theconrodkid
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| posted on 2/10/10 at 08:24 PM |
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new pc ideas/help
my vintage Dell is creaking to a halt and the monitor needs a kick every so often to get the picture back so i have decided to invest in a new one.
i would like the whole lot in one box and was looking at medion,they seem cheap enough with 3 year warranty....but are they any good?
who cares who wins
pass the pork pies
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big_wasa
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| posted on 2/10/10 at 08:55 PM |
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Ive got one here thats 10 yrs old and still going strong and its on every day.
I gave it the kids when I got a laptop.
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tegwin
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| posted on 2/10/10 at 09:10 PM |
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To be honest with you, I would buy yourself another Dell direct from them...
They are a pretty good balance of economy and quality.... we had a lot of them where I used to work, and they took some serious abuse...
Decide what exactly you want the machine for and how much you want to pay....
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Would the last person who leaves the country please switch off the lights and close the door!
www.verticalhorizonsmedia.tv
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Madinventions
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| posted on 2/10/10 at 10:15 PM |
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I would suggest taking another moment to consider building one...? (If you order all the bits from one place then it'll still all come in one
box!).
I've just built an AMD 6-core, 6Gb ram, 2TB HDD raid array, 2x Radeon video cards, liquid cooling, Windows 7 64-bit for a little under £600
including vat and delivery. The closest Dell equivalent wasn't quite what I was after, and was significantly more expensive.
It all depends what you want it for I guess. I use mine for video editing and running a music recording studio (as well as browsing LocostBuilders!)
so I needed fairly specific parts. I got all the bits from www.aria.co.uk
Having said all that, Dell PCs can be good value if they do the spec you want.
All the best,
Ed.
Mojo build diary: http://www.madinventions.co.uk
Solo music project: Syrrenfor http://www.reverbnation.com/syrrenfor
View my band website:
http://www.shadowlight.org.uk
http://www.eastangliankitcars.co.uk/
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se7en
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| posted on 2/10/10 at 11:44 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by tegwin
To be honest with you, I would buy yourself another Dell direct from them...
They are a pretty good balance of economy and quality.... we had a lot of them where I used to work, and they took some serious abuse...
Decide what exactly you want the machine for and how much you want to pay....
... and don't forget to look at Dells outlet for refurbished bargains all with manufacturers warranty.
quote:
Originally posted by Madinventions
I would suggest taking another moment to consider building one...? (If you order all the bits from one place then it'll still all come in one
box!).
It all depends what you want it for I guess. I use mine for video editing and running a music recording studio (as well as browsing LocostBuilders!)
so I needed fairly specific parts. I got all the bits from www.aria.co.uk
I would suggest strongly that you do not cobble a sophistic electronic device from bits in a box. Building a PC is a daunting task for the best, not
that I'm doubting your capabilities. With over 30 years in the computer industry I would not encourage anyone to build a PC especially from
parts supplied by Aria.
Tom
[Edited on 2/10/10 by se7en]
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dhutch
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| posted on 2/10/10 at 11:49 PM |
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I think its more important with laptops but i wouldnt buy a poo pc either.
If you wanted a cheap dependable reliable hard working car, would you buy a £4k 6month old kia or a £2k five year old ford mondeo?
Dell are fine.
HP do nice laptops
Lenovo do all right kit
Daniel
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Madinventions
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| posted on 3/10/10 at 12:42 AM |
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Hi Tom,
quote:
I would suggest strongly that you do not cobble a sophistic electronic device from bits in a box. Building a PC is a daunting task for the best, not
that I'm doubting your capabilities. With over 30 years in the computer industry I would not encourage anyone to build a PC especially from
parts supplied by Aria.
I don't want to start any form of argument here, just clarify the situation:
- I have to object to the word 'cobble' here - surely it should be either 'construct', 'build', or something
similar? 'Cobble' implies that little or no pride has been taken during the assembly phase and this is Locostbuilders after all, where
the majority of people enjoy building things and take pride in their work.
- 'Building a PC is a daunting task'. Not really... I personally think it's actually very straightforward and quite enjoyable! As
with kitcars, as long as you do the right research, ask the right questions, and specify the right parts then you shouldn't have any
problems.
- 'I would not encourage anyone to build a PC' - but would you encourage them to build their own car?
- 'especially from parts supplied by Aria' - why not? Bad experience? I've never had a problem with them myself...
Just for a bit more background - I'm an electronics engineer by trade with 20+ years experience of hardware, software and firmware design.
That's probably why I'd rather build a PC than buy something off the shelf. I totally understand that not everyone wants the
'hassle' (perceived or otherwise) of building a PC, but I don't think it should be dismissed out of hand, especially given the
disposition towards 'getting-your-hands-dirty' that bring most of us to this forum. There is, of course, absolutely nothing wrong with
buying a PC off the shelf if that is what suits your needs, and Dell are pretty good in this respect - just don't buy a Dell laptop without
checking out all the reviews (Inspiron battery problems, famous XPS-M1330 NVidia chipset failures etc).
As I said - I'm not looking to rock anyones boat here, just wondering why you said what you did?
All the best,
Ed.
