a8 with upgrades vs cr10

I am a beginner and I was looking at getting a printer and investing about $400 and was reading reviews. The Cr10 ($399) seems to be the best printer out of the box with the best performance, but the A8($175) is much cheaper but the performance is not as good but then I could spend some money getting better parts such as a better extruder (is a dual extruder any good?). Also I have read that the A8 is a fire hazard, is this true? So which would be the better printer, a cr10 or an upgraded a8. If there is another printer I am open to suggestions.