Help, top of the line gaming computer?

Q. I need one. Price does not matter.
I don't mind building from scratch, can you name me some parts?

A. Build your own... pre-built computers use cheap parts claiming they are brand name parts when in reality they are not. And it will be much cheaper. I just built my second gaming rig and it can run any game possible at max settings (even crysis) for under 1500$.

I would suggest 8800gt from Evga or XFX. (I have XFX in one PC and sli-Evga in the other... I regret getting sli since one card could do the job as well.) Don't get a gts or gtx since the price is much higher ($200 more) for maybe a few (1-10) more fps. And I recommend an e6750 dual-core processor and then overcocking it to 3.2ghz+. (Zalman 9700 cooling or liquid... I use the zalman since it works almost as well as liquid.) For the PSU I have a PC power&cooling 610w silencer. The motherboard I highly recommend is the Abit IP-35 PRO if you want a single graphic card or the 680i evga motherboard for sli. As for the RAM and hard drive and such I chose Ballistix Tracer RAM and a WD raptor hard drive .

By the way, get Vista. I know it's not great but it has directx 10 and sooner or later you are going to have to switch anyways. Also be sure to get a good case with a lot of air flow. (antec 900 or a thermaltake armor case... I used the Antec 900 case for both my builds since I didn't use liquid cooling and I didn't really need all the extra space the Thermaltake armor provides.)

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Gaming computer help?

Q. I know I asked this before but I need help with choosing the right desktop or laptop for everyday use and gaming. I play a lot of simulation games such as the new simcity game and 18 wheels of steel. I don't need something outrageous.

A. If you need a laptop, don't go over an entry level gaming machine for what you describe. You won't need it. I don't believe the sim games will need the graphics power of something more powerful.
Personally, for the cost of a mid level gaming laptop, I would spend $600 for a really hot desktop and then pick up a $300-$350 laptop for mobility - something light with good battery - I have lugged heavy laptops on travel, and I would get choose something lighter anymore.

Take a look at these rankings:
http://blog.laptopmag.com/best-worst-notebook-brands-2013/3

You can look at some gaming machines here:
http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/landing_pages/ideapad/gaming-pcs
http://www.asus.com/us/Notebooks_Ultrabooks/Gaming_Products/

Lenovo, Asus, HP, and Samsung are the top 4 laptop brands. I wouldn't consider any other brands.

Dell makes Alienware and they are not worth the money charged.
Acer makes Gateway. You'd have to pay me to use one of their machines.
Sony hardware has generally been good, but they are notorious for putting huge amounts of crapware/bloatware on machines and gathering information on their consumers without their knowledge or permission.
Toshiba has bottomed the rankings. Personally, I have used them and never had a problem, but that does not appear to be the case any more.

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What computer hardware should I upgrade?

Q. I use my computer for gaming, and I dont have brand new top-of-the-line hardware but I don't like it to be very old either. Of these three things, what urgently needs to be replaced/upgraded?

CPU Type Intel Pentium 4, 2666 MHz (20 x 133)
Motherboard Intel Rexburg D845GRG
Total RAM 1534 MB

A. It's not worth upgrading anything in that machine.
Time to buy a new one, especially if you want to play decent games on decent settings.

Original Question

How important is the computer manufacturer if the comp has all the right specs?

Q. Hey everyone... I'd reeeeally like some advice. I'm looking to buy a new computer capable of gaming & running Windows Vista... so I need it to be pretty high performance. Of course, I'd like to stay on a budget as much as possible... so searching around I found a computer with the option to make payments in installments. It seems to have pretty much everything I need, all I'll need to add are video and sound cards.

My main question is just what the subject line says... how important is the manufacturer of the computer? This one is made by a company called Mirus who I can't seem to find much information on. A few sites have suggested that users "stay away" from Mirus, but I'm not sure if that's only because of customer support issues, or if it has something to do with the computer actually breaking down or something drastic like that.

So, if the computer has all the right hardware in it, does it really matter who put it together?

A. The question isn't "who puts it together" but "what parts go into it"? And the bottom line here is it depends on you. You might lean more towards a cheap unsupported computer if: You're good with computers and don't need much customer support; you don't mind troubleshooting hardware and software problems on your own (another computer in the house can be extremely helpful here); and if you don't plan on doing anything unusual with your software and hardware (installing old programs, hacking your hardware...). Or you have tech-savvy friends who, unlike me, will smile and freely offer to help you solve your problems for the next 7 hours.

