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[papersleeves]

So there is currently a sale on the Dell website (canadian version).

I can have the following Alienware desktop for $2799CAD, which equates to about $2100USD:

Ryzen 7 5800x
RTX 3080 10GB
16GB DDR4 3200mhz
512GB nvme SSD
Aurora Chassis with liquid cooling and 1000w PSU

SSD capacity and ram could be higher, but I already have another 512GB SSD lying around and I can always upgrade the ram later.

So what do you think? With the current climate/shortage, would you consider this to be a good deal?

 

[Dusktildawn48]

Decent deal, especially with the tariffs and lack of stock. I say go for it.

 

[Diddy X]

I don't think so, wait some months and you could get the same for half that.

 

[DaleinCalgary]

I don't think so, wait some months and you could get the same for half that.

 

[Kadayi]

If you've got the cash and aren't interested in homebuilding then I say go for it. I mean its nigh on impossible to find a 3080 Card in the wild atm short of eBay scalper prices (and the inherent risk). The main consideration is how flexible the machine is for upgrading? I know that Dell has always had a bit of a reputation for being a bit obtuse in that regard with their case design, but I'm not sure if that extends to the Alienware machines?

 

[OverHeat]

not bad

 

[JohnnyFootball]

I don't think so, wait some months and you could get the same for half that.

Half that? LOL no way. Maybe about $1500.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

Great deal. Go for it.

 

[Dr_Salt]

I don´t think its a good deal specially 512gb NVME and 16gb ram for that price but if you have the money to burn and really want to upgrade then go for it.

 

[Bboy AJ]

You can build yourself something better at that price BUT good luck finding it. If you aren’t interested in building anything or want to skip all the stock shortage headaches, that is a good deal for something that will run games very well.

 

[mxbison]

I don't think anything above 1.5k is a good deal. But if you want to spend that much it's definitely a nice setup.

 

[rofif]

yeah, seems like a good deal. 3080 alone is 1000usd right now if You can find one.
16ram is plenty enough. 32 never took off really...
5800x is the best cpu right now
512gb is good for system... I would get another 1tb nvme for just games drive though.
Pc with these specs is 2-3k nowadays

 

[Nester99]

Only way to get a 3080 these days lol
Id do it, only issue i see is the SSD but you already knew.

 

[Kuranghi]

Buy it, then when it arrives take out the 3080 and replace it with a piece of cardboard you've expertly crafted to look like a 3080, then send it back for a refund and build a custom PC with the 3080.

Best of both worlds!

Spoiler

Note for submentals: Don't do this please.

 

[Rikkori]

Wanted to say no, but then I specced out something quick on pcpartpicker and it's like $2500 CAD and that's with out of stock parts so...

Yeah, go for it, just make sure they're not promising delivery months from now.

 

[BennyBlanco]

Yea that's solid as hell.

 

[SlimySnake]

yes.

 

[Aceofspades]

Damn, this opened my eyes on how good of a deal PS5 DE actually is.

 

[Kuranghi]

If I had a 3080 right now the first thing I'd do is use it to Arkham Knight at 4K60, maybe once you actually have the holy grail you feel empty inside at best and at worst you can't leave the chamber forever.

 

[EverydayBeast]

OP should be proud of those specs.

 

[Elektro Demon]

It's solid. But if I were you I'd build my own pc. And maybe wait a few months, the mining bubble has to burst at some point.

 

[DESTROYA]

Not bad for a prebuilt but not that great if you want to go build it on your own way.
If you can afford it go for it , do you have a monitor because good ones will set you back another $400-$500 dollars.

 

[Nydus]

It's solid. But if I were you I'd build my own pc. And maybe wait a few months, the mining bubble has to burst at some point.

This "wait for a few months" was also the mantra at the end of last year. Now we have some months later and the situation is far worse.

 

[Themacabre]

It's solid. But if I were you I'd build my own pc. And maybe wait a few months, the mining bubble has to burst at some point.

I'm in the same predicament. My PC is aging, but with the stock issues I can't seem to get what I want, so the option is pre-built...but I really, really like building my own PC. So I just have to wait.

 

[x@3f*oo_e!]

Same thing at Dell UK is £2,287.00 (like $3100+ US dollars) [4000 $CAN !] so yeah. Way cheaper than I expect from any big name pre-built. (Even excluding differences in taxing)

 

[Moogle11]

This "wait for a few months" was also the mantra at the end of last year. Now we have some months later and the situation is far worse.

Yeah I wouldn’t expect prices to get better anytime soon. The on going pandemic will keep interrupting manufacturing and distribution, demand will stay high as people play more games while stuck at home, turn to mining to try and make money between jobs or from just having more time to look into it while stuck at home etc.

I imagine GPU supply will remain scarce and the new consoles will be tough to find way further into the new generation than usual. Both are hurt by most stores on selling online which makes it harder for average people to beat the scalpers. Easier to just show up at your local stores regularly at opening until you find one than trying to beat bots for online stock.

