Specifications recommendations

Discussion in 'Badminton Photography' started by Cheung, Jul 13, 2007.

  1. Marc E

    Marc E Regular Member

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    With photo/video editing nothing is really fast enough so it's all about reducing the bottlenecks, which means paying attention to bus speeds as well as processor speeds.
    I would definately go for the E6600 cpu over the E6320 if you can afford it. (Though a Q6600 would be niiice ;) ) Both have a 1Ghz front bus.
    Worth remembering that unless a program is written to use both cores it will only use one, so the processor speed will make a difference.
    SATA is quicker then PATA but it's the transfer rate of the HD that's the limit in both cases, so do your homework before buying. I'm not up to date with HDs so can't advise but the bigger the cache memory the better.
    Last i heard DDR2 8500 was the fastest affordable RAM you could get but i know DDR3 is out, likely to be expensive though. 2Gb is the minimum you should be aiming for but configure it to allow for an upgrade. For example, if you have to slots and get 2x1Gb chips there's no room for expansion, to go to 4Gb you'd have to upgrade both chips which would mean buying 2 x 2Gb chips. If you start with 1x2Gb chip it's slightly more expensive than 2x1Gb but it leaves one slot free, so to go to 4Gb you only have to buy 1 more 2Gb chip, as opposed to 2 more.
    Video cards, Make sure you get a dedicated card as opposed to using any onboard integrated graphics as the integrated graphics are inherently slow, a 16Mb dedicated card will outperform 128Mb intergrated graphics. Get the fastest card with the most RAM you can afford but it won't make rendering any quicker so don't go overboard. Don't forget you want this system to last as long as possible so the more speed you can get now the better, but stick to a budget.
    Think that covers it.

    Oh, if you're serious about getting the colours right in your photos you'll want a decent, configurable monitor and a calibration tool, but that's a whole other topic...
     
  2. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    Thanks for the advice!

    Regarding the RAM it's usually DDR2 667 that is advertised. Assuming I will go E6600, would there be much difference with DDR2 800 or 1066? I'm not sure of the price difference between the different RAMs yet.

    Secondly, I will get a motherboard with 4 slots for RAM. Is it possible to just fill 1 slot with 1x2Gb RAM as opposed to 2x1Gb?

    If DDR3 is so new, I am unlikely to use it. My present computer uses RAMBUS which was used as a selling point - it turned out to be a poor choice.
     
  3. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    did it work? do you want me to send you mine? two may be better than one. put one in the bedroom also.
     
  4. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    i gave my disk issue a fair bit of thought. but still haven't come up with a good solution yet.

    i have two 300GB disks right now. they are RAID1'ed and there is a grand total of 350MB left in them right now.

    500GB disks are cheap now. US$110 + tax.

    i just got one for emergency as i have no space to download my photos.

    my current plan is to get one more and RAID1 the two 500GB.

    the question then is what to do with my 300GB disks?

    i can put them in one of those enclosures. but i already have RAID1. the external enclosure is slower (USB/FW) and also cost $$. maybe for backing up other things.

    just seems wasteful to have 600GB of disks lying around and not put them to good use.
     
  5. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    Or do you want me to send you the chinese version as well so no chance of misinterpretation?
     
  6. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    Can't you just keep the 300Gb in the computer and when they fill up to 250Gb, use the 500Gb as an external backup?
     
  7. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    nah. i don't need mine anymore. ;)
     
  8. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    And

    Wow, you've ordered it already. Great! Congratulations! See you in HK later this year.;)
     
  9. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    the 300GB already filled up to capacity right now. :(
     
  10. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    something that dawns on me.

    if i RAID0 the two 300GB, i get 600GB. and then i can use some backup software to back it up into the 500GB regularly.

    then i get the speed of RAID0 and a no hassle backup.

    will that work?
     
  11. silentheart

    silentheart Regular Member

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    Yes, also, you might want to look into this enclosure.
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817716013

    USB and eSATA. If you have a spare internal ind SATA header this will work. I just got this thing and now I don't need enclosure for SATA.

    http://cgi.ebay.com/2-Ports-SATA-to...7QQihZ001QQcategoryZ74941QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
     
  12. Neil Nicholls

    Neil Nicholls Regular Member

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    Is this going to be your boot drive? Is this Windows XP system RAID rather than a separate RAID controller?

    P.S. I'm no expert, but interested.
     
  13. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    my motherboard has built in RAID. so it is a hybrid solution.

    the boot drive is a small 40G disk.
     
  14. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    the external eSATA thingy looks interesting.

    but for now, i am trying to keep all the disk inside the main case. i don't trust myself with too many dangling cables. :p
     
  15. BadFever

    BadFever Regular Member

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    1) DDR2-667 is currently the mainstream RAM. They are the cheapest to get. I can't see any noticable different in real life applications except when running some memory benchmark. I am not sure about the price in HK though, but unless they are very close, no point getting DDR2-800/1066.

    2) No point in getting single piece of 2GB RAM as most motherboard will only take to the max of 4GB RAM. Well, except for the latest Intel P35 series motherboard, which can accept 8GB in total. But bear in mind that under 32bit Windows environment, 4GB is pretty much the optimal RAM recognised. In order to use beyond 4GB, you have to start using 64bit Windows, which is currently pretty useless as there are no applications written for it yet. Also, motherboard nowadays adopt dual channel memory technology. It will run up to 20% faster when running RAMs in pair compare to single piece. This you can see the different when running memory intensive apps.

    3) Wow, you are still using Rambus in your current PC. :eek: This only tells that you are not into PC stuffs (not an enthusiasts). So, no point chasing after latest and the greatest for your case.

    I would suggest you get either E6600 or E6750 or Q6600. Get either Intel 965i or P35 type of motherboard. Max the ram to 4GB. Currently the RAM is dirt cheap. As for the rest, the cheapest the better. :p
     
  16. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    I passed by very quickly in one computer centre last night. It was very late and only a couple of shops open. They couldn't give me a price for the E6600 or the Q6600. Apparently, these chips have are gong to have a lower price next week. Any present price quotation would be the old price.



    I think Kwun's price for the 500Gb hard drive is pretty low. I could only see prices at about US$180 for WD 500Gb whereas a 320Gb 16M is half that price.

    Umm, you are right! I am a more of a badminton fanatic than a computer fanatic:) But it's nice to now these things to get a more informed decision.


    Thanks to everybody, I've got a good idea of what to buy. Looks like I'll wait a little longer before putting the system together. I may compromise on the bigger hard drives and get the 320Gb option initially. It's no big deal to open the computer up and change a drive at a later date. I like the idea of having two smaller drives as silentheart suggested.
     
    #36 Cheung, Jul 20, 2007
    Last edited: Jul 20, 2007
  17. BadFever

    BadFever Regular Member

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    US$180 is a bit pricey. Try to bargain down to about US$160. If you have very good bargaining skill, US$150 is achievable. That should be a good buy for WD 500GB.

    You don't have to wait any longer for the Intel price drop cos it's today, 21/07/2007.

    Good luck with your new purchase. :)
     
  18. silentheart

    silentheart Regular Member

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  19. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    cheung if you can wait i can buy one for you here and bring it back. but it will be quite a few months' wait.
     
  20. ctjcad

    ctjcad Regular Member

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    Yeah..

    ..and with technologies (ie. computers etc.) keep on improving, prices will keep going down..Of course, new technologies will come out..;)
     

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