1. Read this sticky
2. Read these blogs (includes video)
3. Visit this external sticky (particularly the "Sweet Spot" builds sticky and "What should I build/buy?")

Good luck with your new build!

Boz

Asus Xonar dg

James161324

Just FYI the EXACT same Deall UltraSharp is $499 from dell vs. $570 from newegg... (the one I already linked)Smoke89

If Bass is a priority for you, you'll want a 2.1 setup. This excludes Audioengine and M-Audio from your pool of candidates. You'll sacrifice some quality, but you'll get more thump.

This puts you firmly in the Logitech Z-2300 territory. For a little bit extra and some more work, though, you can get a serious upgrade in Bass output - and quality - by getting your own components from Parts Express:

• $35 - PartNumber=300-652: Dayton Audio B652 6-1/2" 2-Way Bookshelf Speaker Pair
• $100 - Partnumber=300-631: Dayton Audio SUB-80 8" HT Series 80 Watt Powered Subwoofer
• $20 - PartNumber=310-300: Lepai Tripath TA2020 Class-T Hi-Fi Audio Amplifier

Just remember to get speaker wire and a 3.5mm Stereo Male to 2 RCA Male Cable with splitters (for the amp and sub). Normally I'd link it all, but I'm having issues with the links in Gamespot at the moment. Should be easy enough to find everything via Search Engine, though.

Good luck!

Boz

About the best monitor you can get in each price range:

• ~$160 - ASUS VW224U 22-Inch Widescreen
• ~$200 - ASUS VW246H 24-Inch Widescreen
• ~$300 - ASUS VE276Q 27-Inch
• ~$570 - Dell UltraSharp U2410 24-inch (basically top of the line)

You just have to ask yourself: Is it worth it to you to spend the extra money to move up from one rung to another?

Good luck and happy gaming!

Boz

I wouldn't have known this existed without the PM Jody sent (Thanks, Jody!), but I'm glad she did. I pity the community manager that's been tasked with auditing the answers to these.

Still, it was pretty fun to think about all the old fighting games I used to play, but a little disturbing how much I know about a game I haven't played in over 10 years.

Happy gaming,

Boz

Are we sure that it's a glitch or is there a possibility that the removal is intentional?fabz_95

Guys I was just curious where all of the negative feelings towards laptop gaming comes from? I mean besides the givens like lack of customization in your parts and the overall higher price for a laptop when compared to a desktop as far as "bang for the buck". Outside of that, I just dont see why there is all of the hate. I guess maybe alot of people who game on PC have to have the latest and greatest in GPU's, CPU's, RAM and whatnot and when you have a laptop, you are stuck with what you got basically.

kungfuchaos

Desktops and laptops are apples and oranges; no reason to hate.

Boz

I haven't toyed around much with headphones under the $75 range (outside of the HD555's) but if you are willing to pony up a little more cash, I can recommend the SRH750 DJs. They retail for around $150.00 but you can pick a pair up on ebay for about $100~. Great soundstage, great bass, average-good mids, and great portability. They have a low impedence so you can drive them with your portable source without the need for an amp (although I'd still recommend one).

Personally I prefer IEMs over headphones for portability. A solid pair of customs can provide a soundstage close to high end headphones and offer excellent sound quality (steep price however), but I digress.

Foamybrian

Good luck,

Boz