" They provided me with the oddest shopping experience I ever had. They tried, and did, sell me less than I wanted to buy. I wanted to buy the top of the line CPU with water-cooling. The technician on the phone explained to me that with their overclocking I could get to within 5% of that performance for a chip that cost $500 less. They also guaranteed me that despite all the overclocking I wouldn’t need water-cooling. In fact the tech ensured that the system would be quiet.
All the other positive reviews convinced me to try them out. After a month I’m very satisfied. My rig is very quiet when it’s on. That was important to me. I can hear whispers in the room just fine. My brother-in-law has a system from Velocity and it’s much quieter than his. I can actually sleep in the room with it. Heck, it’s quieter than an Xbox 360!"

"I just received my fourth overdrivepc and will certainly buy more. We use both Torque and Gemini boxes for drug discovery applications that don't support SMP or shared-memory machines. Typical jobs take days to weeks to complete (cpu 100%) thus both speed and stability are priceless (a 15-30% increase in performace ((over stock speed)) translates into days of saved time). Importantly, not one of our four overdrivepc machines has crashed. In fact, our overdrivepc boxes are more stable than our commodity pc’s despite being overclocked. We’ve had several jobs run for nearly one month at 100% cpu with significant memory I/O without a hiccup.

Extremely fast 3D video is also a requirement for visualizing results from our calculations. Importantly, we’ve discovered that it’s possible to run a drug discovery application on one core (@ 100% cpu) and play Battlefield2 @ 1600x1200 (maximum visual and sound effects) on the other core while achieving stellar frame rates. Bottom line: The drug discovery programs we rely upon are important enough to justify the purchase of any PC. We’ve tried other high-end vendors and have settled squarely on overdrivepc."

"Full Review: http://www.therecordbreakingdomain.com/opc.php

Follow relevant discussions:

http://www.resellerratings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=119582

and

http://www.overdrivepc.com/forum/showthread.php?p=152695#post152695).

The following is my review of OverdrivePC (www.overdrivepc.com). Updates will be added as they occur.

Key Points:

- Paid $4,600 for the computer only (no monitors or peripherals) in January 2006.

- Computer was rushed to meet guaranteed deadline after employee that took my order quit and company "forgot" about my deadline.

- Computer crashed straight out of the box and would not start.

- The restore DVD that was sent with the computer was faulty so I could not fully restore the computer.

- It took them months to diagnose the problem with my computer and I'm still not convinced they've got it right.

- In the course of several months, I had to:

- Open my brand new computer at least 10 times.

- Spend at least 15 hours on the phone (long-distance, paid by me) with the company diagnosing the problems with my new computer.

- Was "advised" to get a $200 transformer that not only didn’t work, but actually damaged my computer further.

- Exchanged parts inside my computer on numerous occasions, including fiddling with small plugs leading into the mother board.

- Exchanged over 100 e-mails with the company.

- Wasted over 200 hours of my time.

- It is now almost half a year since I paid for my computer and it is still not fully functional. Considering how much I had to fiddle with this "brand new" computer, I feel like it is now a used computer and not what I paid for.

- And, to add insult to injury, the company tells me they will keep 20% of my money if I decide to return my computer, which I wanted to do, and that an exchange is "not an option".

I expect all of the above from a $600 computer, not a $4,600 computer.

In short, this company has profited from my distress.

Verdict: Do NOT buy an OPC computer, no matter what you read or what they tell you.

If you would like to read my full review regarding my OPC, please visit http://www.therecordbreakingdomain.com/opc.php . It is a very long read, but definitely worth it if you are considering an OPC so that you know what you are risking and getting yourself into. If you would like to e-mail me any questions, feel free to do so on ****@**** "

"My transaction took place june 7th 2004 not 2005.

