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Now for the inside details.
Check some of our links in the navigation bar to the left.
 | When obtaining a high end PC, most of us
put a lot of thought into the CPU, motherboard, 3D card, soundcard, hard
drive and just about every component on our shopping list. I say "just
about" because PC cases are one of the most overlooked PC components
and are usually purchased quickly and without much thought. Case design may
seem to be ubiquitous, but the difference between a quality and budget case
has the potential of making your custom computer either a dream or a
nightmare. That is why we select a steel
/ aluminum cases, which features deep metal
for extreme thermal dissipation and with great internal case design from
Antek,
Chieftec,
and Shuttle to house our High-end custom computers.
Not some cheap plastic case with a thin sheet of metal inserted in the
covers. We then engineer
extra fans into the design to keep good airflow to the components and to
assure the machine has a long and stable life. Heat does not linger inside.
The fans are not your average pin bearing design but are the high life,
efficient, ball bearing design. For
a fan that maintains performance but has an extra low noise level Panasonic Panaflow© fans are available at an added price. |
| Our
cases come with either an Antek and Atlas, Intel certified power supplies or we
have an option for the best Power Supply manufactured for computers (which
most stereo aficionados wish they had for their system) - a PCPower
& Cooling Power Supply. |
| Then we select the best Motherboard and CPU
for the machine, considering both your needs and the best value point. You
don’t need to know a megahertz from a megaflop. Why pay double the price
for a processor that gives you a very small performance increase when your
money could be better spent somewhere else. We keep an eye on the value
points as well as computer trends and reliable rumors. If you are able to
wait on your purchase sometimes the difference of a week can make for
hundreds of dollars in savings or a much faster machine for the same price.
We select a motherboard with the best reliability, quality control and most
of all something that uses standard chip sets. We watch the tech articles
from reliable sources and also the geeks that push their computers over the
limits to find what is the most flexible, quality board available. We select
motherboards from companies such as ASUS, ABIT,
Shuttle and at times INTEL
depending on the use the computer will have. We only select INTEL processors
at this time because they are the only ones at this point that 100% of the
PC software has been developed for. |
| While we are on the subject of processors –
let’s look at the added detail we provide in regards to these. In most
instances we use an Intel certified retail heat sink and fan assembly. We
remove the heat transfer tape and clean both contact surfaces. Then we
apply, Arctic Silver II
™, a
thermal compound made with 99.8% pure micronized silver, which gives a 2
–7 degree lower CPU temperature increase over other compounds due to its
superior thermal conductivity and provides a air free contact area for the
heatsink. Some of the name
brand computers use a 15day warranty, OEM processor, and a non-spec heat
sink with no direct cooling fan. We also have available an after market
heatsink / fan combo that increases cooling of the processor dramatically.
Our choice for an aftermarket P4
cooler is a Zalman, copper
heatsink,
CPU cooler. The Zalman has a
80mm, 39 CFM, 3000rpm fan which has the added advantage
of a direct power supply connection as well as a fan speed monitor
connection. We also have available the little less expensive Thermaltake
Dragon Orb for those of you on a budget. |
| Memory – currently this is the best bang for
the buck when it comes to performance. You will receive a much higher
performance rate by having the optimum amount of memory than you will by
going to a faster processor. Unlike
the off the shelf manufacturers, we only use Class 2 memory… this is the
best memory available for desktop machines. Most manufacturers save a couple
of bucks by using Class 3 memory… how would you like it if your brain had
to operate with 3rd class memory? (Class 1 memory is expensive
and reserved for super high-end server farms.)
Speed is also important here. It is always better to purchase the
highest speed available with out a significant cost increase because speed
certified equates to quality. We don’t sacrifice quality for the dollar
like the "Off The Shelf" computer companies do. Remember they are cutting
every corner to get the lowest price out there but what are they sacrificing?
… Your livelihood! |
| Hard drives- we only use IBM,
Maxtor and Seagate -The first tier level of hard disk drives. Your data is
important why use a second or third level drive? These manufacturers are
also the ones that develop the new technology to speed up access to the data
on the drives. When we build a fast machine we don’t cripple it with a
slow HDD. |
| Lets look at software and the Operating System
– why should you be the test point for someone’s marketing driven
software … is it ready for prime time? … will it let you down?
Software and Operating Systems are very complex containing thousands
upon thousands of lines of code, developed by different groups and cobbled
together. Is there ever a point it is 100% bug free – No!
Marketing goes on to the next several generations prior to this
point. Can we reach a relatively stable point – Yes, and this is where we
want you to be. Computer companies are driven by marketing the latest and
greatest… whether they are ready to be great or not. Do you have a choice
from the big computer manufacturers … most likely not.
We continue to load the software that has the highest success rate
and select no software before its time. |
| We use the same process to select the
components for your computer. Whether it is a video card, sound card or
CD-RW drive – we take the bleeding out of bleeding edge. It may not be
your bargain basement component but it will be the best one of its class. We
also use our years of experience in the industry to help you make the best decision. |
When your needs change our computers don’t lock
you in. They all have upgrade paths so that if the onboard component or add-in
component no longer suits your needs, an upgraded component can take its place.
What about other custom computer builders? Most
of them are not looking to build a high performance quality machine. Most are
looking to build a cheap clone machine that has no identifiable components in
it, but are "compatible components," until you try to find that one
driver you need.
No we won’t be the cheapest computer out there,
but it will be one of the best. Something you won’t have to trade out every
month just to be useable. Our goal is a longer-term solution than Moore’s law
of “it’s junk in 18 months.” We
are always there to help you before, during and after the purchase.
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