I'm looking for a good online Computer Botique

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bekfreak

Weaksauce
Joined
Nov 16, 2008
Messages
78
I'm looking to find a good custom build site on one of these botiques. Falcon, Puegt, Main, and some of your higher end sites are a little bit more than I want to spend $1400. I've looked at Georgia Computer Workshop, Ava Direct, and I wonder if there is anything else out there that I can get a fairly nice computer without forking out tons of money.

I'm not sure on the DIY route as it's a lot of computer parts with inexperience on my part. GCW had a small but good resellers review. I got sent to AVA direct but then I came here to see the nightmares that come with it and they scare me a little bit. I will admit I like the FAQ in the forums!

I had delt with a very shady computer company outside the Philadelphia area. The guy ended up going to federal prison for fraud. My aunt was one of those people. The story of the troubles I had with that computer ... The current system I got from a shop in Berlin, NJ that has held up for now eight-years. Sad thing the place no longer exists. It's old and it doesn't want to run anything new and shiny.

Here's what I'm looking for. I don't plan to overclock it or anything extreme to the computer itself. I just wonder if there is any other companies that are in the range of those two that are not an iBuypower or Cyberpower. Believe it or not Cyberpower was there when I bought my current system and was bad then.

Intel Q9550
Asus P5Q Mobo
4gb of DDR2 Ram either 800mhz or 1066mhz
Nvidia 9800GT 512mb Graphics card
 
M a x F o r c e PC...go to there forums and tell Max your budget, what you want to do on the computer and he'll square you away.

I got mine from him after some extensive research. Great customer service, great build and no BS.

PM me if you have any questions...
 
Shawnasee said:
M a x F o r c e PC...go to there forums and tell Max your budget, what you want to do on the computer and he'll square you away.

I got mine from him after some extensive research. Great customer service, great build and no BS.

PM me if you have any questions...
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Yes, M a x f o r c e and AVA are the cheapest. Try M a x f o r c e; after AVA sees themselves losing customers, then that will pressure them to fix what they did.
 
MPC is pretty nice. The price list is a little hard to read but so far not too bad. I would love to keep it between 1200-1300 seeing of course I'll have to pay for shipping too. Still not bad of a setup they have there.
 
I configured a Maingear Prelude with your specs and it came out to just over 1,400.
 
At this point,I'd have to recommend M a x F o r c e for the best value for your money.Somethings gone wrong over at AVA,their ratings have dropped suddenly to the lowest I've seen them,and their policies on warranties and RMA have become unclear and need a complete overhaul.
 
Here's what I managed between GCW, MFPC, and Ava at the end. I'll be doing this after Christmas. So I expect some price changes once the i7's hit the market.

GCW

ANTEC_GA THREE HUNDRED STEEL MID-TOWER ATX BLACK NO PS Bays:3/0/(6) 2xUSB 2 FANs
NSPIRE NSP-500V2.0BF12 *** 500W ATX 2.0 Metal PS 51385 * /QTY:1
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3R SKT775 ATX DDR2 1366 (4/16) PCI-E X16 x1 PCIx3 INTEL P45
Core 2 Quad Q9550 2.83GHz INTEL SKT775 12MB Cache Retail W/ Heatsink Fan 68204 2x SUPERTALENT T800UB2GC5 2GB W/ Heat Spreader DDR2 800 Non-ECC 240-pin DIMM PC2 6400 CL5 T800UB2GC5 * /QTY:2
2x SEAGATE ST3400620AS 500GB
SAMSUNG SH-S223F/BEBN Internal SATA DVD+/-RW BLACK 22X DVD Burner
LITE-ON DH-16D2P-04 Internal IDE DVD-ROM BLACK 16X 2MB BUFFER
XFX PVT96GYDF4 NVIDIA GF9600GT 512MB PCI-Express DDR3 DUAL DVI TV-Out
LINKSYS EG1032 NETCARD 10/100/1000 Gigabit PCI 32-bit
MICROSOFT WINDOWS VISTA HOME PREMIUM Operating Systems 64-BIT DVD OEM Pack
# $0 Free Assembly and Testing

$1236 ; They lacked a 9800GT card but I do intend to upgrade to a dual monitor system in the near future.

GFPC at $1261 as a pack rat I loose the two 500gb hds.

Case: Cooler Master Centurion 5
Fan Controller: ***None***
Extra Fans: None
Case Lighting: Please Select
Power Supplies: Corsair VX 550W - SLI/Crossfire Capable
Processor: MassCool 8W553B1M3
CPU Cooling: Intel Core 2 Quad Processor Q9550 2.83GHz 1333MHz 12MB
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3R (P45 Chipset)
Memory 2: Super Talent DDR2-800 2GB (2x1GB)
Memory: Super Talent DDR2-800 2GB (2x1GB)
Graphics Card 3: EVGA nVidia GeForce 9800GT 512MB
Graphics Card: ***None***
Graphics Card 2: ***None***
Hard Drive 1: Seagate ST3750330AS 750GB SATA2 7200rpm 32MB NCQ



And, then there is AVA...the cheapest at $1227.21 before but the one that right now scares me the most.

