Case XS
Motherboard MSI Z97M Gaming Motherboard
Processor Intel® Core™ i5-4430 Processor
Memory Xidax Performance 1600MHz DDR3 16GB
Power Supply Corsair 750W Semi-Modular Power Supply
Optical Drive 24X ASUS DVD-RW Combo
Graphics NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650 - 2GB GDDR5
GPU OC Overclocked Graphics Card - 1 Card
Sound Cards Onboard Audio
HDD/SSD XIDAX Performance SSD 128GB
Fan Controller Bitfenix Recon
CPU Paste Premium CPU Thermal Paste - Lower Temps 5-10° C
GPU Paste Standard Graphics Card Thermal Paste
Cooling Xidax 550LC CPU Cooler
OS Windows 8.1 64-bit
This month's Freebies:
NVIDIA Free Games Bundle NVIDIA Game Bundle (NVIDIA Graphics Card Required)
T-Shirt Xidax Xtra-Large ( you always get a T-shirt with a new build)
Mouse Mat Razer Vespula Gaming Mouse Mat
Just FYI, I did send a Tweet out about
+Xidax to offer a complete UPDATED Unboxing and review in exchange for faster shipping but never heard back from them.
So far( 7/10/14) I am happy customer except for the fact of no photo of the build as promised! But I will have to say this, the customer service so far has been above the top. Not many Boutique build shops left in the USA, and none with the customer service as
+Xidax .
Since I am on a limited budget this is what I picked, Something that could build and upgrade as money became available for it. So I choose regular build and shipping, but you can also upgrade this option to get it faster but I thought rather expensive. Build options start at $49 to $109 for 1 to 3 Buisness day build and to ship out. I felt that since already paying a premium for the build I did not want to fork out the extra $109 to have in just a few days. The regular option that I chose is 6 to 9 business days to ship out. Now I am not a patient person and it is just about killing me to wait but it will come I guess. The total on my new Xidax beast is $1237.00 this includes S&H. Now having built computers for several years I could and can build this excate gaming computer for about $300 less, But for me this was and is the best option. Being in a wheelchair for right now really creates problems with daily life and surely gives one a different outlook on things. So let's move on and start the review which I will update as I get information and then I am going to do a full review when I get the tower.
So I ordered on 7-3 and shows a expected ship date of 7-16, Now a great thing about Xidax is that your suppose to get email updates and a build Photo when it gets to QC/ Burn in stage, which I have not gotten yet. So I get 2 emails from Xidax on 7-8 the first says We've begun building my computer, the second about 3 minutes later says Great New's my computer has entered into QC/Burn in stage, so I thought great my computer is about ready to ship out and that means I should have a build Photo to admire until I get my beast in my hands. So I log into my account @ Xidax and it does show it's in the QC/Burn phase but no photo, You know this was a perk that i was looking forward to but to this date have not seen a build photo yet. I chatted with Konnor yesterday to inquire the length of the QC/Burn stage and he said upto 72 hours, Well unless they have a failure that should be the only reason for that length of QC/Burn. Most of the time usually no longer than 24hours is plenty. So 72hours puts it ready to ship this Friday. But the longer it stays there I become a little more concerned as why it stayed there so long, A failure, problems, and what will I have when it arrives..
Now I will keep updating as I get info on my new Xidax computer and do a full run down on it. Keep checking back I'll keep you updated. Who know maybe if you're in the market for a new Gaming rig then you may want to check out Xidax if you dont't want to do it yourself. They have a unheard of warranty on their desktop machine's of Liftime warranty- Yes I did say Lifetime warranty.
Update: 7/11/14: OK so I checked the status last night still in the QC/Burn in stage and still no photo of the build.
So I sent them a Email asking about the status of my build and about one of the perks of buying from Xidax is the build photo and since there wasn't one I was a little unhappy that they offer it but did not fulfill it. I also wrote about being in the QC/Burn stage for soo long, and the about the only way for a system to stay there for so long would be product failure or the build was causing some issues, which frankly is a alarming to me. As of the time of this update I have not heard a word from Xidax about the status or a response to my Email. So here is my thoughts I don't really like the fact of no photo of the build as promised, I know some of you would say who cares about a photo as it's probably not even the computer you are getting while this is true but the fact remains if you promise something then follow thru! Not answering emails in a timely fashion is not looking that good in my book either. Here is my final thought on this update, Xidax computers has a great reputation and I hope that is true when I finally get the computer, but I believe they want you to pay the extra fee for the rush shipping and building!!! If you rush shipping can build a gaming rig and ship out in 1 to 3 business days which is including the QC/Burn process then the customers choosing just regular building and shipping could atleast expect to receive the build photos and better updates than what I have received!!! I am not a patient man, which is one of my down falls and does cause some issues sometimes. Stay Tuned for more updates....
