$550 Build w/ Monitor (PLEASE CRITIQUE)

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what i say is that you can always try the integrated video and if it is fine then you would have saved money over buying a video card, but if you did buy a video card and it would have been fine with out one, then theres no way to get the money back.
 
Well if you plan on watching DVDs and stuff like that then you may need a decent video card if you want a really good viewing experience. ATI has some good affordable HDCP cards that would put out a nice picture.
 
that mobo's integrated video will play movies just fine. as our general rule, on-board sucks, dont take it personally :eek:. bear in mind that we are junkies for high-end equipment, so what sucks to us works fine for the vast majority of computer users.
like everyone said, if you are not playing anything more taxing than minesweeper or some old games, it will be fine.
and what vaanish says is exactly right....its not like they are not going to sell you a card if you dont like the on-board, you can always get it later. although, any card under 60-80 bucks or so probably wont be much better. i put a 7300gs in my moms rig, and it isnt anything special, but maybe a little better than on-board. the only reason i got it was that my old abit board i used in her build doesnt have integrated. FOR GOD'S SAKE if you get a 7300gs, get a passively cooled one (ie no fan). after everything is runnning it is not so bad, but at startup it sounds like a shop vac. good luck!
 
Well, I prefer to think of myself as a computer junkie. But coming out of my parents bank (I'm only fifteen years old) I can't blow a thousand bucks on a computer. Anyway, thanks folks. I did realize that most of you have $300+ video cards. I own an xbox so gaming on the computer isn't a priority. Halo 3 keeps me busy, but crysis looks pretty insane (maybe when the hardware catches up completely ;) ...maybe). And the only reason I was thinking of a Media Center PC is because I noticed that the mobo was marketed towards HTCP's. And quite honestly the integrated video is not bad for just watching videos (even though it may, if I'm lucky, brake 1-2 fps on COD3). And it's not like I'm chaining the case of the computer closed. It is upgradeable. But for $350 (without the monitor) 2 gigs of ram and a dual core processor doesn't look too shaby, if I may say so myself. But anywho, thanks for all the feedback :D


--Matt Covalt

--The fifteen year old PSP Hacker from around ASU... Home of the three time championship Mountaineers
 
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