Posted by Bastosa on Monday, March 16th, 2009 - 44 Comments
Tags: Addons, dual monitor, gamepad, gear, keyboard, mouse, set ups, tools
While browsing around the new Project Lore forums (you do know about the forums, right!?) I came across a great thread about your WoW set ups. The thread is “Lets see those setups!” Taking a look through the pics got me thinking about how much your gaming “gear” can affect your performace.
When I started playing WoW I had an incredibly basic set up. Just my iMac with the stock Apple keyboard and mouse. I have never been much of a PC gamer, always favoring consoles. That all changed of course when I found WoW, and over the course of the last couple years I have made some purchases that really made my experience much better.
Strangely enough my first purchase was a second monitor. I run lots of other applications along side WoW. At any given time I usually have Ventrilo, iTunes, my web browser, and from time to time movies going at the same time. While I used to be tabbing out every few minutes to check something, change a song, or see who hopped into my vent channel, I found that having a second moniotor opened up my whole world! I can now keep tabs on all that stuff, without having to break away for a second. It is partuculaly useful when researching achievement strats, or keeping an eye on the vent channel to see who exactly is talking. I would have to say this is the single biggest upgrade I have made to my WoW experience.
Second thing I got was a new mouse. While the stock Apple mouse got the job done, it really left something to be desired. The vast majority of my movement in game is done with the mouse, and investing in a gaming mouse made all the difference for me! The one I use is the Logitech G5, but I’m sure any specific gaming mouse is a huge upgrade over any stock mouse. I love mine because it offers very precise tracking, on-the-fly adjustable tracking speed, lots of additional buttons, as well as adjustable weight. The extra buttons alone made this worth the purchase. I am now able to bind vent to my mouse, which freed up some spots on my keyboard for more important things.
Last but certainly not least I bought a gaming pad. There are a few of these available, and the one I am using is the Belkin n52te. This awesome upgrade allows you to put all your keyboard bindings on a single pad that is designed to make things as easy to get to as possible. While it definitely took some getting used to, after about 2 weeks I have no idea how I ever played without it! It makes such a difference in the control that I have.
How about you guys? Are you using anything to up your game? I’d love to hear if there is anything out there for me to discover, or if you get along fine on a 12″ laptop! Also, don’t forget to post your set up in the forums, I would love to see more of what you guys are working with!
Related Posts: WoW Life Lesson #20 - Play It Safe, Girl Got Game, WoWing @ Work - Tips & Tricks!, Find the Most-Used Gear with ‘WoW Popular’, Project Lore WotLK Beta 1.1,
By Ryan Kubo on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 3:08 pm
I am using a macbook pro 17 inch, plus a second monitor that is 15 inches, wireless mighty mouse and that is pretty much it
By Andra on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 3:13 pm
I run on a 20″ iMac and a pretty basic Microsoft mouse (I absolutely hate the feel of the Mighty Mouse, and I’m a pretty hardcore Applehead).
I’ve been thinking about upping the ante on my mouse, but I don’t want to get anything too crazy price-wise. Anyone have any suggestions?
By Chris on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 3:13 pm
I use an old computer that crashes when i hearth to dalaran with wintergrasp in action. Dual screens for my music / vent while playing. I’m currently looking at upgrading the rig and will look at the mouse and that pad thing. It all looks pretty nifty. Thanks for the ideas
By Eventime on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 3:35 pm
Still using my old Powerbook Pro 17″ I got when I started college. No real upgrades to it except an extra 1gig stick of ram.
By Sean on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
Two monitors (HDTV for browsing, itunes etc, CRT for games and web design (colours look better on a CRT, plus higher refresh rate is a bonus))
Razer Copperhead mouse (tempest blue one)
standard keyboard I got when I got my playstation 2 online.
5.1 Headset
Antec 900 PC case
9800GTX+ “Dark Knight” graphics card
4gb OCZ DDR2 RAM
500gb Samsung HDD
3GHz Intel Wolfdale Dual Core overclocked to 3.6GHz
and yeah
more or less sums it up
@Andra, I’d recommend a Razer Copperhead on the basis that it’s a fantastic mouse considering it’s very cheap compared to most gaming mice.
By Rugiman on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 3:43 pm
I am thinking of buying the WoW-mouse from Steelseries, not that my current Logitech is not good, but the 15-button Blizzard mouse sounds interesting.
