$800 and a dream

[oznerol]

Getting my first paycheck this week, looking to finally blow it all on something just for me. My current PC:

Dell Dimension 4500 (about 3 years old)
P4 2Ghz
768MB PC2100 Ram
Radeon 9600xt
3 HD's (80, 120, 160)GB
NEC 2500a DVD-+RW
Dell 250W Stock PSU
DELL E153FP

I want a new LCD - a big one. Either the 2005fpw or the 2405fpw. I'm banking on there being an end-of-July sale as per usual, so I can snatch them up for 400 or 800 respectively.

I play games, but nothing too intensive. HL2, CS:S, Rome: Total War, old classics, etc.

So, here are my options:
Blow the entire thing on a 2405fpw and barely be able to play games unless at lower resolutions or until I get a new video card.

Blow half on a 2005fpw and spend the rest on upgrades to my current rig.

Or, just get a new PC in general, possibly the Dell deal on the 5100 system that comes with the 2005fpw for around $850.

Your comments?

 

[Mik3y]

where's the "dont buy a dell" option?

 

[oznerol]

I'm too lazy and impatient to build my own. I don't overclock and I don't mod anything. If you know somewhere I can buy a decent, upgradable system working out of the box for cheaper than Dell, I'd like to hear it.

Edit: Plus, I have a $100 Dell GC, so that's partial motivation.

 

[d2arcturus]

Originally posted by: ducci
Or, just get a new PC in general, possibly the Dell deal on the 5100 system that comes with the 2005fpw for around $850.

Yesh.

 

[Topweasel]

A cheap upgrade in video card 6600gt will probably do well. a Cpu upgrade is possible not as important and memory seems fine (maybe another 256mb). The graphics on the 9600 aren't that bad in those games and the 2405w will make you fall in love. I would recommend the Monitor now and just save a couple pennies and geta 6600gt or 6800gt later. 800 On a new computer isn't going to help out much and 400 on either the CPU or video card isn't going to help that much due to the other one being a bottleneck.

 

[Mesix]

Don't get a 6600GT

You'll need AT LEAST a 6800GT for that large an LCD

 

[flexy]

how many paychecks wou will be gettin' ?

A huge nice LCD with a lame system doesnt make sense to me - also some low-end complete sys for $850 inclusive doesnt sound too exciting.

I would just slowly and partially upgrade with every paycheck you get.

Hmmm..difficult.....so you say you dont want to build a PC which means buying each component (eg. motehrboard etc.) cannot be done....MAYBE you can get a cheap COMPLETE system which is at least on par with current tech, eg. DDR 3200 ram, pci-ex, SATA, some CRAPPY gfx-card and whatever.

But then use THIS system to slowly upgrade on it...eg. better gfx-card, more ram, faster HD - basicaly get a system just as base where you can easily upgrade in the future.

 

[Baked]

Build a new system yourself by buying parts from newegg?

 

[KoolDrew]

Originally posted by: Baked
Build a new system yourself by buying parts from newegg?

 

[RollWave]

Originally posted by: ducci
I'm too lazy and impatient to build my own. I don't overclock and I don't mod anything. If you know somewhere I can buy a decent, upgradable system working out of the box for cheaper than Dell, I'd like to hear it.

Edit: Plus, I have a $100 Dell GC, so that's partial motivation.

Cyberpowerinc.com has been good to me thus far.

 

[imported_g33k]

A 2ghz proc would be too slow for my taste. But since you really want a big monitor, you must not think so. Get the monitor you want and a 6800gt. And then you can run games at higher resolutions so your cpu will not be so much of a bottleneck.

 

[DarkStarSLI]

i have a brand new pc. It is a freshly built system which was for a customer of mine. He ended up backing out because his wife found out he was spending 700.00 on a computer.

Let me know if your interested and still new a gaming pc. I will PM you the specs.

