Dad Said I Could Get a New Comp.. Help!

[Prince of the Poodles]

Hey,

Well my dad said I could get a new computer since M2TW is coming out very soon, but I dont know where to start, except that Alienware makes good gaming computers.

Money isnt really an issue, and I want my game to run perfectly on the highest settings, so can anyone help me or make any suggestions about what I should get. I dont know much about cards and ghz and all that.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[Prince of the Poodles]

One more thing, it would be great if this new computer were a laptop, as I live half my life at my bfs.

However, if it comes down to performance vs convenience, I would much rather have a desktop with great performance.

Thanks again.. :D

[Caius]

i dont remeber the requeriments of M2TW:
The sys requeriments are:

Processor 1.5 Ghz

Ram 256Mb

3d Card:128 Mb
:help:Make me remember:help:

[Bombasticus Maximus]

They will be alot more than that.

Take a look around here. >> LINKY << (http://www.alienware.co.uk/promotion_pages/burn/notebooks.aspx?kw=alienware-laptops)

[doc_bean]

You should check out the hard and software forum, a lot of people seem to be upgrading these days. You won't get the same performance out of a laptop as you would get out of a desktop, simply because power is often a consideration for laptops and less so for desktops, modern 3D cards swallow electricity (even if battery life wasn't the problem, heat generation would still be a major issue in laptops) and because it's harder and more expensive to make things small enough to fit into a laptop.

If money is no objection you could probably just buy one of the top Alienware computers, or the top computers from another high-end assembler (though I wouldn't recommend dell myself and would recommend against HP).

[caravel]

Money isnt really an issue

If money isn't an issue then you should simply buy the most up to date and expensive hardware possible, and have it put to together by a professional.

[CrossLOPER]

If money isn't an issue then you should simply buy the most up to date and expensive hardware possible, and have it put to together by a professional.

I agree with the part about having the machine being put together profesionally, however, I would be careful with what you buy. There is some really overpriced crap out there that tends to break down and make you mad. ~:angry: Also, Alienware laptops tend to be a little heavy and slightly cumbersome, so keep that in mind.

Anyway, go ahead and check with the h and s tech forums.

[satchef1]

http://www.beastcomputers.co.uk/

For an alienware alternative, they dont do laptops though.

[doc_bean]

from &#163;3879 :jawdrop:
Now is the chance to prove money is no issue ~D

[Dutch_guy]

Hello Poodles,

Take a look at the Hard and Software (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=132) area right here at the guild. A lot of helpfull members roam that part of the fora. They'll know everything you'd possibly like to know, and more.


:balloon2:

[highlanddave]

another place to try for a great laptop is falcon nw:

http://www.falcon-nw.com

[Stig]

If you really want to play games, don't buy a laptop, for games proper desktops are better

[Caius]

If you really want to play games, don't buy a laptop, for games proper desktops are better
Thats true.

What happened with the thread "Sega releases the official requeriments of M2TW"???

[Dutch_guy]

Thats true.

What happened with the thread "Sega releases the official requeriments of M2TW"???

It's right here. (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=69947)

:balloon2:

[ShadesWolf]

I would suggest dont get a laptop as you wont get the performance you want and you cant upgrade it easily.

I have had many laptops and in the end I always go back to the desktop for gaming.

[RTKBarrett]

Hey bud i was in ure exact position bout a month ago, my birthday was coming up and the old man offered to buy me a new comp for it with the upcoming release of mtw2 :)
I chose an Evesham "Axis Knockout Pro", and ive had it for a few weeks now... ITS AMAZING :D The best thing is u can customise to ure own needs, i tweaked up the model so that mine has 2GB ram for example...
The support from evesham is gd and u get a solid 3 year warranty. Hope this helps in ure decision ;-)

http://www.evesham.com/products/info.asp?e=5CF90027-88E9-4EA8-B6DF-870D16100076

[satchef1]

from £3879 :jawdrop:
Now is the chance to prove money is no issue ~D

lol
Thats the Aphros series. If you go for one that doesnt come fully overclocked + water cooled as standard then they start from £1069.

[Prince of the Poodles]

Thanks so much for the help guys. :D

As I said, if laptops are limited compared to desktops, I will definately get a desktop.

I will also ask around the Hard and Software forum.

The problem is that I just dont know wat "gig" is, what a good video card is, memory or anything really. I always just told the poeple I wanted a good computer, but last time I did that I ended up with an expensive one with little gaming abilities. :(

Oh yea, I found the specs thread mentioned, but I also read that companies put the lowest possible specs that dont really play well on the best settings, so I definately want something better than their listed minimums.

Thanks again for all the help! Im leaning towards alienware simply because they are known as the gaming computer leaders, but some of the suggestions here definately present some alternatives that need to be looked at!

:2thumbsup:

[Death Match]

You are lucky to have a new comp.... mine is Integrated Intel Graphics Card and I am playing RTW!!!!

[doc_bean]

The problem is that I just dont know wat "gig" is, what a good video card is, memory or anything really. I always just told the poeple I wanted a good computer, but last time I did that I ended up with an expensive one with little gaming abilities. :(


If your knowledge of computers is that limited (no offence, we all have our interests) than I do think a pre-build system is the best. You could always post the specs here or in the hard- and software forum, if the comments aren't too harsh you'll probably get a good system.