After researching for months as throughly as humanly possible, I went with the guys at OverDrivePC. I looked at the regular players (Dell, HP, Gateway, etc) and the custom players (including Alienware, Voodoo, Falcon Northwest, Velocity Micro, ABSpc, Puget, Tasty Computers, Maingear, BOXX, Thunderboxx, Screamworx, Hypersonic, Ibuypower, etc.). I researched and compared between them all and found OverdrivePC to be more cost effective than Voodoo, BOXX, and FNW. I eventually kept narrowing down the makers till I reached a rift between Velocity Micro and OverdrivePC. OverdrivePC had a price premium over velocity micro so I figured I would check out why. When I approached OverdrivePC, Mario treated me like I was his only customer. He answered emails faster than anyone I have ever seen (usually within minutes) and when reviewing my build ideas he found ways to save me some money while not sacrificing much. He is very knowledgeable about all aspects of computer building. When I approached Velocity micro I didn't get any personal attention as it was a more streamlined process (they are a great dealer, and I recommend them to many on a tight budget). So the decision was made to go with OverdrivePC.

OverdrivePC offers some of the most knowledgeable tech support with Mario doing the most of it. Although it is only 9am-5pm M-F do not hold this against them. 24/7 tech support usually implies inferior qualified people providing the support. It is also nice to talk to the person who built your computer and thus obviously knows what may have gone wrong. I must admit though I haven't really needed the support, but Mario has answered numerous questions about computers and accessories for me.

After the around 3 week wait for my computer to arrive I couldn't be more pleased. It arrives in the most well packed HUGE box ever. After unpacking, I opened up the computer to peak inside. You will find the best wired computers around. Never have I seen a more clean wiring job. For some pictures of the above visit http://www.overdrivepc.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9173 (this is not my computer but it is great to know every wire job is as neat and every packing job is as good). I have been using this computer for 2 years now with ZERO major problems (My maxtor harddrive died this week, but a HD failure is no representation on the company itself. Mario has offered to replace it basically at cost since the warranty is expired). It is super fast, very quiet, and aesthetically pleasing. I prefer the elegant look of the lian-li cases to the super flashy other gaming computer cases.

In conclusion: If you are looking for a top of the line computer with the best tech support and superior performance (checkout [H]ard|OCP's review of it) and are willing to pay a price premium for it, look no further than OverdrivePC and Mario. Thanks again Mario and keep up the good work!"

"The whole purchasing experience was awesome. The PC is truly amazing! It is so fast. I am very very happy that I decided to buy an OPC!
Thanks OPC!
UPDATE* I have had the OPC for 2 months now. It runs all the time without any problems. It never crashes and runs nice a cool. Some older games are buggy with the dual-core but the new games like quake4 and Fear look and play unbelievable!
If you have questions just ask. OPC will take the time to answer any of your concerns. The sales staff took me through all my choices and we talked about the pros and cons of going with certain configurations. I actually saved a few hundred bucks and got a better setup then I had spec'ed out on their awesome and easy to use web site. When i opened up the PC after it arrived here I was stunned by the detail that goes into putting it together. You will not believe your eyes lol! This gamer is a very happy camper. Wait did I say camper (NOT) lol. Anyway you willb e so glad you decided to go with OPC and not Dellienware or Falcon or somebody else. Remember calling Dell for tech support? bwahahaha wat a joke. I called OPC because I had a question on a Game. The tech took the time to help me get my game up and running. I couldnt believe it. The problem wasn't with the PC and they took the time to help me with it! Oh yeah and after you get your OPC they actually call to see if you got it all setup and to see if you have any issues. I got a call form the owner asking if there was anything i needed and if I was happy with my OPC. I couldn't have been happier! Yes I am excited. Once you get yours and check it out you will be excited too. It is truly an amazing system! Thank you OPC!
-Robert
"

"Absolutely Beautiful. Customer Service is quick and personal. I would definetly recommend OPC. My Build # 45045"

"Purchased the computer to replace my old Dell XPS. While the product is certainly expensive and high end, the quality of the products, the low volume high customer focus of Overdrive, and amazing support make the high price a real value. Despite the 'boutique' nature of the company, I was still able to get excellent tech support last weekend after an issue I encountered. Within the space of a few emails, we had diagnosed the problem and a replacement part was sent the next business day. Having spent hours and hours on the phone with Dell's India based color by numbers tech support this was a breath of fresh air. Oh and by the way, the machine is SOOOOOO FEAKIN FAST. I look forward to many years of quality computing, video editing and gaming on my box."

