Non-DAW Consumer PC Recommendation?

My mother needs a new PC to replace their 10 year old relic.  I have little experience with this level of processor ... probably 2G memory, whatever HD is standard issue these days, and certainly no need of 4 core hyperthread, etc.  In other words, your basic off the shelf consumer model will more than get the job done.
 
I've never had a good opinion of Dell.  How About HP?  Any others that I should consider in making a recommendation to her?
 
Thanks.

djwayne


My mother recently bought a MSI laptop, for about $550. It has 4 gigs memory and a 500 gig hard drive...it's been running perfect for her. It really is a very nice laptop. She's very happy with it.

Thanks.  They want a desktop, not a laptop.
 
But I realize I should have asked an additional question.  It seems that the majority of models in their price range have AMD inside.  I've never run anthing other than Intel inside.  I have to assume that given the volume of sales, AMD must be a safe choice ... but I can't help feeling some reservations.  This is probably a silly notion.  Any comments, anyone?

I tried talking my mom into getting a desktop computer but she insisted on a laptop so she could drag it anywhere in the house....kitchen, bedroom, living room, porch.....I tried to get her to buy a cheaper laptop, but once she saw the MSI, that was it, that's what she wanted and bought right then. It's Intel i5 I think.

I've heard that you can download a "de-crapifier" that will automatically clean up all the junk on your new Dell.

Dell Laptops used to be good until they went with a cheaper motherboard maker.  Fixed 4 Dells that were only 4 Months old.  Don't know if they have gone back to better manufacturer.
HP's have a lot of bells and whistles for the price, but reliability really suffers.  They are not into reliability like I am.  Intel knows how to market their products better than AMD, but they are always making shortcuts trying to keep up with AMD who has been around a lot longer than Intel. (surprise to some people).  I personally will not touch an Intel.  All of my builds and my own personal computers are AMD.  They can run hotter than an Intel because their bus is wider.  Heat is a very important issue to address when you are talking about reliability.  I always stick the best CPU fan on I can afford.  You can even put additional fans on with dial-a-RPM. All of my builds are still running even after 5 years.  Bleeding edge is not always the best.  Many times the best is not the best at marketing.  Example OS2 Warp was far better than Microsoft windows 95, but Bill Gates was by far a better marketer than IBM.  Linux Mandriva is my operating system of choice because it is more reliable, stable, cost effective, less overhead, therefore faster, easier to use than windows 7 etc. but there are not the programs written for it, because of peoples ignorance of a superior product. By the way,  ASUS not ACER makes a great laptop for reliability with a AMD processor.  Toshiba has a good reputation also for reliability in a laptop.  For music I personally don't have a laptop, not as reliable as a desktop tower where it can breath, and better bang for your buck.
As far as a Windows OS, Windows 7 32 bit is a great choice because it will recognize over 4 Gigs of RAM and is still backward compatible with all of your 32 bit programs and hardware that you spent thousands of dollars on.  I'm sorry, but I don't have lots of money to flush down the toilet like many of you who buy windows 7 64 bit because it has a bigger number. Sorry I'm just venting and couldn't resist commenting on others ignorance.
Also ESATA is operating at 3GB speed where USB 2 is 480 MB if I remember correctly and USB 3 is 5GB and ESATA 3 is 6 GB. You will get heat issues with ESATA 3.  If you use ESATA as an external drive be sure it has a good fan on it also despite what is sold on the market without any fan.

I think you should be fine with an AMD processor. I may be biased, but the designs are well worth the investment.  Much of what you pay for with Intel has been for the name.

As an IT professional who often buys for consumers, whatever model you buy for her, from whatever manufacturer, go online, download the drivers for the operating system you plan to use on it, then burn them to some media, and then format and reload the system from scratch IF you plan to support it yourself. Otherwise, take the time to uninstall all the crap games and trial software and toolbar "helpers", etc. She'll thank you for it and you'll thank yourself for it...unless you really WANT to be over supporting it all the time!!!

I've had excellent results with HP, Dell, Lenovo and Asus. I'd shy away from Gateways or eMachines, though. Other than that, pretty much anything goes. If she doesn't need much, you might consider a refurb from tigerdirect or newegg or circuitcity.com.

Good luck!!