[Matt L]

As many of you have been tortured by now by the endless questions on computer-buying (no, I haven't bought one yet, but in a month and a half, I'm sure that I will make a decision) I just have a question on one site.

Just to inform all of you, I don't have any computer-building skills at all and please don't bring up building computers with my own hands because I don't want to make my own (even though I heard you get more bang for the buck), and I have no intentions or desires to make my own. Sorry, I just don't want to take a risk with computers...

Anyways, I just wanted to know if anyone's ever heard of iBuyPower or CyberPowerPC because I was thinking of buying a custom computer (my choice on the specific parts) and they build it. I see multiple ads by them on computer magazines, gaming magazines, and stuff like that.

Does anyone know which site is actually better? Or if both of them are even reliable? Or should I just buy a prebuilt computer (I saw some nice HP builds in COSTCO. and I'm sure there's some I might find in BestBuy around $900) from BestBuy or somewhere else and pick it up myself? Because I'm worried that if I order a computer, it might break along the way, and I'd get jipped with their warranty.

Also... Don't forget I'm not just talking about the tower itself but also I'm talking about mouse, keyboard, etc. because I don't have anything yet.

Anyways, thanks for reading this post, and I hope you can help me.

-Matt

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hello,
Both sites are good and highly reputable.
Depends what you want to use this computer for, if you only want it for office and e-mail uses go to Bestbuy or Costco, if you want a gaming computer then the sites you mentioned are you best bet.
James

[james_8970]

hello,
Both sites are good and highly reputable.
Depends what you want to use this computer for, if you only want it for office and e-mail uses go to Bestbuy or Costco, if you want a gaming computer then the sites you mentioned are you best bet.
James

[Matt L]

I want it for gaming and such.

[Matt L]

I'm not buying this yet, but this is the system that I 'built' from iBUYPOWER:
Case:
Standard ATX Mid-Tower Case w/350W Power Supply [no side window]

Black/Silver 2-Tone More Options

Case Lightning:
None

Power Supply:
500 Watt -- NZXT PF-500 Power Supply

Processor:
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor E6420 (2x 2.13GHz/2MB L2 Cache/1066FSB)

Processor Cooling:
iBUYPOWER Liquid CPU Cooling Fan System Kit --- [for INTEL CPU]

Motherboard:
Asus P5N-E SLI nForce® 650i SLI Chipset w/6-channel CODEC, Gb LAN,

S-ATA Raid, USB 2.0, IEEE-1394 Dual PCI-E MB

Memory:
1024MB [512MB X2] DDR2-800 PC6400 Memory Module Mushkin

Video Card:
NVIDIA GeForce 7300GT 512MB w/DVI + TV Out Video

Video Card Brand:
=== High Performance === eVGA Brand Video Card Powered by NVIDIA

Hard Drive:
200 GB HARD DRIVE [Serial-ATA-II, 3Gb, 7200 RPM, 8M Cache]

CD/DVD Drive:
16x DVD-ROM Drive Black

Sound Card:
3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard

Network Card:
Onboard LAN Network (Gb or 10/100)

Monitor:
ViewSonic 19" VA903B TFT LCD Monitor [Black]

Keyboard:
Logitech Elite USB/PS2 Keyboard

Mouse:
Razer Diamondback Plasma Edition Gaming Mouse

Accessories:
-Add External USB 2.0 Hub (4x USB 2.0 Ports) [$19]

Flash Media Reader/Writer: I didn't know what this was, so I just put none. Do

I need one?

Operation System:
MS Windows XP Media Center 2005 Edition

Headset:
Plantronics DSP-550 USB Digital Audio Headset

Your updated total: $1,106.00

[james_8970]

Your going to need a far better graphics card if you are planning on gaming. Drop the liquide cooling to spend extra cash on the video card. I take it your planning on overclocking? If so, you can save a little more cach by getting the E4300, it has half the cach. Try and go for a 600W PSU.
James

[Titan8990]

To go along with what James said I would recommend a power supply from a reputable company such as Coolermaster, Antec, or Thermaltake. I believe there is a link in Jame's sig that has some PSU information.

[Matt L]

Thanks, I will check again later once I get home.

