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Dell for WoWFollow

#1 Aug 11 2009 at 6:37 PM Rating: Decent
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Simply put, I would like a new computer. I am contemplating a Dell.ca system primarily for some easy monthly payments (yah yah I know) and let's say a total budget of somewhere around $1000.

I would like this new computer to play WoW (when I renew in the fall) to have some smoking framerates, and not lag me to hell in 25 mans etc. I also require it for Autocad and Inventor for any other 'heavy' program options.

Yes I know one can piece together something considerably cheaper on newegg etc. I also want the somewhat peace of mind that Dell will fix my junk should it melt, and while I could make my own, I have no idea as to what hardware to select.

So, could someone be so kind as to list some system specs based on the Dell.ca site for the above requirements?

I would need a new moniter as well, the larger the better.
#2 Aug 11 2009 at 6:47 PM Rating: Decent
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And for reference, my current system is an Acer celeron 2.80 ghz, 1 gig ram, xp home sp3, ATI Radeon HD2400 AGP (512 mb), 20 inch old school moniter, DSL internet (when I hover over the icon in the system tray it says internet connection 10.0 mbps).

So damn near anything newer will be better, but I don't want to be repeating this process anytime soon either.
#3 Aug 12 2009 at 1:50 AM Rating: Decent
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107 posts
I really would much rather see someone like yourself goto Ibuypower.com and get a better desktop and stay within you budget than hope dell is offering one that might.

Fow Wow to run decently a my lowest system specs (my sons) is a core 2, 2.66 running 3mb of ram, a 9800 gtx+ oc video card with 1gb of onboard memory all running a winxp pro. he gets 60 to 90 fps.

Im sure you could get a system compatible with that at ibp for close to your price. Go and have a look and i think they also have a monthly payment system but am not sure.

Lastly you could also look to building your own... cheap, but you would probably need a little help that you could easily get here on the forums.
#4 Aug 12 2009 at 8:05 AM Rating: Decent
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Xizervexius wrote:
Yes I know one can piece together something considerably cheaper on newegg etc. I also want the somewhat peace of mind that Dell will fix my junk should it melt, and while I could make my own, I have no idea as to what hardware to select.

In my experience, it would melt. And Dell would be a complete pain in the *** about fixing it. They gave me three bad video cards in a row for one computer, and refused to fix it after the third time. I bought my own at Best Buy and I've never had any trouble with it, so it wasn't even the motherboard slot. If you need replacement parts for anything that goes wrong, expect to get them "refurbished", meaning they've done the bare minimum to get it working again.

I have to heavily recommend against Dell. As for specs, get a dual core CPU, 2.6GHz or better, 4GB DDR2 RAM, Nvidia 9600 or 9800 GPU (or equivalent ATI, though I'm not sure what it would be), 7200 RPM HD, and enough power/cooling to handle all that. If you can get a better CPU in your price range without getting ripped off, go for it; AutoCAD and Inventor can be pretty intense if you're using them for more than general hobbying. I won't link you to a Dell build with those numbers because, again, I cannot endorse a Dell PC at all. I would think though that all of this would be in your price range, especially if you buy the parts and put it together yourself.

If you can, look for parts that come with a warranty by the manufacturer, too - my Nvidia card came with a 2-year warranty from PNY. If you want to make your own, I'll help you look for parts, and I'm sure others here would love to kill some time too.
#5 Aug 12 2009 at 8:17 AM Rating: Decent
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I never heard of Ibuypower, thanks.

Perhaps this system? $1214 USD

Gamer Mage D400
Case ( Thermaltake V9 Gaming Tower Case - Blue )
Processor ( AMD Phenomâ„¢ II X2 550 Black Edition Dual-Core CPU )
Motherboard ( [CrossFire] ASUS M4A79 Deluxe -- AMD 790FX CrossFire Chipset w/7.1 Sound, Gb LAN, S-ATA Raid, USB 2.0, Quad PCI-E MB )
Memory ( 4 GB [2 GB X2] DDR2-800 PC6400 Memory Module - Corsair-Value or Major Brand )
Video Card ( ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 – 2GB - Single Card )
Case Lighting ( None )
Power Supply ( 800 Watt -- Power Supply - SLI Ready )
Processor Cooling ( iBUYPOWER AMD Liquid CPU Cooling Fan System Kit )
Hard Drive ( 1 TB HARD DRIVE - [16M Cache, 7200 RPM, 3.0Gb/s] )
2nd Hard Drive ( None )
2nd Optical Drive ( 16x DVD-ROM Drive - Black )
Optical Drive ( 22X LG Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive - Black )
External Hard Drives [USB 2.0/eSATA] ( None )
Sound Card ( 3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard )
Speaker System ( iBUYPOWER 2.1 Channel Stereo Super Bass Subwoofer Speaker System )
Network Card ( 10/100/1000 Network Onboard )
Floppy Drive ( None )
Monitor ( None )
Keyboard ( iBUYPOWER USB Keyboard - Black )
Mouse ( iBUYPOWER Internet Mouse - Black )
Operating System ( Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium + [Free 60-Day !!!] Microsoft Office 2007(Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Access ....) - 64-Bit )
Warranty ( Standard Warranty Service - Standard 3-Year Limited Warranty + Lifetime Technical Support



