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  1. #1
    Groovebox
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    Buying a new PC...

    So basically I'm thinking about getting a couple new PCs... my work has a PC purchase program so there are some stipulations. It needs to be purchased through Dell, HP, or CDW... I want something affordable, because I only have so much to spend (based on my salary through my company) and I'm already purchasing a laptop for a friend.

    So, what would you recommend? CDW has a bunch of different brands, not sure what to get. I have an emachine atm... and I really like it >.>... I'm a mac user for everything besides games.....

  2. #2

    Are you asking about a PC that would be good for Gaming, or just anything?

  3. #3
    Groovebox
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    sorry, should have made that clear... want one for gaming of course >.>

  4. #4

    What are you willing to spend, I can give you a couple options if I know what your computer budget is.

  5. #5

    DO NOT, whatever you do, choose the XPS700 from Dell. I had the most horrendous experience with them this summer that ended with me canceling the order and going to Velocity Micro, and I NEVER cancel orders.

    Pretty much boils down to:
    I ordered June 26th
    Got a call August!!! 1st saying the computer is delayed (no shit), and they'll give me a 200 dollar gift card if I stuck with a Pentium D and I'd get my computer faster
    Waited the entire month of August
    Got the runaround and absolutely NO movement on my order
    Canceled and paid more for a fully retail computer (with the new Core 2 Duo) that's upgradeable.

    Don't believe the hype Dell is pulling with their "enthusiast" computer, because their version of "enthusiast" means someone who likes their computer case pretty. You will be getting neutered OEM parts and an non-industry standard motherboard. Avoid, especially if you're looking to drop a good chunk of change. I paid 3199 from Velocity Micro, and i can give you the specs if that's your price range.

  6. #6
    Hayleystrator
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kyomu
    I paid 3199 from Velocity Micro, and i can give you the specs if that's your price range.
    Holy mother fuck. What currency?

  7. #7
    Relic Weapons
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    Quote Originally Posted by Epical
    Quote Originally Posted by Kyomu
    I paid 3199 from Velocity Micro, and i can give you the specs if that's your price range.
    Holy mother fuck. What currency?
    Well, double 7900GTX, C2D6700 (I'd hope he didn't go 6800) and some quality RAM can easily top 2000 alone.

    The rest? It can hit another 1200 I'd bet pretty easily.

    The problem with any major retailer is that they each have flaws in their service that some people will counter, and others will not, so it's difficult to acertain who will give the best(worst) service. My desktop is a dell (4.5yrs old) and my laptop is an HP (1.1yrs old). Haven't had any trouble with either of them yet to deal with customer service, but the dealings I /did/ have with them were fine. Go with the machine that seems the most well put together.

  8. #8
    Ranger
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    maingear is probably going to build my next system if Im too lazy to build it myself
    based on this review
    http://consumer.hardocp.com/article.htm ... NvbnN1bWVy

  9. #9

    3199 US dollars. Yeah, it was overboard, but I want something that's A> upgradeable, B> will last me for a while. I also got a 700 dollar monitor so that's a big chunk too. Here's the specs:

    E6400 C2D
    2 gig RAM
    250 gig HD
    Dual 7900 GTX NVidia GeForce
    20.1 inch NEC multisync LCD (it arrived today, it's freaking enormous)
    Soundblaster X-Fi ExtremeMusic Sound
    Xp Professional SP2
    16x DVD/CD RW dual layer
    16x DVD/48x CD
    Floppy Drive (holy shit they still make those)

    It's a nice system. Only thing I might eventually upgrade is the processor when the price goes down.

  10. #10
    Relic Weapons
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    Short of jerking off on the message board about our own systems, there is not much we can do if you dont give us some sort of price point.


    "Hey guys, I dont have a ton of money to spend and I can only buy from Toyota or Honda, what kinda car should I get?" Wont get you anywhere. "A lot of money" is relative.

    If by gaming you mean FFXI gaming, you wont need much lol.
    If you mean to play the hottest new games at the fastest speeds possible, you'll end up dropping $2500 on a decent system and $3000+ on a great system.

    Regardless of what people say, I'd recomend a Dell if you dont know jack shit about computers. At the very least, you'll have someone to bitch at and replace your system if you get the extended warranty.... Just might have to call a few times till you get someone that can communicate well in english.

    All the "not being upgradable" stuff wont really apply to you... since the only upgrading you'll be doing is adding or removing drives, some PCI cards, and maybe adding more RAM.

    The people who would be affected by Dell's OEM parts aren't people who would even considering buying from Dell, CDW, ect so don't em cloud your mind.

    Otherwise, like I said, you need to give a specific price point if you expect any real help.

  11. #11

    Oh, I'd definitely reccommend Dell for anything other than the XPS700 line. I have a Dell laptop and my parents have a Dell for Dummies, and we've never had a problem with those.

