New Dell PC

[Kamen]

I am looking for a good deal on a new Dell I want to buy at this end of this month/start of next month. Here are my absolutely must haves and my budget.

i7 Processor
6GB+ RAM
1TB HDD
Vista Ultimate 64Bit
20" Monitor is fine. I have another 20" currently that I will be using along side of it to have Duel Monitors.
Standard video card is fine as I will be upgrading it for something better and cheaper through New Egg or at Micro Center

My budget is no more than $2000 so it shouldn't be too hard to find a decent deal. Much thanks in advance!

[kyzen]

Any reason in particular you want a Dell, rather than another (more reliable) brand, or a home-built system?

EDIT: Don't get me wrong here, I like Dell to some degree, however I feel their desktops are way too overpriced, and difficult to work with (previous models used proprietary motherboard layouts so you couldn't transfer your machine to a new case, or replace your motherboard yourself, they tend to have the bare minimum for a power supply, upgrade options are often limited due to cost-cutting measures taken by Dell). I'd only suggest a Dell if you're looking for a laptop.

For a good, gaming-quality desktop at a reasonable price, I'd suggest either an ASUS or a Gateway FX series machine.

Additionally, your RAM and HD requirements are going to totally jack up your price, especially from Dell. As will, to some degree, your OS. Do you *really* have a need for Ultimate, or are you just wanting "the best"? Most people who I've helped build computers for have come back to me saying they should've stuck with 64 bit Home Premium, as the "upgrade" to Ultimate wasn't worth the cash. This is even more true now with Windows 7 coming down the pipe - why spend the extra $$$ on Ultimate when you could get a cheaper OS now, and upgrade to W7's (a wildly superior OS) "Ultimate" edition later, if you determine you need that version.

My suggestion would be to either build it yourself (very, very easy), or purchase an off the shelf Core i7 system from ASUS or Gateway, and perform the requisite upgrades yourself.

Lastly, if you do absolutely need/want to go Dell, you're better off asking when you have cash in hand to make the purchase, as Dell deals tend to last just a couple of days, if even that.

EDIT #2: Just putzing around on Newegg, selecting brands I trust, and not looking for the best possible price on any hardware, I put together:
Core i7 920
8GB RAM ( 4x2GB )
Radeon 4850
60GB SSD (OS drive)
1TB HDD (Data/programs drive)
DVDRW
600w OCZ Power Supply
Case
Vista Home Premium x64

For $1,312.90 - $65 in MiRs. All of the components are probably equal to - or better than - what you'll find in a Dell. Shop around a bit more and I wouldn't be surprised to see at least $100 shaved off that price.

And that leaves you with about $700 more in your budget to get a 20" LCD, upgrade the video card, get Vista Ultimate, get an even fancier case, etc.

[Kamen]

It doesn't have to be a Dell, but in the same token I do not want to build my own. It's not that I can't or don't know how, I just don't want to go through the trouble of putting it together and notice the RAM is bad or something else is not working properly with it. If you can find a nice Gateway system that would work too. I picked Dell just because with my past experiences with them, I have never really had an issue.

[sbao26975]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883239004

Velocity Micros are pretty nice...I guess there are better values but I like this one.

[kyzen]

VM is a pretty good brand, a little pricey, but they make up for it in build quality. The above system will need a RAM replacement, but you can score 8 gigs of DDR3 for ~ $150 if you get G.Skill (not the best brand in the world for overclocking, but I've used it in my last 2 gaming PC's (not overclocked) with no issue).

Here's another option:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9081325&st=gateway+fx&lp=2&type=product&cp=1&id=1218017465909

I've seen that one go on sale for $1,000 semi recently, making it a very, very good deal.

With any of these off the shelf systems you can expect to have to replace or at least add memory, and add more drives or upgrade the video card; to get a prebuilt system sexactly like you described you're going to pay a HUGE premium.

[bd3lcs1]

try this for starter...leaves you plenty of budget to upgrade/expand

http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?sduid=86857&t=1161611