Computer Advice

[TheStrategist]

I'm looking to get a new badass computer. If I knew anything about building my own, I would, but I don't so here are my options:

Dell XPS 720 H2C
PROCESSOR: Intel® Core™2 Extreme QX6850 (8MB,3.67GHz Factory overclocked)
OPERATING SYSTEM: XP Media Center 2005 Edition
MEMORY: 4GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 4 DIMMs
HARD DRIVE: 500GB - Seagate 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16MB Cache
VIDEO CARD: Dual nVidia GeForce 8800 GT 512MB

OR

HP Blackbird 002 LC
PROCESSOR: Dual Core - Intel(R) Core2(TM) Duo 3.0GHz E6850
OPERATING SYSTEM: Windows Vista Home Premium
MEMORY: 4 GB 800 MHz CORSAIR PC2-6400 DDR2 SDRAM
HARD DRIVE: 750GB 7200 rpm SATA
VIDEO CARD: Dual NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT, with 512MB of GDDR3 SDRAM
OTHER: CPU Liquid cooling, ASUS Striker Extreme 680i Motherboard


I'm not sure which one is a better unit, I'm also not sure if there is something that I can get that's even better for less or the same amount of $$.

I heard that Cyber Power PC is pretty good, but I'd like something with a clear warranty and good tech support.

Any suggestions? Comments on the systems above?

 

[JimJohnson]

Now keep in mind you said bad ass, I did not notice a price range.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115034
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220275
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817814012
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811103011
x2
with shipping around 3k

Or go with the 771 chipset and dual CPU motherboard but that jack the price up another 2200$

I really don't like pre built computers they are better now adays but rather just put it together myself

Edit -
You could always jump into irc and we can walk you thru putting it together. its pretty simple.

 

[crazyeqplayer]

Build your own, save a thousand or two

Building your own PC might sound daunting what with so many components, etc.

Visit a hardware enthusiast site and ask for some advice. Give details about what you want it to do, and a price range and you will get sound advice about what to choose.

futuremark
anandtech
evga

To suggest a few.

You are literally throwing money away by purchasing an OEM machine.

That said, I have had bad consumer experiences with Dell.

 

[pullzem]

Stay away from Cyber Power PC's for sure...I spent many hours reading reviews on many pc's from many online sites (newegg, zipzoomfly, tiger direct, pc mall, dell, best buy, etc.) and I remember many saying that brand arrived in non-working condition quite often and their tech-support sucked, badly.

Before you buy ANY packaged PC from someplace, read customer reviews so you don't end up being sorry about making that particular choice.

If you have a local "mom & pop" computer store near you, ask them about putting the pc together for you for a fee if you supplied all the components. Then, even with their fee for doing it, you could get expert advice from users here or elsewhere about specific components to purchase and end up with a much better PC for alot less than a packaged PC from some outlet. You could probably save yourself in the neighborhood of $500 for a $3000 PC.

It would be difficult to find any outlet that would beat the prices you'd find at Newegg or Zipzoomfly in my opinion (ZZF is almost always equal or a little under or over from Newegg as I've seen). Also, specials and/or free/cheap shipping would save additional dollars...I get daily emails from several outlets and right before weekends or end-of-month, they offer bigger discounts and free shipping. They also have special 24-hour sales quite often and instant discounts versus mail-in rebates...how many of us follow thru and do the mail-ins

 

[Bearcub]

Really, you can relax about building your own for the most part. Personally, the most daunting part is making sure that you get your thermal paste on the CPU right for a good match with the sink/fan. Ask around for friends, I'm sure you have some that have built their own before.

Other than the thermal paste, which is incredibly easy (I was scared the first time I did it, about not doing it right, but it's pretty easy and forgiving), everything is "Plug RAM DIMM into RAM DIMM Socket. Plug Power Cord into Power Receptacle, Plug PCIe Video Card into PCIe video card slot, Plug ... You get the point by now.

Heck, if you really get nervous, I'll even walk you through it over the phone. All someone really needs to know is what type of MB you have and they can download a schematic and look at the same thing you're looking at.

Cheers,

BC