Help with buying a gaming pc...

I never built a gaming PC and probably never will.... but I would like to play pc games on my tv..can anyone tell me if the Alienware is decent? Is it powerful enough to run games on 55-75" tvs?

http://www.dell.com/ca/p/alienware-x51-r2/pd?oc=dax51r2_bt_s005e&model_id=alienware-x51-r2

or this one http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/product/alienware-alienware-x51-r2-desktop-pc-intel-core-i7-4770-1tb-hdd-8gb-ram-windows-8-1-english-ax51r2-5740bk/10298230.aspx?path=187cfbbb21d227758335da27c562c515en02

@danlevm: Please don't buy those. They're horribly overpriced for the hardware you get in them.

You may not be willing (whether you believe this or are just unwilling to learn) to build your own, but that doesn't mean you're limited to what pre-built machines have to offer.

If you have any kind of computer place in your area, you can always use them to help you pick out parts (or we can here) and you could have them assemble the computer for you. For $1000-1500 you can get one hell of a gaming computer.

Please list what games you really want to play and your budget and we can help you out more.

hey thanks for the reply, I would spend between 1500-2000 Cdn. I really like open world games like Skyrim, gta 5, witcher 2, fallout 3, mass effect and some shooters....I even like Minecraft at times. I would like something compact as well to be part of the living room set up..

how hard is it to build a gaming PC? are there small compact frames/cases?

Honestly for that much cash you should just build it as the performance gain you'll have from the savings is substantial. If you can read and put lego's together you can build a pc. Hell I can put together on pcpartpicker.com the strongest/cheapest build that fits in your budget, even explain what to do. The first I will do the second, Youtube or Google can do. Spend an hour or two watching videos or reading a how to guide written by any number of tech sites and you'll know enough info to build and maintain your pc.

Took me an hour and 30 to build mine (full tower with all of the goodies) and get windows installed along with the newest driver versions from the parts manufacturing site. After that you have a fresh install with only Microsoft's bloatware(still to much) and in theory most often better quality parts for the same price.

I'll post back with a build, with a smaller case, and one with a slightly larger case.

@danlevm: Most gamers tend to opt for a mid-tower and go with ATX form motherboard. If you're looking for a compact build you'll have to make sure you buy parts that'll fit a small case you like - mATX or mini-ITX motherboards for example.

My first suggestion would be to look for cases that support mATX/mini-ITX motherboard, find a couple you like and go from there. The smaller cases may restrict you on what kind of graphic card you can get in there as well and possibly even the power supply it can house. I don't look into these small builds myself so I'd have to do some looking around to offer suggestions, but maybe others on the forums here that are more familiar with these builds could chime in here to help you out more.

If you plan on playing a lot of open world games I'd suggest a solid state drive. They load a lot faster than a regular hard drive and most open world games benefit from solid state drives.

Building a PC isn't hard with some help. It takes more time and patience rather than skill.

Also Alienware isn't THAT bad. They will negotiate price on all of their systems. Tell them you saw a similar one for cheaper and they will knock a couple hundred dollars off. I was able to get around $500 off my laptop. If they won't negotiate hang up and try again. They WILL give you at least $100 off depending on the price of the rig.

Hey, I was wondering if you guys know of any good sites that show you which parts to buy for different cases? I guess I will build it myself it makes sense as long as it doesn't burn my house down..LOL... Do I need a special type of PC that connects to the tv? I have been thinking about building one for a few years, bought a ps4/xone and they are great but lack in power... I want to be able to play most games maxed out......

So just did a build in a small case decided to forgo the larger as I think this might be exactly what you want. So a small form factor case with great positive airflow. It's snug but can fit even the largest of graphics cards. The build

So this would be all you need to fully run this build. I did not include a CPU fan as I was not sure what exactly would fit well and the stock should be good enough if you don't overclock it(can fit duel rad water cooler) Also I'm rather sure this has a CD/DVD drive in it, so I didn't add one of those either. But this computer is a damn beast for how small it's going to be. It's housing a I7 4790k, 16gb ram, 1tb drive, as well as 256gb ssd. The graphics card is the highest clocked of the GTX 980 cards and I'm sure it'd go higher. The PSU comes form the case manufacturer due to it just well being the best for the size, so I got the gold model at 650w. The Mother board I went with a Gigabyte GA-Z97N-WIFI, as the name states it's wifi ready.

