Building vs Buying Prebuilt New $2500 Gaming/Work System Advice

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Rhaegyn

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Hello all. I would like to request assistance from the most knowledgeable computer community online on building vs buying a new $2500 gaming/workstation PC.

In short, I am really looking at the new Alienware area 51 systems vs building my own custom system, and would very much like some expert advice/recommendations of the pros/cons of going through with either option. All expert advice is welcome, and please do give your thoughts on anything and everything you can think of as it relates to the pros/cons of each option, and what you would do in your own case. The price range and components of the system I have in mind are below, and my main use for the system will be gaming at 1440p resolution (above 1080p) playing dota 2, sc2, and other new titles to come, as well as use for a work/entertainment PC.

- Budget: ~$2300-2500

- Alienware area 51 model with x1 GTX 980 GPU / i7/ and 1TB HDD with 256 SSD

VS

- Making a custom PC ~$2500 with x1 GTX 980 GPU / i7 / and same hybrid storage setup

The primary difference I see between the two setups is: with the premade alienware, you get a really incredible looking tower with an integrated light system and good components, but you miss out on some of benefits of the new components you can get when making your own PC such as: Active PFC power supply, new USB 3.1 and type C motherboards, and a few of the newer overclocked 980 GPUs.

Please share your thoughts on what you would do given this budget and the circumstance I mentioned above, as well as any other thoughts on the pros/cons that you can think of. Thank you so much in advanced for any assistance the community can provide; its greatly appreciated.
 
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How about this one with TWO GTX 980s. Building your own comes out cheaper, and you get some experience also.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($328.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($99.99 @ B&H)
Motherboard: MSI Z97-GAMING 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($139.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($514.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($514.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair 760W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $2089.30
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-18 10:03 EDT-0400
 
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Wow, that a really fantastic system and for a really good price. One of the benefits that I see of getting a pre-made Alienware A51 is the lighting system, the very nice tower, and the pre-installed liquid cooling system; these are all aesthetic reasons of course. Moreover, I have built many custome PC's over the years, but I've never installed a liquid cooling system in my machine so I am unsure how susceptible they are to problems, or how difficult they are to install in general.

I was thinking that perhaps a solution would be to purchase a really bare bones cheap version of the A51 to get the tower, lighting system, and pre-installed liquid cooling, and then purchase replacement GPU, storage system, and possibly moba for it.

Can you offer any insight on this option and the concerns I referenced? thank you so much for your help and time.
 
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Installing a water cooling system for your CPU is fairly easy. It's similar to installing a regular cpu cooler and sometimes bay drives. The only additional thing is to add tubes with compression fittings, and the liquid coolant. Then make sure you have no leaks. All this is just a few extra steps, but of course you can always buy a closed loop water cooling system which come with the cooling block, tubing, radiator, and pump pre-assembled, all you have to do is screw the radiator somewhere and attach the block to your CPU. Installing lighting is also fairly easy. He can buy a nice case for cheaper price and install lighting which doesn't cost a lot and he can customize the way he likes it.

I highly encourage you to build your own if you are able to. But if you are not really experienced with computer hardware for part installation and wiring, as well as software for drivers and such, then I would recommend buying a prebuilt desktop.

I built my own about 3-4 years ago with little experience in the hardware side and I wasn't sure how everything fits, what's compatible, and where each wire goes but I definitely learned a lot and had no problems once the installation was complete. Watching YouTube videos and doing some research will definitely give you a perspective if you're willing to put the effort or not. We can offer you builds, but it's up to you to decide if you'd like to do the homework and build your own.
 
