Pre built Alienware or building yourself?

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frozencpu is a good source but that's in the US, he is in Europe, In Amsterdam, North Holland to be specific if you read his replies. That is just too far and shopping these for an entire rig is not wise. He'd be better off shopping at http://www.scan.co.uk/ or http://www.aria.co.uk/
 


No he'd actually be better off shopping at one of the Netherlands-specific stores like Azerty, Pixmania, or Alternate. The UK based stores most likely won't ship to the Netherlands.
 

that would even be better. just emphasizing the point that closer stores are better :)
 
oh man!! najirion and g-unit111! thanks! I was lookink at cyberpowerpc.com and it does not deliver to Europe! At least that is what I thought I saw yesterday! So I already went to sleep thinking: "Ok then I guess I ll have to build mine lol!"
I did catch the builder bug xD the only con I can identify is the fact that in case the desktop wont work for some reason, I wont be able to send it for warranty, I will have to identify the problem and send that specific part to the manufacturer.

Oh najirion, ok so I should have ssd also to install the operative system and so on, but I was asking cuz at the cyberpower website they give choices like (Hard drive) and I can choose HDD or SSD, and then after they let me choose (Data hard drive) also HDD and SSD and I didnt know if I should get the SSD in Hard drive or Data hard drive

 
haha glad you're liking the knowledge. Well, it is a good choice considering that modern living require having a PC at home or using one at the office. :)
Basically you would want to have a SSD boot drive (where the OS and necessary programs are)
Then a HDD data drive to keep stuff like audio and video files, documents and so on.
A huge advantage of having a SSD boot drive includes
1) Faster cold boot (turning on your PC)
2) Faster application processing (for applications installed in the SSD)
3) Security and longevity of data storage (SSD are proven to be more durable than HDD given that it wasn't manufactured defective)
 
Ok cool. Alright, the Dutch websites provided by g-unit1111 are good for parts I guess.. but dont have the functionality of cyberpowerpc.com
So I guess I will be building mine after all :)
Found this video on youtube, of this guy called Carey Holzman, who used to work for intel and so on.. and he shows step by step how to build a computer, which is good!
So now I am not afraid to build it anymore, well, at least I dont feel like I am about to fall off a cliff xD but I still dont know some stuff like for example.
I get a graphic card and a mobo and lets say the cpu... what if some of the other parts I get are not compatible? lol So I am gonna take like 20 minutes now to look for parts that I would like and to fit inside my budget of 1200€

( I dont know if these things are overclocked cuz I dont know the designation in Dutch for it)

«CPU» 208 euros
http://www.pixmania.nl/nl/nl/11764446/art/intel/core-i5-ivy-bridge-3570k.html?srcid=556&CodePromo=oui

«Graphics card» 370 euros
http://tweakers.net/product/316620/gigabyte-geforce-gtx-670/

«motherboard» 266 euros
http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/316291/gigabyte-ga-z77x-up5-th/specificaties/

«SSD memory» 163 euros
http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/282242/crucial-m4-ct256m4ssd2-256gb.html

«HDD memory» ( I dont need more than 2 TB) 85 euros
http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/297052/seagate-barracuda-720014-st2000dm001-2tb.html

«Tower» ( This one looks good and has a lot of fans already which is good) 105 euros
http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/307878/nzxt-crafted-series-phantom-410/specificaties/

«Memory» I dont need QUAD do I? 35 euros
http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/312936/patriot-viper-3-pv38g160c9k/specificaties/

«Cooler» 27 euros
http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/294328/cooler-master-hyper-212-evo/specificaties/

«Power supply» 100 euros
http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/277938/corsair-enthusiast-tx750-v2.html

What else am I missing? I chose the mother up5 because in a review I saw that the up4 (my first choice) didnt have wifi.. so I thought I maybe would be needing the up5 right? I wanna catch wireless signal so I dont know what else I need.

Also I dont know which optical drive I should get.

Maybe I am even missing some components, so please if you could tell which ones are missing and if you have any different suggestions for what I have already chosen.