With computer hardware as well as in life in general, you often get what you pay for. This isn't to say that you'll certainly have a problem with cheap laptops; but if you do you may end up pulling out your hair attempting to fix it. Of course many people with top of the line stuff also go bald attempting to repair computer probelsm too.

Part of the issue here is that cheap computers with all the "right" hardware are able to offer you good prices because of cheaply made hardware. You might be attracted to that 12x dual-layer DVD burner 48xwhatever, but there's a difference among hardware pieces. Sometimes one manufacturer will make quality name brand gear in one factory and junk in another, and one way to tell them apart is often price. Another way is when the piece of junk falls apart after 6 months, or doesn't seem to work with software or hardware that no one else has problems with.

If you're not a computer guru then customer support is very important. Even I have to resort to it occasionally and I've built and troubleshooted (shot?) computers. Recently I had to call Netgear and I had trouble understanding the reps accent and all he did was ask me to repeat my story a few times (I'm sure he was a very nice and hardworking person however).

Again the question isn't who put it together but what parts (and I mean nitty-gritty parts, the motherboard (maker and model!), the memory, the DVD drive etc) are in it.

You're absolutely right to be checking on line reviews. As with all info online (self-referencing here), take it with a grain of salt. However, consistently junky references about a manufacturer or computer can save your from a lot of future frustration.

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What is a trusted Computer Gaming brand?

Q. Im looking for a new computer, a laptop to be specific, for personal use and gaming. I need a laptop because I travel quite a bit.

But I am on a budget, a low one for gaming too. A less than $500 budget. I have a $400 Compaq Presario that runs my games fine on low settings, but I want to be able to enjoy the graphics.

Any help?

A. Alienware and ACER's are the two top line Gaming Computers

one of them you cant go wrong.

they process games quicker than the average bear

Original Question

What computer hardware should I upgrade?

Q. I use my computer for gaming, and I dont have brand new top-of-the-line hardware but I don't like it to be very old either. Of these three things, what urgently needs to be replaced/upgraded?

CPU Type Intel Pentium 4, 2666 MHz (20 x 133)
Motherboard Intel Rexburg D845GRG
Total RAM 1534 MB

A. It's not worth upgrading anything in that machine.
Time to buy a new one, especially if you want to play decent games on decent settings.

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What is the best desk top for gaming?

Q. I am looking to purchase a desk top computer for my 17 year old son who enjoys playing games on his computer as well as using it for homework, internet, etc. What is a good choice, what are the important components to support gaming, any specific site recommendations or brands/sites to avoid? I am a single mom on a budget (hoping for under $1500.00) so value is important to me as well as warranty but I want to get a computer that will last, he will use it for college next year. Thank you!

A. The Best one i suggest is the dell xps dimension with dual xeon processor check out it if you litlle out of budget then you may buy AMD BASED XFX SYSTEM

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What is the best processor, mother board, video card, and etc.for computer gaming desktop?

Q. Im planning to put a computer gaming shop business. Please give me advice on whats the most affordable but best set up of computer I can assemble.please be specific.im really not a tech person.

A. It is all very budget dependent. Here is a nice $1000 part set if putting it together yourself, and be sure to watch youtube videos and work on a non-static flat big surface and wear gloves or ground yourself and never force things together.
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/zWjz
CPU Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz 4 cores, 4 threads since gaming does not use hyperthreading nor more than 4 cores.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-5.html
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler - a good value for overclocking the CPU. It is tall, but very efficient and priced well.
Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard - supports overclocking, and has 2 slots of pciex16 to possibly add a second GPU in SLI at another time for crossfiring instead of replacing the graphics card as you would in a 1 slot system.
G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 The right amount for gaming in the right speed for the CPU and is a good brand 1.5V with heat spreader in CAS 9
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive - fairly reliable bulk storage in a good size of a terrabyte
Sandisk 64GB 2.5" Solid State Disk - to hold Windows and a few games for fast load and top performance. Can use half in partition for Intel RST/SRT HDD acceleration if preferred.
Video Card Galaxy GeForce GTX 660 2GB - Highly rated solid performer. I did not look up its status for SLI vs crossfire
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/660?vs=548
Cooler Master Storm Enforcer ATX Mid Tower Case - Nice looking case with good air flow and roomy. Starts with only 2 fans as adequate, but could add a top fan. There are many good choices of cases. Has USB 2 and 3 and audio ports.
Rosewill Green 630W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply
Decent enough as a single rail (one +12V as preferred) with a 6 and 6+2 pcie connector set and since GTX 660 needs only one, should be enough for crossfire one day without changing it. 50A (600 watts) on 12V to power GPU, CPU, fans and disk drives. There are better and worse PSUs but this is surely at least adequate and more.
Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer - any DVDRW
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)
gamers prefer Win 7
Still need keyboard, mouse, audio output (speakers/headphones), and a display

