what do you guys think about this pc? sony RA826G

tEckniks · Dec 17, 2004, 09:50 AM

since i know i wont be able to build a pc, i decided to go buy a pc from compusa

and pay monthly.

i just want some honest opinions on the specs of the pc.. (kinda long) thanks

im gonna be using the pc from mostly gaming and videos

Specifications
. Model
VGC-RA826G

. Processor
Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor 550 3.40E GHz with Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology1

. Operating System
Microsoft® Windows® Media Center Edition
VAIO® recommends Microsoft® Windows® XP

. Cache Memory
1MB Integrated On-Die Level 22

. Front Side Bus Speed
800MHz3

. Chipset
Intel® 915P

. Standard RAM4
1GB PC-3200 400MHz DDR (expandable to 2.0GB)

. Hard Drive
250GB 7200 rpm SATA

. DVD+R Double Layer / DVD±RW Drive (supports writing video in double layer format)5
DVD±RW
-RW
(8X max. -R write / 4X max. -RW rewrite / 8X max. -R/-RW read)
+RW
(16X max. +R write / 4X max. +RW rewrite /8X max. +R/+RW read)
CD-RW (40X max. -R write / 24X max. rewrite / 40X max. -R read / 32X max. -RW read)

. DVD-ROM Drive
16X max. DVD-ROM Read / 40X max.
CD-ROM read

. Floppy Disk Drive
3.5? 1.44MB Floppy Disk Drive

. Video & Graphics
ATI Radeon? X600 XT 256MB Video Memory (256-bit DDR)
TV-Out / VGA-Out / DVI-Out (DVI output: 1280x1024x60Hz max.)
16x PCI Express Giga Pocket? MPEG2 Realtime Encoder/Decoder board with TV Tuner

. Audio
Intel® High Definition Audio

. Ethernet
10Base-T/100/1000Base-TX Fast Ethernet (RJ-45)

. Modem
V.90 compatible data/fax modem

. Expansion Slots
Multi-Media Card Reader
(Memory Stick?, Compact Flash? Type I and Type II, XD-Picture Card?, SD/MMC?, IBM Micro Drive?)

. Expansion Bays
Two 5.25? Half-Height (occupied)
One External 3.5? (occupied)
Three Internal 3.5? (one occupied)
(Four 3.5" SATA Hard Drives can be accomodated if Floppy Drive is removed.)

. Port Connections
Seven USB 2.0 (three front/four rear)6
Two PS/2® (Mouse/Keyboard)
One VGA/DVI Monitor Port
One TV-In/Out Port
One S/PDIF Out / One Printer Port
One 6pin i.LINK Port (rear)/ One 4pin (front)
One Headphone / One Microphone / One Line In
S-Video: Two Inputs (front and rear)
Composite Video / Audio Inputs (front and rear)
Coaxial Input (VHF/UHF)

. Supplied Accessories
Speakers (Stereo) w/Subwoofer
IR Remote Control and Receiver / IR Blaster
VAIO® Keyboard / PS/2® Optical Mouse

. Power Requirements
364.7 watts max. / 100-240V ~7A (50/60Hz)

. Power Management
ACPI 1.0 Compliant

. Dimensions (CPU)
7.4?(W) x 15.6?(H) x 15.3?(D)
Weight (CPU) 34.172 lbs.

if i do get the pc, im planning on switchin out the card and get audigy 2zs.. maybe add another 1gig of ram .. i guess id probably leave the x600xt

what do you guys think?

Geminiwave · Dec 17, 2004, 02:41 PM

x600 leaves something to be desired.

oh well its pretty snazzy. Personally I would build my own computer and save a ton of money off a Sony(VERY EXPENSIVE THOSE SONYs ARE!!) but if you plan on buying one, they are very nice computers. Just dont expect to upgrade the CPU.

tEckniks · Dec 17, 2004, 08:34 PM

i really want to built my own pc tho. how come i wouldnt be able to upgrade the cpu?

Geminiwave · Dec 18, 2004, 01:43 AM

its an OEM computer. They lock the mobo and bios down so that you pretty much cant upgrade. alot of the parts are proprietary.