Much appreciated
 
jeez...I actually surpassed by budget..only wanted to spend 1200 euros and now with these parts I am up to 1359 euros...damn it..
 
Nice selection! So you like gigabyte? a lot likes them too. I'm an asus board guy but I will not push that to you. 8gbs of ram is more than enough for gaming. I have never played a game that maxed out my 8gb ram. Nice chassis too! really like that phantom 410 with orange trim. M4 is one of the fastest SSDs, OCZ vector is the fastest with now but is also expensive. About the mobo, what you should be weighing is the features like how many sata ports, pcie 3.0 ports and stuff like that. If you don't really need 2 x pcie 3.0 why not get an mATX board? It would be cheaper.
 



Hey man, thanks! lol it took me a long time to figure out this configuration but as I said the parts I chose passed my budget. So I have decided to take a lower storage ssd around 120 gbs and a lower hdd (1TB) , I really dont need more than that, I just want windows 8 and a couple more programs installed in the ssd and I already have a 1 TB ext.hard disk so ill be fine.

I really like the chassis too!! and it comes with 4 pre installed fams so I think it will do a good job! gigabyte seems good to be and the parts are at a quite good price, plus there is a store near my place that sells most of them. Ill also check the motherboard, because this one is quite expensive, but I would like one with the wirelles card already installed, like this one I have selected.
Dude one question: the lg monitor I have comes only with hdmi. Will that be a problem when I hook the pc with the monitor first time? Thanks

 
Here are the components I now think would be good for me, I also decided to go for the Geforce GTX660 instead of the 670. I realized that it will play any game right now and if in the future it gets a bit limited,I can always upgrade it.

CPU > INTEL Core Ivy Bridge 3570K- 3,4 GHz - Cache L3 6 MB - Socket LGA 1155 200€
Graphics card > Gigabyte Nvidia GeForce GTX660 2GB DDR5 200€
Motherboard > Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UP5 TH 270€
SSD > Crucial m4 CT128M4SSD2 128GB 95€
HDD > Seagate Barracuda 7200.14 ST1000DM003,1TB 70€
Tower > NZXT Crafted Series Phantom 410 115€
Memory > Patriot Viper 3 PV38G160C9K 40€
PSU > Corsair Enthusiast TX750 V2 105€
Optical drive > LG GH24NS90 19€
Windows 8 80€

Total : 1,194 euros / 1 556.976 U.S. dollars

Is it a bad configuration? I did check the motherboard socket and the intel 5 5370k and they are compatible, socket 1155, so I hope everything else will also be compatible and that the Power source of 750 watts will be enough.

najirion could you please tell me exactly which motherboard model you are referring too?
 
oh and I will also be using the stock fan that comes with the intel i5. Even though I am buying the unlocked version with overclocking possibilities, I will still not overclock, and I think I will not be needing a different heat sink for at least some time. If I notice that the computer gets too hot, then I will buy a new heat sink.
 
Alright peepz! It seems I am about to be finished with my gaming rig configuration!

I am pretty happy with choosing the i5 3570K,I think I wont be needing a new one for some time!
The Nvidia GTX660 is more than enough for me since I will only be using one monitor!
I didnt got crazy with the SSD and HDD because honestly I am quitte sure it will be enough!
Love the chassis, it looks good and has good functionality!
The 8GB DDR3 memory is perfect
The Power Supply is a 750W 80 plus so I guess it has enough power for expansions later and I will be saving some money on biils xD!
The optical drive is the best for the price according to the reviews, an lets be honest, it is more than enough!
And then of course, windows 8 needs to be bought also, so plus 80 euros on that!

I am still not sure about the motherboard though! According to najirion, I should maybe go for the Micro ATX, but I have heard it heats up quite a lot and since I am gonna be using the stock fan, maybe I should go with a regular size one, so I would really like to know which one is best in terms of compatibility and functionality!

Am I missing any parts?? Do I need anything else?

The configurations is up to 1194 euros, but I guess that if I will take a different motherboard, it might still go down a bit!