So for $1825 you have a build that is relatively small, while holding a massive amount of processing power both by the CPU and GPU. This computer literally shit's out computers like the ones from alienware you were looking at. And all you have to do is put in 1-3 hours of time figuring out how it all goes together, which this video might help with Silverstone case take apart and overview

To be honest If I had the cash I'd be building this thing for myself It shits on my rig which cost about the same a year ago here in Canada.

Also to answer some your questions yes this Could hook up to your television. Sometimes they don't fit perfectly but you can adjust to perfect size in Nvidia control panel. If you wish to have even less hassle if your not into meddling around too much, you could just download Steam and use it's big picture mode. Which turns the program into a console like UI system to play, buy etc.. etc..

No, not every OEM is very much more than DIY. If you're not comfortable building it yourself then you probably shouldn't. Naturally you could cut areas and have more choice options if you did it yourself. But you also risk having a frustrating experience and DOA parts can happen. Many gaming PC makers will stress test the system before it leaves so at least you know it will work and all you do is just plug n play. Usually they offer freebies like games or peripherals.

Some OEM's are actually about the same price as building your own. You should check into something like Ibuypower.com You can get an Asus G20 , it's very small and fits full size graphic cards. It's 4"x13"x14" and part for part it's really not overpriced at all. Here is an example of a custom Asus G20 PC through XoticPC.com. vs if you actually build the exact same system yourself. It's roughly a $60 difference and I opted out of the special freebie deal.

-No BLACK NOVEMBER Special

- No BLACK NOVEMBER Special

- INCLUDED: FREE ASUS Gaming Keyboard & Mouse

- ASUS ROG G20 Chassis

- Stock Chassis Fans

- Standard Factory Heat-Sink & Fan [Not Recommended for CPU Overclocking]

- 230W + 180W External AC Adapter

- ASUS H97 (H97 Chipset) (Mini-ITX, 2 SO-DIMMS, 1 PCIe Slot)

- Intel® Core i7-4790 (3.60-4.00GHz) (22nm, 8MB cache) (Quad-Core CPU) - Default

- SINGLE - NVIDIA® GeForce GTX 970 (4GB) GDDR5 (New - Maxwell Architecture) EVGA SuperClocked Edition w/ ACX Cooling

- 8GB DDR3 1600MHz [SKU-422P] (Dual Channel Memory (2x4GB SODIMMS)) – Default

- 1TB 7200RPM [SATA III w/ 8GB Cache SSD] - Default (SKU - X5S393)

- 120GB Intel Pro 2500 Series SSD (Read 540MB/s - Write 490MB/s (SSD2 - SATA III)) (SKU - SSD777)

- Slim - 8x Super Multi DVDRW/CDRW Combo Drive

- No External DVD Drive

- Integrated Motherboard Audio

- Bluetooth Included *With select wireless cards only* (See “Wireless Network” Section Below)

- Integrated 802.11 AC WiFi Card + Bluetooth 4.0

- No PC Game

- No Antivirus Essentials Software Bundle

- No Unlimited GB Cloud Backup

- NO CPU Overclocking

- No GPU Cooling Option

- No thanks, Do Not Overclock My Video Card(s)

- No Operating System Redline Boost

- No Rush Build - Standard Production Time is 8-16 Business Days

- 1 Year ASUS GLOBAL OEM Warranty with 24/7 Tech Support

- XOTIC PC's White Glove Premium Packaging is standard on all Desktops!

- No Wood Crate Shipping

- Included XOTIC PC Binder & Certificate of Ownership – take pride in your system with a hand-signed personalized XOTIC PC certificate!