Judas · Dec 18, 2004, 01:47 AM

Sony tends to build.... IMO, any other kind of prebuilt. But generally your paying more for it just because of the name..

to top it off, i highly doubt you'll need a Modem (enless of course you use dial up).....

But if you can't build your own rig..... erm..

The only prebuilt systems i can recommend are DELL's... as they still after a good year or 2... carry a good resale value... and ran rather quite well... Just whatever you do, no matter what Prebuilt system you may buy, don't bother trying to upgrade them.... you'll run into some pretty terrible troubles... And Sony machines are even tougher to upgrade then a dell....
(compaq probably being the worst in my experiences)

MiDKnYtE · Dec 18, 2004, 02:05 AM

Sonys only have the "cool" factor. If I was going to buy a prebuilt, it would be a Dell. We have hundreds of those at work and they seem pretty reliable. You get to choose what you want too.

OldBuzzard · Dec 18, 2004, 03:10 AM

Another option would be to go to someone like Monarch Computers: http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv

You can spec out a system and they will build and burn it in for you. The advantage of doing it this way is that your system will still be upgradeable.

tEckniks · Dec 18, 2004, 08:58 AM

lol i sorta dont want the sony anymore ... i guess i could try to build my own pc..

Quote:

Originally Posted by OldBuzzard

Another option would be to go to someone like Monarch Computers: http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv

You can spec out a system and they will build and burn it in for you. The advantage of doing it this way is that your system will still be upgradeable.

thanks .. they seem pretty good.. i can pick my own case and specs..

Dec 17, 2004, 09:50 AM	#1
tEckniks DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 115 Rep Power: 0	what do you guys think about this pc? sony RA826G since i know i wont be able to build a pc, i decided to go buy a pc from compusa and pay monthly. i just want some honest opinions on the specs of the pc.. (kinda long) thanks im gonna be using the pc from mostly gaming and videos Specifications . Model VGC-RA826G . Processor Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor 550 3.40E GHz with Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology1 . Operating System Microsoft® Windows® Media Center Edition VAIO® recommends Microsoft® Windows® XP . Cache Memory 1MB Integrated On-Die Level 22 . Front Side Bus Speed 800MHz3 . Chipset Intel® 915P . Standard RAM4 1GB PC-3200 400MHz DDR (expandable to 2.0GB) . Hard Drive 250GB 7200 rpm SATA . DVD+R Double Layer / DVD±RW Drive (supports writing video in double layer format)5 DVD±RW -RW (8X max. -R write / 4X max. -RW rewrite / 8X max. -R/-RW read) +RW (16X max. +R write / 4X max. +RW rewrite /8X max. +R/+RW read) CD-RW (40X max. -R write / 24X max. rewrite / 40X max. -R read / 32X max. -RW read) . DVD-ROM Drive 16X max. DVD-ROM Read / 40X max. CD-ROM read . Floppy Disk Drive 3.5? 1.44MB Floppy Disk Drive . Video & Graphics ATI Radeon? X600 XT 256MB Video Memory (256-bit DDR) TV-Out / VGA-Out / DVI-Out (DVI output: 1280x1024x60Hz max.) 16x PCI Express Giga Pocket? MPEG2 Realtime Encoder/Decoder board with TV Tuner . Audio Intel® High Definition Audio . Ethernet 10Base-T/100/1000Base-TX Fast Ethernet (RJ-45) . Modem V.90 compatible data/fax modem . Expansion Slots Multi-Media Card Reader (Memory Stick?, Compact Flash? Type I and Type II, XD-Picture Card?, SD/MMC?, IBM Micro Drive?) . Expansion Bays Two 5.25? Half-Height (occupied) One External 3.5? (occupied) Three Internal 3.5? (one occupied) (Four 3.5" SATA Hard Drives can be accomodated if Floppy Drive is removed.) . Port Connections Seven USB 2.0 (three front/four rear)6 Two PS/2® (Mouse/Keyboard) One VGA/DVI Monitor Port One TV-In/Out Port One S/PDIF Out / One Printer Port One 6pin i.LINK Port (rear)/ One 4pin (front) One Headphone / One Microphone / One Line In S-Video: Two Inputs (front and rear) Composite Video / Audio Inputs (front and rear) Coaxial Input (VHF/UHF) . Supplied Accessories Speakers (Stereo) w/Subwoofer IR Remote Control and Receiver / IR Blaster VAIO® Keyboard / PS/2® Optical Mouse . Power Requirements 364.7 watts max. / 100-240V ~7A (50/60Hz) . Power Management ACPI 1.0 Compliant . Dimensions (CPU) 7.4?(W) x 15.6?(H) x 15.3?(D) Weight (CPU) 34.172 lbs. if i do get the pc, im planning on switchin out the card and get audigy 2zs.. maybe add another 1gig of ram .. i guess id probably leave the x600xt what do you guys think? __________________ [color=navy][color=lightblue] Made by Razgriz Lian Li PC-65B[/color] [color=red]\| [color=MediumTurquoise][color=LightBlue]OCZ Powerstream 520w psu[/color] [/color]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]AMD 4400+ X2 [/color][color=red]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]Asus A8N-32 Sli Deluxe[/color] [color=red]\| [/color][color=lightblue]1gig (2x512mb) OCZ Platinum PC3200[/color] [color=red]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]Audigy X-Fi[/color] [color=red]\| [color=lightblue]XFX Geforce 7900GT Extreme[/color][/color] [color=red]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]250gig Western Digital HD[/color] [color=red]\|[/color][color=lightblue] Lite-on DVD-R w/ Lightscribe[/color] [color=red]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]Klipsch 5.1 Ultras[/color] [color=red]\|[/color] [/color][color=lightblue]Window XP home [/color]