 

[Xellos]

Seems like a capable PC and not a terrible deal considering the current GPU market. If I was set on a new PC in the near future, I'd be buying prebuilt too.

It would be worthwhile to spend a little extra and upgrade to a 1TB SSD. Game sizes aren't getting any smaller.

 

[Myths]

It’s pretty good, not a fan of the RAM.

 

[sendit]

Stay away from the 5800x. The chip runs hot even with a 280mm AIO. Get either a 5600x or step up to a 5900x+.

 

[T-Cake]

Alienware desktops only have 8x PCI Express lanes wired up. So you'll probably be getting PCI Express 4.0 x8 (which I think is the same as PCI Express 3.0 x16) so you may have a GPU in the future that is bottlenecked by the decreased bandwidth.

 

[Phase]

I haven't looked into pc part prices for some time. Do you guys think a year from now they'll drop at all?

 

[Rbk_3]

I don't think so, wait some months and you could get the same for half that.

Some months. Yes, in 2024, maybe.

 

[S0ULZB0URNE]

The ram and storage i have issue with but the 3800 been hard to come by.
Buy if you will upgrade the two.

 

[STARSBarry]

Let me make this as plain as can be, when you buy an Alienware you are not getting a "real PC"

Now what do I mean by this? I don't mean this in a snobby "the only real PC is a self built one" but the fact that Alienware and Dell tend to put there own special cards in them that you cant get anywhere else.

So that 3080 won't really be a 3080, what will happen is it will sound like a jet engine after 5 minutes of play and then thermal throttle down to much lower preformance just to keep operational. Every other component will be the cheapest it possible can be, the motherboard will most likely be some unknown cheap board, the PSU most likely won't even be rated and the ram will be a single stick and look 20 years old.

I won't tell you to build your own, but have a look at a local system builder as they will always use consumer parts, which at there absolute worst will be superior to whatever is in an alienware.

Does that look like the inside of a machine that costs 2000+ bucks? No, that's the reason Alienware don't have glass panels because they literally arnt, the plastic shell will look nice, but I can guarantee what ever performance you should be getting on paper, slap 10-25% off it and that will be what your really getting. You will struggle to upgrade this in future because you will require special shortend versions of GPU's just to fit in the case. etc etc.



2080 Ti but this is the quality you are getting here, from review of the current R11 I would advise you look for a version with either the 5600x or the 5900x, the reason? The 5800x runs exceptionally hot for an AMD product and the Alienware liquid cooling cant keep up because it sucks, it sucks so much that the latest firmware update to the MB disables the boosting feature of the chips to try and stop the machines shutting off. Which dell states as "Enhanced the thermal stability of the system" yeah at the cost of no more boost to 4.7Ghz your stuck at the 3.8Ghz base clock.



make sure to watch this official video advising you to download said firmware which TOTTALY is a good thing that is not slashing your brand new chips gaming performance to below 3800x performance, oh and also make sure to then "stress test" the system using the official Alienware tool.... you know rather than something third party like OCCT which would actually stress the system guaranteeing a thermal throttle. Wait why would a company put a video out about how to avoid thermal throttling on there new PC's and never advise to open the case up but instead download new firmware? Remember when Apple where patching in lower performance to make sure the "battery's lasted longer" on older devices, yeah kinda like that.

 

[Diddy X]

Some months. Yes, in 2024, maybe.

I didn't say how many months

 

[VAVA Mk2]

RAM and NVME in that rig should have it priced closer to $1800 to be a really good deal.

 

[OverHeat]

Let me make this as plain as can be, when you buy an Alienware you are not getting a "real PC"

Now what do I mean by this? I don't mean this in a snobby "the only real PC is a self built one" but the fact that Alienware and Dell tend to put there own special cards in them that you cant get anywhere else.

So that 3080 won't really be a 3080, what will happen is it will sound like a jet engine after 5 minutes of play and then thermal throttle down to much lower preformance just to keep operational. Every other component will be the cheapest it possible can be, the motherboard will most likely be some unknown cheap board, the PSU most likely won't even be rated and the ram will be a single stick and look 20 years old.

I won't tell you to build your own, but have a look at a local system builder as they will always use consumer parts, which at there absolute worst will be superior to whatever is in an alienware.

Does that look like the inside of a machine that costs 2000+ bucks? No, that's the reason Alienware don't have glass panels because they literally arnt, the plastic shell will look nice, but I can guarantee what ever performance you should be getting on paper, slap 10-25% off it and that will be what your really getting. You will struggle to upgrade this in future because you will require special shortend versions of GPU's just to fit in the case. etc etc.



