InflatableBuddha
Diamond Member
- Jul 5, 2007
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Originally posted by: dclive
Originally posted by: InflatableBuddha
Originally posted by: SerpentRoyal
Only problem is one cannot overclock a DELL. At that speed, the CPU will be the bottleneck for a serious gamer. I would never touch a cheap DELL if I was going to work with GPU-intensive applications. The garbage case cannot provide adequate ventilation for a modern overclocked CPU and GPU.
In addition, the stock PSU in entry level Dells or other off-the-shelf PCs is inadequate for many add on video cards (see below).
I haven't found that to be the case. If you look at AT's reviews, their GTX systems require under 250W, by and large, and the 8800GTS/GT and the 8600s will require quite a bit less power. I had an 8800GTS/320 in my Acer (300W PSU) for a while - no issues at all, even with 4 HDDs, 4 RAM sticks, 2 tuners, etc., in it too. I think this entire PSU thing is wayyyy overrated.
I agree that most people don't need a 700-800 watt PSU; I was pointing more at the relative inefficiency of those PSUs. Also, you need a little "wriggle room" - you can't have your components taking up 90% of the power that can be delivered by your PSU, especially since its capacity will degrade a bit over time.
SerpentRoyal has a good point. Putting aside overclocking, these higher-end video cards are large. They take up a lot of room in a case that wasn't originally designed to handle them. This will disrupt the airflow inside the case and make the components run hotter than they should, and you can't add case fans to fix this problem.
Originally posted by: dclive
Add an nVidia 8600GT/GTS for $100-ish if you want more graphics horsepower.
Originally posted by: InflatableBuddha
Sorry, but it's hard to recommend this when a Radeon HD 3850 is only $80 more, and will beat the pants off the 8600 series.
There are many threads in General Hardware about gaming PCs on a $600-800 budget. The cost of an OEM Windows license will only add $100 or so to that cost.
Originally posted by: dclive
(re: the card) Erm...that's TWICE as much... sure it's faster!![]()
Yes, and it offers MORE THAN TWICE the performance. So it's a better value.
For a gaming system, many games benefit far more from a better GPU. It's generally a good idea to get a better graphics card and a slightly slower CPU - that will give better results (RTS games might be an exception). Also consider that the GPU will likely become outdated before the CPU - not a great idea to be continually buying lower-mid range cards. Get a GPU that will have a decent usable lifespan.