Buying/building new computer.. help needed

[noble_aloof]

Hey everyone. heres a little background. I do a lot of gaming and video editing on my computer (or, used to, thus my problem) and am considering a career in computer science. my current computer is 3 years old (got it for x-mas) and it cost about $1050 with everything included. When my mother ordered my computer from dell, she expressed that she wanted a GAMING computer with a large display and good printer. For the first year i just played runescape, diablo 2, c&c, and other games that didn't require a good computer, then i started getting into oblivion, bf 2142, and other graphically intense games (along with video editing), i could play them in pretty good detail. As time went on, however, i realized my experience was dwindling. My 100gb harddrive was filling up, my speakers broke off their mounts, my printer broke, and my computer has been sent to the local computer specialist 2 times for horrible viruses. about a year ago when i started exploring the many workings of a computer, i finally checked in detail what my PC was running on.. i'll save myself some embaressment but i will mention my 1gb of ram (512 x 2). the best thing about this computer (by far) has been the video card (a 512mb radeon) and my 21'' lcd display. i kept everything at factory defaults but i still sometimes get messages about possible overheated hardware. this computer has served me well but is now plagued again with many problems and i have to restart it about once every hour otherwise all text (yes, all text on the screen, alonf with my pointer) becomes invisible. Instead of taking it to the shop again my mom suggested that maybe it was time to upgrade.

 

that brings me to the past two weeks. I've been looking at dells online store and also extensively on Newegg.com. Dell has some amazing holiday deals and newegg offers unmatched customization and prices. my mom (since she owns a small business and will use the computer for a few hours a week) has given me quite an extensive budget of $1700. Combined with $300-400 of my own money i am looking at an absolute price cap of $2100.. thats where you guys come in.

 

as far as building my own computer goes, i would just like to be sure that the parts are compatible, if worst comes to worst i will be able to get it assembled at the local shop

 

please take note:

I am asking for any suggestions or information you can give me. anything is appreciated :thumbsup:

 

bottom line: this is what i'm looking for in a computer (rough specs)

 

23'' lcd screen w/o built in speakers

quad core processor

750gb harddrive 7200 rpm

cd/dvd drive

EXPANDABILITY

6gb ram

sound card

good graphics card for gaming

windows 7

(nothing else too specific)

 

now, i'm not going to act clueless here and say "BUILD ME A PC" i already have two builds (one from newegg, one from dell) which i would like input on. first, newegg:

 

(please offer any insight as to how this can be improved, cheaper, or be more COMPATIBLE)

 

case:

AZZA Helios 910 Black Japanese SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail -79.99 - good case good cooling good price and expandable

 

harddrive:

Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drives -Bare Drive -99.00 good rpm, sata, great reviews/price

 

monitor:

removed monitor from this build since my current one is completely fine.

 

graphics card (updated):

XFX HD-585A-ZNBC Radeon HD 5850 (Cypress Pro) 1GB Black Edition 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported ... - Retail -359.99

 

Sound card (could use your help):

removed sound card from build

 

PSU:

COOLER MASTER Silent Pro 700 RS-700-AMBA-D3 700W ATX12V V2.3 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active ... - Retail -119.99 top of the line, great price

 

keyboard:

logitech g15- $70.. can't go wrong

 

mouse:

razor deathadder $50

 

RAM:

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1600C8D - Retail - 253.99 great reviews

 

Mobo (updated):

EVGA E758-A1 3-Way SLI (x16/x16/x8) LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail -289.99

 

CPU:

Intel Core i7-920 Bloomfield 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail - $288 great reviews, solid, quad core.

 

operating system:

windows 7 64bit home premium- $105

 

Disc drive:

LG Black 8X BD-ROM 16X DVD-ROM 40X CD-ROM SATA Internal Combo LG Blu-ray Reader & 16X LightScribe DVD±R DVD Burner - Retail -120

 

extra cooling:

 

(total: $$1,837.85)

comments: seems to be a very good build. , A TON of expandability and cooling (overclock possible?) like i said before though, i am no pro, i would like someone to verify that all this would work together. please make suggestions and give me information, especially on the motherboard and graphics cards, as there are so many to choose from.

 

Dell:

well, you can't go wrong with dell. amazing holiday deals, good systems, and good customer support. heres what i've choosen:

 

-.- for some reason dell has removed the studio 9000 from their online lineup, so i just decided to build an alienware aurora:

(obviously i'll go into less detail here since everything will work together)

 

875w power supply

intel i7 920 (same as newegg)

Dual 1GB NVIDIA® GeForce® GTS 240 - SLI® Enabled

12gb ran at 1067 ....