Nothing special with the gaming gear, standard wide-screen and a self-constructed PC with a homemade stereo (which at the minute kinda sucks because it rattles if its cords are in the wrong position).
By Wml on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 3:48 pm
Yeah, have to say that my n52te combined with Macaroon has changed the way I play. Basically this setup means I only need a 3X4 square of macros, three layers deep(36 buttons in total). Much less screen taken up, and I could theoretically have more layers or stance-states etc.
Saving up for the new 24″ 3.06 iMac, so soon we’d have a very similar setup, Bast. =)
By Christian on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
i have the same G5 mouse and Gamecon Platronics headset im trying to get a gamepad and a G15 keyboard
By Tharon on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 3:53 pm
I am using an
eMachine T5224
2.8GHz Pentium D
2GB RAM
EVGA 8500 512KB
SoundBlaster XFI Titanium F1delity
connected to my 32″ LCD TV
ZBoard’s Fang Gaming Board
Logitech MX Rev Mouse
and play in 1080 resolution
By Lee Andrew on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 4:01 pm
Pretty much same for me, 17″ iMac(Will upgrade soon to the 24″ iMac). I got a 17″ TFT spare which I used for the same reason, but I hardly have room for it and often take it of my desk. So one big reason for the new 24″ will be to run WoW in Window mode while having loads of space for Vent, websites, rendering videos….. (Yes I even render videos with hardly any performance issues)
I totally hate the Apple mouse, the first thing I do with a new Mac is through the mouse in the bin. I use a G5 and MX518 Logitech mouse. Otherwise I love all Apple products. I love the built in game recording feature that uses Core Image / Core Video. Comes in handy when filming raids.
So my biggest upgrade will be a new 24″ iMac…
By Kyle Harrison on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 4:30 pm
I’m using a nice 22″ monitor with a g5 gaming mouse and razer keyboard. Inside my case i got a imba system however i need to find a space to set my second monitor
By Zidius on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 4:41 pm
I have been using a Compaq presario with a 15” high-def monitor…the tower SUCKS for WoW and causes me to lag whenever i enter outlands or Northrend (lagged SOO bad one time coming into howling fjord that by the time i could actually get control again i was back in Menethil…and knowing how long it takes the boat to dock in HF you can imagine my frustration…) in truth i honestly had half a mind to throw it out into the highway…unfortunately it crashed a few weeks ago and we sent it in to be fixed…turns out it needed a new H-drive they replace it and it still does not want to work…thankfully i got a new job and plan on saving up for a set up that runs so well it actually IMPROVES all electronics within a 10 ft area around it….as for a second monitor…i never actually thought about that instead i always figured i could just use a laptop but that actually sounds like a better idea…especially for those long flights (where i am usually afraid to even tab my screen down for fear of my computer catching fire! lol)…i am prolly gonna be using a simple mouse for a while but i definately would love to have a gaming mouse/keyboard combo as well…but the tower itself is goin to be a while so lets keep it simple huh?
By Random_Tangent on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 5:03 pm
I’m surprised at all the Mac users!
I’ve got a 3.0 GHz Intel Q6600 Quad-Core, GeForce 9800 GTX+ (whatever that means), 4 gigs of RAM, A few Terabytes of HD Space.
I’m usually in Windows XP these days, but I’ll boot into OS X once in a while.
I’ve got a middle of the road 22″ widescreen display.
My mice are pretty good. I’ll either use my Razer DeathAdder or my Logitech VX Revolution (I prefer the Logitech, but its wireless connection can be kind of flaky sometimes). I’ve also got one of Razer’s Gaming Surfaces (AKA expensive mousepad) and I thought it would be stupid. I was wrong. It’s the best thing I’ve ever moused on.
I just got the Razer Tarantula Keyboard today, I’m excited to try it out.
My next addition (come on, tax refund!) will likely be a MIMO Monitor (7″ USB display). I don’t have deskspace for another full monitor, but this thing barely has a footprint. Can I justify getting this AND a Kindle? We shall see.
By Flatline on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 5:08 pm
I’m using an old 17 inch G5 imac and waiting to get economically stimulated. ah yah.
