Would You Recommend Alienware For Graphics Intensive Appz ? Looking to buy a new Game/3D Modeling/Web Design machine

[kgd2006 0]

Hello everyone, at this point in time I am looking into a new computer. And I have stumbled and grown attached to Alienware. Whether its the name or its sleek design I dont know. But I was hoping if any of you that own one recommend that I get one? or you have personal opinions on it. So far this is the current system Im looking into buying and would like to know what you think about it.

 

Alienware Area-51® 5500 PRICE 2,275.35 SHIPPED

 

Processor: Intel® Pentium® D Processor 930 w/ Dual Core Technology 3.0GHz 800MHz FSB

Operating System (Office software not included): Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2

Warranty: 90-Day AlienCare Toll-Free 24/7 Phone Support

Power Supply: Alienware® 650 Watt ATX 2.0 Power Supply with Active PFC

Chassis: Alienware® Full-Tower Case - Space Black

Chassis Upgrades: Alienware® Liquid Cooling with AlienIce™ 2.0 Video Cooling

Motherboard: Alienware® nForce™4 SLI™ Intel Edition Chipset Motherboard PCI Express SLI

Graphics Processor: Dual 128MB PCI-Express x16 NVIDIA® GeForce™ 6600 GT - SLI Enabled

Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz - 2 x 512MB

System Drive: High Performance

Primary CD ROM/DVD ROM: 16x Dual Layer DVD±R/W Drive

Sound Card: Integrated High-Performance 7.1 Surround Sound with S/PDIF and Coaxial Digital Outputs

Primary Display: 17" 8ms LCD - Black

Secondary Display: No Secondary Monitor

Inkjet Printers : None

Network Connection: Integrated High Performance Gigabit Ethernet

AlienRespawn: Alienware® Respawn Recovery Kit

Keyboard: Microsoft® Basic Keyboard Black

Mouse: Microsoft® Basic Optical Mouse Black

Alienware Exclusive Offers: GameFly - Unlimited Game Rentals for 15 days - FREE TRIAL

Alienware Exclusive Offers: Gamespot Complete - Free 90-day Trial (a $20.85 value)

Desktop Enhancements: Exclusive AlienGUIse Theme Manager

AlienInspection: AlienInspection - Exclusive Integration and Inspection - $99.99 Value - FREE!

AlienWiring: AlienWiring - Exclusive Internal Wire Management - $99.99 Value - FREE!

Edited March 3, 2006 by miCRoSCoPiC^eaRthLinG (see edit history)

[demolaynyc 0]

I don't know every detail of that pc but i do have basic knowledge on the hardwares, and to sum it all up it's a damn good computer. it's obviously the best for gaming and video. i dunno if the 2k is worth it cuz i'm cheap as hell but i think people would buy it. i prefer buying a decent one that's fast and gradually upgrade it from time to time so i don't lose a lot of money in just a day. however it will take months even years .

[Jeigh1405241495 0]

Damn son, that thing will kill any games out there. My only suggestion would be bump the ram up. There are starting to be games comming out (*coughOblivioncough*) that require a gig, and since you're already dropping that much cash, I'd say splurge the extra hundred for another 512 or gig. (The extra ram will help for video/image editing as well)I'm sure there'll be someone giving the "AMD is better for gaming" pitch soon, but I have one of those processors in my rig here at work and it is a powerhouse regardless. Suffice to say that system as is or if you add the extra ram will be a true menace, congrats on being able to afford it

[xboxrulz1405241485 0]

If you asked this question a few years ago, I would say Alienware is the best gaming system in the world, but no longer. In my opinion, it's best to customize your computer instead of having a company tell you what parts are great because sometimes companies will try to rip you off by giving you the crappiest version of the identical part to make things cheaper. Plus, you may not know how durable the parts are.Also, AMD is better in gaming, IMHO. I've compared the two and AMD seemed to outperform it.xboxrulz

[kgd2006 0]

Do you guys happen to know on how reliable my setup is? I dont want it to be breaking down or wutever, and Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz - 2 x 512MB is enough for any game out there right now, so ill stick with the 1GB ram...I need more opinions before I finalize my descision on the purchase, one of the reasons why I dont customize is because I dont know where to start, and yes Ive heard about Alienware is overrated, but I believe they offer great quality systems based on references...

Edited March 4, 2006 by kgd2006 (see edit history)

[grnjd 0]

I've never owned an alienware system before, but I've heard a lot of great things about it. Basically everyone complains about how expensive alienware is, but I've never met a single person who had a major problem with the alienware company. The major downside would be the price, its just too expensive. I'm sure that you can get other systems with similar specs for 3/4 of the price, or even less sometimes. Customize your own computer may be the best option

[saga 0]

Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz - 2 x 512MB

1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz - 2 x 512MB is good enough for gaming but.. you need to beef up the vidoe card to 256MB of memory. Battlefield 2, if you are planning to play recommends a 256MB of video memory its the best in 3d games out there, im talking about the environment and the graphics. But if i were you, i will build my own PC, since its cheaper. Why? coz you are buying the Alienware name but if you don't have any idea or experience about building your own pc then you havent much choice, but maybe you have someone who can help you, like a friend...


but if your rich, how about these set-up?

