Give me direction

[LA_MERC_Nutria]

Ok.. I am building a system but I have no clue where to start. My build limit is gonna be about $2000.

[LA_MERC_th33_r00k]

http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/xpsdt_710?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs

[LA_MERC_Nutria]

Thats actually the dell i was talking about.

[LA_MERC_LaTech]

You're going to appreciate the machine a whole lot more if you build it yourself...but that's just my $.02

I've built every machine I've ever owned (except for laptops and tablets...but I've taken those apart)

[LA_MERC_T4rg3T]

I'll sell you mine :)

[LA_MERC_MadMAX]

You're going to appreciate the machine a whole lot more if you build it yourself...but that's just my $.02

I've built every machine I've ever owned (except for laptops and tablets...but I've taken those apart)

I always felt that way Scott - but this time I decided I really just didn't want to mess with it - I wanted to buy a machine, take it home and have a warranty :)


I never thought I'd buy another pre-fab computer, but I did, and I'm actually quite happy with it's performance. I did put my HDD, Sound and a new Vid card in it, so I built "part" of it :)

Plus, for the first time since my Gateway Athlon 850 w/ WinME, I have a LEGAL copy of Windows, AND I have a free Vista Home Premium upgrade coming in the mail - I'm glad I bought when I did though, because I like having the choice to run XP as long as I want before biting the bullit and loading Vista.

[LA_MERC_Nutria]

this is what I have so far.. suggestions welcome
$1203.00


CASE: Hot New! X-Cruiser Mid-Tower 420W Case W/ WINDOW, MultiMeter Display & Control (Green Color)
CPU: (Sckt775)Intel® Pentium® D 945 Dual-Core CPU @ 3.4GHz 800FSB 2x2MB L2 Cache EM64T
MOTHERBOARD: (Recommended!)ECS nForce 570 SLIT-A nForce 570 SLI (C19XE) Chipset LGA775 1066FSB DDR2/667 SATA Dual 16X PCI-E Slots w/7.1Audio, GbLAN, &USB2.0 (Recommended!)
MEMORY: (Req.DDR2 MainBoard)2GB (2x1024MB) PC5300 DDR2/667 Dual Channel Memory (Kingston Hyper-X High Performance Memory w/ Heat Spreader)
VIDEO CARD: NEW !!! NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GS 256MB PCI Express x16 (Major Brand Powered by NVIDIA)
VIDEO CARD 2: NONE
LCD Monitor: NONE
HARD DRIVE: Single Hard Drive (150GB Gaming Western Digital Rapter 10, 000RPM SATA150 16MB Cache WD1500ADFD)
Data Hard Drive: NONE
Optical Drive: (Special Price) 18X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (GREEN COLOR)
Optical Drive 2: NONE
SOUND: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO

[LA_MERC_Diesel]

my sugestions are:
1) processor go core 2 duo
2) go a little higher end on mobo than ECS
2) video go 7950 or
3) get a sec hard drive for reg storage
4) cheap cd or dvd drive for copying disk

now here is the other end..pick something in the middle :)

Gamer Infinity 7900 Pro (NO MONITOR)


*BASE_PRICE: [+1475]
CAS: Hot New! X-Cruiser Mid-Tower 420W Case W/ WINDOW, MultiMeter Display & Control [-83] (Silver Color)
CASUPGRADE: NONE
CPU: (Sckt775)Intel® Core™ 2 Duo E6400 CPU @ 2.13GHz 1066FSB 2x1MB L2 Cache EM64T [+40]
CD: (Special Price) 18X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (BLACK COLOR)
CD2: 16X DVD ROM (BLACK COLOR)
CABLE: None
FLOPPY: 1.44 MB FLOPPY DRIVE (BLACK COLOR)
FLASHMEDIA: None
FREEBIE_CU: FREE! Cyberpower Unleash The Power T-Shirt ($19.99 Value)
FAN: CoolerMaster Liquid CPU Cooling Fan System Kit + 2 EXTRA CASE FANS
HDD: Single Hard Drive (150GB Gaming Western Digital Rapter 10,000RPM SATA150 16MB Cache WD1500ADFD [+177])
HDD2: SPECIAL!!! 160GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 8M Cache 7200RPM Hard Drive [+63]
IEEE_CARD: NONE
KEYBOARD: NONE [-7]
MOUSE: NONE [-5]
MONITOR: NONE [-189]
MONITOR2: NONE
MOTHERBOARD: (Quad-Core Supports) Asus P5N-E nForce 650i SLI Chipset LGA775 FSB1333 DDR2 Mainboard
MEMORY: (Req.DDR2 MainBoard)2GB (2x1GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Dual Channel Memory [+180] (Corsair Value Select or Major Brand)
MODEM: NONE
NETWORK: ONBOARD 10/100 NETWORK CARD
OS: Microsoft® Windows Vista™ Home Basic
PPU: NONE
PRO_WIRING: None
PRINTER: None
PRINTER_CABLE: None
POWERSUPPLY: **Recommended** NZXT PF-500 500Watt Power Supply [+49]
RUSH: NO; READY TO SHIP IN 5~10 BUSINESS DAYS
SERVICE: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS 24/7 LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT
SOUND: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
SPEAKERS: NONE [-43]
TEMP: NONE (AS SHOWN)
TVRC: None
UPS: None
USB: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
USBHD: NONE
VIDEO: NEW!!! NVIDIA GeForce 7950 GT 512MB 16X PCI Express (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA [+5])
VIDEO2: NONE
VIDEOCAMERA: NONE
WNC: NONE
WAP: NONE
ZIP: NONE
_PRICE: (+1662)

[LA_MERC_Nutria]

so if i get this thing I should be ok?

$1667.00
CASE: Hot New! X-Cruiser Mid-Tower 420W Case W/ WINDOW, MultiMeter Display & Control (Green Color)
CPU: (Sckt775)Intel® Core™ 2 Duo E6400 CPU @ 2.13GHz 1066FSB 2x1MB L2 Cache EM64T
MOTHERBOARD: (Quad-Core Supports) Asus P5N-E nForce 650i SLI Chipset LGA775 FSB1333 DDR2 Mainboard
MEMORY: (Req.DDR2 MainBoard)2GB (2x1GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Dual Channel Memory (Corsair Value Select or Major Brand)
VIDEO CARD: NEW!!! NVIDIA GeForce 7950 GT 512MB 16X PCI Express (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA)
VIDEO CARD 2: NONE
LCD Monitor: NONE
HARD DRIVE: Single Hard Drive (150GB Gaming Western Digital Rapter 10, 000RPM SATA150 16MB Cache WD1500ADFD)
Data Hard Drive: NONE
Optical Drive: (Special Price) 18X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (GREEN COLOR)
Optical Drive 2: 16X DVD ROM (GREEN COLOR)
SOUND: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO

[LA_MERC_Diesel]

oh yeah you will be great
later you can pick up another HD for data.