New 2098 Owner

[daunda]

So I just ordered a laptop yesterday, the Sager 2098 and I´m patiently waiting for it to be built and then sent here.

In the mean time I wanted to do two things, thank XPC so far and Joseph for the good service and pretty much straight forward paperwork. I like being called and emailed in regards to how things are going and XPC did that.

I also wanted to ask other Sager 2098 owners any tweaks, fixes, and tips for my laptop once it arrives.

- What OS do you recommend? I have an XP Home 32bit CD.

What other software for maintenance and optimization would you tell me to install. What are the best drivers for each of the components in this laptop. Should I be installing the ones in the CD (if any comes with it) or the ones from the website of each manufacturer which are the latest, but not always the greatest.

Also for eye-candy, should I try Windows 7, any good skins or plugins?

By the way I only ordered the integrated 3D audio card. From the NotebookCheck review of this laptop, it seems the audio is not that impressive. Not sure if it referred to the speakers or the audio output itself. I would like to know if buying a good headset would make a different or should I be buying a headset with an audio card integrated for it to be worth of buying it, like the Steel Series 5H.

I was planning on buying the Senheisser HD555 too but with a standard audio card, is it worth it?

Also, what good and cheap bag for this laptop would you recommend?

The customization I got is the following:

1x Sager NP2098 Custom Laptop (Built on the Compal KHLB2)

- Display: 15.6" HD 16:9 WXGA Super Clear U
- Dead Pixel Policy: Standard Dead Pixel Policy
- Processor: ~Intel® P8700 45nm "Montevina" C
- Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound
- Video Card: ATI HD4650 512MB PCI-Express DDR3
- Ram: ~ 4,096MB DDR3 1066MHz Dual Chan
- Primary Hard Drive: ~ 250GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 3
- Memory Card Reader: Internal 3-in-1 Card Reader
- Bluetooth: Internal Bluetooth + EDR
- Wireless Network: Built-in Intel® PRO/Wireless 5100
- Sound Card: Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio
- Battery: Smart Li-ion Battery (6-Cell)
- Fingerprint Reader: Integrated Fingerprint Reader

Thanks,

[Anewbus]

Hi Daunda,

Congrats on your new lappy!:smile2:
The answers to some of your questions depend on what you will be doing. I’ll address what I can though.

1) OS = You can either stick with what you are used to, which I assume is XP or you could get into debugging and testing and go for Windows 7. If you have old software that you use a lot, I would stick with XP. If not and your adventurous you can either go with Vista and stay or upgrade to Win7. It really comes down to a matter of personal preference and comfort.
2) Drivers = The laptop comes with a drivers disc and they are also preloaded. I would go to the manufacture’s websites first and check for any updates. The most important would be the GPU. I see you have an ATI GPU, They are notorious for bad updates or none at all. IMHO I think you will be fine with the driver currently installed. If that does not work out you might try www.laptopvideotogo (http://www.laptopvideotogo/) I think is the site name, I’m not sure. A lot of folks here use them though so someone will be along to confirm.
3) Audio – Unless you are trying to do major audio work through the laptop speakers you don’t have much to worry about. The standard audio that comes with it can do 5.1 processing. (I have that in my lappy as well) There are virtually no laptops with great built in speakers. Headphones would be a huge improvement, but no need to get super expensive ones. Any decent set will do. (I actually hook my lappy to my HT system and it sounds good and I’m sort of an audiophile – I also used to be a sound engineer). The only real time to consider an audio express card and such is if the internal one fails in any aspect or if you need to process recordings in 5.1 or need 7.1 ability.
4) Utilities and such = I would get a good anti-virus program – I can recommend AVG (it’s free). If you aren’t using a router with a built-in firewall, I would get ZonAlarm. (again free). I would also get Ad-Aware (free) and a good anti-spyware program like Spybot or something. You might also want to look in the Tips Tricks & Guides section of the forums here – lot’s of good stuff in there.

