Thinking of buying this HP, what do you think?

[SCHawks73]

Costco - $1,499.99 after $125 OFF HP Pavilion HPE-350t Core i7-860 2.8GHz 1GB ATI Graphics Desktop

Recently my HP dv9640us Laptop got smacked in the mouth by some lightning and the results were:

external modem died
external router died
ethernet card died
both USB ports on right side died

Every once in a while my computer freaks out and freezes for a few seconds to tell me my USB ports are shot. Well since I play MMORPG's frequently, that is not a good thing. I am planning on giving this laptop to my GF as the most intense games she does is tetris and solitaire, this computer should be OK. So now it is time for me to upgrade. I talked to a buddy of mine and told him I was on a 800-1000 budget but a lil flexable if needed and this is what he came up with. I told him 50% over budget is normally not a good thing, but he said I will be very happy with this computer for at LEAST the next 5 years.

I need everything, computer, monitor, mouse, and keyboard. I like how this computer comes with a 90 day return policy, and a 2 year warranty. I dont know alot about computers but I know 12GB of ram is a crap ton as I upgraded my lappy from 2 to 4GB, Intel i7 is top of the line, I dont even use 1/2 of the 340GB of HD I have now so 1.5TB is WAY more than enough... and after thinking my 17" laptop screen is huge, I cant fathom a 27" monitor... other than that, it is all greek to me.

So what do you think, this a good buy? Even if I can build something slightly better, will it outweigh the comfortability of having a 2 year warranty?

Thanks in advance!!

 

[Gordylll]

I refuse to support Hewlett you cant upgrade my components Packard. What is your absolute budget and does it have to be an I7 build or can you go with AMD + ATI? That video card is low end and although the monitor is huge I have no idea refresh rates or anything on it. 2 year warranties are nice but thats where a lot of your money goes to. Newegg will offer you a warranty on the parts you buy up to 2 years on motherboards I think. So ...

1. Max Budget
2. Do you mind going with AMD (best bang for your buck)
3. Do you mind putting it together if you have assistance from these here forums?
4. Would you want the warranties on Motherboard/Computer/Drives?
5. It will probably be a smaller monitor then 27" but it will be a beast monitor
6. Do you mind wired mouse and keyboard or do you want wireless (wireless will cost more and you run the risk of less repsonse on some models while gaming)

 

[SCHawks73]

I refuse to support Hewlett you cant upgrade my components Packard. What is your absolute budget and does it have to be an I7 build or can you go with AMD + ATI? That video card is low end and although the monitor is huge I have no idea refresh rates or anything on it. 2 year warranties are nice but thats where a lot of your money goes to. Newegg will offer you a warranty on the parts you buy up to 2 years on motherboards I think. So ...

1. Max Budget - I want my budget to be around $1000 but not more than like 1100... but if spending 1200 is night and day compared to 1100... I wont be stupid
2. Do you mind going with AMD (best bang for your buck) - I was actually thinking about going with an AMD because of it's better bang for my buck... but will I be losing a lot because of it?
3. Do you mind putting it together if you have assistance from these here forums? - I have taken apart some old broken desktops before, removed some harddrives, replaced my lappy's RAM, and I can hookup an entire car audio system, individually wiring 4 speakers + a sub to 2x amplifiers and a new HU... so I "SHOULD" be ok... with help
4. Would you want the warranties on Motherboard/Computer/Drives? - I like having the piece of mind of a warranty, even though 90% of the time I never get my money's worth. So if Newegg has a decent and reliable warranty, I would like it.
5. It will probably be a smaller monitor then 27" but it will be a beast monitor - If I can take money from a smaller monitor and put it in a bigger/better/faster computer, that is fine.
6. Do you mind wired mouse and keyboard or do you want wireless (wireless will cost more and you run the risk of less repsonse on some models while gaming) - I perferred a WIRED mouse and keyboard... I always hate changing the batteries or losing connections or having my mouse jump on the screen instead of glide.

Reply's in red. Thank you for your input! Any and all other input is welcome (though I wonder if I should start a new thread as this went from "is this prebuilt HP good" to "Build me a $1,100 gaming comp"...)

