A year ago I would just have just bought the top-of -the-line Alienware Area 51. However, Dell has annoyed me to the point where I think I should look elsewhere.

I've been checking out some reviews and specs for other high-end gaming rigs, and the one that caught my eye was the Velocity Micro Raptor Z55.

Anyone else ever heard of this machine? It looks good on paper, for sure, but what do I know?

I will be reading this thread with interest. We bought a Velocity Micro computer back in the 2000s and were quite happy with it; however, that was a long time ago and I have no idea what they are like now.

Like Marian, I'm not sure how they rate now, but this has been a solid desktop.

I don't like the specs of the Z55 for gaming though. I would take a look at the Z95 for much better specs for gaming. The Z95 at least has the base Intel Ultra 5 processor... although I would certainly want to get at least an Ultra 7 processor. It has an Nvidia 5060 GPU, but I would personally prefer something better than that. I put a 5060Ti in my new build and I really like it. The Ti means it is an upgrade to the generic 5060. You can certainly go higher if you want to spend the money. I like the base motherboard in the Z95 too. The Gigabyte Aorus Z890 is a really good board.

Computer components are outrageously expensive right now in the US due to tariffs and other factors. You might not have to deal with it in Canada. I paid $2500 for my new computer and it's far from top of the line. I do feel like the Velocity Micro Raptor is a solid choice though. Be aware that both of the ones that I looked at are the full ATX form factor cases which are quite large.

Couldn't agree more with ditching Dell.

Okay. I will look at specs more closely since the Velocity seems like a solid choice. I would want a 5090 and all the other bells and whistles. Hopefully there's a human somewhere in the mix who can steer me in the right direction. I built my office specifically with the idea pf adding a desktop down the line so I have room under the desk and a keyboard shelf.

That's definitely the direction I would go. And if you can spring for the Intel Ultra 9 processor, go for it.

The Signature Edition looks good. It's big, but I have lots of room on top of my desk as it's ten feet long. I might enquire further.

I will follow along with interest/lust about that Signature Edition!

Yes, it does look rather good. I'd love to get something solid enough to last for a few years after this laptop debacle.

Wow. So many configuration choices on the Velocity PCs. Every single build item has choices. I don't even really know where to start with it.

The Signature Edition is, of course, very expensive with all the upgrades I put on the build, especially when translated into Canadian dollars, but it might be worth it if it lasted for years. The z95 is just over half the price, even with upgrades, and it also looks good.

The problem is that I don't know enough about it to judge the different specs. Of course, I could just click on the top-tier item for each, but then I'd have to sell my house.

I'm not sure why that Signature Edition only comes with an AMD processor and is well over $5,000 in USD. It does have some very good components, but only a 1 TB solid state drive... not sure about you, but I do keep a lot of large games downloaded and the 1 TB SSD on my Windows 10 computer was getting it too close to full! On my new one I got a 4th generation Samsung Pro with 2 TB.

I went back to the Z95 and did some upgrades to the base $4800 with an Intel Ultra 9 processor, a 5060 Ti video card, a 2 TB Samsung SSD and it came up to a little over $4800. Of course, all in USD.

To be honest, I don't think you can go wrong with any build here. It's just going to be a matter of how painful the cost will be!

I got a quote from their sales manager for the "ultimate gaming machine." It's got the Ultra 9 processor and the RTX 5090 card.

The quote also includes a 4 TB hard drive.

That RTX 5090 card is half of the total price!

Looks like a great machine. The cost is outrageous, when converted to Canadian and with the import fees! I think I'm buying it.

LOL! Hit that "add to cart!" As I said, components are just outrageous in general right now. RAM is also off the charts. That will include at least 32 GB of RAM and a minimum of a 1,000 watt power supply. And, oh YES, on that Ultra 9 processor!

It's got 2X 32 GB Ram and 1300 watts power supply.

I took the plunge.

Now I have to buy a 4K monitor and a keyboard.

Just want you to know that I am having a lot of vicarious fun and excitement reading this thread.

This is a major purchase but from everything I've read about this company the computer should be great. I bought a 27 inch 4K Asus monitor and a fairly good keyboard. I am space-limited on the monitor because of the built-in cabinets above the desk but honestly 27 inches will be more than enough.

Now I have to live on gruel for the next year.

Don't worry, Oliver Twist. It will all work out. And from what you have told us about John, I think he would be telling you to go for it.

