Comments | sir_quirky_k: Ooh, new PC!

sir_quirky_k

Ooh, new PC!

Oct 05, 2005 09:50

My laptop is the not-so-proud owner of a 20GB hard drive and a combo drive that doesn't work. According to caerleon, replacing these two components will cost over £350. It's just about possible to build a desktop for that money - certainly if you have a monitor already - and it's definitely possible to build a very nice desktop for a bit more. I've opted ( Read more... )

geek, shiny

Comments 12

(The comment has been removed)

sir_quirky_k October 5 2005, 10:26:06 UTC

Fair points - I think my first reaction to those speakers was 'oooh! shiny silver 2.1 set at a low low price!' and I should have known they would suck...

My room is less than five square metres in size, so there's not too much need for a monster set, but I'd like good quality. I'm not sure if it would be better to stick to a good 2.0 set given that, or whether the subwoofer's worth getting. (If the latter, these could be an option; if the former, these might be worth considering instead.

anonymous October 5 2005, 19:28:34 UTC

I'll second what pTeppic said, with the addition that the speakers are likely to be a *much* bigger problme than the on-board sound. With speakers like those you could spend as much as you liked on the sound card and probably not notice the difference. Upgrade the speakers, either now or when you can afford it, and then think about changing the sound card if it bothers you (on-board sound is adequate for many people ( ... )

musikologie October 5 2005, 10:37:05 UTC

I agree with the above coment to go with a better sound card, because you'll definitely appreciate it. Also, go with the larger monitor. Although I'm surprised you can't get a better resolution on a 19" monitor -- my laptop monitor is only 14", yet I've got 1400x1050.

Last thing: does mini mouse/keyboard mean that the keys aren't fullsized? That gets to be reeeeeally annoying, especially if you're switching between the two kinds of keyboards (and given that almost every other computer in the world has a fullsize keyboard, you would). Also, mini-mice tend to give my hand cramps, but that may just be me. If it's not too much more expensive, I would go with full-size.

sir_quirky_k October 5 2005, 10:46:22 UTC

The issue is actually the space, actually. You can usually get cheap and nasty full-sized keyboards, but the problem is that my desk is oval-shaped. So while I think I can fit a 19" monitor - the base would probably still fit on one end and the sides would extend outwards - a full-sized keyboard would probably only fit with one or both edges off the edge of the desk, forcing me to lay it flat. It's possible, in fact I typed part of this message with the keyboard on the desktop perched precariously-ish with the edge of the desk roughly over the X and F2 keys to prove it is - but it would be frustrating. And fitting the mouse would then be annoying too.

The other option is a wireless keyboard and mouse, but I distrust anything infra-red given my bad experiences with WiFi (and my brother has had two such sets, neither of which worked).

musikologie October 5 2005, 12:09:35 UTC

Really? While my wireless internet has had moments of sketchiness, I've used optical mice for years and have never had an issue with them, same with wireless keyboards.

sir_quirky_k October 5 2005, 10:52:20 UTC

Though in this case it just seems to mean no numeric keypad, which is a Very Good Thing.

Thread 5

faire_damsel October 5 2005, 13:16:05 UTC

That's A Lot Of Money, But It Will Be SO Completely Multi~Functional That It Will be More Than Worth It! I Think The Set~Up You've Chosen Looks Lovely!

sir_quirky_k October 5 2005, 13:42:07 UTC

And I might recoup some of the money in the sale of the TV/DVD and CD player that I won't need anymore.

The silver tower looks nice with the blue lights on the side, and that monitor... ooh.

And of course there's the MP3 player/flash drive/voice recorder (YAY! Great for recording ideas for songs!)...

It will definitely be the One True Gadget in my room.

faire_damsel October 5 2005, 15:10:17 UTC

YAY! More Music! :o)

ex_requiella957 October 6 2005, 01:42:00 UTC

Getting a new computer is so exciting! I second the bit about not doing the on-board sound though, as well as getting good speakers. As for everything else, it really comes down to priorities. Like, for example, someone commented about the resolution on the monitor. I have a 19-inch flat screen with the same resolution as the one you linked to, and I think mine looks great. It's not the most expensive one out there, but then again, other things (like sound) are more important to me, so this is where my money went (although my sound card's a bit dated now).

Good luck with the purchase!

sir_quirky_k October 6 2005, 08:53:15 UTC

Given what I'd do with the PC, it's size and resolution that matter most. The response time is more than the 16ms that's seen as ideal (the 17" flat screen on the desktop has a 12ms response time) but unless you're a hardcore gamer playing high-speed action games you're unlikely to notice much of a difference. I'm not - I'm going to spend most of my time multi-tasking online as I am now, and display area is more important here. Thus it's better for me to get the biggest monitor I can afford, rather than the most highly-specified.

As for sound, I agree with the advice from Simon (the 'anonymous' poster earlier) to get a relatively cheap set (I'm now considering these partly because I love the look of them and the small size is perfectly suited to my small room) knowing that I can always upgrade, possibly to hi-fi speakers, if needs be. Also, I'll agree that speakers are a bigger limitation than onboard sound, as I suspect motherboard manufacturers have improved their onboard sound a fair bit in the last few years.