On a side note, what kind of monitor do you have ? Your needs really depend on that, a 23" widescreen should be used at a much higher resolution than a regular 17" or so.

[Prince of the Poodles]

Hey,

What about this.. its prebuilt, specifically for gaming, and I believe it comes with a monitor and sound system.

http://www.alienware.com/product_detail_pages/Area-51_ALX/area-51_overview.aspx?SysCode=PC-AREA51-ALX-R5&SubCode=SKU-DEFAULT#pdp-nav

Is this going to run games at the max like it claims? Is it worth 6k?

Thanks! :D

[CrossLOPER]

Looks good, but I don't like the model. However, I think it will suit your needs for years to come.

[Csargo]

I wish my dad would buy me a new computer.

*Runs and cries in the corner.

[CrossLOPER]

Really?

[Csargo]

Really?

Would I lie to you? :inquisitive:

[Csargo]

Yes, Yes I would :laugh4:

[doc_bean]

Hey,

What about this.. its prebuilt, specifically for gaming, and I believe it comes with a monitor and sound system.

http://www.alienware.com/product_detail_pages/Area-51_ALX/area-51_overview.aspx?SysCode=PC-AREA51-ALX-R5&SubCode=SKU-DEFAULT#pdp-nav

Is this going to run games at the max like it claims? Is it worth 6k?

Thanks! :D

Okay spec list ( for 6k)

The insides

alienware chassis (850W power supply)
alienware motherboard
2 GB 800Mhz RAM
250GB HD
Dual 7900GTX 512 mb gfx cards
Intel® Core™ 2 Extreme X6800 2.93GHz 4MB Cache 1066MHz FSB

Drives & monitor & stuff

16x DVD rewritable drive
24" widescreen monitor
keyboard mouse

software

XP mediacenter

additional

one year warranty

The comments

This machine is a monster, you'll be able to run pretty much any game out now at max settings smoothly, and those you can't are just badly optimized. The 24" screen is a very big plus (although it probably adds around $1500 to the price just by itself).
However You could buy a slightly less good system for pretty much half the price and won't notice the difference with most games. But if price is not an issue...
As a final comment, I would extend the warranty to two years, and possibly consider a bigger HD, or secondary HD.

Hope this helps you a bit !

[Marshal Murat]

I have a Dell XPS laptop
2 GB of Ram
60-ish GB of Memory
That's all I need to impress.

[satchef1]

Hey,

What about this.. its prebuilt, specifically for gaming, and I believe it comes with a monitor and sound system.

http://www.alienware.com/product_detail_pages/Area-51_ALX/area-51_overview.aspx?SysCode=PC-AREA51-ALX-R5&SubCode=SKU-DEFAULT#pdp-nav

Is this going to run games at the max like it claims? Is it worth 6k?

Thanks! :D

Wow! You werent kidding when you said money doesnt matter.
Only got 1 negative on that spec; Physics Processors are in their infancy and not really worth the bother yet. They take up an extra PCI slot too which would be better used on a decent Sound Card.
I would look at the ALX laptop too, for 6K you could get a laptop that will perform almost as well with todays games as that desktop (you could put them side by side and not notice the difference) and you get the added bonus of portability
Other than that, a comp of that spec wont struggle with anything for years to come! :2thumbsup:

[BDC]

Wow I got it up to $12k...

You could model nuclear explosions with it!...

[doc_bean]

Wow! You werent kidding when you said money doesnt matter.
Only got 1 negative on that spec; Physics Processors are in their infancy and not really worth the bother yet. They take up an extra PCI slot too which would be better used on a decent Sound Card.

I believe a Physics processor isn't included in the 6K package. The cost is mostly due to the monitor (24" widescreen, $2000 ?) the graphics cards ($1000 or so) and processor (haven't seen them sold yet $800 ?).

I'm probably underestimating the costs, since the rest ahrdly seems worth another $2200...

[C-F]

Okay spec list ( for 6k)

The insides

alienware chassis (850W power supply)
alienware motherboard
2 GB 800Mhz RAM
250GB HD
Dual 7900GTX 512 mb gfx cards
Intel® Core™ 2 Extreme X6800 2.93GHz 4MB Cache 1066MHz FSB

Drives & monitor & stuff

16x DVD rewritable drive
24" widescreen monitor
keyboard mouse

software

XP mediacenter

additional

one year warranty

The comments

This machine is a monster, you'll be able to run pretty much any game out now at max settings smoothly, and those you can't are just badly optimized. The 24" screen is a very big plus (although it probably adds around $1500 to the price just by itself).
However You could buy a slightly less good system for pretty much half the price and won't notice the difference with most games. But if price is not an issue...
As a final comment, I would extend the warranty to two years, and possibly consider a bigger HD, or secondary HD.

Hope this helps you a bit !

Nice!

The only thing I would be checking a little closer is the XP-mediacenter edition...
Just bought Caesar IV and it explicitly states that XP-version is not supported - although some claim it works.
Don't know the difference to XP-PRO - so don't exactly know why...

[Big King Sanctaphrax]

Although that Alienware system is an absolute monster (4 GPUs!), I would advise waiting a few months, if you can bear it. DX 10 and the cards to go with it are being released soon, and if you have carte blanche it might be worth your while to put off buying for now, and then go for one of those systems.

On the other hand, if you really don't want to wait, I'd pump the system up to the max. That 1Gb RAID array looks mighty tasty.