I'm just gunna come right out and say it - I am computer retarded. When it comes to computer parts and accessories, I have close to no knowledge of anything. I understand the basics, but I don't know enough to be able to build my own machine that will last me the next 3, maybe 4, years and be cost efficient. In the past, I've gotten generic pre-built computers at Circuit City, Best Buy, etc. and maybe only added some memory and a simple graphics card.
So, this is where you guys come in. I would like you wonderful readers out there to build me a good machine, online and figuratively of course, and leave links in the comments section. The best bet is to link me to a service that won't make ME put the computer parts together - oh, that would be a frustrating day or two - and where I can ship it to my house here in the USA.
I look forward to the different custom machines that people suggest!
-Matt Graham
7 comments:
I have been building systems for myself for over ten years and I find it a little overwhelming myself. If it's any consolation it was much easier ten years ago.
What I highly suggest (and what I do personally) is head over to ars technica (arstechnica.com) and look around for their system guides.
They have guides for different computers built for different purposes and price points.
Here's a Dell system that would suit your needs. You can buy a Dell or you can take these specs to your local custom shop and get something similar. If I were building today this is probably what I would do. I could build this for about 11-1200 $US right now. The Dell is more but you do get a one-year warranty with them. Here are the stats. Let me know (contact info is at my blog) if I can help you with anything else.
Catalog Number: 29 DXCWCF1
Module Description Description Product Code & SKU Product Code & SKU
XPS 630 Intel® Core™2 Q9450 (12MB,2.66GHz, 1333FSB) D1Q94H [223-5588]
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Service Pack 1 VHP31E [330-0283][420-5769][420-6436][420-7622][420-8522][420-8873]
System Color Red Bezel Chassis RBEZEL [313-6079]
Memory 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 2 DIMMs 2GB82 [311-8294]
Keyboard Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard (ships separately) 1310795 [310-3798][A1310795]
Monitors No Monitor N [320-6315]
Video Card nVidia GeForce 9800 GT 512MB GT9800 [320-6992]
Hard Drive 320GB - 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16MB Cache 320S [341-6285]
Mouse Logitech G9 Laser Gaming Mouse (ships separately) 1469957 [310-3799][A1469957]
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 8.1 AAREAD [420-7468]
Optical Drive Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability V16DVRW [313-6080][420-8152]
Sound Cards Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio IS [313-2758]
Speakers No speakers (Speakers are required to hear audio from your system) N [313-6138]
Office Productivity Software (Pre-Installed) No Productivity software pre-installed MSONO [412-1397]
Security Software McAfee SecurityCenter 15-months VMCAF1Y [410-1184]
Warranty & Service 1Yr Ltd HW WRTY, InHome Service after Remote Diagnosis, 24x7 Phone Support S111OS [950-9797][960-8700][985-7920][989-2477][990-8029]
Dial-Up Internet Access No ISP requested NISP [412-0148]
Environmental Options Recycle my old system with Dell (FREE) RECYCL [310-5408]
LABELS Windows Vista™ Premium VPD [310-8626]
DataSafe Online Backup Included 3 GB DataSafe Online Backup for 1Yr
I found the perfect Gaming system for ya http://www.alienware.com/products/aurora-desktop.aspx?SysCode=PC-AURORA-R5&SubCode=SKU-DEFAULT
You can thank me later
-Velzak
If you want to build a great system for WAR for between $500 to $700 bucks, read all the posts by Nerror here:
http://www.warhammeralliance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38651
The guy knows what he's talking about.
If your going to purchase a prebuild rig, stick with Dell. We bought two Alienware laptops last year and they've been nothing but trouble. It could be vista, but not completely sure.
We need two more recently and we bought Dell and they have been working like champs and if you do have an issue, like them shipping the laptops with DVD players instead of recorders, their customer service is top notch. We got replacement drives over night.
I prefer to build my own gaming machines. I recommend using www.newegg.com, which has customer reviews for parts, but takes forever to ship them to you or you can use www.zipzoomfly.com, which usually has free two day shipping but the parts cost a bit more.
In all honesty if your wanting to build the perfect system the best way to do it is take variations of everything you've seen thus far, as an instance, geforce for many is loved, personally ive always used ATI, they last longer and seem to have better specs, also for CPU stay away from intel its just a cork later on(go with AMD much more stable and for the most part cheaper) motherboards are pretty open, personally i stick with asrock or asus, ram chips are kinda just a given, if you feel like getting something somewhat custom built or even pre-built, www.ditcorp.com ive been using these guys for ages to get computer parts, they are cheap and very good at doing a general setup, can get anything built to your liking ;) not to mention they do a rather large warranty on their products, if you custom build it each product has at least a 1 year warranty that they cover within the stores(online in this case) if you get a machine that they have put together for you and have not broken the seal, they usually offer a 2 or 3 year warranty to back the product. they have a very limited amount of stores for front end appearances but at least they can get your online needs tooken care of. beyond that its easier to enjoy it when it comes with a manual(which all of motherboards will tell you where to hook what) also i personally prefer doing a full sata setup, runs faster smoother and easier to fix if you manage to crash your operating system :P
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