"My wife is learning website development, and she was frequently frustrated by the limitations of her low-end PC. She wanted something with the speed, power and flexibility to develop websites with heavy graphics, video, sound and music content. I looked at cnet.com's review of desktop machines, and they rated one OverdrivePC's models as the highest of all, with a rating of 8.4. Then I read many reviews and testimonials, all of which were glowing. We decided on the Gemini.SLI Workstation in a pretty standard configuration. From the day we placed the order until the delivery day, about 40 days passed, and the wait seemed interminable. However, Mario, the Chief Technical Officer and the guy who built our PC, stayed in touch with me, assuring me that the build was on track, and updated me every step of the way. When it appeared that the PC might not be delivered in time for a 3-day weekend which I had set aside for the setup and software installation, Mario did what he could to expedite things, and it arrived that Friday! I spent Easter weekend working on setting up the computer, and when questions came up I e-mailed Mario, and amazingly, he responded within a few hours, even on Easter! This computer is terrific. It has all the speed and capacity my wife requires, and it is solidly built and very quiet. The price tag of just a hair under $5,000 was steep, but we are expecting it to be well worth the investment.
"

" I have never dealt with a more professional and sincere computer retailer, in my 25 years of building and buying systems! They honestly want to provide you with the best system for your budget. Every person that I have talked to that works there has this same attitude and focus. I'm not just blowing smoke here! I never get this passionate about reviews but I feel a company that is this far above the rest needs to be recognized and commended.
They could have easily made more money on my sale but they explained that I would be better off (due to various reasons) buying some items locally.
Their hardware quality and workmanship surpass anything that I have seen before. I GOT MUCH MORE SYSTEM THAN I WAS EXPECTING! You can tell they love what they do. These days you can find cheaper systems but you will not get as much value for your money.
"

"It is now a little over 3 months since I received my OPC Gemini.SLI
and I have to say that I continue to be very impressed by my machine.

I use my home computer for a variety of different activities and it
took a while to move all my programs & data from my old home-built
machine and configure it as I require. I am now in a position to
comment on the OPC machine.

As you would expect from other reviews here, the machine is extremely
capable. I got the equivalent of stock top of the line performance
with a machine composed of second tier components which are
overclocked.

One feature I love is the 5-bay removable hard drive cage. What a
wonderful device - allows the user to remove/replace drives with the
minimum of fuss and without opening up the case.

The internal cable job is a work of art. The custom cut to length
cables make for an extremely clean space inside the case enabling
great air cooling of the processor and graphics cards. Mounting the
HDD cage in the 5.25 drive bays also frees up airflow through the case
which helps keep everything cool.

The number of fans in the Gemini.SLI makes it louder than my old
home-built pc, but I have do not have to worry about the machine
over-heating as a result. Once I move house and am able to place the
OPC under my desk (rather than 12" from my left ear), I am sure things
will be improved :)

My only other very minor hardware quibble is with the Lian-Li PC-71 full
tower case. The side panels are a little on the flimsy side.

On the software side, the included recovery DVD with a Norton Ghost of
the OS as-shipped state is wonderful. One can always go back to square
one and start installing from scratch if required. I had to do this
once.

I have a couple of very minor quibbles with the provided software.

First, the accompanying CD containing Norton Ghost 9.0 turned out to
be incompatible with the RAID controller chip on the motherboard. I
have an older version on Systemworks Pro 2003 (and apparently also the
version used on the recovey DVD) and this works fine allowing me to
make progressive ghosts as I configured the machine.

Second, the installation of Norton anti-virus was not activated so
that after the trial period, I needed to dig out the accompanying CD
and enter the product key.

I have had one other interaction with the OPC support, and this
concerned an occasional BSOD when booting up. This was traced to a USB
device which I use frequently and would leave plugged in when turning
the machine off. Only plugging it in when required has solved this problem.

In all my interactions with OPC support (all conducted through email),
they have been extremely rapid in their response, and through our
combined efforts correct solution have been identified within a couple
of days.

Overall, the OPC experience is first class and I wish them every success!"

