How will this computer do with running SL and mesh viewers?

[Tira Moonwing]

Recently I posted a thread asking what kind of pc I will need for today's SL. Many thanks to all those who commented. I was wondering if the specs posted below would work best or if I should change something. Do I need the latest Intel? Or a 2nd or HDD hard drive? Trying to make it as affordable as possible but not the cheapest so it will last. Thanks	HPE h8-1360t series
Processor	3rd GenHPE h8-1360t serieseration Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3770 quad-core processor [3.4GHz, 8MB Shared Cache]	edit
Memory	8GB DDR3-1333MHz SDRAM [2 DIMMs]	edit
Hard drive	1TB 7200 rpm SATA hard drive	edit
Secondary Hard Drive	No secondary hard drive	edit
Graphics card	2GB Nvidia GeForce GT630 [DVI, HDMI and VGA via adapter]	edit
Power Supply	300W Power supply	edit
Networking	Wireless-N LAN card (1x1)	edit
Productivity ports	15-in-1 memory card reader, 2 USB 2.0 (front), 2 USB 3.0 (top)	edit
Office software	$40 Off Microsoft(R) Office Home and Student 2013	edit
Security software	No additional security software	edit
TV & entertainment experience	No TV Tuner	edit
Primary optical drive	SuperMulti DVD Burner	edit
Sound Card	Beats Audio (tm) -- integrated studio quality sound	edit
Keyboard and Mouse	Premium HP keyboard and optical mouse	edit
Included Software Bundle	Adobe Premiere Elements & Photoshop Elements 10	edit
Your additional options:

[Qie Niangao]

At first glance, I'd be less than thrilled by that GT630 graphics card. A 660 would be much better, but it seems the best nVidia card HP offers for this model is only a 640, so... maybe choose just the embedded Intel graphics and order an add-on video card from NewEgg or somewhere. Or maybe somebody else likes one of the AMD/ATi Radeon options available for this model (I just don't follow those myself).

Personally, strictly to save money, I might choose an IvyBridge i5 processor instead of the i7, but unfortunately, the only downgrade HP offers for this model is a SandyBridge i7, which uses more power (hence more heat and probably more fan noise).

As to additional storage, you could add an SSD for speed, but you can always add that later, too, and you'll get more, cheaper, the longer you wait. I guess if you wanted to do RAID, then additional drive(s) could be good to have from the start, but with more and more stuff moving to the cloud, that seems unlikely to be worth the trouble and expense.

[Alicia Sautereau]

Ontop of of that, i find the psu abit week, maybe a 500/600watt if it fits your budget

[Theresa Tennyson]

Your processor, memory and hard drive look just fine - SL has very little use for your hard drive. The graphics card should be okay but not spectacular - I have a GT 640 which I like but isn't top of the line by any means. You can see how you like it now and upgrade it later. You'll certainly have no problems running modern viewers at medium settings or seeing mesh.

If you upgrade your video in the future you'll want to upgrade your power supply at the same time - the GT630 is probably right at the high end of what a 300 watt power supply will handle and it probably doesn't have the specialized power connectors that many more powerful video cards use. Power supplies are comparatively cheap and can be dropped into a standard full-sized tower chassis without too much drama - I did it myself this past weekend.

I assume you're getting WIndows 8 - at this exact moment in time you might look into getting Windows 7 instead. HP was still offering a few boxes with it when I checked a few days ago. SL can run under Windows 8 but there are still some rough patches apparently. However, the complaints I hear don't seem to be coming from Nvidia users so you could be okay.

[Orca Flotta]

Oh, there's much to say about your choice.

1) the graphic card isn't really up to par. Nvidia's GT series just don't cut it for SL or any other hi powered games. Go for the GTX series!

2) the RAM isn't up to par either. Modern computers sport 1600MHz modules. And surely no no-name modules as you will get from HP.

3) a 300W power supply? Really? On what soft of mucked up scrap yard do they find that stuff? 650W is the deal these days.

4) MS Office for 40 $ less? Wow, really the deal of a lifetime You get Libre office for free, so why bloat up the storage with crappy MS test stuff?

5) Dr Dre soundcard? Oh my, ohmyohmy If there was a decent mother board in that computer you'd have no need for a ill-reputed second rate extra boomy soundcard. That's again just some namedropping so you spend more on **bleep** just to gain bragging rights.

