May High-end Gaming PC Buyer's Guide - Page 5

Video Accelerator: ATI Radeon 9800 Pro 128MB

Current Cost: $395
Months on list: New
Price Change: N/A

The ATI Radeon 9800 Pro has finally become available in mass market quantities, and has proven to be an excellent evolutionary step up from the previous Radeon 9700 Pro. The card is based around the same architecture that the Radeon 9700 series, however it has been tweaked with some new features, making it at bit faster clock-for-clock than the 9700 series. It's also clocked a bit higher at 380 MHz core and 680 MHz memory, and proves to be the best performing card available, pending the full release of NVIDIA's GeForceFX 5900 Ultra (NV35), and ATI's Radeon 9800 Pro 256MB.

Just around the corner is the official release of NVIDIA's follow-up, or correction, to their dismal GeForceFX 5800 Ultra, the 5900 Ultra. Initial results look promising as NVIDIA looks to have corrected many of the mistakes they made with the 5800. Gone is the ridiculous cooling system, and the DDR2 memory has also been dumped for slower DDR memory, but on a much wider 256-bit bus. Overall NVIDIA looks like they are back in the race, and we will certainly keep our eye on this card as it becomes available.

Monitor: Samsung 900NF

Cost: $297
Months on list: 13
Price Change: -$25

For a little over a year now we have been recommending the Samsung 900F 19" monitor, and it doesn't look to change this month either. The Samsung monitor is one of the highest performing in its field, and comes at a reasonable price. Until we see LCD monitors that are able to outperform high-end CRTs (at a reasonable price), we're sticking with the good ole' CRT.

The Samsung 900F is one of the best monitor purchases we could make for our particular price range. The Samsung does not sacrifice any of the options that many monitors in this price range are forced to do. The 900NF has a list of very impressive features, such as a flat, aperture-grill CRT tube, a .25mm dot pitch, and up to a 76 Hz refresh rate at 1600x1200. Lower resolutions yield even higher refresh rates, and color and image quality are both top-notch.

For those of you who simply can't stand aperture-grill tubes we recommend the LG 915FT Plus, which offers a Flatron tube which offers the best of standard and aperture grill technology without the two nasty horizontal wires that cross the screen. The monitor also features high refresh rates and resolutions that are not normally supported in many shadow mask CRTs. The LG product is excellent, and can stand with the best aperture grill tubes for the price.

Please keep in mind that when buying any type or brand of monitor, there is always the chance of receiving a defective unit, so be certain to purchase only from a vendor that offers liberal return and replacement options.

Sound Card: SoundBlaster Audigy 2 Platinum Retail

Cost: $163
Months on list: 2
Price Change: $0

For gaming and audio enthusiasts alike the Audigy 2 Platinum is an excellent bet for both game and music use. The card is significantly better than the original Audigy, and includes a true 24-bit 192kHz stereo and 96kHz surround DAC, in addition to 6.1 channel speaker support. Game support is top notch with EAX 3.0 Advanced HD, and the platinum model offers some vary handy gadgets including a remote control, and an incredible array of connectors for all your sound appliances.

The retail version of the Audigy 2 Platinum is substantially more complete than the standard Creative OEM packs. You get the gold-plated card along with warranty, manual, and drivers, in addition to an excellent game software bundle including Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix, and Creative's exclusive MediaSource media playback/creation center, in addition to recording software.

For those of you who want to bypass a Creative card, or don't care for EAX game support, the M-Audio Revolution 7.1 is an excellent alternative. Like the Audigy 2, the Revolution 7.1 has 24-bit 192/96kHz support, and can output sound to up to 7.1 speakers. S/N ratio is slightly higher than Creative's at 107 (the Audigy 2 has 106).

Speakers:

What better way to compliment your new Audigy 2 than some high-end speakers. Your speaker purchase can be as important as that of your monitor, as you are unlikely to upgrade either one for years. This makes your initial speaker choice crucial to the enjoyment of your new gaming PC, and an important investment.

System Speakers: Creative Inspire 6.1 Speakers

Cost: $77
Months on list: 2
Price Change: -$19

The prospect of 6.1 channel speakers remains somewhat of a novelty, but with the Audigy 2's inherent 6.1 channel surround support it would be a shame not to take advantage of it. At $77, we were amazed by the performance of the Creative Inspire 6.1, and DTS ES and Dolby Digital encoded 6.1 channel movies sound incredible. These speakers are most definitely not as excessively powerful as more-expensive Klipsch, Cambridge, or Logitech sets, but we were still very pleased with the Inspire's 120W total system power (8 Watts RMS per satellite/20 Watts RMS front center satellite/ 22 Watts RMS subwoofer).