Would this Computer Be Good for Gaming

D

Dirtmuncher111

New Member
I'm overall wanting a good computer. I customized the setup at dell.com and came up with full specs of what Im wanting. Im wondering, for a machine like this, is it a good computer overall, and also can it play todays games. Heres the full specs:

XPS 420 Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor E6750 (4MB L2 Cache,2.66GHz,1333

Operating System Genuine Windows Vista™ Home Premium

Memory 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs

Keyboard Dell USB Keyboard

Monitors No Monitor

Video Cards 256MB Radeon ATI HD 2600 XT

Hard Drive 320GB - 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16MB Cache

Floppy Drive and Media Reader Dell Media Card Reader included in Dell Bluetooth Package

Mouse Dell Optical USB Mouse

Wireless Networking and Modem 56K PCI Data Fax Modem

Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 8.1

Optical Drive Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability

Sound Cards Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio

Speakers No speakers (Speakers are required to hear audio from your system)

Office Productivity Software (Pre-Installed) Microsoft Works 8. DOES NOT INCLUDE MS WORD

Security Software McAfee SecurityCenter with anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall, 15-months

Warranty & Service 1Yr In-Home Service, Parts + Labor,24x7 Phone Support

Internet Access Service No ISP requested

Dell Digital Entertainment No Entertainment software pre-installed

Labels Windows Vista™ Premium

Datasafe Free 10GB DataSafe Online Backup for 1Year

Bluetooth Options Dell 19 in 1 Media Reader with Bluetooth

Adobe Elements Studio Adobe Elements Studio for XPS™ 420
 
That computer will be good at everything but gaming. The 2600xt is a pretty underperforming card. At least get the 8600GTS if not the 8800GT if you want to game.
 
Dirtmuncher111 said:
I'm overall wanting a good computer. I customized the setup at dell.com and came up with full specs of what Im wanting.
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Oh God not another one! :)

You will find here that most people (at least I do) hate Dell. Or any other big company that builds systems. Aka HP, Accer, Gateway.

But you will find some that like them.

But we all agree that it is better and CHEAPER to build your own.

But back to what you asked, It will play todays games, but at medium settings at medium resolution. That 2600 video card will limit the settings. It is a decent mid range video card, but you can get much much better, and you will need better to play todays games at high res and settings.

A 8800gt is todays preferred minimum card to get decent game play. You can always spend tons for a 8800ultra, but thats out of most peoples budgets.

Do I think you should buy that system? No!

Build your own!!!!!

We can help you pick the parts and give you tips on building it. Plus you will save a few hundred $ by doing it yourself. And get a better system than Dell can build for you. Dell uses the cheapest parts they can find (lowest cost parts). You can never be sure what you are going to get parts/manufacture wise.
 
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I agree. Build it yourself. Upgrading hardware - the motherboard, for example - is difficult in Dell machines. [/BROKEN RECORD]

@ Paratwa - Are the XPS cases standard ATX?
 
I went ahead and bumped the graphics card up to a 256MB nVidia GeForce 8600 GTS.

I would build a computer but im only 14 and don't think im nearly intelligent when it comes to computers to do that, plus i dont want to risk breaking anything. My dad basically said that as a combined bday/christmas gift (they are only 2 weeks apart), he would put $900 towards a good computer (even though this one comes to $1289, in which ill make up the difference) but i am not ready to risk building a computer and messing everything up. Plus i think a computer from dell is a good investment as i plan for this to last me a really long time.
 
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Dirtmuncher111 said:
I went ahead and bumped the graphics card up to a 256MB nVidia GeForce 8600 GTS.

