Buying a new computer

[Sasquatchewan]

My computer died, and I'm buying a new one tomorrow. I don't know much about computers, but my brother (who is a Computer Science major) is taking me to a place and guiding me through the process. Here's the catalog and price list for the place where we're going:

 

http://www.otvtech.com/pricelist/otvsystems.pdf

 

What I want is a computer that will be able to run Oblivion at all the highest settings, to really enjoy the full range of what the game has to offer. I also want to run Mods like Alive Waters without it impacting the flow of the game. My concern is that some of the computers offered are much more powerful than what is needed for Oblivion (the game is several years old already), and I'll spend more money than I need to. I don't play any other games (I'm a pretty casual gamer), so a system for the super-games of tomorrow is not a concern, I just want to buy something that will really get the most out of Oblivion.

 

So, which system in the catalog would you guys recommend? Trying to strike a balance between affordability and performance here.

 

Thanks in advance!

[dezdimona]

this is where I got mine and love it and a fraction of name brand costs

http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/

[Illiad86]

*cough* :blink: yikes, that's expensive for the "Basic Gamer" one. Oblivion wouldn't run too well on there, the 4550s are low end and 2GB of RAM just really isn't enough anymore, especially if you game. It's fine for going on the Internet haha.

 

I normally suggest building your own, but some people like to have the warranty from the store and all that. The Multi Gamer is a pretty decent price I suppose, but make sure you get 64-bit Windows 7. It's got a decent graphics card that will play Oblivion perfectly and play newer games very nicely for a while.

[longprong]

I got my last rig from the same folk as dezdimona but the UK branch

You do get a lot of spec for your money, especially if you go down the overclocking / water cooling route.

If you want to overclock cpu's and build yourself, this invalidates the warranty which can be very expensive.

My system came overclocked to the limit with full warranty - cheaper cpu with high end cpu performance

[xxXEvandarXxx]

I'd skip those computers and build one myself if I was you. You'll get a good computer alot cheaper that way.

If you're afraid that it's too complicated to build one, don't worry, it's easy, kinda like legos. ;D

[David Brasher]

A computer salesman told me something disquieting today. If a PC on the store shelf has 7 GB of RAM, it likely will not recognize the last three. If you query it, it will tell you it has 4 GB of RAM because the hardware/software setup cannot recognize beyond 4. He did say that Apples recognize the first 24 GB of RAM, and that Windows 7 probably recognizes more RAM.

 

I think I better get a second opinion before I buy another computer.

[LHammonds]

A computer salesman told me something disquieting today. If a PC on the store shelf has 7 GB of RAM, it likely will not recognize the last three. If you query it, it will tell you it has 4 GB of RAM because the hardware/software setup cannot recognize beyond 4. He did say that Apples recognize the first 24 GB of RAM, and that Windows 7 probably recognizes more RAM.

 

I think I better get a second opinion before I buy another computer.

The 4 GB thing is related to the 32-bit architecture. No matter what OS it is, a 32-bit system cannot physically address more than 4 GB. This goes for Windows 7 32-bit, Linux 32-bit or anything 32-bit.

 

The 64-bit architecture is limited to a maximum of 192 GB. The particular brand and version of a 64-bit OS may have artificial limiters to less than 192 GB and you will have to examine their capabilities before purchasing.

 

Example, the 64-bit versions of Windows 7 that can utilize 192 GB is Ultimate, Enterprise and Professional. Home Premium maximum is 16 GB and Home Basic max is 8 GB.

 

Reference Link

 

LHammonds