Poker PC Ideas (long)

[Exar_Kun]

I only play the 22s at the moment and am therefore no pro, but my computer grinded to a halt two days ago so Im in the market of building my own new Poker PC. I don't want to spend too much money and already have a few components (HDD, DVD-RW, Dual Monitor Graphics Card). However I thought such a post would help other players to understand and discuss the advantages of certain products with regards to Poker. I will be researching the different products and different ideas and will keep people posted on what I find out. However If anyone can add experience and insight please post :-)

CPU
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First of all is the CPU, I have set my eyes on AMD because I have always used them in the past and find them reliable and cheaper, however there are still several to choose from.

There is the AMD X2 dual-core CPU which I think is a little out of my price range but does it really offer that much difference? I would like to run many programs at once while I play poker, SNGPT, PT, PP, SmartNotes, FireFox, WinAmp, and sometimes DL large files using Usenet. However would I really need to spend that much money on the dual core processors to run this many programs efficiently.

Would a normal AMD 64-bit CPU be able to handle so many programs at once ? I have read that the new dual core CPUs are up to 80% faster but only on avg. 22% increase in performance, and with a near double price tag I think this isn't worth the extra buck.

There is also the the ultimate AMD - FX CPU which is reserved for the Uber geek gamers. Although I like to play occasionally I don't really need such a fast CPU for poker.

Secondly would someone be able to explain the difference between the various motherboard sockets ? I am aware that to use dual-core CPUs you need to have a dual-core motherboard, but what is the difference between socket 754 and socket 939 and 940 ?


RAM
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The next thing that I think is very important is the RAM, due to the number of programs I have running at the same time I think that having a decent bit of RAM could do wonders. Do people agree with me that Kingston and Corsair are some of the best brands to buy ?

I have a very large PT database, and I have heard it is possible to load this up into RAM and therefore have a very fast access to my data. However my database is 7GB at the moment and I know you wont be able to load that into RAM without spending a BOMB on RAM.

However new motherboards offer dual Memory channels which allow TWIN RAM modules to be used. This could be very advantageous, It would allow a much faster transaction from the PP client to any other program, for example from PT to PP client or to my Usenet downloading program.

These twin kits are also only slightly more expensive than the single kits, and I wouldn't mind spending them for dual memory channels. 1GB I think should be more than plenty, and I can always add more RAM later.


HDD
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At the moment I have a 80GB HDD which keeps filling up with downloads and my PT database However later on I will be adding an external HDD which would also store my PT database. I have heard that if you run all your programs from one hard drive and then PT from another this also increases the performance (esp when data mining). The external HDD will also mean that I can take my PT database with me whether I go in case I need to use someone elses Computer or would like to share databases.


GRAPHICS
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At the moment I only have a Radeon 9800 pro card which is an AGP slot card which supports two monitors for mult-tabling. However If I buy a new motherboard that supports PCI express will I not be able to use the graphics card anymore ?


SUMMARY
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What do people think of my opinions and ideas highlighted. I really don't want to spend too much money unless the increase in performance is significant. As long as I can run that many programs happily and reliable, and play the occasional Doom 3 or Quake 4 for when I am steaming I would be a happy man.