I have not selected a moniter yet. I'm still trying to learn about the differences between a pc monitor and a lcd tv.
#6 Aug 12 2009 at 8:48 AM Rating: Good
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19,369 posts
I like newegg.com

They have full systems but I usually buy the parts and put it together myself. I've always had a quick return on bad defective merchandise and they've been really great about it.
#7 Aug 12 2009 at 8:00 PM Rating: Decent
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107 posts
It was a suggestion, and I run 3 of ibuypowers pc's and all of them will outrun any similarly priced dell without breaking a sweat.

They produce great pc's at low cost with the best components for the price.
Dont take my word for it though, compare dells inspiron or their current "gaming" pc then after you print out their pc's specs goto ibuypower and "build" a similar system.

if it isnt cheaper i owe you 10 dollars
#8 Aug 12 2009 at 8:02 PM Rating: Decent
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107 posts
I also saw you are looking for a monitor, personally i use a 24" samsung i got at bestbuy for 250$ and for the price I think its hard to beat, its large sharp clear and has no ghosts on the screen like some of the older large monitors can get.
#9 Aug 13 2009 at 7:33 AM Rating: Decent
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807 posts
Well, you don't owe me $10.

A Dell XPS 630 prices out to $1349, and a similarly spec'd ibuypower comes to $875. I'll buy you a beer one day, thanks.
#10 Aug 13 2009 at 10:27 AM Rating: Good
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107 posts
I wouldnt have made that offer if I didnt allready know the answer. Dell while a decent pc is overpriced, offer few options, and is loaded with software you will seldomn if ever use. it is bloated in price and in its o/s. Ibuypowers gaming systems or even their more tame pc's run faster and with less problems.(thats my personal opinion btw) and cost almost half as much. The monitor i recommend if you are looking for a 20+ inch screen is the samsung syncmaster 2232 to the 24 inch they have a 2ms response (read lag coming from the video card to the screen reaction) great contrast and a gorgeous display. Hope they helped, and good luck with your new pc :)
#11 Aug 15 2009 at 8:59 AM Rating: Good
This may be a touch late, but you might want to consider a local computer shop / builder. most have a basic system that you can add upgrades to (decent vid card, more ram etc ala dell)

That way, you get exactly what you want, no piles of crapware (ok vista excepted) and someone to eyeball if it goes *bang*

*disclaimer* i own a independant computer shop (at the other end of the world ;)
#12 Aug 15 2009 at 9:17 AM Rating: Decent
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807 posts
Nothings too late, I am the president and world leader of Procrastinators Inc.

I did price out some builds at two of my local shops (ncix and Anitec), but Ibuypower still wins it would seem. Reviews seem pretty good with any problems that might arise.
#13 Aug 15 2009 at 9:23 AM Rating: Decent
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807 posts
Monitor wise, I'm leaning towards this 24" Acer or perhaps this 28" I-Inc

Edited, Aug 15th 2009 10:25am by Xizervexius
#14 Aug 16 2009 at 5:41 AM Rating: Decent
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107 posts
Personally I have an acer, and the other I havent seen, ut I know Samsung has some very solid ones in the 22to 24" that are gorgeous have a great response time with no ghosting
and a fairly inexpensive price. I got mine through bestbuy on sale for 225 on the 24' but know they have probably gotten cheaper in the past year. G/l and go get one bro, you will be glad you did.
#15 Aug 16 2009 at 10:52 AM Rating: Good
I just wanted to throw out there that WoW will run on almost anything.