- * 24/7 LIFETIME U.S. based technical support

* Extreme QA testing by dedicated technicians

* 24-72 Hour stress testing and benchmarking to ensure top performance and stability[/code]

[b]Total: $1,579.00[/b]

Closest cheap equivalent to G20 (~ means rough estimate based on search results to find equivalent of custom parts)

[code]

Gaming ITX mobo with wifi/BT 4.0 114.99

Silverstone Raven 84.99

Asus gaming KB/Mouse 60.00 ~

Dual CPU fan and heatsink 30.00 ~

SFX PSU 49.99

8 million color transitional Lighting x3 150.00 ~

8 gigs 1600 mhz SO ddr3 73.99

Core i7-4790 309.99

EVGA 970 Superclocked edition w/ACX 2.0 349.99

1TB w/ 8 gb ssd hybrid 89.99

120 gb intel pro 2500 SSD 79.99

Slim 8x multi DVD drive 25.99

Windows 8.1 99.99

1 year Asus warranty and tech support —

24-72 hour stress test and benchmarking —

[/code]

[b]$1,519.90[/b]

Sadly I am low on time here as it is 3 AM so all I can say is FOR THE LOVE OF HUMANITY NEVER BUY ALIENWARE. :)

Try your hardest to build a PC with the help of someone you might know that has done it before.

YA I'd still recommend building it yourself. The video I linked to shows exactly how the case fits together with all it's bits and pieces. You'll need more info but like I said before it's rather simple to find a good guide As mentioned by another poster Dead on arrival parts happen. But so do dead on arrival computers, or screens... and it's not like the parts have no warranty, or RMA time window.

Building your own also allows you to know what your computer is and how it works. Too many of my friends have zero clue what's inside or what the parts do. Thing is it's not rocket science and the friends that aren't willing to read or watch to learn for an hour or so, don't have nice pc's but rather horrible middle to low end laptops, from companies like alienware. You'll feel better knowing you got it going and set up as well. It's so nice to see that first post screen after getting it all organized and hooked up.

Alienware wouldn't be all bad if they just put in the right components for gaming vs having an i7 and a gtx 745.

If you have any hesitation about building your own, check out this 5 year old.

custom Asus G20 PC Is this a powerful build? can I upgrade this in the future? I dont care if I spend a bit more as long as the value is there...

@danlevm: No. Again the link to the small form factor build I made is a whole generation of parts ahead, as well as being the top of the line for under $2000. The G20 in your price range is a low/mid end machine made with parts from last year. It says it can do 4k? Bullshit. I hate it when companies advertise 4k and they put something like a 750ti or 760 in it. As they can't play games maxed at 1080p 60fps. Let alone anything higher then that. My build will as least play 4k games at high settings 30fps.

If you want the best value for your money forget about buying a prebuilt small form factor pc. As they stand at the top of the price range of pre build gaming pc's, and usually at the low to mid end of the hardware spectrum. They highly overprice them just for the size alone.

Do NOT buy Alienware. You can save hundreds of dollars just building it yourself.

Ok I guess I will try and build one..... So I basically have to figure out what parts work together right? Like do you start with a video card and then build around it? I could spend up to 2500 if needed... but would rather spend less obviously. I will look around and try to find something decent. I will post the parts here, and would like to hear your thoughts before I buy.

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction, building a PC seems like the best option.

Oh and is Amazon a trust worthy place to buy all of the parts? I have never used amazon, but my girlfriend has bought some small things from there....

1# http://www.techbuyersguru.com/1500build.php

Update..... the gtx980 by nividia is very Expensive but looks insane! can you build a full gaming PC for 2500 with that card in it?

You clearly never read my second post.... Do that and you'll find the link I posted of the build I did. I wonder why I even do these at all if people don't bother reading them.

That build looks amazing, can you run pretty much everything on high settings? I just might do this build....

Yes. This could play 4k if you turned it settings down to medium/high. 1080p games would run at max settings.

@ribstaylor1: So this build runs quite cool? I am a bit confused with water cooling and if it's needed... I really like this build...do I need specific tools?

