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Looking to build a new computer heres some parts. Help a noob out :)
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Senior Member
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13. October 2007 @ 14:16 |
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PSU successfully mounted in about 3 minutes :) I just screwed them all in and they all fell into place of course.. It just didnt look right the first time i did it.
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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13. October 2007 @ 15:09 |
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Wow, full of questions!
The drive is pretty good, I haven't use Liteons much myself, but they're OK. You could probably save $15 by going with a Sony-NEC 18x drive though.
The monitor is good, just obviously be advised you can only use 720p mode with your 360, not 1080i (or 1080p if you have an elite)
Graphics card is good (I recommended that to someone recently, was it you?)
The sound card is fine, I used one for over a year, no real problems with it.
I personally use the Z-5500 speakers which are fabulous, but if those are anything like any of Logitech's other speakers, they'll still be good, especially at that power rating.
I personally think getting an X-fi card is unnecessary, I currently use a USB SoundBlaster 5.1 with my speakers and the sound quality is great. Sound quality is rarely down to the sound card, usually it's either the speakers or the config.
As for the PCI slots, you're not plugging in that much...
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Senior Member
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13. October 2007 @ 15:49 |
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720p is leagues better than what i have now. No complaints there. You recommended the card to me before and that was the one i went with ;)
I guess ill just stick to the on-board soundcard then right? those Z-5500 speakers are a BEAST! I dont know about those.. 250$? They look worth it.. But wow.. Ill stick to my stock speakers for now and maybe when i have paid everything off. Im definitely saving up for some of those.
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morguex
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13. October 2007 @ 15:55 |
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Well I usally find that onboard sound is not the greatest, I run a Audigy zs2 and Z-5300 logitech speakers and it really rocks the house.
Love to crank it up while playing F.E.A.R., scares the crap outta the dog. LOL
Pick up the card and get the speakers a little later, I doubt you'll regret it.
If I can't sense time, How can I heal?
Why am I in this precorpse state?
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Senior Member
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13. October 2007 @ 16:15 |
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Oh wow the Z-5300 is only 100$ ? Thats pretty cheap.
Whats the difference?
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 13. October 2007 @ 16:24
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morguex
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13. October 2007 @ 16:54 |
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The z-5500 has a nice little lcd control box, with optical in for dts
surround sound, The z-5300 dosen't have a optical in.
But either one sound really good.
I wanna pick up one of these little babies and hook it up to my pioneer elite 7.1 reciever and see what F.E.A.R. sounds like in dts surround.
I think it'll be pretty sweet.
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?s...cture=AuzenTech
If I can't sense time, How can I heal?
Why am I in this precorpse state?
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morguex
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13. October 2007 @ 16:55 |
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Hmmmmm, Looking at visa card right now.
If I can't sense time, How can I heal?
Why am I in this precorpse state?
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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14. October 2007 @ 02:37 |
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They're absolutely astonishing, better suited to a vast mansion than my small student house, suffice to say you wouldn't dare use more than volume 7/40 late at night or you'd get some nasty complaints!
Onboard sound is variable, some motherboards it's good, some it's bad, the safest bet is to get a cheap PCI card like the Audigy SE or a cheap USB card like the SB External 5.1 (I've used and been happy with both) and that way you not only guarantee decent sound quality, but you also get all of creative's graphic equaliser, digital bass boost and other cool features, plus of course Mediasource player, but I prefer itunes (and I say that, I don't even own an Ipod).
Morquex: I know exactly how you feel, I played FEAR quite loud and it ROCKS. When you've got a set of speakers that can produce low bass well (I know mine can, I'm sure yours can too) the noise when you enter slow mo mode is spine-chilling.
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Senior Member
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14. October 2007 @ 07:06 |
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I think ill just go with the z-5300 then. DTS really isnt all that big of a deal to me and anything that can piss neighbors off is a plus in my book. (not quite old enough to move out yet) Someone down the hall even better ;)
I was thinking of going with Windows Media Center edition for my OS. I know at my friends house he can watch t.v on it and i wouldnt mind doing that. (and then streaming it to my 360 with my parents too cheap to get cable t.v bunny ear's in my room). How exactly would i go about doing that? Not the streaming but getting t.v on it. Or does it do it automatically *Highly doubting that* ive never bothered asking him cause im sure he doesnt know. Basically my question is how do you get t.v on your computer using windows media center.
Ugh another question.. morguex does the z-5300 do bass well? Knocking pictures off of walls is a plus. Blowing clothes off even better.
PS. F.E.A.R is awesome. Have either of you played portal yet?
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 14. October 2007 @ 11:18
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morguex
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14. October 2007 @ 07:26 |
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Trust me the z-5300 does bass very well, You'll piss off the neighbors without even trying. If you rest your feet on the subwoofer it'll give you a nice foot massage too.(the pounds out bass like you would'nt belive)
As for the streaming thing, I really don't know, Sammorris probaly does though.
If I can't sense time, How can I heal?
Why am I in this precorpse state?
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Senior Member
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14. October 2007 @ 11:45 |
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Ugh i have yet another question :( sorry guys..
