Student
Motherboard – MSI P45-NeoF – $156 – This motherboard supports raid, 45nm cpu’s and 8gb of memory, has DVI out and supports vista aero interface
CPU – Intel E8400 – 3ghz 45nm 6mb L2 Cache – $261 Best bang for buck in apps that’s aren’t properly multithreaded
RAM – 4gb (1 x 4gb kits) – $65 – As much ram as possible so that audio applications can cache the require files.
HDD – 1x320GB HDD’s for OS and Swap File – $73
HDD – 2x640GB Raid 1 HDD’s for Documents and Applications– $206
Case – Coolermaster RC 690 with 460w PSU – $169 Large spacious, quiet case with a quality power supply, as this computer does not draw as much power it does not need a different psu.
Monitor – 2x Acer P244WB – $698– A large screen enhances productivity, and 2 of these Large monitors will make multi tasking simple
DVD Writer – Pioneer 202BK – $31 – Quality drive for burning and reading DVD’s
Keyboard and Mouse – Logitech Cordless Wave – $79 – An ergonomic keyboard and mouse are important aditions to any computer setup, and should never be skimped on. This package contains an ergonomic keyboard and mouse, and costs over 40 less then buying them together.
Operating System – OEM Windows Vista Home Premium x32 Edition – $179 – As there is not more than 4gb of RAM in this system a 64bit operating system is a waste
Speakers – Logitech X240 – $64
Office Suite – Microsoft Office 2007 Home and Student Version – $119
Antivirus – BitDefender Internet Security 2009 OEM – $15
Total Cost: $2115
Gamer PC
Motherboard – MSI P45-NeoF – $156 – This motherboard supports raid, 45nm cpu’s and 8gb of memory, has DVI out and supports vista aero interface
CPU – Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550– $425 Best bang for buck in applications which are multithreaded, and also performs excellently in games
RAM – 8gb (2x 4gb kits) – $168 – 8gb is an excellent amount of ram and will help speed up your system in the most demanding of games
HDD – 2x640GB Raid 1 HDD’s for OS, Documents and Game Saves- $206
HDD – 2x640GB Raid 0 HDD’s for Games – $206
Video Card – GeForce GTX 285 – $569 – The best bang for buck video card for high end game cards
DVD Writer – Pioneer 202BK – $31 – Quality drive for burning and reading DVD’s
Case – Coolermaster CM 690 – $125 Large spacious case
PSU – SeaSonic PSR550+ 550w S12+ – $129 – A quality power supply will add stability to the system
Monitors – 1x Samsung 275T 27” Widescreen LCD – $899 – This excellent value monitor will enhance the gaming experience considerably, bigger is better!
Keyboard - Logitech G15 refresh- $108 – This keyboard comes with an integrated screen to display game stats and also has a backlit keyboard for late night gaming sessions.
Mouse – Logitech G5 Corded Mouse – $85 – This mouse has an ergonomic grip, excellent precision and adjustable sensitivity. A must for any serious gamer. Lefties beware though…
Operating System – OEM Windows Vista Business x64 Edition – $225 – A 64bit operating system is essential for using more than 4gb of RAM, and with less unnecessary bloat than Vista Home Premium this is a good choice for a gamer.
Total: $3332
Motherboard – MSI P45-NeoF – $156 – This motherboard supports raid, 45nm cpu’s and 8gb of memory, has DVI out and supports vista aero interface
CPU – Intel E8400 – 3ghz 45nm 6mb L2 Cache – $261 Best bang for buck in apps that’s aren’t properly multithreaded
RAM – 8gb (2x 4gb kits) – $130 – As much ram as possible so that audio applications can cache the require files.
HDD – 1x320GB HDD’s for OS and Applications – $73
HDD – 2x640GB Raid 0 HDD’s for Works in Progress – $206
Case – Coolermaster CM 690 – $125 Large spacious case
PSU – SeaSonic PSR550+ 550w S12+ – $129 – A quality power supply will add stability to the system
Video Card – MSI Pre Overclocked 512mb 9600gt – $142 – This video card supports up to dual 30″ monitors and GPU acceleration in photoshop.
DVD Writer – Pioneer 202BK – $31 – Quality drive for burning and reading DVD’s
Case – Coolermaster CM 690 – $125 Large spacious case
PSU – SeaSonic PSR550+ 550w S12+ – $129 – A quality power supply will add stability to the system
Monitors – 2x BenQ 21.5” E2200HD Full HD Monitors- $488 – As these monitors are true HD (1920×1080), and 16:9 ratio, they will be perfect for working on large amounts of code, and having two of them will allow the programmer to work more effectively on their projects.
Keyboard and Mouse – Logitech Cordless Wave – $79 – An ergonomic keyboard and mouse are important aditions to any computer setup, and should never be skimped on. This package contains an ergonomic keyboard and mouse, and costs over 40 less then buying them together.
Operating System 1 – OEM Windows Vista Business x64 Edition – $225 – A 64bit operating system is essential for using more than 4gb of RAM, and with photoshop now coming in a 64bit variant the choice is simple.
Operating System 2 – OEM Windows Vista Business x32 – $214 – As the world is still moving over to 64bit, it will be important to maintain compatibility with 32bit operating systems, and this will be good for testing purposes
Operating System 3 – OEM Windows XP Professional – $225 – As much as Microsoft would like to say otherwise, Windows XP is still the dominant operating system, and to not check for compatibility on it would be ignorant to say the least.
Total: $2738
Motherboard – Asus P5BV-C/4L Motherboard – $430 – Servers require server class components to ensure system stability
CPU – Xeon Quad Core X3220 – $369 – Servers require server class components to ensure system stability
Memory – 4gb Kingston DDRII ECC RAM – $130 – ECC RAM includes extra error checks over normal ram, and is necessary for a stable server
RAID Controller – Adaptec ASAR3405KIT 4 Port RAID Card – $599 – This card has support for RAID 5, which with the following HDD Configuration, will provide 3TB of High Speed Redundant Storage
Operating System Drive: 4xSeagate 80GB HDD’s – $208 - For stability 2 hard drives are in raid 1 with another 2 as spares
Storage HDD – 6x1tb Western Digital Green Power – $930 – See above for details, and an extra 2 as spares.
Case – Coolermaster CM690 no PSU – $125 – This case is excellent as it has an integrated hard drive cage which cools the hard drives under use, extending their life and increasing reliability
PSU – SeaSonic PSR550+ 550w S12+ – $129 – A quality power supply will add stability to the system, and is essential in a server
Operating System – Ubuntu – Free – Why use a free product in the server? No restrictions, and this server does not need to run any proprietary software, so why pay $900 for windows server.
Total Cost – $2920
Great price, I hope the graphic cards work on a basic medium-range operating system , though, as I can’t afford the most expensive ones. Thanks for the list.
Thanks for the comment, all graphics cards are vista/win 7/ubuntu/xp compatible (except for the server of course, as the integrated graphics are only to drive a basic display)