I would build a computer but im only 14 and don't think im nearly intelligent when it comes to computers to do that, plus i dont want to risk breaking anything. My dad basically said that as a combined bday/christmas gift (they are only 2 weeks apart), he would put $900 towards a good computer (even though this one comes to $1289, in which ill make up the difference) but i am not ready to risk building a computer and messing everything up. Plus i think a computer from dell is a good investment as i plan for this to last me a really long time.
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Fair enough. I understand that. I've heard the 8600 is a pretty good card. :)
 
I'd suggest building it on your own. You learn more, it's cheaper, it'll last longer, be more upgradeable in the future, and you shouldn't have any problems with any of the parts if you pick the right ones.
 
i built my first computer around 14, and i pritty much just winged it and used online instructions to build it. Just ask people on the board to build you one, buy the parts, then read up on how to put it together, its really not that hard its like a little kids block puzzle, only certian peices can go in certian slots :P.
 
First off, no computer is a good investment. They are outdated as soon as you buy the parts.

Second, Dell is never a good investment. Other than the video card, CPU and ram, nothing else is upgradeable. The motherboards and power supply's are almost always proprietary and non upgradeable.

Even the 8600 is a poor performer for todays games. For good game play you need at least a 8800gt video card.

And for that $900 your dad is going to spend for it, you could build an entire system to do what you want it to do.
 
Dirtmuncher111 said:
I went ahead and bumped the graphics card up to a 256MB nVidia GeForce 8600 GTS.

I would build a computer but im only 14 and don't think im nearly intelligent when it comes to computers to do that, plus i dont want to risk breaking anything. My dad basically said that as a combined bday/christmas gift (they are only 2 weeks apart), he would put $900 towards a good computer (even though this one comes to $1289, in which ill make up the difference) but i am not ready to risk building a computer and messing everything up. Plus i think a computer from dell is a good investment as i plan for this to last me a really long time.
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I don't know if you live in a big city, but if you do, then do some serious research on local computer stores. There's usually plenty smaller shops that'll offer you a much better price then Dell. It'll be almost like building it yourself.
 
Dirtmuncher111 said:
I'm overall wanting a good computer. I customized the setup at dell.com and came up with full specs of what Im wanting. Im wondering, for a machine like this, is it a good computer overall, and also can it play todays games. Heres the full specs:

XPS 420 Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor E6750 (4MB L2 Cache,2.66GHz,1333

Operating System Genuine Windows Vista™ Home Premium

Memory 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs

Keyboard Dell USB Keyboard

Monitors No Monitor

Video Cards 256MB Radeon ATI HD 2600 XT

Hard Drive 320GB - 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16MB Cache

Floppy Drive and Media Reader Dell Media Card Reader included in Dell Bluetooth Package

Mouse Dell Optical USB Mouse

Wireless Networking and Modem 56K PCI Data Fax Modem

Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 8.1

Optical Drive Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability

Sound Cards Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio

Speakers No speakers (Speakers are required to hear audio from your system)

Office Productivity Software (Pre-Installed) Microsoft Works 8. DOES NOT INCLUDE MS WORD

Security Software McAfee SecurityCenter with anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall, 15-months

Warranty & Service 1Yr In-Home Service, Parts + Labor,24x7 Phone Support

Internet Access Service No ISP requested

Dell Digital Entertainment No Entertainment software pre-installed

Labels Windows Vista™ Premium

Datasafe Free 10GB DataSafe Online Backup for 1Year

Bluetooth Options Dell 19 in 1 Media Reader with Bluetooth

Adobe Elements Studio Adobe Elements Studio for XPS™ 420
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Where should I start? Ah yes, bigtime ripoff...

Q6600 G0 is better and worth the price...

Where's the DDR2-800?

Overall.. it's an OK build. It won't take an day in gaming though, sorry.
 
hey guys this is probably really obvious to yall but which is better, Intel® Core™ 2 Quad Processor Q6600 (2.40GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 8MB cache) or Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor E6750 (4MB L2 Cache,2.66GHz,1333 FSB)?
 
Dirtmuncher111 said:
hey guys this is probably really obvious to yall but which is better, Intel® Core™ 2 Quad Processor Q6600 (2.40GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 8MB cache) or Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor E6750 (4MB L2 Cache,2.66GHz,1333 FSB)?
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Quad Core = 4 Cores @ 2.4GHz

Core 2 Duo = 2 Cores @ 2.66GHz...

