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 08/11/2006 09:56:48 PM · #1
Hi all,
I'm thinking of getting another computer pretty much just for working on pictures. I don't know a lot about hardware. Any suggestions?...thanks, kb
 08/11/2006 10:00:46 PM · #2
Time to learn about the hardware and build it yourself.
 08/11/2006 10:01:54 PM · #3
Sorry...just found and started reading the mac v. pc thread and realized that I should have clarified that I was looking specifically into pc's. If possible I'd like to create a wireless connection with my other pc.
 08/11/2006 10:03:26 PM · #4
So you do or don't need another computer?

Your clarification sounds like you just want to network two together. If that's the case you just need two wireless NIC cards and a wireless router.
 08/11/2006 10:50:10 PM · #5
I have a Mac and I wirelessly connect to my other pc without a problem :)
 08/11/2006 10:54:30 PM · #6
for photography, i still think CRT monitors are best and dollar for dollar an equally priced crt will provide much better picture than an LCD. you want lots of CPU speed and RAM for photoshop. go for amd athlon 64 x2 dual core and dual channel ddr 800 ram or higher. hard drives are so cheap now you should also consider raid. i run two seagate 320gb 7200.10's in raid 0.
 08/11/2006 11:27:02 PM · #7
You could build it yourself, or have a local shop build one up for you. As adamweb said, you should spend some money on the CPU and RAM so it'll be good for photoshop for a few years.

Building it yourself is a decent undertaking, but if you are interesting in learning about hardware and you don't mind some frustration and taking a while to get it all built up, you'll definitely learn a lot. If you decide to go the shop route, any decent shop will be able to give you a quote pretty fast, and although it won't be as cheap as buying everything from an online retailer and doing your own labor, you should be able to get a decent deal.

To start with, check out //newegg.com/ for prices on some hardware, and mechBgon's guide here: //www.mechbgon.com/build/index.html
 08/11/2006 11:45:51 PM · #8
Originally posted by adamweb:
for photography, i still think CRT monitors are best and dollar for dollar an equally priced crt will provide much better picture than an LCD. you want lots of CPU speed and RAM for photoshop. go for amd athlon 64 x2 dual core and dual channel ddr 800 ram or higher. hard drives are so cheap now you should also consider raid. i run two seagate 320gb 7200.10's in raid 0.


I wouldn't go with AMD 64 X2. I'd go with the Core 2 Duo. X2 is cheaper but the Core 2 Duo is much faster. RAID 0 wouldn't be the best choice for photography where you're probably wanting data security over speed. With RAID 0 if you lose one disk you lose all the data. RAID 5 would be a more appropriate choice. It may however be a better choice if you're not going to store the images on the same computer though.
 08/11/2006 11:59:35 PM · #9
How bout a simple suggestion, Like a Dell

$900 for almost everything you need to start out, including a monitor. $100 extra gets you a better monitor and video card. Get a Huey colerimeter, and you're pretty good to go if you already have photo software. Maybe think about an external 300gig hard drive for backup, they're pretty cheap now, about $125.
 08/12/2006 12:52:20 AM · #10
whether you edecide to build your new machine or you decide that you want to go through dell here are some things that i would look for

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo - i have always been a fan of AMD but this new chip from intel is amazing. it is dual core so it can multitask like a champ but it has a more flexable L2 cache, so it will be better at single tasks than most other dual core processors. ( this is important because most pieces of software are not programmed to fully utilize 2 processing cores)

Memory: if you want the best i'd go for 2 GB of DDR2 1066 (PC8500)ram , if you want to save some money 2GB of DDR2 800 (PC6400) ram. as of right now windows xp has a tough time allocating more than 2 GB of ram so i would hold out on going with 4GB until Vista is released. if you are building it yourself i am a fan of Corsair brand ram

Hard Drive: Make sure that you are using SATA or SATAII! storage size depends on how much you want to spend. personally i have a smaller but higher performing drive for my computer and have multiple external usb hard drives to store pictures and videos on.

Video Card: for photo editing i dont see the need in a super high end card but make sure you get something that will run windows vista when it comes out. i dont want to quote any vista specs and requirements as they may change but if you spend $100-150 on a card you should be in good shape.

