NEW COMPUTER

If you go Dell, make sure you get an actual video card, not something motherboard-integrated.

Dell makes crap for the most part. Alienware if you can afford it would be my suggestion.

S

Wouldn't he just be paying three times as much for a computer if he bought Alienware?

yeah .. you buy the logo .. Can look around and get the same thing in a offbrand or build for you computer if you know a place or people (or if you build it yourself) ..
If you want you can get kick ass PC cases that look remotely like Aware's or even better .. o.O

I wouldn't buy a Dell for a gaming system either. Alienware is overpriced. I agree with buying your components and building it yourself or find someone that knows how to build it. I've built my last 4 computers...after I bought a Gateway back in 95, I'll never buy like that again. www.newegg.com www.pricewatch.com

Mike just bought a dell, it does ok so far.

I bought my brother a Dell for his birthday last year. Outside of a strange problem with the integrated video blue screening one of the driver dlls, it's been rock solid. Same with the machines in work; WoW doesn't much like integrated video.

Build your own and then get a cool Falcon NW case ^_^

I build my own machines as well. I just built my mom the following for 800 ish

Athlon 64 3200
160 Gb SATA Drive
Geforce 6600gt PCI-e
16X DVD R Dual layer
450W PS
512 MB PC3200 DDR
Windows XP Home SP 2
The onboard sound and networking is fine. Most Mothernoards come with 4 to 6 USB 2.0 ports these days.

If you can follow directions and have the desire I would always say build a machine. I started building in the late 1980's. Its a learning experience but its alot cheaper. For the money you can always get alot more machine. If you interested I can set you upa spreeadsheet of what to buy. Give me a budget. I did this for Addi and Neanix when we were playing eq.

Send me a pm Ill be happy to help.

S

I built this machine about 2 years ago and I have no plan on upgrading anything but the video any time soon.

Athlon 64 3200
1 GB PC3200 DDR
Geforce 5900
16X DVDR (I upgraded this from a 4x)
Antec True Power 420w PS
Onboard sound and and lan
Windows XP Pro
160 Gb SATA Drive

I should get atleast 2 more years out of this. It runs lika champ. I think I spent 750 on the upgrade back then. I also did not have to pay for the XP.

S

well I replaced my wifes motherboard (on her computer) and added all my memory from my computer to hers.

I have a Large Case (all be it old) a power supply several drives and a spare geforce 5600 card collecting dust.

I am thinking about geting a motherboard proccessor combo because those are easiest to build. A new video card for BF2SF and maybe 2 gigs of ram upgradable to 4?

I want something that I can opt out to build onto. But on the other hand I get a pretty cheap discout at dell for federal employess/military.

I usually just upgrade parts as time goes on. Like a part or 2 every year. Ill do a board/processor/memory upgrade in 2 years and a video card in the next 12 months.

S

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1898336,00.asp

The Cyberpower Gamer Ultra 8500 SE ($999 direct, $799 without monitor) is a good-looking, gaming-centric alternative to the less-exciting mainstream desktops typically found at this price point. Although it certainly won't win any frame-rate drag races, we found its performance acceptable on 3D games, and it has much more upgrade potential than comparably priced PCs.

The first thing you'll notice out of the box is the decidedly gamer/street racer–influenced look of the 8500 SE, with its silver and blue outer casing and clear side window. There are three gauges on the front bezel for VU (sound), temperature, and fan speed. Even if they are a bit gimmicky, the gauges add a nice retro touch to the flashy design. Inside the windowed case, you'll notice that this system's cabling is neatly tie-wrapped and routed, with the exception of the power cable going to the door fan, which looks out of place lying across the motherboard.

Okay, so this is a good-looking system, but good looks are meaningless if you get humiliated at a LAN party. We'll tell you right now that you won't get the blazing-fast performance of a top-dollar, pimped-out box, such as the Voodoo Omen a121 or the Falcon Northwest X2 4800-SLI (two of our recent top-end Editors' Choices). But you probably won't get laughed out of the room, either—as long as you throttle down the resolution.

When we tested with Doom 3, we found that setting the resolution at 1,024 by 768 yielded a decent playing experience, resulting in a score of 58 frames per second (fps). Setting the resolution to 1,600 by 1,200 drops the frame rate to 10 to 11 frames per second, which is frustratingly jerky. With Splinter Cell, the results were not as encouraging. We got 17 fps at 1,024 by 768 and 9 fps at 1,600 by 1,200. We used the new HDR (High Dynamic Range) and Shader Model 3.0 settings in Splinter Cell, which turn on special lighting and shading effects for more immersive game play. When we used the older, less strenuous SM 1.1 settings, the 1,024 by 768 score improved to 27 fps. Since Splinter Cell is best played at over 30 fps, this shows that an extra bit of oomph from a higher-powered graphics card might be in order if you are a Sam Fisher fan.

These results lead us to conclude that the included nVidia GeForce 6600 graphics card is acceptable for game playing at lower resolutions, but to see all the eye candy the game designers include you should upgrade to a higher-resolution card. Keep in mind, however, that while the motherboard is SLI-compatible, the GeForce 6600 graphics card isn't: You'll have to upgrade to an nVidia 6600GT, 6800-class, or 7800-class card (ranging in price from $130 to $700), and buy two, to make the most of the SLI capabilities.

