I need suggestions.

[asphyxzero]

In about three weeks, I will have approximately $1,500 to spend on a computer system. I really don't feel like making my own, and I already got a great deal on a computer. I'm buying an HP with 1TB of hard drive space, 8GB DDR3 RAM, an AMD Phenom II X4 955 Quad Core, 3.2GhZ, a Discrete GeForce 8400GS 512MB DDR2 Video Card w/ DVI/VGA/HD, and a Radeon HD3100 graphics card. The computer comes with a gaming mouse, gaming keyboard, and premium speakers. Also, I'm buying a 20" flat-screen monitor. All of this will run around $900, leaving me with $600. Windows 7.

Obviously, space and power requirements won't be much of a problem for me. What I'm asking is for some suggestions. What are some good games, anti-virus programs, music-players, etc. Free or not, it's all cool.

Any suggestions will be looked at. I've been using a family computer piece of s**t for much too long. So, as of right now, the sky's the limit.

[The Last Rydian]

You want it for gaming, but you failed to mention THE most important part for gaming.
The graphics card. What is it?

[asphyxzero]

Oops, let me check right quick.

[Eleganc3]

Besides looking for a video card, you might want to look into speakers, if you think the TV's isn't enough.

Antivirus wise, try not to use Norton. It really bogs down you computer...

Does the HP computer come with a Blu-ray drive? If you're into movies and stuff, that could be useful.

[asphyxzero]

Alright, these are the stats.

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Quad Core Processor 3.2GHz

6MB cache / 400MHz HT FSB

8GB DDR2 SDRAM (max. 8GB)

1TB SATA 7200 RPM hard drive

22X DVD±RW

Discrete GeForce 8400GS 512MB DDR2 Video Card w/ DVI/VGA/HD

Onboard Radeon HD3100 graphics

Front-panel 19-in-1 media card reader

Gigabit 10/100/1000 Mb/s LAN

It comes with "premium" speakers, whatever those may be.

[The Last Rydian]

That's not very good for gaming. It's a 2-generations old budget video card. It scores 138 in passmark. A card for good graphics and speed in newer games should score at least 750+, and they get as high as 1,500 to 2,000.

That card may be fine for korean MMORPGs and such (flyff, mabinogi), but it's not something you'd get for new PC games.

What are you exact wants?

[asphyxzero]

The Last Rydian

That's not very good for gaming. It's a 2-generations old budget video card. It scores 138 in passmark. A card for good graphics and speed in newer games should score at least 750+, and they get as high as 1,500 to 2,000.

That card may be fine for korean MMORPGs and such (flyff, mabinogi), but it's not something you'd get for new PC games.

What are you exact wants?

What's a good card to get then? I could go to an electronics store and buy a better one.

My exact wants? Anything as of right now. I'm a big MMO fan (or at least, I think I am, I've never really played an MMO outside of ones on the internets lulz)

[Unlicensed]

Internet, as in browser-based?

Or, games downloaded off the internet?

Any examples?

Do you play any games like World of Warcraft, Aion, Call of Duty 4/World at War, Fallout 3, etc?

All of these specifics can really narrow down a choice we could get for you.

[The Last Rydian]

So I assume you'll be interested in stuff like WoW on good graphics settings, and newer MMOs (that aren't from korea) coming out? You don't need the best graphics card, but with your budget you should be able to get one that'll perform plenty well for any game you throw at it.

The thing is you'd most likely want a better power supply to power a decent card. A computer that comes with a good card will already have one, but most computers without good cards don't have a powerful power supply. You can replace it yourself, but it involves unplugging and switching a couple cords, it might be more than you want to do. It also depends on the computer itself, so we'd need a model number to check it out.

If it's a standard ATX mid or full-tower case, then buying a new PSU (power supply unit) and graphics card to upgrade it yourself is an option, but the PSU can be $50-70, the graphics card can be $150+... and you'll have already paid for the PSU and graphics card in that system that you're taking out.

It'd be much better to get one with a decent card built in... too bad that's harder to find.

Anyways, follow these guidelines when picking a card. Do not stray from them. I know they don't seem to make much sense, but it's how the model numbers work.

If it's an ATI card...
Make sure is a "Radeon HD".
The first two numbers of the model should be 47, 48, 49, or 56, 57, 58, and 59.
The third number may be 3, 5, 7, or 9. The higher the number, the more power. You want at least 5.

If it's an Nvidia card...
If it's something like "GeForce xxxx"...
Make sure it starts with 98 (like a 9800).
If it's something like "GTX xxx"...
Make sure it's a "GTX" and not a "GTS", and make sure it starts with 26, 27, 28, or 29.


If you don't want to mess with the model business (don't blame you), check a benchmark and you can see which cards are more powerful than which other cards.
http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/gaming-graphics-cards-charts-2009-high-quality/F.E.A.R.-2,1516.html
"SLI" and "Crossfire" means they used TWO of the same card at once for that test, not a single one like you'll most likely be using (you won't need 2 for MMORPGs on non-crazy settings).

[Super Dragonite]

Honestly, I'd be fine with a 512 MB graphics card, but some may recommend a 1 GB. I haven't had any problems with my graphics card (512 MB), though when I play World of Goo, Windows is no longer in aero mode, though it goes back when I close World of Goo. (Not like it affects World of Goo in any way.) And I like Radeon.
As for everything else, that's a pretty rocking computer. I may just steal your hard drive. 3nodding
For anti-virus, you can go free or paid. If you're paying, I would recommend Panda Internet Security. If you are going free, I would recommend Avast! Antivirus coupled with Commodo Personal Firewall. (Avast! is free but doesn't have a firewall and Commodo isn't that great of a suite, but their firewall is praised highly by PC Magazine - and me - and you can get just the firewall for free.)
As for games, I'm an MMORPGer myself. So, I don't really know what to recommend to you that you probably haven't played. (I also haven't really been playing MMORPGs recently, because I've gotten a bit bored.)
I'd get the most recent Call of Duty, though. It's not an MMORPG, but it's epic fun, especially online. If you want a free equivalent, Nexon makes a game called, "Combat Arms," though it doesn't have a campaign/story mode.

Personally, I've been playing old games like Sim City 4 on XP in Virtual Box recently, so I don't know what to recommend for Windows 7. xd

[asphyxzero]

Unlicensed

Internet, as in browser-based?

Or, games downloaded off the internet?

Any examples?

Do you play any games like World of Warcraft, Aion, Call of Duty 4/World at War, Fallout 3, etc?

All of these specifics can really narrow down a choice we could get for you.

I detest World of Warcraft. No specific reason, I just could never get into it lol.

Never played Aion, but I've seen it. Don't really know what it's about, either.

I do plan on getting Modern Warfare 2 if I can't get a PS3 at some point.

Fallout 3 is a very high possibility.

I'm going to get FFXI as soon as I get an internet connection for my comp, unless FFXIV comes out before that. In that case, I'm getting FFXIV.


@The Last Rydian, because I'm enlisted, I can get certified in A+ and N+ for free, which is what I plan on doing at some point (within the next couple of months). Taking out the power supply should be no problem since I learned a tad bit about computer workings at the AIT I just got back from.