Dude, you bought a Dell?

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: Thin Lizzy

Originally posted by: drpootums

Originally posted by: Thin Lizzy

Originally posted by: SPD2171
Yep I picked up a nice 2x512mb ram deal so I will have plenty...

You're right a reinstall won't take 3 days, I was exagerrating the amount of crap I anticipate being on there..loL! It should be here Friday morning, so I'm excited to get back to HL2...


And the case looks pretty damn neat, will see how functional the clamshell is!

Cool! I still havent played Halo 2 yet. Waiting for a Mac version to come out.

BTW, the Dell XPS is the one with the blue case and the silver cover thingie right? Those are nice looking!

HL2=half life 2, not halo 2...

Lol! Sorry. I am not very familiar with games, since I am not much of a gamer.

Yeah, but you're a Mac user. You've got an excuse. :evil:

OP - That's an awesome deal based solely on the fact that you have a PCIe X800XT PE in the system. Those command a hefty pricetag on eBay. :Q

- M4H

 

[imported_Lucifer]

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire

Originally posted by: Thin Lizzy

Originally posted by: drpootums

Originally posted by: Thin Lizzy

Originally posted by: SPD2171
Yep I picked up a nice 2x512mb ram deal so I will have plenty...

You're right a reinstall won't take 3 days, I was exagerrating the amount of crap I anticipate being on there..loL! It should be here Friday morning, so I'm excited to get back to HL2...


And the case looks pretty damn neat, will see how functional the clamshell is!

Cool! I still havent played Halo 2 yet. Waiting for a Mac version to come out.

BTW, the Dell XPS is the one with the blue case and the silver cover thingie right? Those are nice looking!

HL2=half life 2, not halo 2...

Lol! Sorry. I am not very familiar with games, since I am not much of a gamer.

Yeah, but you're a Mac user. You've got an excuse. :evil:

OP - That's an awesome deal based solely on the fact that you have a PCIe X800XT PE in the system. Those command a hefty pricetag on eBay. :Q

- M4H

 

[imported_Salvatore]

Originally posted by: SPD2171
Well, even the best laid plans fall to the wayside sometimes..lol.

After collecting most of my parts for a new build, I stumbled upon a deal I couldn't pass up at the Dell Outlet. I know, I know... but the parts I had bought cost more than this system with a 2 year warranty, and instead of a 6600GT, I now have a X800XT PE... so as far as performance, I think I made out alright.

Seriously though, for 1179 shipped I think I got a bargain. I'm still not sure DellOutlet didn't have a pricing error on this particular system, as I can't find another one similar to sell on Ebay for close to the same $$$.

Dell Dimension XPS Gen 3

Pentium 4 Processor 560 with HT Technology (3.60GHz, 800 FSB)
512mb PC2-4200 DDR2 533mhz ram
120GB 7200rpm 8mb cache s-ata hard drive
48X CD RW Drive
16x DVD +/- RW w/dbl layer write capability
256MB PCI Express x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) ATI Radeon X800 XT PE
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS (D) Sound Card
Logitech Wireless Keyboard and Optical Mouse Desktop Combo
Windows XP Pro

So no overclocking for awhile (have to replace mobo and case), and I will have to spend 3 days removing crap software I don't want off it...lol. All in all though, I will be gaming by Friday with a pretty solid machine for my 1200 bucks!

Thanks for listening, blast away...

Dude I got a Dell?

Very nicely donely.

 

[Edward Lee]

Originally posted by: SPD2171
EdwardLee.. hahah sorry about the bragging - just real happy to have found a solid system I don't have to put together this weekend.heheh

hahaha That's great..... now can I get your DVD burner?

:frown:

 

[Thegonagle]

Damn! That sounds good to me. Up the RAM to a GB, and you're set (for as long as any average AT'er can stand to leave well enough alone, that is ).

 

[SPD2171]

EdwardLee, my PC is going to take a restraining order out against you to protect it's DVD burner from your obsession...

Come within 100 feet and you're gettin cuffed and stuffed! hehehe

Hey Edward, I could send you an extra Audigy II ZS I have here...but it'll cost ya! hehe

 

[NiKeFiDO]

dunno if anyone mentioned this, but if you format and reinstall windows from the Dell CD, most of that crap software will not reinstall because Dell plops that stuff on those 847529834752098 extra CD's they give you.

 

[Mogh]

Originally posted by: deviant03

Originally posted by: Childs
Dunno...Dell is such a generic name brand tho, its like having a GE TV. yeah it works, but cmon.

I would compare them more to Sony than GE. Higher end stuff is better than the lower end. For the money performance is pretty good but most importantly their products are rock solid stable. Turn it on and youll know itll work. If youve fiddled around with enough hardware as most of you here probably have sometimes you just dont want to deal with the headaches and just want the damn thing to work.

Exactly my sentiments. I have always built all my systems for home and business (all intel CPU, intel chipsets, ATI GPU's). I rarely ran into an issue with fiddling and if I did it was quickly resolved. I was also always saving money in by building rather than buying a Dell. However in my last few building purchases Dell by far beat me out in price. What is worse is I tried AMD for the first time (in sig) and all I have been doing for the last month is fiddling.

