-1.7GHz Intel Pentium 4 (boxed CPU)
-Asus P4T motherboard with:
-Intel 850 chipset with Socket 423 interface
-1 (4x) AGP PRO: 5 PCI slots
-4 RIMM slots for up to 2GB of PC800 RDRAM
-UDMA/100 Hard Drive support

Fry's is offering this for $349. Does it sound like a good deal? I'm gonna be putting together a machine for myself sooner or later, so I was just wondering.

As usual I come to you guys.

Thanks,
Amanpour

I don't think you'll find a lower price than that on those components (MB + CPU)

Looks like that doesn't include RAM. Unless you're stuck on Intel, you can get a similar AthlonXP setup which is faster and just as reliable that includes the RAM for the same price or less.

You're locked into RAMBUS RAM with those RIMM slots. That's a huge premium you'll pay for less memory than comparable DIMMs.

--Dave

How many times do we have to say it?

http://direct.mwave.com/mwave/ProdBAREBONE-AMDTBIRD.hmx?UID=&CID=&Back=BBONE%2Ehmx%3F

- EPOX 8KHA+
- Athlon XP 1700+
- 256mb non-ecc PC2100 DDR
- no CD/CDR
- default AOPEN case

$393.00

An Athlon XP 1700+ is going to be faster than an Intel P4 1700. And this deal includes 256mb memory and a case for $50 more.

It sounds good now, but that 423 socket is bad!!! If you want to upgrade past 2.0 ghz your out of luck. That's because intel's new Northwood proc can only be used with the 478 socket. But 1.7 ghz is still crazy fast for the price, but just know that you will not be able to go past 2.0 if you decide to upgrade.

The only thing I don't like about MWAVE are ther damn Cases. I was checking out the Master Cooler cases at Monarch computers and they are so sweet!! The cost is high though. $250 and up for the master cooler alumminum cases.

$250 for a friggin' case? My AMD 1.4 processor didn't cost me that much.

"$250 for a friggin' case? My AMD 1.4 processor didn't cost me that much."

Yea, I know the price is high but these cases are so sweet. The PC case from Master Cooler is all aluminum. I was looking at the 350 watt master cooler case, but the price is $330. I would pay that much for this case. It's the same case that Voodoo Computers uses. I know that it's crazy expensive but i feel it's worth it. The Lian-Li Cases are also very nice but they are also expensive. There also all aluminum. They also have cheap generic cases.

Check out the site: www.monarchcomputer.com

I thought about getting one of the new CoolerMaster aluminum cases, then I decided that having my PC look cool wasn't worth a $200+ surcharge. I'd rather spend that on faster components, because.. well, because looks don't matter. It's what's on the inside that counts.

Hold on, I need to wipe away a tear. Sniff.

The nice thing about a good case is you can use it for a long time. It'll outlive the first mobo/cpu it sees by quite a bit. And the expesive cases generally have really high quality power supplies, which is important for high end processors.

"It sounds good now, but that 423 socket is bad!!!"

This is why I come here and ask you guys. I'm kind of relieved actually, for now I will not have to go to Fry's. I think their motto should be, "Think Twice Before You Shop At Fry's!" It is such a nightmare returning stuff there that I really have to be lured into buying from them. It might make sense in the short run to force your customers to jump through hoops when they want to return things, but in the long run it just keeps me from buying anything at all.

Anyway, thanks.

Amanpour

No problem...I just ordered from Multiwave about a month ago. They are still highly recommended. I think they maintain a storefront. If you're in California, you can probably drop by there if you don't want to do the Internet buying thing.

--Dave

Xtien wrote regarding Fry's:

"It is such a nightmare returning stuff there"

How so? My local Fry's has accepted all returns I've made without giving me the third degree. Most of the time the returns were because I screwed up and bought the wrong item and didn't figure that out until after opening the box, yet they took 'em back as long as a couple weeks later.

In fact, my main criticism of Fry's would be that they put too much returned merchandise on the shelves. Although in some cases you can get a pretty good idea of what vcr NOT to buy if there is a big stack of them available, and all of them have those returned item stickers on them.

By the way, why the hell does a U2W SCSI cable cost $80????!!!!??? (The last one I bought at Fry's did.)

I completely agree with SiNnEr 201136. If you return something to Fry's when it's busy, you have to stand in a longer line. But otherwise, it's a snap. In fact, a "friend of mine" refers to the Fry's Lending Library.

-Tom, who would never avail himself of such a thing

Fry's is like Wal-Mart. Long-ass lines, but they'll accept any product, regardless if you bought it there or not. =)

'By the way, why the hell does a U2W SCSI cable cost $80????!!!!??? (The last one I bought at Fry's did.)'

Because Th3y T00K URR m0Ni3Z!!!!! :((((

http://www.pricewatch.com/1/213/1693-2.htm ($18)

I've had good luck returning stuff at Fry's, but yeah, don't go at like 5pm. Wal-Mart's pretty good too, but I've never tried other than when they've got everything set up for after Christmas. Costco's the best place to returns stuff, though. But you have to have bought it there.

"Costco's the best place to returns stuff, though. But you have to have bought it there."

No joke. I took a phone back to Costco that was *over a year old*. No box, no books, but I did have a shrivled receipt. They didn't bat an eye.

