My first experience with CyberPower PC

ChaseHammer

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Mar 22, 2012
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This is my first experience ordering from cyberpower. In the past I have always ordered from Dell or built my own computers as I am a former Dell technician with over 10 years experience but this time I didnt want to hassle with the time consumption in gathering parts with the limited physical computer stores nowadays and time waiting for shipping for various parts. Anyways so I looked for some custom builders and stumbled across CP. I read a lot of reviews, good, bad and just plain horrible however there were a lot of good things said. Plus their prices on some of the items were downright cheap for what they were offering. I placed the order on 2/19/2012 on their Presidents Day Sale. Got a great deal which I had 3 different setups made before finally settling on the one I ordered.

Now for what happened after the order was placed. So that being a holiday weekend my payment took until that Tuesday to process (they received payment on the 22nd) which is fine. Then I didnt get an update until the 24th in which case my original ship date went from 3/5/2012 to 3/12/2012 and when asked my sales person (Carlo C) why this was I got the typical "We are backed up" excuse. Fine whatever. So then I started reading about the Standard/XtremeGear power supplies being faulty (this was my mistake and not really looking into them before I ordered). I immediately(2/24/2012) sent an email Carlo stating that I was concerned and was interested in changing to a different brand psu. After the 27th still had not heard from him so I sent another email. I got a reply from him on the 28th stating that if I wanted a new psu he needed a credit card number to charge which I really didnt want to make another charge since I used eBillpay to use direct payment. So I decided to leave it and not worry about it and not delay my computer shipping.

I called into CP on 3/7/2012 and personally talked to Carlo and asked if there were any problems with my order because I was not getting updates, he said there were no issues and everything would be on time. Then I got a update on my order 3/8/2012 when Carlo emailed me and said that my Fan Controller has been discontinued from the manufacturer (which is funny because to this day 3/21/2012 I can still buy it from multiple other companies). They wanted to either upgrade my shipping to 3-day or upgrade my PSU to 800w from my 700w. I requested this be upgraded to the Raidmax 850w for my trouble but was refused unless I paid the difference in cost (which would have been about $5) I declined and just accepted the 800w Standard/XtremeGear. Which this just frustrated me because not even 24hrs ago I was told there were no problems.

3/12/2012 rolls around and again did not get an update. No Warehouse date, No Assembly date, not anything and this was suppose to be the ship date. So I called Carlo, did not get anyone to answer. I emailed Carlo to ask what is going on and what the hold up is this time. About 4 hours later I was sent an email saying the computer has passed the Warehouse. Then almost immedately passed Assembly and the first Quality check. The next day 3/13/2012 passed Final Quality check but did not ship. It was then shipped on 3/14/2012.

I recieved my computer on 3/20/2012. Upon opening the boxes everything was packed really well and to my surprise looked like someone had actually cared in putting it together. I took the computer out and opened the case, no coolant leak and no damage that was visible which I was very pleased about. I had a Raidmax 1000w PSU already and immediately changed out the PSU from the XtremeGear and turned it on. computer powered on and about 30 seconds later shut off and then would restart only to turn off again. This upset me. I would spend the next 3 hours troubleshooting the issues to find out the issue was the NZXT USB Hub causing the issue (i have yet to reconnect this to see if the hub is actually faulty). So I disconnected teh hub and the system stays on. I get everything to run and install Windows 7 Ultimate and we are good aside I still have to figure out the USB hub and have to send back the XtremeGear PSU and pay the difference to get another Raidmax PSU (which I had already cleared from tech support to do within the first 30days).

On 3/21/2012 I called techsupport to get a exchange for the PSUs and was pretty much was tried for being a fool. After I had already confirmed there would be no issue with Alex L a week ago they now wanted to increase the price of the new PSU from $44 to $60 and then charge me for two way shipping which they wanted $20+ for return shipping. For the price they wanted I could (and I did) go buy a new PSU without having to give them back anything. Very disappointed in this.

So there you have it, this was my experience and majority of it frustrating and then my mother having a stroke end of last week has had me at wits end. All and all I am pleased with my computer end the end but it was a very bad road to get to that point. Also my Free Just Cause 2 game was not included and got replaced with Darksiders which I have no interest in but whatever.