Dec 17, 2004, 02:41 PM	#2
Geminiwave I Have lovely Breasts Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: In the closet... Posts: 5,395 Rep Power: 64	x600 leaves something to be desired. oh well its pretty snazzy. Personally I would build my own computer and save a ton of money off a Sony(VERY EXPENSIVE THOSE SONYs ARE!!) but if you plan on buying one, they are very nice computers. Just dont expect to upgrade the CPU. __________________

Dec 17, 2004, 08:34 PM	Thread Starter #3
tEckniks DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 115 Rep Power: 0	i really want to built my own pc tho. how come i wouldnt be able to upgrade the cpu? __________________ [color=navy][color=lightblue] Made by Razgriz Lian Li PC-65B[/color] [color=red]\| [color=MediumTurquoise][color=LightBlue]OCZ Powerstream 520w psu[/color] [/color]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]AMD 4400+ X2 [/color][color=red]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]Asus A8N-32 Sli Deluxe[/color] [color=red]\| [/color][color=lightblue]1gig (2x512mb) OCZ Platinum PC3200[/color] [color=red]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]Audigy X-Fi[/color] [color=red]\| [color=lightblue]XFX Geforce 7900GT Extreme[/color][/color] [color=red]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]250gig Western Digital HD[/color] [color=red]\|[/color][color=lightblue] Lite-on DVD-R w/ Lightscribe[/color] [color=red]\|[/color] [color=lightblue]Klipsch 5.1 Ultras[/color] [color=red]\|[/color] [/color][color=lightblue]Window XP home [/color]

Dec 18, 2004, 01:43 AM	#4
Geminiwave I Have lovely Breasts Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: In the closet... Posts: 5,395 Rep Power: 64	its an OEM computer. They lock the mobo and bios down so that you pretty much cant upgrade. alot of the parts are proprietary. __________________

Dec 18, 2004, 03:10 AM	#7
OldBuzzard DH's oldest Geek Join Date: May 2003 Location: Oberlin, OH Posts: 2,783 Rep Power: 145 System Specs	Another option would be to go to someone like Monarch Computers: http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv You can spec out a system and they will build and burn it in for you. The advantage of doing it this way is that your system will still be upgradeable. __________________ When looking for a reason as to why things go wrong, never rule out sheer STUPIDITY

Dec 18, 2004, 02:05 AM	#6
MiDKnYtE Caffeine Machine Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Hell is empty. All the devils are here. Posts: 670 Rep Power: 0	Sonys only have the "cool" factor. If I was going to buy a prebuilt, it would be a Dell. We have hundreds of those at work and they seem pretty reliable. You get to choose what you want too.