upgrade or buy a new computer?

[bz]

Hi,

I am not sure what I want to do. Upgrade the video card or just buy a new
dell.

I have a 2.8Ghz P4 w/ HT, 1Gig of memory, and a AGP ATI 9800 Pro with
128Meg.
Antec 350W power supply.

I have noticed that my 350W PS is running pretty hard with my 9800Pro.

My first plan is to upgrade the video card to a GeForce 7600, and upgrade to
a bigger power supply to drive the card. This will set back around
$200+$100 = $300 bucks

My second plan is to go all out and buy a new dell for $1400.

Should I just buy a new Dell XPS400 for $1400 (this one comes with a nVidia
7800GTX)
or should I look for a better AGP video card?


The Dell comes with a 7800GTX but only comes with a 375W power supply.
Will that 375W enough? I don't want that fan inside the ps keeps cranking
high all day.

What do you guys think?

 

[GHalleck]

Hi,

I am not sure what I want to do. Upgrade the video card or just buy a new
dell.

I have a 2.8Ghz P4 w/ HT, 1Gig of memory, and a AGP ATI 9800 Pro with
128Meg.
Antec 350W power supply.

I have noticed that my 350W PS is running pretty hard with my 9800Pro.

My first plan is to upgrade the video card to a GeForce 7600, and upgrade to
a bigger power supply to drive the card. This will set back around
$200+$100 = $300 bucks

My second plan is to go all out and buy a new dell for $1400.

Should I just buy a new Dell XPS400 for $1400 (this one comes with a nVidia
7800GTX)
or should I look for a better AGP video card?


The Dell comes with a 7800GTX but only comes with a 375W power supply.
Will that 375W enough? I don't want that fan inside the ps keeps cranking
high all day.

What do you guys think?

What are the real reasons for your dissatisfaction with the
present Dell computer except that there is some money burning
a hole in your pocket? Some parts can be easily replaced in
a proprietary system while others can not be done so easily.
And replacing one OEM branded system with another presents the
same issues in the future.

The alternative of a custom-built desktop computer could be a
more reasonable approach. For modern computers, 375 Watts is
somewhat paltry and seriously limits future upgrades. The rule-
of-thumb for a Pentium-4 system in the 3.0 GHz range (and faster)
is at least 450 Watts. The Dell XPS400 is somewhat obsolete in
view of current custom-builds or DIY-builds that uses Pentium-D
CPU's up to 3.6 GHz, Dual-Channel DDR2-800 MHz RAM, etc.

Look around, IMHO, this is not really the year to build or buy
systems as there are major changes looming on the horizon that
includes preparing and buying for Windows Vista, 64-bit systems,
and so on. Nor may the Intel Pentium line be the best CPU of
choice in the future.

 

[antioch]

Hello GH
I am with you all the way with your advice - if the PO can wait - big
changes are due in 2007.

TO BZ,
You may find that spending money now will be a waste.
And in the meantime, Google and do some research with those review sites and
performance forums - I did for my last two 'build to order' systems - have
not regretted it.
If you want some links/suggestions, come back.
Your current system should be OK - had you got a 3Ghz P4 then 400w would
have been minimum. If yours has the Prescott chip they do run hot.
The 9800 is/was a cracking GPU in my opinion, but I think over the last year
or so, Ati have lost it a bit. My latest has nVidia.
An upgrade of GPU with a 2.8 may not give any great increase in
performance - mind you there are two camps of thought - low to med CPU with
high end GPU no great increase in performance compared to a low to mid range
CPU coupled with mid range GPU - BUT high end GPU needs a 3.2 or better
CPU(so the argument goes)for a better performance - but then you have not
said what is your usage of your system.
Good luck with whatever you decide.
Rgds
Antioch

 

[JS]

Are you a 'Gamer' or just use the computer for general purpose applications?

JS

 

[Bob Knowlden]

I didn't know that any version of the 7600 was available for AGP. The only
7-series GPU I've seen listed for AGP is the 7800 GS.