I play on a Dell that is nearing 6yrs old (that I know of, bought it used) and plays it fine.
The only thing for upgrades I did was add a Slave drive for music & pics and upgrade the Video card (to play Spore).

Satrn, thanks for listing that site. I didn't know about it either. Someday I will have cash to be able to buy a newer comp, I will have to check there for deals.
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#16 Oct 10 2009 at 12:40 PM Rating: Decent
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807 posts
I'm finally ready to pull the trigger on a new system, and had it narrowed down to the Ibuypower.com Gamer Paladin F850 vs. Alienware Aurora. Again I was leaning towards the Dell/Alienware mainly for the stupid reason of paying lots of interest over 4 years ( I kid, but not really), but what finally made up my mind was reading this mornings paper and there was a HP Pavilion package advertised that had virtually the same specs as the Alienware, including a 23" moniter, for $200 less.
The wife has informed just to get what I want, and to stop pulling my hair out. After looking at mulitiple builds on various sites, no one can touch Ibuypower. I'll pick up a moniter somewhere else though.
This is the specs for the Gamer Paladin F850 . The only major change I think I would like would be two video cards (SLi/Crossfire), but man, way too many choices! I had priced it out using 2x Nvidia GeForce GTS 250 1 GB, but I really am not sure what to pick.
Primary use would be gaming, again just mainly for WoW, which is overkill I'm sure, but I want this to last for awhile. I would also be using it for 3D solid modeling in Inventor/Autocad, as well as some movies, and photo editing.
#17 Oct 11 2009 at 5:25 AM Rating: Decent
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107 posts
Sounds and looks like an awesome system that will make you happy for a long time, just make sure to get the best power supply available, less problems with the sli vid cards that way. Btw when you do get it up and running holler back and let us know exactly how nice it is.
#18 Oct 22 2009 at 8:20 PM Rating: Decent
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807 posts
Well I scaled down my original purchase idea a wee bit. I had received a weekly sales email from newegg, when this 28" monitor caught my attention.


I ended up ordering it, then after browsing their site some more, reading some reviews, I ordered this CyberPower PC.


I actually came in slightly under my original 1500 budget with this set up, even though I kind of already planned to exceed that with the Ibuypower system.

I am in the process of downloading WoW now, so haven't had a chance to try it out yet, but everything so far is fast, sleek, and gorgeous.
The only issue I have discovered so far is some sound problems. The speakers built into the monitor don't seem to work, but they aren't suppose to be that great anyways, so my old speakers are doing the trick for now. While watching a video on tankspot.com, I could only really hear the background music, and hardly make out the instructional voice at all. And also the music that's playing as WoW downloads is kind of slightly garbled. But everything sounds just fine if I play a mp3 on media player.
I'll post more results soon.

The sound problems were resolved after updating the drivers, which I had problems with as I did not know one had to to delete the old stuff prior to installing the new stuff.

Edited, Oct 22nd 2009 7:22pm by Xizervexius

Edited, Nov 12th 2009 7:34pm by Xizervexius
#19 Oct 23 2009 at 5:51 PM Rating: Decent
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807 posts
Well in my best Keanu Reeves impersonation...

"Whoa"

1900x1200 resolution, WoW video settings maxed, and just plain flawless performance, even in Dalaran. No lag at all, and 30 fps minimum while there. Just colour me tickled I guess, I'm pretty happy with this set up.
#20 Oct 24 2009 at 5:38 AM Rating: Good
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107 posts
I see you are running a 9800 gt and i like the card, but some of the recent drivers for it are kind of horrible. I suggest getting evga precision tools (free download after you regigister at evga forums). The main reason most of the drivers fail is they do not ever reach 100% of fan speed at any time which after a month or two is going to allow that card to start heating up at bad times. When you download it, the bottom bar is to control the fan, max it out and apply that setting, after you desellect the auto button it allows you to do that. It will make more noise, but it will also help protect your new investment. you can play with the other settings some to try and get better frame rates just make sure you write down what the original settings are for everything but the fan.

Good luck and congrats on your new pc
#21 Oct 24 2009 at 10:35 AM Rating: Decent
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807 posts
Thanks for the tip, I'll do that right now.
#22 Oct 24 2009 at 11:06 PM Rating: Decent
Edited by bsphil
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Xizervexius wrote:
Well I scaled down my original purchase idea a wee bit. I had received a weekly sales email from newegg, when this 28" monitor caught my attention.
Damn. I paid $300 for my 22" widescreen monitor a couple years back.
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