[Slamman]

Despite my leaning toward Legacy, Not all of it I'd miss down the road, but Firewire should be evolving overall to it's 800 version, before doing away with it, and the PCI slot? I'd use it with cards around, but for a modem or Ethernet PCI card? Not likely.... but do you think mobos doing away with PCI will bode well for everyone? I figure if there are enough PCIe x1, or USB 3 makes more in-roads. Price finally dropped about a year back, but it's still holding strong around $50 USD, I think that's spendy for just adding a USB port to a laptop or desktop

[illegal_luggage]

I'll be honest here, I've never used firewire and I don't even know what you use it for. Another technology I know nothing about is Thunderbolt.

What internet speeds do you guys get? I get a 1.7Mb/s down and 0.3Mb/s up. It's bloody terrible compared to my college as when it's not limited, we can get 60Mb/s down but it's usually limited to like 8Mb/s. I can't wait until BT the bastards finally lay down some fiber optic cables and throw away the ancient corroded copper lines.

[Stinky12]

Firewire can be used for networking and it was also used for camcorders as they have a sustain transfer rate. USB 2.0 while it's faster, cripples itself after long transfers.
Thunderbolt (TB) by Intel code name LightPeak is a new type of connector that can achieve up to 10Gb/s (USB 3.0 is 5Gb/s), its connector serves two functions, you can either
use it as for hooking up external TB drives or even a TB monitor.

[Wolf68k]

USB 2.0 is 480 mbit/s while Firewire 400 (standard) is 400mbit/s. So based on that USB seems to be faster. However in real-world application Firewire is for the most part faster.

[Stinky12]

WD has released their new RED drives especially designed for NAS. The RED is between their Green and Enterprise drive and has WD's NASWare built right into the drive.



http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16822236344

[Stinky12]

GTX 660Ti to come out in August?
http://www.tomshardware.com/news/nvidia-ke...date,16275.html

[illegal_luggage]

QUOTE (Stinky12 @ Monday, Jul 16 2012, 15:30)

GTX 660Ti to come out in August?

I suppose it'll be priced near the 7850? My friend is getting a graphics card soon and his budget it just under £200 and he's thinking about the 7850 but I said wait for the GTX 660.

[yojo2]

GTX660Ti will be priced near HD7870. GTX660 (without Ti) is going to be the competitor to HD7850.

[Cursed]

Just bought a new PC. At the moment I'm using a 2008 Macbook with a 2GHz Core 2 Duo and GeForce 9400m. It gets me by but it's no good for gaming. I haven't had a gaming PC in a couple of years but last time I did it had a 8800GT and Phenom processor so I expect this will be a bit better.



I'll be putting the Crucial M3 SSD from my Macbook into it. I'm thinking then I'll sell off the Macbook and replace it with a Nexus 7 tablet. The best part of having a laptop is being able to use it in bed for web browsing and a tablet would be better for that.

[illegal_luggage]

I'm seriously considering these speakers:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct....rodid=SP-007-MA

Should sound awesome with a soundcard and 320kb/s MP3's

[finn4life]

QUOTE (illegal_luggage @ Tuesday, Aug 7 2012, 09:28)

I'm seriously considering these speakers: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct....rodid=SP-007-MA Should sound awesome with a soundcard and 320kb/s MP3's

Well personally I find it very difficult to distinguish once you go above 128, and if you really are a stickler for quality wouldn't you use aac or mp4 which seems to be the new standard.

If you get your music from iTunes it will be mp4.

[illegal_luggage]

QUOTE (finn4life @ Monday, Aug 6 2012, 22:40)

QUOTE (illegal_luggage @ Tuesday, Aug 7 2012, 09:28) I'm seriously considering these speakers: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct....rodid=SP-007-MA Should sound awesome with a soundcard and 320kb/s MP3's Well personally I find it very difficult to distinguish once you go above 128, and if you really are a stickler for quality wouldn't you use aac or mp4 which seems to be the new standard. If you get your music from iTunes it will be mp4.

I thought MP4 is video. I find a noticeable difference between 128 and 320 as it has more fidelity and less distorted. Do you have onboard sound as there is a difference but it's quite hard for me to explain. It's just more clear when you have a dedicated soundcard (external or internal) and is like having a new set of ears. Speakers/headphones matter a lot too.

EDIT
Here's a tip. When playing music always have the source and Windows volume at max, then adjust it on your speakers.

This post has been edited by illegal_luggage on Tuesday, Aug 7 2012, 21:32

[finn4life]

QUOTE (illegal_luggage @ Wednesday, Aug 8 2012, 06:56)

QUOTE (finn4life @ Monday, Aug 6 2012, 22:40) QUOTE (illegal_luggage @ Tuesday, Aug 7 2012, 09:28) I'm seriously considering these speakers: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct....rodid=SP-007-MA Should sound awesome with a soundcard and 320kb/s MP3's Well personally I find it very difficult to distinguish once you go above 128, and if you really are a stickler for quality wouldn't you use aac or mp4 which seems to be the new standard. If you get your music from iTunes it will be mp4. I thought MP4 is video. I find a noticeable difference between 128 and 320 as it has more fidelity and less distorted. Do you have onboard sound as there is a difference but it's quite hard for me two explain. It's just more clear when you have a dedicated soundcard (external or internal) and is like having a new set of ears. Speakers/headphones matter a lot too. EDIT Here's a tip. When playing music always have the source and Windows volume at max, then adjust it on your speakers.