Quick question the Gtx970 4 gb ddr5 is this a decent card its on sale right now its half the price of the 980.... How much better is the gtx980?

At cost of 1 980 I could buy 2x 290s

@PredatorRules: except that won't fit in a small form factor build. I went with literally the best current 980 because it's one of the best options that fit in his budget. If he wanted to spend more I would have put in a Titan z in it. Also nvidia offers more software for better graphics so iwent with the obvious better choice over amd in his price range. Over all the 970 isn't a bad card it's the best value for the money. But I built the best possible in the under 2000 price range.

Also remember not all cards are made by the same company. Nvvidia designs the things and 3rd parties make their own versions. So brands make a difference here not just the number of the card.

Place 2x 290s in Corsair Air 240

Except now you have two really high power draw cards that run hot in a computer that is meant for someone who doesn't know too much about computers. One card is the better option here. Would save him Hours of headaches the two cards can and will provide. Again it's the reason I chose the highest clocked gtx 980. It offers great performance, fits, has good air cooling and has all of NVidias extras that AMD just doesn't have.

danlevm you could put a duel rad water cooler in for the CPU it would make things run a lot cooler, as this might get slightly hot at really really heavy loads and long play times as this case is smaller then most. I picked it for the air flow and its ability to fit large cards. But if you'd like you can add the water cooler for close to $100 and you'd make it even better as I only included the stock air cooler that comes with the CPU. This would increase it's lifespan as well.

All you need for this is some small screw drivers. Everything else needed comes with the case. Also all the parts come with manuels so you can't get to screwed up as the answers are there, as well as the online videos and tutorials. Do not use the driver disks given too you. I'll explain what you should do after you get it running. Install windows, then when windows is up and running update it. While it is doing that go to the motherboard manufacturers site and download to the latest BIOS, and drivers. The bios should be an EXE file so just click it while no other programs are running and go through the steps that pop up. After that is done use a program like winzip or 7zp to unpack the drivers and then do the same for their EXE or application file. Then go to Nvidia's site and install their latest GTX 980 drivers and if you'd like you can get Nvidia experience as well.

He's aiming at 55-75' TVs, which means he's getting 4K almost for certain, 1x 980 would give him only 30fps at most, while 2x 290s would reach to 50-60fps

No where was 4k specified as a stipulation. I highly doubt do to its size he's buying 4k as that would cost far more then even this computer. The averga joe still currently only buys 1080p as 4k is still an expensive tech that is only used by computers as content just doesn't exist outside pc's.

I am leaning towards the gtx980 .... it seems like a great video card. I checked out all of the parts on Amazon and its about 2200 dollars Canadian... I think this is a pretty good value.... The case is really nice I like the look of it... and the video that you attached above sold me on it. Really liking the filters on the fans...

Should have specified you were Canadian. I would have built one specifically for their prices, but even if it's not the best priced pieces it's still a beast of a machine.

The hardest part about building a PC is deciding on the ventilation imo.

Ya ventilation is key for sure. Which is why I would also recommend this card for possible better ventilation the one I previously mentioned.. Card

It instead will through the air out the back which wouldn't be a bad idea in a smaller case.

@ribstaylor1:

Ok that makes sense, but is duel rad really hard to put in? Does your build get really hot?

Just grab an Alienware

I have a single rad system in my rig, but to answer the question no it's not hard. Clips in like any CPU cooler to the board with screws or possibly clamps, and the duel rad cooler with it's fans just get screwed into the bottom of the case where you see theirs space for duel intakes. I went looking for one on pcpartpicker but compatibility showed no duel rads. So Best bet is to search for others who have put them in the same case and use their models of coolers as I'm not sure which one to suggest. But good luck with the build. Hope it works out good for you and no DOA parts come in as I'll be honest it does happen from time to time which sucks, but that's just a part of life. You should enjoy gaming on the big TV the Graphics pumped out by this thing are going to blow away anyone you show, as most are used to console like graphics.