A little overdue! TL;DR: Built my first PC, didn't work, R Computer fixed it when multiple shops in the El Cerrito/Concord area were unable to. Killer customer service and skill.
The long version: On a Sunday afternoon, a friend and I assembled a PC (first time for both of us). Unfortunately, when we hit the power button, the motherboard flashed once, keyboards/mouse came to life, but no BIOS. Ran through a list of 25 "potential fixes" we found online - still nothing. The following night after work, I disassembled and reassembled everything but the PSU, motherboard, CPU, and CPU fan. Still nothing - problem was with one of those four components. Realized at this point I was out of my depth.
Tuesday, took it to a shop (leaving it unnamed...) in Berkeley that came with a recommendation and good Yelp reviews. Called the place beforehand, was rushed through the call, no questions asked, assured they could fix it. Brought it to the shop during rush hour post-work. Door locked, when opened I brought it in, put it down on the table. Owner THEN told me he only works with Intel PCs, would likely be unable to isolate which of the 4 components was the issue, and could only do a manual inspection. Elected not to do business with them.
Each shop I called afterward had one reason or another why they couldn't guarantee that they could isolate which of the 4 components was the issue - no motherboard to test my chip (Ryzen 2700x), only work with Intel, no chip to test the motherboard, etc.
When I called, a woman named Rhonda answered the phone, empathized over my bricked PC, and forwarded me to Vince in Sales. Vince thoroughly answered all my questions, and most importantly, explained that while no computer shop had the tools that AMD or Gigabyte have to test components (too expensive), that they would be able to isolate the problem component(s) via process of elimination. I work nearby, and Vince said it was no problem for me to bring it in on my lunch.
Wednesday, bring my bricked PC to R-Computer. Rhonda remembers me, forwards me to Vince, Vince hands me off to Keith. Right in front of me, Keith expertly lays down the computer, pops off the sides, and gets to work. In no time flat, he pops off the CPU fan, pulls out the CPU, and we see 10+ bent pins. We had missed a tiny metal bar that needed to be lifted, and the CPU fan pushed the CPU, bending the pins. Keith says go back to work, I'm going home to get some special spectacles, no promises but I'll do my best.
3 hours later, I get a phone call asking if I want to hear the good news or the bad news first. When I ask for the good news, Keith let's me know it's all good(!), and the PC is up & running. Come to R-Computer, Keith brings me into the workshop where I see "Frankenstein" alive at 29 degrees Celsius. And, he did a killer job rewiring him.
5 Stars. Much appreciation to Keith & R-Computer. See Frankenstein off the operating table below. read more