OT:Build your own pc or get one from the pros?

[Anonymous]

Hey i'm gonan get a new comp in about a month or two. Anyway thunderbox currently has this storm xp for sale at 999$.
Athlon XP 1800+ Thoroughbred Core.



350W Chieftec Mid-Tower Case.

Asus A7V266-E (AMD Assured!).

256mb PC2100 DDR RAM.

Maxtor ATA133 40GB 7200RPM "Quiet" Hard Drive.

Nvidia! GeForce 4 Ti4200, 64MB DDR.

52x CDROM Drive.

10/100 Network Card

3.5" 1.44mb Floppy Drive.

Microsoft Internet Keyboard.

Logitech Optical Mouse

Windows XP Home Edition.
*Tweaked and optimized for ultimate performance*

**Our systems are fully tweaked and optimized for incredible gaming performance, then burned in for a minimum of 72 hours plus 8 or more hours of one on one game testing prior to shipment.**

(So they basically turn down all the features of win xp off and what else can they do to optimize performance? Download drivers and set the video card a little overclocked?)

This is the system i'm going to build for 995$ I will get it from one online store so I won't have to wait for all the parts to arrive seperately!

1)CPU:Amd Athlon xp 2200(1.8ghz) Retail 125$

2)Asus A7n8x Deluxe 145$

3)WESTERN DIGITAL 40GB 7200RPM 8mb cache 83$

4)ATi Radeon 9700 pro 291$

5)Case:Raidmax Model 268WSP(SILVER/SILVER) 10-bay Case W 350W PS and Window Retail
42$w shipp

6)Enlight ATX 420W P4 or Amd Approved Power Supply Power Supply:42$

7)CPU FAN|HAC-V81 BASE COPPER AMD/INTEL) Retail 15$

8)Crucial Micron 512MB 64x64 PC2100 DDR RAM, 184-Pin, CL=2.5-Unbuffered 2.5V, 6-Layers
90$

9)Samsung SC152AEB 52X CD-ROM OEM 26$

10)Floppy SAMSUNG 1.44MB FLOPPY DRIVE Model# SFD321B/LEB - OEM, DRIVE ONLY
8$

11)Cables:
Cdrom: 2$ IDe
Harddrive: 2$ IDE
Floppy: 2$
Power Supply:n/a comes with it
MOnitor cable: 1$ Power Cord Cable for AT/ATX Computer Case/Monitor....OEM
Machine Power:1$ ''

11)keyboard and mouse:A4TECH ANTI-RSI HEALTH KEYBOARD9$
crosoft Optical Wheel 11$
20$

12) Windows xp home 93$

13)2 COOLER MASTER SAF-B83 Single Ball Bearing 12$


Grand Total w Radeon pro 2/10/03:995$ Keep in mind that the Case is actually 27 but 42 with shipping. So if you add all this up it actually comes out to 1000$ However in the store it probably will be under 1000$ So am i missing anything? The case is perfect and will keep everything in good circulation. The power supply is amd approved on there website. Is thunderbox pc the better buy? Just wandering. I have a friend that can help me build this comp in the future. Finally the asus motherboard brings good onboard audio, usb ports, lans, 5 pci slots, 1 agp slot, and other great stuff. Just check out nvidia.com. ANyway please post comments/suggestions here. Thx.

[The Dragon]

I know nothing about this, so I have no advice for you.

But who are you? Are you a player we know, "Reborn?" I really like your name.

[WildBill]

Hi Unstoppable. Thwark?

[LaughingRat]

But who are you? Are you a player we know, "Reborn?" I really like your name.

Reborn is Unstoppable.

[The Dragon]

Damnit! Such a good name, too...

[WildBill]

A shame, isn't it....

postcount++;

[modetwo]

[SNAFU]

FORM MIMAI FLORDA, UN-SPAM-ABLE!!1

Hello... and Goodbye...

[Biohazard]

I hope your stay back here is short and swee.....

[LameHamster]

To answer the original and valid question, my humble yet finely aged opinion is to do both: find a store that builds machines part-by-part and work with them.

The best store like that near where I live (Accurate Tech of Rochester, NY, 427-0440) has prices competititve with the local university's computer store's student discounts! And you get exactly what you want, with your priorities precisely reflected in your cost.

Ask the owner of the store tough questions:
- what's the best 2-speaker system out there? (these are currently out of fashion)
- what's the best case with a handle? (ditto)
- how is the price of RAM this week compared to the past few month's prices (RAM varies in price like good lobster)
- how much would it affect the cost of this hard drive to switch to a model with slower/faster access speed? (a fast hard drive is worth the few extra bucks)
- which flat-panel display has the fasted refresh rate? (I think it's still the BenQ FP 567s, at 16 ms)

Etc. If you're lucky, the place you live also has someone that is so much on top of their field that they can explain such things as easily as the reason DDR RAM is faster than PC100 RAM. If you're friendly and make it clear you intend to make a purchase they should be willing to put up with some polite grilling--just be sure to do your share and recommend them to everyone once you have proven their worth.

[MrEricSir]

No DVD-ROM? Only 40gigs of HD space? No CD burner? WTF?

If you know enough about these things to build it yourself, it's always a better deal to do so -- no, it won't necessarily be cheaper, but you can get EXACTLY what you want instead of setting for whatever crap they throw in there. I mean, the pre-built systems always look good on paper, but when you inquire further you'll often find that they include a software modem, refurbished CD-ROMs, etc.

[Anonymous]

THe cd rom and Floppy is what I picked. I don't care to watch DVD on my comp. Cd burner what for burning Illegal games and music? No thanks i'm legit. BTW all the parts i'm getting is online not at a local store. Both pc's are online offers and as you can see the one I custom built will kick the crap outta the storm xp.

[MrEricSir]

THe cd rom and Floppy is what I picked. I don't care to watch DVD on my comp. Cd burner what for burning Illegal games and music? No thanks i'm legit.

Someday, software will probably come on DVD-ROMs instead of CD-ROMs. DVD-ROMs are standard these days.

If you don't have a CD burner, how are you planing on making backups, exactly?

[Anonymous]

THe cd rom and Floppy is what I picked. I don't care to watch DVD on my comp. Cd burner what for burning Illegal games and music? No thanks i'm legit.

Someday, software will probably come on DVD-ROMs instead of CD-ROMs. DVD-ROMs are standard these days.

If you don't have a CD burner, how are you planing on making backups, exactly?

backups of what? Most of my stuff is just games. I have the original cd of every game i own. EX:UT, Disciples2, CandC tiberium sun. I download free avg anti virus. If my system messes up i'll just format and restart win xp. Got no prob with that. Thx for your concern tho =\. Maybe when I start making art projects backing stuff up will be important.

[Salvage]

Personally, I'd go with your own rig, you can tweak it yourself. You may need an OS upgrade as well.

My experience with Samsung CD-ROMs has not been the best(spin up, read for 30 sec., spin down, error - insert disc, spin up, repeat), I would suggest you go with another brand, and get a DVD-ROM instead, as they will still be able use CD-ROMs with the added advantage of you not having to go and buy one when the next games come out(and you can watch movies on it).

EIDOS UK has already switched over to DVD, and EIDOS America is about to.