Which system to buy? Choice of (2) . . .

[dgsg]

I know, "you can build it cheaper" and "you can get it somewhere else cheaper". Knowing that, which of these (2) builds look the best? The PC I am replacing is (6) years old and I will want to keep this one at least as long. Use is home office, digital photo work and light gaming. Main differences I see is ATX vs BTX case, dumbed down MB, power supply wattage and $260.55usd. Any actual cooling/noise differences between BTX & ATX cases?

DELL XPS 710 $2158.00usd

Intel® Core?2 Duo Processor E6400 (2MB L2 Cache,2.13GHz,1066 FSB)
Motherboard NVIDIA nForce® 590 SLI-?D? (some features missing)
Operating System Genuine Windows® XP Professional
Memory 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs
Keyboard Dell USB Keyboard
Video Card 256MB nVidia GeForce 7900 GS
Hard Drive 250GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache?
2nd Hard Drive 250GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache?
Floppy Drive 3.5 in Floppy Drive
Optical Drive Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability
Sound Card Sound Blaster® X-Fi? XtremeMusic (D) Sound Card
SYSTEM DETAILS 2.5MM aluminum thickness Chassis with front & back customizable LEDs
SYSTEM DETAILS 7-slot, BTX design motherboard
SYSTEM DETAILS 750-watt Power Supply
SYSTEM DETAILS Tower Six-heat pipe, Copper base Heat Sink with aluminum fans
SYSTEM DETAILS Two 120mm x 38mm front fans
Upgrade to Windows Vista Business from XP Professional




FALCON ?TALON? $ 2,418.55usd

Case Silverstone TJ-04 - Black Anodized
Power Supply Silverstone 600Watt Strider - Modular
Mother Board nVidia nForce 680I - SLI
Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 2.13GHz
Zalman CNPS7000B-ALCU LED
Memory 2GB Corsair TwinX 6400C4
Video Card nVidia GeForce 7600 GT 256MB
Floppy Drive Sony 3.5in. Floppy-Black
Hard Drive Western Digital 250GB 16MB Cache SATA 2
2nd Hard Drive Western Digital 250GB 16MB Cache SATA 2
Optical Drive Lite-On 18X Dual Layer DVD+-RW
Sound Card Creative Labs X-Fi
Operating System Windows XP Pro - 32 Bit
Microsoft Keyboard 500 Black

 

[jpeyton]

You will need slightly less anal lube if you buy the Dell, so that's my choice.

 

[orion23]

Neither! (Unless you only care about the case)

NO SLI, NO XFI, But I would trade that for a sweet 24" LCD! (you can buy the XFI later on)

I just configured a much better machine through the business section for $2,348

Vista Ultimate
Dimension 9200
E6600 C2D
24" LCD
2 X 250GB HD
Dual DVD Drives (1 Burner)
Same 7900GS 256MB VGA

Dimension 9200 Qty 1
Intel® Core?2 Duo Processor E6600 (4MB L2 Cache,2.4GHz,1066 FSB), Genuine Windows Vista? Ultimate Unit Price $2,448.00
Save $100 on select Dimension 9200 Desktops through Dell Small Business.
Special offer View Details
- $100.00

Catalog Number: 4 BDCWYFZ
Module Description Show Details
Processor Intel® Core?2 Duo Processor E6600 (4MB L2 Cache,2.4GHz,1066 FSB)
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista? Ultimate
Memory 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs
Keyboard Dell USB Keyboard
Monitor 24 inch UltraSharp? 2407FPW Widescreen Digital Flat Panel
Video Cards 256MB nVidia GeForce 7900 GS
Hard Drive 500GB Performance RAID 0 (2 x 250GB SATA 3Gb/s 7200 RPM HDDs)
Floppy Drive and Media Reader No Floppy Drive Included
Mouse Dell® 2-button USB mouse
Modem No Modem
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 7.0
CD or DVD Drive Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/ dbl layer write capable
Sound Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
Speakers No speakers (Speakers are required to hear audio from your system)
Office Productivity Software (Pre-Installed) Microsoft Works 8. DOES NOT INCLUDE MS WORD
Security Software McAfee Security Center 30-day trial
Digitial Music No Digital Music Software Requested
Digital Photography Corel Snapfire Basic - Organize and Edit your photos
Warranty & Service 1 Year On-site Economy Plan
DIAL-UP INTERNET ACCESS 6 Months of America Online Membership Included
Miscellaneous Dimension 9200
Purchase Intent Purchase is not intended for resale.
Labels Windows Vista? Premium

 

[dgsg]

Originally posted by: jpeyton
You will need slightly less anal lube if you buy the Dell, so that's my choice.

Skipped the first sentence of my post did we all knowing one? What do you want to be when you grow up? Thanks for playing and remember, disposable income is a good thing.

