Journey To An Upgrade! (Laptop to Pre-Built)

[illusi0nist]

Hey everyone! Recently I have run my old Dell Inspiron laptop to the ground, I have had it for years while using it for school, gaming, and security research/learning. I am interested in networking and security assurance, 'Cyber Security'. What I am mostly looking for is a Pre-Built desktop (Yes, I know the difference between building and buying but I simply don't have the skills nor time to put my own together!)

Purpose:
*A Pre-Built desktop for high-intense gaming (IE: Getting the highest quality settings if possible)
*Running virtual machines and performing many different tasks at once (Multiple VM's, youtube, etc)
*School (Running Microsoft Office or third-party programs, saving many documents and files)

What I Hope To Find:
*A Pre-Built desktop WITHOUT liquid cooling IF possible. I simply don't understand how to maintain such a system!
*Nothing TOO huge as I hope to finish out my senior year with a new computer and carry it over to college!
*PRICE RANGE wou;d be maxing out at around $1,400!

Please help me find a computer so I can succeed and enjoy my hobbies, school, and have anything that doesn't take 11 hours to open a program. I am extremely thankful for anyone who is willing to lend their knowledge and opinions on what I should purchase, I know there are some very intellectual people here! Thank you for reading my long post and I hope I can find some assistance, have a great day!

 

[rgd1101]

$14000 or $1400?

 

[MasterDell]

I obviously, as does everyone else, think that you should build one. It is extremely easy and you could build a computer that would be $2100 prebuilt for $1300-1400

For a non-prebuilt:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($225.98 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z97X Killer ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Micro Center)
Memory: G.Skill Trident X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($86.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($74.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($349.99 @ Amazon)
Case: NZXT Phantom 410 (Gunmetal/Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($75.00 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Micro Center)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.98 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($90.26 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series White 2 pack 52.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($19.73 @ Mwave)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series White 2 pack 52.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($19.73 @ Mwave)
Total: $1188.59
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-05 16:32 EDT-0400

Try and find a prebuilt with this quality and upgrade path. And then you can buy it! 😉

*EDIT* Changed build to a better upgrade path

 

[illusi0nist]

$14000 or $1400?

My apologies! I meant $1,400.

 

[MasterDell]

$14000 or $1400?

My apologies! I meant $1,400.

Are you set on buying a prebuilt? If you do not have confidence on building, go to NewEgg's "How to Build a PC" video

 

[Huang Ray]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($225.98 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($137.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($81.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX100 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($72.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 980 4GB Twin Frozr Video Card ($585.91 @ Newegg)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($84.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24F1ST DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1387.79
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-05 16:43 EDT-0400

This is a nice build also for gaming!

 

[illusi0nist]

$14000 or $1400?

My apologies! I meant $1,400.

Are you set on buying a prebuilt? If you do not have confidence on building, go to NewEgg's "How to Build a PC" video

Thank you for the info! But as for now I am definitely set on a Pre-Built. I think I would take building my own when I have more time and freedom

 

[Huang Ray]

SSD can speed up alot of speed!

 

[MasterDell]

Go to iBuyPower and get the Columbus i5 Special.. Switch the specs to these:

Case 1 x NZXT Phantom 240 Gaming Case - White

Processor 1 x Intel® Core™ i5-4690K Processor (4x 3.50GHz/6MB L3 Cache) - Intel Core™ i5-4690K
iBUYPOWER PowerDrive X
Processor Cooling 1 x AVC Liquid CPU Cooling System [SOCKET-1150] - Free Upgrade to Asetek 510LC (Standard 120mm Fan)
Memory 1 x 8 GB [4 GB x2] DDR3-1600 Memory Module - Corsair or Major Brand **Free Upgrade to DDR3-1866 G.SKILL RipjawsX
Video Card 1 x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 - 4GB - EVGA Superclocked [Back Order - ETA: 10/17] - Single Card
Motherboard 1 x ASRock Z97 Extreme 3 -- 3x PCIe x16, 4x USB 3.0, 2X USB 2.0
Power Supply 1 x 750 Watt - Corsair RM750 - 80 PLUS Gold, Full Modular
Primary Hard Drive 1 x 2 TB HARD DRIVE -- 64M Cache, 7200rpm, 6.0Gb/s - Single Drive

Basically just switch to a GTX 970, switch the case to a NZXT 240, switch the motherboard to the Extreme 3 and then switch the PSU to an RM750.