Anyone replace a fan or power supply in a Dell?

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sync

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I was ready to buy a Dell computer and then I read that they use proprietary parts and connectors. That has me wondering if getting a Dell is the way to go now. Anyone have any experience with replacing a fan or power supply in a Dell?
 
Why don't you save yourself some money and build your own pc. It isn't that much more complicated than Lego's.
 
jonnyc said:
Why don't you save yourself some money and build your own pc. It isn't that much more complicated than Lego's.
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I would rather spend the time doing something I find more enjoyable. :)
 
Hi Sync.

I've had a bit of experience with Dell computers in the past. It is true that they use proprietary components in their machines, although they do seem to do a good job in keeping them standard (IDE/SATA cables, molex connectors etc..). The main thing I found with them though is the cases are rather unorthodox so a special power supply may need to be ordered from Dell, however, the physical act of replacing the part would be just the same as any other computer. Fans for computers are generally standard usually in 80mm or 120mm sizes, so then again, the replacing wouldnt be an issue. Make sure you check to see if opening your case will void your warranty before attempting any DIY repairs.

jonnyc:

Don't forget that if you buy through Dell, you're also purchasing the customer service, so in a situation where he might have to replace the power supply or fan he might be covered under warranty and not even have to worry about it.

Personally, I dont buy Dell, but then again, I buy high quality components that I trust to last a good deal of time and have the know-how to quickly install/replace them.

Dell is a good company who have been in the business for a long time. If you're just looking for a computer for home use then I highly recommend them. However, I do assume you'll be doing some sort of recording on it, and you will need a decently powerful sound card/processor etc. In this case, going through Dell may cost you a lot more than buying the pieces seperately.

Good luck in your decision.
 
The powersupply in my girlfriends Dell fried out. All we had to do was order one off of eBay for $40 and it was a piece of cake to replace.
 
If you know computers and its troubleshooting side, it's better to get a custom PC. In that case, you could get components that will work well with each other for a lower price. That's only if you know what works well and what doesn't work well.
 
studiomaster said:
If you know computers and its troubleshooting side, it's better to get a custom PC. In that case, you could get components that will work well with each other for a lower price. That's only if you know what works well and what doesn't work well.
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I was up on all that stuff years but I haven't kept up with it.

If you wait until a really good deal comes along you can get a nice Dell system with an LCD monitor in the $400 range. I doubt that you could build a comparable system for the same price.

Of course, when you build you get exactly what you want. But computers are so powerful these days that almost any new computer would make a suitable DAW for most people. If you have dozens of tracks with dozens of plugins and lots of soft synths I suppose a high end sytem makes sense.
 
About the fan issue, I have recently heard about that as well. I have a Dimension 8300 and supposedly it has like a 92" fan with some odd proprietary connector. I think with an adapter or some fancy splicing you can make a regular one fit, but it might just be easier to order the part from Dell. I have replaced the power supply in mine with an Antec True 430. It was kind of a pain because I had to mangle the metal grill on the back to make it fit, but where there's a will there's a way . :)

If I'da known much about computers 3 years ago, I woulda built one myself for sure. But the Dell has been a pretty good workhorse, after a few upgrades...
 
sync said:
If you wait until a really good deal comes along you can get a nice Dell system with an LCD monitor in the $400 range. I doubt that you could build a comparable system for the same price..
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That is exactly the line of thought that gets you a shitty, shitty Dell. Dell has nice stuff, but their "specials" are total crap. It's like a made in Indonesia Squier Strat versus a MIA.

The problem is that the hard drives are crap, the power supply is crap, and the memory is crap. You can get the better components, but they are in the more expensive Dells.

If you look at the specs (memory, speed, HD size) it seems like it's a really good deal. They just have to cut corners to make that proce point and they do it by using the shittiest internal components.

When I had my business going, I knew a lot of small business men who thought it was shrewd to outfit their whole office with the cheapest Dells in the sunday flyer. They just didn't have a good track record and it wasn't all that easy for them to get warranty stuff. You have to spend a fair amount of time on the horn with Mumbai before they'll replace anything. Seems like one of the solutions on their list is to relaod the operating system and start you from scratch. Not saying that they do it all the time. It was 2 insurance men who ended up in that situation trying to fix their problem with phone support.
 
cephus said:
Dell has nice stuff, but their "specials" are total crap. It's like a made in Indonesia Squier Strat versus a MIA.
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I'm not talking about their specials. I'm referring to those times when you can stack coupons and use them on whichever computer you like.

cephus said:
The problem is that the hard drives are crap, the power supply is crap, and the memory is crap. You can get the better components, but they are in the more expensive Dells.
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How do you tell the difference - is it by the line?
 