Asus Dual Processor Mother board (4 slots of RAM, 2 per processor)
2 x 3.6Ghz of Intel processor
4 GB of DDR RAM at 533Mhz ( 4 x 1GB)
512 of Video memory ( i don't know if there is avialable now in the market)
DVD read and write
200 GB 7200 RPM of hard disk (SATA)

i guess this will cost twice than the one you are planning to buy hehheeheheh

[Jeigh1405241495 0]

The reason I said more ram is because 1 gig is enough... for games this year, by next year some'll be up above that I bet. Obviously you're DUAL video card setup isn't REQUIRED for games right now haha, but you have it. I assumed you wanted a system that won't need upgrades in a year or so.

[kgd2006 0]

I believe a 1gig ram is enough and will last me a long time because currently Im playing a MMO Lineage 2 (and if you know MMOs they require a lot of ram to play smoothly with a factor of internet connection)...its Recommended ram requirment is 1GB or higher than 512 ram...But Im playing on a notebook that only has 512ram and running smooth like a "babys butt," no lags...Thats why im not that concerned about my ram because 1gig of ram should probably last me until 2009 or something. And yea, like I said in my started topic post, Im buying Alienware mainly because of their reputation and service, as well as how their system looks. Also I dont know anyone that can custumize me a computer without having them charging me for labor, so thats why I turned to you guys to see if there are any better COMPUTER MAKERS like ALIENWARE that I can look into before I finalize my decision on purchasing this computer...

[Jeigh1405241495 0]

I was basing my comments on all games, not just one that runs well even though the rec's say a gig Oblivion is comming out this year and REQUIRES a gig, reccomends more. The next gen of games will all start requiring a gig within the year I'd bet. No way a gig will last you 3 years.

[unimatrix 0]

Depends, are you going to be using the system for gaming or 3D rendering? With rendering, your better off getting a decent primary box with the best video card you can buy and a couple gigs of ram even if it doesn't have the latest and greatest processor. Spend about $700 for this unit. Then buy as many computers with 512MB of ram as you can, install BSD/Linux, and use as a rendering cluster. You can get decent rendering units for about $300 each and can buy at least 5 such units. 3D modelling is more about video card. Rendering is all about CPU speed and RAM...more to do with CPU speed. RAM helps to a point.

[Sarah81 0]

I would say that this is a good computer, yeah.However: if you can find another brand with similar specs, but cheaper, you should look into that as well. I'm not saying that you should go with some super-super cheap, off-brand PC that you've never heard of before, of course. For some things - including computers - quality is always worth a higher price.Comparison shopping's good, though. *grins*

[xboxrulz1405241485 0]

saga and Jeigh. I believe the current gaming platform do not REQUIRE (not recommends) any computer over 2.0 GHz w/ 512 MB RAM and a GeForce FX or over.

 

These are my specs and I can still play Battlefield 2 w/ no probs and no lags.

 

ASUSTek P4B533-VM

INTEL PENTIUM 4 2533 Mhz

52x48x52x DVD-ROM/CD-Writer

48x 24x 48x CD-WRITER

120 GB UATA-133 7200 RPM 8MB cache (OS/Software)

80 ATA-100 7200 RPM 8MB cache (Data)

NVIDIA GeForce 6600 w/ 8x AGP (really running 4x as my AGP supports upto 4x)

4 USB 1.0 slots

2 USB 2.0 slots

1 monitor

1 soundchip, 1 soundcard

1 USB keyboard

1 USB mouse

1 100MBPS Network connection

75.0 GB SuSE Linux 10.0 partition (Main)

40.0 GB Windows XP parition (Games/unWINEable software ONLY)

 

This system is FOUR years old and it's still running like a champ.

 

xboxrulz

Edited March 8, 2006 by xboxrulz (see edit history)

[Jeigh1405241495 0]

Obviously your whole system isn't 4 years old...as your vid card is quite new. I know he doesn't NEED anything more to run whats out their now. I'm saying if he's actually going to drop that kind of cash on a system, why not future proof it. Yours is still running after 4 years, but required upgrades to run BF2 fine no doubt. His system should last a pretty long time without upgrades running everything fine I just don't see why if you're dropping over 2 grand for a system, you wouldn't put an extra 50 or so into another gig of ram. Seems like a small price to finish off making the system excel in every area, instead of exceling in most but being averaged by the ram.Obviously this is just my opinion, but my system had 512 megs of ram in it until recently and it was hurting in alot of games. I added a gig, and voila games are running smoothly that only require 512... shocking. F.E.A.R., BF2, HL2, Doom3, all hardware inetnsive games and they showed a huge improvement with more ram. If games already crave a gig or more to run well, how long until games crave more then that to run at their best? If you are buying an alienware system, you should want your games running at their best for a long time.Regardless, he'll have a good system, he'll just need to start adding stuff sooner.

[xboxrulz1405241485 0]

that's true, yet I still recommend him get it custom made instead of getting it from Alienware.Also, yes, I got my graphics card recently (before BF2 came out), my RAM was bumped from 256 to 512 and I got the new 120 GB HDD.Yet, I've never changed the CPU it has 512 KB of Cachexboxrulz

Edited March 8, 2006 by xboxrulz (see edit history)