Originally posted by stwert Yeah, the real pro side to not getting a pre-built machine is that you get exactly the components you want. Often the assembled machines will have some highlighted parts like the CPU or GFX card, but then the power supply or mobo will be crap. (This is a random assumption on my part unsubstantiated by personal experience). Hope it helps. I hear that. I see that way too often, fast cpus with an amount of RAM that seems like an afterthought all slapped on an ambiguous motherboard with a layout that doesn't give much room for upgrade, not to mention the preinstalled bloatware, bleh. Plus who doesn't like picking out a bad ass looking case to house all their sexy components.