Falcon Northwest System: Worth It???

[DPK]

Here is a link to the latest Falcon Northwest Talon System:
http://www.falconcore.com/Detail.bok?no=16

Here are the specs:
Talon 3.1 1100 MHz Gaming System

Includes:

AMD Thunderbird 1.1 GHz 266 FSB Processor
20.0 GB Hard Drive, 7200 RPM
256MB PC2100 DDR Memory
nVidia Geforce2 GTS 64MB
Creative Labs Live! Value
16X Toshiba DVD (48x CDROM)
Logitech Optical Wheel Mouse
Keytronics Keyboard
1.44MB Floppy Drive
Mid Tower Case, 250w PS
Microsoft Windows ME
Falcon RatPadz? Mousing Surface
System Recovery CD

3COM V.90 PCI Modem
Or Optional 10/100 Network Card

PRICE: $1,445.00

My question is, does this look like a bargin? Do any of you own a Falcon system???

 

[takhyon]

20GB is very low, especially considering the prices of drives triple the size. I haven't done any calculations, but I'm pretty sure that the sum of the prices of the components would be well below $1445.

 

[DrFatal]

You can build it for much more cheaper..
Waste of money......

 

[SleepyGuy]

if you enjoy building pc's then this is a ripoff but if you want it up and running in no time with no hassle, get this combo... it looks pretty good.

 

[Tschaft]

Doesnt even say what kind of motherboard they are trying to give you.

 

[KimChii]

<< if you enjoy building pc's then this is a ripoff but if you want it up and running in no time with no hassle, get this combo... it looks pretty good. >>



I'd have to agree.

Also, since the whole of the computer is from one store, warrenty work and support isn't much of a hassle. I believe Falcon NW has great customer service.

 

[stonerdave]

not worth it. you're better off building your own or finding a complete system.

they don't even say what kind of HDD is included, and the case i'm assuming it comes with is a waste of $30. spend a little more and get a good one.

i built a system for a roommate with that same case &amp; the sides bend too easily. it's a real pain in the ass to get it right.

 

[Sesopedalian]

My question is, does this look like a bargin?

Funny how one can ask a question here and people will comment on everything else without answering the question.

Well, I am going to continue that trend by saying that you are taking a gamble that this company will still be in business throughout the life of the warranty. So if you are interested in that sort or security, buy Dell instead.

 

[stonerdave]

My question is, does this look like a bargin?

Funny how one can ask a question here and people will comment on everything else without answering the question

yakko, is that you??

 

[Garion]

Looks like a rip off.. Err. WAIT! It includes a RatPadz? Mousing Surface! That makes all the difference! Worth at least the extra $300 you're paying for this system!

Seriously, I built a system with a Athlon 1.2, Asus MB w/ 256 MB RAM, 40 GB HD, 16X DVD, Geforce 3, Hercules Game Theater XP, Antec SX-1030 case and NIC for about $1200. I already had the OS, keyboard, mouse, etc. It'll blow this one away for a hell of a lot less. I even bought most of the parts locally in Seattle - Could get it all cheaper from NewEgg or some mail order.

Also, don't even consider a case with less than a 300 watt power supply and very good ventilation - T-Birds run too hot!

- G

 

[fdiskboy]

I'll say no. This is not a bargain.

But again--it might be a bargain for someone who is not interested in rounding up the hardware and doing it from scratch.

Time is money, people, time is money.

For me, I'd definitely build it myself.

 

[lizardboy]

FWIW, a friend of mine bought a FW system a year or two ago...they build very nice systems &amp; the customer service is outstanding

having said that...you pay a premium for that system, more than if you bought a similar setup from dell or gateway, much more than if you built it yourself...just got to decide what's right for you

when my friend bought his they were very flexible on the components - considering the glut in the PC market right now see if you can bargain with them for a bigger power supply, bigger hard drive (still 7200 RPM), etc for about the same price...all they can do is say no

 

[classy]

Well I went a little further, I acutally compared it with current component prices. Price wise if you built that exact system it would be less than $1100. That is with high end prices, a good midtower with a 300 watt ps, a quality ddr board, the 20 gig would be the IBM 60gxp, and that would include both the modem and nic. So with that being said, $350 over cost is not a bargain price wise. But that is if you are capable of building your own system. If not then one thing is for sure Falcon does build some smoking systems. But if it were me I would save that $350-400 and build it myself.

 

[Mockmaw]

I'm not expecting everyone to understand, but some of you must realize that raw speed and cheapest cost don't always equate to the best things. Why do people by Crucial memory? Because it's better than that generic crap... but you end up paying a little more for it. In the same situation, complete systems are this way, I'm guessing those that are saying a custom system built to your specs is just as good, but I've noticed that prebuilt systems from major distributors (Gateway, Dell, Micron, etc.) are infinitely more reliable than their custom counterparts... they HAVE to be! The parts are tailored to make the systems incredibly reliable because most people that buy a dell don't know the first thing about computer repair. One minor thing goes wrong and they're already on the phone to tech support. That's why these companies choose the best possible parts to make the most reliable systems (that's why Dell runs Intel boards, they're not the best for tweaking speed, but they generally win hands down on straight reliability.)

