Which Desktop?

[Thoroughly Nice Bloke...]

Hi all,

I have been wanting to replace my eight year old desktop for some time but left it because I didn't want to use vista, now that Windows 7 seems to be up and running I think that maybe the time has come.

So, I would be very grateful for the opinions of you guys/girls on here. Money is not an issue but speed, memory and reliability are.

Dell springs to mind but you do here bad things about them too.

All information will be gratefully received,

Many thanks,

TNB

[mad_jock]

Personally if your willing to pay extra the only way to go is build your own.

Sprogget seems to be the man if your after a multimedia experence.

I had a look a month or 2 back at building my own but discovered that the locals in my part of the world just can't get the decent stuff as there is no market for it.

If you haven't built one before it really isn't as scary as you think.

Its all to do with planning. The putting it together will take you a day, then loading the OS another day.

Personally i would go for....

Decent case with not less than 750 PSU

quad proc AME

mobo without a onboard graphics or sound but does have hardware RAID.

Medium level Soundblaster card of some form

Medium level Nvidia graphics card with as much memory as you can afford.

Memory: Fill it up but if you want it working and then upgrade later just us the max size the socket can take so you don't fill the banks up.

Disks: CD/DVD burner etc Couple of HD one for OS one for data you can go to 3 if you want to use the raid as a backup solution.

OS: Win7 64bit. home

Network: The mobo will prob come with 10/100 but you might need a wireless card

Once you get into it its acutally quite good fun and you will have alot better machine than you can buy off the shelf but it will cost a bit more.

[hellsbrink]

Hp do a desktop with an ntel Core i7 CPU, 8Gb of Ram and 2 x 1Tb hard disks as well as the usual stuff like a Blu-ray reader and a DVD burner for just over £1100. Anything around that sort of spec will fly.

Of course, it can be useful talking to a good small PC store as they may be able to build you a system as good for less, but one that isn't "restricted" in the motherboard department like so many brand name PC's are.

[mad_jock]

If you want to look at parts and prices Laptops, Components, MP3 players, Software, Digital Cameras - dabs.com (http://www.dabs.co.uk) have everything.

But after you choose you will prob be able to get it cheaper else where.

[hellsbrink]

If you want to look at parts and prices Laptops, Components, MP3 players, Software, Digital Cameras - dabs.com (http://www.dabs.co.uk/) have everything.

I used to use this lot, very efficient, good prices, back up from them whenever there was an issue was top notch. They'll sell you a fully built system too.

Aria PC - Computer Hardware, Components, Monitors.. at lowest prices (http://www.aria.co.uk/)

[al446]

I may be wrong in this, if so please advise me, but I would steer clear of HP & Dell (same company really). In the past I have looked at upgrading an HP and was impossible as their cases etc will not take other mobos, the backplate was fixed, so would have been stuck with using expensive HP bits. Dell is a downmarket HP.

[Sprogget]

I'd vote for Dabs too, I used to know the owner before he sold it to BT & he built a decent business that looked after it's customers. The main places I use for components these days are ebuyer, Kustom pc's, Novatech and to a lesser extent, overclockers.

[hellsbrink]

Well, al, I'm sure that both Dell and HP would LOVE to know when they became the same company, because they are not! Maybe you are thinking of HP and Compaq?

But you are right about buying a Dell or HP/Compaq regarding the motherboards and case issues. Also, as I hinted, the mobo's do not have all the features of one you would buy separately for a self-build. You can find adding things is almost impossible unless you remove something first.

[frostbite]

That's very true about adding bits to Dell. Decent and reliable computers in my experience, but very difficult or impossible to upgrade.

[Keef]

Having repaired (or tried to repair, in one case) HP and Dell, I would avoid.

Until the last machine, I'd built my own for about 20 years. I couldn't match the price of the one I bought: I checked motherboard spec, graphics card, etc and was and remain very pleased with it.

I specified a 400 watt power supply which I thought would be enough. It was for a year or so! Go for the biggest you can get without paying silly money. Too many available watts aren't wasted. Too few cause all sorts of problems.

The important thing is to decide what you do and don't want it to do. That will decide (for example) whether or not you want multiple hard drives and a RAID arrangement, or a super-expensive water-cooled graphics card, or Blu-ray etc.

I looked at a new machine a month or so back, and for the tower and innards I reckoned on spending £550. I could have paid over £1200 from the same supplier.

[green granite]

Do have a look at the E-Bay power sellers offerings, brought my last one on there, all top speck components, never had any problems with it.

[al446]

Hellsbrink - I stand corrected, forgot about Compaq.

As for suppliers, I would add microdirect. It is greatly down to where you live, Dabs used to be on my doorstep until they relocated so now I think of MD. My present machine was bought from a local source but I later found that, despite them being a 20 min drive from me, I had to send it back by courier as they have no counter. I would suggest that if sourcing local phone them first to find out.

If cash is no object then definitely build your own, you will get what you want rather than an approximation.

[Thoroughly Nice Bloke...]

Many thanks for all your replies, certainly given me a few idea's.

TNB

[Albert Square]

I would also add Microdirect as a good supplier. Can be very competitive, especially with special offers. Good delivery. Only problem used to be that they did not have decent cases on offer, but much improved now. I had one problem with a monitor that failed but that was exchanged very quickly. (No connection with MD, DABS are good as well).

[Saab Dastard]

I have found that ebuyer and lambdatek are usually cheaper than Dabs for the same stuff, and have better customer service.

It is still very hard (if not impossible) to build your own PC to the same spec. as a volume manfr. such as Dell AND at the same price. But as has been said, there are pros and cons to both approaches.