 

[Trashman]

orion23, yeah i agree, that is a much better setup for the price.
Your spending less than 200.00 more but your gettin better CPU, Vista Ultimate and your gettin a beautiful 24" LCD.
:thumbsup:

 

[orion23]

This one is through the HOME side...

Same as above, but with Vista Home Premium (Vs Ultimate) and 2 X 320GB HDs (Vs 2 X 250GB HDs)

XPS 410 Qty 1
Intel® Core?2 Duo Processor E6600 (4MB L2 Cache,2.4GHz,1066 FSB), Genuine Windows Vista? Home Premium Unit Price $2,249.00
No Interest Until 2008 on new XPS Systems when using Dell Preferred Acct
Limited Time Offer! View Details


Catalog Number: 29 DXCWNF1
Module Description Show Details
XPS 410 Intel® Core?2 Duo Processor E6600 (4MB L2 Cache,2.4GHz,1066 FSB)
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista? Home Premium
Memory 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs
Keyboard Dell USB Keyboard
Monitor 24 inch UltraSharp? 2407FPW Widescreen Digital Flat Panel
Video Card 256MB nVidia GeForce 7900 GS
Hard Drive 640GB Performance RAID 0 (2 x 320GB SATA 3Gb/s 7200 RPM HDDs)
Floppy Drive and Media Reader No Floppy Drive Included
Mouse Dell Optical USB Mouse
Modem 56K PCI Data Fax Modem
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 7.0
CD or DVD Drive Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/ dbl layer write capable
Sound Cards Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
Speakers No speakers (Speakers are required to hear audio from your system)
Office Software (not included in Windows XP) Microsoft Works 8. DOES NOT INCLUDE MS WORD
Security Software McAfee SecurityCenter with anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall, 15-months
Warranty and Service 1Yr Ltd Warranty and At-Home Service
Internet Access Service 6 Months of America Online Membership Included
Dell Digital Entertainment Trial pack- Basic and trial products from Corel and Yahoo
Labels Windows Vista? Premium

 

[jpeyton]

Originally posted by: dgsg

Originally posted by: jpeyton
You will need slightly less anal lube if you buy the Dell, so that's my choice.

Skipped the first sentence of my post did we all knowing one? What do you want to be when you grow up? Thanks for playing and remember, disposable income is a good thing.

If any of the other replies in this thread are a clue, I'm not the only guy thinking you're taking it up the rear.

An E6400, 2GB RAM, 500GB HD and a 7900GS run around ~$1200-$1400 from OEMs like Dell. How you managed to balloon that to almost $2200 is beyond me.

 

[dgsg]

Originally posted by: orion23
Neither! (Unless you only care about the case)

NO SLI, NO XFI, But I would trade that for a sweet 24" LCD! (you can buy the XFI later on)

I just configured a much better machine through the business section for $2,348

Vista Ultimate
Dimension 9200
E6600 C2D
24" LCD
2 X 250GB HD
Dual DVD Drives (1 Burner)
Same 7900GS 256MB VGA

Dimension 9200 Qty 1
Intel® Core?2 Duo Processor E6600 (4MB L2 Cache,2.4GHz,1066 FSB), Genuine Windows Vista? Ultimate Unit Price $2,448.00
Save $100 on select Dimension 9200 Desktops through Dell Small Business.
Special offer View Details
- $100.00

Catalog Number: 4 BDCWYFZ
Module Description Show Details
Processor Intel® Core?2 Duo Processor E6600 (4MB L2 Cache,2.4GHz,1066 FSB)
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista? Ultimate
Memory 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs
Keyboard Dell USB Keyboard
Monitor 24 inch UltraSharp? 2407FPW Widescreen Digital Flat Panel
Video Cards 256MB nVidia GeForce 7900 GS
Hard Drive 500GB Performance RAID 0 (2 x 250GB SATA 3Gb/s 7200 RPM HDDs)
Floppy Drive and Media Reader No Floppy Drive Included
Mouse Dell® 2-button USB mouse
Modem No Modem
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 7.0
CD or DVD Drive Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW w/ dbl layer write capable
Sound Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
Speakers No speakers (Speakers are required to hear audio from your system)
Office Productivity Software (Pre-Installed) Microsoft Works 8. DOES NOT INCLUDE MS WORD
Security Software McAfee Security Center 30-day trial
Digitial Music No Digital Music Software Requested
Digital Photography Corel Snapfire Basic - Organize and Edit your photos
Warranty & Service 1 Year On-site Economy Plan
DIAL-UP INTERNET ACCESS 6 Months of America Online Membership Included
Miscellaneous Dimension 9200
Purchase Intent Purchase is not intended for resale.
Labels Windows Vista? Premium

This post was helpful. Thanx.

