New Computer Bits

The other weekend I went out and bought some new computer bits. I built up a new system but also got some new speakers and a new monitor for my existing computer. I got all the bits from IT Estate at North Rocks. I find that IT Estate is easy to get to and have good prices.

I'm very impressed with my new speakers. They are Logitech X-240 2.1 Speaker system. Setup was easy and the sound is great, and for $49, they are awesome value. It is great have some nice sound coming from the PC after living with a set of el-cheapo "PC" speakers that were probably worth $5.

I initially purchased a 24 inch BenQ LCD monitor. It was a nice monitor, but I found it had a dead pixel. I took it back for an exchange as per the BenQ pixel policy, but the monitor I bought was the last one they had in stock, so rather than waiting, I got a refund and purchased a Samsung 2493HM instead. It is also a 24 inch LCD that does 1080P HD. It take analogue, DVI, and HDMI inputs. The stand is tilt, height, swivel and pivot adjustable, which is one o my favourite features :-) It means I can lift the screen and turn it 90 degrees from landscape to a portrait orientation. This will will make reading long documents or web pages very easy. The screen is huge compared to my 17 inch LG LCD, and it looks fantastic! The image quality is amazing.

The screen is surrounded in a shiney black case, which looks sweeeet! However, Samsung have opted for the clean look for this monitor and have done away with buttons. Instead the "buttons" are replaced by touch sensitive sections on the bottom right of the monitor. To operate, just touch the labeled sections on the front of the case. While this makes for a very clean look on the front of the monitor, it also makes it rather hard to operate. If you don't touch the right spot, it won't register the touch. The lablels are not backlit and the text is very hard to read against the black case. This is overcome by the MagicTune software that comes with the monitor allowing for the adjustments to be made with the software instead of the "buttons" on the monitor.

I have found some problems with this monitor too. When watching full screen videos, I find that the screen will go blank and the monitor power light will flash, like it has gone into power savin mode. Other times, the display will go blue - white - grey - black - and then to a kind of test pattern screen with different coloured boxes, and then keep changing constantly. I haven't yet found a resolution to the problem, but it never happened on the old monitor. I have updated the video card drivers, but this hasn't helped. It is rather annoying, but I have a few things I will try to determine where the problem lies before I go back to Samsung to see what they say. I hope I can get it resolved quickly, because the picture great and it is awesome for watching videos on (when it actually works). I'll keep you updated on the progress of this problem.

James Morrison

On the weekend I got the opportunity to do some techie work (sound and lighting) for a small James Morrison concert. I've never really listened to much jazz music before, but I was thoroughly impressed by James and his band. The music was great, the atmosphere was awesome, and James was very funny and entertaining both between songs and during songs. I enjoyed the concert immensely and would recommend anyone to go and see a James Morrison concert given the chance. I know I'll go back and see him again if I can!