[Edited on 3/10/10 by Madinventions]
Mojo build diary: http://www.madinventions.co.uk
Solo music project: Syrrenfor http://www.reverbnation.com/syrrenfor
View my band website:
http://www.shadowlight.org.uk
http://www.eastangliankitcars.co.uk/
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bj928
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| posted on 3/10/10 at 05:36 AM |
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i see building a pc no more difficult than building something out of lego, and i'm a truck driver with no training in building a computer from
scratch, but i would never buy one built cos u always get a thrown together mass produced pile of the cheapest parts, i have built my last 2
pc's, and its so simple its childs play, everything just basicly plugs in and can't be plugged in the wrong way or place, but if u just
want something u don't have to think about and just unpack, plug in and play, i guess dell is as good as any, or for ease if for any reason it
goes wrong (forgive me for this) pcworld, as u can take it back and throw it at them if it don't work.
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theconrodkid
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| posted on 3/10/10 at 06:30 AM |
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ok point taken peeps,had a couple of Dell,s now with no probs,as for putting one together...me and electronics dont get on
who cares who wins
pass the pork pies
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theconrodkid
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| posted on 3/10/10 at 07:31 AM |
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what are your thoughts on something like this?seems to have good feedback.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/DELL-TOWER-PC-DESKTOP-COMPUTER-PENTIUM-4-3GIG-TFT-LCD-/250696467941?pt=UK_Computing_DesktopPCs&hash=item3a5eac85e5
who cares who wins
pass the pork pies
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britishtrident
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| posted on 3/10/10 at 09:41 AM |
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These days there is no point in chasing the technology and building a PC is now a mugs game.
Ex-lease and ex-demo Pc have been the way to go but because of the credit crunch good buys are getting rarer. Morgans are worth a look anyway
http://www.morgancomputers.co.uk/shop/products2.asp?CategoryID=407&SubCategoryID=507
[I] “ What use our work, Bennet, if we cannot care for those we love? .”
― From BBC TV/Amazon's Ripper Street.
[/I]
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theconrodkid
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| posted on 3/10/10 at 10:05 AM |
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as BT says,this one is about 10 years old and has had several owners and is just showing it,s age
who cares who wins
pass the pork pies
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se7en
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| posted on 3/10/10 at 06:28 PM |
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Ed, I do apologise if I have given you less credit than you are capable. I too do not set out with the intention of offending anyone lest cause any
arguments.
There are people who are educated, like you, and have the knowledge to know why a part goes where it goes and to understand why that part goes where
it does. I know that one could train a monkey to put a computer together, as, and it has been muted here, almost everything has only one place to go,
and contrary to belief, some can be fitted wrongly. It is not a question of just putting parts into sockets, the ‘daunting task’ occurs when, after
fitting all the right parts in the right places, you power-up your PC and it does not work. I maybe used too strong a term as ‘cobbled’ but you can
understand now why I used this term, as the home PC builder does not research the full component capabilities to the same level as major
manufacturers.
I know it is a locost forum and putting a car together is common practice for most on this forum. I can see your similarity between building a locost
and building a PC; the questions that come up on this forum are testament to the problems that occur when builders take known good parts and put them
together and they do not work.
I have had several problems with kit bought from Aria, including the supply of second-hand equipment that they claimed were new. I ended up having to
take court action to have them refund for the faulty goods. I do not prefer Dell; I used Dell as an example of where one can buy up-to-date technology
for not so much money. I believe that the equipment from major manufacturers outlets is better than that coming of the production line; these
refurbished PCs, thoroughly inspected and checked, sell cheaper in the outlets and I could have used Morgan or any of the other resellers.
The similarity between Lego and PCs does not equate. Lego make blocks that fit together no matter which way round they go. The cost of Lego bricks
does not compare to the costs of PC components. I recognize that people can improve their knowledge enough to be able to build a PC from components
but that is far from being ‘child’s play’. Of course, when BJ928 and other home-builders, put their components together they are using all the
necessary electrostatic and H&S precautions.
Without trying to offend any members of the forum, would everybody that builds a kitcar be able to build an engine or a gearbox from components. That
is why the majority of us do not; instead, we get as many major parts as we can from donor vehicles and put them together in a new chassis and
bodywork. Similarly with a PC, why build when we can buy a tried and tested product.
I think that Britishtrident has put my thoughts over very simply, ‘These days there is no point in chasing the technology and building a PC is now a
mugs game.’
Tom
[Edited on 3/10/10 by se7en]
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bj928
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| posted on 3/10/10 at 09:00 PM |
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i agree to a certain degree that building a pc these days is almost pointless, but i normally want something to my spec not a pen pusher in an office
spec, so i tend to research whats about whats coming out and look at what is about to see if its what i want, my first build 10+ years ago was so far
ahead of its time, the motherboard, prossesor and memory are still being used by a friend and are as quick as a cheap basic machine now, but then i
did use 1066 rdram that is only just in the last year or so been beaten on speed i believe, and prossesoers have now caught up in speed as well, if i
was to build a machine now i would have C drive as a solid state drive and run the others as high GB storage drives, i just enjoy the challenge of
building my own machine, if i could build laptops i would build my own one of them, but they aren't so easy.
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Madinventions
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| posted on 3/10/10 at 09:40 PM |
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Hi Se7en,
Some good points well made there. I see where you're coming from now.
Ed.
Mojo build diary: http://www.madinventions.co.uk
Solo music project: Syrrenfor http://www.reverbnation.com/syrrenfor
View my band website:
http://www.shadowlight.org.uk
http://www.eastangliankitcars.co.uk/
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