Thread: Yay, help White pick out a work PC!

-We do have 1 320GB 7200RPM, and 4 extra 750GB HDD lying around.
-Storage/OS drive needs: at least 120GB for OS, at least 1 TB for secondary; The way the programs work that we could/do use, we need at least 2 drives.
-Shouldn't need a RAID for secondary. Basically, it holds songs+vid+info files and lets the radio program read them kind of similar to how Winamp, iTunes, or that gay thing Gayver uses
-May possibly need to also be able to run a VM on it.
-Will definitely need to be able to remote in
Option 1
-Big thing to note: this computer will run 24/7/365
-Needs to work with this RCS Zetta Technical Requirements
a)Needs 2 sound cards, which can include the mobo's onboard.
b)Need at least two hard drives. esata port would also be VERY nice for hooking up HDDs to clone the computer for backups. Sata III would be nice. Going with a SSD for boot would be nice; a 120GB would probably be fine.
c) Needs a video card that can support at least two monitors. The extra screen space is quite nice. We already have two nice Dell monitors that do the job quite well, although new ones wouldn't hurt to replace some dying monitors we have on other station comps.
-Needs to be through Dell. We can use our station's business card to purchase things without a certain person's approval (he doesn't like us) through Newegg, which would be cheaper and give us better components, but we have to do that in $1k increments, so using our school's Dell contract is preferred. Also, there needs to be some type of tech support for when myself and last year's GM graduate...cause people who don't know what dust, drivers, RAIDs, RAM, caches, etc. are. Nuff said.

Option 2
-Current computer: Dell Precision T3400
a) Quad core, 64-bit, 2.66 GHz, 12MB cache
b) 32-bit OS installed...I did not do this...the guy who was GM last year did...bless his heart.
--Obviously, will upgrade to at least XP 64. Can also upgrade to Win 7.
c)4x1GB 667MHz RAM
--Definitely want to upgrade. The Dell site says it can take up to 800MHz. The problem is that I'm not sure how much memory the mobo can take. The memory Dell lists is also INCREDIBLY expensive. As in, 4x the cost of getting even Corsair RAM. I also am not sure what voltage to look for if I look on Newegg.
d)80GB OS HDD, 750GB secondary HDD; both are Sata II; only have internal connections for 2 drives. I can get an external cage if needed for extra storage, but I think 2 drives should be fine.
--Not sure if there's a point to upgrading the OS drive to say a SSD for faster boots seeing as I'm limited to SataII. That being said, the load times make baby cthulu cry spaghetti sauce. Don't worry about the carpet though. Dagon catches eats it all before it hits the ground. Maybe a Hybrid for the OS though?
e) If I upgrade it to Win 7, I will need a new Sound Card. Old one (SB0770) isn't even listed even more on the Creative site, and it is not on the Win7 compatibility. Upgrading to Win7 is pretty much a necessity since Microsoft stops support next year I think, and this is a good of a time as any to upgrade seeing as there are only a handful of DJs here to blow my cans of air upside down and think it's funny. (I'm currently medicating on Abita Rootbeer to mixed affect.)
f)has Quadro 570 (I think, workstation card) for video. Works nicely for what we need (2 monitors+watching cat videos on Youtube...don't judge me)

WARNING

I fucking hate Dell computer internal setups. That is all.

I may think of more later. Going to get myself more "medication" right now though. Have a minifridge completely filled with it.

Looks like 1.8V and 4x4GB at 800MHz is the max with a max of 4GB per slot.