Yeah i know that stuff, but thanks. If you can tell the difference it is worthwhile then, and no i have onboard sound, but i haven't bothered with 320 on my PC, on a friends i have since he is somewhat of an enthusiast and i had trouble telling them apart.

MP4 is video and audio, and i understand MP4 is a little better.

AAC/M4A is probably the best for your audio, i suspect you are either confusing what sort of music you have, or you do have MP3's, because 320 MP3 is pretty rare.

Once again, where do you get your music from? Itunes is AAC/M4A for the majority (Sorry i said MP4 before).

[illegal_luggage]

320 kb/s MP3's aren't rare, I always rip at that quality from discs and when downloading from 100% royalty free trust worthy sources I always easily find 320kb/s in the description or title. I understand less compressed audio such as AAC sounds better but it's hard to tell the difference until you get into more serious equipment. Grab one of your CD's and rip a song at 320kb's and then again at 128kb/s to MP3 and compare them. It should be easy to hear the difference.

This post has been edited by illegal_luggage on Tuesday, Aug 7 2012, 22:07

[OverTheBelow]

320kbps MP3 is not rare in the slightest.

I can definitely tell a difference between 128 and 320, and FLAC. It's as if the sound fills more of your headphones and sounds generally cleaner as you reach the higher end of the audio quality spectrum. Only provided you have decent sound gear though obviously.

[sivispacem]

QUOTE (illegal_luggage @ Monday, Aug 6 2012, 23:28)

I'm seriously considering these speakers: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct....rodid=SP-007-MA Should sound awesome with a soundcard and 320kb/s MP3's

I looked at them when I was in the market for some decent small desktop speakers. They're pretty good for the price but I found them to lack midrange and punch, plus they feel and look quite cheap. I ended up plumping for some Audioengine 2 ones- I paid less then £120 for mine (about £110 if my memory serves me correctly) about a year ago. No idea what your budget is for speakers but they are pretty much the best on the market IMO at this price range.

Just don't consider getting the powered subwoofer with them. By god, it's AMAZING, but £300 for a PC subwoofer is a lot of money.



Some reviews, if you are interested-

Stereophile- "I have never been more impressed with or more stunned by a component I've reviewed for Stereophile than I was with the Audioengine 2"

Enjoy The Music- "I can wholeheartedly recommend them for audiophiles who desire a great powered loudspeaker in a small package"

This post has been edited by sivispacem on Wednesday, Aug 8 2012, 08:54

[illegal_luggage]

I could stretch to £120 on speakers. What are the A2's like on their own? I could save up for a subwoofer later and I assume you have the AS8 sub? Where did you get your speakers from if I may ask? I can't seem to find them lower than £130.

EDIT
These Microlab Solo 6C speakers have good reviews and are a bit less pricey.

This post has been edited by illegal_luggage on Wednesday, Aug 8 2012, 10:44

[sivispacem]

QUOTE (illegal_luggage @ Wednesday, Aug 8 2012, 11:26)

I could stretch to £120 on speakers. What are the A2's like on their own? I could save up for a subwoofer later and I assume you have the AS8 sub? Where did you get your speakers from if I may ask? I can't seem to find them lower than £130.

I bought them through one of the Amazon sellers, but there are only one current seller on there unfortunately.

In terms of quality, they're absolutely exquisite. Custom internal parts, Kevlar tweeters and even come with pretty decent high-quality cabling. They're physically tiny- about 15cm tall- but can produce an unbelievable amount of noise- far more than the huge Logitech speakers they replaced. Incredibly crisp, even quite good bass for such small speakers- I wouldn't play dubstep at club volume on them but they'll hack just about anything below that. Have about a 6-hour bedding-in period where there can be a little fuzz in the sound, but after that they're truly amazing. Better treble/midrange balance out of the box than the enormous £7k AVI setup that lives downstairs. Without a shadow of doubt the best small speakers I've ever used- not one hint of that terrible artificial warmth you get from cheap PC speakers.

I don't have the sub, but I've tried it and it is truly fantastic. That said, I imagine you could get something 9/10ths as good for about a quarter of the price.

[illegal_luggage]

I'll seriously consider the A2's then as you seem well pleased with them. What sort of sub shall I get with it? Will I have to build my own and get an amp etc or can I get powered sub on its own? I've never really touched audio equipment so how would I hook them up with the A2's?

EDIT
Here is one fine looking graphics card! http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2012/07/2...eq-2gb-review/1

This post has been edited by illegal_luggage on Wednesday, Aug 8 2012, 22:41

[sivispacem]

QUOTE (illegal_luggage @ Wednesday, Aug 8 2012, 16:02)

I'll seriously consider the A2's then as you seem well pleased with them. What sort of sub shall I get with it? Will I have to build my own and get an amp etc or can I get powered sub on its own? I've never really touched audio equipment so how would I hook them up with the A2's?

A2s are powered and active, rather than passive, so they shouldn't be be hooked into the sub directly (in fact, if you hooked them up to an active subwoofer you could so some serious damage to them)- they would just the output on the motherboard (most do 5.1, so one output for sub and one for both speakers like a normal pair). Then it would be a case of messing around with settings in your chosen sound profile manager programme to get what you want out of them.

As for subwoofers, I don't actually use one currently (though I keep umming and aahing about getting the matching Audioengine one despite the price) so I can't really offer advice. In my view unless you are going very loud you won't need one as the clarity and definition of bass from the speakers is well above most of the 2:1 subwoofer-equipped setups I've heard.