Alienware desktop

[ZeroSkating]

Been lookin for a better gaming pc, heres the stock version i guess of this alienware i found online

Alienware Aurora Desktop
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
No Monitor
Single Drive: 24X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability
3GB1 Triple Channel 1067Mhz DDR3
500GB2 - SATA-II, 3Gb/s, 7,200RPM, 16MB Cache HDD
Single 1GB1 NVIDIA® GeForce® GTS 240
1 Year Basic Service Plan


and for a little more than $200 more i added some stuff to it

OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
CHASSIS COLOR Lunar Shadow, Alienware Aurora Chassis
PROCESSOR Intel® Core™ i7 920 2.66GHz (8MB Cache) Quad Core Processor
WARRANTY AND SERVICE 1 Year Basic Service Plan
VIDEO CARD Single 1GB GDDR5 ATI Radeon™ HD 5770
MEMORY 3GB Triple Channel 1067Mhz DDR3
MONITOR No Monitor
HARD DRIVE 500GB - SATA-II, 3Gb/s, 7,200RPM, 16MB Cache HDD
OPTICAL DRIVE Single Drive: 24X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability
GAMING ESSENTIALS Killer Xeno™ Pro
Alienware Aurora Alienware Aurora Desktop
COOLING OPTION Alienware™ High-Performance Liquid Cooling
Adobe Reader Software Adobe Acrobat Reader


Sooo my question is, would either of these be good for gaming needs? Such as COD and WOW? and which should i go with, if either at all. let me know your thoughts on these. thanks.

Ive been looking into it, and some people say they are really good, while others say they break, theyre terrible, and very poor customer support.. so what would you suggest i do? If you say i shouldnt buy alienware, then what products should I be looking at?

 

[hellokitty[hk]]

Whats the price?
Not the best that i've seen...could be a little better and more balanced.

Better off building your own IMO.

 

[ZeroSkating]

its about $1300 i believe

 

[hellokitty[hk]]

Oh yeah building your own computer would be a lot better money wise...
But anyways, if possible, I wouldn't get that particular one.

 

[Relic]

As HK pointed out building your own PC will be a lot cheaper but that comes with its own difficulties so choose what works best for you. From the builds you posted though the extra $200 will get you a better gaming card that wont have issues with WoW and CoD.

Also Alienware isn't the only one who does custom gaming PC's there are plenty out there many cheaper some not. Here are a few names I can think of: iBuyPower, CyberpowerPC, Vigor Gaming and a couple higher class ones like Puget Systems & AVADirect. I'm sure there are many more but you get the idea. Search around and see what fits your needs best (price/performance). I can't comment on the level of customer service from most of them but the few I know that purchased custom built gaming rigs were satisfied.

 

[slh28]

The RAM is unimpressive and the graphics card is very much mid-range. If you're looking for a gaming PC then you should be looking at a Radeon 5850/5870, which I'm pretty sure you could get for your budget if you build the PC yourself, maybe you could also squeeze in an SSD boot drive... if you don't plan on a self-build then yeah you may want to look at some of those sites mentioned above. Alienware are VERY overpriced.

p.s. you don't need water cooling if you plan on leaving the CPU speed at stock.

 

[ZeroSkating]

Ok, so i went to Cyber Power, heres another computer i made for about $1,337.

Again let me know if the set up is good, if im missing anything, need to take someting out.. or keep lookin for others. Thanks


