New Build Suggestions? Opinions?

[BoilerDown]

HardOCP and Anandtech are both dependent on ad revenue.  They will never say a bad thing about any company that advertises on their site.  There is not such thing as a 100% percent objective site as it pertains to computer hardware.

Skuzzy has always ragged on HardOCP, I think because the owner is an ass.  Its true, he's an ass, but no other web site does a better power supply review.  Both HardOCP and Anandtech keep their ad dept and their reviewers seperated and they can, IMO, both be trusted.  And both routinely give bad reviews to advertisers when its deserved.  There's no credence to Skuzzy's accusation.  Quite the opposite.

[Masherbrum]

Skuzzy's pretty much spot on.   

[Skuzzy]

Skuzzy has always ragged on HardOCP, I think because the owner is an ass.  Its true, he's an ass, but no other web site does a better power supply review.  Both HardOCP and Anandtech keep their ad dept and their reviewers seperated and they can, IMO, both be trusted.  And both routinely give bad reviews to advertisers when its deserved.  There's no credence to Skuzzy's accusation.  Quite the opposite.

They only give bad reviews to those who advertise with them, when they get pissed off at the company.  You can continue to use them, if you like.  No skin off my nose for it.  However, I would never trust them as any single source for information about a product or service.  They have earned that through thier own actions over the years.  The shame is, there could be good information at those sites, but due to it all being at the whim of relationships, you will never know.

I realize there are fans of the sites.  I have no issue if you want to place any credence with them.  I have no reason to slam any particular site, unless they give me a reason.  What would be the point?  The motive? 

One other thing.  In case you have not noticed, I put all WEB site reviewers in the same boat.  None of them can be trusted.  They are not going to bite the hand that feeds them.  It would be bad business.  Why would a business is shoot itself in the foot for its fans?  Sure, they want you to believe they would, but really, why would they do it?  If you want to believe they are in it for the greater good, it is your choice.  I am betting they are in it for the money.

HardOCP and Anandtech are both arrogant enough to think they have some kind of power that excludes them from being hurt by any one advertiser pulling out.  The advertiser also knows if they do pull out, it gaurantees bad reviews from that point forward.  Remember when NVidia pissed off HardOCP?  Had anyone put any faith in those reviews, NVidia would have been out of business.  HardOCP went to great lengths to make NVidia look bad.  They even changed the way they did the reviews and the benchmarks they used to make sure NVidia would look bad.

You want to trust them.  Fine by me.  When you come in here and recommend them for good review sites, I will always counter.  You do not want to hear it?  Do not make the recommendation.  Problem solved.

I trust our own clients far more than those sites.  They have nothing to lose or gain by telling the truth.  Sometimes we have a fanbois come through, but they are weeded out rather quickly and either fall into line or leave.

One last thing.  If you ever want to know what I think, just ask.  Assuming my motives and trying to impune my credibility, based on those assumptions, will usually not end well for anyone.  Show me I am wrong, and I will be the first one to acknowledge it.  It is far more important to me our clients get accurate information than anything else.  Now you have my motive.

[Getback]

I use these boards as a resource more than I do any review sites. Every now and then there are some questionable posters but like Skuzzy said they are soon weeded out.

[BaldEagl]

Every now and then there are some questionable posters but like Skuzzy said they are soon weeded out.

 

[Getback]

Ouch!! 

[BoilerDown]

I realize there are fans of the sites.  I have no issue if you want to place any credence with them.  I have no reason to slam any particular site, unless they give me a reason.  What would be the point?  The motive?

I can only guess.  You're only 3 hours apart, you in Grapevine and HardOCP in Austin.  Maybe you ran into Kyle at some point and found out that he's an bellybutton in person.

One other thing.  In case you have not noticed, I put all WEB site reviewers in the same boat.  None of them can be trusted.  They are not going to bite the hand that feeds them.  It would be bad business.  Why would a business is shoot itself in the foot for its fans?  Sure, they want you to believe they would, but really, why would they do it?  If you want to believe they are in it for the greater good, it is your choice.  I am betting they are in it for the money.

