Alienware is overpriced, I get it. What else is there? Help!

[Sanityforbidden]

(Hope this is the right place to put this, I'm really not sure given all the catagories in the forum! xD)

I've been searching around google for reviews, experiences, and other subjects regarding Alienware. Now, please don't stop reading, because I haven't been able to get anyone to really answer my questions other then trying to deter me JUST because of the price. I'm getting quite frustrated at this point (the texts from a friend of mine constantly stabbing at the idea isn't helping).

First off! I'm going to be a junior in SCAD (savannah college of art and design) and I'm majoring in Animation. That means that I really need a computer that I can use over the summer and winter breaks that can handle things like : Maya Autodesk 2009, Zbrush, Unreal and other physics engines, Photoshops, loads of multitasking, rendering, so on and so forth without any major problems. I also wouldn't mind playing things like Crysis, Left 4 Dead, Fallout 3, and ugh, Rollarcoaster Tycoon 3 without the coasters lagging on me.

I also need this thing to last - mind you I don't mind upgrading, but I'm hoping this thing will last me through the rest of my college years without much fuss. I know prior to getting this thing that whatever's in it will probably be obsolete in another two to three years, and I'm fine with that. That's just how the industry goes.


SO.

I looked into Alienware computers as I'm not interested in building my own (I'm quite the clutz - the idea of handling cards and components that will be around 500 bucks or more each is not thrilling, and I'm not handing it to someone else to do it). I know that Alienware is VERY overpriced - and I'm fine with that - you pay for the name.

But that's the only thing people have been telling me. That Alienware is overpriced.

And I come back with the same thing - I don't care about the price, I just want a system that LOOKS good and will run what I need it to. (and I must admit that I've been curious about the company for years)

SO. That's why I've come here - I'm sick of the only reason being the price. Is there anything else in play here? Bad service? Bad component choices? They break too fast? I'm also aware (I think?) that Alienware is owned by Dell, which actually helps put the pieces together on why I was seeing so many awful customer review problems. I don't mind that it's Dell, as you SELECT the components that go into the system and I'm willing to fight for my warrenty and service if the system freaks out.

Sooo.. if there are any other reasons as to WHY people shouldn't buy from Alienware..? Please share them, as I would love to know BEFORE I spend the 2+ grand on a tower (Don't need anything but the tower - I have a new monitor). The only thing that seems to pop up on google is the price thing, like I said earlier. Any advise and imput would be GREAT since I can't find anything. Any advise on the specs would also be appreciated! Thank you!!!


System specs are as follows (may add in liquid cooling, but still unsure):

Processor: AMD Phenom™ II X4 925 2.8GHz Quad-Core (4x 512MB L2, 6MB L3 Cache)
Alienware P2 Chassis: Alienware® P2 Chassis with AlienIce™ 3.0 Video Cooling - Space Black
AlienFX®: Alienware® AlienFX® System Lighting - Fusion Red
Alienware P2 Chassis Upgrades: Alienware® Standard System Cooling
Power Supply: Alienware® 1000 Watt Multi-GPU Approved Power Supply
Graphics Processor: Single 1,792 MB NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 295
Memory: 4GB« Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 4 x 1024MB
Motherboard: Alienware® Approved AMD® 790FX Motherboard
Includes PCI-Express 2.0, BIOS Overclocking Utility, and Support for AMD Phenom Quad-Core Processors
Operating System (Office software not included): Windows Vista® Home Premium with Service Pack 1 – DirectX 10 Ready!
System Drive: Single Drive Configuration - 500GB SATA 3Gb/s 7,200RPM 16MB Cache
Optical Drives : Single Drive Configuration - 20X Dual Layer Burner (DVD±RW) w/ LightScribe
Enthusiast Essentials: Single High Performance Gigabit Ethernet Port
Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Titanium High Definition 7.1 Audio



Again, any information on this company would be GREATLY appreciated! Thank you for reading!

[Aaron_8015]

Yes the only downfall with alienware is they charge a little more than most places but as you said you are getting the name. They can build you a top of the line PC, they offer warrenty and support also (which is nice when things go wrong).