When I look through the dell junk mail, I can see where they cross the line from remarkably cheap to surprisingly expensive. If you are using coupons to get to a confortable pricepoint, then I don't have any specific model name or anything. I am speaking to the ones that are on the front page of the junk mail or the back to school commercials (Get this PC for $299 and get the LCD for only $50 more!!!).


But then again, all consumer-class computers are like that. I try to buy business-class PCs. they have cool features like tool-less chassis access and beefier components.

My wife's cousin spent what i consider to be alot of money at best buy on an HP. It had all these slots in the front for media and a CD and seperate DVD drives. It came with the keyboard with knobs and buttons all across the top and a wireless mouse. The thing was a total shitpiece. When I opened it up, one of the fans wasn't working (looked like it never had). It had no extra molex power cables. Also, since it had 2 IDE optical drives, that only allowed a single free channel for his slave drive.

They're all junk and I feel for people who just want to buy something off the shelf and be good to go.

By the way, would anyone say that it is worth the $$$ to upgrade to XP pro. It just seems like it's the XP home systems that are always getting wadded up.
 
I've never ran windows xp home on my computers, but there's not much of a chance other than a little bit more networking power, and security. but the sp1 & sp2 fixed problems found in both. I wouldnt' spend the money and upgrade to pro. XP is STILL proned to problems, because it's a Microsoft product (ok... office is decent).

As for Dells people.... Your only getting a slow ass piece of shit for $299. I'm talking about a REALLY slow ass piece of shit. A lot of these regular computers out there are faster (like ones running say a AMD Athlon XP 2000+ with a gig of ram). For recording purposes, why pay the $$ to get a machine (that's STILL part of your recording chain) that's not going live up to what it SHOULD be able to do? Someone would need a machine with the minimums of a gig of ram (get more), plenty of hard drive space (500gb), a decent video, a good power supply that gives uninterrupted power, and a processor speed of at LEAST 3.0ghz/3200+ or higher/better (that doesn't mean get a celeron 3ghz or 2.8 & oc) :D

cephus said:
When I look through the dell junk mail, I can see where they cross the line from remarkably cheap to surprisingly expensive. If you are using coupons to get to a confortable pricepoint, then I don't have any specific model name or anything. I am speaking to the ones that are on the front page of the junk mail or the back to school commercials (Get this PC for $299 and get the LCD for only $50 more!!!).


But then again, all consumer-class computers are like that. I try to buy business-class PCs. they have cool features like tool-less chassis access and beefier components.

My wife's cousin spent what i consider to be alot of money at best buy on an HP. It had all these slots in the front for media and a CD and seperate DVD drives. It came with the keyboard with knobs and buttons all across the top and a wireless mouse. The thing was a total shitpiece. When I opened it up, one of the fans wasn't working (looked like it never had). It had no extra molex power cables. Also, since it had 2 IDE optical drives, that only allowed a single free channel for his slave drive.

They're all junk and I feel for people who just want to buy something off the shelf and be good to go.

By the way, would anyone say that it is worth the $$$ to upgrade to XP pro. It just seems like it's the XP home systems that are always getting wadded up.
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sync said:
I was up on all that stuff years but I haven't kept up with it.

If you wait until a really good deal comes along you can get a nice Dell system with an LCD monitor in the $400 range. I doubt that you could build a comparable system for the same price.

Of course, when you build you get exactly what you want. But computers are so powerful these days that almost any new computer would make a suitable DAW for most people. If you have dozens of tracks with dozens of plugins and lots of soft synths I suppose a high end sytem makes sense.
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Your right, you can't build a comparable system for that price of $400.... you could build a better one.... without the monitor that is.... I went and bought a mobo/cpu combo the other week for $89, the processor was a AMD Athlon 64 3500+, memory can get you to 1gb $100 corsair (dells only offer 512mb starting and you have to pay more to get that 1gb), HD's, 300gb Seagate $79, built on video and sound, and buy a case for $20 bucks with a power supply (your not getting a work of art casing with dell either) and there, you got a even powerful system than that DELL.. Throw in they keyboard/mouse - $20, speakers $10.. $318 total price to get a system up and running (if you have windows xp already). instead of that 17" monitor they give you for $50 more or whatever, grab a 19" viewsonic for $200 IF you want better that is...
 