SD

[timmyneedham]

Get an IMac?
TN

[Baldur]

Bought my current desktop from PC Specialist. That is, I specificied what I wanted and they built it.

Had a lot of fun getting as high a spec as possible without going over my somewhat limited budget (ended up exceeding the budget by £1 ! )

Excellent customer service, arrived on the date/time specified and build quality was superb - even had an extra case fan fitted which I had not asked/paid for.

[mixture]

Personally if your willing to pay extra the only way to go is build your own.

"Pay the extra" ... what, blood, sweat and tears "extra" ?

Why, in this day and age would anyone want to build their own PC ?

Honestly, for your average Joe those days are gone.... there's so much good stuff available "off the shelf", both PC and Mac.

Having repaired (or tried to repair, in one case) HP and Dell, I would avoid.

When was the last time you looked inside an HP ? :cool:

[hellsbrink]

Mixture

As has been stated earlier, building your own PC can make a difference as you get what YOU want without any added "extras". Also, the features on the motherboards, etc, are a bit "restricted" compared to a self-build or one built ba A.N. Other to your specification. And let's not forget how the power supplies on things like Dells and HPs are on the limit for what is fitted "as built by te company".

Oh, and I have looked inside an HP recently. Stepkids have a Core2Quad one. A decent machine but absolutely NO upgrade possibilities without removing things.

[mad_jock]

Nah being a sad git I actually would get quite alot of enjoyment out of building my own.

Having everything how I want it, not how some designer has made a compromise between what the market will pay and what he could really do.

I will grant you there would be some blood spilled but it would be my own.

Tears never, swearing frequently I grant you especially when dropping screws.

Sweat only when my head gets to near to the lamp I will be using.

If you have the time and the inclanation why not?

Mind I am one of these types who is going to build his own aircraft eventually.

[mixture]

Well, I guess each to their own. I only said what I did because last time I decided to build my own, I ended up deciding it was a deeply unrewarding experience and that my time was worth more than spending hours pouring over component spec sheets followed by another few hours of building the thing, only to find the processor was not seated correctly and having to pull the whole lot apart again......

Personally, I would rather buy a high-end "off the shelf" box from HP or Apple and then invest spare time in other hobbies. :ok:

Here's to the home builders.....

http://blog.makezine.com/upload/2008/12/benhecks_pc_mod_pick_of_the_day_wol/fug_0.jpg

[Sprogget]

How to build a pc.

1) Purchase components, bring together on high tech workbench (dining room table)

2) Screw motherboard to case (six screws, 1 minute).

3) Push fit expansion cards to slots in motherboard (1 minute)

4) Place cpu in slot. Add thermal paste, place cpu cooler on top (1 minute)

5) Place ram in slots (1 minute)

6) Screw hdd/optical drive/floppy drive (Mwahh) Another ten minutes)

7) Wire everything up (40 hours)*

8) Plug in, stand well back & hit the power.

9) Install O/S (1 hour or if LR, allow three weeks.)

10) Enjoy shiny new pc.

That is about all there is to it. Today's Lego kits are harder to build than a pc, the question is why wouldn't you do it?


*Possible exaggeration.


Typed entirely for Mixture's benefit on this homebuilt wheezebox::}
http://i49.tinypic.com/24glziu.jpg

[tony draper]

Recently upgraded Bro Drapers HP Pavilion desktop,well replaced everything within,mobo fitted existing case screw hole no prob,had to change the PSU though.
Been bulding me own machines since the days of the 33 mhz 486,before that I had been paying people to upgrade memory install HDs ect,bought a doubler chip to take it up to 66 mhz and had a look inside the case for the first time took out two minutes to figure out a monkey could build one of these things.
:rolleyes:

[Greek God]

I once purchased a Packard Bell which worked fine for a while but then I wanted to upgrade the HD. What a nightmare PB do something called a tattoo to the HD so the software disk will only work with the original HD. Eventually after much blood sorted it until I wanted to tweak it some more - impossible. It seemed that branded systems are not designed to upgrade / change / add to etc so it was skipped and went down the home build route. I also thought I had the OS from the PB but it turned out PB only licence the software to the machine so the user has no rights to any software if the machine dies so I vowed never to touch a branded system again. However, if you do go the branded way make sure the OS original install disks are included and not bundled.
I just built another - took about 4 hours & its great I used Scan Computers who were brilliant and good on price
Good Luck

[Sprogget]

The first PC I ever bought was £1000 from a long since defunct Evesham Micro. It was a good machine in it's time & to this day, I still use the Cambridge Soundworks 5.1 speakers in my home media set up, but upon opening the box up, out of curiosity more than anything else, it dawned on me that these things are no more complex to assemble than Lego.

After that, I never bought another pre built machine & I doubt I ever will. It's too easy to build and get the exact spec. you want.

[PolarisPilot]

You are absolutely right.http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/src:www.pprune.org/get/images/smilies/thumbs.gif I will never buy a pre-built PC.
There is another thing which some may not realise, :ugh:. Branded PCs usually only have a replacement warranty of one year. However, individual components, like hard disks, optical drives have three year warranties. Some RAM chips have a lifetime warranty, or at least a five year one. Not to mention the price would be much lower than the Branded PC sold by say Dell - of the same specs.
So if you buy your own software and assemble your PC, you probably still end up saving a lot, given that the OEM software bundle usually costs a few dollars lesser than the separate one.
Some OS do not allow you to install other OS. or, the warranty may expire. In the home built PC, you can install any type of software you want. I myself dual boot Windoz with Ubuntu Linux, and quite happy.

Laptops, however MAY be better purchased from the vendor directly. Sadly, there are very few laptops that come without an OS pre-installed.
Well, here is to Open-source too !!