Well right now my priorities are vehicle > computer. I'm getting my Navy signing bonus in April (finally), and going to my hometown in May. The plan is to use the money I've got saved and from my bonus to get a used car, and then what I've got left over I'll start ordering parts with. So I'm looking at May/June for actually getting all this put together.
I feel like I've got a decent grasp on what I'm doing, but I'm no computer expert. Most of my info comes from magazines like Maximum PC and occasionally Computer Shopper or Computer Power User. I've got a pretty good idea of the price I'll be spending on each of the parts, but I figure there's not a lot of sense fussing over exactly which ones I want when I'm still months away from making it happen.
I'm setting my budget around 2 for the computer, plus around 300 for a 20 or 22 inch wide screen. Most of the peripherals I've already got taken care of (speakers, headset, mouse, external hard drive, etc etc.)
Ben: I'll definitely keep you in mind. Good luck with that endeavor, BTW.
Speaking of custom computer building companies... I was actually considering buying a rig from Monarch Computers for a while. And then...
Sure thing, vehicle is more important than computer :). for 2 grand you can make yourself a pretty nice system. If you need advice on parts or hardware, let me know, I'll be glad to help you out. Thank you for the luck. I'll need it lol.
Bookmarked. I've got a couple guides saved in pdf format as well. This will be my first time actually assembling a rig myself, but it seems easy enough. Better safe than sorry though.
With regards to monitors, Hyfe, Dell has a great 22" widescreen LCD for $379.99, but it goes on sale for $300-330 on a regular basis. In fact, since its release it hasn't sold for more than $330.
Word is they use the same LCD as the Apple Cinema displays, which are some of the best monitors on the market these days...
I'm planning on picking up the Dell over the summer for use with my laptop - the 13" screen makes for great portability, but at home I could use something bigger.
lol by the time he's ready to build the computer, lcd monitors will cost less. prices for lcds should be dropping really soon as more manufacturing facilities are opening up and they are able to be produced at lower costs.
Demo: Yeah, Ive seen that the Dell LCDs have been very well reviewed lately. I'll probably just wind up getting whatever will give me the most bang for my buck come May(ish) time. Hopefully Ben is right and the prices will continue to drop so I'll be able to find a 20 or 22 for under $300. *crosses fingers*
Dell LCD are generally good but sometimes they use different types of panels. One has better response time and the other has better color reproduction. Let me know right when you're going to buy, I'll help you put something together.
Any generic "500 Watt PSU" (I can't believe I typed CPU instead of PSU, Doh!) is not going to cut it. Spend your pennies on a good one one, such as the Corsair 520 (which is better than some of the ~"700 Watt" models) or at least an Antec 500w. I managed to get a decent 500w Antec PSU with the older style Antec case I bought when I built my new PC in late January. It's handling my Core2Duo E6300, 2GB DDR2 and X1900XT 512 and assortment of drives just fine.