Antec, Sonata III 500W PSU
Q9550
Asus P5Q-EM
Artic Cooling Freezer Pro
4x1gb Kingston HyperX DDR2 1066mhz
Evga 9800GT
2x Segate 500GB Barracuda
Samsung Super-WriteMaster Dvd/RW Burner
Sony, DDU DVD-Rom
Linksys 10/1000 32-bit PCI


The Prelude came up to $1500.
 
I also heard ecollegepc was good.

$1,204.00

2.83Ghz Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 12MB Cache FSB 1333
Artic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler Extremely Quiet
ASUS P5Q (Intel P45, 2xPCIEx, 8-Channel Audio, LAN, 8xSATA2, 1394, 1333FSB)
4GB (2GBx2) Corsair XMS2 PC6400 DDR2 800Mhz Memory Lifetime Warranty
750GB 7200RPM 32MB Cache Serial ATA300
20X Samsung SH-S202G Dual Layer DVD+/-RW/CDRW w/Nero
512MB nVidia GeForce 9800GT GDDR3 PCI Express DVI/Tvout
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit SP1
Antec Black 300 (3 5.25, 6 3.5 bays) 2 Fans, Front Audio/USB/1394
500watt Antec EarthWatts EA500
Onboard LAN included
Onboard Sound included
Three year hassle free pickup and return
 
I did a little swapping around with things in there. I still came out pretty well with the Asus P5Q Delux, 2x500gb hds, and went along with a 1gb 9800 GT. For the sheer heck of it the Coolmaster 690. $1226 and with the Antec 300 $1198. Resellers looks like all but one were happy customers.
 
bekfreak said:
I did a little swapping around with things in there. I still came out pretty well with the Asus P5Q Delux, 2x500gb hds, and went along with a 1gb 9800 GT. For the sheer heck of it the Coolmaster 690. $1226 and with the Antec 300 $1198. Resellers looks like all but one were happy customers.
Click to expand...

Did you sign up on the forums over at MFPC? Because the prices on their online configurator aren't accurate.

I pretty much guarantee that Max can't be beat on prices.

When I did my research AVA was the cheapest I could find and they had great reviews but someone told me about a Toms Hardware review for MFPC so I checked them out. I asked Max for a quote and after a ton of questions and going back and forth, he beat AVA by about $200 or $300. And that's WITH a warrantied overclock, and a 3 year warranty at that. They also pay for RMA's.

Don't go by the configurator, it's shite, just get on his forums and ask for a quote. You won't wait long to get a reply.
 
I'll second that,the configurator is alright for a rough estimate,but getting a quote directly from Max is always lower,and very quick.He's very fast to pass on savings from recent price drops to the customer.
 
I thought max force pc fixed there online configurator? you could also look at digitalstorm.
 
It's going to be a toss up between Max and ecollege. I'll be putting the order in after New Years either way.
 
i took a look at mpc... the website pc configuration is not very user friendly.

if you select a ddr3 mb the memory still lists ddr2 and ddr3. the hard drives are sorted in a way i cant figure out... its not grouped by make, guessing by capacity?

i prefer the setup where you can choose configurations based on cpu/gpu, added bonus if you can specify memory type ddr2 or 3.

prices seem ok for mpc, but cooling is air only.
 
@ MyThLoSt
Digital Storm is a bit out of the OP's budget.

@BattiePage
They don't offer liquid cooling because liquid cooling requires a lot of maintenance and MPC worries that the liquid cooling might break down after the 3 yr warranty.
 
Misfate said:
@ MyThLoSt
Digital Storm is a bit out of the OP's budget.

@BattiePage
They don't offer liquid cooling because liquid cooling requires a lot of maintenance and MPC worries that the liquid cooling might break down after the 3 yr warranty.
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This...
 
I just got my quote from Max and I'm very pleased. Heh. He just had to put a carrot infront of me with the new shiny i7 620, mobo, and DDR3 Ram with the same setup for $1500...It's still awhile before I buy so I'll see how the lot of you who bought them make out with them.

Raidmax SMILODON 500W
Corsair VX 550W - SLI/Crossfire Capable
Intel Core 2 Quad Processor Q9550 2.8GHz
MassCool 8W553B1M3
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3R
Super Talent DDR2-800 4GB (2x2G CL4
Seagate ST3750330AS 750GB SATA2 7200rpm 32MB NCQ
SonyNEC Optiarc AD-7191S-0B 20X Lightscribe Dual Layer SATA DVD+/-RW
EVGA nVidia GeForce 9800GT 512MB
Microsoft Vista Home Premium 64-bit (64-bit OS Required for 4GB and more RAM)

$1187. I'll end up going for a different case and just used it to get a price on the other stuff.
 
I bought from them and I haven't had a single crash, error or anything that makes me think "wtf". Their service, I imagine, would be top notch considering how quick Max is to answer questions to pre customers and I haven't heard a bad thing about them in those regards.