Most people like to get as much as they can for their money and they can build something a little better for a little less. I used to own an alienware laptop which was great (but I did pay for it ).

Just out of curiosity how much are they charging for that?

[EXreaction]

Spending that much I would get an Intel i7 system.

I'd start with this:
The Dell Online Store: Build Your System

Leave it pretty much as is, then buy these parts and put them in there:
Newegg.com - POWERCOLOR AX4850 512MD3-DH Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
Newegg.com - pqi 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 Desktop Memory - Desktop Memory

Wouldn't be as fast for gaming because of the (much cheaper) 4850, but I am not one for high end graphics cards because they become obsolete so fast (DX11 is coming soon and probably cards twice as fast as the current ones). It should be faster in rendering though because of the faster i7 cpu and faster ram (you'll have 9GB with the default dell ram and the ram I linked to, which will help if you do a lot of work with a lot of data (like large renderings).

I'd look at getting another 1TB or so hard drive for a data drive besides the main one for an OS drive. They are about $80-100.

[ShyguyXPC]

forget liquid cooling, unless your going to be overclocking, its not worth the price increase.

I still don't know why they stuff 1000W PSU's in these things aside from driving up the price. a decent 600-700W quality brand unit costing less I suspect, will handle that card just fine and the rest of the system.

its an AMD branded motherboard and chipset so SLI is out of the question for running 2 of those GTX 295's, so the 1000W PSU is way overkill. had it been an SLI capable board or you opted for a Radeon x2 card, to run 2 of them, I could see running that PSU, but as it is now, its overkill.

but then again, you have little options going with a prebuilt like alienware.

your going to want to stay away from Creative Sound cards, especially the X-fi's, if using Vista, the drivers suck, and Creative limits a lot of the top end functionality with their drivers for those cards.

if you do want to go with an Xfi chip, unless its an option, ditch the sound card option, and buy an Auzentech Xfi Prelude or Forte card, and install that in the system your self (really easy to do), Auzentech is licensing the Xfi chips to use in their cards (so far the only 3rd party to do so), and their drivers for Vista are much more stable and feature rich than Creatives, they actually enable all the functionality of the Xfi in Vista.

add in a 2nd hard drive to back up data too.

or at least an external HDD, trust me, you'll want one if and when the time comes should the system die or HDD die, or you need to do a full system reformat.




Overall for gaming the above system is a near top end system.

for your Animation stuff, it'll really fly as well, the CPU is a Quad core which will help with any 3D rendering immensely. not sure if Maya supports full GPU rendering for Final Renders (most 3D apps allow for OpenGL rendering in preview windows, but not many support GPU rendering for the final image/animation, I think 3D Studio Max does and one or two others, since Maya is now owned by Autodesk along with Studio Max, thats why I'm not sure)



thats the main reason I upgraded to an Intel Core i7 system over my previous Core 2 Quad Q6600 Quad core system, was for my 3D rendering stuff I dabble in, using Carrara 6 and Daz Studio.

with the Core i7's 4 cores, plus Hyper Threading, was looking to drop render times, since number of systems and network Rendering for my version of the program I have is out of the question. and since Carrara currently doesn't support GPU final Renders, only Previews I wanted as much CPU as I could afford.

anyways.

overall it'll do what you ask/need.

but for the money, which it'd be nice to know how much your going to blow on this, you could build a system for less, or a better system for the money.

I know you mentioned your a bit of a clutz, but so are a lot of people, and putting together a system on your own, is not only pretty easy to do, especially if you have some patience, and willing to learn. but your also that much more familiar with the system, so if some thing does go wrong your more able to address the issue and even resolve it on your own.

as to Alienware themselves, I have no experience with them personally, but I too have heard and read many of the complaints about them, that you have probably been hearing as well.

hopefully some of the others here might have dealt with them.

Best thing I can offer right now on that is check out our sister site, Reseller Ratings Alienware - alienware.com - Reviews, Ratings and Prices at ResellerRatings

as well as do a search in their forums too: ResellerRatings Store Ratings

[RayH]

Are you sure a Windows computer is what you need, an not a Mac?

[osprey4]

Alienware is, of course, owned by Dell.