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How important is the computer manufacturer if the comp has all the right specs?

Q. Hey everyone... I'd reeeeally like some advice. I'm looking to buy a new computer capable of gaming & running Windows Vista... so I need it to be pretty high performance. Of course, I'd like to stay on a budget as much as possible... so searching around I found a computer with the option to make payments in installments. It seems to have pretty much everything I need, all I'll need to add are video and sound cards.

My main question is just what the subject line says... how important is the manufacturer of the computer? This one is made by a company called Mirus who I can't seem to find much information on. A few sites have suggested that users "stay away" from Mirus, but I'm not sure if that's only because of customer support issues, or if it has something to do with the computer actually breaking down or something drastic like that.

So, if the computer has all the right hardware in it, does it really matter who put it together?

A. The question isn't "who puts it together" but "what parts go into it"? And the bottom line here is it depends on you. You might lean more towards a cheap unsupported computer if: You're good with computers and don't need much customer support; you don't mind troubleshooting hardware and software problems on your own (another computer in the house can be extremely helpful here); and if you don't plan on doing anything unusual with your software and hardware (installing old programs, hacking your hardware...). Or you have tech-savvy friends who, unlike me, will smile and freely offer to help you solve your problems for the next 7 hours.

With computer hardware as well as in life in general, you often get what you pay for. This isn't to say that you'll certainly have a problem with cheap laptops; but if you do you may end up pulling out your hair attempting to fix it. Of course many people with top of the line stuff also go bald attempting to repair computer probelsm too.

Part of the issue here is that cheap computers with all the "right" hardware are able to offer you good prices because of cheaply made hardware. You might be attracted to that 12x dual-layer DVD burner 48xwhatever, but there's a difference among hardware pieces. Sometimes one manufacturer will make quality name brand gear in one factory and junk in another, and one way to tell them apart is often price. Another way is when the piece of junk falls apart after 6 months, or doesn't seem to work with software or hardware that no one else has problems with.

If you're not a computer guru then customer support is very important. Even I have to resort to it occasionally and I've built and troubleshooted (shot?) computers. Recently I had to call Netgear and I had trouble understanding the reps accent and all he did was ask me to repeat my story a few times (I'm sure he was a very nice and hardworking person however).

Again the question isn't who put it together but what parts (and I mean nitty-gritty parts, the motherboard (maker and model!), the memory, the DVD drive etc) are in it.

You're absolutely right to be checking on line reviews. As with all info online (self-referencing here), take it with a grain of salt. However, consistently junky references about a manufacturer or computer can save your from a lot of future frustration.

Original Question

Why do people love these brands so much?

Q. Apple
HP
Alienware

All of them have crappy build quality and are marked up so much that they're around 2-3x their build price. IMO if more people bought Lenovo, ASUS and Sager laptops, they'd be able to order more parts at once at cheaper prices, resulting in cheaper prices for the consumer.
Also, just a tip for anyone looking to buy an Alienware, don't. The best gaming brands are ASUS, Origin and Sager
For any business computer, Lenovo would be the indefinite choice.

A. True. For a business and reliable school laptop you want Lenovo. and gotta love support in the USA. not talking to india if you need hardware support.

And for gaming ASUS is definitely awesome.
Alienware is overpriced and uses the same if not crappier components than ASUS does.

HP is a common brand found in stores all over the USA. so probably why they are on top because any average joe, goes to best buy. looks around. finds an HP that's $100 less than something else and goes home with it then tries to figure how stuff works on it.

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