Mindset said:
Your right, you can't build a comparable system for that price of $400.... you could build a better one.... without the monitor that is.... I went and bought a mobo/cpu combo the other week for $89, the processor was a AMD Athlon 64 3500+, memory can get you to 1gb $100 corsair (dells only offer 512mb starting and you have to pay more to get that 1gb), HD's, 300gb Seagate $79, built on video and sound, and buy a case for $20 bucks with a power supply (your not getting a work of art casing with dell either) and there, you got a even powerful system than that DELL.. Throw in they keyboard/mouse - $20, speakers $10.. $318 total price to get a system up and running (if you have windows xp already). instead of that 17" monitor they give you for $50 more or whatever, grab a 19" viewsonic for $200 IF you want better that is...
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ever saw the dell case before? it looks like crap outside, but the inside is as nice as those antec... and no u won't be able to built anything cheaper than dell. trust me on this one... you buy dell cuzz it's freaking cheap... your 20 dollar case + PSU is gonna blow real soon and take down everything with it. dell uses good case a quality PSU... they are also quiet.... like i said, u can built things better than dell but not cheaper....
my experience with slickdeals/fatwallet/overclocker/silentpc forum in the past 4 years told me that this is not possible.
 
warlock110 said:
u can built things better than dell but not cheaper....
my experience with slickdeals/fatwallet/overclocker/silentpc forum in the past 4 years told me that this is not possible.
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I tell people about the great deals I get from fatwallet and they are amazed. But I've found that most people don't have the patience to wait for really good deals.
 
I understand that the debate is about overall price.

This should be changed to quality verse value in my opinion. Sure, it may not be possible to buy anything cheaper than Dell, but the cheapest Dells are not going to have any higher quality parts than the ones you purchase seperately. The only reason I would buy Dell is for the company to support you, which I have no need for.

Let's do a real-world Price comparison (all prices in Canadian Dollars):

The cheapest Package Deal Computer on Dell.ca is The Dimension E521 for $499 which includes:

AMD Sempron™ 3400+
512MB Single Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz - 1DIMM
80GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache™
48X CD-RW/ DVD Combo Drive
17" Conventional CRT monitor
Integrated Sound, Video and LAN
Dell USB Keyboard/Dell Optical USB Mouse

Not a bad deal.

Let's head on over to my favourite Canadian Computer Retailer, NCIX!(http://www.ncix.com)

Let's Stick with the AMD theme, since I'm an AMD guy at heart anyways.

ASUS M2NPV-VM (Integrated Video/sound/lan) - 99.98

Thermaltake TR2 W0070 430W Power Supply - 29.98 (don't let the price fool you, this is actually a nice PS, I've used it many times before)

AMD Athlon 64 3500+ AM2 Orleans 2.2GHZ 512KB L2 Cache - 109.99

Crucial Rendition 512MB PC2-5300 DDR2 - 66.98 (personally I would buy more)

Coolermaster Elite RC-330 (comes with a 120mm fan) - 41.98 (pretty stylin case and coolermaster is a reputable company)

LG GSA-H10N DVD+RW 16X8X16 DVD-RW Writer 2MB Black - 35.98 (black to match the case)

Seagate Barracuda 250GB 7200.10 8MB Sata2 - 85.98

I-ROCKS IR-7900 Optical Mouse 800DPI Black Silver USB - 4.99

Aopen KB-858B Black 107KEY Keyboard USB - 11.70

With a grand total of: $487.56

If you want to include a monitor,

Samsung SyncMaster 793DF II Dynaflat 17IN SILVER-BLACK - 135.70

$623.26

Take into consideration, the AM2 Chip is bounds ahead in technology compared to the old and dated sempron Chip. Also, Crucial RAM is known for it's quality and compatability. Also notice the size of harddrive compared to that of the Dell. Knock a good 40$ off the price to get an 80gig.

Personally, I don't like the integrated graphics units, but if you're not playing games and strictly using this beast as a recording machine, by all means, you don't need it.

In conclusion, I think it's safe to say that when buying through Dell, they basically will give you a free monitor AND the support of the company. For what those are worth, it's up to you, but to me, I would buy the custom computer built above.

Hope this clears some things up.
 
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