[Matt L]

Your going to need a far better graphics card if you are planning on gaming. Drop the liquide cooling to spend extra cash on the video card. I take it your planning on overclocking? If so, you can save a little more cach by getting the E4300, it has half the cach. Try and go for a 600W PSU.
James

Here are the two options I'm looking at:

600 Watt -- Power Supply SLI Ready [- $90]
750 Watt -- Thermaltake Toughpower W0117RU Power Supply Quad SLI Ready

I'm thinking of getting the Thermaltake one, but for less than ninety dollars, I can buy a 600W PSU which you are suggesting. Which way should I go here. Is spending an extra 90 dollars on the PSU really worth it?

Edited by Matt L., 20 June 2007 - 09:17 PM.

[Matt L]

Here's the configurator btw:

http://www.ibuypower...x?mid=97#header

[Matt L]

$1212.00
(before all applicable rebates)


CASE: TURBO X-DREAMER CASE 350 WATT W/ WINDOW & LCD Temperature Display (SILVER COLOR)
CPU: (Sckt775)Intel® Core™ 2 Duo E6320 CPU @ 1.86GHz 1066FSB 2x2MB L2 Cache 64-bit
MOTHERBOARD: (Quad-Core Supports) Intel DP965LT P965 Chipset LGA775 Supports Core 2 Duo CPU FSB1066 DDR2/800 Mainboard w/GbLAN, USB2.0, IEEE1394& 5.1Audio
MEMORY: (Req.DDR2 MainBoard)512MB PC6400 DDR2/800 Memory (Corsair Value Select or Major Brand)
VIDEO CARD: NEW !!! NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT 256MB PCI Express x16 (XFX Fatal1ty Edition Powered by NVIDIA)
VIDEO CARD 2: NONE
LCD Monitor: ViewSonic Q19WB 19& quot; 5ms Response Time COLOR TFT Active Matrix WXGA LCD Display Monitor (Black)
HARD DRIVE: Single Hard Drive (250GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 8MB Cache 7200RPM HDD)
Data Hard Drive: NONE
Optical Drive: SONY 52X CD-ROM (BEIGE COLOR)
Optical Drive 2: NONE
SOUND: ESS 3D WAVETABLE SOUND PCI

That's the one from CyberPowerPC that I 'built'. The only thing with that is that there's no headset that I could of gotten from iBUYPOWER.

Here's the link to CyberPower PC's CONFIGURATOR:
http://www.cyberpowe...onfigurator_top

[james_8970]

That site isnt specific at all, "powersupply" isnt enough information for us to make a descision.....
Your system would never require 750W. Really it's your call, but the thing is there is a big difference in PSU's, like having a build last longer and so on.
James


Edit: AHA! Beside 600W you will see a hyperlink saying "more brands" click it then click on the
CoolerMaster Unit 600 Watts eXtreme Power - SLI Supports it's the best bang for the buck there.

Edited by james_8970, 20 June 2007 - 11:38 PM.

[Matt L]

Oh, sorry, I don't look hard enough. My fault.

Thanks for pointing it out though. What would you recommend for the video card, mother card, processor, memory, and cooling system?

(I really appreciatte it btw)

[Matt L]

did u say to get the processor: (Sckt775)Intel® Coreâ„¢ 2 Duo E4300 CPU @ 1.80GHz 800FSB 2x1MB L2 Cache EM64T?

i won't be doing too many hardcore gaming on this. Probably Halo PC, Guild Wars, etc. MAYBE Halo 2 PC, but I don't know yet.

I'm going to do a lot of web browsing and movie watching and music listening so I guess I need a processor for that.

Edited by Matt L., 21 June 2007 - 02:34 PM.

[james_8970]

lol, you need a processor to turn your computer on, it's the brain of the operation.

The build you posted on post 4 looked good, except for the video card and PSU, take the 7600GS or x1650pro both have realitivly the same performance at the same price so I suggest taking whichever one is cheapest. The games you are playing arn't very demanding so this card should do you just fine though you might not be able to play at high settings for everything, then again you might since they are older games.
James

[Matt L]

I read some reviews and there are mixed feelings about the CyberPowerPC site. (Also iBUYPOWER has more bad reviews than CPPC) Anyways, is it just better for me to buy a computer off the shelf from a store like BestBuy or Costco? There, I will have experts to actually show me what the PC can do, and I can see the monitor, mouse, and laptop that I can buy.

I think the method of buying parts and having people build it for you like what I'm thinking of doing with CyberPower, Inc. is more bang for the buck but with more risks. They have a good warranty, but some of their parts seem bad quality.

I think it'll turn out better for me if I just buy a computer like HP from BestBuy.

What do you think?

This is so much thinking for me.