athlon X2 chips were the undisputed speed champions, but they were more expensive than the various Intel offerings. If you were looking at getting a budget dual core setup last year, Pentium D was quite attractive, but most enthusiasts really wanted to get Athlon X2. Not only was it faster, but it ran cooler as well. Now, Core 2 Duo is faster and runs cooler but Athlon X2 has gotten a lot less pricey. As an inexpensive but full-featured platform, socket AM2 currently holds the advantage over the various socket 775 offerings. Meanwhile, with AMD purchasing ATI, we don't expect to see much in the way of ATI IGP solutions for Core 2, but there's definitely room for someone like NVIDIA to release a serious competitor to G965.
Looking at the last year in retrospect, the one sentiment that trumps all others has to be this: competition is a wonderful thing! Were it not for AMD's successful K8 processor, the best Intel CPUs might still be using NetBurst (and pulling double duty as space heaters). Now we need to see how AMD responds. Competition in the graphics card segment has also been fierce, though unfortunately high-performance midrange solutions aren't as readily available as in the processor market. We hope to see that change soon, and maybe if we're lucky we will actually get some DX10 games to play with.
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Zepper - Monday, April 23, 2007 - link
You don't have to pay a lot for a decent PSU. The iStar TC-350PD1 is under $40 right now on sale. Even Athenatech has some lower end cases with Fortron/Sparkle PSUs. But you don't act like PSUs are important when testing them separately and then turn around and recommend a junk-bucket even for a budget system..bh.
JarredWalton - Tuesday, April 24, 2007 - link
The case + PSU is $65 shipped. It's actually a pretty decent looking case as well, all told. Now, the iStar costs about $45 shipped at eWiz, which means that you need to find a $20 case that you're happy with or else spend more money. I freely admit that I skimp on PSUs on budget systems, but that's really nothing too surprising. An $80 motherboard with IGP is "skimping", 1GB of RAM is "skimping", etc. They'll all still work fine for most people, but anyone looking to add a GPU, better PSU, etc. quickly vaults into the midrange prices.I supported Dell PCs for several years at another job, and I think they skimp at least as much as anything I've listed here. One year, almost all PCs were fine. Between 12 and 24 months, we had probably 10% fail, many with motherboards and several with PSUs. Past two years, I think the failure rate was approaching 20%, again on mobos and PSUs primarily. I feel a lot worse about cutting costs and quality on a motherboard than I do about going with cheaper PSUs, at least in the budget sector.
JarredWalton - Tuesday, April 24, 2007 - link
Oh, and for that matter I think the LCDs on the low end are suspect as well. I tried to go with ones that are getting favorable ratings, but a lot of people basically seem to say, "Wow - LCDs look cool and it only cost $180! 5 stars!" The thing is, for people that don't go beyond that sort of critique, it probably *is* a five star LCD! That's the same with PSUs and cases. I don't think any serious enthusiast is going to build a decent PC using a budget case and PSU.For the record, the few times I've used Raidmax cases and PSUs (whatever brand they happened to be), I have never had a complaint. Both systems are still running (Athlon XP 2500+) after four years or so. Not bad for a cheap $65 case and PSU. Was I just lucky? Maybe, but that's my experience with budget systems and Raidmax cases. (And also for the record, the people I built those PCs for thought the case looked "l33t" and specifically chose it; I thought it looked gaudy and stupid. No accounting for taste.)
jay401 - Friday, April 20, 2007 - link
That would be the E6320 and E6420. The 50 series doesn't come out until August and will sport higher clockspeeds and higher FSB (1333MHz).
And the question: Any word yet if the Ultra 120 Extreme has been updated to address the concern you guys listed in the review (something about a bracket when trying to mount it on s775 boards)?
Thanks!
redbone75 - Saturday, April 21, 2007 - link
I actually saw the E6320 and E6420 available at Newegg.com on thursday night. Strangely enough they aren't listed there tonight. Both processors are available at zipzoomfly.com, though.jay401 - Friday, April 20, 2007 - link
Dear AMD,This is the final proof you have delayed your R600 GPU series for too long: You didn't even get them out in time for the rarely seen Anandtech Buyer's Guide!
Sincerely,
Disappointed in Delaware
:D