[daunda]

Thanks for your reply.

I will keep this in mind.

[Joseph@XoticPC]

Daunda,

I also second Powerpack's notion that the internal sound card is actually pretty good in my opinion. Before you buy the HD555's(which are pretty decent) do yourself a favor and listen to some Grado SR-80's(with comfy pads from the sr-60's they will cost 10 dollars and are well worth it) They are one of the best sounding headphones for both gaming and music listening that you will find for the money. They also are lower impedance which allows them to be more portable or even listenable by most computers or portable devices. For computer use i would stay way from 300 ohm headphones. I own a pair of Sennheiser HD650's and off of a portable device they really do not shine nor are they very loud. However if you plan to purchase a headphone amp then disregard what I just said.


I own enough headphones to equal the cost of my car, so you could say it is quite a hobby(or an obsession) of mine. Not all headphones are created equal. Give me a headphone budget and i can pretty easily give you my recommendation for the given price point.

[rmmix]

I own a Set of HD555 and they sound good I use them on my desktop with the basic internal sound card. I also own a set of HD 280 Which I use to DJ with. Joseph is right on with his suggestion. I would suggest trying the headphone on which ever band you select. As stated before not all "cans" are created equal.

[Anewbus]

Daunda,

I also second Powerpack's notion that the internal sound card is actually pretty good in my opinion. Before you buy the HD555's(which are pretty decent) do yourself a favor and listen to some Grado SR-80's(with comfy pads from the sr-60's they will cost 10 dollars and are well worth it) They are one of the best sounding headphones for both gaming and music listening that you will find for the money. They also are lower impedance which allows them to be more portable or even listenable by most computers or portable devices. For computer use i would stay way from 300 ohm headphones. I own a pair of Sennheiser HD650's and off of a portable device they really do not shine nor are they very loud. However if you plan to purchase a headphone amp then disregard what I just said.


I own enough headphones to equal the cost of my car, so you could say it is quite a hobby(or an obsession) of mine. Not all headphones are created equal. Give me a headphone budget and i can pretty easily give you my recommendation for the given price point.

Hmm, now that you mention it Joseph, I've been contemplating headphones lately. I may get with you on this down the road soon. I've been through so many headphones that it would have paid for 1/4 of all my gear! I'm looking for some nice ones.:)

[daunda]

Thank you all for your responses.

Joseph, it looks like like we have something in common as I consider myself an audiophile too. I haven't had too many headphones but I certainly notice the difference between a pair of good ones and bad ones and enjoy listening to good quality audio.

From all the headphones I've used, I think so far the best one was actually a headset, a gaming headset. It was the Steelseries 5H, the non USB one. That thing really made the difference when I played online games and it literally put me two steps ahead of eveyone else. I have a very high audio awareness and that headset lived up right next to what I demanded from a headset. Unfortunately it broke after a year and a half or so of use.

I suppose you need to know what am I using for. Well, first off I'm not sure if I want a headset (mic included) or a headphone.

I just saw now that the 2098 doesn't have a mic included so I will have to go for a headset. My budget is between 75 and 100 dollars.

The use, well a lot of music. Not editing, just listening to it. And some gaming of course. So nothing off the normal use but still something that will give me a good audio experience and that is also comfortable for extended use.

Something that can output nice bass beats but also clear and crisp vocal sounds is always good. But then again, a headset. So it must have a really good quality microphone too. I bet this makes the search a bit more challenging.

-

Another thing that I was just browsing now is mice. What kind of mouse should I buy for this laptop? I've started to think cordless. But what kind I don't know, wireless or bluetooth? Are there any mice that don't require batteries? Hopefully something without a cradle or dongle I think they call them. If it had batteries, then something that can charge on it's own some way.

I used to have at home for my desktop PC a Logitech G5. This is a corded mouse with 2000 DPI laser. Extremely good for gaming, it was just amazing haha. SO yea, something that looks nice too along with the 2098 :)

Thanks you all,

Daniel