Build or Buy?

[sullen]

A few months ago here on the site Baldrick ran a poll about where people got their computers from. Overwhelmingly everyone put that they had built their own. My question is Is it hard to build your own computer? I will be the first to admit that I would like to do this, but am not sure if I have enough knowledge to do so. I know what I want in a computer, but don't know exactly how to go about researching to get the right parts, especially the MoBo. My experience with computers is adding RAM, changing ROM drives, making VCDs with menus, messing up my boot up and fixing it. That is about the extent. Any suggestions? Any good sites to go to to read up about building a computer? This would be my most likely setup:

AMD processor at 1.3 Ghz or higher
256 or 512 DDR RAM
A 7200 rpm 60 Gig HD, possibly larger

A good audio card
A modem card
A video card preferably with video out
A capture card
An ethernet card for my cable modem
I also want USB and Firewire
A DVD-Rom
CD-RW

Any suggestions, responses, slags, bumps, or direction much appreciated.

[spidey]

Build it Bro. You may be fearful initially, but if you're capable of adding memory, the only things you haven't ventured into yet is possibly, changing a jumper on a motherbaord to match the cpu speed, and config'ing your h/d's. Build it on your own, you will be much more happy with it, as well as it'll be cheaper.

Store bought pc's come pre-config'd and loaded with BS out the wazoo.....

Just my 2 cents.....

Plus, you would obviously have existing pc to look off of if you had some questions and needed to visually see how things were run.....

[^^^^###@###^^^^]

I agree building your own pc is the way to go i built my pc.It was not that hard everything has an instruction manual for when you get stuck mobo jumper settings were a bit hard until i could understand mobo manual as the diagrams differed from actual motherboard.And you get a better understanding of the workings of your pc and as metioned you will save $$$$$ and have a much better pc than a factory configured pc

[Vejita-sama]

If you're really concerned you can by a MB/CPU combo or a bare bones kits (MB, CPU and case). From there, there's really nothing left but adding devices and installing software.

It's a lot easier now to build your own system too as many/most MB are jumperless. Take a look at http://www.pricewatch.com

[VCDsMakeMoney]

Well it depends.

If you have the money to buy good parts,you can get a system from alienware,which cater to power users.

If you have the money to buy good parts,and WANT to get your hands into the system for that satisfaction of building your very own comp,then build it!

Ive built everycomputer I own (except for my first one).I love it when it finnally boots up,and its ready to go.And for some reason the computer doesnt seem so "delicate" when I see error's popping up.I can create blow holes,dissasemble it whenever the hell I want.Transfer parts from Pc to Pc,etc;

So what Im saying here,build it.

[Shabubu]

http://www6.tomshardware.com/howto/01q1/010115/index.html

It's where I learnt to build mine

[pinoy2201]

that were i first learned how to built mines at TomsHardware site..once you get to built your computer and it all done you'll feel very proud of yourself that you made top of the line PC al by yourself that what i felt when i built my my very first computer heck i sttill do and it is much easyer to access if there is a problem cuze you know where al the parts are

[Sefy]

Defenetly build your own! you get to be in charge of what's in the PC, and not some crappy hardware you won't be able to find drivers for when the time comes!

Most Pre-Configured PC's come with junk hardware, unless you're aware of what's in it, you'll propably get some cheap cards and no support on any website, or like very hard to find drivers.

Build your own, it's Cheaper, Best Performance, and it's FUN

[zzyzzx]

Definately build. It's actually quite easy. I know it seems intimidating, but don't let that stop you from trying. Once you've done it you'll wonder why anyone buys a pre built system.

[KingJohn]

Buy it !!

Well there is so much competition out there, these days you can walk into a good computer shop and tell them exactly what you want and there will only be a small charge to put it together for you.

You need to know exactly what you want, and find a good computer shop, not something like Tiny or pc world, they are NOT computer shops. Once you have a list of components you want, get a few quote's.

You get a guarantee, you don't risk destroying a piece of hardware because of lack of experience, A chosen part might not be compatible, let them find out, then you want waste money.

Keep it basic at first, then later adding something wont be so bad !!!

Not a certified person, perfectly sane

[Tommy]

A couple of years ago I would have said to build it. The prices have been falling and you might save a bit from building it, but you also gotta put in the time. BUY IT.

[pinoy2201]

Building just take less then 2 hours instead of searching fo th best bargin....im still with build

[d4n13l]

If it takes 2 hours to search for a bargain PC, how long will it take to search for all the bargain components you want your PC to have if you build one? Hehe.

