I too am a first timer with a crossbow and bought the viper s400. I bought it mostly for the ten point name. The cocking and decocking works great and the bow is very fast and accurate. A bit noisy but it is so fast that I doubt it will come into play unless a long shot is tried. My first shot at a deer was 30 yds and the whack seemed to be right on top of the sound of the bow going off. I love the trigger.