Cyberpower or Velocity Micro

[Wish]

Howdy,

I'm currently computer shopping and need some advice. I'm looking to purchase a multi-purpose gaming system from a company instead of building it myself, and have narrowed it down to two: Velocity Micro, and Cyberpower.

When I configure the same AMD 64 X2 4400 system on both sites with almost identical hardware and software, the Velocity Micro is about $3000+, and the Cyberpower is about $2300.

Cyberpower provides more options to choose from on their site, but Velocity Micro does provide a good many (probably just as many as I need).

I've read numerous articles on each company and their products, leaving me with the following impression:

Cyberpower reviews tend to be good to poor. Their systems are less expensive (which is nice), but their customer service and support sound consistently horrible (I don't know as much about fixing computers as I would like, and value support).

Velocity Micro company reviews tend to be extremely good. Their systems cost more (tough on an art teacher's salary), but their professionalism, customer service, and customer satisfaction are very impressive.

Both companies have systems in 'top ten' rankings on popular PC websites.

Should I go with the much cheaper and potentially troublesome Cyberpower, or the solid and much more expensive Velocity Micro?

Thanks for any input.

* wish *

[Yawgm0th]

Re: Cyberpower or Velocity Micro

Neither. If you know enough to configure it, you ought to build it. Build it yourself and it should be substantially less than either. Don't expect any builder to support you much when you have software problems. They can only do so much without charging you to have a technician come to your place. Besides, you can get free support here and at similar forums. When you have a hardware problem, you simply send the product back to either the retailer or the manufacturer. They provide warranties ranging from 1 to 5 years and don't charge you anything for them.

[Wish]

Re: Cyberpower or Velocity Micro

Now you've got me thinkin'. I read your reply (thanks for replying!) before I went to sleep, and in the morning (now) I'm really considering building it.

However....

I have *zero* experience building a computer.. never even removed a side panel. I *think* I could make a good list of components, but I have no idea how to assemble them.. no inside-secrets so to speak, so I would be going about it blind.

I WANT to know how, but none of my friends do this sorta thing.. so I'm at an impasse.

Though it does sound fun.

* wish *

[PrairieDawg]

Re: Cyberpower or Velocity Micro

I just googled the words "build your own computer" and came up with 315,000,000 hits! Of course most of those hits are either outdated or garbage but if you want to do some research the information is certainly there. http://www.pcworld.com/howto/article...3,pg,9,00.asp# gives some good basic information. Every now and then one of the computer magazines do a "do it yourself" special issue so it may be worth a look at the magazine racks at your local stores.

Most of the questions and problems you will run into can be solved on forums as Yawgm0th mentioned although on the rare occasion it may be worthwhile to find a local friendly tech to give an assist with proper testing tools when things go wrong. If you can find a locally owned and operated computer repair place it may be worth buying some components there in exchange for the occasional "technical assist".

[Darthtanion]

Re: Cyberpower or Velocity Micro

CyberPower: http://www.resellerratings.com/seller6897.html
Velocity Micro: http://www.resellerratings.com/seller2956.html

Always check the reputation of a vendor before making a purchase. Of the two you chose to talk about, I'd probably go with Velocity Micro due to its better customer reputation. But then again, I'd also never consider buying a desktop computer when I could build it myself to my exact specifications.

Regarding the lack of past experience, we all had to start somewhere. I've been at it for several years now but I can still remember back to my first major build and thinking of what would happen if I just fried the whole thing. It didn't happen, of course, but it just shows that we all have to begin setting the blocks that will lead to our own expertise in the building field. You might want to check out the "What Should I Buy" portion of our forums. There have been a lot of folks asking what sort of computer they should build and most have brand-specific recommendations by Yawg and others (Sorry, I generally don't have the patience to input to this section much). Even if you don't find a previous thread of exactly what you want, you can use it as a starting point and then ask for final suggestions before you make that final purchase.

As to the actual build, it isn't too difficult. Computer technicians would have you believe that it is terribly difficult, but then they want this belief to help justify their high labor rates. Last time I checked, name brand (Best Buy, etc) techs were charging between $60-70/hour with a half hour minimum. This does not include parts, only labor charges, so you can see why they want you to believe you'll hose the whole thing if you make even a little mistake. On a more realistic note, the build is very simple and straightforward. Most of the problems will come with the OS install and getting drivers of newer components to play nicely with the other components and the OS. Even that has been minimized with the latest versions of Windows (OMFG... did I actually say that out loud?).

So just research a bit and build. It isn't hard and like Yawg mentioned earlier, there is a group here at TweakTown that will help you if you have problems you don't know how to address.

[Wish]

Re: Cyberpower or Velocity Micro

Thanks Yawgm0th, Darthtanion, & PrairieDawg..

I think I'm going to do it. Very exciting and frightening.

(goes to do research)

I'll post again once I have a list of what I think is a good setup. I appreciate your comments.

* wish *