640gb harddrive

single blue ray drive

sound blaster titanium x-fi

killer xeno pro network card

NO MONITOR

alienware tactx keyboard

 

price: $1952

 

 

 

thank you all and i appreciate any advice. As you can see from the alienware build i did not buy a screen, i am thinking for my newegg build that i won't buy a screen either and that will enable me to have the same RAM (except at 1600) as the alienware AND afford good speakers. your thoughts are welcome

[Sbrideau]

Don't go with Dell, nowaday's dell computer breaks quite fast, in under one year. Most of the Dell computers that people have that come here or even irl (yes, irl I know someone that had to replace the hard drive because of a failure, his computer was 3 months old) will break within one year. I suggest building the computer yourself, but won't say anithing right now as I am currently not in a fit condition (drunk) for the parts, I don't want to get you mistaken on parts. I do think that if you want a good prebuilt computer, you should go for Asus, they are extreme quality, even if they are a little bit more expensive depending on the model.

[SkillingWoo]

Quick-tip: Compatibility shouldn't be something you're worrying about. I skimmed your post, and if you're spending $2000 on a new system, all the parts will most likely be compatible. :P

[noble_aloof]

Don't go with Dell, nowaday's dell computer breaks quite fast, in under one year. Most of the Dell computers that people have that come here or even irl (yes, irl I know someone that had to replace the hard drive because of a failure, his computer was 3 months old) will break within one year. I suggest building the computer yourself, but won't say anithing right now as I am currently not in a fit condition (drunk) for the parts, I don't want to get you mistaken on parts. I do think that if you want a good prebuilt computer, you should go for Asus, they are extreme quality, even if they are a little bit more expensive depending on the model.

 

I have heard some bad things about dell, thanks for clearing that up. i will look into Asus

[Foooman]

I would build your own mostly because if you order from something like Dell they will likely give you the basic proprietary motherboard leaving no room for overclocking. Here's a few changes I would make to the build though.

 

I'd pick up the Samsung Spinpoint F3 drive instead. It's newer and faster than the Caviar Black. There's a reason it doesn't stay in stock longer than a couple days at Newegg.

I'd drop Nvidia for ATI. Something like the 5850 for $30 more. This way you get DX11 support for the future and crossfire scaling with 5850s is pretty good.

If you want to overclock you'll need a CPU Cooler. Newegg just started carrying the Prolimatech Megahalems. Grab that and a Panaflo 120x38 at around 80+ cfm and you can get your i7 to 4.0Ghz.

I'd buy the i7 at Microcenter if you can, that way you can pick out the batch, are guaranteed a D0 Stepping, and you save $80. You have to have one near you though.

I wouldn't bother with a sound card until you have decent speakers or headphones. Most motherboards come with on-board sound which should suffice until you start throwing hundreds of dollars at sound.

The Motherboard you chose has zero expandability. If you start running Crossfire or SLI, you have zero expansion slots to work with. I'd go with a Foxconn Bloodrage GTI or Bloodrage if the budget allowed.

The RAM you chose although has good reviews has been out forever. The CL is pretty high. I'd try to shoot for some CL7 RAM.

 

I'm not even going to comment on that pre-built. They waste time with SLIi GTS240s, wasted money in a dedicated NIC, very slow RAM, and probably a no-name power supply brand with low 12V amps.

[SkillingWoo]

And it's fun to build your own computer, plus you'll usually end up with a better system for less money.

[noble_aloof]

I would build your own mostly because if you order from something like Dell they will likely give you the basic proprietary motherboard leaving no room for overclocking. Here's a few changes I would make to the build though.

 

I'd pick up the Samsung Spinpoint F3 drive instead. It's newer and faster than the Caviar Black. There's a reason it doesn't stay in stock longer than a couple days at Newegg.

I'd drop Nvidia for ATI. Something like the 5850 for $30 more. This way you get DX11 support for the future and crossfire scaling with 5850s is pretty good.

If you want to overclock you'll need a CPU Cooler. Newegg just started carrying the Prolimatech Megahalems. Grab that and a Panaflo 120x38 at around 80+ cfm and you can get your i7 to 4.0Ghz.

I'd buy the i7 at Microcenter if you can, that way you can pick out the batch, are guaranteed a D0 Stepping, and you save $80. You have to have one near you though.

I wouldn't bother with a sound card until you have decent speakers or headphones. Most motherboards come with on-board sound which should suffice until you start throwing hundreds of dollars at sound.

The Motherboard you chose has zero expandability. If you start running Crossfire or SLI, you have zero expansion slots to work with. I'd go with a Foxconn Bloodrage GTI or Bloodrage if the budget allowed.

The RAM you chose although has good reviews has been out forever. The CL is pretty high. I'd try to shoot for some CL7 RAM.

 

I'm not even going to comment on that pre-built. They waste time with SLIi GTS240s, wasted money in a dedicated NIC, very slow RAM, and probably a no-name power supply brand with low 12V amps.