Yes, John would have told me to go for it. He was the one who suggested that I buy the first Alienware instead of messing around with lesser laptops, all those years ago. Mind you, that was partly because he couldn't resist buying the latest and greatest professional Canon photography gear every time a new camera body came out. I still have it all. There's a LOT of it. Unfortunately it's old technology now, even the lenses.



EDIT: And I see that the nice fellow I was dealing with knocked a few hundred dollars off the final tally.

Wow !!

That all sounds totally fabulous, hagatha !! 🤗🤗🤗

Also, it wasn't the Signature Edition that I got. The recommended "dream machine" is actually the z 95 with all the bells and whistles.

It'll be odd playing on a large screen again. I am so totally accustomed to my Steam Deck now. I played Fallout 76 and Avowed and Elex and No Man's Sky and now Witcher 3 on it. Darned good little machine, that one is.

Okay, so it's here. It's a massive machine! I was able to get it up onto my desk, though. All that Pilates paid off.

I'm just about to try and figure out how to connect the monitor. There is a really good setup guide online, so I'm feeling confident.

One thing I must say -- when I emailed for help with the setup because there was no guide with the computer, I got an immediate response from Velocity.

Great !! Hope you soon have everything up and running, hagatha, so you can start massively enjoying yourself !!

Okay, I'm stuck.

The monitor came with three different connection cables and I have no idea which one to use. The manual simply mentions all of the cables. It does specify which cable to use to connect to the computer itself.

The monitor is a ASUS ROG XG27UCDMG 27 Inch 4K 240Hz Tandem QD-OLED G-SYNC Gaming Monitor.

The three cables are: HDMI Ultra High Speed, DP cable, and USB 3.0 Cable . All three port types are available on the PC.

I'm guessing I should use the HDMI Ultra High-Speed?

Googling appears to agree with the HDMI ultra high-speed cable choice, but I can't be positive.

You will not believe this.

It won't turn on. There's something wrong with the power switch. Their tech guy got me into the guts of the machine and there's a way to turn on the power that way, but the machine is going to have to go back.

In the meantime I'll get all the peripherals set up and running and download a few things like Steam and GOG.

Tell me this isn't true.

It is true.

I can use this machine using the interior power switch and I intend to put it through its paces until it goes back. But yes, sadly, it looks like something may have jarred loose or gotten damaged in transit.

Downloading a couple of games now anyway, since nothing will change between now and Friday.

It's a very quiet machine. All the peripherals are working. It occurred to me that I need some really good wireless headphones since the ones I have are wired.

Well, apparently I missed the "post" button again before when I posted my reaction to this news, which was:

Oh, NO!

Does this mean that you will have to pay customs fees again? I sure hope not. I think the company should pay for those.

Marian, that's my biggest concern, and I raised it with the tech guy. He's going to chat with the admin people and get back to me tomorrow.

I can use this computer as is. The side panel comes off easily and access to the power button inside is easy. If it comes to it, I'd be happy with a discount refund rather than go through the he** of sending this back and arguing with customs.

It runs beautifully, by the way. I'm impressed with how quiet it is. I'm loading up a new game just to put it through its paces.

I’m so sorry to hear of the problem, hagatha, but I think you are going down the right path in considering keeping the machine .. as long as you are credited with some discount, of course.

If you really like it and are happy to access the power button as is, why subject yourself to stress that can be avoided ??

Have to agree with Mad about that! And shipping back and forth might cause some other problem.

That all sounds very good, hagatha. And I agree that getting a discount refund would be far preferable to all of the back and forth. I hope you can come to some kind of agreement with them about this. That sounds like the best course of action. Way less stressful.

Marian, the only downside is that the side panel is glass and taking it off all the time will inevitably lead to disaster.

I'll wait to see what they say tomorrow.

I see. Well, let us know what they say tomorrow. Good to know you are pleased with it otherwise.

My son had a Velocity Micro computer years ago and was very happy with it.

If the removable glass side panel could be replaced with a removable metal one would that help ??

(The side panel on my computer is super strong glass but it isn’t removable. And it’s only really there to allow you to see the innards at work.)

OMG, no!!! I was going to agree with using the HDMI high speed cable, but if it won't turn on except with getting into the guts... I am SO glad you seem to be getting great support, but how terribly disappointing.

