Slimline Dell Pc

meathman 007

Not sure if this is the right place to post......

what do youse reckon:

Pc to be placed under tv.....

I can get the following for about 850 euro

http://configure.euro.dell.com/dells...sftdppdesktop1
http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/pr...n&s=dhs&~ck=mn


With the following upgrades:


1. Upgrade to the Dell™ 20" UltraSharp™ Wide Aspect Digital/Analogue Flat Panel 2007FPW

2. Upgrade to the 320gb hardrive

3. Upgrade to 2gb of ram

4. Im going to build it with xp media center

5. Dell™ A225 Stereo Speakers


Additional info -

1. i already have 500gb external hardrive so memory is not an issue

2. I already have home cinema system for sound - so the basic dell speakers are just for basic sound output

I would be using the system for the playback of hd files - xvid etc
Windows media activities, web browsing etc.
Not for hardcore gaming

Will processor, graphics card be good enough for hd xvid playback etc etc - any advice/comments appreciated..


Has anyone got any advice or comments before i order it?
Any comments appreciated......

thanks meathman

meathman 007

anyone got any comments/advice?

8T8

I'll move this into the HTPC/Media Centre forum then comment further.

For Windows Media Centre I'm sure the specification is fine nothing to worry about.

HD XviD is not remotely demanding so whatever the CPU is I'm sure it's fine. (HD-DVD, Blu-ray are a different kettle of fish)

p.s the Dell links are broken you didn't copy & paste them correctly.

meathman 007

thanks ST8

The links:

Pc:
http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?b=&c=ie&cs=iedhs1&kc=D4XENT01&l=en&oc=D05C17XP&rbc=D05C17XP&s=dhs&sbc=iedhsftdppdesktop1

With the above upgrades.....

Monitor:

http://reviews.cnet.com/lcd-monitors/dell-ultrasharp-2007wfp/4505-3174_7-31783769.html

yea i would be using it for avi and xvid hd files, general windows media stuff , web browsing and microsoft office work. Ive no intention to use it for blu-ray, hardcore gaming etc....

Does anyone know if i will receive the windows media center remote with the dell pc?

Any comments appreciated....

BaZmO*

meathman 007 wrote:

Does anyone know if i will receive the windows media center remote with the dell pc?

I didn't with the one I got, although I didn't get a TV tuner bundled with the PC that I bought from them.

8T8

The remote you can buy online I dont believe Dell supply it.

Also if you use Media Centre a lot it may be worth getting the C521 system with Windows Vista Home Premium instead as that comes with a better version of Media Centre built into the OS.

meathman 007

fair point ST8 - the reason i am thinking of going for xp is bacause ive heard a lot of bad things about vista - incompatibility, slow etc etc.

I was thinking of waiting maybe a year and then upgrade to vista when a service pack has been released - do you think thats a good idea?

8T8

Most of the bad things about Vista are sort of second hand talk.

There shouldn't be any compatibility issues with the system or the tasks you outline, there is nothing inherently wrong with going for XP either but the Vista Media centre is MS focus now so that's what will get new features etc.

The waiting till SP1 is a good move also and what is generally most did with XP as well so it's really your call but I would not expect any trouble with Vista and the jobs you describe & it would save you buying it in the long run if you ever wanted it.

meathman 007

yea fair points again, ive always loved xp so i see no reason to go for vista at this point...

In terms of the spec im going for and the upgrades ive choosen, is there anything obvious im missing that would improve performance?

kaisersose77

i'd get the e520 mentioned in bargain alerts section, which would probably be much easier to upgrade with harddrives etc. Get a passive 8500gt, and your sorted for HD. That x1300 isnt going to be any help playing HD files (have it myself) .Theres no point in getting xp unless you want to waste money buying vista down the line. I got an e520 with vista b4 xmas for the same reasons as you and everything works fine. Its just gonna look like xp with fancier theme if your just using web browsers, media players etc so why get xp if this is going to do everything you want.

meathman 007

thanks for the comments kaizor

1. I like the c521 because it is good bit smaller and it can be placed on its side

2. Ive been told off other people that i will have no trouble playing hd files - avi, xvid etc with the x1300?..... - ive no interest in using it with bluray or hddvd

3. I think i read somewhere that microsoft will support xp until 2010. - i like xp and see no reason to go for vista. - ive also heard off a lot of people that is slower than xp and there is other problems with it that xp dosnt have. I probobly wont go near vista for 2 years

4. I went on the dell website and looked at the e520 - it works out a lot more expensive than the c521 when you factor in the upgrades im going for

Im fairly happy with what im going to get - was just hoping a few people could give some comments/suggestions before i buy in 2moro

kaisersose77

i'd get the most basic 521 then, your paying way over the odds for items like graphics cards, hard drive etc. Someone was selling lots of them x1300's on adverts.ie for 18/20 euros. (and if your playing 720p/1080p xvids its your cpu and not that graphics card that'll be doing all the work as the x1300 onlys helps up to 480p). You can get 500gb sata harddrives off german sites for 90 euros.

meathman 007

ok thanks again for your comments kaizer

Considering what you said, would you recommend paying about 50 euro extra and upgrading from the:

AMD® Athlon™ 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 4000+

To the:

AMD® Athlon™ 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 5000

.....?

8T8

Nah don't bother with the X2 5000+ the X2 4000+ will have no problem with XviD.

XviD HD content is very rare no commercial content I'm aware of uses that format and XviD itself is just MPEG-4 ASP which is very easy to decode for CPU's.

meathman 007

yea im just a bit confused at this stage to be honest.
I want to playback hd 720p files in various formats - avi, xvid etc etc - ive no interest in blu-ray or hd-dvd.

So with the processor and graphic card i have listed - will i have no problems playing back any 720p files.
As i said i dont care about hardcore games.......

TheGreatest

I am actually using a Dimension C521 as HTPC, looks well under the tv but it's CPU cooler is a bit noisey