That's a very pessimistic viewpoint.  But that said, you're clearly right for some web sites, and clearly wrong for others.  http://www.dailytech.com/Pay+to+Play+Uncovering+Online+Payola/article7510.htm  Lumping them all in the same boat is wrong however.

HardOCP and Anandtech are both arrogant enough to think they have some kind of power that excludes them from being hurt by any one advertiser pulling out.  The advertiser also knows if they do pull out, it gaurantees bad reviews from that point forward.

And you know this how?

Remember when NVidia pissed off HardOCP?  Had anyone put any faith in those reviews, NVidia would have been out of business.  HardOCP went to great lengths to make NVidia look bad.  They even changed the way they did the reviews and the benchmarks they used to make sure NVidia would look bad.

Hard OCP caught Nvidia cheating.  Here's what he's refering to:  http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=NTAzLDEsLGhlbnRodXNpYXN0  Looking back, Nvidia cheated because their 5000 series cards sucked.  Hardocp did us all a favor by calling them out.  Nvidia made themselves look bad by having a bad product and trying to cover it up.

I trust our own clients far more than those sites.  They have nothing to lose or gain by telling the truth.  Sometimes we have a fanbois come through, but they are weeded out rather quickly and either fall into line or leave.

That's great for you, but who are the people that come here asking for advice supposed to trust?  "Some guy" that claims he knows what's best or a web site that posts their testing methodology and tests 10-100 times as many power supplies than "some guy" will ever use, and puts them to a much more thorough test?  When asked for advice I'll continue to link review web sites, because they can be trusted more than everyone spouting off "I had good luck with model x of brand y".

One last thing.  If you ever want to know what I think, just ask.  Assuming my motives and trying to impune my credibility, based on those assumptions, will usually not end well for anyone.

I didn't do anything of the sort.  "Skuzzy has always ragged on HardOCP" is a conclusion anyone could make by doing a search of this forum for posts by Skuzzy with Hardocp as a search term.

It is far more important to me our clients get accurate information than anything else.  Now you have my motive.

Saying in essence "every web site can't be trusted, trust me instead" is terrible advice.  I can't see how this meets your goal of getting clients accurate information.

As far as power supplies go, HardOCP has the most comprehensive testing methodology of any web site on the planet.  I wouldn't recommend them for their Track IR review, or their KillerNIC review, or their flight sim reviews (they've done a couple), but for power supplies, and that was what was most recently on topic here, there's no better than HardOCP for good info.

[MrRiplEy[H]]

I used to be a fan of HardOCP but their total lack of objectiveness towards Vista opened my eyes.

I also noticed heavy changes in attitudes over time. Nevertheless they did make moves which made sense to me, like ending testing with 3DMark and the likes. Real world gameplay testing is far more revealing than 3DMark especially when considering 3DMark tunes their benchmark towards the highest bidder. Several drivers have been caught with 3DMark 'optimizations' aimed to produce unrealistically high points in the tests.

[Skuzzy]

I never said trust me.  If anyone choses to trust my word, I like to think it is because I have earned that trust.  I am an electrical engineer with 30+ years of experience. I do far more than just use power supplies, or any other equipment (again, you have made more assumptions).  I have a lot of fun dissecting all of it and testing it.  I do not need a HardOCP or any other review site doing some superfluous tests to tell me if hardware is good or bad.

However, I keep my opinions mostly to myself and try to let the community make its own decisions.  If something is stated that needs further clarification, and I happen to have that bit of knowledge, I will chime in.  I cannot afford to give out erroneous information.  My job depends on me being factual and accurate.  The only motive I have is for everyone to be able to play our game and not have the computer be the stumbling block preventing them from having fun.

All video card companies cheat in benchmarks, without fail.  That has been going on for a very long time and continues to this day.  Of course, you need to define what a cheat is.  HardOCP appears to rearrange that definition to suit their needs.  The more drama they can create, the more users will flock to their site.  Basic marketing at work.  They have always been very good at that.  They are one of the better marketing sites out there.  They know how to generate traffic to thier site by creating controversy.