 

[oznerol]

Originally posted by: rnp614

Originally posted by: ducci
I'm too lazy and impatient to build my own. I don't overclock and I don't mod anything. If you know somewhere I can buy a decent, upgradable system working out of the box for cheaper than Dell, I'd like to hear it.

Edit: Plus, I have a $100 Dell GC, so that's partial motivation.

Cyberpowerinc.com has been good to me thus far.

Oh wow, this looks almost too good to be true. Is there a catch? Crappy PSUs, or any other parts in general? Bad customer service? I've never heard.

Can any of you guys reccommend a system config from this site for about $500? I don't need a video card, HD, or any optical drives, as I have a bunch in this system. And the video card I can buy separatley next time there's a deal around. Maybe I'll wait a few months and see the LCDs go down in price. A new PC is tempting.

Edit: Also, I do NOT want one of these ricer rigs with the see-through cases and whatnot. I want the simple, plain-old case.

 

[imported_Bleh]

Originally posted by: ducci
I'm too lazy and impatient to build my own. I don't overclock and I don't mod anything. If you know somewhere I can buy a decent, upgradable system working out of the box for cheaper than Dell, I'd like to hear it.

Edit: Plus, I have a $100 Dell GC, so that's partial motivation.

Building a computer doesn't take that long, once you get the parts it takes an hour or two to put the stuff together and make it look nice (cable management, etc) and then a few hours on operating system install and driver install. You can do it all in less than one day.

 

[oznerol]

Originally posted by: Bleh

Originally posted by: ducci
I'm too lazy and impatient to build my own. I don't overclock and I don't mod anything. If you know somewhere I can buy a decent, upgradable system working out of the box for cheaper than Dell, I'd like to hear it.

Edit: Plus, I have a $100 Dell GC, so that's partial motivation.

Building a computer doesn't take that long, once you get the parts it takes an hour or two to put the stuff together and make it look nice (cable management, etc) and then a few hours on operating system install and driver install. You can do it all in less than one day.

I've built my share of PC's, I know the process, I'm just tired of it. I haven't kept up with what mobo's and cpu's are good and I don't really have the time, or energy to get too much into it.

I just want to order one thing and wait for it to come in the mail - I don't want to have to track a bunch of individual packages or get pissed when I see a part I just got be 40 bucks cheaper the next week.

 

[TwYsTeD]

Keep in mind the native res on the Dell 2405 is 1920x1200. 6800gt didnt really cut it for me when i got my 2405.

 

[Stas]

'Keep in mind the native res on the Dell 2405 is 1920x1200. 6800gt didnt really cut it for me when i got my 2405."
Good point. With 9600 you will barely be able to play Q3 let alone HL2.

 

[oznerol]

I've decided to... sigh... build my own yet again. Looking at the prices and the few things I really need, I figure I can build a new system for ~400, and still get a 2005fpw. I want to get everything from one vendor, though, and it's a toss-up between newegg and zipzoomfly. Here's the components I've decided on:

AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Processor Socket 939
Corsair VS1GBKIT400 1GB
MSI K8N NEO4-F nForce4 Athlon 64 Skt939

Now I just need a case. I intend to take all the scrapped parts from my current rig and put them in there - the 3 HDs, sound card, and DVD-RW. Plus I have a spare 400W antec PSU from an older rig.

Prices are:
$338 shipped incl. tax from Newegg
$316 shipped incl. tax from Zipzoomfly

Newegg also has some cases I'd like, though I don't want to spend too much on them. Where should I go from here?

Edit: I also plan to get a new video card next time I see a deal on a 6800 or 6800gt. Onboard video will be sufficient for the time being.

 

[Cheezeit]

buy 800 dollars worth of pudding or

 

[Sforsyth]

Originally posted by: ducci
I'm too lazy and impatient to build my own. I don't overclock and I don't mod anything. If you know somewhere I can buy a decent, upgradable system working out of the box for cheaper than Dell, I'd like to hear it.

Edit: Plus, I have a $100 Dell GC, so that's partial motivation.

most shops only charge you like $20 to build your system ! and thats here in Canada to eh !