Technical > PC Hardware Discussion/Reviews > before they build it

before they build it

I don't suppose so, but I'd build it myself for what it will cost you. They don't say what brand and model power supply? That is something I don't like.

As far as SLI, you are getting a relatively small 19" monitor, why do you need SLI if that is the case? Save yourself some money, get a system with and for one GPU. That is, unless you are planning on using a 24" monitor...

What is the price of this box?
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You know your life has gotten "DICEY" when it turns into an episode of LOST, like my ex wife, who I swear is one of "The Others". Cancer and other diseases kill fellow members here at DSLR! Easy: Join us in Teams Helix and Discovery to save the world!

Good questions. Alienware has such a superior reputation that I never considered the brand of power supply! As for the monitor - it's an interim piece - because I paid way too much - I've got to piecemeal this project.

Thanks.

reply to alturner
unless you need alot after-purchase customer service just go to »mwave.com config a kickass system and pay them $80 to assemble, test and then ship it to you. Or make it a learning experience and build it yourself.

No thanks. I'm willing to pay a premium for the name.

Al

Friend, he really is giving you good advice. The name means nothing! What matters is the quality of the actual parts that go into the box. MWave is a better choice, you won't have to sacrifice as much and go so peacemeal! Seriously. Are you really that brand conscious?

It's your money, but you will find most guys here saying what we are! Alienware computers are way overpriced and way over rated! Besides, I suggest a P35 motherboard or X38 motherboard based system unless you MUST have SLI.
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You know your life has gotten "DICEY" when it turns into an episode of LOST, like my ex wife, who I swear is one of "The Others". Cancer and other diseases kill fellow members here at DSLR! Easy: Join us in Teams Helix and Discovery to save the world!

reply to alturner

reply to alturner
You can build it and pick up the parts at »www.tigerdirect.com/ »www.tigerdirect.com/retailstores/chicago.asp

and nforce 700 is due in a few days.

reply to alturner
Alienware was going to be our choice for a ready-made when we were considering buy-or-build, but it really is a lot more expensive and could well be lesser quality in terms of the actual components. We would have had to cut down our specs and still paid about $500 more for a lesser system. As an example right now NCIX in Canada is offering a eVGA 680i motherboard and 8800GT bundle for just $400 after discounts and rebate, and that's the core of the system!

Anyway, since you seem to have your mind made up, my comments on the config you propose:

- I agree with others -- lose the SLI (you could always do it later) and get a better (22") monitor, not necessarily from Alienware (I've seen sales on the Samsung 226BW 22" for $300 or so or even less). It will give you a much better balanced system.

- Personally I would not go with RAID 0 (reliability). You can use 2x250GB without RAID as spec'd or for less money a single 500GB. The dual drives do help spread the load, but that's probably a fairly minor issue.

- I'm on the fence about getting Vista at this time. I would really prefer XP without question as Vista is likely to have performance and compatibility issues at the very least until SP1 and probably beyond, but if you do get XP an upgrade to Vista later (say when DX10 or beyond is mandatory) will be expensive. We went with XP on our build, but partly just because it was free as a license transfer. Still, a much better overall OS right now, IMHO.
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"Against stupidity, the very gods themselves contend in vain" -- Friedrich Schiller

reply to Joe12345678
Don't even think about getting this system at TigerDirect. You would rather stick an ice pick in your ear than deal with them on all these parts! (I wanted to use a Larry the Cable guy thought instead).

reply to alturner

reply to meester

reply to alturner
Just for interest, I went through the Alienware site -- the above configuration is net $2524 without a monitor!

Then I changed it so it looked almost identical to our recent build:
- 750W PSU
- 2Gb RAM instead of 4
- 3.0 Ghz Core 2 Duo instead of 2.4Ghz Quad
- single 500Gb HDD
- single 8800GT

That comes to $1849. The total cost of our components was about $400 less than that, in part because we got a premium top-of-the-line motherboard and quite a costly PSU, and somewhat pricey case. We could have built it for as much as $600 less than the Alienware price.

Anyway, the above is what we would have ordered from Alienware. Add a 22" monitor to it, either the Samsung that Alienware offers for around $330 or a better deal elsewhere if you can find it. They don't tell you what model of Samsung that is, and it hardly looks like a deal even though it's part of the system package.

And I would really be going nuts with indecision about Vista as I mentioned before. Of course it's your system and you have the flexibility to put whatever you want on it at any later date, but keep in mind that Alienware will only support the OS that the system shipped with.
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"Against stupidity, the very gods themselves contend in vain" -- Friedrich Schiller

i bet if i went to newegg.com i can build a Way faster system then that for less $$$

reply to seaquake

reply to alturner
Jeez someones a little sensitive. Remember this is an internet message board for computer hardware recommendations. You gave yours, others gave theirs. No need to complicate it with all that other nonsense. Let's just leave it at that.
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Praise be to my Cadillac

Thanks for the input.

Al

reply to BillTager

reply to alturner
Not to muddy the waters here, but we did a fair amount of research before reaching our decision to build a system, and it involved Dell, Alienware, local vendors, and building from parts. And I do have a fair amount of direct experience with Dell.

Yes, there was a small premium on the Alienware system over a comparable Dell, but this seemed justified by a better reputation for quality but more importantly, by system specs that were much closer to what we were looking for in a gaming system. You can of course debate the point; I'm just saying that was our conclusion ("we"= my son the gamer and I as the overseer of this process).

The build-vs.-buy decision is much more personal and philosophical. The objective fact (which surprised me) is how much cheaper it is to build. I had been under the impression that major vendors got their parts under such huge quantity discounts that they could put together systems much cheaper than an individual could build them for. I actually think this may have been true at some point, but it's an important fact that it certainly no longer is true, at least not in general.

However building isn't for everyone. I have to admit, facing my first build, that I was worried as hell about all the things that could go wrong, mostly because we jumped headfirst into doing a first build with some pretty expensive high-end components. It's really best suited to folks who are either going to approach it with a sense of adventure, or else those who have done it so many times that it's just routine. Someone who is going to fret and fuss and worry is probably someone who will get genuine good value out of the extra cost charged for a prebuilt system. Nothing wrong with that.
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"Against stupidity, the very gods themselves contend in vain" -- Friedrich Schiller

reply to seaquake
I think Dell owns Alienware.