I am disappointed that the Dell XPS400 isn't offered with the 7900GT or
7900GTX cards. The 7900GT is essentially the equal in performance of the 256
MB 7800GTX, but it costs less. The 7900GTX is more like the 512 MB 7800GTX,
but at a much lower price. I wonder if this has anything to do with some
suggestions I've seen that the 7900 series cards have been having
compatibility issues with some Dell machines? (I doubt that it has much to
do with power supplies. I believe that the 7900GT draws less power than a
256 MB 7800GTX.) The 256 MB 7800GTX is a nice card, I like mine very much,
but the newer cards offer lower prices or better performance.

If you wish to get a new (gaming?) PC, it may be worth waiting two months
for the Intel Core 2 Duo CPUs (formerly codenamed Conroe). AMD Athlon64 CPUs
have been popular with gamers, but it looks like Intel is trying to become
the leader in price/performance. (My last two build have been A64 based, but
I'm not a fan of either company.)

Speaking of Dell, you may find this worth a look:

http://www.hardocp.com/news.html?news=MTg0OTQsQXByaWwgICAgLDIwMDYsaG5ld3M=

(This is on the "bloatware" that has been increasing on Dell systems. The
good news is that apparently Dell supplies some systems without it.)

Address scrambled. Replace nkbob with bobkn.

 

[bz]

I don't have a Dell. I have been building my own system(s) for at least 10
years now. My office uses only Dell and HP. And I really like their
designs. They are fast (most of them in my office are 3.2g P4), and
absolutely quiet!

But the ones in my office can't run any game. So, I check Dell and find
that the XPS 400 has a great design that I cannot build myself. The design
of the XPS case and the use of BTX motherboard is absolutely wonderful. The
interior is nice and clean. All the Dell are much much quieter than any of
the HP in my office, or anything that I have ever built.

I don't know what motherboard they use for the Dell but I know the HP uses
Foxcon that is very solid... physically!!

One example for the design is that if you have a Creative sound card, you
cannot route the output to the jacks in the front of any case. Becasue they
don't sell any cable to plug to the sound card. On the other hand, they do
sell the cable to Dell and HP.

The second reason is that if I am going to build the same Dell, I will be
paying alot more.

I have a Cooler Master Centrior case, a Antec 350, Asus P4P800 with a 2.8g
P4, Sound Blaster Audigy 2, and ATI 9800Pro. If I am going to upgrade to
PCI-E motherboard, I need to replace all of these and format the hard drive
to reinstall everything.

So... I think the reason is:
1) I can't buy any off the shelf stuffs that can match the design of the
Dell
2) Dell is cheaper than DIY.

My second plan of buying a new Dell is to replace the 375 power suppy with a
450 or 500 one. I did this once but the new power supply didn't fit their
case. So, I needed to "made" it fit.... forcefully and phyically!! ;-)

The last reason for a new system is that I want to play GTR and the upcoming
GTR2. (GTR runs horriblely slow in my system.) I am running F1-2002 pretty
good in my current system... but... "pretty good" is not quite enough... I
guess... ;-) I want more... more power Scotty!!

I don't play any FPS. not a fan for those. but simulations I like!

 

[bz]

An upgrade of GPU with a 2.8 may not give any great increase in

performance

That is exactly what I am thinking... So... if I need to replace everything,
it is cheaper to just order the Dell XPS400.

 

[bz]

I play mostly simulations... like F1-2002, and GTR, and MAME.

Not a fan of FPS. I got headache playing any of these.

But GTR really take a bite on my system. So, I am thinking to just burn
some cash and get a Dell.

 

[bz]

Oh...

Sorry... it is not 7600... it is ATI X1600Pro with 512Meg.

The XPS400 comes with a 375W power supply. I doubt this guy can drive the
7900. On the other hand, the XPS600 does come with a 600W ps. But... I
think the XPS600 is not a bargin. First of all, it is almost 2 grands...
and I think you don't really need a 7900 to play game. For 2 grands, I
would buy a XBox or a Wii instead.

