Thank you for being a valued part of the CNET community. As of December 1, 2020, the forums are in read-only format. In early 2021, CNET Forums will no longer be available. We are grateful for the participation and advice you have provided to one another over the years.

Thanks,

CNET Support

General discussion

Want a Gaming Desktop

Jul 3, 2005 5:11AM PDT

I am a college student with an ok laptop. After my first year in school, my comp is a waste. I need a better system, so I decided on getting a desktop this summer. I want an sli motherboard and an Anthlon fx-55 processor. My max is $2300 and I don't want to build my own, just customize one and have it sent to me. What companies are the best? Alienware is expensive, ibuypower has good prices but I heard they have bad customer service.

Discussion is locked

- Collapse -
hmm
Jul 3, 2005 6:32AM PDT

monarch, abs, cyberpower, falcon nw, velocity mirco, alienware.

i would not go with ibuypower. i would go with monarch as my top choice.

- Collapse -
falcon northwest talon
Jul 3, 2005 6:38AM PDT
- Collapse -
do research
Jul 4, 2005 9:55AM PDT

You will need to do extensive research before you will be able to decide. A site like resellerratings.com is a good place to start. Also, I was in much the same situation as you when I decided on Velocity micro. I needed to update the bios but the support couldn't tell me that. Believe me when I say this, the comments on resellrratings dealing with a companies support for any issue is dead on. If any thing email or call the computer makers with all kinds of questions.

- Collapse -
Local PC shop
Jul 5, 2005 2:57AM PDT

Go to a small computer store in your city.. much better.. its MUCH CHEAPER too and you can pick your pc up within a matter of days plus you can customize every part you want, sometimes you dont know what you get when you buy from a vendor like dell

i got my system for 840 dollars, if you buy it somehwere else, it would be about 1000+

AMD 64 3200+ Venice
ASUS A8N-E
2 x 512 mb RAM
Antec Sonata II case
Fortron Source Bluestorm 500
Gigabyte 6600gt PCI-E
Western Digital 80gb SATA HD
Toshiba DVD/ CD RW Combo Drive.
Windows XP Pro