By Sathas on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
just a regular compaq presario with windows xp
the monitor is a small one from HP
using the mouse and keyboard that came with the computer =P
By hordesucks on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 5:25 pm
i bought a imac before getting into wow. i discovered wow about 1 month later..when i started to play with my imac it would freeze in game. and lag alot..when i mean freeze i mean when i would go to if on my lvl 23 pally main it would freeze so i couldnt move then studder work for a little then repeat the process.i heard macs were the elite but mine just sucks for playing games..i tried lowering the graphics going to there store everything but nothing works…btw imn not exactly sure what model but its the model right before they came out with the desktops with the black edges…mines all white…please help me
By Robinwolf on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
I got a 20″ Core 2 Duo iMac with stock mouse and keyboard. Had a better mouse but it died. Eventually i will have a new mouse, 1gig more of RAM, and my tv as my second monitor.
By Loki on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 6:16 pm
I have a G9, which I find more comfortable then the G5. For a keyboard the G15 makes things so much easier with the availble macro keys.
By Dulica on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 6:29 pm
I’m still using all the stock stuff. I don’t know that I could handle two monitors, though I am thinking of upgradingmy mouse. this one is starting to crap out on me anyway.
By b4k4 on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 6:43 pm
I run on a 14″ toshiba notebook that I picked up on sale at best buy about a year ago. It’s got a intel celeron M cpu at 1.73 GHz and 1.5 gigs of RAM, so it’s not anywhere close to state of the art or even particularly great, but it stll manages to run WoW and UT ‘04 smoothly, so for now i’m content with it.
By b4k4 on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 6:44 pm
oops, i forgot, i use the laptops keyboard and a cheap-o $10 mouse with 2 extra buttons. The only external program i usually have open is xFire, sometimes google chrome or WMP
By churchill on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 8:52 pm
Ok, to many of you out there this question will seem to have an obvious answer, but i really wish to know so i am going to go ahead and ask it. When you say “having two screens to use different applications” is this a whole second computer console, or just literally two monitors?
By Tharon on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 11:40 pm
literally 2 monitors
By Merkyll on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 2:03 am
I actually didnt know about the forum …now i do, and it’s AWESOME!
I use a 19” widescreen samsung display, a Oscar gaming mouse and a Grin Qpad Gaming Mousepad.
My keyboard is just something i got for 10$.
By Dastard on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 2:07 am
Just built a new comp.
2,83 Ghz Intel Core 2 Quad
4GB DDR3
Raid 0 Hard drive setup
Asus 9800gtx + SLI (not compatible with wow)
28″ Viewsonic LCD
Logitech g15 keyboard (has built in lcd with many functions, i usually keep it on the add in for vent so i can see who is talking)
belkin n52te - absolute must. Program any key to do whatever you want. doesnt hurt wrist from long playing time. I reccomend this product to anyone who plays any games but especially wow.
By Josh on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 3:14 am
Wow… i thought i was doing pretty well gaming wise just using a mac. Most of my friends are trying to play on crappy computers that shut down about once an hour. I really don’t know why everyone needs to have a second computer. I find it simple enough to make WoW a small screen and have itunes and vent around it to easily check. Im thinking about maybe getting that new mouse blizzard designed or a gaming pad soon.
By Thorrhan on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 3:16 am
Dell XPS 410 - Dual 8800GTX’s, (waiting on 9800 upgrade).
Dell Stock Keyboard
G5 Mouse - max 36 grams, high sensitivity
Altec Lansing Headset
32″ Vizio LCD TV
Big Screen actually doesn’t strain my eyes like my laptop, makes raiding long hours that much easier. Keyboard works perfectly, eevn for a stock one. Headset was $17, works perfectly, mic sounds good. I may opt for a gaming Keyboard, but still pondering.
By Duncan on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 4:23 am
Q6600, 8 gigs ram, dual 9600GT sli, dual 22″, Nostromo n52, Razor Lacheis Mouse.
By Jesus on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 6:31 am
Has no1 heard of a little ting called Windowed Mode? C’mon ppl, u dont need to buy another monitor.
By scaresome on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 7:27 am
Tsk, y’all call yerselves gamers.
Tricked out laptop … take it with me to work!
By Gerandor on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 8:02 am
i’m using a 16″ Acer laptop, with 4 gigs of ram and a 2ghz dual core processor >.<.. ordinary mouse from microsoft, that i bought a few years back with a nice mousepad.. and then theres my headset with an awfully curly wire ;D
By Goobaroo on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 8:54 am
I use a 360 controller to play, with the help of http://code.google.com/p/wow360/
Works great, I like it way better than the keyboard and mouse. It lets me get away from my screen and relax a bit more when playing.
