Should I Buy this Custom Computer?

mileslong

mileslong

25+ Posts
I will have more of the specs later today. So far this is what I know it has.

120GB
Pentium 4 2.8 Ghz (Prescott Core)
1mb L2 cache
XP Professional included

he is asking $750, he builds them himself. it comes with a dvd and cd burner etc...

does it sound like a good deal thus far? also should i get a processor with a northwood core
instead of the prescott? i have heard that they can get really hot? if i go with the prescott core, what type of cooler should i insist on

as always, your help is appreciated.
 
I'm assuming monitor not included. At that price, it better come with at least 512MB of RAM and a decent video card.

A good case is also a must. A 350W power supply is the very least you should consider. A 450W would be better. If it has multiple case fans, you can probably get by with the retail CPU heatsink/fan.
 
I'd want to know a lot more about it than that:

What mobo, what motherboard, what PSU, what CD/DVD .....

Ask him to name all the following parts:

Case
Motherboard
Sound card (if it has one)
Graphics card (same)
CD/DVD drive(s)
Power supply
Fans
CPU cooler (probly stock)
Ethernet - on board mobo?
memory - what brand/how much

Get back to us with everything he says and I'll be happy to tell you if you are being ripped off or not.
 
thanks guys, this is exactly the stuff i was looking for. i am emailling him the questions you guys are asking, i had already included some of these but im sure im leaving imprtant stuff out.. when i receive his answer i will post it here.

i didnt even think about the fans or power supply issue. what about quiet kits?

the monitor is not included, he said he would sell me a 19" samsung flat screen for $650.
 
I priced the specs for a similar class system a couple of weeks ago. All prices were from NewEgg. I have decent spare mice, kb, speakers, etc. Some vendors can do better on price on a few items, but I prefer to buy everything at one place.

Case: Aspire X-Dreamer II - $59.00
CPU: AMD Athlon-XP 2800+ Retail - $121.00
Motherboard: MSI-K7N2 Delta-L - $71.00
Memory: Corsair extreme series 512MB PC3200 (2x256) - 156.00
Hard Drive: WD1200JB - $92.50
Video Card: ATI 9600 Pro - $112.00
CD-RW/DVD-ROM: AOpen COM5224-158 - $51.00
OS: XP-Pro - $136.00
Media Reader: ADI 8-in-1 CR-BK - $14.99
Floppy: Sony Black - $10.99
Total: $824.48

It will be interesting to see where your guy differs from this.
 
it will be interesting to see what all the specs are. he has already built one for a friend and is supposedly operating beautifully. his story is that he is new to this country from asia and is an expert at this stuff. he has started his own little business. he speaks very little english but my friend is korean and translates.

my friend and his uncle have purchased his machines. they don’t know that much about computers however and i want to make sure not only i am getting a good deal but also i want the best set up i can get within reason.

im not a huge gamer or anything but i have always bought top of the line computers because i figure they don’t go obsolete as quickly as others. i was the only guy i knew who had 512 ram in his laptop when i bought it and it still is not obsolete.
 
i wouldve said barton, but i'm biased
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any, tll him u dont want an OS on it and that should drop the price some. instead, pick up wixp from campus store for $5 or so.
 
At that speed, you are at the bottom end of the Prescott spectrum, and near the top of Northwood. In fact, it is difficult to even find a Prescott slower than 3.0. Both processors should have 800FSB. If he is charging you the same price, the Prescott would be a better value. Just make sure that the case has multiple fans. If you can save a few bucks by going with the Northwood, I'd go that route. It doesn't sound like you are the type to overclock the CPU, so you shouldn't need any of the more extreme cooling options.

That being said, I agree with the poster above who said "Barton." At this class, I feel that the AMD CPUs offer a little more bang for the buck.
 
"the monitor is not included, he said he would sell me a 19" samsung flat screen for $650.
"

Thats way too much.

In any case, yeah he's an expert I don't doubt it, it's not hard at all to be an expert, I'm one, I can tell Idig is etc. A monkey can assemple a compy. You should do your own Miles, way fun.

And get an AMD
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F intel
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What are you going to use the comp for? Just surfing? Any heavy gaming?
 
I just noticed the monitor comment. Yeah, $650 for a Samsung flat screen CRT is about $400 too much.

The Link

I would hope that he was referring to an LCD screen, but even those can be had for $100 or so less than what he's offering. Of course the guy has to make a little somethin somethin for his efforts.

The Link

Pay heed to NYC's advice, and do your own. There is plenty of help on here and other sites to walk you through it. It's ridiculously simple. In most cases, the parts will only install a certain way. If part "A" is round, and slot "B" is square, it doesn't go there. You are just looking to put a basic system together. Give it a shot.
 
guys i really appreciate the input. it is an lcd monitor, probably overkill for my uses which are mainly business with the occasional game mixed in. i love graphics and audio stuff however and thats why i really want top quailty equipment.
 
build one yourself, lots of fun, easy, saves money, and get a feeling of accomplishment when youre done. Also then youll know the ins and outs of your comp so u can upgrade and fix or customize yourself.
 
THG has a great guide for assembling your first comp, at elast it was what I used when I made my first one.

Just don't beleive any of Tom's processor reviews .
 
I sometimes have trouble finding a particular guide on Tom's, but I'm sure there's a good system build guide on there somewhere.

anandtech.com is another good hardware review site. I forgot to mention them in my post above.

Back to the earlier Northwood/Prescott question, it looks like Intel is using Northwood for their top end extreme CPUs. This is starting to get confusing. There is a tremendous amount of overlap in the market place between these 2 cores. I still think in a straight up comparison (same speed rating), Prescott is the way to go, but many are recommending the Northwood unless you plan to overclock. I honestly don't think that this is a decision to lose sleep over, and that either core would be acceptable for the original poster's needs.
 
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