http://www.maximumpc.com/tags/%242500+pc used for category lists, takes arguments en http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/pro_gaming_pc <!--paging_filter--><p>For the past few weeks we have presented you with our <a href="/article/features/budget_badass">$1500 Budget Badass</a> and <a href="/article/features/power_user_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide?page=0%2C0">$2500 Power User PC</a>. <span> </span>This week we’re bringing to the table our picks for a $2500 Pro Gaming PC. With significant price cuts since our <a href="/article/features/pro_gaming_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide_%E2%80%93_updated_prices_and_parts_july_2008">last Pro Gaming PC</a> build-it guide, we were able to give our gaming PC some extra juice so system lag can no longer be blamed for missing a crucial headshot. Many parts have not changed since the last update, but with new hardware technology coming soon to the computer industry, be prepared for some significant tweaks next month. But for now, here’s what we got.</p> <div style="text-align: center"><img src="/files/u17625/budgetbuyers_teaser.jpg" width="415" height="150" /></div> <p> <h2> </p> <p>Videocard</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/bfg280.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>2x BFG Tech Geforce GTX280<br />$750, www.bfgtech.com</h3> <p>Since the last update back in July, the <a href="/article/reviews/bfg_geforce_gtx_280_oc_1gb">GTX 280</a> has stayed atop the GPU powerhouse list. As the fastest single-GPU solution out there, it would only make sense to have two of these running in SLI. Unlike our <a href="/article/features/power_user_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide?page=0%2C0">Power User PC</a>, we're shifting our main focus to the GPU(s) and this is it. </p> <h2>Motherboard</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/gamer_mobo790i.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>EVGA eForce 790i SLI Ultra<br />$330, www.evga.com</h3> <p>There were some problems with Nvidia's 680i and 780i chipsets, but the 790i seems to have solved all of them. The board's native PCI-Express 2.0 and spacious layout will be a nice home for your SLI setup. Its price-to-performance ratio is just one reason why we gave this motherboard a <a href="/article/reviews/evga_eforce_790i_ultra">kickass verdict</a>.<br /> <h2>CPU</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/gamer_cpu.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3GHz<br />$165 (Retail), www.intel.com</h3> <p>While CPU performance is significant to a PC's ability to perform well in games, most current games (with the exception of a couple) are still not utilizing all four cores of a quad core thus leaving us with the option to choose a dual core over a quad. With the E8400, we save some extra money for an upgraded PSU and extra hard drives while keeping gaming performance at its peak.    </p> <h2>Memory</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/gamer_oczmem.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>OCZ 4GB Reaper HPC DDR3/1600<br />$250, www.ocztechnology.com</h3> <p>As we've mentioned in our previous build-it guides, 4GB seems to be the new standard nowadays for any performance user. Obviously, gaming is no exception.  </p> <hr /> <h2>Case</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/case_nzxt.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>NZXT Tempest<br />$110, www.nxzt.com</h3> <p>We've been featuring this case for every build-it guide so far and we still stand behind it 100%. With plenty of cooling and air flow, <a href="/article/reviews/nzxt_tempest">this case</a> will house all your components nicely.</p> <h2>Power Supply</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/ocz1000w.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>OCZ EliteXStream 1000W<br />$195, www.ocztechnology.com</h3> <p>Some readers suggested in our previous Pro Gaming PC build-it guide that a 750W PC Power &amp; Cooling PSU would not be enough juice for our SLI setup. While we feel the 750W would power the rig just fine, we decided to take the safe route and replace it with an OCZ EliteXStream 1000W as recommended by <a href="http://www.slizone.com/object/slizone_build_psu.html">SLI Zone</a>. </p> <h2>Operating System</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/poweruser_vista.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Windows Vista 64-bit Home Premium<br />$100 (OEM), www.microsoft.com</h3> <h2>Hard Drives</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/velociraptor.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>2x Western Digital Velociraptor 150GB 10000RPM<br />$360, www.wdc.com</h3> <p>We had some extra cash to play with after some recent price cuts so what else is there to do but to add some more horsepower to our rig? We took two <a href="/article/western_digital_velociraptor">Velociraptors</a> and stuck them in RAID 0 for some extra performance boost.  </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img src="/files/u43131/SamsungF1.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Samsung F1 HD103UJ 1TB<br />$120, www.samsung.com</h3> <p>We just had to keep the beloved <a href="/article/samsung_hd103uj_terabyte_drive">terabyte drive</a> in this rig; it just wouldn't be complete without it. </p> <h2>Optical Drive</h2> <p> <img src="/files/u43131/optical_samsung.