hi guys!had plans to buy my editing system in parts like everybody does but my brotha told me he saw a new HP elite 180t desktop system.am confused.dont know if i should tell him to buy it because a lot guys on this forum have advised not to purchase branded systems?what should i do?

Branded system are not bad at all, if:

1. The configuration and price is right.
2. You are OK without overclocking.
3. You decline any improvements/add-ons on the basic system.

Just remember that branded systems get their profit from improvements/add-ons and they steal you blind with those. If you find a nice offer that contains all you need, go ahead. If you need anything else, get it elsewhere and install it yourself.

thanks a lot.have always found this forum so helpful.my problems basically about the system is the power[460w],if it is necessary to have a RAID configuration and the cooling system.wont these factors make it really slow when editing?

The cooling system is OK, because the BIOS is crippled and overclocking nearly impossible. The cooling system was designed/chosen for this specific system. Same with the PSU. But if you want to insert another graphics card that uses a lot of juice and add a raid controller plus a number of disks, then the 460W may be a bit underpowered.

You can check this yourself here: eXtreme Power Supply Calculator v2.5 (http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculator.jsp)
I can really advise you to get the Pro version. It is worth every penny and will save you from getting a mediocre power supply. My system is a bit different, but I nearly got a Zalman PSU that was not correct for me and this calculator saved me from a bad investment.

Hope this helps.