New computer shopping, alienware worth it?

[admeteora]

hello everyone,

I finally decided to buy a new computer, I currently have a 2008 first of the line white macbook (with bootcamp for certain games), and it really sucks lol. I would like to play guild wars 2 on somewhat high settings and maybe other games i never dared look at with my current computer.

I have a budget of around 1000$ and was looking at the alienware x51
http://configure.us.dell.com/dellsto...en&s=dhs&cs=19
which looks like for 1000$:
3rd Generation Intel® Core™ i5-3330 (6M Cache, up to 3.0 GHz)
16GB (2 X 8GB) Dual Channel DDR3 up to 1600MHz
1TB SATA 3Gb/s (7,200RPM) 32MB Cache
Slot-Loading Dual Layer DVD Burner (DVD±RW, CD-RW)
1.5GB GDDR5 NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 660
DW1502 Wireless-N WLAN Half Mini-Card

Is this computer worth it? or should I look at different alternatives?
I never built a computer myself, and this might be the opportunity to try, but then again I don't want to fuck it up. Knowing that, should I look at other brands for already made computers? Or is there any website that builds them well for you?

Finally should I go for something like this instead? http://www.mmo-champion.com/content/...-Month-Fan-Art

thank you in advance for your help, and sorry if my sentences look weird because english is not my main language.

[Hayro1]

AW has gotten much better in their systems for price over the years, I remember the ridiculous prices they tagged on their computers, when you could have built a better one on Newegg for at least half the price, if not cheaper. I'd honestly go with the Narwhal you linked instead of the AW, considering the Narwhal is better. Plus, it might be even cheaper now/in a week or so since Thanksgiving is semi-close, plus some time has passed and I'm sure it's just cheaper already.

[Little Monster]

I suggest building your own. Not very hard.
NewEgg has a video series on how to do it.

If I were looking to get a new computer, I would wait until Black Friday / Cyber Monday and take advantage of the massive deals. Pick up all the pieces you need and build it yourself. You will have a much more intimate relationship with your computer when you are done.

[admeteora]

I suggest building your own. Not very hard.
NewEgg has a video series on how to do it.

If I were looking to get a new computer, I would wait until Black Friday / Cyber Monday and take advantage of the massive deals. Pick up all the pieces you need and build it yourself. You will have a much more intimate relationship with your computer when you are done.

thank you for pointing me to those videos they seem very helpful!

[Lathais]

Alienware is not worth it, at all. For comparisons sake here is an identical system to that one:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3330 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($188.65 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($68.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.93 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($229.95 @ B&H)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case ($60.50 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($42.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $898.98
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

You save $100 doing it yourself, not to mention, there are some wasted parts in the Alienware build. 16GB Ram is way overkill, 8GB is more than enough. A wireless card? Are you really going to be running wireless on a desktop? I don't recommend it, hard wired connection is better for gaming.

Here is a much better build for the same price:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($74.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card ($299.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case ($60.50 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($42.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $905.42
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

You get what is probably the best chip currently on the market for gaming and it is overclockable if you choose to do so later. You would need additional cooling to do this though, so it is something you could do later when you had a little extra cash and wanted to squeeze a little more out of the system.

Half the RAM, but still more than enough

A step up on the GPU.

EDIT: Also, not sure, since you were running a macbook if you need peripherals like monitor keyboard and mouse which were not included in the AW build, if you do, this leaves you some room to purchase those as well.

[admeteora]

first thank you for your suggestion,

I already have windows 7 and a monitor, keyboard, mouse. I'm also quite flexible in my price range and what do you think of this?

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K Ivy Bridge 3.5GHz (3.9GHz Turbo) Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card
Case: COOLER MASTER HAF 922
Power Supply: CORSAIR HX Series HX750 750W
Optical Drive: LITE-ON DVD Burner
SSD: Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
total of around 1200$.

I'm not sure if I need the SSD, and maybe find a cheaper case/power supply. I'd like your opinion though, do these go well together? Or does some parts feel disproportionate to others?
I took a higher end CPU and power supply from what you posted thinking I might upgrade and add things along the way. Is it worth it?

[Lathais]

first thank you for your suggestion,

I already have windows 7 and a monitor, keyboard, mouse. I'm also quite flexible in my price range and what do you think of this?

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K Ivy Bridge 3.5GHz (3.9GHz Turbo) Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card
Case: COOLER MASTER HAF 922
Power Supply: CORSAIR HX Series HX750 750W
Optical Drive: LITE-ON DVD Burner
SSD: Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
total of around 1200$.

I'm not sure if I need the SSD, and maybe find a cheaper case/power supply. I'd like your opinion though, do these go well together? Or does some parts feel disproportionate to others?
I took a higher end CPU and power supply from what you posted thinking I might upgrade and add things along the way. Is it worth it?

The only difference between the i5-3570k and i7-3770k is 3770k has Hyperthreading support. Most games do not support this and those that do, do so poorly and it does not give you much of an increase. On some games it even causes stuttering and a decrease in performance. That said, if you do streaming, or video encoding or anything of the sort, the i7 is still worth it for those tasks. If you don't though, save yourself $100 and stick with the 3570k. For gaming, I would spend that money moving up to a GTX 670.

