Posted: 3/13/2008 12:36:36 PM EDT
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I almost embarrassed to admit it, but I have never built my own PC from scratch. I helped my Dad with one years ago (NT 4.0) but hardware has changed a lot since then. I may be interested in doing this right now. My primary objective would be the process itself. I am not looking to save money--I can get a Dell with 2GB RAM and 20" LCD for $509 with everything I need--I am looking to do something fun, learn a little more about the hardware side of computers and gain some personal satisfaction from the process. I also won't miss the inevitable Dell bloatware. I can drive to Portland and go to Fry's and buy the stuff live and in person. I can go TigerDirect and mail order everything. Any suggestions? |
Newegg. If you buy local, you get stiffed with sales tax. Building a PC is pretty easy. But then again, Ive been building them for 15 years. Theres tons and tons of useful info for newbies on building your first PC on the internet. |
| When I build a system I typically just get all my parts from Newegg.com, if anyone has it cheaper it is usually not much and the ease of getting all my parts from one place usually out weighs the benefits of a couple dollars in savings. I've also never had any issues with RMA's with newegg. |
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www.pcmech.com/byopc/ pretty decent site for building it yourself. |
It's easier than ever, and you can build a decent one for less than $300. Go here: My latest build to see what you can get if you don't need TOP of the line components. Lose the big harddrives, and the extra stuff you won't need, and you can get something similar for about $300. |
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I say build it. It's sad that building is no longer economically advantageous over buying a pre-built system from the Dells of the world. Factor in the cost of Windows XP (or Vista) and other pre-loaded software and your budget is already blown. That said, I still enjoy the sense of accomplishment from doing it on my own.
+1, you may also want to pick up a copy of the latest (April 2008) Maximum PC which has a feature article on "build your own $1,500 PC", complete with parts list and step-by-step instructions (and pictures). |
+1 Just follow the directions provided and your GTG and Newegg.com rocks. |
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I built my first (and only so far) desktop a couple years ago. I researched it heavily for a couple months. Picked out a processor and motherboard and went from there. Made sure all of my parts were compatible with each other. And I also downloaded the motherboard manual from the mfgr's website. It's a BIG help to plan it all out before you you actually do it and think it through step by step. Just like brain surgery, you know. It's really easy. |
I guess its like, in gun terms, buying an off the shelf Colt AR, vs putting together your own gun with all the custom/cool parts you want. There truly is a performance difference if you do your research, and handpick each and every part vs ordering a dell that comes with, on the low end, the cheapest parts. And when I say cheap, I dont mean junk, but with cheap more often than not, comes a performance penalty. |
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I just built my own this weekend. Not hard at all, especially if you're not doing anything fancy. I got my parts from newegg, mwave, zipzoomfly, svc, and frozencpu. Armor va2003 case, asus maximus formula mobo, e8400 cpu, thermaltake ultra120x cpu cooler, corsair 620w psu, 8 gigs of gskill pc2-8000 ram, radeon 3870x2, sb xfi xgamer, 150g wd raptor for vista64, and 2 500 gig samsung 7200.11's in raid0. 
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Tiger Direct and Newegg are great online sources, and there are some other places to keep an eye on if you really want to hunt for deals... Fry's is kinda hit and miss IMO, and half the time they are out of stock or it is defective returns that they re-shrink wrapped and resell for full price or close to it. Since you are somewhere in this area, don't forget about the PC Club store in Tigard. I don't know how much they stock in the store, but they have a web site also. eBay is evil and unreliable, but you can still find a few deals there if you know what you are doing. Pic of my latest PC build, a few things from CompUSA before they started clearing out and the rest came from Newegg, and the cooling fan in the case from eBay. Gigabyte motherboard, 2.2GHz Core 2 Duo, TV tuner card... It's my home made Tivo box  Mythbuntu FTW I just bought another case out at PC Club, going to build a gaming system into it when I have the time and money(too many C&R items to buy right now to worry about another computer  )
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When you don't have to mess with IRQs, config.sys, and emm386 anymore, it takes all the sportsmanship out of it.  Really, the hardest part is plugging up all those little motherboard leads to the LEDs and power switch and stuff. And that's easy as long as you can read a manual. |
Mind if I ax what software you're using for that Tivo-system? Also, that CPU heatsink is a monster! 
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A neighbor of mine is an orthopedic surgeon.... he saw a PC I was building and thought it looked too complicated for him to do  It is easy though, a good guide for inexpensive components is: forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?sduid=0&t=553826 I also agree with the recommendations of Newegg as a great place to buy your components. |
  EVGA 780i Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 @ 3.2 Ghz 1:1 4GB Crucial Ballistix Tracer PC2-6400 EVGA & XFX 8800GT SLi 3x300GB Maxtor 1x500GB Seagate X-Fi Fagtality Enermax Liberty 620W Dell 2407 XP Pro x64 Logitech G15 and G9 Lian Li PCV-1000B SENNHEISER HD555 Only way to go is by building your own. Last pic is when I was setup at a friend's house for some good old fashioned LAN gaming. |
I have that kb. Worst 100.00 I ever spent. Up until then, I'd spend thousands on a new PC, and be content with a 7.00 frys kb. I fell under peer pressure before last years quakecon to get the "cool" kb, and when this one dies (the logitech) I'll go back to my 7.00 beige frys special 
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i built my last one. To be honest i dont think i saved anything cost wise. plus when I get a probelm you can bet each compnents' help desk will balme the other. If I were to do it again, i would just buy one already buit. Be prepared for odd trouble (at least thats wht i have had) like when your computer locks up....no dump file, no nuttin. then you brows various sites on this problem and it turs out you need to manually set this certain type of memory i bought to 3.2 volts instead of 3.1...lots of fun digging for that kind of shit. I will say newegg is where i got most my stuff too. |
My logitech keyboard died, too. At first it would just spit out a bunch of jibberish while typing. Now it won't even type. |
nice rig. is the fagtality a special edition model?
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Click the link! It's Mythbuntu - A stripped down version of Ubuntu that runs the MythTV PVR software. mythbuntu.org. With the card I'm using(Hauppauge HVR-1800) I have to install some stuff to compile software and then download and compile the v4l-dvb drivers, but that's not difficult. Probably won't need to do that step in the next release.
It's a Scythe Ninja Mini. The full size version wouldn't fit in the case! The mini takes up quite a bit of room as it is. I tossed out the stock Intel CPU cooler, and stuck that thing on with some Arctic Silver. Idle temp dropped by 2C, and the highest temp I've yet to see on this system is 58C when playing back HDTV content. Granted a 2.2GHz Allendale Core 2 Duo isn't exactly a flamethrower, but I'm happy with it. More than enough power to handle HDTV playback, and recording isn't much bother since the tuner card does MPEG-2 in the hardware. The Ninja comes with a fan, but I didn't need it. The case fan is one of those oversized 130mm Thermaltake models, has screw holes for the standard 120mm mountings. I had to trim the frame down with a hacksaw to make it fit the case. The case is a Cooler Master, forget which model right now. 330 or 340 or something like that. |
I'm not a technical geek by any standard, but I built my last PC from individual components. I bought a case, power supply, motherboard, processor, and everything else and put it together at home. I was really expecting something to go wrong, but it fired up and ran like a champ from day one. I spent tons of time reading online figuring out everything from assembly to updating drivers, etc. I got most of the components from Newegg.com. I have a 2+ year warranty on every single component. I say go for it if you've got the time and patience to do it right. |
