Benefits to homebuilt computers?

AssaTM

AssaTM

AssaTM

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Are there any real benefits to building your own computer, to say, buying a prebuilt computer and just formatting it so it's fresh? I'd really like to build my own computer, but at times it seems so daunting, i'd just worry i'd damage a component and never get the max performance from it at stock or something :( :p
 
If it's your first time there are plenty here who will be happy to help you out.

It can be a little daunting at first, but it's just like putting a big (and rather) expensive 3-d jigsaw together. It's not that complex, and it can work out cheaper too.

You get the satisfaction of having built one, and also you know if you've researched and thought about what parts you're getting the machine is pretty much tailored to you.
 
Loads of benfits.

Cheaper usually, you have complete autonomy of what goes in it so you can get exactly what you need with out spending on uneccessary components.

You can chose the style of the case, the colour of and type of monitor, what peripherals you want, fancy mouse and Keyboard etc..

Far too many advantages to list :D
 
cheaper, no getting 100s of programs which lag your computer which you dont need, better quality parts, better/wider variety of choice too many to list :D also the "self satisfaction". one thing to remember is take your time and double check your work, and if in doubt ask people who have done it before, and if you live near anyone whos done it before get them to check it too.
 
Oh yeh there's no doubt i'd like to build my own one, I've even planned it all out, how long does it generally take to build your first computer? bare in mind i've removed/added hardware to my current PC so i'm not completely stupid anyway :p, i'm pretty confident I could do it without any real problems, but it also seems so easy to break/damage anything :( :p
 
Normally a lot cheaper, especially a gaming computer. MAny big companies will try and rip you off at least £400-500 more than what it would cost if you built it yourself. Ofcourse knowing whats going in it and exactly how it all works is a fantastic advantage. Can be a fun hobby and quite rewarding learning advanced computer skills too.
 
AssaTM said:
Oh yeh there's no doubt i'd like to build my own one, I've even planned it all out, how long does it generally take to build your first computer? bare in mind i've removed/added hardware to my current PC so i'm not completely stupid anyway :p, i'm pretty confident I could do it without any real problems, but it also seems so easy to break/damage anything :( :p
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takes a couple of hours, but remember dont rush it :p
 
I think the best thing is being able to hand pick every component, so you don't get any rubbish. I also hate how they set PCs up when you buy one, so much extra **** on there you don't want slowing it down and eating your ram and HDD space. My aunt recently bought a PC and god damn it takes about 3 minutes to boot and about the same to shut down too, plus about 10% of the drive is wasted with a special HDD sector the shop use for diagnostic tools. It's very noisy too.

Also you won't get any surprises later on down the line when you want to upgrade it, because you'll already have researched when you bought it exactly what upgrades will/won't be able to go in it.

Another good thing is being able to pick your own case and cooling solution, so if you want dual or even quad 12 cm LED fans on a fan controller to give you very quiet cooling you can have it. You can also make sure the case is big enough for you to work in. Or you can pick nearly silent CPU and video card coolers. You can also pick a nice quiet HDD. You can also pick components that will overclock well.

Nothing really difficult about it these days, just make sure you get a good brand of PSU, then take your time assembling it and follow the mainboard instruction manual. Installing your own OS is great too, since again you can set it up perfectly.
 
mattyrigby00 said:
takes a couple of hours, but remember dont rush it :p
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yeh ive found putting it together is takes no time at all. Its just when xp has got finicky with sata drivers e.t.c. , or when it won't light up :p , although that shouldnt happen as long as one takes his time and make sure absolutaly everything is the right place.
 
First time I built a pc it took me ages to get everything together, just because i was being so uber careful with every little component and being obsessive about grounding myself so as not to fry anything with static :D But now i'm not so worried about breaking things - the parts are generally not that delicate as long as you know what you are doing and are careful. Recently i had to swap my motherboard out for a replacement, it took me about an hour to get everything out, fit the new motherboard and reinstall all the bits.
 
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build your own system, its cheaper and u can pick the best parts and if u need any help or advice this is probably the best place to ask, a forum with very knowledgable people who are always willing to help
 
building your own, ive found is the best way, you learn more about how a pc works, and the sense of achievement when u get a rig running well its hard to beat. some of my friends have shop bought systems and theyre a joke, generic cases filled with old tech at a very high price
 
i used to think it was daunting by once i got over my fear and built my own its great fun and like christmas when you get your big box of bits turn up, then you just go into your own little world.

once i built my first pc the hardest bit was putting the cpu cooler on a old socket a that was scary but now a lot easier. even on your first build you could probably build it quicker than it takes xp to format your new hard drive.

you have got to do it you wont regret it i dont think
 
Cyber-Mav said:
building pc is easy part, if you got hardware conflicts, dodgey parts etc then it will eat up your time.
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Very true, building a PC is about as simple as Lego nowadays although thankfully if you choose components carefully there aren't likely to be that many hardware conflicts.

Building yourself isn't always cheaper (especially at the lower end) but you do at least get exactly what you want plus the knowledge of how to put it all together. :)
 
depends if you want a basic spec web surfing machine or a top end gaming rig. for the lower end, i'd have to admit that dell do some cracking deals but top end, definately build your own kit.
 
Its cheaper to build, you learn something new, its more expandable, you know exactly what you are getting and how its going to perform, it looks a whole lot better than prebuilt.

and in somecases you get a better warranty than say 1 year, depends on the component.
 
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