Hello, first time poster here. I apologize in advance for the long post but I need to get this decision right the first time and I want to try and get all of my info to you on the first try if possible.
First some quick background info. I now have a 7 year old Gateway PC with a Pentium 4 and a 2.4 processor, 120 gig harddrive, 1 gig of RDram and a BFG NVidia GeForce 7600 GS with 512 megs of onboard ram.
As you can now tell I'm not one to keep up with current technology. I bought this PC new and have done upgrades myself such as a bigger power supply, doubled the ram, and numerous video cards. It's finally time to do something new. I am a gamer (but not to the extreme) so whatever I get will need to be geared around that. I've never been able to play things like Microsoft's FSX, Unreal Tournament 3, and various other games along those lines with my current machine. I would like whatever I get/build to be able to handle those kind of games and more if possible.
My budget will be in the $1000 to $1100 range. This is not cast in stone but pretty close.
I've been considering 3 ways to go here as you can see in the topic title.
1. I see Dell has a Studio XPS model for $1099.00.
Dell Studio XPS 9000 Desktop Computer Product Details | Dell
Some of it's specs are;
Studio XPS 9000
Intel® Core™ i7-920 processor(8MB L3 Cache, 2.66GHz)
Operating System
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
Monitor
No Monitor
Optical Drives
Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/ dbl layer write capable
Memory
6GB Tri-Channel DDR3 SDRAM6 at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs
Hard Drives
750GB 7200 RPM8 SATA Hard Drive
Video Card
ATI Radeon HD 4350 512MB
Sound Card
Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
Network
Integrated 10/1000 Ethernet
Hardware Support Services
2 Year Basic Service Plan
2. I live in a small town but a neighboring city has shops that build for you. They put together this estimate geared around my budget.
Gigabyte LGA1156 Intel P55 ATX $129.99
Intel Quad CR i5 LGA1156 2066 GHz $239.99
G Skill Ripjaw 4Gb DDR3 1066 (2x2 GB) $109.99
Windows 7 Home Premium x64 OEM $119.99
500 Watt Purepower ATX PSU Thermaltake $74.99
Thermaltake V3 Gaming Case Window Full $79.99
WD 1 Terabyte SATA2 Lowpower HDD 32MB $119.99
Radeon HD 5670 512MB DDR5PCIE HDCP XFIR $129.99
Samsung 22x DVDRW SATA Black $49.99
Total $1121.37
When buying all components from them they built it free and give 3 years warranty on all parts and materials.
3. Do I attempt my first build.
I don't fear the actual build, I'm just concerned with the first bootup. Will it fire up, plus playing in the BIOS has always worried me in case I muck something up in there. I think I can get beyond that fear though.
Here's my thinking guys,
Things like the motherboard and processor have to be right the first time. Things like the video card and amount of ram can always be upgraded later as more money becomes available.
So with that thought in mind what do you think of the three options? Also what's best for me as far as motherboard/processors when considering games versus cost? (i.e. best bang for my buck) Core2 Quad? i5? i7 920?
Obviously if I build my own, parts would be ordered through somewhere like Newegg unless there's a better place.
One last thing, if you all think me building my own is the way to go could you please let me know what else is needed for a complete build. (Like the little stand off things the motherboard sets on, do I need to order those
or do they come with the board or case? Ribbon cable that goes from motherboard to the drives, etc.) Please keep in mind that I've never done a complete build and wouldn't want to miss some silly little thing.
That's about all that I can think of for now.
Thanks for your time and help.
First some quick background info. I now have a 7 year old Gateway PC with a Pentium 4 and a 2.4 processor, 120 gig harddrive, 1 gig of RDram and a BFG NVidia GeForce 7600 GS with 512 megs of onboard ram.
As you can now tell I'm not one to keep up with current technology. I bought this PC new and have done upgrades myself such as a bigger power supply, doubled the ram, and numerous video cards. It's finally time to do something new. I am a gamer (but not to the extreme) so whatever I get will need to be geared around that. I've never been able to play things like Microsoft's FSX, Unreal Tournament 3, and various other games along those lines with my current machine. I would like whatever I get/build to be able to handle those kind of games and more if possible.
My budget will be in the $1000 to $1100 range. This is not cast in stone but pretty close.
I've been considering 3 ways to go here as you can see in the topic title.
1. I see Dell has a Studio XPS model for $1099.00.
Dell Studio XPS 9000 Desktop Computer Product Details | Dell
Some of it's specs are;
Studio XPS 9000
Intel® Core™ i7-920 processor(8MB L3 Cache, 2.66GHz)
Operating System
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
Monitor
No Monitor
Optical Drives
Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/ dbl layer write capable
Memory
6GB Tri-Channel DDR3 SDRAM6 at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs
Hard Drives
750GB 7200 RPM8 SATA Hard Drive
Video Card
ATI Radeon HD 4350 512MB
Sound Card
Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
Network
Integrated 10/1000 Ethernet
Hardware Support Services
2 Year Basic Service Plan
2. I live in a small town but a neighboring city has shops that build for you. They put together this estimate geared around my budget.
Gigabyte LGA1156 Intel P55 ATX $129.99
Intel Quad CR i5 LGA1156 2066 GHz $239.99
G Skill Ripjaw 4Gb DDR3 1066 (2x2 GB) $109.99
Windows 7 Home Premium x64 OEM $119.99
500 Watt Purepower ATX PSU Thermaltake $74.99
Thermaltake V3 Gaming Case Window Full $79.99
WD 1 Terabyte SATA2 Lowpower HDD 32MB $119.99
Radeon HD 5670 512MB DDR5PCIE HDCP XFIR $129.99
Samsung 22x DVDRW SATA Black $49.99
Total $1121.37
When buying all components from them they built it free and give 3 years warranty on all parts and materials.
3. Do I attempt my first build.
I don't fear the actual build, I'm just concerned with the first bootup. Will it fire up, plus playing in the BIOS has always worried me in case I muck something up in there. I think I can get beyond that fear though.
Here's my thinking guys,
Things like the motherboard and processor have to be right the first time. Things like the video card and amount of ram can always be upgraded later as more money becomes available.
So with that thought in mind what do you think of the three options? Also what's best for me as far as motherboard/processors when considering games versus cost? (i.e. best bang for my buck) Core2 Quad? i5? i7 920?
Obviously if I build my own, parts would be ordered through somewhere like Newegg unless there's a better place.
One last thing, if you all think me building my own is the way to go could you please let me know what else is needed for a complete build. (Like the little stand off things the motherboard sets on, do I need to order those
or do they come with the board or case? Ribbon cable that goes from motherboard to the drives, etc.) Please keep in mind that I've never done a complete build and wouldn't want to miss some silly little thing.
That's about all that I can think of for now.
Thanks for your time and help.
).