BLUETOOTH: None
CD: LG 22X DVD±/±RW + CD-R/RW Dual Layer Drive (BLACK COLOR)
CD2: None
CAS: * Raidmax Skyline Mid-Tower Gaming Case w/ Side-Panel Window [+8] (Black Color)
CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-930 2.80 GHz 8M L3 Cache LGA1366
CASUPGRADE: 12in (Blue Color) Cold Cathode Neon Light [+10]
CS_FAN: Default case fans
FREEBIE_CU: Free 1 of 3 Games - STREET FIGHTER IV, RESIDENT EVIL, or DARKVOID
FAN: Asetek 510LC Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator & Fan (Enhanced Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA)
FREEBIE_MB: Free Asus Gaming Joy Pad with Asus Motherboard Purchase
FREEBIE_RM: None
FA_HDD: Vigor iSURF II Hard Disk Drive Cooling System [+21] (1 x System)
FLASHMEDIA: INTERNAL 12in1 Flash Media Reader/Writer (BLACK COLOR)
FLOPPY: None
HDD: Single Hard Drive (750GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD [-21])
HDD2: Single Hard Drive [+44] (320GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD [+3])
IEEE_CARD: None
KEYBOARD: Xtreme Gear (Black Color) Multimedia/Internet USB Keyboard
MOUSE: XtremeGear Optical USB 3 Buttons Gaming Mouse
MONITOR: None
MONITOR2: None
MODEM: None
MULTIVIEW: Non-SLI/Non-CrossFireX Mode Supports Multiple Monitors
MEMORY: 6GB (2GBx3) DDR3/1600MHz Triple Channel Memory Module (Corsair or Major Brand)
MOTHERBOARD: * Asus P6T SE Intel X58 Chipset CrossFireX Mainboard Triple-Channel DDR3/1600 SATA RAID w/ eSATA
MB_ADDON: None
NOISEREDUCE1: Power Supply Gasket [+5]
NOISEREDUCE2: Anti-Vibration Fan Mounts [+9]
NETWORK: Onboard Gigabit LAN Network
OVERCLOCK: Pro OC (Performance Overclock 10% or more) [+19]
OS: Microsoft® Windows® 7 Home Premium [+104] (64-bit Edition)
PRINTER: None
PRINTER_CABLE: None
POWERSUPPLY: 700 Watts Power Supplies [+10] (XtremeGear SLI/CrossFireX Ready Power Supply)
RUSH: NO; READY TO SHIP IN 5~10 BUSINESS DAYS
SERVICE: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT
SOUND: ESS 3D WAVETABLE SOUND PCI [+12]
SPEAKERS: 120 Watt Stereo Speakers [+10] (Black Color)
TEMP: None
TVRC: None
USB: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
USBHD: None

 

[hellokitty[hk]]

No...thats practically the same.
I went on cyberpowerpc, and made one, under $1100 USD with:
Now this is pretty flexible, but the parts I would take for sure would be
Core i5 750
5850
Corsair 650w
H55 motherboard.
4gb (2x2) DDR3 1333/1600

Liquid cooling, harddrive coolers, neon lights, pre-overclocking, SOUND: ESS 3D WAVETABLE SOUND PCI [+12]
, NOISEREDUCE1: Power Supply Gasket [+5]
NOISEREDUCE2: Anti-Vibration Fan Mounts [+9] , are all wastes of money IMO.

 

[ZeroSkating]

Thoughts on these?

AMD QUAD CORE CUSTOM GAMING COMPUTER PC w/ WINDOWS 7: $573

CPU AM3: AMD Athlon II X4 Quad-Core Processor 620 (2.6GHz) AM3
Motherboard AM3: MSI GF615M-P33 Socket AM3/ GeForce 6150SE/ DDR3/ A&V&GbE/ MATX Motherboard
Memory: DDR2: 2GB STT DDR2-800 128x8 Memory
Hard Drive(s): 320GB SATA2 7200rpm 16MB Hard Drive
Optical Drive(s): 16X DVD-ROM Drive (Black)
Video Card(s): Radeon HD4350 1GB DDR2 2DVI PCI-Express Video Card
Case: Exotic Ruby Red Front Panel Case w/Black in & Out CS308RD
Power Supply: Logisys 480W 20/24 Power Supply
Sound Card: Onboard Audio
Operating System: Microsoft Windows