 

[Gordylll]

Good deal and I am a big car audiophile currently running JLW6's with JL components throughout 149 db with backseat down (dynamat from engine bay to underbody)
Dont make a new thread people will read this. Give me a few and I will post a build and then usually the really smart people jump in with more builds and suggestions

 

[SCHawks73]

Good deal man, thanks for the help. I not into competition stuff, and like computers I dont know a ton about it, but I know more than the average person, and I know enough to get me in trouble lol

Look forward to seeing some builds!

 

[iPROTechman]

The Graphics in that system are rubbish, and it's massively overpriced from what I can see, let one of the builders put you one together, I'd go with AMD Quad/Hex core, 4gb-8gb of Ram and a nice 5070/5870 or gtx 460/sli ;]

 

[iPROTechman]

No Idea how they're gonna run an i7 with that... especially under stress and a bigger GPU.

Limit 1 qty. per order. If you would like to purchase more than 1 HP computer (whether it be the same or different item#) you must place a separate order for 1 qty. each time. 2 HP computers placed on the same order subjects 1 order to cancellation.

Processor & Memory:

* Intel® Core*™ i7-860 Processor at 2.8GHz
* 8MB L3 cache
* 12GB DDR3-1333MHz SDRAM memory

Drives:

* 1.5TB (7,200RPM) SATA 3Gb/s hard drive
* LightScribe 16x max DVD±R/RW SuperMulti drive

Graphics & Video:

* HP 2710 27" diagonal widescreen flat panel monitor
* 1GB ATI Radeon HD 5450 Graphics

Communications:

* Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabit LAN

Audio:

* Integrated 7.1 channel capable sound w/ front audio ports

Keyboard & Mouse:

* HP USB Keyboard
* HP Optical Mouse

Expandability (Total Slots):

* HP Pocket Media Drive Bay
* Total memory slots: 4 DIMMS
* 1 x PCIe x16
* 3x PCIe x1
* 1x MiniCard Slot

Ports:

* Front headphone and mic ports
* 6 x USB 2.0 ports (2 Front, 4 Back)
* 1x 15-in-1 Digital Media Card Reader
* 1x Line-in (front)
* 1x IEEE 1394 port

Operating System:

* Microsoft® Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)

Additional Software:

* Microsoft® Office Starter (reduced functionality versions of Word and Excel; not the full version of Microsoft® Office 2010)
* Access the full Office 2010 experience when you purchase a Product Key Card. The Product Key Card is a single license card that contains a 25-character code to activate full-featured Office 2010 software on your new PC. To purchase Click Here
* Norton Internet Security 2010 - 15 month

Additional Information:

* 2-Year Limited Warranty
* CPU Dimensions: 16.85" D x 7.05" W x 15.79" H
* Power Supply: 300W

Most likely has a stock cooler too. Only has 1 x pci - E slot, so you're limited to upgradability and one card only, Definetly go with a custom build.

 

[Gordylll]

Alright here we go now this will be able to play any MMO for sure and will have a ton more power then that computer from HP

Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Blue WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive 640 GB HD $69.99
(If you think this is to big you can cut costs with a smaller drive; or add a second drive later)

Newegg.com - ASUS VH236H Black 23" 2ms(GTG) HDMI Widescreen Full HD 1080P LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 20000 :1 (ASCR) Built-in Speakers 23" Asus 2MS response monitor 199.99
(There is a 20.00 mail in rebate for this. Also if you want to cut costs you can drop to a 21" monitor I wasnt sure how small you were willing to go)

Newegg.com - XFX HD-585X-ZAFC Radeon HD 5850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity XFX Radeon 5850 $254.99
(15.00 mail in rebate on this. This thing smokes the card in that HP build)

Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL 4GB DDR3 89.99
(This RAM is highly recommended from just about everyone here. Also for gaming more then 4GB really isnt necessary)

Newegg.com - AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ955FBGMBOX AMD 955 Quad Core 152.99
(We can help you overclock this to a 965 speeds <next processor up>)

Newegg.com - XIGMATEK HDT-S963 92mm Rifle CPU Cooler I5 775 AMD compatible Xigmatech CPU cooler 26.99

Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more! ASUS mobo with USB 3.0 and 6GB/s + 750 watt Corsair Power supply 220.98
(There are higher end boards out there I settled on this one because it seemed the most complete. I am hard proponent of the MSI military grade board but it puts you out of budget. Also 20.00 mail in rebate)

Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more! Storm scout case + Windows 7 179.98
(You can go cheaper on the case to save some $$ here also. I just really like this midtower case)

Total: 1214.82 (- the mail in rebates)

Now onto the warranty thing. Newegg will offer you 2 years on the motherboard, Monitor and hard drive. That is almost 100.00 for those 3 parts on top of cost. With Newegg if the parts are broken you can return them for new parts (paying for shipping). You also have support through the manufacture for these parts its your call. Let me know what you think and please wait for others to chime in though before making any decisions

 

[SCHawks73]

Nice build, and thank you for taking the time to do this for me, I appreciate it!

Couple things.

Monitor - It has built in speakers, I have a cheap 2.1 stereo system that I have hooked up to my computer now (and will use with the new comp) so if I can get the same one with no speakers and cheaper, that would be ideal.

RAM - 4GB will be enough? A lot of the newer computers are coming with 4 as almost a minimum, since the MB holds up to 16GB and have 4 slots (and only 2 being used), is this something I could upgrade later with another set of those 2GB ram sticks for 90bux and have 8GB total?

Video Card - it says crossfire ready, what is this crossfire. I did a bit of research and I found I could use 2 of something instead of just 1... can you elaborate a bit more on that please?

Processor - Is it a better route to go with the 955 and OC it compared to spending another $10 and getting the 965 and potentially OCing it?

Water cooling - Neat! Normally I wouldnt think water + electrical computer components go together lol

Case + OS - I am still a college student so I can get the 64 bit W7 OS for $30, and if I wanted to change cases, is there anything specific I would need to look out for, or is it all basically visual?

Thanks again and sorry for asking so many questions, I appreciate your help!!

 

[Gordylll]

if I can get the same one with no speakers and cheaper, that would be ideal

Let me see what I can find or you can head to Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more! go under cpu components and check monitors. Samsung, Dell, Asus are all good monitors. Post sizes and types that you like and we can help you

4GB will be enough?

Yes it will be enough most games are heavy on your graphics card (GPU from here on out). If you are doing a lot of applications at once that is where your RAM comes into play. You must remember you have 4GB of RAM + 1GB of GPU Virtual RAM that it will use when needed. You will always be able to buy another 2 sticks of this RAM if you want to add it. I just tried to keep you in budget for now.

what is this crossfire

Ok in laymens terms crossfire and SLI is when your board takes 2 GPU and combines the processing power essentially doubling your video processing capabilities. With that said certain games/programs will not scale very well with 2 cards so instead of 100% increase in video performance you may only get 60% increase per say in certain games/programs, or 40% increase in other games/programs. It all comes down to how the developer decided to code the game in taking advantage of SLI or Crossfire. The general rule of thumb is one very good card will do better then 2 lower cards crossfired/SLI. While 2 lower cards in crossfire/SLI will do better then 1 lower card. If anyone can elaborate a bit more on this please do.

955 and OC it compared to spending another $10 and getting the 965 and potentially OCing it?

Personally I myself for my build will go with the 965 which can be pushed to 4.0 with the correct cooling. Again I wanted to keep you in budget and the 955 is a perfect chip unless your going to try to overclock it through the roof. It will reach the speeds of a stock 965, with air cooling, with help from the folks here. So saving 10.00 in my opinion for you is the way to go. Your call though brother. We will help you with either chip you decide

Water cooling

I can not comment on this my first dip into water cooling will be with my new rig I am a standard air cooling guy. Someone else like slaymate or Shawn will comment here

anything specific I would need to look out for, or is it all basically visual?

You couldn't be further from the truth. Your case is VERY VERY important. Yes it must look good BUT it has to have good dimensions to promote positive cooling throughout the case. You dont want your HDD bays sticking way out possibly blocking a cpu cooler or ram heatsinks. Take a look at Newegg.com - computer parts - computer cases - mid tower <or full tower but they cost more> - and post which ones you like we can help you with this. Looks do matter though it takes a pretty case to make you smile everytime you get on it and an ugly case can turn your fun machine into a work machine very easily.