Optical Drive: get a DVD+/-RW drive so you can backup or send stuff on DVD discs 4.7-8.5 GB

Motherboard: not much choice if you are going to order a prebuilt machine but if you are going to build it yourself i have had good luck with ABIT ans ASUS boards. i usually pick my board out last after i have chosen the processor, ram and hard drive. this way i can get the components i want and get the board to be compatable with my selections.

monitor: im not a monitor expert but i like LCDs because they look cooler and are generally easier on the eyes (i think)
i hope this helped

here is a pretty sweet system i built on newegg. includes OS but no Monitor for 1100 it compares to a dell (incl. 20" LCD) that i prices at about 1500 but newegg has faster ram

newegg

Message edited by author 2006-08-12 01:17:06.
 08/12/2006 02:49:50 AM · #11
I'd only consider self-build if you're a competent techy. The best thing about self-building your computer used to be that it would come in cheaper overall than the equivalent pre-built. I'm sorry to say that that's no longer the case.

The only benefit now to self-build is that you can get exactly the components that you want; but even that is becomming less useful as you can go to various web shops now and completely customise the build of your PC.

Then you have to consider the down-sides of self-build -

No tech support on your system
Potentially hours of frustration during the build
No guarantee of compatibility between all the parts
You have to test each component yourself

Also, I generally find that self-builds are noisier overall than a pre-built machine.

I'd look at the following places (these are uk based but probably have US equivalents

www.dell.co.uk - good for low spec / lower mid range machines, higher spec tends to be overpriced.

www.meshcomputers.com - good for mid-range machines and lower top-end

//www.alienware.co.uk/main.aspx - good for quality and top end machines, but can be pricey.

Message edited by author 2006-08-12 02:50:20.
 08/12/2006 03:30:57 AM · #12
Originally posted by TechnoShroom:
I wouldn't go with AMD 64 X2. I'd go with the Core 2 Duo. X2 is cheaper but the Core 2 Duo is much faster. RAID 0 wouldn't be the best choice for photography where you're probably wanting data security over speed. With RAID 0 if you lose one disk you lose all the data. RAID 5 would be a more appropriate choice. It may however be a better choice if you're not going to store the images on the same computer though.


thanks, yes forgot to mention backups are ESSENTIAL, i back every file unedited and edited up to a 300 gig external drive. raid 5 is pretty spendy and it takes ungodly ammounts of power and cooling to run 879345345 drives
 08/12/2006 09:59:05 AM · #13
Thanks everyone! I'd love to learn how to put one together but I'm at a point where that's more than I can realistically take on. But all of the notes about the processor, memory, etc. help put things into perspective.

To answer a couple of questions:

1...Yes I really need another computer. My husband and I both use the computer so much that we both just need our own.

2...And my skill level is minimal tech competence in this area.

Special thanks to Lemondster for breaking the components out like that. Really helped me understand some of the lingo and what I need to be looking for.
 08/12/2006 10:19:50 AM · #14
Only thing I would like to add is that if your looking into a widescreen LCD monitor make sure the graphics card you get supports the resolution of the monitor.
 08/12/2006 10:51:56 AM · #15
two monitors. One for editing that is higher quality and completely color tuned; the other for sorting, finding, pasting into etc etc. I run two Dell LCDs, one a 19" and the other the 20" wide screen. I dumped a new 21" Dell CRt because of it's size and in reality the new LCD's are so so close to the same quality when it comes to photo editing.

Don't build it yourself. Like previous notes, 10 or 15 years ago it was a great way to go, no more. No service, no warantees unless you want to take it apart to send each part back to all the various manufacturer.

Price out a Dell. Sorry for those who do not like Dell but they really can't be beat on price and service. Get the 2 or 3 year at home service and everytime I needed help the next day the part was here of the techinician called to set up the repair for me. PROBLEM with Dell: Over seas tech support, they are very friendly and nice but spend far too much time trying to be nice. When they answer ask for level 2 tech support and get your call forwarded back to someone who is more than just a telephone order or keyboard entry technician. That is the only frustration. Well one more, now they have an automated answe if you use e-mail tech support. It reminds you of things you need to check first. I hate them and Dell then gets a reply that I've already done what they asked and I need help, the part arrives the next day then ;)

Heck even some pof the HP's aren't too bad either.

Get as much RAM and if possible the dual core processor if you can afford it. Also with photography the hard drive will fill very fast, go for a 250 Gb or more or you can always add one of two more internal hard drives or as many external ones as you need them. Also get a graphic card that has at least 250 memory especially for photos and graphic work.

So the bottom line, lots of Ram, dual processors at the highest speed you can afford, 2 or 3 year at home next day service, good graphic card at least 256 mem, and ability to expand with more HD storage both internal and external. Don't build it yourself unless the build part is something you like to do.

Good luck
 08/12/2006 11:37:59 AM · #16
I'm really please with the Dell that I went with. I picked a $1000 package and then upgraded the components that mattered for processing photos. This upped the price to about $1300 and it's working out very well. Now, I just need to get a backup hard drive.
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