I don't believe this. I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone.

For starters, Fry's, unlike any other retailer I've been to, not only has a special returns line to stand in if you want to make a return, but then you have to take a special piece of paper over to the register if you want to get the actual return completed. You have to stand in two lines. Given the silly way Fry's runs its cashier lines in the first place this turns into a ridiculous ordeal no matter when you go. It should not take me forty-five minutes to return an unopened video game at two o'clock in the afternoon on a Tuesday. I'm not talking about an isolated instance.

Every time I've had to return stuff to Fry's it has been a hassle. Every time. I take out my credit card to get it creditted--as I do everywhere else--and the Customer Service rep says casually, "Oh, I don't need that." I hear this same refrain repeated at the next register. Customers don't expect to go through this, I realize. Then I wait ten minutes for a supervisor to come over and input fifteen codes that allow my return to go through. Then I get this piece of green paper that is a "Store Credit" paper. If I want my card to be creditted I have to stand in line again and wait for a cashier to do this. Oh, so that's why he doesn't need my credit card. Believe me, the guy at the computer at "Customer Service" could do this if they wanted him to. They don't. They want me to jump through hoops.

No other store does this in this way, so don't tell me the only way to have a problem with Fry's is to go at five o'clock.

Especially if you've agreed with me in person on this subject before, Mr. Lending Library.

So I'm not even going to elaborate on the situation of seven customer service reps behind the counter, while two people are being helped. I can safetly say that Best Buy has never treated me even remotely this way. And Costco is a dream, in comparison.

Amanpour

I'm glad there are no Fry's here on the East Coast that I'm aware of. I've only ever heard horror stories about the place. Those that posted above about how they like the store are the first I've ever seen say that.

Most everything I've ever read about Fry's has been similar to the above rant.

--Dave

Eh...Fry's is acceptable if you know exactly what you want, and can deal with some of the hassles (i.e. Door Nazis, long lines). Sometimes they have some really good deals, so it's worth it to put up with all of Fry's quirks...

Oh, and personally, my worst experiences with returning things, or customer service, have been with Best Buy, so your mileage may vary...

Is Fry's a significant player on the West Coast? It doesn't exist anywhere else.

The reason I'm curious is because, for some reason, it refuses to cooperate with PC Data, and I'm wondering how much the exclusion of its sales info distorts the accuracy of PC Data's results.

Stefan

I think of Fry's as the expert-only store. If you don't know what you are doing it is easy to get jacked up, and even if you do know what you are doing there remains a chance of jacking. I certainly don't send any newbies there, but it is fun to cruise around.

I had a close encounter with Fry's on the business end. They wanted to put a store in a city adjacent to one I used to work for, but Fry's demanded so much money (tax credits) and so many improvements (new sidewalks, traffic signals, etc.) that the city declined the deal. The gossip was that Fry's wouldn't budge from numbers that had the city at a loss for 30 years. A health club went in there instead.

Yeah, I'd say Supertanker has it about right. The problems I've had are almost exclusively related to returns, and that was either because I simply bought the wrong component or peripheral or because I found a better price elsewhere on a game (and they balked at the 30-day price guarantee).

For all my grousing I do like to tool around in Fry's a bit. When the store opened in my town it was big deal because it was such a weird design. And for no discernible reason. The facade of the enormous store was broken up by a huge spaceship mock-up that had crashed into it. Inside it was (and still is) this weird alien invasion theme with an army jeep lased in half and giant bugs looming overhead and squid tentacles holding up the computer displays.

It's fun to see what they have and a fun atmosphere to tool around in, but dealing with Customer Service is just too much trouble. As you can see, I'm no expert, which is why my personal Fry's policy now, as I alluded to above, is always to think twice before buying there.

I'm considering going there undercover with Tom though just to see how his returns are such a breeze. I feel like Eddie Murphy in that SNL skit where he goes undercover as a white guy and every time a black person leaves the room the white people all party and get stuff for free.

Amanpour

"I'm considering going there undercover with Tom though just to see how his returns are such a breeze."

Go before noon. Stand in *one* line, the one right by the front door. They give the merchandise a once over and credit your card, then and there. You don't even have to enter the store proper. In and out, in under fifteen minutes.

Of course, it helps if you tell them you're Tom Chick.

-Tom

"Of course, it helps if you tell them you're Tom Chick."

Phooey, pal. I tried this. It was working--up until I had to hand over my credit card and then the jig was up.

"Go before noon."

You mean on a weekend? ;)

Fry's is kind of like a warehouse store -- giant locations, but few of them (and yes, mostly in California, although there are a couple in Arizona, Texas, and some other places if I recall). They do a lot of business, but I don't know how much they'd contribute to PC Data's game sales figures.

Oh, and each location has a different "theme" -- you have Old West stuff, Egyptian pyramids, etc. which makes for a bizarre shopping experience, to say the least...

The theme of the store in Wilsonville, Or is "This store used to be an Incredible Universe".

Oddly enough, that's the same as the one in Garland, TX. They still have trucks with the logo on them parked around, except some of them have been molested to read "Credible Universe." Indeed.

Hey, the Wilsonville store has those fruity trucks parked out front too. Didn't check the wording of the logo though. Maybe that's some sort of trophy for them.

-Matthew