Again, thanks for all the feedback, the info here is invaluable for me!
 




dsventimiglia,

Thanks, I think I will really keep the stock fan!

Could you advise a motherboard that already comes with wireless?
 
Sorry but I have to disagree. Most experts conclude that stock coolers are not "efficient"
They do function and give cooling but in term of efficiency, they are just not that good and investing in a cooler is always highly recommended.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/heatsink-heatpipe-cpu,2375.html

I know that's an old article (2009) but remember that stock coolers never changed since then so same implications still apply.

Look, dsventimiglia suggestions is very contradicting. He is telling you not to buy a cooler since you don't overclock yet he is suggesting a WELL-KNOWN OVERCLOCKING MOTHERBOARD (Maximus V Gene) You would be wasting all the overclocking features the motherboard have...
Just look for reviews on that board, you will know it's built for overclocking. Not to mention it is one of the most expensive mATX motherboards available. You would be better off with ASUS P8Z77M-PRO or GA-Z77M-D3H. Look, it doesn't require you to get enthusiast-grade motherboard just because you're getting enthusiast-grade graphics card and processor. It's not like any entry motherboard wouldn't be able to handle them. Yes a ROG board will have better output but I tell you the different is almost negligible to any average user's experience. The initial gigabyte motherboard with wifi is already a good choice, it is par with ASUS P8Z77-V that has a wifi card as well without the excess power phases and overclocking features that Maximus V Gene have. Well unless you want a COOL and EDGY motherboard with a really beefy look then go for it.
 
ASUS P8Z77-M PRO has horible reviews...
GA-Z77M-D3H is bla
stick with Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UP5 TH little $y at over 200$ just offering an alteritive with great reviews... if he want to try his hand at OC he knows he will need to upgraid his cooler (easy task)
 


care to expound the "horrible reviews" you are saying? :)
having "lower" performance (vs enthusiast-grade) hardware is not "horrible" I believe. I mean why would somebody expect an entry-level motherboard around $130 to have the same performance with an enthusiast-grade board like a ROG board which is 2-3x more expensive.. I haven't found bad reviews about those boards, EXPERT reviews that is.. I don't really trust consumer reports in newegg or in any other online shopping site. Users tend to be bias, careless, simply have no idea what they just did, and so many other unknown factors that will render comments unreliable. Not to mention there are so many things that can happen during shipping, send a buyer a dead hardware and he will likely rant over it without giving a chance to the hardware to perform. I hope you get my point :)
So if you do find "credible and reliable" reviews from genuine hardware experts, I would also love to hear about it. : :)
 
That is if you would be connecting to the internet via wifi. Take note.. CONNECTING. I don't know if you want use the PC as a reserve tethering device (share internet from PC to other devices) using the wifi card but I believe that is only possible using a mobile phone.

Yes I do like you choices, Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UP4 should be enough for your needs without overkill and overshooting your budget. :) Asrock Z77 Extreme4 on the other hand is the most popular motherboard today based on futuremark.

http://community.futuremark.com/hardware/mobo

Well, one doesn't get to be that popular if it performs badly IMHO :)
 
Najirion thanks! :) what I mean with wifi( I am probably explaining wrong) is this:
I dont want to connect to the internet, catch a internet signal through a cable connected to my pc. I would like to do it like I do in my laptop. I hope I was clear now maybe I was using wrong terminologies =/

So now I come to conclusion about the motherboard xD!! One of these two!

How do I do with the internet signal? =/
 
Your motherboard choice is good for me :) I know it doesn't have compatibility issues with the other parts you already chosen so it's fine :)

About internet connectivity:
There's wifi connection and ethernet connection (the one that uses cables)

Personally, I prefer ethernet connection because it is ensure and connection doesn't fluctuate or affected by other networking devices or thickness of the room walls. Check your router at home if it offers ethernet connection (most do have at least 2 ports) and wifi capabilities (include range). What's good about wifi is that if ever you move your PC to another location in the house, it wouldn't be a problem to re-route the cables and stuff.
 
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