Although this may discourage gamers, there is still plenty to like about this system. For example, there are lots of forward-looking features, such as the dual-core Athlon X2 3800+ processor. This processor paid dividends on our multitasking test: While scanning the hard drives for viruses with Norton AntiVirus, the 8500 SE transcoded our Windows Media video file in only 8 minutes 59 seconds, which is comparable to results from much higher-end dual-core systems. This means that regular antivirus hard drive scans will become a minor nuisance rather than the activity-stopping annoyance they were with single-core systems.

Other advantages are the 8500 SE's upgradability and configurability. As we mentioned, this system's MSI nForce4-SLI motherboard lets you upgrade to nVidia SLI dual-graphics cards. Of course, that will cost you over $200, but the option is there. And you can adjust the fan speed: A higher fan speed will cool internals if you're playing games or transcoding video, and a lower fan speed is ideal if you want less noise while doing less strenuous tasks.

The truth is you won't blow away your gaming friends with their $6,000 gaming PCs, but how many people do you know who have $6,000 PCs, anyway? This system offers performance, power, and style at a can't-beat price.

For a comparative look of this system next to similarly priced desktops as well as high-end, high-priced gaming PCs, don't miss our side-by-side comparison table.

Check out the Cyberpower Gamer Ultra 8500 SE's benchmark scores and see how they stack up against the competition.

at

$999 w/ monitor.

Upgrade the Video card and add some memory you should be set. 6600gt or the X800GTO are the best bang for the buck. Both can be had from new egg for 120-140 I would'nt bother with a new monitor unless you really need one.

S

agp or pci ??

http://www.pricewatch.com/prc.aspx?i=37&a=188024

tem - Nvidia
GeForce 6600GT 256mb

Part # VCN-PAL-6600GT-TD21X

Details - PALIT nVidia GeForce FX 6600 GT PCI EXPRESS (PCI-E) Video Card 256MB DDR DVI TV-Out Retail Box

Updated - 12/21/2005 5:58 PM

Price - $188.99
Shipping - FREE UPS GROUND INSURED!!!
Free
Price Plus
Shipping - $188.99


Read more at 3btech.net


Item - Nvidia
6600GT

Part # VCN-PAL-6600GT-TD21A

Details - PALIT nVidia GeForce FX 6600 GT AGP 8X Video Card 256MB DDR DVI TV-Out Retail Box

Updated - 12/21/2005 5:58 PM

Price - $198.99
Shipping - FREE UPS GROUND INSURED!!!
Free
Price Plus
Shipping - $198.99


Read more at 3btech.net

PCI-E > AGP

You have to have a pretty recent motherboard that supports it though.

6600gt $175

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150099


X800GTO $159

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102602

The X800gto outperforms the 6600gt in almost all areas

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2656&p=9

I will probably upgrade to the gto myself but the agp version. Im waiting for the price to come down to the $150's on the AGP.

s

I went to cyberpower and the machine your looking at is not available directly from them. Thats not to say that you cant get it from a reseller who has stock.

This is what I came up with from them


CASE : HOT NEW! Xplorer Mid-Tower Case 420W W/ WINDOW & LCD Temperature Display (Black Case w/Black Face)
CPU : (939-pin) AMD ATHLON64 X2 3800 CPU w/ HyperTransport Technology
MOTHERBOARD : (Sckt939)EVGA nForce4 SLI Chipset SATA RAID Dual PCI-E Mainboard w/GbLAN, USB2.0, &7.1Audio
MEMORY : 2048 MB (512MBx4) PC3200 400MHz Dual Channel DDR MEMORY (Corsair Value Select)
VIDEO CARD : ATI RADEON X800 GTO 256MB 16X PCI EXPRESS VIDEO CARD
HARD DRIVE : 160GB Hard Drive (SATA150 - Hitachi 160GB 7200RPM 8MB Cache --
Optical Drive : (Special Price) LG GWA-4161 16X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (BEIGE COLOR)
SOUND : HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
Onboard Lan
Windows Xp Home SP2
Keyboard
Mouse
Speakers
STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT

Price $1125.00

Honestly you dont need a dual core CPU. You can save $120 Bucks by going with a Athlon 64 3500 single core. Trust me that will be plenty. I added the GTO, a larger hard drive, XP SP2 and the memory. I followed the link off the front page for the 3800 X2 system for $685 and upgraded accordingly.

S

If your wondering why I went with the 6600 gt for my mom over the x800gto. I bought her a 128 mb refurb for $115. The GTO is still new and pricer because of the 258 mb as opposed to the 128 I got her. Plenty for her since she never games.

S

My only addition to the conversation would be if you are going with an SLI motherboard with 2 PCI express slots, be sure to buy a decent video card that supports SLI. Just buy one for now that is in the price range you are looking to spend, then when the price drops in time pick up a second one.

Don't be afraid to build one yourself. Like Tyler and many others here, I build all my own PCs. Its not to difficult, and if you run into a snag there are plenty of us IT nerds here that can talk you through it. Building one yourself does bring the price down.