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980 x 2 is good and all but how do you feel about 980 Ti x 2

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($328.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ Mwave)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-G1.SNIPER Z97 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($121.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($104.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.46 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($649.99 @ B&H)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($649.99 @ B&H)
Case: Fractal Design Define S w/Window ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($159.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $2336.25
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-18 12:31 EDT-0400
 
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I think you can put LED strips and connect them to molex to get the lighting. For cooling, Area 51 uses AIO right? I included a H100i AIO liquid cooler, which is very simple to install, does not require any customizing (besides removing and/or adding a fan) and can be easily cleaned. There's a very small chance of leak. I cannot fight with you over the looks of that case though you wouldn't be looking at it the whole time while gaming/working, right? 😀
Though if you would make a custom loop, you'd have to buy pumps, radiator and fans, tubing, water/GPU blocks, coolant (or distilled water) and reservoirs. That is more complicated but gives good results. About buying the case from alienware, well you can try to ask them if they sell the case separately then fill in your components. Buying an A51 already with components is a waste of money. You can also try to find people selling used A51s and ask them if you could buy the case though i do not know which motherboard size can it fit. You also have cases like these though they only fit mITX motherboards which means only one GPU is allowed.

980 x 2 is good and all but how do you feel about 980 Ti x 2

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($328.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ Mwave)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-G1.SNIPER Z97 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($121.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($104.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.46 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($649.99 @ B&H)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($649.99 @ B&H)
Case: Fractal Design Define S w/Window ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($159.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $2336.25
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-18 12:31 EDT-0400
Click to expand...

+1 for the build, i'd say for $350 more it is worth it.
 
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Very nice system, and yes, I would definitely say that the price difference would be worth it. However, wouldn't a single 980ti be enough to play almost any title on ultra settings at 1440p with gysnc, and 2 980ti's be overkill? I do want to future proof my purchase and be able to play upcoming titles, but because a significant amount of my gaming time is spent playing titles like dota 2, I don't want a system like that to go to waste.

Moreover, other than for playing the very best/graphically intense games on the highest settings, is SLi really worth it? I've read that when using SLi, your second card only improves performance roughly by 30% rather then an additional 50% GPU performance some would expect from having an entire other card.

Also, has driver support and game support gotten better for SLi PC's in recent years? I can remember about 5-7 years ago SLi PC's seemed to cause more problems then they were worth, but now it seems that most high end rigs recommend using dual or tri SLi setups.

 
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Yes SLI support has gone up in recent years, but mate you said your budget was ~$2500, so we put up a build for that money. If you wanted less, let's say just to be able to play Dota 2 then something like this would be just fine (plus an SSD which i forgot to put):

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($176.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($69.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card ($339.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Rosewill REDBONE U3 ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 600B 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $784.19
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-19 15:06 EDT-0400
 
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I recently was able to find a nice base Area 51 system with good components that wouldn't require much additional $ to improve to the level of the systems recommended in this post.

The system as at the link below: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/alienware-desktop-intel-core-i7-8gb-memory-2tb-hard-drive-epic-silver/3993543.p?id=1219613161272&skuId=3993543

This system has a GTX 980, the case, 8gb ram, and a higher end i7, which are all the components I would like. It seems that the only additional things I would need to do is add 8gbs of ram, and install an SSD along the 2TB HDD to make it perfect. This way I can get this amazing triad case I'm in love with and just add the few components I would like improved upon.

From the projected price I'm looking at it should land me around $2500. would someone be so kind as to make a custom PC with PC part picker with similar specs to see just how comparable the price would be? From my assessment, it seems that alienware has become much more competitive with their pricing, and the system I'm looking at with the modifications I mentioned above shouldn't cost me much extra $. The only significant difference in price it seems would be the case at ~$200 added to the price, but other then that, the price of the premade with my additional changes to specs seems comparable to making a custom PC.

would anyone be so kind as to provide their ideas on these options?
 
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We can't precisely put the PC together for you because it doesn't say which CPU it has (only says 5th gen i7), also ram is DDR4 which is fast and good though again it doesn't say which ram. Now that might be a problem because unless you don't buy it you won't know which 8GBs of ram to add, because i don't know if you can get away with buying different brands of ram and put them together.
I'd still ask that guy if he can sell the case separately if it's your fantasy love and putting what bsod1 made with two 980Tis
 
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The processor is a: Intel® Core™ i7-5820K Processor (6-cores, 15MB Cache, Overclocked up to 3.8 GHz w/ Turbo Boost)

For the sake of simplicity, lets take RAM brand out of the equation and just assume that I will either be purchasing 8 more gigs of the brand ram they use, or a new set of 16gigs of the best RAM available to replace it. Although the brand of RAM they use in the A51 is not listed, the stats on it are: 8GB Dual Channel DDR4 at 2133MHz