 

[RJK]

"All the Dell are much much quieter than any of the HP in my office, or
anything that I have ever built."

....that's because you haven't been selecting the correct parts, higher
quality (of course more expensive) / lower or speed adjustable case fans /
very quiet cpu fan or Zalman flower, high qulaity silent psu's (quite a few
of them out there now), seagate hard-drives mountedin a decent system box
with rubber mounts ......etc. etc.

regards, Richard

 

[bz]

"All the Dell are much much quieter than any of the HP in my office, or
anything that I have ever built."

...that's because you haven't been selecting the correct parts, higher
quality (of course more expensive) / lower or speed adjustable case fans /
very quiet cpu fan or Zalman flower, high qulaity silent psu's (quite a
few of them out there now), seagate hard-drives mountedin a decent system
box with rubber mounts ......etc. etc.

regards, Richard

The Dell is really good. They don't use any of these but yet they are very
well built.

 

[antioch]

I would say they are no better or worse than any other all-built in China.
But have you tried their tech help and support????
I tried to get a customized system from them.
I gave up after a few hours of phone calls and getting nowhere.
Two persons I spoke to had no idea what 'simulations' are.
That was enough for me.
Rgds
Antioch

 

[bz]

I would say they are no better or worse than any other all-built in China.

But have you tried their tech help and support????

In a matter of fact, I did contact them many times. Excellent support. One
time I called them to request a replacement Restore CD set. They mailed me
and I received the package the VERY next day. Wow!!! This is service man!
but they mailed the package to my old address where I used to order the
Dell. So, I called them again and the VERY next day, I got my package in my
new house!!!

Same thing with HP. I called them once for a replace hard disk. I got the
disk the very next day I called them. Called them noon and the FedEx guy
showed up with a new hard disk next day morning. Wow!!


Everything made in China now. Well... time to move on... I am not one of
them who wants to stop the world from progressing...

Put all these politic aside, I do like the design from Dell very much. If
you open the Dell, you can see it is put very well together inside.

 

[peter]

I would build my own................Salvage as much as you can from your
present system..like HD/CD/DVD/Sound card.
Then go looking for a decent mobo/chip/memory
Then comes the fun part of finding the required parts to build a Quiet
system....Case....Cooling Fans....PSU.
Antec makes some nice quiet cases and PSU.Thermalright makes some nice quiet
CPU coolers if you buy the right fans..
I've got this recently build system system sitting next to me which i can
barely hear..running 120mm fans ,Thermalright Si97A Cooler with Panaflo fan
in an Antec P160 case with a Truepower2.0 PSU.Motherboard with HeatPipe(no
fan) ,a 7800GT video card,1024 of RAM and a AMD 64x2 chip....Quiet as
hell.......and modern enough to run Vista.
When I decide to upgrade again I can buy "off the shelf" without having to
go to Dell specific parts .
peter

 

[Eric]

I think:

It is a waste to spend more than $1000 on any PC. You can build a top of
the line PC for under $1000. Look for systems online with rebates. I think
it was Newegg.com not too long ago had a nice AMD 64 bit machine for $1000
with a $500 instant rebate.

Any new desktop PC must have 450+ watt power supply. Many newer ones come
with 500 or even 600 watt.

Any video card you get, make sure it has at least 256MB RAM. I hear MS'
next OS will require min 256MB video RAM. New laptops come with no video
RAM, with a video chip built in to the Mobo capable of sharing at least
256MB.

I agree with the others, wait as long as you can to upgrade. In the next
year or two they will come out with more new technology (and more production
of current high end hardware), MS is supposed to have their new OS, and
prices will come down a bunch more.

Dell is for people who don't know much about PCs. You can find cheaper
comparable systems online. They charge extra for support. They suck you in
with promises of cheap prices, then charge double or more once you configure
that system to your minimum needs.