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Samsung SH-S223F DVD Burner<br />$26, www.samsung.com</h3> <p>Unlike our Power User rig, we don't see the need for a $300 blu-ray burner for the pro gamer. So we saved some major bucks and brought it down to the basics -- a DVD burner. </p> <h2>Sound Card</h2> <p> <img src="/files/u17625/soundcard_xfi.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer<br />$86, www.creative.com</h3> <p>Quality sound is important for every gamer. Those subtle footsteps and gunshots from miles away can mean life or death in many scenarios. With the X-FI XtremeGamer, there's no need to worry anymore about those embarrassing behind-the-back stabbings.   </p> <h2>CPU Cooler<br /></h2> <p> <img src="/files/u43131/zalman.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Zalman CNPS-9300AT SuperFlo<br />$40, www.zalman.com</h3> <p>Like the power user, gamers need their fair share of cooling, too. While the room may get a little heated from intense game play, your CPU will stay cool with <a href="/article/reviews/zalman_cnps9300_at">this heatsink</a> from Zalman. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Total: $2,532</h2> http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/pro_gaming_pc#comments Features $2500 pc build a pc components feature gamer gaming gaming pc hardware parts guide price guide Wed, 22 Oct 2008 09:00:00 -0500 Benson Hong 3972 at http://www.maximumpc.com http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/power_user_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide <!--paging_filter--><p>Last week we updated our <a href="/article/features/budget_badass">Budget Badass</a> to reflect the current price drops and made some improvements in hardware. This week we are shifting our focus to the power user. Shifting our focus also means shifting our cost up, but a higher budget means better hardware and faster performance. We've made a couple of adjustments to the video card and CPU as well as adding a second hard drive while taking your suggestions into consideration. While the final cost of this build exceeds a little past the $2500 mark, we believe the extra performance gain is well worth it. Keep in mind this is a Power User's PC, where our main focus is on utilizing the power of the processor through multitasking and multimedia programs. Read on to see our new setup for this Power User beast.</p> <div style="text-align: center"><img src="/files/u17625/budgetbuyers_teaser.jpg" width="415" height="150" /></div> <p> <h2> </p> <p>Videocard</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/4870x2.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Gigabyte Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB<br />$530, www.gigabyte.com.tw</h3> <p>Many felt the Radeon 4870 was a little weak for a power user rig, so we took your suggestions and doubled the GPU power to a Radeon 4870 X2. Running this card in our <a href="/article/features/dream_machine_08">2008 Dream Machine</a> showed very impressive results and with the extra money we saved on the CPU (read below), we allocated some extra cash to boost GPU performance.</p> <h2>Motherboard</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/poweruser_mobop45.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>MSI P45 Platinum LGA 775<br />$170, www.msicomputer.com</h3> <p>Intel's new P45 chipset gave us many reasons to love <a href="/article/reviews/msi_p45_platinum">this board</a>. Not only is it fast and full of new features, it also flaunts an exotic chipset heatsink design which makes it that much more cool! </p> <h2>CPU</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/q9300.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 3GHz <br />$550 (Retail), www.intel.com</h3> <p>You may be wondering why we downgraded from a Core 2 Extreme to Core 2 Quad. The truth is it's not much of a downgrade. Both chips are running at the same speed and cache with performance staying the same. The only difference is an unlocked multiplier which the Core 2 Quad lacks but when you are saving $400 that is something we can look past.</p> <h2>Memory</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/ram_patriot.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Patriot Viper 4GB DDR2/1066<br />$109, www.patriotmem.com</h3> <p>Not much explaining needed here. Memory is cheap and the more the better. With 64-bit Vista, 4GB is the minimum you'll need to become the power user you strive to become.   </p> <hr /> <h2>Case</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/case_nzxt.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>NZXT Tempest<br />$110, www.nxzt.com</h3> <p>The chassis in which your hardware resides is a crucial part of a power PC user. Cooling and airflow is essential to performance and the <a href="/article/reviews/nzxt_tempest">NZXT Tempest</a> provides it. Dubbed the <a href="/best-of-the-best">Best of the Best</a> midtower case by us, we feel this case will provide the power user with more than they need at a reasonable price.</p> <h2>Power Supply</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/poweruser_psu750.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>PC Power &amp; Cooling Silencer 750 Watt<br />$160, www.pcpower.com</h3> <p>PC Power is still at the top of our list as the best PSU. When they say 750 watts on the label, they mean 750 watts and we like that. </p> <h2>Operating System</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/poweruser_vista.