6) 1TB 7200 rpm HD is okay. That's pretty much the standard these days. Downgrading to a 500GB platter will save you 10 bucks, so leave it.

 

I guess HP reallly cheaped out on this one and let's you pay for it. As I always say: hands off brand products! They are full of bad compromises and messy overpriced stuff. For example they put in the fancy i7 proci so you have something to bragg about. And the rest of the hardware is as cheap as it gets. Heck, they won't even let you know the brand of the included RAM and there is no mention at all of the motherboard. Two very cruicial parts of every PC, unlike the bloatware, and they won't even tell you. If I were you all my alarm systems would go off right now!

My advice: surf to Newegg (if you're in the States) and configure your own machine. It saves you money or at least puts your money into the correct hardware.

[Suspiria Finucane]

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Orca Flotta wrote:

 

3) a 300W power supply? Really? On what soft of mucked up scrap yard do they find that stuff? 650W is the deal these days.

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Exactly! 300W is very low indeed. I'm at 1000W just to be safe :matte-motes-smitten:

[VRprofessor]

Echoing others:  The small power supply will prevent you from upgrading your graphics card (or much of anything else) in the future.

Different:  The GT640 is not a great card, but at low settings it should be okay.   It will probably handle medium settings on low traffic sims especially if you limit the draw distance.  If you really want all the graphics SL has to offer you'll want to upgrade your card eventually.

The i7 is a fine chip, but is more than you need.   If you can find an i5 based machine with a larger power supply you should be able to save a few dollars now as well as giving yourself the option of upgrading later.  (I started with a 750w power supply and a GT 550 graphics card.  Several months later I was able to upgrade to a GTX 660ti. 

If you have a geek friend, and some tolerance for uncertainty, think about building from parts. 

[Damien Avedon]

OKay:

1: Mesh is a client issue.  That means if your computer runs SL at all, it will run mesh with a mesh enabled viewer.

2: Start saving!  Get a 500-550 watt power supply and a 550-2gig card.  The 500 series is a good stable card series and the 550 is the best bang for the buck.  Yes, there are higher numbered cards, but they are also a lot more expensive.

3:  You will also be seeing Server Side Baking as an issue.  That is also a client (Viewer software) issue.  Essentially, if you get an up-to-date viewer (client) the issue of mesh and SSB will be non issues, taken care of by the viewer software.

Hope this helps.

[Tira Moonwing]

Boy do I have a lot to learn!  Maybe I need to take a computer building class at my local community college. I thought the power supply that came with any computer would be fine as long as the graphics card is higher end so it would already be compatible; even If I chose to upgrade later. What I have discovered by shopping around on sites (Dell, HP, newegg, etc) is that at first glance the system I chose looks really great. Then as I read further into the specs what is high-end as far as say Intel i7 lacks in the graphics card and/or other components. As far as building a pc I would probably cause an overload in a circuit (don't think my landlord would be too happy with that) LOL. It looks like I will continue shopping and maybe one day hit it lucky (yeah, right).

[Dillon Levenque]

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Tira Moonwing wrote:

Boy do I have a lot to learn! 

Maybe I need to take a computer building class at my local community college

. I thought the power supply that came with any computer would be fine as long as the graphics card is higher end so it would already be compatible; even If I chose to upgrade later. What I have discovered by shopping around on sites (Dell, HP, newegg, etc) is that at first glance the system I chose looks really great. Then as I read further into the specs what is high-end as far as say Intel i7 lacks in the graphics card and/or other components. As far as building a pc I would probably cause an overload in a circuit (don't think my landlord would be too happy with that) LOL. It looks like I will continue shopping and maybe one day hit it lucky (yeah, right).

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As one who has taken a bunch of classes in various community colleges, I completely agree with that premise. I'm only guessing but since you used the phrase 'community college' I'm presuming you are in the US. Almost all of the JC's around here offer classes (evenings and/or weekends) to help to obtain what's called an A+ Certificate.

Despite its fancy name, it isn't like getting the certificate makes you a computer whiz—it is really kind of an entry level thing—but the class will educate you on what all of the parts of a PC are, how they interact, how and when to replace them, and stuff like that.

Not to get all sexist or anything but if you are of the female persuasion you will find that computer/IT classes at a community college are a great way to meet guys (if that sort of thing interests you). The ratio of males to females in the classes I've taken are typically many/few.