 

[dgsg]

Looking at Orion23's post on the Dell 8200 made look at the business side of Dell's site. Can someone tell me the differences between the Dimension and Precision Work Station lines. Specificaly looking at the Dinension 8200 and Precision 390.

 

[mithrandir2001]

If you are going to spend $2200 you'd be foolish to get an E6400. You can't overclock Dells so why spend all that money for just very good performance instead of awesome performance?

I think you should stop looking at the XPS 710 and especially the Precision 390. Get past the case, chassis and "shine". Precisions aren't necessarily good for gaming: they are intended for business/engineering work rather than home entertainment/gaming. It may make you feel good by getting something less common and special but these model lines are just an inefficient use of cash.

Go for an XPS 410 or 9200 (I chose the XPS 410 myself). Opt for the E6600 at least. You can really load the thing up to hit $2200.

 

[orion23]

Precision desktops are built for businesses and the pars are probably better to insure reliability.

The 9200 is a very good choice. Bigger case and ready to take some upgrades.

It's a shame that you don't want to even consider building one yourself.

I personally wouldn't pay that much for a PC. Besides, anything Core 2 Duo was meant to be overclocked (Can't do that with Dell)

Or @ the very least, I would not upgrade the VGA from Dell, instead I would buy a used 8800GTS from ebay for about $300 - $350 that would kick ass


Anyway, my second post shows you a Dell XPS (Gaming) machine through the Home side (The XPS 410 is the same as the 9200) with very similar specifications. You really don't need Vista Ultimate or the 7900gs.

Another thing, if you really want to order such system, Call Dell yourself, and tell the sales person that you want a better price, or a bonus (or you can simply order online)

Sales people will usually give you a nice break or bonus when spending that much

(ask for the gaming keyboard or something else that you might want)

Buy the VGA (8800GTS) somewhere else. I'm sure you can install that yourself!

 

[dgsg]

Originally posted by: orion23
Precision desktops are built for businesses and the pars are probably better to insure reliability.

The 9200 is a very good choice. Bigger case and ready to take some upgrades.

It's a shame that you don't want to even consider building one yourself.

I personally wouldn't pay that much for a PC. Besides, anything Core 2 Duo was meant to be overclocked (Can't do that with Dell)

Or @ the very least, I would not upgrade the VGA from Dell, instead I would buy a used 8800GTS from ebay for about $300 - $350 that would kick ass


Anyway, my second post shows you a Dell XPS (Gaming) machine through the Home side (The XPS 410 is the same as the 9200) with very similar specifications. You really don't need Vista Ultimate or the 7900gs.

Another thing, if you really want to order such system, Call Dell yourself, and tell the sales person that you want a better price, or a bonus (or you can simply order online)

Sales people will usually give you a nice break or bonus when spending that much

(ask for the gaming keyboard or something else that you might want)

Buy the VGA (8800GTS) somewhere else. I'm sure you can install that yourself!

I supervise the building of aircraft parts (skunk works), commercial aircraft parts and other extreme tolerance machined parts. I have often thought it would be nice to build my own system, but do not have the motivation to do so as it is easier to spend the $$$. I don't want the PC builder making the parts for the plane I fly on and visa versa! The (6) year old machine I now have is a Dimension 8200 in which I have replaced everything except the MB and power supply. Will never do over clocking and the better parts (?) and standard (3) year warranty of the Precision line appeals to my zero defect mind set. Will the 375 watt power supply of a Dimension 9200 or Precision 390 support (2) HDs, (1) optical drive and a 8800GTS video card, to be purchased after market of course? Any input as to how quiet the Dimension/Precision systems are? My breaks with Dell is calling for a RMA# about a week after receiving the system and wanting to return it for some reason. Usually have gotten a $100.00-$150.00 credit for not returning the system.
Thanx again for the help.

 

[orion23]

The machines are very quiet.

I purchased (sold later) a dimension 9200 (E6600) and it was very quiet.

As far as I know, Dell's power supplies are very good (under rated) and the 9200 should be able to handle an 8800GTS (see this guy's signature, he is running an XPS 410 http://www.notebookforums.com/showthrea...6183172c25f8d9184114ed&t=182183&page=2 )

From Dell's Forums

http://www.dellcommunity.com/supportfor...message.id=44114&query.id=94794#M44114

Dell 9200

http://www.dellcommunity.com/supportfor...ssage.id=157330&query.id=94850#M157330

 

[mithrandir2001]

Yes, Dell's are well known for their acoustic properties.

It pains me in some ways to have a E6300 stuck at 1.80 GHz in my non-OC'able Dell but the silver lining is that even if I run both cores at 100% for an extended period of time, my machine stays relatively quiet. There's a light wooshing of the fans but the XPS 410 under full load is still quieter than my home-built 1.4GHz Celeron Tualatin at idle.

 

[Boyo]

Just go with the Falcon. At least you can overclock it.