Computer hunting
I'm working on building a new computer. It turns out that Canada Computers doesn't keep very good track of its in-store stock levels on its website. Neither the motherboard or videocard I wanted were in stock. So harempresident and I just picked up cases and left.
Computer XS was kind enough to take the pricelist I got off of the Canada Computer site and come pretty close to matching it. They'd have to order stuff in, but I'm in no hurry. The guy said he'd email me a quote, though, and as yet, I haven't seen any email. I'm hoping it wasn't caught in a spam filter somewhere. Otherwise, I'm feeling like I've been brushed off. Oh well, there are other places I can go.
I'm mostly building this thing off the Ars Hot Rod, with some variations due to availability and personal preference...
- Case: Antec SLK3800B
- Mobo: MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum ( suggested in the Ars HTPC guide)
- CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ ( yay for dual core!)
- Cooler: Zalman CNPS700B-AlCu
- RAM: 2x512MB PC3200 DDR400 SDRAM (doesn't matter too much which brand, so long as it's not crap)
- Video: Kinda up in the air at the moment. Probably an nVidia GeForce 6600GT card.
- HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 250GB SATA/3Gb ('cuz they're quiet)
- FDD: Mitsumi 7-in-1 card reader + floppy (cuz if I'm buying a new floppy drive, it should be useful).
I'm big on quiet computing, which is where stuff like the harddrive and Zalman cooler come in. I'm not sure about the videocard, but I'm seriously considering an ASUS Silencer card, since all GPU heatsink fans suck, and aftermarket replacements cost about $40 or more. I don't really want to spend a lot on the video card, though, since I'm pretty sure it'll be replaced in a couple years, even if I were to spend a hojillion dollars on it (and I could! :P). I don't play that many games anyway. Part of me would like to stick with ATI, but at the lower price point, the nVidia cards are just that much better.
Input is welcome. Also, if anybody knows any Toronto/Mississauga computer stores that are generally competitive with Canada Computer's prices, I'd like to know. CC is hands-down the winner around here, price-wise.