Again, if you like them, fine by me.  More importantly, if you trust them, then that is your call.  I have no reason to trust them.

I am not responding to some of your other remarks simply due to lack of time, and interest on my part.  I have no problem if you like them.  The only time I will ever have an issue is when they are recommended as good places to get information.

[Masherbrum]

I can only guess.  You're only 3 hours apart, you in Grapevine and HardOCP in Austin.  Maybe you ran into Kyle at some point and found out that he's an bellybutton in person.

That's a very pessimistic viewpoint.  But that said, you're clearly right for some web sites, and clearly wrong for others.  http://www.dailytech.com/Pay+to+Play+Uncovering+Online+Payola/article7510.htm  Lumping them all in the same boat is wrong however.
And you know this how?
Hard OCP caught Nvidia cheating.  Here's what he's refering to:  http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=NTAzLDEsLGhlbnRodXNpYXN0  Looking back, Nvidia cheated because their 5000 series cards sucked.  Hardocp did us all a favor by calling them out.  Nvidia made themselves look bad by having a bad product and trying to cover it up.
That's great for you, but who are the people that come here asking for advice supposed to trust?  "Some guy" that claims he knows what's best or a web site that posts their testing methodology and tests 10-100 times as many power supplies than "some guy" will ever use, and puts them to a much more thorough test?  When asked for advice I'll continue to link review web sites, because they can be trusted more than everyone spouting off "I had good luck with model x of brand y".
I didn't do anything of the sort.  "Skuzzy has always ragged on HardOCP" is a conclusion anyone could make by doing a search of this forum for posts by Skuzzy with Hardocp as a search term.
Saying in essence "every web site can't be trusted, trust me instead" is terrible advice.  I can't see how this meets your goal of getting clients accurate information.

As far as power supplies go, HardOCP has the most comprehensive testing methodology of any web site on the planet.  I wouldn't recommend them for their Track IR review, or their KillerNIC review, or their flight sim reviews (they've done a couple), but for power supplies, and that was what was most recently on topic here, there's no better than HardOCP for good info.

I have a Kleenex for you, since you're gonna start cussing (especially at a Forum Administrator).    I review ANY component by WHO USES THEM.   ALL magazines use marketing as a sway, Car and Driver, Road & Track and most PC magazines.   I don't care what a magazine thinks.

When I built this PC, I called Skuzzy, he gave me an honest recommendation.   I listened to him and bought a PC & Cooling 750W Silencer.   It is built to last, it has been flawless on top of it.   Good enough for me.   I also tapped this Community and went with "what worked".   I have not a single regret of ANY personal experiences they shared.   

[Getback]

I have a Kleenex for you, since you're gonna start cussing (especially at a Forum Administrator).    I review ANY component by WHO USES THEM.   ALL magazines use marketing as a sway, Car and Driver, Road & Track and most PC magazines.   I don't care what a magazine thinks.

When I built this PC, I called Skuzzy, he gave me an honest recommendation.   I listened to him and bought a PC & Cooling 750W Silencer.   It is built to last, it has been flawless on top of it.   Good enough for me.   I also tapped this Community and went with "what worked".   I have not a single regret of ANY personal experiences they shared.   

I read what Skuzzy posted about power supplies. Then read some reviews and later took into account what the rest of the folks had to say. Sad to say I did this after my first build but the second one was sensational.

[MrRiplEy[H]]

All video card companies cheat in benchmarks, without fail.  That has been going on for a very long time and continues to this day.  Of course, you need to define what a cheat is.  HardOCP appears to rearrange that definition to suit their needs.  The more drama they can create, the more users will flock to their site.  Basic marketing at work.  They have always been very good at that.  They are one of the better marketing sites out there.  They know how to generate traffic to thier site by creating controversy.

The good thing about benchmarks is that you can reproduce them by yourself - if you lack trust and happend to have the right hardware.

But the new style of Hardocp testing which uses 'playable settings' as benchmark instead of raw fps figures is IMO fishy. They basically offer their interpretation of the settings that should be used when playing with a certain card and it makes the results [H]ard to read.

