Looking to get a new computer

[Attrus]

Alright, so as the header says: I am looking to get a new comp. Here are the stipulations: I want to be able to pay monthly and not spend more than $1,000 on it but still have an awesome computer that looks good too. Can anyone help me out?

[Neatton]

Sounds like your getting a Dell DUDE!! lol I think thats the best solution for what you are asking. You may want to save some budget to upgrade trhe ram and vid card if you plan on gaming with the machine. Also make sure it has a seperate slot for a vid card and not just the integrated one that some of the cheaper ones have.

[Pirotess]

For monthly payments you'll definitely need to go with a pre-built system as Neatton says. Keeping it under a thousand eliminates the more boutique type companies so I would have to agree Dell is probably your best bet with those criteria.

[Attrus]

the only problem is I did get a dell. I went with the middle range of their XPS systems and I was highly disappointed. It ran slow as hell even though I had fairly decent parts put in there. Any other options? I may actually just end up building it myself...Problem is I am not sure what I should look at. If I have all the right parts in front of me I can build it. But the problem I am having is coming up with the parts that will fit together. If someone could list some ideas for me, that would be great.

[Pirotess]

If you are willing to try building it yourself then that opens up a whole new array of options and its just a damn good idea in my opinion. I'd say the first thing you should do is settle on a processor. Intel or AMD? Once you know that then you can choose chipsets, motherboard companies and finally a mother board. Once you have that you can choose RAM and video and finally you can add in the rest of what makes a system tick.

I am interested though, how much RAM did you have in that XPS? At least a gig?

[Neatton]

Dell has a problem putting in cheap motherboards. Some years ago we got my wife a dell and I could never understand why the thing was so slow with the descent parts in it. We found out the whole thing was bottlenecked by the motherboard. In any case let me see if I can put something together. Also just so you know the tech forum is Neattons Nexus might want to drop by in that forum some good stuff.

EDIT:

Here is a list I threw together from newegg.com

Disclaimer: I am an Nvidia, Asus, and AMD fanboi take it for what it is worth it's good stuff.

Antec LifeStyle SONATA II Piano Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 450Watt SmartPower 2.0 ATX 12V V2.0 for AMD & Intel systems Power Supply - Retail 99.00

Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500JS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM 89.00

ASUS A8N-E Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail 92.99

eVGA 256-P2-N565-AX Geforce 7900GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail 359.00

OCZ Premier Dual Channel 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered System Memory Model OCZ4001024PDC-K - Retail 84.99

AMD Athlon 64 3700+ San Diego 1GHz HT Socket 939 Processor Model ADA3700BNBOX - Retail 213.00

This came out to just under 940.00 so it may be slightly over the 1k mark with shipping. My recommendations if you can squeeze that budget for a few more drops would be to go with 2 x 1 GB sticks of ram. That would future proof you a little more. Also for a few more dollars into the vid card you could go with a 7800 GTX video card which would also future proof you better. This system should scream I would guess an 8000 in 3Dmark 05'.

Edit 2: I would also like to add that the AMD AM2 socket and the new Intel Conroe <--- Bleh....Processor chipsets will be coming out soon so you may want to wait a few months for this as prices on the list up there will go down a bit and you might be able to get into that new technology a bit more. The AMD chipset will support DDR2 so it may be worth waiting for...If nothing else then for a discount on this older stuf to possible get better.

[Attrus]

Well I had a gig of RAM with the XPS. Now here's the thing. The computer I am currently running on, yeah it won't run newer games due to a lack of vid card upgrade, but it is a Dell Dimension. Got it two years ago and the thing still runs fairly well. A lot faster than the XPS did. But all in all, when it comes to what is actually inside the computer you can call me a n00b. I understand the bits and pieces but when it comes to the mechanics I have a hard time, so the list above definitely helped. Most likely I won't be putting this thing together till the end of the summer anyway, so those few months will have passed by then. I was just browsing around and as far as physical look to the computer, I was gonna go with a kind of techno look in a sense.

