Dell xps 8500 to gaming rig

[FpsStang]

I have a Dell XPS 8500 and I want to build my own gaming rig. My question is what can I use from the Dell in my new rig? The XPS has a SSD, 500GB  western digital XL500s HDD, dvd+/- RW Bd-rom by Hitachi, I7-3770, 16GB 4x4GB,1600M memory, win 7 biz. I have already purchased a R9 290 GPU. so I will be building around that GPU.

 

would also be interested in opinions on motherboards, PSU, and Cases.

 

Thanks for your help. 

[brownninja97]

change the case, psu and gpu. Take it from me, my pc was a dell insprion 620 once upon a time, i recommend you get a new motherboard in which you need to follow the rules of this article or you will have to get another copy of windows.

 

the cpu is fine but cant be overclocked, stay away from z77 boards, this will do http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gigabyte-GA-H77M-D3H-SKT-1155-H77M-D3H-Motherboard/dp/B007KZQFV6/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1399245265&sr=8-12&keywords=h77+motherboard

 

As for the psu, get a 600w(corsair, XFX, seasonic and EVGA are best(other companies are great but ask first)), your build will work with 500w psus but i prefer to leave headroom. 

 

As for case, nzxt, corsair, bitfenix, fractal design. So many great cases to pick from, the case is down to what you think looks nice, dont let people throw cases down your throat because in the end its you staring at it for the next few years. 

 

The rest seems fine to me

[MrBucket101]

why not just put the r9 290 in your xps and call it a gaming rig

 

if thats not an option, then you can salvage everything...yep everything in your list can be re-used as its all still recent/relevant hardware.

 

cases are personal preference, and the PSU just depends on what you want to do in the future. a 550 watt modular should be fine, but then you can't add another gpu later if you want.

[WinNut]

Your XPS 8500 is very high-end and fits the "gaming rig" category. Instead of just sending the components to waste, save a penny and carry over the CPU, RAM, SSD, HDD, and optical drive over to the new rig. That way all you need is a PSU, mobo, CPU cooler, and case.

 

 

Stay away from the z77 zone in terms of your motherboard. Go for H77 or B75.

[FpsStang]

Why can't my cpu be overclocked? why is everyone saying to stay away from the Z77 motherboard?

[brownninja97]

Why can't my cpu be overclocked? why is everyone saying to stay away from the Z77 motherboard?

Its not got a (k) on it, the k means unlocked, the only k skus dell gives out is with the alienware aurora. You can overclock but by a very very little amount, maybe about 100-150more mhz and thats just not recommended, you cant increase the voltage to help that increase and it becomes messy. Your cpu doesnt really need to be overclocked, assuming you are gunning for 1080p you can max out just about anything apart from crysis 3 because that just destroys everything.

[brownninja97]

why not just put the r9 290 in your xps and call it a gaming rig

 

if thats not an option, then you can salvage everything...yep everything in your list can be re-used as its all still recent/relevant hardware.

 

cases are personal preference, and the PSU just depends on what you want to do in the future. a 550 watt modular should be fine, but then you can't add another gpu later if you want.

No intake fan, very very bad move, that card will be chocking to death

[MrBucket101]

No intake fan, very very bad move, that card will be chocking to death

you can always add more fans, or mount a 140mm on the side panel.

 

dremel tool, and a couple hours of work sounds a lot more appealing than potentially spending 3-500 for a similar machine

[brownninja97]

you can always add more fans, or mount a 140mm on the side panel.

 

dremel tool, and a couple hours of work sounds a lot more appealing than potentially spending 3-500 for a similar machine

He could change the case, which would force him to change the motherboard as dell as a weird front IO port, instead of the little two pin connectors they have what looks like the usb 2.0 port. A large majority of people dont like dremel or parent will not allow it.

[MrBucket101]

He could change the case, which would force him to change the motherboard as dell as a weird front IO port, instead of the little two pin connectors they have what looks like the usb 2.0 port. A large majority of people dont like dremel or parent will not allow it.

 

leave the panel open and slap a box fan on side of it  B)

[FpsStang]

I want a nice looking rig, not a chopped up on. I would also have to replace the psu and motherboard anyway as there is a issue with dell bios and the 290