The case and lighting are worth ~$200

The power supply used in the system is: Alienware™ 1500 Watt Multi-GPU Approved Power Supply OR Alienware™ 850 Watt Multi-GPU Approved Power Supply

All of the A51 systems also come with liquid cooling built in, ATX Motherboard, and a Intel® X99 Express Chipset w/ Unlocked BIOS for Overclocking*, CPU Socket 2011Chipset

If I just add 8gigs of RAM and a SSD to the system in the link below, this might be a perfect solution: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/alienware-desktop-intel-core-i7-8gb-memory-2tb-hard-drive-epic-silver/3993543.p?id=1219613161272&skuId=3993543

From my rough estimate, the A51 system in the link is of comparable price or ~+$200 more then it would cost me to make the same system custom. Essentially, if I make my own system, I think it would cost me roughly $200-$300 less with the benefit of getting a few slightly newer components like a newer motherboard. However, if I get the Alienware system linked above and add the 2 components mentioned, it will cost me slightly more, but I gain the beautiful custom lighted case and cooling system.

Can everyone share their thoughts on this?




 
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Just like i said, is it worth to sacrifice a dual GPU, 16GB system also including an SSD and still a nice case (Define R5) just for a case that has lighting which pretty much most of modern cases have (Phanteks Enthoo Luxe). Do you want a similar build? Here, it includes LGA2011, 16GBs of DDR4 ram, an SSD, 2TB WD Black drive, two way 980 (980Tis in SLI would go ~$100 over $2500 budget), a liquid cooler, and a case that lights up like a Christmas tree. All that below $2500

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($394.98 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI X99S SLI Plus ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($202.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($99.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($115.00 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($499.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($499.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Luxe ATX Full Tower Case ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($147.04 @ Newegg)
Total: $2324.84
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-26 05:37 EDT-0400
 
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1x GTX 980 GPU should be enough to handle any game at 1440p and gsync right? 2x SLI 980's I don't think would be necessary unless your gaming at 4k?
 
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I think anyone would agree two 980s are better than one. As i expected from the beginning you're trying to find a reason to go Alienware. Honestly go with whatever you want, but i think it's not worth it to sacrificetwo 980s, SSD (which you don't get in Alienware right?) and 16GBs of ram over a few LEDs on the case (that Enthoo Luxe also has). Anyways getting a custom one over Alienware comes out better but it's up to you.
 
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This is not an answer to my question.

1x GTX 980 GPU should be enough to handle any game at 1440p and gsync right? 2x SLI 980's I don't think would be necessary unless your gaming at 4k?
 
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Although Alienware doesn't post the exact component model for the ram, mobo, and PSU they use, it seem that the trade off of getting an Alienware Area 51 vs building my own is:

- With the Alienware you get a custom lighted case that is very nice aesthetically, pre-installed liquid cooling, OC and lighting software, and the piece of mind that the driver/software side of things was done right; but this will cost a difference of about $200-300.

- With making my own system you get to choose for slightly newer/higher quality components, and save ~200-300 to use on the system, but lose the benefit of pre-setup mobo drivers and OC software, and the unique case.

I am still unsure of which to go with. I can make a custom PC just fine as far as the hardware side of things, but I'm always unsure when it comes to motherboard setting setups and arranging OC settings on the software end. I am also concerned that the automatic fan speed controls and a few others driver/software controlled things might not be setup amply.

In short, I'm still leaning towards the Area 51 model in this link: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/alienware-desktop-intel-core-i7-8gb-memory-2tb-hard-drive-epic-silver/3993543.p?id=1219613161272&skuId=3993543

and just installing an SSD, and 8gb more of ram, but I remain undecided for now.

Is there anyone that has some inside information on the component quality of the Alienware A51's, or provide me some information on if, once all the hardware is put together for your custom PC, should the automatic fan speed, OC settings, and all other settings that relate to performance work almost automatically at their ample performance?

I'm just very concerned that once I put the custom PC together and install all the updated drivers, I wont take advantage of all the proper settings to make sure the PC hardware is running at its peak performance.