Update: 7/14/14: Good Morning, Here is the latest update. My Rating of Xidax is getting lower and lower. I chatted on Friday with Alex on the website instant chat feature just wandering about a updated status of my build. Well I gotten a completely different story from Alex about the status. Mostly about the QC/Burn process. First Konner says up to 72 hours for QC which meant my build would have been shipped by now to Alex saying it could take up to a week. Well my opinion the employees needing some training for sure atleast to get the stories correct but the only same tune both got right was to the fact they both said this" well we have till the 16th to ship out" Which is the 9th Business day from ordering. So that reaffirms my suspicion about unless you pay the express shipping and build don't count on your build leaving before the 9th day.
All in all I was rather upset of broken promises, First the website states that they have real time updating of your build which is not correct, and secondly they sell the fact that you get a photo of you build which to this update is not correct. I sent the owner a email on Friday to state concerns and unhappiness and his reply was " we have till the 16th to ship out" and " you will have a photo of your build Monday morning" the issue he says was the Motherboard failed resulting in a complete rebuild of my computer. I think they all miss the fact of my dissatisfaction. They are selling or promising items that I wasn't getting! I purposely choose the standard shipping to allow me time to do a full review from the time I selected the parts and checked out to a complete unboxing and then to touch on every once and awhile. But be aware I have found another issue, Xidax says there are no ratings below 3 stars which is not correct, and the common excuse that Xidax uses if there is an issue is" there was a failure with your build and had to rebuild it causing the delay" well I would seriously consider using different parts supplier!! At this point that tower better just wow me before I can give any more stars in my rating to Xidax. I will keep you updated, I am expecting for it to ship on the 16th which is Wednesday, and probably wont get it till a week from today but always hopeful..
Update: 7/21/14: Wow what a long day, I received the Xidax computer today from UPS and finally got it up and running still loading stuff up. LOL isn't that how it alway's goes and maybe the biggest reason why we do not like getting new computers. I mean yeah who doesn't want a brand new toy to play with but don't want the hassle of getting it all set up and loaded with all of our stuff.
Alot has happened since I last wrote but was at the point just didn't want to mess with it anymore, so let's bring you up to date. I never received a build photo like the Xidax website states, also suppose to update during the build process which is not entirely accurate. It stayed listed in the QC/ Burn process for over a week and also listed as that even after the computer shipped!
So I thought ok good maybe it will all turn out ok, it was shipped as promised and then I would be in control and it would work out. Well I was wrong, it arrived packed very well and no damage during shipping so that was a good thing but then it went downhill from there. Now the build that I picked I choose the Nvidia GTX 650 Video card and with that choice I was to get as freebies 2 games and $150 of in game money. Well never got that and I had to contact Xidax about it, and I chosen the Razor mouse pad which was not included in the shipment which I didn't realize until later in the day after all the other items was taken care of which they are suppose to be Drop Shipping out to me and was told that I should be getting in a few days. ( Like I haven't waited long enough already)....
Ok so in my build I chosen the Xidax 128GB SSD Drive as the only drive, only because if your like me I have a secondary drive that i was going to install with all my items anyway and there was no since buying something that I already had. So I get all the boxes opened and everything laid out and opened the case to remove the shipping material from inside the case to install my hard drive and power this bad boy up. So I removed the shipping material and took a look around inside the case on the side of the motherboard was installed and it looked nice and neat as I was expecting. Now the case that I picked the hard drives, Disc drives, and the power supply install the opposite side, so I opened the other side and as soon as I took the side piece off the case out flops a Rat's Nest of wiring. Yes I said Rat's Nest. It was awful looking and just down right unprofessional...Frankly I was pissed, and I hadn't even got to the facts that no games, and no mouse pad yet....
So I uninstalled the hard drive carriage and installed my hard drive which was a piece of cake, since it was a no tool case and install. Just slide it in lock it down install the cables and your good to go. So once I got my drive installed I then installed the drive carriage back in and then went to finish up cable management as it should have been done in the first place, Then I thought well if they would leave a Rat's Nest then I need to go thru the entire build step by step to make sure I do not have any stupid failures from the build. I went thru the build, looking each and every part over with a fine tooth comb and it all looked good, and now the cable management was done too it looked like it should have in the first place.
So after the last time I contacted Xidax about all the issue's and missing items from my order, I told them I was pissed off about the rat's nest, missing mouse pad, and the missing game info and this is what I was offered for my issues. They are Drop Shipping the Razor Mouse Pad, Offered me 2 choices to fix the issue about the rat's nest 1. I could ship it back to them and they would fix it, or 2. Mail me a zip tie!
Last but not least the Free Games, well instead of giving me the Nvidia games bundle they offered the AMD game bundle Silver package so I could pick and choose my own 2 games.. Which I got the email before I was off the phone with them...
So here is my opinon at this point, I've looked high and low the ratings for Xidax before even thinking about placing an order and there was a few that had some issues here and there but nothing that turned me away, But dealing with them myself I would not buy another computer from Xidax nor would I recommend them to anyone and here is why. Xidax is a custom builder of computers and they have started to have growing pains and have grown to a point that some customers have fallen thru the cracks and they now can pass the buck to the other person department etc. If you have an issue and happen to talk to 2 different people you get 3 different stories and frankly this is unacceptable to any customer. Plus why offer something and don't follow thru with it, by the way I would happen to call it False advertisment (Build photo's, Updated information during the build process) I think Xidax is at the point it can and should be that great custom builder that everyone's knows them to be, or have they grown to much and starting to show signs of the big places that will put them in a group like the other palces have become.