I'm doing a review on them, with piccies, at the moment and will post that up before Christmas.
 
Shawnasee said:
I bought from them and I haven't had a single crash, error or anything that makes me think "wtf". Their service, I imagine, would be top notch considering how quick Max is to answer questions to pre customers and I haven't heard a bad thing about them in those regards.

I'm doing a review on them, with piccies, at the moment and will post that up before Christmas.
Click to expand...

Same here
a223c6b3710f85df22e9377d6c4f7553.jpg
6c1da886822c67822bcf3679d04369fa.jpg
0e3a37aa85a14e359df74fa77eded3f6.jpg
Haven't heard a whisper of anything bad
 
I'm still trying to find a brick and mortar place in the Philadelphia area that does not deal with business computers or has out dated parts. I only came up with one. I'm going to put Max's offer up and see what we can do from there. I really like his RMA and his shipping polices...it's on line with hps least with the one year worth of free ground shipping.
 
Careful there, Basic. You might want to look at the forum rules before talking about a personal business you may have.

And to the OP,

I also bought from MaxFPC and have no complaints. I was given both excellent advice/service and the equipment I wanted. There aren't too many places where you can get pretty much any piece of equipment you want. Most other botiques have only certain equipment they will provide.

Only thing I can complain about is the stupid divers.

I would be very surprised if you can find a better deal and quality then what you will get from Max.

Good luck with your build.
 
I also recently purchased from MFPC.

I am 100% satisfied with the purchase. My sister also recently had a pc built through MFPC.

Their Customer service is top notch.
 
Hawk29 said:
Careful there, Basic. You might want to look at the forum rules before talking about a personal business you may have.

And to the OP,

I also bought from MaxFPC and have no complaints. I was given both excellent advice/service and the equipment I wanted. There aren't too many places where you can get pretty much any piece of equipment you want. Most other botiques have only certain equipment they will provide.

Only thing I can complain about is the stupid divers.

I would be very surprised if you can find a better deal and quality then what you will get from Max.

Good luck with your build.
Click to expand...

Lurn2nVidia ;-) noobler. :p:p
 
The guy from the local place still has not responded to my email. I may stop in the store front this weekend and that was it for what I could find in the area. I guess the only place for these real little guys is to have a good online front to boot.
 
Family emergancy of the big kind took over but I decided to go with M a x. I'll be ordering hopefully next week or somewhere along then. Snow n'ice pending of course. :)


Corsair TX 650W
Intel Core i7 Processor i7-920 2.66GHz 8MB
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD5
Super Talent DDR3-1333 6GB (3x2G CL8
Western Digital WD6400AAKS 640GB SATA2 7200rpm 16MB
Samsung SH-S223F 22X Dual Layer DVD+/-RW SATA Drive
EVGA nVidia GeForce 260 GTX 896MB
Microsoft Vista Home Premium 64-bit (64-bit OS Required for 4GB and more RAM)\

Around $1500.

I'm still thinking on the case to get between the Coolmaster 690, NZXT Blackline and Tempest.
 
I must say I'm impressed with MFPC he is very prompt. I just wish they would post pics of their rigs on their forum.
 
I'm seriously considering Max myself,only place that's even close on price and part selection is AVA,and they seem to be having reliability issues right now.
 
I'd love to know what specs everyone had when they had issues with AVA. As a soon to be computer buyer seems most of the issues where with EGVA boards not Giga-byte. The Voltage thing is bad.
 
Pdwe said:
I'd love to know what specs everyone had when they had issues with AVA. As a soon to be computer buyer seems most of the issues where with EGVA boards not Giga-byte. The Voltage thing is bad.
Click to expand...

Actually,from some of the complaints I've read here and elsewhere,the problems don't seem to follow any pattern as far as specs go.From some of the comments I've read on their forum,they don't like Gigabyte much,saying they overclock poorly.That struck me as odd,since Gigabyte boards seem to get positive reviews.And they don't seem to get very good overclocks with any of their systems,anyway.That's one thing I like with Max,they guarantee to hit a specified overclock speed,with AVA,you pay your money and take your chances.
 
I will give some advice: if there is a particular game you play (online MMO for instance) make sure the hardware you get for your machine plays nice with that game.

Obviously don't buy a computer based on how it plays one game but I didn't do my research(weird!) concerning the vid card and the game I play with my wife and friends(City of Heroes) and my 4870x2 does NOT like CoH and vice versa. If I had checked the CoH forums I would have seen that the game has compatibility issues with ATI.

And I bring this up cause I am sure if you wanted to, Max could find out what components play nicely with your game of choice. Great company...you won't be disappointed.
 
I'm doing mine with FSX in mind. It likes the i7 and it's pro-Nvida. I'm going to swap the EVEGA card for a BFG though when I make my order.
 
What kind of warranty does BFG offer? It's lifetime isn't it? Do they also do the step up program?
 
It's lifetime. As for the step up I'm not sure on that. I'll have to look into it.
 
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