Buying first Dell... i7 vs. Q9550

[TexRanger]

Haven't been here since my last build 4 or 5 years ago...time to upgrade and I'm seriously considering a Dell (or even an HP) for the first time ever.

My company gets a discount with Dell, so I decided to configure a rig and a Studio XPS system is very appealing:

Core i7-920 (8mb L2, 2.66GHz)
6 GB DDR3 at 1066 MHz
512 MB ATI HD4850
750 GB HDD SATA 3.0 Gb/s, 16mb Cache
1 DVD burner
HVR1250 TV Tuner
2408FPW Monitor
Vista 64 Premium

This adds up to about $1500 for me complete. I initially configured for a Q9550-based system with DDR3 (only option) but the price ended up being quite a bit more due to whatever their logic is with their current bundle/promotion.

I'll grab a similar list of ingredients from one of the many threads on here I've already read and get a rough idea of costs for a similar build...but I bet it will be substantially higher once I purchase Vista and the monitor.

Useage will be general home/office stuff, fairly serious flight simulator use, typical digital photo work, and some OTA-TV viewing/capture for the first time. There might be a need in the not-too-distant future for some finite element modeling work as well as some CAD work. I bought a PS3 earlier this year and doubt I'll be doing any/much PC gaming in the future...mainly due to time but I found I like sitting on the couch with a 65" DLP across the room.

I also looked at some HP rigs but they're going to run a few hundred more, and I'm not sure if the HP 24" LCD is as good as the Dell 2408FPW. I have had a 2001FPW for years and love it. Sam's has a fairly attractive Q6600 system for $1400, but it sounds like that processor is EOL now and upgrades might not be possible down the road?

My main questions/concerns are:
* can I get anywhere close with a build (or other vendor) for the price
* will the Dell i7 processor/mobo/RAM setup offer an upgrade path that might last longer than a c2q processor combo?
* should I just spec a build for a c2q rig and will it be similar budget?

I enjoyed the previous spec & building, but do not have the time anymore to go that route...

Thanks in advance!

 

[Qbah]

That rig for 1,5k is an excellent deal! I'd snag it in a heartbeat. At least in the EU I would

 

[CurseTheSky]

Is that monitor a 2408WFP, or some newish TN-panel monitor with a similar name?

If it's the WFP, I paid almost $600 for mine. For $1,500 total, the sounds way too good to be true.

 

[Dadofamunky]

With the monitor!?!?! That's awesome. I'm a big Dell fan.

The FPW is a TN panel I believe but Dell's fit and finish beat almost anyone out there. Still a smokin' deal. When you break that puppy out of the box and turn it on you'll be cackling with glee.

 

[TexRanger]

My mistake above...it is with the Ultrasharp 2408WFP...I mixed up the letters. It is a $330 upgrade over their "standard" Consumer S2409W model.

I've done some more reading since my post, and it sure looks like a winner. I see why it doesn't make a lot of sense to upgrade from a c2q or c2d to the i7 since you basically start over, but for buying a complete system it looks like the way to go for me.

 

[Qbah]

Holy Jesus, that 2408WFP is the one with a PVA panel! They're for 1k$ alone at my place They're like 700$-ish in the US I recon. Seriously, that is one hot deal!

 

[TexRanger]

OK, it looks like I'll buy it! What do y'all think of the HVR1250 tuner card? That is the only option they offer...should I get it or find something different/better later? 8GB of RAM is $100 more, but I think 6 should hold me for quite a while.

 

[CurseTheSky]

The Ultrasharp 2408WFP isn't without it's own quirks (Google it), but it's done very well for me. I didn't NEED a S-PVA panel, but I defiantely appreciate the color accuracy, viewing angles, build quality (aside from the firmware-related quirks) and inputs. Overall it's a very good monitor.

With a standard TN panel monitor, it would be a so-so deal. With the monitor, it's an awesome deal.

 

[crimson117]

Grab that deal.

You could not touch that price with a custom build if you kept Core i7.

However, you could get similar performance for much less money with a Core 2 Quad build.

 

[TexRanger]

I went ahead and ordered it, minus the TV card. I'll do some more research on those and add it later since it was just a whim for me at this point. Total cost is $1553 after tax & free shipping. I think I'll be happy! Thanks all for the opinions.

 

[VirtualLarry]

That's not a bad deal. I'm curious what motherboard Dell is using for those builds, and whether or not it has overclocking features. (With a BIOS flash, perhaps?)

 

[tim924]

Overclocking a Dell system is nothing but hassle,consider yourself satisfied with a stock system before making that purchase.