"Awesome machine and customer service. If you are a gamer or just someone that knows computer technology at its' finest..Overdrive P.C. is a must for you. I was weary at first to by an outside gaming rig and just to purchase out of word of mouth is insane for me but, boy did they prove me wrong...From the asus board to the take with you drives to the awesome over clocking this custom build is nothing short of awesome...K Salazar"

"When my old PC broke, I spent a couple of weeks looking for a PC Manufacturer which would build the PC I needed for the right price. My brother informed me of this company and after contemplating what to order and what company to go with I went with Overdrive PC, and boy am I glad that I did.

When I called OPC, Ryan talked to me about what I was going to use the PC for and how to get the price even lower. In the end, the PC I got was exactly what I needed. It has the power of a $3500 machine but cost only $2700. Their hyperclocking and cooling is superb. There was a delay on the building of the computer which Ryan told me about. I wasn't very worried, but the folks at OPC upgraded my PC's soundcard because they were feeling bad about the delay. When Ryan called again we talked about the delay and I told him how excited I was to get my PC and about a LAN Party happening this weekend. He upgraded the shipping to 2-day service just so I could have the chance to play it that weekend.

Thanks to all of you at OPC, especially Ryan. You should be expecting another customer soon as my brother is drooling over my machine and wants to order one as soon as he has the money."

"I really cannot say enough good words about this company. The OPC is a combination of smooth as silk and blindingly fast. The dealings with the OPC staff were very good and the order arrived as promised, on time and packaged well enough to withstand nuclear attack.

Rarely have I had a more satisfactory buying experience. Expensive? Yes, but this is a case of you get what pay for -- and more. The best thing I can say about OPC is that I would buy another one."

"I purchased a PC from Overdrive PC after months and months of going over parts lists and trying to choose what I would like to build for myself like I have for the past 13 years. Then I stumbled upon a review of Overdrive PC in a computer shopper. After fighting myself back and forth I finally got down and called Overdrive.

Boy am I glad I did!

I spoke to Ryan and hammered him with questions for about 30 minutes. He answered every one politely and happily. I actually felt bad that I had bothered him so much. He took it all and smiled.

I few weeks later I ordered it.

Dual Opteron 270's, Dual GForce 7800 GT's dual 10k rpm Hdd's, the works. The funny thing is I originally wanted to order all the TOP end stuff and Ryan said no need to spend the money when they can get the same performance for less with their Hyperclocking technology.

There were some issues with the build. One is they had never used the dual opteron motherboard with raid as of yet and that posed some issues. That is where Mario took over. He had my PC on his bench for probably 2 weeks while he spoke with the manufacturers trying to find a solution as to why it wouldnt work with the 10K drives but worked just fine with the slower drives. They finally found a solution a few weeks later. I am a patient man and I wanted a masterpiece so I had no problem waiting.

Well lo and behold they felt so awful that they kept me waiting so long not only did they upgrade my RAM from the 2GB I ordered to 4GB, they also upped my hard drive from 250 GB to 500 GB and threw in a couple games for my patience!

I love these guys and have referred all of my friends to them.

They built me the masterpiece I wanted! It is a sick machine and my friends are all jealous! They are now saving up their own cash so they can buy one too.

Thanks Ryan and Mario and the rest of the crew of Overdrive PC."

"I got my new Overdrive PC today (Gemini.SLI w/4400+) and all I can say is "Wow!"

I have always built my own PCs in the past, but this system is just damn impressive. It is well put together (the enclosure feels like a free standing vault), quiet (i.e. no rattles) and *FAST*.

I compared multiple niche performance desktop manufacturers including Hypersonic, Voodoo, Falcon-NW, Alienware and Dell XPS. They were all impressive, but in the end the common theme I found for Overdrive PCs was "quiet, stable and fast". This is just what I was looking for.

I don't consider myself a hardcore gamer (i.e. I do enjoy the latest AoE RTS and other RPGs), but I wanted a PC that I would not outgrow anytime soon (my last PC lasted me 5+ years). Since I also use our PC for household finances and work at home, system stability was critical.

If you are reading this review, then you are considering an Overdrive PC. While they are mid-pack from a price perspective, based on my research, their systems perform the best. Oh, and by the way, their sales and tech support are outstanding as well (i.e. quick to answer emails and phone calls, knowledgeable, courteous and honest). I am *very* happy with my Overdrive PC."