This is the place that specializes in custom flight simulation PCs - their prices are very reasonable and their offer first rate support.(not sure about home calls though)http://www.jetlinesystems.com/home.html

Wow...I never knew a place like that existed. Do you have a system from them?Stan

Wow...I never knew a place like that existed.

Actually I was equally surprised when I found out.

Do you have a system from them?

No, but getting ready however to replace my 4 year old system, the place comes highly recommended by my flight simming buddy.

http://www.jetlinesystems.com/home.html

I'll say this Michael, those Xjett systems look beefy. That Xjett 795 is a liquid cooled rig, with a Velociraptor and 12 gb of DDR3!@Stan If I didn't enjoy building my own so much, I'd look into a small custom shop or small custom outfit like Jetline.The good thing about big box vendors like Dell and Gateway is that you know they will probably be there in 3-4 years. But you can't always say that about some of the small computer shops. Its true, though, if you find a good system building shop, that can be as good as gold, if you don't want to build it yourself. It can be the next best thing.

That's odd cause in the computer vendor world people don't sell Dell machines because they know the thing will break in 3-4 days.

That site does look cool. If anything, it looks like they have some good benchmarks for FS - it is a nice buying guide for a DIY rig. One day I will try to build a system myself but right now I am too scared of frying something in the process. My preference, on the last 3 rigs, is to pick all of the components and have some else build it and install the OS. The one thing I like about a small local store is the personalized service. You can talk directly to the tech that is working on your rig.Right now I am looking in to a new laptop and not having control of what is in the system is freaking me out. Combined with the fact that I haven't been looking at hardware for 4 years and have little knowledge of whats out right now, I sound like quite a newb when talking to people at Best Buy - not something I am used to when computer shopping. Clock speeds mean nothing now (I have a 3.0GB P4 paperweight in my wife's office right now) , memory timing is way different (what happened to 2-2-2-3, now its like 9-9-7-12 or some BS) and the whole prospect of having to deal with Vista and then switch to 7 in a couple months is driving me crazy.

If you must buy pre-built check out Asus' CG line of desktops. I recently paid a trip to MicroCenter and saw an Alienware i7 920 system w/6GB DDR3 1333, 1TB HD, Geforce 9800 GT for $2200.I then saw an Asus CG desktop with an i7 920, 9GB DDR3 1333 (3x2 and 3x1), 1TB HD, Geforce GTX 260 for $1200, literally a thousand dollars less than a "comparable" Alienware compared to which it was no doubt more powerful and flexible. On an Asus P6T motherboard even and with out-of-the-box overclocking ability.

Who's the leader in graphic cards for a new PC these days? ATI or NVidia?What's the latest and greatest card that may be coming in a short period of time?Stan

That's odd cause in the computer vendor world people don't sell Dell machines because they know the thing will break in 3-4 days.

Well, you can think what you want....but at my company we have bought Dells for many years, and they have been very reliable.

Well, you can think what you want....but at my company we have bought Dells for many years, and they have been very reliable.

Well there lower end budget stuff is definitely questionable, specifically their laptops. but if you took away the financing services they offer to companies I doubt anyone would go out of there way to get a Dell. Fact: Boeing uses only Dell.

Well, you can think what you want....but at my company we have bought Dells for many years, and they have been very reliable.

-----------------------------------------------------------I agree with you!My Dell XPS GEN3 3.4 GHz has been rock solid for the last 6 years, and is run every day. I certainly have no issues with buying Dell. Not at all!

I was told about THIS site for a great gaming computer. Has anyone ever used it, and what are your impressions?http://www.falcon-nw.com/Stan

Falcon makes great PCs, no doubt. If I were looking at a pre-built system right now I would only look at Asus' CG line of desktops, though. Nowhere near as expensive as other enthusiast-class PCs and the same (if not better) quality components. An actual Asus motherboard with overclocking capability is something most OEMs won't even touch but they are standard on all Asus CG desktops.

Has anyone ever used it, and what are your impressions?

Very expensive.

Falcon makes great PCs, no doubt. If I were looking at a pre-built system right now I would only look at Asus' CG line of desktops, though. Nowhere near as expensive as other enthusiast-class PCs and the same (if not better) quality components. An actual Asus motherboard with overclocking capability is something most OEMs won't even touch but they are standard on all Asus CG desktops.

WHERE do you order an ASUS? Is there a site that you recommend for customizing one of these?Stan

Looks like you can get them at Best Buy