    It's just that when you say "gaming" that means different things to different people. For me it means a $3k+ system. If you want something that'll run FFXI decent and let you do Word and stuff, my laptop is P4 2.8ghz, 16 MB ATI Radeon Mobility, 60 gig HD, DVD, etc. Better video card and you'd be set for FFXI (I run at PS2 resolution at the moment).

    If you want to play stuff like Oblivion or anything that's new without it looking like a Powerpoint presentation, you're looking at some high-priced stuff.

    So, yeah, price point please and we can give you better ideas.

  12. #12

    Quote Originally Posted by Kyomu
    If you want to play stuff like Oblivion or anything that's new without it looking like a Powerpoint presentation, you're looking at some high-priced stuff.
    I built my PC for $1200, and it has a $200 sound card, and the dual core AMD processor I bought dropped in price by $150 since I built it. So theoretically, you could build my system, with a cheaper case, for $800, if you use onboard sound. It runs Oblivion perfectly, and obviously that means FFXI and other games as well.

    AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+
    ABIT KN8 Ultra Socket 939
    ATI Radeon X1600PRO
    CORSAIR XMS 2GB (2 x 1GB)
    Creative SOUND BLASTER X-Fi Platinum
    Pioneer 16X DVD±R
    ENERMAX Noisetaker
    LIAN LI PC-7B plus II

    http://silentecho.net/rig.htm - The sound card bay panel is purty

    edit: forgot to mention I didn't have to buy any new hard drives, so that can add to the cost, but hard drives are pretty cheap nowadays.

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Almaa
    Quote Originally Posted by Kyomu
    If you want to play stuff like Oblivion or anything that's new without it looking like a Powerpoint presentation, you're looking at some high-priced stuff.
    I built my PC for $1200, and it has a $200 sound card, and the dual core AMD processor I bought dropped in price by $150 since I built it. So theoretically, you could build my system, with a cheaper case, for $800, if you use onboard sound. It runs Oblivion perfectly, and obviously that means FFXI and other games as well.
    Sorry to be slightly off topic, but does windower run on a 64bit processor?

  14. #14
    Hayleystrator
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kyomu
    3199 US dollars. Yeah, it was overboard, but I want something that's A> upgradeable, B> will last me for a while. I also got a 700 dollar monitor so that's a big chunk too. Here's the specs:

    E6400 C2D
    2 gig RAM
    250 gig HD
    Dual 7900 GTX NVidia GeForce
    20.1 inch NEC multisync LCD (it arrived today, it's freaking enormous)
    Soundblaster X-Fi ExtremeMusic Sound
    Xp Professional SP2
    16x DVD/CD RW dual layer
    16x DVD/48x CD
    Floppy Drive (holy shit they still make those)

    It's a nice system. Only thing I might eventually upgrade is the processor when the price goes down.
    At first glance, I was like "this guy got hella ripped off, there's no way that system can cost 3k+ USD, but I looked a little closer... yeah those dual GTX are like $800, the sound card is $200, RAM probably cost you $270, and I wouldn't be surprised if that's a Raptor HD, which is like $lol.

    Oh, and USB floppy drives > interal ones. =D

  15. #15

    Quote Originally Posted by Mephisto
    Quote Originally Posted by Almaa
    Quote Originally Posted by Kyomu
    If you want to play stuff like Oblivion or anything that's new without it looking like a Powerpoint presentation, you're looking at some high-priced stuff.
    I built my PC for $1200, and it has a $200 sound card, and the dual core AMD processor I bought dropped in price by $150 since I built it. So theoretically, you could build my system, with a cheaper case, for $800, if you use onboard sound. It runs Oblivion perfectly, and obviously that means FFXI and other games as well.
    Sorry to be slightly off topic, but does windower run on a 64bit processor?
    Yes, windower runs fine. I do have one problem but I don't think it's processor-related. I can't get windower to run at any setting other than 800 x 600 without having the TP and HP% numbers in the middle of the screen instead of on the pt listing.

  16. #16

    If you want a PC for gaming, I suggest you order it part by part and build it on your own. Pre-configured PC's usually suck ass for gaming (speaking from own experience here).

  17. #17
    Relic Weapons
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    Yea that's what I did but since the guy said he's getting a deal via the listed vendors, I assumed that was out of the question.

    hi2u newegg.com ; ;

  18. #18
    Groovebox
    Guest

    Basically, my company's pc purchase program works like this... I pick out one of the vendors, contact our Company Rep at the vendor and order a computer. I pay 10% and my company pays 90% of the bill. I then pay my company back over 24 paychecks interest free... they just take it right out... we get the computers at a discount, but it's nice paying for the equipment over time.... anyways, I'll do some more research on CDW... I don't want to get some pos...

  19. #19

    I wish my work would do a program like that, LOL sounds pretty sweet. I've had good experiences with CDW-G for ordering software and etc with my teacher discount. Never had any problem with them, and my district uses them for bulk software orders and stuff too. No matter what you choose from them I don't think you'll have a problem.

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