Case

Xoxide X-Static 2 ($27.99 @ xoxide.com)

Features:

* Electromagnetically shielded
* Cool X themed side window with 80mm Blue LED case fan
* A rear 80mm fan mount and two front 80mm fan mounts for additional ventilation
* Thumb screws for quick case access
* Universal ATX format for maximum compatibility

Specifications:

* Chassis material: 0.7mm SECC Steel
* Mainboard Form Factor: ATX (12.50” x 10.5” Max)
* Drive Bays:
o 5.25” External: 4
o 3.5” External: 2
o 3.5” Internal: 4
* Expansion Slots: 7
* I/O Ports: 2 x USB2.0, 1 x Audio
* Dimensions: 465 x 250 x 535mm


Speakers

Silver or Black Sicuro RW-360XL 2.1 Lighting 360 "Surround Sound" Gaming Speaker System ($71.99 @ directron.com)

Features:
* Powerful 30 W Wooden Subwoofer Delivers Solid and Pounding Bass!
*Wired Remote Control, Separate Volume and Bass Control.
*LED Indicator and 2 Heaphone Jacks.
*Magnetically Shielded Speakers Reduce Electronic Interference.

Specifications:

*RMS 42 W.
*Satellites 6W per each satellite.
*Subwoofer 30W.
*Frequency Response 60Hz-20KHz.
*Operating Voltage 110V.
*Size and package 360o Satellites 2.68" x 10.1".
*Subwoofer Dimension (L x W x H) 6.2" x 11.25" x 9.5".
*Package Dimension (L x W x H) 11.52" x 11.92" x 13.44".


Keyboard

Saitek Gaming Keyboard ($49.99 @ thinkgeek.com)

Keyboard Features:

* Comfortable, adjustable wrist rest with exclusive patented design and angle adjustment feet for maximum comfort and enhanced game play
* 104 key, quiet keyboard
* Blue LED backlit with Bright/Dim/Off selector

Command Pad Features:

* Programmable pad for left- or right-handers adds extended functionality to keyboard game play in all game types
* 9 Easy-access buttons
* 2 Shift buttons provide up to 27 programmable commands
* Ambidextrous design
* Backlighting enhances keyboard for play in low light environments

* Both pieces feature a comfortable wrist rest
* USB connectivity
* Compatible with Windows 2000 & XP only



Mouse

Logisys Optical Fan Mouse ($14.99 @ xoxide.com)

Features:

* Optical Mouse with cooling fan
* USB and PS2 compatibility
* Ergonomic design
* Supports Windows 95/98/2000/ME/NT/XP
* Plug and Play
* Blue LED illumination
* Fan on and off switch

[Attrus]

On a side note, I have used both Intel and AMD and I have found no particular preference for either. I find they both have their ups and downs so which ever one I get won't really matter to myself, as long as the rest of the parts work with it.


For now, I think I want to go with an AMD. As far as the vid card, I am going to prolly go with what you suggested because at this point anything is better than what I have (Intel Integrated Graphics....pleh )

[rabb1t]

Note: I'd only recommend this list for purchase right now, today, as the AM2 is due out in ~3 months and the Intel Conroe is due out in ~6.

Note: This is assuming you are not going to be incrimentally upgrading anything besides the GPU in the next few years.

AMD Athlon X2 3800+ $296
XFX 7600 GT $209
OCZ 2 gig kit $142
Abit AN8 SLI $95
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi music $112
Antec Lifestyle Sonata II $75 - case + PSU, though I doubt the PSU will be SLI ready. You may need an adaptor if you decide to go that route.
Western Digital Caviar SE16 250 gig HD $93
BenQ DVD burner $35
Logitech G5 Laser mouse $47
Keyboard $45 - fancy gamer version, your choice
Creative Inspire 5800 5.1 speaker set $60

Total = 1209
Not counting tax or shipping

A little over, but it would be a very solid system. 1k or under is very tricky to get a complete build for; more likely you want to consider a simple core upgrade in that range (CPU, Ram, MB, GPU.)

[Nil]

Originally Posted by Attrus

Alright, so as the header says: I am looking to get a new comp. Here are the stipulations: I want to be able to pay monthly and not spend more than $1,000 on it but still have an awesome computer that looks good too. Can anyone help me out?

As much as I'd like to help any guy with Dante as his avatar, it's tough if you insist on paying it out monthly. As the others have said, Dell is probably your best bet, but that's still a waste.

Wait on it. Save your money, then build it yourself. It's really not nearly as hard as it sounds. If you know how to use a screwdriver, you can put together a computer.