Order: 2/20/2012 by CC
Exp ship: 3/12/2012*
Charge: -
Warehouse: 3/12/2012 ** PASSED **
Assembly: 3/12/2012 ** PASSED **
QC: 3/13/2012 ** PASSED **
Invoice: 3/14/2012
Shipment: 3/14/2012

Mega Special II
SP2, http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/Mega_Special_II/
*BASE_PRICE: [+975]
BLUETOOTH: None
CAS: Xion Predator 970 Gaming Series Mid Tower Case w/ 2 External Removable HDD Bays [-18]
CASUPGRADE: None
CD: Sony 24X Double Layer Dual Format DVD+-R/+-RW + CD-R/RW Drive [+4] (BLACK COLOR)
CD2: None
COOLANT: Standard Coolant
CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-2600K 3.40 GHz 8M Intel Smart Cache LGA1155 (All Venom OC Certified)
CS_FAN: Maximum 120MM Color Case Cooling Fans for your selected case [+15] (Blue Color)
ENGRAVING: None
FA_HDD: None
FAN: Asetek 510LC Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator & Fan (Enhanced Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA) (Single Standard 120MM Fan)
FLASHMEDIA: INTERNAL 12in1 Flash Media Reader/Writer (BLACK COLOR)
FREEBIE_CS: None
FREEBIE_VC1: FREE Just Cause 2 Game Coupon [+0]
GLASSES: None
HDD: 1TB SATA-III 6.0Gb/s 32MB Cache 7200RPM HDD [-45] (Single Drive)
HDD2: None
IEEE_CARD: None
IUSB: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
KEYBOARD: Xtreme Gear (Black Color) Multimedia/Internet USB Keyboard
MB_SRT: None
MEMORY: 8GB (2GBx4) DDR3/1600MHz Dual Channel Memory (Kingston HyperX)
MONITOR: 24" Widescreen 1920x1080 Asus VS247H-P LCD [+157]
MONITOR2: None
MONITOR3: None
MOTHERBOARD: * [CrossFireX] GigaByte Z68AP-D3 Intel Z68 Chipset DDR3 ATX Mainboard w/ Intel Smart Response Tech. & 7.1 Dolby Home Theater Audio, GbLAN, USB3.0, 2x SATA-III RAID, mSATA Connector onboard, 2 Gen2 PCIe, 3 PCIe X1 & 2 PCI (All Venom OC Certified) [+0]
MOUSE: GigaByte GM-M6800 Dual Lens Optical Gaming Mouse [+13]
NCSW: None
NETWORK: Onboard Gigabit LAN Network
OS: None - FORMAT HARD DRIVE ONLY
OVERCLOCK: No Overclocking
POWERSUPPLY: 700 Watts - Standard Power Supply - SLI/CrossFireX Ready [+10]
PRINTER_CABLE1: 10-FT HDMI v1.4 Cable Type-A Male to Male High Speed Cable [+10] (1 piece)
RUSH: NO; READY TO SHIP IN 10~15 BUSINESS DAYS
SERVICE: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT
SOUND: * Asus Xonar DG 5.1 Channels PCI Xonar DG Sound Card [+29]
SPEAKERS: 600Watts PMPO Subwoofer Stereo Speakers [+15]
TEMP: Aerocool Touch 1000 5.25" Touch Screen Fan Control [+24]
TUNING: FREE - Intel® Core™ i7-2600K Performance Tuning Protection Plan by Intel [+0]
TVRC: None
USB: None
USBFLASH: None
USBHD: None
USBX: NZXT Internal USB 6-PORT Expansion Module [+19]
VIDEO: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti 2GB 16X PCIe Video Card [+66] (Major Brand Powered by NVIDIA)
VIDEO2: None
VIDEO3: None
WNC: None
 
TBH you could have had all the parts to you and built your own computer cheaper than if you went through CB. You would have also had it much quicker. 1 whole month of waiting? Pretty unacceptable in my book.
 

