questions about pc build

Bruce SX said:

The reason behind the choice for the quadro is that it would be compatible with my system, and seemed like the safest route(it was pulled from a Dell machine). I guess my learning curve needs to lengthen still more.

I had a feeling that's why the quadro card was important to you - because of the sticker :)

When Dell sold the machine, it was advertised and configured as a "Quadro Workstation" which essentially means that it was a normal Dell PC with a Quadro card aimed at developers, Programmers, CAD (Computer Aided Design) users and various other disciplines that take advantage of what a quadro card has compared to a regular one.

The biggest difference between a quadro and a normal card is that the Quadro range has extra features that are only used for specific applications designed to take advantage of the extra features. In everyday useage/games the extra capabilities are simply not used.

Put simply, it's just another card that has the same compatibility, performance and function as a regular card when used "as a regular card".

If you took the exact same Dell machine and removed the Quadro card, the only difference would have been the sticker on the case.

Would it be wiser to eat the $11.50, and try for a different card, or keep it, and play it as it lays?

Play it as it lays. You have the card. It's most important function will be for display. You can still use it to play games with.

As for the SSD I am looking to the Crucial M550 128GB from newegg. Will this be a good buy? I guess more importantly: can I use it with what I have so far?
Newegg.com - Crucial M550 CT128M550SSD1 2.5" 128GB SATA 6Gb/s MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Yes and yes.

Although this is cheaper and will perform virtually identical in your machine:

Newegg.com - Crucial M500 120GB SATA 2.5" 7mm (with 9.5mm adapter) Internal Solid State Drive CT120M500SSD1

This is a great price on this Mushkin, and check out the read/write specs

Newegg.com - Mushkin Enhanced Chronos MKNSSDCR240GB-7 2.5" 7mm Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Bruce SX said:

What I found most interesting in the article I read(unfortunately I didn't bookmark it) is that a change in architecture(?) of SSD's is on the horizon for 2015.

I wouldn't worry about the changes. The best thing to do with technology is to buy as needed and not wait "for the next best thing". Unless a release date is weeks away, you can end up waiting forever.

As soon as I have the SSD everything gets assembled, and it will be ready for the installation of a Win7 64 bit OS. I'm thinking Ultimate.

Honestly, you could save a few dollars and go with Home Premium. Unless you know you definitely need an Ultimate only feature, Home Premium is a cheaper option. Most features in Pro and Ultimate aren't really needed for everyday usage. Besides, there are often free 3rd party alternatives to most features.

Attachment 315904

However, it's your call mate :)

ignatzatsonic said:

You'd be happy with any SSD compared to a standard hard drive. The issues you might face are customer service, return privileges, and reliability.

You might find it difficult to find comments from forum members who actually own one of the lesser known brands such as PNY or Adata. Most here would have a more widely known brand such as Samsung, Intel, or Crucial.

Exactly. As I keep saying, any SSD will be a vast improvement over a HDD.

I personally haven't had any experience with PNY or Adata quality or customer service so I can't comment on quality first hand but like all products you will find good comments and bad comments.

I'd also buy from newegg. They appear to have the best returns policy compared to tigerdirect and amazon should it be needed.

I wouldn't pay a lot of attention to benchmark numbers.

Especially since you are only using Sata II and all benchmarks would be using Sata III and therefore give you unrealistic speed expectations.

Bruce SX said:

. The 3 brands you've mentioned, Samsung, Intel, and Crucial, have all been suggested as viable purchases, and I have to agree.

I'd avoid intel (solely because of price) and add Mushkin to the list.

I'm starting to lean in favor of the Crucial M500. The cost is in the ballpark, and their reliability coupled with customer support may ultimately be the issues that ice it for me..

Good leaning :)

Myself I'd lean towards the M500 too. It also comes with an adapter to fit in your HDD cage whereas the Mushkin doesn't.

Core 2 Extremes are still priced at $950-$990 and could reach at $1500 and performs faster than Core 2 Quad (C2Q is good too but C2Es are faster. The price for C2Es is weird because the C2Qs cost only $25-35, seriously).