[rod367th]

My hard working step son has saved enough to build a gaming rig. Here's what he has spec'd so far:

ASUS P5E3 WS Pro LGA 775 Intel ATX  $260

EVGA 8800GTS 512MB 256 bit PCI express $110

Antec TruPower 750W Continuous X-fire ready $142   

Intel Core 2 Duo Wolfdale 3.0 GHz $168

G Skill 2x2GB 240 pin DDR3 1333 $60

WD Caviar Black HD 500 GB 7200 rpm $70

SB X-Fi Xtreme Gamer 7.1 PCI $95

Thoughts?
Thanks 

I just purchased this laptop for son. has ati radeon video card  hd 3650 512 mb and web cam mic 64 bit system loaded aces high and its cleaner brighter than my twin gf9800 cards  duel core with sata drive. now wish i just got lap top all this for $712 400gb hd and 4 gig memory.

Toshiba presents the new and highly entertaining Satellite A355 Series. For those who need a versatile affordable lifestyle laptop equipped for excellent gaming and other entertainment too Topped by an attractive high-gloss Fusion Finish this laptop still has the memory storage and processing power for great performance helping people handle their busy lives; Yet when the day’s done it also ready to play offering integrated and discrete graphics for more exciting gaming. A brilliant 16.4-inch display for more memorable movies and photo editing together with features like a Webcam Toshiba Face Recognition, and a high definition sound port for more fun and convenience.

Notebook PC with Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T6400
16 In. Diagonal Widescreen TruBrite TFT LCD Display at 1366 x 768
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
DVD SuperMulti plus/minus Double Layer Drive with Labelflash
MFG Brand Name : Toshiba
MFG Model # : Satellite A355-S6935
MFG Part # : KIT-HD0016


Toshiba 16 In. LCD Intel 2.0 GHz Processor 4 GB RAM 400 GB HD Vista Home Premium Notebook with case

Model Satellite A355-S6935   

[Ghastly]

The most useful information in this thread for me was this:

A supply with active PCF circuits and run over a wider load range and provide clean power for that range as well.

I had always seen PFC described as the equivilent of a "catalytic converter" for your power supply - essentially meaningless in terms of the quality of power it provides to your computer, and solely of interest in terms of feedback into the electrical "environment".  I was unaware until Skuzzy mentioned it (and I looked at some schematics) that it really is more than that - its a better way to design a power supply to begin with.  

So, Thanks again!

<S>

[Masherbrum]

I never said trust me.  If anyone choses to trust my word, I like to think it is because I have earned that trust.  I am an electrical engineer with 30+ years of experience. I do far more than just use power supplies, or any other equipment (again, you have made more assumptions).  I have a lot of fun dissecting all of it and testing it.  I do not need a HardOCP or any other review site doing some superfluous tests to tell me if hardware is good or bad.

However, I keep my opinions mostly to myself and try to let the community make its own decisions.  If something is stated that needs further clarification, and I happen to have that bit of knowledge, I will chime in.  I cannot afford to give out erroneous information.  My job depends on me being factual and accurate.  The only motive I have is for everyone to be able to play our game and not have the computer be the stumbling block preventing them from having fun.

All video card companies cheat in benchmarks, without fail.  That has been going on for a very long time and continues to this day.  Of course, you need to define what a cheat is.  HardOCP appears to rearrange that definition to suit their needs.  The more drama they can create, the more users will flock to their site.  Basic marketing at work.  They have always been very good at that.  They are one of the better marketing sites out there.  They know how to generate traffic to thier site by creating controversy.

Again, if you like them, fine by me.  More importantly, if you trust them, then that is your call.  I have no reason to trust them.

I am not responding to some of your other remarks simply due to lack of time, and interest on my part.  I have no problem if you like them.  The only time I will ever have an issue is when they are recommended as good places to get information.

Damn right Roy.   You've helped hundred's and hundred's of your own customers, while taking time out of your own work.   In doing so, you have kept many of us in this game.   I've never understood HardOCP fanboi's myself.   

Thank you.