 

thank you. first of all i realized that dell was charging an extra $200 for my processor to be overclocked? LOL

 

i did look at those samsung drives and i saw (as you said) that they seemed to be a very popular item. i will upgrade to the suggested one if i can find it in stock

i removed soundcard from build (as i wasn't too sure either) but i will be using my old speaker setup. (sorry, should have mentioned that)

i choose another motherboard but forgot to update the post. i'll update right now

i removed screen from build as my current one is still in perfect shape. now have about $350 to work with.

[noble_aloof]

And, as far as the fans go. i'm quite clueless. the panaflo's dont come with any type of mounting system.. how would i set them up and where would i put them?

[OldJoe]

And, as far as the fans go. i'm quite clueless. the panaflo's dont come with any type of mounting system.. how would i set them up and where would i put them?

Haven't followed this topic, fans for the case? There should have come some normal screws or plastics with the package.

[noble_aloof]

And, as far as the fans go. i'm quite clueless. the panaflo's dont come with any type of mounting system.. how would i set them up and where would i put them?

Haven't followed this topic, fans for the case? There should have come some normal screws or plastics with the package.

 

i should have been more clear.. Panaflo fans were suggested by foooman but in the reviews people said that they didn't come with any type of mounting system. as already stated, i have never built a computer before and i'm just wondering how all these fans would work (because i thought the case fans would suffice for overclocking)

[Foooman]

Some places carry the Panaflo's with bare wire ends. This is because they are server fans. If you buy the Rexus rebranded Panaflos on Newegg of just the panaflos from a place like Performance-Pcs, then you'll get them tailed in a 3 pin connector. I'd recommend using a separate fan controller or running them off molex power because sometimes motherboards can't handle the power load from fans like these and will blow out. The rest of the motherboard will be fine, the fan header just won't work.

 

I don't know what the lack of mounting system is you are talking about, you just screw them in if you want to use them as case fans, but I was recommending it as a Heatsink Fan to strap to the side of the Megahalems with the fan clips that come with the Megahalems.

[OldJoe]

And, as far as the fans go. i'm quite clueless. the panaflo's dont come with any type of mounting system.. how would i set them up and where would i put them?

Haven't followed this topic, fans for the case? There should have come some normal screws or plastics with the package.

 

i should have been more clear.. Panaflo fans were suggested by foooman but in the reviews people said that they didn't come with any type of mounting system. as already stated, i have never built a computer before and i'm just wondering how all these fans would work (because i thought the case fans would suffice for overclocking)

Right. Never heard about that brand (must be American-only).

Mounting system...? Are you talking about case-fan or cpu-fan? Case fans - you only mount them at specific places within the case with 4 metal or plasts screws. Cpu fans you hook onto the cooling block (first making sure they fit). But for cpu fan, i'd probably go with Noctua if you got some cash (they cost, but are great). Cpu coolers comes with mounting brackets. Some coolers doesn't come with brackets for i7, so you may need to order a seperate bracket.

As for motherboard, i'd go for Asus P6T Deluxe (Skip OC Palm).

[noble_aloof]

thanks everyone for the advice so far, i was wondering if someone could please verify the compatability with all these different components.

[Vulxai]

I skimmed over your components, and they seem to be compatible to me. Just make sure you get SATA cables for your cd/dvd drive and your hard drive. And like others have said, I never trust Dell. They cut too many corners. Just go with your own so you'll know what your capabilities are and it's easier to troubleshoot (IMO), and way more bang for your buck. I just finished my new build a few days ago.

[ClareJonsson]

Don't go with Dell, nowaday's dell computer breaks quite fast, in under one year. Most of the Dell computers that people have that come here or even irl (yes, irl I know someone that had to replace the hard drive because of a failure, his computer was 3 months old) will break within one year.

Sorry but I will have to disagree with you there, computers of ALL makes sometimes fail within the first few months, it's totally random. And to support Dell even further I work in a University and over 2 years ago we replaced all our public service PC's (That's hundreds of machines) With Dell's, I was sceptical thinking "Oh no, we're doomed", but our public service failure rate dropped significantly and is still at that level. They have been the most solid machines we have had in Public Service and don't forget that means hundreds of mental students trying to break them every day. Yes we have failures but you get that with anything! If hardware was 100% perfect I would be out of a job.

 

If hundreds of Solid Dell systems don't speak for themselves, then I don't know what does. :D

[JoeDaStudd]

Ok your build is a bit questionable.

 

The case is more personal preference, but this would be my choice.

Antec Three Hundred - $55

 

Get this graphics card (no point in buying "black edition" graphics cards

XFX HD-585A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5850 (Cypress Pro) 1GB

 

I'd get a 860 i7

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115214 - $280

with a 1156 motherboard (a lot cheaper and the 860 is on par with the 920)

With the 1156 motherboard you can get a 8gb kit for only $200

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600

 

If you getting an ATI graphics card it would be wiser to get a crossfire motherboard as opposed to SLI (allowing you to double up)