ChaseHammer

Honorable
Mar 22, 2012
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10,510


I totally agree. I normally would have, I didnt want to worry about putting everything together at the time. And if I had known it would take a month to get the computer I would have built it myself again because you are right it would have been here way sooner. 1 Month is totally unacceptable. Next time (hopefully a couple years) I will definitely build it myself, I spent 3 hours to find out that they had hooked cabled wrong on the motherboard, cmon when the shipping department is more valuable than both sales and assembly team there is something wrong. And this system passed TWO quality checks? Yeah right.

CPPC is a joke. Their prices are pretty reasonable on about 75% of their items but then the trade off for the hardache and BS they throw at you is not worth it.

This was almost certainly a 2 trips in 1 deal (first and last).
 

mojorisin23

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Jan 7, 2012
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18,860
I ordered on 2/14 and mine was shipped 2/27. Worked out of the box. Instead of Just Cause, i too received darksiders, which doesnt work by the way. also received Batman which does work.
The only hardware issue is i got the NZXT fan controller for $24 but it doesnt control anything. the MAX CASE FANS are LED fans which cannot be controlled and the Thermaltake FRIO is connected to the mobo only bc its better that way. so basically it does zip. they couldve told me that....

otherwise a good buy. i would have built it myself, but the same components on newegg wouldve been $100 more (without MIR, which always get rejected for some BS reason so i dont count them).

hence why i went with them...
 

ChaseHammer

Honorable
Mar 22, 2012
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its rather funny now that you say your fan controller didnt work, When I talked to Carlo about the discontinued fan controller one of my points is that if i wanted it I had to buy it elsewhere. His response was that it was a toy for children and they dont do anything but look cool on the case and the only way to control a fan is from the BIOS (which I know for a fact is not true). I was kinda set back at his statement coming from a SALES persons. So in other words you just told me you overcharged me $24 for a "controller" that doesnt control anything? Wow what a rip.
 

mojorisin23

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Jan 7, 2012
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yeah... my cousin has a great fan controller on his computer that he uses all the time. thats why i got one... i know its more of a 'bell & whistle", and at $24 who really cares, but its the principle. at least tell me its gonna do *** before i buy it. or when building it just don't include it when you see that its not going to be attached to anything and tell customer service that the item is not compatible and therefore wasn't included (and obiviously refund the $24).

its common sense. but i dont think most of the people there are from this country. i talked to two of them and "Danny" had a thick chinese accent...

i guess in the end, its not about my controller, its about what else are they not telling me??
 

galeener

Distinguished
Yes really you have to do all your own research to be honest. They are going to sell you what you specify. They are a bit cheaper because they can buy in bulk.
I have not had an issue with them myself but i also research every part of the sytem.
I also make it a point never to order around a holiday because really it wont get the attention the order needs, Never order anything but the basic shipping because they will charge you for it but then there will always be something that holds it up so it is wasted money.
If you build every thing one shot and not have to do any return repacement upgrades it usually works out ok. That is the only real issue I have had with them besides they still list the xtreme gear parts that are junk and the cyberpower branded parts I wouldnt trust either. I always go with reputable name brand parts that I research.
I have 4 of their systems and never ran into any issue.
I did order extra case fans once and it didnt include them i called and they shipped the 4 fans out next day for free.
I guess its like any where it depends on which customer service person you get.
 

peep1988

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Dec 14, 2011
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I'm looking at cyberpower and it seems buy the reviews if you stay away from bad brands like standard or extreme gear *** you should be okay and for the price its not that expensivev just barely more than DIY

 

mojorisin23

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Jan 7, 2012
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the prices are great... but yes, stay away from standar or major brand and you'll be fine. also, between the 5% promotion thats always going on and the upgrade sales, if you time it just right, you should be able to get a better price than DIY...
 

kcsmacker

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Oct 12, 2011
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As long as you read the reviews and stay away from the generic branded items you can get a great computer. I payed maybe 75-100 bucks more for my rig at the time if I had built it myself.

The best thing to do is wait for their big sales and also google coupon codes for even bigger discounts. I got a 50 dollar off coupon with a free shipping deal they ran along with some Sale deals on hardware.