iBUYPOWER Paladin XLC: Enthusiast Class
by Dustin Sklavos on September 2, 2010 3:30 AM EST
Good Value but Perhaps Overkill
This review winds up being difficult to wrap-up. There are two faces to the iBUYPOWER Paladin XLC: what is, and what could have been.
We'll start with the what is: it's a powerful, if hot and noisy (at least during gaming), custom machine. It's flexible enough, and the motherboard the build is based on is one of the best on the market, leveraging a wealth of features (including USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gbps) that ensure it will remain useful for some time. The SSD used for the operating system drive is snappy enough but does run into problems when you try to multitask while doing heavy file-copying procedures, a fact I can personally attest to on my own machine. Will it play anything you throw at it and handle any task you ask of it? Absolutely.
But there's also the what could have been: the overclock is a lazy and poorly-tuned one, leaving both performance and efficiency on the table. A pair of GeForce GTX 470's in SLI is also a curiously unbalanced choice: if heat and noise aren't issues, and you're already spending this much, go whole hog on a pair of 480's. Otherwise, save yourself a healthy amount of bread and hearing and go for the 460's. And if you're only gaming on one monitor, short of a 30" LCD a single Radeon 5850/5870 or GeForce GTX 470/480 is probably just fine. iBUYPOWER offers a lot of options, but we don't feel the pair of 470s is the right call.
What this boils down to is this: is the iBUYPOWER Paladin XLC as reviewed here worth the cost? Thankfully, yes, we think it is. What you're looking at is a premium of a couple hundred dollars to have your machine overclocked from the factory, and to not have to actually assemble it yourself. The three year warranty is excellent as well. This isn't the configuration we would recommend for this build (we'd spring for a Corsair SSD for not much more and a pair of GTX 460's instead), but the price is actually reasonable given what iBUYPOWER offers in addition to the cost of components. With a couple of changes, this would be an excellent alternative for someone tired of the troubleshooting sometimes involved in building their own machine, or for someone who just wants a solid gaming desktop.
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Chaser - Thursday, September 2, 2010 - link
...and they were outstanding to me when I bought my IC7 about a year ago. Mine is flawless and rock solid. They were stout professionals every step of the way and after sales support, even though I haven't had to use it hardly ever was top notch.Enjoying
erple2 - Thursday, September 2, 2010 - link
Yet another baseless, pointless rant that doesn't contribute to the conversation. Now that I think about it, you should add this post to that list.I find nothing on a google search other than some irate customers complaining about what I can only believe are personal issues. The vast majority of users seem to like this company. In fact, on reselleratings, they score better than industry average (and by a fairly good amount, at least in the last 6 months).
I can only conclude that you're angry at something, and taking it out in a forum.
espressojim - Friday, September 3, 2010 - link
I had to return my machine. DOA on shipment, and all of the money I paid extra for (nice cable routing, sound dampining) wasn't there.At least they refunded my $$$ in full once I complained sufficiently. My story is at:
resellerratings. I'm glad I got less lazy and built my own - it was cheaper, had better parts, and has a better build due to me actually caring.
Lazlo Panaflex - Thursday, September 2, 2010 - link
Looks like something Darth Vader would build his rig in ;-)Bolder63 - Thursday, September 2, 2010 - link
This was a few years ago my PC mobo had gone bad and it was old enough to warrant building a replacement. Shortly after this happened I had a medical emergency and was hospitalized. I saw a PC advertised with IBUYPOWER that had similar specs to what I had in mind to build.I went ahead and bought the rig from them. When it arrived it was packaged in the box the PC case came in with no interior packaging or anything more that the case itself had to start with. The dual slot video card had not been inserted into the mobo properly and in shipping had damaged the PCI-E slot. The power supply had obviously been installed in the case after the mobo as the builder had pried the sata connectors 90 degrees to fit it in, damaging them as well.
I called IBUYPOWER, to find that getting a CSR on the phone was a whole new exercise in patience. I got them to send me an RM to ship it back finally. The 2nd time it came back it was still packed in the same case box which now had even less packing material. The PC was still unacceptable as the replacement mobo had received the same careless handling. Round 2 with the CSR and the manager himself. Sent it back again 3rd time it came back it had obviously been assembled by a different person it was much better than the previous 2. The packaging still sucked but someone had put some packing in the case and the video card had not destroyed anything this time.
The PC worked ok for maybe 3 months before I had to replace the power supply and video card and ultimately the mobo as well.
Due to my experience with this company I would NEVER buy ANYTHING from them again.
jamyryals - Thursday, September 2, 2010 - link
was the hospital stay nice at least?adonn78 - Thursday, September 2, 2010 - link
I think the Nvidia 400 series runs too hot. SLI is definitely overkill but you never know what you'll need 3 years from now. I would have only had one video card or gotten 2 less expensive ones such as 2 5770's crossfire. and gotten a 120GB Sandforce SSD drive.jed22281 - Thursday, September 2, 2010 - link
Does anyone know if it has any notable improvements over the original LCLC 240mm?How so exactly?
The LCLC 240 was purchasable on it's own in limited volumes, does anyone know if this will be?
Thank-you!
7Enigma - Friday, September 3, 2010 - link
I'm interested in knowing this as well. Honestly I thought the overall review was lacking in several areas. The reviewer mentions it was loud and power hungry (calling the overclock amatuerish which I agree with) but doesn't put any data up to support this?Hopefully it was just forgotten and the article will be updated shortly...
jed22281 - Friday, September 3, 2010 - link
Hmmm....You don't get emailed if someone responds to your post, that blows!
I'm finding it almost impossible to determine if the 570LX is just a re-badged LCLC 240mm.
I strongly suspect it is, & even if it isn't, I guess that's irrelevant if it can't be bought on it's own!
Although I have found one retailer (NZ oddly enough) that claims to sell it.
http://www.playtech.co.nz/afawcs0139235/CATID=216/...
But I have suspicions it's not what they claim it is....