Buying through Dell... maybe

[Vogel515]

Alright, I've been reading and re-reading posts for the last few months. I plan on buying a new pc soon. My current set up is a bit dated.

Dell 8200, p4 2.4ghz, ti4200, 512rd-ram.. yea
But I do however have a nice dell 1905f LCD monitor...and I still use the 17" flatscreen that came with the dell

I'm looking for something that will last as long as my previous computer, which still gets most of what I want done, but its starting to slow down and its time to put that rig to rest.

I will be using this computer for:
- photoediting, web design, Sql/Access
- games I play are even more dated than my computer... I still play Myth:TFL
- watching movies and hopefully at some point recording / watching tv.

I plan on purchasing something in the next 35 days, I realize prices will change. If I build something it won't be until after the price drop. So...

Do I...

A) Configure a dell for approximately $1100, with 1gb of ram (+130 for 2gb) and then spend $130 to add an additional 2gb of ram, no graphics card (+200 for a 7800gs) and buy a better graphics card with that $200.

Or..

B) Build a system from scratch? and let you guys review it and tell me what you think or where I could trim costs to get this around $1300 but keeping it a quality machine.

119.99 Microsoft Windows Vista 32-Bit Home Premium - OEM
124.99 Microsoft Office Standard

249.99 UltraSharp 1907FP (definitely could save here and will probably hold off, but without the monitor I'd like to get it even cheaper)

49.99 COOLER MASTER Centurion 534 - Retail
50.99 FSP Group AX450-PN, 450W Power Supply ? Retail

79.99 GIGABYTE GA-945P-S3 - Retail
181 E6300 - Retail (I will wait for the price drop)

199.99 Chaintech GeForce 7900GS - Retail (this is probably too much, but i want something that can support 2x 19 monitors)
129.99 Kingston 2GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) - Retail

79.99 Western Digital 250GB SATA - OEM

32.49 LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner - Retail
53.99 Logitech MX3000 mouse/keyboard - Retail
33.99 Logitech X-230 32 watts RMS 2.1 Black Speaker System - OEM
67.99 Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150 MCE 1042 Tuner Card - Retail (is this necessary? I might hold off on this)

~1600 after shipping




Thank you in advance for any help.

 

[bluemax]

Tough call... I wouldn't go for Vista right now, but if you insist on it, that's a big plus for a prebuilt PC like Dell.

Keep your eyes on the deals on the mid-range machines, the E520 (Intel) and E521 (AMD) which often has some VERY aggressive pricing! This week, Dell Canada has an AMD dual-core machine with 2GB RAM, 20-inch LCD, etc. for a very nice price under 1,000 CDN. USA will get even better deals without fail (they always do.) Keep your eyes open in Hot Deals for "Dell" (if the search feature will work for you at all... it's kinda' broken.)

As seen here: Dell USA E521

Wow... US price = CDN price! That doesn't happen often!

Just upgrade the 20" to a 22" LCD for under $50 and you've got a pretty darned impressive rig for barely $1000!

 

[Vogel515]

Bluemax, thanks for the advice. I think you are right.

For me would there be a noticable difference in the AMD dual core vs a Core2Duo?

Edit: Oh yea, is it worth upgrading the dell ram? or should I just take the $150 that it would cost me to upgrade from 1gb to 2gb, and get 2gb more?

 

[bluemax]

Unless you get a good deal on a machine with 2GB from the start (possibly a "free upgrade" thing) I'd get the RAM cheaper elsewhere. Same for the video card.

Bear in mind that the video card MUST be of single-slot design, and the power supply won't be able to handle a super-high-power video card either.

 

[Vogel515]

Sounds good and thank you for the advice.