I'm one to enjoy building my own system, I don't have the money to buy one of these distributor PC's. That doesn't mean that they're crap, it's just they're not for me.

To answer the guys question, no, I don't think it's a good deal, I believe you're much better off getting a Dell or a Gateway which seem to have a much better name as well as a lower price for a similarly equipped system.

Sorry to be bitchy, I just think this board has some problems in acknowledging that there's more than just the hardcore-know-everything-about-hardware computer users in this community.

 

[Presence]

Falcon has a reputation building gaming machines. This a good deal IF you dont want to build your own comp or dont know how to. They also provide very good tech support. If you dont want to build a computer yourself and still are looking for a good gaming machine try these people out They maybe a little on the pricey side but you custom built it and they offer excellent choices to choose from.

 

[GobbledKnob]

I'm going to have to disagree.. this is not a bargain.. I mean, you can get a comparable P4 1.3 System from Dell (sans monitor like yours of course) for the same price.

Like most people I built my own comp. Take a look at my rig; I spent $1600 over the course of one year, so you can assume that you would spend less money building the same system today. And performance? Well just by using default settings (no tweaks) and Detonator drivers 10.80 I have the 2nd highest 3DMark2001 scores for my system..

 

[mackstann]

Falcon definitely makes good machines, if youre into prebuilt comp's. But Voodoo's are f*ucking AWESOME! Who care about the Apple towers? Voodoo paints the inside of its frickin cases! And their wiring is insanely good. Still, would rather build one myself. But if i bought a prebuilt one, i would get a Voodoo.

 

[scottymon]

Too expensive for what you get - no cd-rw. Check out microexpress.net for better deals. No, I don't work for them.

 

[chexi]

Falcon has a great reputation for building gaming systems. But what I want to know is what the f!$% is a 250 watt power supply doing in this machine?!

 

[claffeyb]

Not a bargain. Don't own it. May be worth it if you have the money to spend all at once instead of little by little, or you'd prefer that someone else worry about the compatibility of the innards. Falcon has had a good rep for years in the gaming world. Their main high-end competitors seem to be Alienware and Voodoo. The Talon line is their &quot;value&quot; line, which seems positioned to compete with Dell and Gateways.

SmartComputing has a review on a Talon 3.0, remembering that Smart Computing isn't oriented towards gaming magazine.

Take a look at a review from a last year's value model to get a general idea of the diff between this and the higher Flacon lines that they are depending on to keep their reputation. The review almost says it's a draw between the two, but that the Alienware case is a better case.

Tweak3d also reviewed an early model Talon (1.2) and said that &quot;they even included a very nice Everglide mouse pad (arguably my favorite part of the system&quot; and concludes with &quot;This is a good, solid Athlon system that I wouldn't hesitate recommending to gamers on a budget that don't want to build their own systems but might be interested in upgrading in the future. The system was easy to get around inside of and fast to boot.&quot;

Also, there's techextreme.com that compared a year 2000 Falcon with an Alienware box, and the Alienware case was preferred. Someone buying a pre-fab computer shouldn't care much about the case anyway. The case seems to be the same case they've been using on the Talon line all along, but I can't confirm that.

The venerable Loyd Case (late of Computer Gaming World) sums up an older Talon in a review: In the end, the Talon is a decent, low-priced system with reasonably good performance. However, the stability problems encountered with the Logitech wheel, the inability to complete the Content Creation Winstone 2000 test, and the aging components used for graphics and audio (with no options to swap them for something different) lead me to conclude that this particular Falcon feels a little declawed.&quot;

Keep in mind that these aren't reviews of exactly what you asked about. Looks like a few reviews came out when the value line was introduced, but since gaming mags and reviewers concentrate on super gaming computers, the thrill of reviewing a Talon has waned.

 

[Fritzo]

FNW is a competitor to Alienware, in that they build high performance gaming PC's. They've been around for quite a while and I'm sure will only use high quality components in their systems.

BTW- Have you looked at Alienware?

 

[TeMpT]

I think even Dell (P4s) would have better deals.

 

[acbimmer]

thats a pretty good price for Falcon, considering when i was looking for a computer last december the cheapest i could get from them was over $2,500 and that was w/o a monitor!!


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[Jedibus]

Nope.

 

[JACKHAMMER]

In my opinion Falcon has always made one of the best prebuilt PCs period. MUch better than a Dell, because it uses all name brand components. They have also been in business for a long time. Bottome line is if you do not want to build a PC yourself, this is one the companies to look at.