And the main reason to not buy again or recommend is Yes they did make a mistake but don't insult me and offer to mail me a Zip Tie to resolve and issue that I have already taken the time to fix myself... Xidax could and should have compensated me somehow other than an isult and that would have told me you are human and your customers are worth eveerything to you...Which I really had wished you would have taken care of me because I was going to Blast Social Media about Xidax..
I will keep you guys updated if anything changes... And if you have any questions please feel free to shoot me any..
Update 7/22/14:
Ok Ok so I've been playing thought I had most all the kink's out but again I was wrong!
Found this morning the Hard Drive light was not working, (installed Backwards) I would have thought being in the QC?burn for a week they would have seen that one. And I was looking into the MSI Super Charger with this Motherboard when I noticed some software, Utilities, and updates were not done or isntalled. So here is a list so far that I have had to deal with:
Fixed the Hard Drive light that was installed wrong
Fixed the Rat's Nest of wiring inside the case
No Razor mouse mat was included in my shipping and have not heard a word about shipping information yet.
MSI Command Center not installed
MSI Live update not installed
Bios update
Intel Chipset update
Killer Network Update
AsMedia USB 3.0
Realtek HD Audio update
Eco Center not installed
Fast Boot not isntalled
Super Charger not installed correctly and no information supplied
Smart utilites not installed
Intel Extreme Tuning Utility not installed
Sound Blaster Cinema not installed
MSI Afterburner not installed
Nvidia 3D Vision Video not installed
These are only the ones that i have found worth mentioning, Now here I am again spending my time
doing what a custom system builder should do in the first place. When I took this build out of the box it should have been ready to use, updates and all..
MSI Command Center not installed
I have left my review of Xidax on Reseller Ratings of 1 out of 5 stars until I get the rest of my order and have sent a email to Zack Shutt Exec. Vice President in hopes that he will restore me to a happy customer.. But no reply at the time of updating the Blog.
7/24/2014 Update;
Just to bring you guys up to date, received the missing mouse pad yesterday, and a call from Alex. Was in a meeting so wasn't able to answer but he left a message asking how the computer was running? LOL Well not to bad now that I have fixed it.
And no response from Zack yet!
7/28/2014 Update:
Just a little update, as of this morning still no word from Zack @ Xidax. So I am asking myself what good is a lifetime warranty if the company will not respond? Also got the photos from my phone over the weekend of the computer so here is a photo of the build and rat's nest.. Also I've noticed a few times I'll power up the computer in the morning then go off to start my coffee and for no reason it will just restart itself. If this continues I will have to look into this matter and fix myself since Xidax is MIA!!
8/1/2014 Update:
Hey good news, I talked with Zack from Xidax yesterday on the phone which by the way he was very apolgetic to this situation. Zack read this blog and looked at he photo's which he was very sincere and could hear the passion in his voice regarding Xidax. He was forth coming and saying this should have never happened in the first place and his staff will be dealt with. We had a nice conversation on the phone and took care of this problem and us with the computer, I left it up to him to see what he thought was fair and he was more than generous. So I am happy and I should be getting a package in the mail Saturday from Xidax.
As a side note Zack and I discussed Xidax and Zack helping with the Disabled Gamers as well. Zack knows first hand the difficulties of a disability by someone he knows and offered to help us out and maybe more in the future which we will be so grateful for. Thanks again Zack...
8/4/2014 Final update:
Well I received the Razor Black Widow Ultimate keyboard today, and the mouse and the logo last week. So now we have once again restored faith in Xidax. You know as all compaines grow there is growing pains ans I will be the first to admit things we try to control sometimes fall to the side. Why you ask, well becuase as a owner you cannot be at every place at every moment of each day. You hope that you hire the right people for the job but sometimes they may take a shortcut and next thing you know you have an upset customer. You cannot find employees that try and do things like it is thier company and do it right.
We was not happy and a little worried about our decision but when Zack got involved and I could just hear in his voice that he cared and he was owning up to his employees mistakes this just shows that Zack &Xidax is a great company to get involved with. I would have no problem buyiung another computer from them or recommending them to anyone that I know. Xidax does have have some knowledable people working for them and that is a good foundation to having a great company.
So at this point with all the hiccups fixed and the computer runs good at this point I have not had any issues with it. I hope that it runs for a long time or atleast till I can afford another one. LOL....
If you have any questions or comments about me my blog or my reviews, please feel free to post your comments or send me a email anytime...
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| Received Xidax |
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| Inside MOBO side, Looks nice but still could have tied up a few loose wires |
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| Closer look, Xidax branded CPU water cooler defiantly not the correct choice! |
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| And here is the RAT'S NEST!!! Can you believe Xidax a professional system builder calls this a completed build? |