By vagner on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 11:30 am
My set up SUCKS…
By Krowtz on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 12:06 pm
HP Pavillion Elite
9600 GTX Graphics Card
1 Terabyte Hard Drive space
6 GB of RAM
22″ Widescreen Flat Panel Monitor
By Moo on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
I am playing on a nearly 3 year old first generation macbook with 1.66 ghz core duo processor, 512 mb memory and a 64 mb integrated grafics card … and *drumroll* …
Wow plays fine, getting about 25 fps, down to about 15 in raids and in dalaran, not that shabby for an integrated card.
I am thinking of getting myself an upgrade, thinking about the macbook pro 15 inch, or maybe the imac, hm, possibilities, atleast it’s not as many as on “the other side”.
By Ætreyu on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 2:58 pm
Manufacturer: INTEL
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Quad CPU Q6700 @ 2.66GHz (4 CPUs), ~2.7GHz
Memory: 4GB RAM
Hard Drive: 1 TB Total
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 7800 GT
Monitor: LG L226WTQ 22″ LCD
Sound Card: Speakers/HP (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
Speakers/Headphones: Logitech Z4’s / Logitech Xtreme Gaming
Keyboard: Generic USB Keyboard
Mouse: Logitech MX510
Mouse Surface: Razor eXactMat
Operating System: Windows Vista™ Home Premium Service Pack 1
Motherboard: Intel® Desktop Board DG33TL
Computer Case: Thermaltake Tsunami Dream
By Belias on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 8:23 pm
Well…just using my work/university Acer Aspire 4702Z, and hoping that I found a better job very soon, so I can buy a decent PC again…
By Malde on Wednesday, March 18th, 2009 at 12:15 am
I’m using the 3D monitor “iz3d”, a IBM laptop xD and a razer mouse and a logitech keyboard.
3D rock.!
By Alondor on Wednesday, March 18th, 2009 at 6:51 am
Mine: Laptop: Inspiron 9300 2g mem 256 Nvidia Geforce Go, Thumball mouse. Using the Mod CTView really allows me to see what I need to see quickly and still allow me to enjoy the great WoW graphics.
Wifes: Custom Desktop: Main improvement was the Zboard, Laser Mouse and 2 19″ Widescreen monitors. She is running CT Viewport across the two monitors. So the graphics are on her left monitor and her bags all open on the right monitor. It also allows Recount, Omen, Carbonite, and the chat logs to be on the right monitor and not in the middle of the action. I tried to get her to use DHUD2 but she wasn’t a fan.
By Hasoondi on Sunday, March 22nd, 2009 at 10:24 pm
I use a(n):
Compaq MV720 monitor
w/built in mic
HP Pavillion a6600f PC
w/ basic keyboard and mouse
and I do just fine
=)
By Lane068 on Saturday, April 4th, 2009 at 11:17 am
I have a Belkin game pad, Razor Mouse, and g15 keyboard. Use the belkin for my main abilities, and the g15’s extra keys for healing, or whatever my current class needs.
By Zelnaaru on Thursday, May 14th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
Hey Bastosa. I just bought the n52te game pad and am trying to get it running on my Mac OSX 10.5.6 but I can’t seem to get it working. It says its not connected. Do you have any idea what the issue might be?
By tecnom on Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009 at 1:33 pm
19 inch hd
2 gb
invidia 9600
vista 64 bit
2 dul 3.00
intel dg33tl mb
1 tb hd
17 inch lcd
By Matt on Tuesday, July 14th, 2009 at 1:13 pm
After reading this blog, I imediately went to best buy and picked up my brand new “Belkin n52te”.
after about 45 seconds of playing (after getting it all set up and programed, as well as key bindings set) I fell in love with it.
With my standard keyboard, I had access to almost all of my skills, spread across the top of the keyboard. I tank, and so the problem came when I would be gathering agro, and lose one. my hand is over the 2-5 keys (1 being charge, of course), but taunt was CLEAR over on 0. an improvement over it not being bound to a key at all.
Now, not saying that it took a lot of energy, but I actually had to look down and find zero, during which time, the mob gets a critical hit and finishes the unfortunate mage off, or even (epic fail) the healer.
Now, I have EVERY skill availible to me, even the ones that I don’t use often, and all right under my fingertips.
Get it.
play it.
love it!