 

[palladium]

I think Dell's Core i7 only has 3 memory slots ( at least the model that is sold in NZ), ie it can only support 6GB RAM max. While it shouldn't be a problem for most people, it would be a big hassle if you need more than 6GB RAM in the near future ( espeacially if you're doing CAD work).

 

[TexRanger]

This machine had options for 8 and 12 GB of RAM...do you think that would mean a different mobo then? If so, I'll adjust the order up to 8 if it means there will be a 4th slot. (+$100)

I've not been much of an overclocker in the past, so I'm not too concerned about the Dell's ability to do so.

 

[sgrinavi]

How would you get DDR3 with 8 GB? I thought you had to work in sets of 3

 

[TexRanger]

The options are:

6GB Tri-Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs
8GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs
12GB Tri-Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs

I presume that means 3 x 2 GB, 2 x 4 GB, or 3 x 4 GB? I guess this mobo will run with one slot empty. I'm thinking it might be wiser to add $100 to go to 8 GB and that would allow me to upgrade later without having to replace any RAM, true?

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: sgrinavi
How would you get DDR3 with 8 GB? I thought you had to work in sets of 3

1X 4GB + 2X 2GB? IDK, haven't built with DDR3 yet, does it require all modules to match? With DDR2 / DDR1, you can mix, but pay some performance penalty, depending on configuration.

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: TexRanger
The options are:

6GB Tri-Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs
8GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs
12GB Tri-Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs

I presume that means 3 x 2 GB, 2 x 4 GB, or 3 x 4 GB? I guess this mobo will run with one slot empty. I'm thinking it might be wiser to add $100 to go to 8 GB and that would allow me to upgrade later without having to replace any RAM, true?

Sounds right, if they're using two 4GB DDR3 sticks, you'd have an open slot for a third :thumbsup:

 

[phexac]

Looks like a good rig. You might want to upgrade the video card if you're going to game at 1920x1200 on that monitor...

 

[Anosh]

ok.. I'm a little to late, but..

Unless things have changed since I bought a XPS 600 from dell a couple of years ago:
The motherboard is custom and the components are gimped versions of what is available in retail even though they carry the same name and logo.
Both the motherboard and the case has custom holes so you cannot switch anyone of them out later for a retail.
The PSU is custom and and cannot be changed.
The BIOS is locked and doesn't allow any kind of modification.

Now I took a quick look a the pictures of XPS 730x and at least things look different this time around but I swore I'd never buy a dell again.

 

[TexRanger]

Having to deal with Dell customer "service" is enough to drive one to build their own!!!

After a frustrating time on hold a couple times trying to change my RAM, I gave up (1.25 hour total). Went back to check status this afternoon and my order had disappeared completely, so I called again. This time I got right through to a female Indian that spoke very well (opposite of the first time) and she was helpful. We ended up cancelling the mysterious order that she could see but I could not, then she waited while I re-submitted online (with 8 GB RAM) and comped me for next-day shipping. My estimated build date also moved forward by 6 days, so that was a nice benefit too...not sure if she did anything to that or not.

Hopefully all is right now and I'll be enjoying a new machine in a bit over a week.

 

[CurseTheSky]

I'm glad to hear they compensated for the mistake.

I've had both good and bad experiences with Dell's customer support. Some of them are no help at all (or worse, even insulting or combative), while others will go way out of their way to make sure you're happy.

If they could only consistently be the second type, I'd be much more satisfied.

 

[Martimus]

Originally posted by: TexRanger
Having to deal with Dell customer "service" is enough to drive one to build their own!!!

After a frustrating time on hold a couple times trying to change my RAM, I gave up (1.25 hour total). Went back to check status this afternoon and my order had disappeared completely, so I called again. This time I got right through to a female Indian that spoke very well (opposite of the first time) and she was helpful. We ended up cancelling the mysterious order that she could see but I could not, then she waited while I re-submitted online (with 8 GB RAM) and comped me for next-day shipping. My estimated build date also moved forward by 6 days, so that was a nice benefit too...not sure if she did anything to that or not.

Hopefully all is right now and I'll be enjoying a new machine in a bit over a week.

10 years ago, I would always recomend Dell because of their great customer service. Now I would never recomend a Dell, because they have some of the worst customer service I have ever dealt with. Plus, I have seen more Dell hard drives die than any other problem in the last 3 years when someone asks me for help. They don't seem to have a very high quality with their builds anymore.

 

[Anosh]

As much as Dell has fallen, HP seems to have improved.
Seems like while Dell invested in cut backs and improved margins HP invested in actually improving their products; not cost reducing them.