Anyways, I always build my own. Just make sure you get a decent motherboard or else you will be in a world of hurt. Go and find out a decent motherboard (even more important if you want an AMD CPU) to use from somewhere like tomshardware or a similar site. The rest is easy.

[Sefy]

Building the PC once you got all the parts will take you 30 min (not including software), finding the best deal in a store is longer cause you would need to go through several stores, after all, how do you know you are getting the best deal ?

[lameco]

The best prices I have found on the web for a PC is at http://www.PCParts.com. My friend bought one of their bare bones systems and some extra parts and they put it together for him before shipping and he has no problem.

[Kdiddy]

Build Build Build

[Tbear]

Build it! You can get what you want and not what they offer.

With either method you have to do your homework. Spending the time to find what you want.

[speedy]

The advantage of building your own is you get to pick whatever hardware you want. To do that and get a decent price expect to spend many hours on the web searching. Trying to get all hardware retail will eat you alive in sales taxes if you live in most states.

Is it hard to do? Nope, but several paragraphs of caution if its your first time:

What nobody mentioned yet is get an anti-static strap or mat so your're grounded or static electricity may (not too common) zap your memory or other chips on the motherboard. That's one of those things like not wearing seatbelts, you're not sorry until you don't.

Be careful inserting memory and expansion cards and be damn carefully mouting the CPU. Pins are very numerous, very close and VERY fragile!

Ditto for installing the heatsink and heatsink fan. Some heatsinks require lots of pressure to get the clamp on correctly. If you don't get it on right, your CPU can burn up in a couple minutes or less. Don't forget the CPU grease. A little goes a long way. Also your screwdriver can slip trying to get the CPU clip down/off. If it nicks any traces on the motherboard, probably can kiss it goodbye.

Be sure the fan/heatsink you order fits the motherboad you got. Some don't, especially for AMD chips. Can be tight fit. If any part of the heatsink touches any of the capicators... zap!

Don't forget to mount the motherboard on the spacers. Some don't and learn the hard way. Rather obvious, but don't work on board if it is plugged in, even if power is off.

Building a AMD, get an "approved" case so you get an air current in from the front, and directed out the back. Meaning, you need two case fans. Don't by cheap ones.

Once you get it build check EVERYTHING before applying power. Do read the motherboard manual. You may need to change some DIP switches or jumpers.

OK, now you're properly scared. Its like riding a bike. Once you learn how, its a piece of cake. The first time will probably make you a little nervous.

As others suggested, you may want to get a barebones combo. Several web companies will install the memory, CPU, heatsinik fan for you. The rest of the "building" is so easy you can do it with a blildfold.

[vhelp]

Horry!

lets see, my first pc was. .. ..
6502 cpu - Vic-20, C16, C64, PET, TRS-80, TI-99, Atari, (oh, the good old days!) ..
8088 cpu - ITT Extra 256k ram cga graphics 512 diskdrive - add'l addons: 512k
w/ 20MB Segate 225 (I was in HEAVEN then!...my first harddrive)
.
.
many, many more home-made pc's starting with
my 8088 ITT Extra w/ 256k ram and CGI 16 color graphics card

Oh, my virgin years ...every Friday-Sat, right after school, on that dam VIC of his,
w/ 8 cups of coffee, half pack of smokes, and 3am bedtime's - those were
the days!, he, he.... very early 80's I miss'em greatly!!

I'm sure some of you's got me beat!

Back to "Build or Buy?"
-------------------------
After shopping around (Web/PC magizine/this forum) and decide on the best
(MB/CPU/RAM) your money will allow, and THEN, In your case, I would find a good
store you can walkin and talk to the specialist of your goal/pc, etc.
Once decision is made and (provided he/she has what you're looking for),
Have him/her assemble it for ya (spare you newbie'ness the fist time jitters) and
THEN, later on, when you're ready to upgrade or tinker, you can do so. It's
still a home-made PC, and a WORKing one at that! Later, as you start to
develope these irges to experiment under the hood, do so w/ caution! But, do
so! Very shortly after that, you'll be making your own home-made pc's.
This is how I started out with my 1st home-made pc, a 286 1mb ram From
that point on, I've ben making my own home-made pcs to date!

The reason why I recommend this approach (above) is because today, these
pc stores can sense you don't know what you're doing, and if you screw up, ie
a blown cpu cause of incorrect heat zink, etc. you'll probably get stuck with it,
and you don't want to start up first home-made with a hard BANG! I know some
who have ben there!

There are streets full of computer stores that build pc's for ya! Just get out and
look!

GOOD LUCK in your new platoooooooo!