AMD ATHLON II X3 435 2.9GHz GAMING PC w/4GB DDR3/GT220: $471

CPU AMD Athlon II X3 Triple-Core 435 2.9GHz AM3,1.5MB,45nm,95W
CPU Cooler AMD Athlon II Original Stock Fan & Heatsink
Memory 1 Kingston 2GB DDR3-1333MHz (KVR1333D3N9K2/2G)
Memory 2 Kingston 2GB DDR3-1333MHz (KVR1333D3N9K2/2G)
Motherboard ASUS M4N68T-M (AM3,NVIDIA Geforce 7025,DDR3-1800,SATAII)
Card Reader All-in-One 2.5" USB 2.0 Internal Card Reader/Writer
Hard Drive 1 Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 SATA II 500GB 16MB
Optical Drive LG 22X GH22NS50 DVD+/-RW Dual Layer SATA Rewriter (Black)
Video NVIDIA GeForce GT 220 1GB DDR3 PCI-E2.0 CUDA PhysX
Audio Onboard 8 Channel High Definition Audio
Network Card Onboard Gigabit Network Card
Case GOLDEN FIELD 8198B Stylish Deluxe Black Mid Tower
Power Supply PRO-POWER 500W Deluxe Switching Power Supply
Assembly Fully Professional Assembled and Tested
Warranty 1 Year Parts & 3 Years Labor Warranty

 

[hellokitty[hk]]

Pretty mediocre too, you get what you pay for.
Again, let me reiterate my suggestion:

Case: Apex Vortex 3620 Mid-Tower Gaming Case (Black Color) [-17]
Internal USB Extension Module: None
Neon Light Upgrade: None
Extra Case Fan Upgrade: Default case fans
Noise Reduction Technology: None
CPU: Intel® Core™ i5-750 2.66 GHz 8M L2 Cache LGA1156 [+90]
Venom Boost Fast And Efficient Factory Overclocking: No Overclocking
Cooling Fan: Intel LGA1156 Certified CPU Fan & Heatsink [-20]
Motherboard: [CrossFireX] GigaByte GA-H55M-UD2H Intel H55 Chipset CrossFireX Support DDR3 LGA1156 Ultra Durable™3 mATX w/ Onboard Graphic, HDMI, DVI, Display Port(Digital Display Output), 7.1 HD Audio, GbLAN, USB2.0, SATA-II, 2 Gen2 PCIe & 2 PCI
Motherboard Expansion Card: None
Freebies: None
Memory: 4GB (2GBx2) DDR3/1600MHz Dual Channel Memory Module (Corsair or Major Brand)
Freebies: None
Video Card: ATI Radeon HD 5850 1GB DDR5 16X PCIe Video Card [DirectX 11 Support] [+251] (Major Brand Powered by ATI)
Video Card 2: None
Video Card 3: None
Dedicated PHYSX Card: None
Multiple Video Card Settings: Non-SLI/Non-CrossFireX Mode Supports Multiple Monitors
Power Supply Upgrade: Corsair Power Supplies [+101] (* 650 Watts CMPSU-650TX - Quad SLI Ready)
Hard Drive: Single Hard Drive (750GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD [+16])
Data Hard Drive: None
Hard Drive Cooling Fan: None
USB Portable Drive: None
Optical Drive: LG 22X DVD±/±RW + CD-R/RW Dual Layer Drive (BLACK COLOR)
Optical Drive 2: None
Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
LCD Monitor: None
2nd Monitor: None
Speakers: None
Network: Onboard Gigabit LAN Network
Modem: None
Mega Notebook/Netbook/Server Bundle: None
Keyboard: Xtreme Gear (Black Color) Multimedia/Internet USB Keyboard
Mouse: XtremeGear Optical USB 3 Buttons Gaming Mouse
Gaming Gear: None
Extra Thermal Display: None
Wireless 802.11B/G Network Card: None
External Wireless Network Card: None
Wireless 802.11 B/G/N Access Point: None
Bluetooth: None
Flash Media Reader/Writer: None
Video Camera: None
Headset: None
Printer: None
Printer Cable: None
Power Protection: None
IEEE1394 Card: None
USB Port: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
Floppy: None
Operating System: Microsoft® Windows® 7 Home Premium (32-bit Edition)
Media Center Remote Control & TV Tuner: None
Office Suite: None
Ultra Care Option: None
Service: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT
Rush Service: NO; READY TO SHIP IN 5~10 BUSINESS DAYS
$1120


And AMD build using a Phenom II 720 would be great too, but their homosexual and don't have the option.
But again, you're much better off building your own.

 

[slh28]

Yeah I would agree with the above, except that you may want to get a P55 motherboard instead of the H55 one in case you want to add another video card in the future.

Also if you're willing to spend a bit more you could get a small (30GB-60GB) SSD as a boot drive and select another storage drive.