Hmm, hopefully nothing else is loose and could that lead to other problems down the road. As for the glass panel, as Mad mentioned they are usually very strong so you should not worry about breaking it. One other thought, when you turn on your computer from the inside power button, have you then try to turn your machine On and Off from the front power button, sometimes the alternate power button is used as a safety power button so you do not accidently turn on your machine while working on it, so the extra power button when turned off means you cannot turn on the front one until you turn the extra power button back on. I mentioned this because some of the desktop machines I used to own had a power button in the back and when turned off, the power button in the front would not work.

Anyway, good luck with your decision and enjoy your new powerful machine.

Sounds like the power button wire connector is loose from the front panel header, which can be kind of picky to fix due to the size of the connection. Doable, just a lot of squinting

It's definitely the connection from the front power button. Something has just come loose in there and need to be popped back in. Problem is, that's not reachable at all with the way this is built. I'd have to remove one of the panels at the back. I'm not entirely uncomfortable with the idea of unscrewing stuff in there if someone is telling me exactly what to do what to do. I did it with my laptop a couple of times and I've already been checking all the connections in this one at the direction of the tech on the phone.

That 5090 Graphics card is enormous!

I'm playing Bloodlines 2 with everything on Ultra and it's powering along with no problem.



Starcom, we did try turning it on and off from the power button with the machine on. It will turn off. It just won't turn back on.

Hagatha, those glass sides are made of very heavy tempered glass and the chances of it breaking are slim and none. Both of my computers have them. But that's not a solution.

I assume you have the Gigabyte Z890 Elite WiFi 7 motherboard. I looked them up on the Velocity website. Those connectors to the front panel are the size of a grain of rice and a bane to all builders! See if you can locate yours and you might be able to reseat it. Hopefully, it came with a users manual for the motherboard. They are on the upper right above where the RAM sticks are. There is a lighted number next to them. When the computer boots up the lights will go through some numbers indicating whether all is well. They are codes for the different components. Anyway there are some tiny connectors there. Can you see if you can reseat them? You may have to lay the computer on its side to get good access. Check the users manual for "front panel connections."

Their tech team has already contacted me and asked for pictures of the area around the switch.

I see those lights and numbers. Yesterday I was instructed to pull out one of the connectors just below the numbers and put it back in.

The users manual doesn't have technical information in it.

Yes, it has a lot of technical info. Go to 1.1 Motherboard layout and look at the upper right. Find the third connection from the right. the second one is "reset" and the third one is "power." Is that the one they had you reseat?? Also in 2.7, it shows the front panel connections with that third one being "power."

Yes, that was the one they had me reset.

However, in the end, it is operator error. When I tried to start the computer using the on button at the front, I didn't realize that I had turned the back one off. Wrong combination of power buttons. It's actually fine.

That is wonderful news!

Oh, thank goodness, hagatha!!!

FANTASTIC !! 🤩🤩🤩

This is me doing the happy dance for you! Oh, yes, NOW you can totally enjoy this big bad machine!

I know what you mean with Vampire Masquerade 2. I didn't realize how much lag there was until I started playing it on my new computer with the 5060 Ti. It ran smooth as butter on it!

It's also great to have a big screen. I'm so used to my Steam Deck now that it's going too be weird getting back into a game like No Man's Sky, which I've only ever played on the Deck. My eyes will thank me.

Today I'm going to try to get all of the peripherals set up on wireless/Bluetooth so I can move the unit over to the side of the desk. it's massive and I'm not putting it on the floor (two cats, lots of fur), so it has to be out of the way.

Yes putting the unit on the floor with 2 cats could be CATostrophic

I could get a stand on wheels to keep it off the floor. It's just that so far I haven't seen one sturdy enough. I did have the desk built extra-wide for that purpose. We'll see. It is a monster.

If you ever need to do anything inside the computer (like clean it) or if you have anything requiring plugs or whatever, the desk would be easier for that stuff.

If I were to get a stand, it would have to be on wheels so I could just pull it out from under the desk. I need to find a really good stand, though.

I understand that but it is still low down to reach. I've had 2 computers on those stands and had trouble with plugging things in and cannot clean them down there, not that I clean my computers often. Stooping down and bending over and twisting around just don't work for me. I'm sure you are more limber with your dance and pilates but just putting it out there as something to consider.

I have my super heavy beast on a small rolling platform that is only about 2" off the floor. I can easily roll it away to vacuum up cat hair and dust or move it to get at the back. But peasis has a point about working inside it - even if just to blow out dust once a year. I got it many, many years ago at a place that is no longer around.

This is similar to mine... There are ratings for weight load. My computer weighs almost 40 pounds which is still under the 20 pound kg rating. My old computer was even heavier!

Rolling Computer Stand