If you have the gumption and ability to build one yourself, that's definitely the way to go.
If not, Dells are convenient if you don't want to do anything except install your sound card and recording software; however, you can get a lot more for your money from other companies that will custom-build something using better components.
Take a look at
www.mwave.com or any one of a dozen other places like them. You can hand-pick all of the components, and for something like sixty bucks they'll assemble it and make sure it works. There are quite a few other similar companies around; I recommend M-Wave only because I got mine from them and had a good experience.
There are a few advantages of a place like that over Dell. First, you have ultimate control over selecting component parts. For example, for very little additional money you can get a much better motherboard than what will come in a Dell, and that will ultimately affect how many times your computer crashes in the middle of a recording. As another example, for a few extra bucks, you can get a dual-head video card that lets you use two monitors at once (they run about $50), which is very convenient. (I suppose you could reach the same result by buying a Dell and then upgrading everything, but then you are basically paying Dell for a bunch of parts you don't end up using.) Second, you have the choice of not including some of the unnecessary crap that comes on a Dell and you can use the money you save on other things that matter. For example, if you buy a Dell, part of the price you will pay is for the included Soundblaster which you probably don't want. By having a place like M-Wave build one, you don't pay for Soundblaster you don't need, and you can spend that money on getting a better sound card that will actually benefit your recording. (I'm not trying to start a Soundblaster flame war, so if you like Soundblaster, that's great, but you should get one because you really want one, not because it came in the package.) Likewise, you just don't need a DVD drive on your recording PC, and Dell's price probably includes one. Third, because you aren't buying the crap you don't want, and because you aren't paying for the Dell sticker, you will save some serious bucks. You can get a downright kick-ass machine from a place like M-Wave for $1000-$1200, including an operating system. That leaves you $1300-$1500 to buy a sound card and software. You should be able to get a pretty decent sound card/software combination at that price.
One caveat, is if you go to M-Wave or somplace like it, make sure you get grade-A parts --- if you try to save money by having them use the inferior parts, things may stop working, and you won't have the Dell customer support network to help you out. With the money you'd save, though, you can splurge for the ASUS mobo, the Plextor CD writer, etc.
Good luck whichever route you choose.
