Calvin Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Started to make some loud noises & that was pretty much it. I can't complain much,since we did get the thing for free,but we are without a comp for a week or two. At least I can still surf using my Wii. Now all I need is a good Dell bargain... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BdoUK Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Calvin, You can usually find Dell coupons floating around the net. I'd recommend you go with a Intel Core 2 Duo machine. My work machine is a Dell Optiplex Core 2 Duo and it is blazing fast! If you are savvy with computers I would also recommend that you look into building your own. All my home machines are built from scratch and I have never had a problem with any of them. Being able to control the quality of all parts that go into a machine really makes a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orpheus Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Calvin, I recommend you just get a Dell. Even their barebones machines will probably meet most of your needs and you can get some killer deals from other retailers on lower to midlevel graphics cards that will run just about any pc game you or Leslie would likely be interested in. In addition to the coupons, Dell offers an array of weekly specials. What kind of budget are you working with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EnemaEms Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Our PC is toast Some butter and jelly should make it all better. -Dean- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvin Posted February 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Edit-double post Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvin Posted February 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 I really don't want to spend too much-I'd say under $1000 total. Probably closer to $500,unless I could get a good LCD monitor also. Been looking at slickdeals for a good buy on a Dell. Where should I look for a coupon? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BdoUK Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Calvin, This site usually has some good Dell coupons: http://www.couponmountain.com/Dell-coupons-deals.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvin Posted February 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Okay,this is what I'm looking at.Something that I can upgrade,but will do nicely I think.Opinions would be nice,though... Dell Dimension E521: AMD Athlon? 64 X2 Dual-Core 3800+ 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz- 2DIMMs Windows Vista Home Premium 160GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache? 16x DVD+/-RW Drive 20 inch UltraSharp? 2007WFP Widescreen Digital Flat Panel NVIDIA GeForce 6150 LE Integrated Graphics GPU $829 as configured. I figure that the monitor is a bit expensive,but it should last me for a good long time.Please let me know what you think.Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magness Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Nice monitor - Definitely As for the other components, they are all solid and thats a pretty good price IMO for a pre-built with the OS etc - All except for the graphics chipset (for gaming)... Does the system have a PCI-Express slot open? If so then no biggie, you could just add in a nice card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvin Posted February 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 It does,so I could add in a video card later if I wanted to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelley Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Does it have the 3 year warranty on it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orpheus Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 nvm this post Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orpheus Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 It does,so I could add in a video card later if I wanted to. Yea, and there are plenty of great video cards floating around for $100ish these days since DX10 cards are starting to pop up. Dell SB has the same machine for $769 from here less with a larger hard drive but a downgrade to Vista Home basic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BdoUK Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Calvin, I have the 2007WFP and it is a great monitor. You will be very pleased with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvin Posted February 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Yea, and there are plenty of great video cards floating around for $100ish these days since DX10 cards are starting to pop up. Dell SB has the same machine for $769 from here less with a larger hard drive but a downgrade to Vista Home basic. Since I'm not a business, I can't get approval to buy through the business website... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenMonkey Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Here's that e521 setup...fatwallet deal... $399 FW thread: http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/messageview.php?catid=18&threadid=702315&highlight_key=y&keyword1=e521 Linkie: http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=us&cs=04&kc=6W300&l=en&oc=bdcwbbz&s=bsd&ACD=qIa2RdNeLxiDAkm8tZKm&AID=0038386869 Speaking of, my coworker buddy picked up one of these e521s from the dell outlet (it was a refurb or a scratch and dent, I forget) with a DVD burner, 160GB, 1GB, etc for $350 Those are good machines to just toss a decent video card in it. I'm all for building yourself, but it's hard to beat a $400 dual core system. You should be able to regularly get one of the e521s for around $400 shipped. Then you can get a monitor somewhere else (and choose more particularly if you so desire). BTW you can indeed order from the business site without any problems, people do it all the time. My business is Mad Monkey Gaming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvin Posted February 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Thanks for everybody's input - it was very much appreciated. Between you all here,Leslie talking back with JoBoo, & getting some awesome help from a good friend of mine here in RI (who will help me upgrade the PC in the future if I want to do so). I finally made a purchase. I had some problems with the Dell Small Business side of things,so I just stuck with the Home end. This is what I bought: Dell E521 AMD Athlon 64x2 Dual Core 3800+ Windows Vista Premium upgrade 1 GB Dual Channel RAM 250 GB HD 16x DVD +/- RW NVIDIA GeForce 6150 LE Integrated Graphics GPU I didn't get a monitor right away,because my friend Kris let us borrow a 19" LCD for as long as we need it.I'd like to pay off my PC & then decide what monitor to get.Who knows,maybe something better will be available at that time. I don't need a high end PC for gaming,I'll be sticking with my consoles for the time being.That being said,I can always add a video card & another CD/DVD drive if I want. Total price - $566 shipped (including taxes) What do you think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Monkey Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 I've been very happy with my cheapie eMachine. The only two components that crapped out in it are stuff I installed (power supply and video card). Two other friends of mine have them and like them for a well-rounded, inexpensive basic machine. The T5224 might be comparable to what you want (but might come out to a little more with tax if you buy retail). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenMonkey Posted February 15, 2007 Report Share Posted February 15, 2007 IMO People spend too much money on PCs and especially on CPU power for gaming. I'm still gaming fine on my single-channel DDR1 system. 2.4ghz A64 3400+ (OC'd to 2.6), x850xt, etc. The only thing you need to spend decent amounts of money on is the video card. Even then, you have a few choices. You can spend big money like $300+ or so every 4-5 years or so on a vid card, or spend $150-$200 every 2-3 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exile Posted February 15, 2007 Report Share Posted February 15, 2007 I'm still gaming fine on my single-channel DDR1 system. 2.4ghz A64 3400+ (OC'd to 2.6), x850xt, etc. Mine is slightly better and I can't really game anymore given the quality I expect. I guess if you play non-graphic intensive games it's ok but quite a few games were giving me trouble. Most of my gaming buddies are buying HP machines and adding a video card. The Dell above looks pretty solid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenMonkey Posted February 15, 2007 Report Share Posted February 15, 2007 Mine is slightly better and I can't really game anymore given the quality I expect. I guess if you play non-graphic intensive games it's ok but quite a few games were giving me trouble. Most of my gaming buddies are buying HP machines and adding a video card. The Dell above looks pretty solid. 1920x1200 Guild Wars The only games I have some trouble with is the newest FPS games like FEAR combat. I have to run them at 1280x1024 or 1024x768. A new videocard would solve that problem, though. Most of the CPU advancement has been more cores. And very few companies are programming for more cores yet. So I don't really get the point of upgrading the CPU yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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