Now, more core the better right?
 
Dirtmuncher111 said:
hey guys this is probably really obvious to yall but which is better, Intel® Core™ 2 Quad Processor Q6600 (2.40GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 8MB cache) or Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor E6750 (4MB L2 Cache,2.66GHz,1333 FSB)?
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Depends. Currently the E6750 will probably perform better due to it's higher clock speed and higher FSB. However, once programs utilize quad core, the Q6600 will pull ahead.
 
I recently found something that I think is better than the Dell XPS 420 i was looking at. Its the Gateway FX530B. Now I havent heard much about Gateway computers so if yall could tell me about them compared to Dell's, please do. Anyways this computer is an entire $3 cheaper (i know, i cant contain myself either) but anyways, basically it looks like this Gateway has a better processor while the Dell has a bigger hard drive. I personally think that a better processor is way better than a bigger hard drive, my currently computer has 250GB and its doing fine. I dont think i need a 320GB hard drive that the Dell's comes with. Btw my plan with the graphics card is that no matter which computer i get, im going to get the cheapest one it comes with and buy and install a 8600GTS, as ill save $50 this way, and, i dont have that much money yet anyway so i can get it whenever i have the money and go ahead and get the computer. But from what it looks like, apparently, the cheapest Dell card completely sucks and the Gateway one is pretty bad. Pretty bad is still better than completely suckish, though i need confirmation that the 256MB NVIDIA GeForce 7500LE is at least a little better than the 128MB Radeon ATI HD 2400 PRO. Heres the Gateway computer i was looking at. Could yall tell me how it is compared to the Dell?

Operating System Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium (32-bit)

Processor Intel® Core™ 2 Quad Processor Q6600 (2.40GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 8MB cache)

Customized Memory 2048MB 667MHz Dual-Channel DDR2 SDRAM (2-1024MB modules) [$99.00]

Customized Hard Drive 250GB 7200rpm Serial ATA II/300 hard drive w/ 8MB cache [$29.00]

Customized Optical Drive 48x/32x/48x CD-RW/DVD Combo Drive [$39.00]

Video NVIDIA GeForce 7500LE 256MB (512MB shared)

Media Card Reader 9-in-1 Memory Card Reader

Customized Speakers No Speakers Selected

Application Software Microsoft® Works 8.5

Backup Media Cyberlink Power2Go (for Windows Vista® Home Premium and Ultimate)

Chassis Gateway® 7-bay BTX tower case

Chipset Intel® 975X Chipset with DDR2 Support and Intel® Core™ Duo support

Customized Color FX Logo Accent - Blue Carbon

Keyboard Gateway® Elite Keyboard (Windows Vista® Certified)

Motherboard Intel® 975X Chipset with DDR2 and Intel® Core™ Duo support

Mouse Soft-touch USB Optical Wheel Mouse

Network Integrated Intel® 10/100/1000 (Gigabit) Ethernet

Operating System Backup Media Windows Vista® Home Premium Backup Media (32-bit)

Power Supply 700-Watt Power Supply

Security Software McAfee® 90-day Internet Security Suite Complimentary Subscription with VirusScan, Personal Firewall Plus, SpamKiller & Privacy Service v. 1.2 (for Windows Vista®)

Warranty 1 Year Value Plan (Tech Support - Parts - Factory Labor)
 
LOL oscar, yes quad are betters ( not always thou), in those 2 the quad is better
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:D

Depends. Currently the E6750 will probably perform better due to it's higher clock speed and higher FSB. However, once programs utilize quad core, the Q6600 will pull ahead.
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Correct! Maroon posted (I think it was HL2) an benchmark in the CPU section, the Q6600 vs the E6750... Q6600 won because the game could utilize the 4 cores.
 
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