This has been my worst building experience ever and I now have a very loud, hot system, that I over paid for and wasted countless hours in troubleshooting to get the stability I need. Dude, I think I will be buying a Dell next time rather than waste anymore of my time.

 

[SPD2171]

nikeFido,
Thanks alot for that tip - I will be doing just that then, as it's much cleaner than uninstalling it all.

Should be here this afternoon..damn UPS man is probably at Arby's scarfing down Big Montanas while I sit here waiting!

 

[DJFury]

Nice system, I got a similar 8400 for around the same. What's the difference between the XPS Gen 3 and Gen 4?

 

[Childs]

Originally posted by: Mogh
Exactly my sentiments. I have always built all my systems for home and business (all intel CPU, intel chipsets, ATI GPU's). I rarely ran into an issue with fiddling and if I did it was quickly resolved. I was also always saving money in by building rather than buying a Dell. However in my last few building purchases Dell by far beat me out in price. What is worse is I tried AMD for the first time (in sig) and all I have been doing for the last month is fiddling.

This has been my worst building experience ever and I now have a very loud, hot system, that I over paid for and wasted countless hours in troubleshooting to get the stability I need. Dude, I think I will be buying a Dell next time rather than waste anymore of my time.

I have 3 systems similar to what's in your sig and they have been running 24/7 for about 6 months. The only time they are off is when I put something in new in them. No problems what so ever, so I do not believe Dell's mass produced assembly process is an advantage over building a PC yourself.

I actually did buy a Dell once, the SC400. It was something like $350AR for a P4 2.8c. I had two more ordered for linux compatibility testing. Yeah it worked fine, but it was nothing special. Again, Dell computers are nothing fancy, nothing special, just like having a GE TV versus a Sony. If I were going to buy a souped up assembled gaming PC, I would not buy one from Dell, just like I would not likely buy a plasma TV from GE. Now you could debate as to whether or not Dell = GE in the analogy, but IMHO Dells are disposable computers, and priced accordingly. Actually, I don't think I would buy a PC from anyone, as all parts are the same, so I might as well pick the ones I want. I guess you can replace Dell with *.

Except Apple, as there are no alternatives.

 

[SPD2171]

Anyhow, back to the positive talk about my new computer... lol.

Where is the UPS man!

 

[doublejbass]

Originally posted by: SPD2171
Yep I found some Crucial Ballistix 3-3-3-10 DDR2 PC-4200 for 198 shipped for the 1GB dual kit, so I should be all set on ram by monday!

Didn't you read Zebo's RAM thread? You don't want to tank your deal on that.


All in all, I think the analogy about Dells is WAY off. The high-end Dimensions, 8400 and XPS, are extremely well-constructed, they run cool and definitely QUIET. You should see the stable 6800nu overclock I got with the 8400 right out of the box. The look is actually pretty hot, and the components are not low-grade.

To me, the downfall comes with the P4 Prescotts. We all know that they have lots of advantages, but gaming is not one of them. For people who prioritize gaming, it's not financially sound to get anything but an A64, and here is where Dell's contract with Intel is what holds them back. If what you use a computer for plays to the strengths of the P4, then by all means.

The idea that these are not quality, well-built PCs capable of tremendous performance is just foolish. I'm a DIYer to the end, but that doesn't mean that Childs argument had any weight whatsoever.

 

[SPD2171]

Yes I did read Zebos ram thread. But remember, this is a P4 based system which uses different memory controllers than the A64. Also, finding even "Value Ram" DDR2 in PC2-4200 for 200 shipped is a reasonable price, so finding their "super" ram at the same price is what made it a good deal. If the next PC i get requires faster DDR2, I am ready for it - and it didn't cost me anymore to get it.

My system only came with 512mb, so I needed to add 512 anyhow. Adding 512 from dell would be 119 dollars, and it's the "slower" of the ddr2s. This way, I install the Crucial, sell the stock ram on ebay, and it costs me 90 dollars to go from 512 to 1gig - at the same time improving the speed/timings of the ram for the future.

Kind of equivelant to getting top notch PC3200 for the same price as value ram, which is about 140. If you look at the top pc3200, you are looking at over 225bucks for a gig. So in that context, I got a decent deal for the ram my system requires.

UPS is killing me here.. every other time they deliver by 11am. Today, its 1600 and still no man in brown.

 

[doublejbass]

Dammit, you're right. Brainfry! The question is, where'd you find it?

 

[SPD2171]

The DDR2? I posted a hot deal in that forum - www.excaliberpc.com was having insane deals on their DDR2, it appears in some effort to reduce/clear all inventory of DDR2. Not sure what they have showing now, but worth taking a look!

Several have speculated in my hot deal thread that they are going out of business... so make sure you get something with a good manufacturer warranty if you think it may be true. They were exceptionally fast shipping and pleasant to deal with, so I have no reason to do anything but recommend them wholeheartedly!

 

[JackBurton]

AWESOME deal man! And any retard that says it's not, well, he's retarded. The parts in your machine are TOP notch, no doubt about it. There's nothing wrong with getting that Dell. Great machine.

 

[SPD2171]

Man this thing is fast as heck. I'm sure it's the Video Card mostly, but what a huge difference in gameplay for me at 16x1200...

I am happy as a clam... and it started right up, only took an hour to unload all the crap..hehe

Thanks guys!