Optimus II

J

jdg199

Active member
Right - having had my system now for a couple of weeks, while I still haven't pushed the build much at all. I've also had a few questions which have speedily been answered here, and much appreciated. So, here's a few more - no problems, more just opinion gathering.

My aim was to keep the build price below £800, but now it is here I want to spend more!

DVD drive - easily the most obvious mistake in my build. What's the point of a full HD screen if you don't then get bluray drive! I'll be swapping it out for a bluray drive once I decide whether I need anything else!

Sound - the volume when playing a DVD is woefully low. I've tried to tackle this a few ways but not having much luck. Once the bluray drive is installed, will the sound output be louder? Normal windows sounds or songs through itunes are definitely loud enough, so this seems to be a problem with the playback from DVD only. PC Specialists offer a simple set of external speakers - has anyone got these? Would they be sufficient, or are there other recommendations for adding sound output?

Internet - currently, I have orange broadband via a 5/6 yr old livebox. We cannot get cable to the flat but if I could get orange to send me a new livebox (with n-tech rather than just "g" signal) would this make much difference. Otherwise, I'll be considering swapping to talktalk/BT. Any other suggestions to make the most of my current wireless networking?

Chrome - I always thought that Chrome was meant to be one of the faster browsers but mine seems to be a bit slow. I know this could be an issue with my broadband/router, but on the Mrs' Macbook Pro, her Safari and Firefox seem to be much faster. I don't like the idea that her 15 mth old system is in anyway better than mine!

At some point I will set my laptop up on a desk and use it essentially as a desktop. Additional peripherals at that point will be: cooler (prob. Zalman 3000U), wireless keyboard/mouse, additional monitor. More questions about them, will no doubt come later!

============================================

Optimus II: 17.3"
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core i7-2630QM (2.00GHz) 6MB Cache
4GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz (1 x 4GB)
nVIDIA® GeForce® GT 555M - 2GB DDR3 Video RAM - DirectX® 11

500GB WD SCORPIO BLACK SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm)
8x SATA DVD±R/RW/Dual Layer (+ 24x CD-RW)
GIGABIT LAN & INTEL® CENTRINO® ADVANCED-N 6230 inc BLUETOOTH​
 
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MrShteeeve

MrShteeeve

Well-known member
Sound
I've found this at times also, dependent on what output you have if you right click the volume icon>playback devices>speakers(properties)>advanced tab>(mine is set under 24bit, 48000Hz Studio quality).
Also did you install the Realtek HD drivers and control panel off of the driver disc?

Internet
Seeing as the average household speed in the UK is around 10mbps and 'G' wireless has a throughput speed of 54mbps you wouldn't as such notice a speed increase when changing to 'N', you'd more so notice the range and quality of signal at a distance (dependent on walls, concrete or cavity and other radio interference)

Chrome
It is advertised as one of the faster browsers about (and as many people on these forums will say, it is as fast as they say it is) But my personal experience makes me lean towards Firefox 4.0.1. it's all down to system environments and how fast your pc performs, download a few and see which one is more reliable out of the lot.

Misc.
I own the Zalman NC3000S and it works perfectly, albeit the Optimus literally sits on the edges of the cooler, but it still does it's job. I also use a Logitech M305 wireless mouse and I find it performs fine for the price i paid (especially like the really small USB 'Nano Receiver')

Hope some of this helped you somewhat :)
 
DeadEyeDuk

DeadEyeDuk

Superhero Level Poster
Chrome

Safari works faster on your dear lady's Mac because the Evil Mega Organisation (EMO) that is Apple make it super fast on their beloved White Monstrocities, but when you try and use it on a PC, Apple introduces errors and speed issues, so that when your less-than-clued-up other half with their Mac tells you its great on their curved beast, you immediately want to go out and buy one!

True Story
 
MrShteeeve

MrShteeeve

Well-known member
DeadEyeDuk said:
Chrome

Safari works faster on your dear lady's Mac because the Evil Mega Organisation (EMO) that is Apple make it super fast on their beloved White Monstrocities, but when you try and use it on a PC, Apple introduces errors and speed issues, so that when your less-than-clued-up other half with their Mac tells you its great on their curved beast, you immediately want to go out and buy one!

True Story
Click to expand...

That is too true infact!
 
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