The SSD is not a bad idea, a lot of people recommend it being almost a necessity in a modern build. Personal preference, but from what I have read I would go with a Samsung 830 Series, or if you want to shell out a little more the 840 series. Also, with SSDs, bigger is faster, so spring for the 256 if you can. If you do you can switch your "storage" drive to a WD Green(5200RPM as opposed to 7200). It is slower, but it is only for storage so does not matter. Can save you a bit if you wish.

That PSU is severe overkill. If you like the Modular Corsairs then the 650 is the lowest with that available, which is still more than enough. There are some Seasonic 520w out there too I think that I hear are very good, though not modular I do not believe, that would still be more than what you need.

If you are planning on OCing, you will still want to add a CPU Cooler.

[Deleted]

Alienware has never been worth it. They let you pay to much for the brand.

[Lathais]

Based on my last post, your case preference and higher budget, here is the build I would go with:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Green 1TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($369.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($77.64 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1168.55
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-08 14:31 EST-0500)

[Kraszmyl]

Alienware has never been worth it. They let you pay to much for the brand.

Not so much the brand as the fact that dell after calling in will typicaly have some one out next day to fix the machine when it fails. If you build it yourself and something fails youre looking at 1-3 weeks for the rma process.

[Arcilux]

Based on my last post, your case preference and higher budget, here is the build I would go with:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Green 1TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($369.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($77.64 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1168.55
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-08 14:31 EST-0500)

Personally, I'd up the HDD to a 7200 RPM, and the RAM to DDR3-1600

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820233186 currently on sale for $34
HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822152185 Samsung F3 $85

[Lathais]

Not so much the brand as the fact that dell after calling in will typicaly have some one out next day to fix the machine when it fails. If you build it yourself and something fails youre looking at 1-3 weeks for the rma process.

Not to digress too much, but this is definitely a benefit of buying AW. Of course they have to provide this service, since they cheap out on particular parts and use off-brand PSUs, MoBos, HDs...etc, so it is more likely to fail. Then they load your system with 16GBs of RAM and a wireless card you don't need to further increase the price, remember they pay less for parts than we do, so they are making money on those parts you don't need.

[Dasffion]

Alienware=Overclocked, Overpriced Dell

[Lathais]

Personally, I'd up the HDD to a 7200 RPM, and the RAM to DDR3-1600

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820233186 currently on sale for $34
HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822152185 Samsung F3 $85

The RAM was supposed to be 1600, and is now actually, and in your quote, I got 2 builds I was working with crossed, but it's all fixed up now.

As for the HDD, if it was a primary drive, with windows and games on it, I would agree, though would still go WD Blue/Black over Samsung. Seeing as he has an SSD in the build for bootable and games, the HDD is primarily for storage and does not matter if it is a slower Green drive. Will be cheaper, use less power and get the job done.

[admeteora]

thanks for all your replies and thanks again lathais, this build is pretty much what im looking for.
Although I noticed you changed from a gtx 660 ti to a gtx 670, is there a big difference between the two?

[Town Drunk]

if your going to buy a new computer I definitely HIGHLY recommend IRONSIDE COMPUTERS They have really good nice builds and they are about as cheap as building it yourself . You can even get a video of them sent with your computer showing your system working .

[Syphilis]

lmao no. You build your own computer.

[Lathais]

thanks for all your replies and thanks again lathais, this build is pretty much what im looking for.
Although I noticed you changed from a gtx 660 ti to a gtx 670, is there a big difference between the two?

Not huge, but definitely noticeable. The savings in other areas and the increase in budget(originally you had about a $1000 system, your proposed build was $1200) I figured I'd sqeeze as much out of the $1200 as I could.

---------- Post added 2012-11-08 at 03:47 PM ----------

if your going to buy a new computer I definitely HIGHLY recommend IRONSIDE COMPUTERS They have really good nice builds and they are about as cheap as building it yourself . You can even get a video of them sent with your computer showing your system working .

No no and no. Was just looking at thier $1000 gaming build and it uses an the i5-3550(not overclockable). In order to bring it to the overclockable system that I have put together in this thread you nood to upgrade the chip AND the MoBo(which was a bad brand to begin with) increasing the cost $100 for MoBoa and $18 for the Chip. The RAM is only 1333, to upgrade it to 1600 is another $18.00. No SSD in their build, add another $200 there. To upgrade to the GTX 670 like I used in my build they charge an additional $300.

In short, for the same system I have put together above, you would spend about $1400-1500, $200-300 more than what I have it at. That's almost as big a rip-off as AW.

[Faithh]

Try this video everything is being explained & shown properly how to build a PC. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84NvD...ature=g-user-u

He's been using very expensive parts but it shouldn't be different that much except that you have to attach a backplate on the motherboard to mount a cooler.

Number 1: Don't use the Corsair H100, just any heatsink.