2080 Ti but this is the quality you are getting here, from review of the current R11 I would advise you look for a version with either the 5600x or the 5900x, the reason? The 5800x runs exceptionally hot for an AMD product and the Alienware liquid cooling cant keep up because it sucks, it sucks so much that the latest firmware update to the MB disables the boosting feature of the chips to try and stop the machines shutting off. Which dell states as "Enhanced the thermal stability of the system" yeah at the cost of no more boost to 4.7Ghz your stuck at the 3.8Ghz base clock.



make sure to watch this official video advising you to download said firmware which TOTTALY is a good thing that is not slashing your brand new chips gaming performance to below 3800x performance, oh and also make sure to then "stress test" the system using the official Alienware tool.... you know rather than something third party like OCCT which would actually stress the system guaranteeing a thermal throttle. Wait why would a company put a video out about how to avoid thermal throttling on there new PC's and never advise to open the case up but instead download new firmware? Remember when Apple where patching in lower performance to make sure the "battery's lasted longer" on older devices, yeah kinda like that.

This is bull I got an R11 with a 10700k OC at 5.1Ghz stable liquid cooled and a 2080ti and it do not thermal throttle at ALL

 

[STARSBarry]

This is bull I got an R11 with a 10700k OC at 5.1Ghz stable liquid cooled and a 2080ti and it do not thermal throttle at ALL

I mean depending on when you bought it this will already have firmware installed to lower the spec so that its throttled by default...

I believe they switched out there origenal 2080 Ti in later models with a weird hybrid liquid cooling solution that while less effective than a stock 2080 Ti still allowed it to preform decently if somewhat noisy.

If the back of your alienware has 4 PCI slots in use, its the newer model, however that does not mean they didn't fuck over a load of consumers with what is essentially an overpriced dell Optiplex in a cheap plastic shell that cooks its components for a majority of the 2080 Ti's life.

Unless you want to explain how a case with 3 120mm fans somehow has magically good airflow when cases with 2x 140mm intakes 2x 120mm outakes can struggle with better airflow designs, and at least a rear out, while also using a single 120mm CPU AIO coolers and now a 3080 with two fans? This thing runs hot, and depending on your local ambient temp, too hot.

 

[cartman414]

I'd go with CyberPowerPC or one of the other prebuilders instead depending on the deal. Heck, some of the pre-builds that are sold via Bestbuy or Amazon are good deals.

 

[alabtrosMyster]

I was expecting something like:

• Geforce RTX 3080

That's it.

 

[iHaunter]

512GB SSD? That's pretty trash. Outside of the GPU, other components are dirt cheap. I would say $1500 is an okay deal for those specs.

 

[CapnAmaricrunch]

ps5 extra dual sense sony pulse 3d online subscription ten games and some pocket money is the way to go.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Very good deal if you want that CPU and GPU now and don’t want to stress yourself trying to buy them individually. They could probably charge $2500 and still get buyers easily.

 

[Sorcerer]

I never understood how company can charge a fortune for a pre-built and still only offer a half a terabyte drive and 16gbs of ram. 2 terabyte drive and 64gs of rams at least, and that still doesn't seem generous enough really.

 

[Tesseract]

yeah, that's a nice rig

 

[Phase]

I was expecting something like:

• Geforce RTX 3080

That's it.

I've started looking around for my own build and jesus the prices...

 

[Deleted member 17706]

I never understood how company can charge a fortune for a pre-built and still only offer a half a terabyte drive and 16gbs of ram. 2 terabyte drive and 64gs of rams at least, and that still doesn't seem generous enough really.

Nonsense. They are not charging a fortune at all if the cost is around $2100 USD. Honestly, the premium is very small considering the labor and scarcity of the main parts.

Just going by MSRP (at which you currently need a miracle to buy a 3080 and 5800x):

RTX 3080 $700
AMD 5800x $450
Mother board $200 ~ $250 (probably not using X570 board)
16GB DDR4 HyperX Fury 3200mhz $105
512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD $170
Case $100 (custom Alienware case, so just ballpark)
1000 Watt 80 Plus Gold power supply $100 (if Rosewill brand, much more expensive if not)
120mm Liquid Cooler for CPU $80 (for cheap one)
Windows 10 Home $139 (or around $30 if you go the shady CD key route)

Again, this isn't exact, but you're looking at spending around $1935 ~ $2085 if you want to part that out and build it yourself.

 

[Justin9mm]

Seems like a decent deal, I know a good company here in Australia who builds PC's for almost do it yourself prices and even cheaper in some cases as they do sales on bulk ordered components they get very cheap and looking at your specs, works out to be $2300 USD best price here.

But if it was me I would build it myself a bit cheaper.

 

[Max_Po]

Its a good deal. I placed an order for same but 5900x and 3400 mhz ram.

I have a 10% discount code plus 2% ebates.

On the other side I pre ordered RTX 3080 from a retailer .... at 1170 cdn plus tax ...due to tarrifs now they want 1441 plus tax.

I have kids.. rotating shifts ...I cannot leave everything watch discord to buy a freaking card....

 

[PendekarRajawali]

I would get a motorbike for that price.