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Windows Vista 64-bit Home Premium<br />$100 (OEM), www.microsoft.com</h3> <h2>Hard Drives</h2> <p><img src="/files/u43131/velociraptor.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Western Digital Velociraptor 300GB 10000RPM<br />$280, www.wdc.com</h3> <p>Every performance enthusiast needs a <a href="/article/western_digital_velociraptor">Velociraptor</a>. It's practically written in the unwritten handbook for power users. It's fast fast fast. It's no wonder why we used two of these in our Dream Machine.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img src="/files/u43131/SamsungF1.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Samsung F1 HD103UJ 1TB<br />$135, www.samsung.com</h3> <p>And just in case 300GB of storage isn't enough for you, which isn't much in today's technological world, we tossed in a <a href="/article/samsung_hd103uj_terabyte_drive">1TB Samsung</a> drive that should be able to store everything you need and then some. </p> <h2>Optical Drive</h2> <p> <img src="/files/u43131/lgbluray.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>LG GBW-H20L Blu-Ray Burner<br />$245, www.lge.com</h3> <p>As blu-ray starts to become the mainstream source of media, blu-ray drives are in hot demand and as a power user, you want to be up-to-date on the latest hardware. So we forked out some extra cash and slapped <a href="/article/reviews/lg_gbwh20l">this bad boy</a> on for the ride. Burn, watch, and enjoy blu-ray quality video with this blu-ray burner.</p> <h2>Sound Card</h2> <p> <img src="/files/u17625/soundcard_xfi.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer<br />$86, www.creative.com</h3> <p>We know sound is important and that is why we said &quot;Screw You!&quot; to onboard sound. The X-Fi XtremeGamer from Creative will be enough to get your juices flowing.  </p> <h2>CPU Cooler<br /></h2> <p> <img src="/files/u43131/zalman.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Zalman CNPS-9300AT SuperFlo<br />$50, www.zalman.com</h3> <p>We don't settle for stock coolers when it comes to performance. No we don't. So we scrapped the retail cooler and hooked up a <a href="/article/reviews/zalman_cnps9300_at">Zalman</a> to the CPU to keep it nice and cool, not to mention quiet.  </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Total: $2,555</h2> http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/power_user_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide#comments Features $2500 pc build a pc components feature hardware parts guide power user price guide Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:30:08 -0500 Benson Hong 3820 at http://www.maximumpc.com http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/pro_gaming_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide_%E2%80%93_updated_prices_and_parts_july_2008 <!--paging_filter--><p>Last week, we <a href="/article/features/power_user_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide_%E2%80%93_updated_prices_and_parts_july_2008">showed you which parts</a> you would want to buy to construct a killer $2500 PC. The purpose of that machine was power computing – serious audio/video editing and high-bitrate media transcoding. We got a lot of flak about a few of our choices (most noticeably the CPU), but we stand by our picks. That PC configuration was meant for Power Users, and not hardcore gamers (though we recognize that those aren’t mutually-exclusive groups). For someone who primarily uses their PC for gaming, and won’t accept framerate dips in 120Hz games, we have different recommendations. The following components make up our ideal $2500 hardcore gaming rig (prices as listed on Newegg). If it’s not what you’d buy, we’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!</p> <h2>Videocard</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/gamer_gpu280.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>2x Asus GeForce GTX280<br />$980, www.asus.com</h3> <h2>Motherboard</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/gamer_mobo790i.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>EVGA 790i SLI Ultra<br />$350, www.evga.com</h3> <h2>CPU</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/gamer_cpu.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Intel E8400 3GHz Core 2 Duo<br />$175, www.intel.com</h3> <h2>Memory</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/gamer_oczmem.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>OCZ 4GB Reaper HPC DDR3/1600<br />$240, www.ocz.com</h3> <h2>Case</h2> <p> <img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_casenzxt.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>NZXT Tempest<br />$110, www.nzxt.com</h3> <h2> </h2> <hr /> <h2>Power Supply</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/gamer_psu750.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>PC Power &amp; Cooling Silencer 750 Watt<br />$140, www.pcpower.com</h3> <h2>Operating System</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_vista.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Windows Vista 64-bit Home Premium<br />$110 (OEM), www.microsoft.com</h3> <h2>Hard Drive</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_harddrive.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Samsung F1 HD103UJ 1TB<br />$175, www.samsung.com</h3> <h2>Optical Drive</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_samsungdvd.