...make room for the newbies. . . . Oh, the memories!

oops, forgot... Build it!

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: vhelp on 2001-12-17 19:13:35 ]</font>

[vigilante]

Build It.

[sullen]

Well, what a popular post I have started! I appreciate all of the input so far. What speedy mentioned are the main concerns I had, especially the parts about matching the CPU/Motherboard, and installing the CPU itself on the Motherboard. With all of the encouragement I think I will start research in earnest at attempting to build my own. I will probably go the way of getting a Motherboard with the CPU and heatsink intalled since that is what I am most scared of doing. I haven't had time yet, but will go through the website mentioned above that outlines the process of building a PC. I saw the first page or two, but need to read it all. Thanks for the input and anything else would be most helpful.

[dumwaldo]

ahhh the old question of build or buy....

there is no answer to this question. in some cases building over buying is best and in some cases buying over building is best. you need to evaluate your own situation to decide.

if you are looking for a new hobby then building is a great idea. if you want a new primary machine then buying a preassembled/tested OEM system is a much wiser decision. think about what you are willing to put in and what you will get out of it and make your decision based on that.

many people will say that building a system is much cheaper than buying an OEM system however what is not mentioned is that in order to achieve those savings you must sacrafice part guarantees. there is no way to buy retail level parts and build a cheaper system than an OEM. the way you build a cheaper system is to purchase OEM parts and assemble them yourself. the problem with that is that the difference between a retail part and the exact same OEM part is that the OEM part has no end user guarantee's. if you purchase an OEM processor and it fails then whan you try to get support you will be told that it is an OEM part and you need to contact the vendor that built your system.

even if you can get retail parts at the same cost as an oem system another problem is the shifting blame syndrome. lets say you have a motherboard from asus, an ata 100 controller card from promise and a hard drive from ibm. it doesnt seem to work right but you cant figure out why. so who do you call for support? what do you say when you call ibm and they say you need to speak to promise, so you call promise and they say its the fault of asus but asus is who told you to call ibm in the first place. with an OEM it doesnt matter who's fault it is you only need to contact one place.

so why the hell would anybody build a system? because it is fun, it is a challange, and it is a hobby. another reason would be because most OEM systems have limitations to their configuration. suppose you want the newest sound blaster audigy sound card but the OEM you are considering only offers the sound blaster live series. then you need to order a system with no sound card and purchase a sound card seperatley. this will increase the overall cost of the system.

finally and what i consider the only reason to build is in a word overclocking. ever look at the bios on an OEM system? not to much you can do there. now look at the bios on a retail motherboard and it will become almost immediatley apparent why it is almost essential to build your own rig if you plan to overclock. it all comes down to my initial statements. if you just want a system you can use then buy an OEM but if you want a hobby then build it.

[speedy]

Building a PC is fun, yes, but I remember building my 25 inch Heathkit Color TV back in the 70's. Now that WAS real fun. Ah... the old soldering iron, squinting at the color bands on all those hundreds of resistors, being sure you found the positive end on the diodes, installing the transistors, wiring the main chassis. Count em. SIX thick iassembly books. Cool! Then the moment of truth, plugging it in for the first time and hoping you don't burn the house down. Never forget first picture, Blackhawks hockey game. That was a rush. Hey it actually worked! That set has long since been in a landfill, but I still got those assembly books as a keepsake.

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: speedy on 2001-12-17 19:50:47 ]</font>

[zzyzzx]

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD><font size=-1>Quote:</font><HR size=1 color=black></TD></TR><TR><TD><FONT SIZE=-1><BLOCKQUOTE>
On 2001-12-17 19:48:48, speedy wrote:
Building a PC is fun, yes, but I remember building my 25 inch Heathkit Color TV back in the 70's. Now that WAS real fun. Ah... the old soldering iron, squinting at the color bands on all those hundreds of resistors, being sure you found the positive end on the diodes, installing the transistors, wiring the main chassis. Count em. SIX thick iassembly books. Cool! Then the moment of truth, plugging it in for the first time and hoping you don't burn the house down. </BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR size=1 color=black></TD></TR></TABLE>

Of plugging it in for the first time and having one of the power supply capacitors blow. Still worked though.

[sommersby]

Build it, or at least start with a bare bones system.

[wellmashed]

Build it.

It's like your first meccano set.
"What's all these bit's for"

Really satisfying when you have a working helicopter from a pile of parts.

Or like riding a bike when your dad takes the stabilizers off and you come home on the first day with skinned hands & knees and say exitedly "I fell off dad,but I can do it now!"

Build it.