"For the most part, I am pleased with Monarch Computer, although there are some areas in which they could improve.
1. The time between I bought a DVD Burner on their web site and the time I received a shipping notification was over one week. On the site, it said the burner would be shipped within a few days, not a week. Once I received the shipping notification, however, the item came in the allotted FedEx transit time.
2. The burner was packaged in a FedEx Medium Box with one layer of bubble wrap around the drive. When the package arrived, all the bubbles on one side were popped. Luckily, the drive was not damaged, but I would recommend using a bigger box and more packing materials.
UPDATE 10/8/2005:
One of the customer service representatives, Joe, at Monarch contacted me and explained the delay in shipping; it was because they over-sold the drives and therefore had to order a few extras from another source to fill all the outstanding offers, mine included. I am glad that they decided to make good on all the offers, rather than cancelling some of them. This, coupled with the fact that I was contacted by customer service, goes a long way in my book. The rep also said that they are improving their packaging methods, which I will take his word for.
On another note, I do like how Monach checks and double-checks a customer's personal information before completing an order. This is to prevent fraud. This is a delay that I don't mind, as I would rather have a company check and double-check my information rather than accept it blindly.
I am quite satisfied now and am more inclined to order from Monarch Computer in the future."
"Sterling from Monarch and I have been talking, and there were some miscommunications that Sterling has resolved to my satisfaction. I look forward to doing more business with Monarch in the future."
"I had a question about my video card that the tech guys could not answer as it was not really a technical question. The product manager from Monarch contacted me directly via e-mail and helped me get intouch with the manufacturer directly to help me. Talk about above and beyond"
"order was easy to place and I received a confirmation right away, my shippng confirmation e-mail sent to me tonight. So far so good"
"After I posted below, I received a call from Monarch and my problems with them were taken care of. Although after using their pre-printed FedEx label to ship back my RMA items, I haven't heard anything from them. My own fault for losing the tracking number, I suppose...
Most complain about slow shipping from Monarch, but I ordered on a Friday and recieved my shipment on Wednesday...not terrible considering they "pre-tested" my motherboard/cpu combo.
The pre-testing part didn't seem to go too well for them, however. It looks like when removing their test videocard they forgot to unclip it, breaking the clip off of my new motherboard.
On to the next, and worst part about this company...their "support" is horrible! Before I noticed the broken motherboard, I noticed that I had ordered the wrong cpu...bummer, but my fault. I first tried calling the number listed on their website and went to their voicemail, so I filled out their email form. I received a short and simple reply from Kevin about 24 hours later which I immediately replied back to accepting the return fees. A little while later, I received another reply to my to my original email...all it was was a pasted section from their Terms and Conditions page(which said I would have to pay more than the email from Kevin)...no name, no typed words, thank yous, nothing. Of course, the terms say that I have to return a processor within 5 days, including weekends??? Even though I responded to them within a few minutes, they still haven't issued me an RMA number!!
My final thought on Monarch Computer is that they are decent enough, as long as you are lucky enough not to have a problem with your order. If they ever issue me an RMA and I can use my store credit, that will be the last time I shop with them."
"I've ordered from Monarch twice. The first time, it was a hard drive- I ordered it early on Saturday, and it shipped out on Tuesday, which I thought was reasonable for over a weekend. However, the item was NOT listed as an OEM, and it didn't even come in a box- just a static bag. I also didn't think the packing material was sufficient and although there were other stickers on the box warning about fraud and not leaving the package, they didn't bother to add a FRAGILE one. The 2nd time, I ordered RAM and a processor. I ordered early Monday afternoon, and the order didn't ship until Friday night! When I filled out the order status form to inquire about the hold up, I did get a response, but they didn't even apologize, just said they had a lot of orders and the email wasn't exactly professional. Again, the packing material wasn't sufficient for something as delicate as a processor, especially with nothing on the box to say it was fragile. "
"Fast shipping, item arrived as advertised. Have been using it since, no problem so far. They upgraded my shipping to 2nd day Fedex for free. Will definitely buy again."
"Monarch 4 teh win! I ordered all my parts seperately to build the ultimate gaming machine, .. I custom built my machine, instead of having monarch build it, only because I wanted to play w/ the new technology, .. (*and it ships faster)....
I think monarch is one of the best computer retailers in the world."
"I go about an hour and a half out of my way to see that I get the best sales and service in the computer reseller industry and I really appreciate the quality and character of the team at Monarch. "
"Excellent prices, shipping rates and delivery time. I'm building my first computer and did price comparisons on the Graphics card, motherboard and processor i want and on all 3 Monarch came up with the best prices. The good thing about it is that they are all on the priciest components on the computer amd the savings are significant and HUGE.
I already bought the MOBO from Monarch and i am definatly planning on getting the GRFX card and processor from them later on. They also have good sales. Right now they had a good HD sale, too bad i don't have any money right now. So it's wise to subscribe to their newsletter.
A+"
"Package took a bit longer then expected. They fixed that by giving me an upgraded shipping for free. All items came in good condition and packing seemed to be done very nicely. "
"The have an excellent selection of high quality brand name memory at good prices. Products they sell are tested for motherboard compatibility by Manufacture (I learned this is important after my "generic" memory caused blue screens). Product was delivered on time with no problems. Highly recommended store."
"I feel good about saying to go ahead and buy from this reseller. I have enjoyed many good purchases here."
"I am a local customer of Monarch's I go to their location 3-4 times a week. The staff, ussally Mike is very helpful and even the guys who bring the order up from the warehouse are pleasent."
"My daughter needed a new web cam, She gave me a link for Monarch so I completed the order. The processwas nice and the merchadise works great"