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>Samsung SH-S203 DVDR<br />$29, www.samsung.com</h3> <h2>Sound Card</h2> <p> <img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_soundcardxfi.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer<br />$91, www.creative.com</h3> <h2>CPU Cooler</h2> <p> <img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_cpufan.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Zalman CNPS-9300AT<br />$50, www.zalman.com</h3> <h3>Price Breakdowns </h3> <h3>Videocards       $980<br />Motherboard    $350<br />CPU                   $175<br />Memory             $240<br />Case                 $110<br />Power Supply  $140<br />OS                     $110<br />Hard Drive       $175<br />Optical               $29<br />Soundcard        $91<br />CPU Cooler       $50</p> <p>Total:               $2450</h3> http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/pro_gaming_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide_%E2%80%93_updated_prices_and_parts_july_2008#comments Features $2500 pc build a pc components feature gamer gaming hardware parts guide price guide Tue, 29 Jul 2008 18:15:10 -0500 Norman Chan 2973 at http://www.maximumpc.com http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/power_user_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide_%E2%80%93_updated_prices_and_parts_july_2008 <!--paging_filter--><p>Earlier this month, <a href="/article/features/budget_badass_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide_updated_prices_and_parts_for_july_2008">we ran a feature</a> showing you which parts to buy if you wanted to build an affordable-yet-kick-ass $1300 lean machine. This week, we’re moving up from budget PC recommendations to our power user picks. But with great power, comes great cost. Monetary costs, that is. Our Power User’s PC costs $2500 without a monitor of peripherals – the high end of what we’d expect a PC enthusiast to spend when pieceing together a new rig. We also want to clarify what we mean by Power User’s PC. We see the Power User as someone who maximizes his PC’s processing potential. This person encodes media files, burns high-definition discs, and manipulates image, audio and video files. Gaming is important to the Power User, but this isn’t someone who demands 120 frames per second in multiplayer shooters – he’d rather shave precious seconds off of his video encoding times while multitasking in Photoshop. </p> <p>So without further ado, here’s how’d we’d configure a $2500 Power User’s PC (prices as listed on Newegg):</p> <h2>Videocard</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_gpu4870.jpg" width="415" height="250" /><br /> <h3>VisionTek Radeon 4870 512MB<br />$285, www.visiontek.com</h3> <h2>Motherboard</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_mobop45.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> </p> <h3>MSI P45 Platinum LGA 775<br />$180, www.msicomputer.com</h3> <h2>CPU</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_cpuquad.jpg" width="415" height="250" /><br /> <h3>Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650 3.0GHz<br />$1020, www.intel.com</h3> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Memory</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_rampatriot.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Patriot 4GB DDR2/1066<br />$110 , www.patriotmem.com</h3> <h2>Case</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_casenzxt.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>NZXT Tempest<br />$110, www.nzxt.com</h3> <hr /> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Power Supply</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_psu750.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>PC Power &amp; Cooling Silencer 750 Watt<br />$160, www.pcpower.com</h3> <h2>Operating System</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_vista.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Windows Vista 64-bit Home Premium<br />$110 (OEM), www.microsoft.com</h3> <h2>Hard Drive</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_harddrive.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Samsung F1 HD103UJ 1TB<br />$175, www.samsung.com</h3> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Optical Drive</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_bluray.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>LG GGW-H20L Blu-Ray Burner &amp; HD DVD Drive<br />$260, www.lge.com</h3> <h2>Sound Card</h2> <p><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_soundcardxfi.jpg" width="415" height="250" /></p> <h3>Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer<br />$80, www.creative.com</h3> <h2>CPU Cooler <br /></h2> <h3><img src="/files/u17625/poweruser_cpufan.jpg" width="415" height="250" /> <br /></h3> <h3>Zalman CNPS-9300AT<br />$50, www.zalman.com<br /></h3> <p> <br /> <h3>Price Breakdowns</p> <p>Videocard         $285<br />Motherboard    $180<br />CPU                  $1020<br />Memory            $110<br />Case                 $110<br />Power Supply  $160<br />OS                    $110<br />Hard Drive       $175<br />Optical             $260<br />Soundcard       $80<br />CPU Cooler      $50</h3> <h3>Total:               $2540</h3> http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/power_user_pc_buyer%E2%80%99s_guide_%E2%80%93_updated_prices_and_parts_july_2008#comments Features $2500 pc build a pc components feature hardware parts guide power user price guide Tue, 22 Jul 2008 17:46:46 -0500 Norman Chan 2872 at http://www.maximumpc.com