Do the sound activated cathodes have like tolerance adjusters? I dont want them going off with every bit of noise just when it feels bass or something.
Also what color should i get.. The fans are blue of course *im sticking with stock until i feel they need replacing* and i dont want to go all blue so im in a pickle between green/red. Im leaning more towards green but i dont know what it would look like?
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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14. October 2007 @ 13:45 |
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andmill: FEAR is indeed awesome. As for the streaming, I don't use Mediacenter myself, so that's one for google, I'm afraid.
As for the sound activated cathodes, all the ones I've seen DO have sensitivity adjustments.
As for the colour, I've got all the colours, get green, red ones often look a bit pink, and they're not as good. The Green ones however are superb.
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Senior Member
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14. October 2007 @ 14:07 |
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Originally posted by sammorris:
andmill: FEAR is indeed awesome. As for the streaming, I don't use Mediacenter myself, so that's one for google, I'm afraid.
As for the sound activated cathodes, all the ones I've seen DO have sensitivity adjustments.
As for the colour, I've got all the colours, get green, red ones often look a bit pink, and they're not as good. The Green ones however are superb.
SENSITIVITY! Thats the word i was looking for.. I went ahead and bought two 15' green ones. Why not right? Both of them + shipping for 19$.
I didnt mean like HOW do you stream the video or t.v or whatever i meant like how do you get t.v on the PC in the first place. I dont think he has a t.v tuner..
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morguex
Account closed as per user's own request
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14. October 2007 @ 14:28 |
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If I can't sense time, How can I heal?
Why am I in this precorpse state?
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morguex
Account closed as per user's own request
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14. October 2007 @ 14:29 |
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If I can't sense time, How can I heal?
Why am I in this precorpse state?
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Senior Member
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14. October 2007 @ 14:40 |
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Do you need to plug cable into it? Or does it just pick up T.V on its own? T.v tuners confuse me.. I suppose it cant just pull t.v signal out of nowhere right?
Eh.. Its not that big of a deal though. Ill be perfectly happy with all of my other stuff..
Where do you recommend i install the sound cathodes inside the case though? It doesnt seem like theres much room for them.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 14. October 2007 @ 14:54
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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14. October 2007 @ 15:32 |
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On the cathodes, it's wherever they look best. I usually go with the spaces above and below the case window, so you see the light they generate but not the tubes themselves.
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Senior Member
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17. October 2007 @ 18:58 |
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Ok another question..
When i plug in the PSU and flip on the power switch the fan doesn't turn on. Granted its just the PSU and its not plugged into anything but i was just wondering if this is normal or not.
I just wanted to see if the PSU was working so i assumed the fan would turn on when plugged in. I guess not?
Also where the heck do the stupid cathodes plug into! It looks like they go with the fans but how do they get power? And whats an inverter..
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Senior Member
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17. October 2007 @ 20:09 |
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Is there anyway of seeing if it works or not without installing the mobo?
*edit*
Oh crap sammoriss is out of town :( This could take a while
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 17. October 2007 @ 20:14
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morguex
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17. October 2007 @ 20:22 |
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plug in a optical drive, see if it powers up.
Let us know if that works.
If I can't sense time, How can I heal?
Why am I in this precorpse state?
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Senior Member
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17. October 2007 @ 20:24 |
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No spare optical drives available sadly :(
But that is the next thing i plan on ordering since its the cheapest on the list.
But just generally speaking shouldnt the fan turn on when its plugged in or no?
*Edit*
Also do you know if the PSU i bought comes with a 4 pin power connector? Im pretty sure thats what the cold cathodes use. I cant seem to find one..
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 17. October 2007 @ 20:46
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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17. October 2007 @ 20:57 |
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Out of town? Well sorry, I can't be here every minute of the day!
the PSu fan won't turn on when you just plug it in. However, there are two pins you can artificially join to create the power signal anyway. Use a paper clip or something, just NEVER touch the clip when the PSU's connected to the mains.
See here [pic from techpowerup!] - the red line is your paper clip.
If you're not confident doing that, buy one of these
http://www.jab-tech.com/ATX-power-supply...re-pr-2379.html
Cold cathodes use inverters (which come with them, always) to step the 12V DC from the PSU up to around 800V AC to power the lights. The inverters are just powered by normal molex connectors which the power supply will have loads of.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 17. October 2007 @ 20:58
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Senior Member
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17. October 2007 @ 21:03 |
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Aw thanks!
No its fine i was just seeing if that was normal or not. (Havent zapped myself yet) definitely dont think im adventurous enough to put a paper clip in there.
My RAM came yesterday and i installed that to the MOBO with no problems.
Thanks sam again
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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17. October 2007 @ 21:06 |
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Sure, you're welcome. I'm off to bed now (not out of town, lol!) so any extra queries you have I'll answer tomorrow.
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Senior Member
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18. October 2007 @ 18:21 |
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I just purchased the HDD and the CD/DVD drive. All thats left now is the GPU and the Processor. Parties are tomorrow and saturday so well see how much i have left after those.
Starting off with around 350$. Already know i need to pull out about 100$ soo 250$ hopefully to spend..If i budget tomorrow well.. Probably not
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 18. October 2007 @ 18:23
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