Forums

meter

• Richard4168 4,309 Posts

  Thu, Apr 15 2010 6:49 AM

  VanHalenLover:

  Richard - if you really want to do yourself a favor, build your own to YOUR specs. It is much less expensive than retail, and you control what you get

  Yeah VH, that's what I plan on doing. I've got my components picked out on newegg. 

  It's nothing to impressive, I'm trying to stay on a budget.

  Mobo: Asrock 785G AM3 HDMI ATX with 3 way CrossfireX (3 PCI Express 2.0x16 slots) with built-in graphics (Integrated AMD Radeon HD 4200 graphics 128 MB DDR3 1333 (OC)/1200MHz side port memory) and Integrated Realtek sound card.

  Processor: AMD Athlon II Rana 2.9 GHz 95w triple core

  Memory: Crucial Ballistic 3x1 GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333 (PC3 10600)

  Computer case: Rosewill ATX mid tower with 350 watt PSU and 120mm rear fan with side port exhaust.

  Hard drive: Western Digital Caviar Blue 250 GB 7200 rpm Sata 3.0Gb.

  All this is $351.00 + shipping, $20.00

  I've compared this computer build to the name brand guys, and they can't touch it for less than $775.00. It's the only way to go to get a really good computer that's potentially this fast. I wanted to build a good foundation for future upgrades when needed. All these components carry a 5 egg rating and come highly recommended by past consumers.

  It may not seem like much, but keep in mind, this is three to four times better than I already have, so anything is a step-up from what I got. Maybe this system will stop the meter jitters from occurring so often.

  What do you think VH?

   

  P.S. I'm not trying to spam here.

• VanHalenLover 1,422 Posts

  Thu, Apr 15 2010 10:19 AM

  Looks like a great bang for your buck, Richard.

  If it were mine, I'd upgrade the hard drive right off the bat instead of having to add or upgrade later. I wouldn't start one myself with less than a 500GB unless someone had a budget that just simply wouldn't allow it. I actually prefer a Terabyte!

  Also, it looks like the power supply is a combo with the case? If so, it will do, but if you have an option, I'd up the wattage, and make sure it has at least 2-12V rails. This will come in very handy when you decide to utilize those open PCI-E slots down the road, and add a killer video card!     

• Richard4168 4,309 Posts

  Thu, Apr 15 2010 11:01 AM

  Hi VH,

  I thought the same thing about the PSU. I'm going to see what's available in a case combo, and try and go for a max 550 watt PSU being the case combo listed above is only $40.00 with rebate. I could probably splurge for better wattage.

  I'd like to get a ATI 4870 video card, but their $170.00 alone.

  I was thinking about going with the 250 GB hard drive for now, and if need be, I'll add another 250 GB hard drive later on. I have a 160 GB HD now and it seems to be enough space for now, but the space is getting low. 1 TB is nice though and would be more than enough space for a lifetime between my wife and I.

  Thanks for all your insight and help you've given me on this topic VH. I appreciate it.

• YankeeJim 25,827 Posts

  Thu, Apr 15 2010 12:02 PM

  Rich-External HDs are ridiculously cheap and plug right into your USB port, or tree if you want more USB stuff.

• Richard4168 4,309 Posts

  Thu, Apr 15 2010 12:30 PM

  Yeah Jim, I'm going to have to think about doing something like that. My HD space is getting low, about 9 Gigs of free space left.

  My computer seems to be working ok and what not, it's just starting to get obsolete and a change is needed to keep-up with the ever increasing demand of RAM, HD space...well, you know what I mean.

  In any event Jim, thanks for the heads-up. I appreciate it.

• 464 Posts

  Thu, Apr 15 2010 7:10 PM

  YankeeJim:

  smason77:

  Another thing one could do to help boost performance is open up msconfig (Run; Msconfig) and clear everything on start up.

  This one single action would probably clear up 90% of most user's problems with the game, especially if you're playing on an out of the box setup. Clearing everything is a no-no. There are something things that have to stay.

  In depth discussion with pics here:  http://wgt.com/forums/t/6655.aspx?PageIndex=2

   

  Well not on my machine. The only things that I have running on startup are AVG and my WiFi adapter. That's it.

  Any other programs I may need to use are only prompted on my command.

  Again remember i'm referring strictly to startup and not services.

  For most windows machines no start-up items are vital to basic system functions.

  I've done this with every PC or Laptop i've ever owned and I've been on the the internet ever since it was ARPANET.

   

• Doctorfro 449 Posts

  Fri, Apr 16 2010 4:08 AM

  What was this thread about?  Oh yeah, the meter.  Well, the meter sucks and is the biggest issue keeping this from being a good game.  Tips and tricks to make it work better don't work. 

• VanHalenLover 1,422 Posts

  Fri, Apr 16 2010 9:15 AM

  smason77:

  I've done this with every PC or Laptop i've ever owned and I've been on the the internet ever since it was ARPANET.

  were you there for the "lo" transmission?

• 464 Posts

  Fri, Apr 16 2010 5:00 PM

  LOL no. I'm only 33. It was a metaphorical exaggeration.

  i'm very familiar with ARPA and Milnet although.. admittedly I didn't first starting using the internet until 1994. Long before most.

• 464 Posts

  Fri, Apr 16 2010 7:52 PM

  Doctorfro:

  What was this thread about?  Oh yeah, the meter.  Well, the meter sucks and is the biggest issue keeping this from being a good game.  Tips and tricks to make it work better don't work. 

  But you did at least try them right?