Thanks in advanced for all the help friends :).

 
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I don't know about overclocking but you can simply install drivers yourself. It's not hard at all, and i think to save 200-300 dollars it's worth it. If you buy 4 pin fans then you can control them in BIOS if you connect them to the motherboard (or with speedfan). I cannot quite see how much fan connectors can be plugged into the motherboard but i'd say there are at least two of them remaining after liquid cooler is connected. You said pretty much all pros and cons by yourself, so it's up to you whether you'd like nicer but slightly weaker PC or a bit not nicer but stronger PC :)
When you decide let us know and don't forget to chose the best answer.
 
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I notice that in all of the recommended (and very good) builds you guys have provided, you all seem to go with different brands of ram. My system motherboard, due to the slots it has will require the more expensive 8gb ram sticks, thus I would like to ask if you guys could post the very best performance ram you know of in this arrangement.

Also, I'm no expert but can you mix and match RAM brands if they are both DDR4, newer high end sticks but just from different brands? It's my assumption that you can't, but I wanted to see if tech has changed it recent years in having some brands enable this with some other brands.

Thanks so much, you've all been a great help to me :) .
 
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It is definitely possible, but it'll probably be easier to use the same brand. You can read more about this discussion here: http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-1754207/mixing-brands-ram-work.html
As for the memory, if your mother board has 4 slots, I would suggest getting 2x8GB sticks. This way if you (for some reason) decide to get more, you can always buy another set of 2x8GB sticks to make a total o 32GB of memory. The ADATA XPG Z1 is not bad and runs at DDR4 2800 but can be a bit costly. Same with the GSkill Ripjaws 4 series. Corsair Vengeance would be a more reasonably priced option.
 
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Ah, yes; I've seen lots of people usually recommending G.skill rip jaws and corsair V's as their go to's. Is there any performance difference between the two? In short, I'm really interested in the best possible performing RAM available so I can run 16gbs of it in my new system. If possible, would you be so kind as to provide a link for me to the two top RAM performers you would recommend so I can use PC part picker to find it and ensure that I'm purchasing the right model?
 
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Sure thing. I've never had G Skill, but I'm currently running the Corsair Vengeance 2x8GB and love it. Had it for almost 4 years now and had absolutely no problems. Just plug and play. Here's two option for you:
1 - Corsair Vengeance LPX (If you can get 2x8GB then go for that. This one is 4x4GB since Newegg doesn't have the 2x8GB model.)
2 - G Skill Ripjaw 4 series (Same with this, if you can get 2x8GB get that instead)

In all, all Corsair Vengeance series is the same and G Skill Ripjaw 4 series is the same. They are just running at different speeds and you have to look for DDR4 if you'd like that. Which ever you decide to go with, look for the sticks running at DDR4 2400+. Then you should be good to go.

EDIT -
Here's a list you can choose from (like I said, preferable pick the ones running at 2400 and above).
G Skill Ripjaw 4
Corsair Vengeance

P.S. Don't go for the most expensive. A $170 ram will perform well enough for you compared to a $300 ram if they're both DDR4. You will honestly not notice much difference nor use above 16GB memory for the most part...so save some $$
 
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Your insightful response is very much appreciated. My inquiry about RAM is prompted because I have 2 systems coming, 1 is a pre-built alienware system that comes with 8gb dual channel DDR4 at 2133MHz, however you mentioned I wanted to get ones running at 2400 or above. Originally, I was planning on just adding 8gb ram to the build as 16gb minimum is required for any performance system really, but Dell does not release the brand name of the RAM they use so I'm unsure what to do.

I am really learning towards just ordering a whole new set of 16gb of ram worth of the best performance RAM i could get, taking the 8gb of ram the Alienware comes with and putting it in an older computer, and putting the whole new 16gb's of RAM in the Alienware. Do you think this would be a good idea given the performance difference I would get from new RAM compared to RAM at 2100?

As a side note, as you mentioned not to get anything but 2400 or above; could you elaborate a bit in terms of how much of a performance difference there will be between 2100 vs 2400+ ram?

Tyty :)
 
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