[BlackPandemic]

Hey GTG people,

This is pretty much going to turn into an opinion forum, but I need that right now. I just recieved the computer below on Wednesday and have been thinking about upgrades already. The problem is, I'm also saving money for books (I leave for my freshman year of college in the fall) so I can probably only upgrade one or maybe two things max.

My video card I was expecting greatness and was let down, that's my fault. On Newegg, the RADEON X800XT is only $174, but that won't be the first upgrade if I upgrade at all.

The second choice is a new sound card, like a X-FI XtremeMusic or an Audigy ZS something. About $70-$100 right?

The third choice is stick another gig of RAM in the sucker and boost it up to 2 gigs.

Now, before you make these decisions, keep this in mind: This is my "college computer" and my intended major is graphic design, so at the moment, I'm thinking that the RAM should be first, then video card, then sound card. Also keep in mind, only one of these will be chosen considering books and college in general are hella' expensive, and with tuition (after $11k scholarship a year) being about $18k, my parents will need all the help they can get sending me there.

Thanks a lot!

}BP{

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Hey GTG people,

This is pretty much going to turn into an opinion forum, but I need that right now. I just recieved the computer below on Wednesday and have been thinking about upgrades already. The problem is, I'm also saving money for books (I leave for my freshman year of college in the fall) so I can probably only upgrade one or maybe two things max.

My video card I was expecting greatness and was let down, that's my fault. On Newegg, the RADEON X800XT is only $174, but that won't be the first upgrade if I upgrade at all.

The second choice is a new sound card, like a X-FI XtremeMusic or an Audigy ZS something. About $70-$100 right?

The third choice is stick another gig of RAM in the sucker and boost it up to 2 gigs.

Now, before you make these decisions, keep this in mind: This is my "college computer" and my intended major is graphic design, so at the moment, I'm thinking that the RAM should be first, then video card, then sound card. Also keep in mind, only one of these will be chosen considering books and college in general are hella' expensive, and with tuition (after $11k scholarship a year) being about $18k, my parents will need all the help they can get sending me there.

Thanks a lot!

}BP{

Another 1gb of corsair ram is what I would get first definately..

[jrm20]

Hey GTG people,

This is pretty much going to turn into an opinion forum, but I need that right now. I just recieved the computer below on Wednesday and have been thinking about upgrades already. The problem is, I'm also saving money for books (I leave for my freshman year of college in the fall) so I can probably only upgrade one or maybe two things max.

My video card I was expecting greatness and was let down, that's my fault. On Newegg, the RADEON X800XT is only $174, but that won't be the first upgrade if I upgrade at all.

The second choice is a new sound card, like a X-FI XtremeMusic or an Audigy ZS something. About $70-$100 right?

The third choice is stick another gig of RAM in the sucker and boost it up to 2 gigs.

Now, before you make these decisions, keep this in mind: This is my "college computer" and my intended major is graphic design, so at the moment, I'm thinking that the RAM should be first, then video card, then sound card. Also keep in mind, only one of these will be chosen considering books and college in general are hella' expensive, and with tuition (after $11k scholarship a year) being about $18k, my parents will need all the help they can get sending me there.

Thanks a lot!

}BP{

Another 1gb of corsair ram is what I would get first definately..

[Dockboy]

Hey,

I agree, go for the RAM first off. Graphics design can be super intensive on your system's memory. You processor is fine.

In terms of what to do after that, I look at it this way. Which piece of hardware is being upgraded more often. To make an example of that; how often do new CPUs come out compared to new sound cards.

Personally, I would be looking into some storage. Your program isn't dependent on high quality sound, so it can wait. By storage, I'm talking about a bigger hard drive. I see websites have sales all the time, so if you keep your eyes peeled, you could snag yourself a 200+ Gb HDD for a decent price.

Another form of storage you should look into is a DVD burner. My personal recommendation would be the Pioneer DVR-111D Dual Layer DVD±R/RW Drive. Pioneer make some of the best DVD burners for a real good price. This particular one is retailing for $49.99 on pccanada.com (Yes, in Canada).

I've known people in the past in graphics design and they told me that some of the file sizes are huge, so your 80 gig will help you out for a little while, but seriously consider a bigger HDD after the RAM upgrade. Hope this helps you out man.

Cheers:)

[BlackPandemic]

I didn't even think of the hard drive. I downgraded it when I was building the custom computer online because I needed to save some money. So it'll probably go RAM -> Hard Drive -> Video Card -> Sound Card

I'm not a big sound nerd so I don't mind onboard audio, but RAM and Hard Drive upgrades should be relatively cheap for me.

The video card is an obsession, I feel it is my duty as a gamer to upgrade that

Thanks for you inputs!

Anyone else?