HP e9150t vs. Dell Studio XPS - Need buying help

[Thilly]

going with an i7 build isn't overkill, but some of the things you listed might come from iffy brands (you dont really know), whereas if you build it yourself, you'd be sure to pick out some good quality parts.

also you keep mentioning the 512mb or 1gb video card. but you havent actually listed the name. there are so many cards from different series that just the memory is not enough to identify which one it is. and it might not be you, it might just be that they are not listing it, which is another loss.

and id like to see how 8gigs of ram are supposed to work in triple channel. all in all though, thats not worth 1500$

Took the words right out from under my hands ;P

There are cards 3 or 4 years old with 512 mb memory, we need to know the actual model to tell you how ripped off you would be.

Something is fishy with the RAM, 8gb in triple channel would be a strange setup.

You could probably shave 300-500 off if you were to build that computer yourself with the same specs, plus you would have quality parts and the ability to upgrade in the future.

P.S. Do you really need a blu-ray burner? That's inflating the price quite a bit and I'm sure Dell/HP isn't skipping out of the markup.

 

[Moondoggy]

The graphics card in the HP is an ATI Radeon 4650 that comes with the 1 GB of memory. The Dell comes with an ATI Radeon 4350 and only has 512 MB of Memory. The cost of the BlueRay writer is $200 over the default DVD burner in both systems. Neither Dell nor HP are specific about brands of other components.

As far as the memory goes the HP only says 8GB DDR3-1066MHz SDRAM [4 DIMMs] while the Dell says 8GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs. I mis-read the specs as the memory switches to Tri-channel with 12 GB of memory in the Dell. Both systems come with 6 GB of RAM and to get the 2 extra GB HP charges $80 while Dell charges $100.

So..... You guys are causing me to think this over more. My biggest concern is either finding someone that can put a system together for me or developing the guts to builid one myself. Not saying I can't do it myself but I wouldn't have the foggiest idea where to even start. Are there any do it yourself guides or anything that would guarantee success? I know some of the manufacturers that I would buy from if I was to do it myself but when it comes to cases I'm really green. Any suggestions on a case that would be whisper quiet? . Also the only MOBO manufacturer I'm familiar with is ASUS as that's what my current board is. Asus has been a good board for me in my current system but is there anything better suited for the I7-920?

 

[Muffin Man]

that is a complete ripoff if those are the gfx cards they are offering for $1500.

unless you will be making BR discs, the BR drive is a waste of money, a $30 dvd burner will work just fine.

they are ripping you off further by offering ddr3 1066 ram, and unless you are doing some rather heavy work with something such as photoshop, you will only need 4-6 gigs of ram.

as far as building the pc goes, you are kinda making it seem like a bigger deal than it is

this is a good guide to start with Build a PC - Introduction to Building your PC - PCitYourself.com that offers the basic idea of where you should install the different components. there are also some guides here on these forums.

http://www.techist.com/forums/f75/read-first-hardware-stickies-index-142552/

you can take a look at those guides, and we can help you with the parts list.

by the way, are you also including a monitor in your budget?

 

[Thilly]

DDR3 memory is only worth it in triple channel mode with something like 1600mhz. The fact that they are offering you 8gigs of 1066 in dual channel BEFORE 6 gigs in triple is very odd. Sounds like their motherboards are maybe some unwanted x58's with bad dimm slots.

4650 card is a lower end card, and for the price you are paying they better have a 4800 series, and a good one at that.

Like Muffin said, building computers is much easier than you must be imagining it to be. Everything is straight forward, all you do is plug things in for the most part. It isn't like you have to solder your own wires. I made my first pc at the age of 17 or something and I had no previous experience other than adding a hdd to my pc's etc.

 

[Moondoggy]

OK... I'm about convinced to build my own system but here's my next question for the experts..... What MOBO's should I focus on? I only know ASUS, INTEL and GIGABYTE by name and I have no clue regarding which board might be best for me. Here's some information about me and what I'm looking for.....

I'm not a big gamer although I to play a few games on occasion. I'm not an overclocker either although I might be tempted if I could be assured of not burning something up and it was fairly easy to do. For several reasons I want to run Windows 7 Pro on when it comes out. I want the CPU to be an Intel Core I7 920 and I want the motherboard BIOS to be able to support the XP virtualization mode available in Windows 7 Pro and with the Core I7 CPU. I also want to run Windows 7 in 64-bit mode and want at least 8 GB of memory. Beyond the above I'm looking for a board that will be easy to install (again, first time to build a system) and well supported by the manufacturer. Price is certainly important but I certainly don't think I need the most high end or low end board either. Pretty much I'm looking for a pretty mainstream board as long as it will support the virtual mode offered by the CPU and will hold up over time.

Given the above, what should I narrow my focus to?

 

[philbar71]

Newegg.com - Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - Processors - Desktops

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD5 LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Intel Motherboards

Newegg.com - OCZ Flex EX Series 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kits Desktop Memory Model OCZ3FXE1600C7LV6GK - Desktop Memory

Newegg.com - XFX GX285XZWFF GeForce GTX 285 1GB 512-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

Newegg.com - CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX 850W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Power Supply - Power Supplies

Newegg.com - SAMSUNG Spinpoint F1 HD103UJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - Internal Hard Drives

Newegg.com - LG Black 6X BD-R 2X BD-RE 16X DVD+R 6X BD-ROM 4MB Cache SATA Internal Blu-ray Burner Super Multi Blu-ray Disc Burner & HD DVD-ROM Drive Model GGW-H20L - Blu-Ray Burners

Newegg.com - Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Computer Cases

total comes to $1495 with out an OS, mouse or KB but it will wipe the floor with either of thise Dell or HP's

for the OS, just download the windows 7 RC and use it until the real version comes out.

6GB of ram is fine but 8GB is not needed and is overkill but if you want more than 8GB go with this kit of ram,

Newegg.com - OCZ Platinum 12GB (6 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3P1600LV12GS - Desktop Memory

 

[Muffin Man]

this is another build you could think about. the only real main difference with this one is that it has a slightly less powerful gfx card. with the spare money, you could buy a nice monitor and it would still end up cheaper than then those prebuilt pc's you were looking at.

total is $1,152 + shipping (- $40 in rebates)

Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, Digital Cameras and more!
Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, Digital Cameras and more!
Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, Digital Cameras and more!
Newegg.com - SAMSUNG Spinpoint F1 HD103UJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - Internal Hard Drives
Newegg.com - SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner - CD / DVD Burners

and i agree that you should go with windows 7 rc until it comes out.

 

[mkw007]

Well you can get a e9150t right now, today, for $764.99

Here is the build:
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-920 processor (2.66GHz, 1MB L2 + 8MB shared L3 cache with QPI Technology)
FREE UPGRADE! 6GB DDR3-1066MHz SDRAM [3 DIMMs] from 4GB
FREE UPGRADE! 750GB 7200 rpm SATA 3Gb/s hard drive from 640GB
512MB ATI Radeon HD 4350 [DVI, HDMI, VGA adapter]
LightScribe 16X max. DVD+/-R/RW SuperMulti drive
Integrated 10/100/1000 (Gigabit) Ethernet, No wireless LAN
15-in-1 memory card reader, 1 USB, 1394, audio
No TV Tuner w/remote control
Integrated 7.1 channel sound with front audio ports
No speakers
HP multimedia keyboard and HP optical mouse
Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
Norton Internet Security(TM) 2009 - 15 month
HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope

Is building your own system still a better deal?