Should I build my own or buy refurbished

Quote from Scataphagos:

At Dell, there are about a half-dozen reasons a computer ends up on their Outlet site.... some as simple as someone ordering several computers but changing their mind and not taking delivery on any/all.

In any event, you get the same warranty as new and generally save a few $Hundred... sometimes LOTS more.

I ALWAYS buy refurbished when I can.
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Exactly. Do not forget Dell is remote delivery, mostly. You order on the internet... you in most countries have a time to return the goods (often free of charge by law). In many (civilized countries - that MAY rule out the USA) this means they can not be sold as new anymore. Restocking fee as you want (illegal in europe for mail order)... they ARE not new. Which means they get refurbished, tested, repackaged and sold for a lower price.

Sick / Bad for the seller (especially computers - margins are not exactly high). I assume a lot of stuff ends up like that - laws at least in europe make it easy to just order and return. Heck, even for businesses ;) Been on the receiving end (returning goods we ordered just because we want to try them out) sometimes.
 
Quote from Scataphagos:

In any event, you get the same warranty as new and generally save a few $Hundred... sometimes LOTS more.

I ALWAYS buy refurbished when I can.
More...

What is the cost if it acts up during a trade?

Not worth the risk. Penny wise and pound foolish is the expression.
 
Quote from bali_survivor:

What is the cost if it acts up during a trade?

Not worth the risk. Penny wise and pound foolish is the expression.
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Not any more likely to "act up" than a new one. In fact, you could make a logical argument that a refurbished one is LESS likely to act up.

What do you do if your "non-refurbished" computer acts up during a trade? Can you restore capability in a few minutes? Got backup?
 
Quote from bali_survivor:

What is the cost if it acts up during a trade?

Not worth the risk. Penny wise and pound foolish is the expression.
More...

You go on trading on yopur backup computer. Refurbished or not, trading with one computer is pound foolish.
 
Dont you have a local dealership that can build you a custom rig? Plenty around here. 4 monitors is childs game for modern gfx cards... normal amd these days spport 6 monitors, though you may need a displayport hub for that. We just try out 7750 with 2gb memory here... coming end of the week. low profile, 4 mini displayport, can run 6 screens and enough memory to use them for a lot of funny stuff ,including hardware accelerated buffers - windows 8 loves that stuff. The 1gb version is not cheaper enough to bother.
 
Quote from Scataphagos:

Trading computers.com will get you a turn-key rig, but way overpriced.

What is your budget for computer alone?
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Thanks. I was thinking $2500, four 24' monitors included.
 
Quote from ktmtrader:

Thanks. I was thinking $2500, four 24' monitors included.
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That's plenty. You should be able to get 4 x 24" for $1,200 or less, leaving $1300 for the computer.

ANY modern computer with at least 2, PCIEx16 slots will run 4 monitors on W7.

My choice would be a Dell Precision T3600 from their Outlet site. Don't concern yourself about "new"... Outlet computers come with same warranty as new. If you can be a bit patient, you can find almost exactly what you want for a good price. If I were buying one today and with some consideration to performance, I'd go for E5-1620 CPU, 4-8GB RAM, and 2x Nvidia Quadro NVS 310 or 315 video cards. Dell sometimes has their 24", 1920x1200 monitors for ~ $260 each.

HP will have a comparable workstation as the Dell but at several $Hundred more. (Both use OEM mobos made by Foxconn... might even be to the same spec.)
 
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