[Sanityforbidden]

Aaron_8015 :: Thanks for replying, I appreciate it! It’s reassuring to hear a few people say that it really IS just the price that scares most people away, especially since most computer enthusiasts/gaming enthusiasts build their own rigs. And that’s okay! Do what makes ya happy in the long run, y’know? If it gets you there a little cheaper? Then hey! Oh! The price of that Aurora put together? Around $2,000. The thing starts at $800 – which is basically the case, extras, Vista, etc. The processor and the graphics card added that extra grand or so. A rip off, but again, it's mostly about the name at that point.

[Sanityforbidden]

EXreaction :: That might be something to look into – I’ve been tempted by the i7, but am afraid to put my own rig together from scratch. So that build your own system and then adding a few things here and there is definitely a good idea! I hadn’t thought of that! Even with the Alienwares I had looked into the i7’s since I wanted this thing to last for a few years and I know they out perform the AMD quads a good bit, both under performance and speed. The 9GB of RAM is nice on that, too! Not sure about another hard drive, since I have two externals that I keep most extra files on– a Toshiba and a Black Armor. In total I think that’s about 550 GB of space that I barely have taken up.

[Sanityforbidden]

ShyguyXPC :: Wow! Thanks for the reply!! Very helpful! I’ll look into the 700 watt power supply – my boyfriend (he’s into building his own rigs) thought it would be a good idea to put on the 1000 just in case, but even I kind of gave him a funny look when he said that – seems like a bit of an overkill. As far as hard drives go, I have two externals, one 250GB and another that has the 320GB, but I know animation files can get huge, so eventually getting a 1TB may be necessary. Thank you also for the advise on the sound card! I’ll check to see if that’s even an option to take that one off and look into the ones you mentioned. Crappy drivers are something I would love to avoid, especially with Vista.

I think the most I can get out of renders might be some simple animations and complex still shot renders – which is fine. All I need it to do is handle the graph editors and textures and high poly models very well. Some effects and particles would be wonderful, too. But this is fine – SCAD’s animation/gaming/visFX building has render farms should be able to handle the rest if I can provide the files to render from. But I think, from what I’ve done on the school computers, I can fully render still shots.. animations need to typically be sent to the render farm.

Ooh the i7! I had been looking into that over the AMD quad since I know it surpasses in both speed and performance. Tempted, but we’ll see. I’d probably look at the 2.93GHz version.

For the above system? It would be around $2,000 bucks. The system started at $800 with the case, Vista, keyboard, mouse, etc. Naturally the two things that really bumped the price was the processor and the graphics card.

Not sure what to think about the company – either the ratings RAVE about the rigs or they complain about how it was a pain. *shrug* Seems to be a risk whether I buy a prebuilt or buy from scratch.

RayH :: I also own a Macbook – and I’ve thought about a Mac and then just having Windows put on it, but I do prefer to have the laptop as a mac and then just a PC (love PC’s a bit more – more freedom In customizing and making look really, really crazy). So I’ve thought about it, but have decided it’s not really for me. I love my PC’s too much.

Smithy42 :: Good to hear! In regards to the cooling – I’m iffy since I might overclock for gaming and/or rendering, but I don’t plan on pushing the system far. Might be handy for in the future, which is the only reason I would ever consider it. ESPECIALLY since I need to move it around and haul it to college every year, which is a number of states away.

Osprey4 :: It is. D: I figure since I’m picking the components, it should be okay - I just worry about their customer service. I’ve heard nasty things about it, but moreso on Gateway, I think.

[EXreaction]

For the extra 300Mhz it's not worth the extra cost for the higher end i7, definitely not $500 (300Mhz would probably get less than a 10% performance increase). For that you would be better off building a system and getting some nicer stuff to do some good overclocking as it would be cheaper and perform better.

If your boyfriend is into building his own systems he should have no problem installing the new ram and graphics card if you were to go with the Dell. External drives are very nice, so it sounds like you would be great with that Dell with a graphics and memory upgrade. Total cost should be under or around $1,000 after shipping and tax.

Don't get the graphics card upgrade from Dell when you can get the same thing from newegg for 1/2 the price (a 4850 is $90 after $20 MIR, and the Dell upgrade was $200 for the same thing)