Soldato
1st pre-built at 28, I started upgrading it the year after. I started building from scratch age 37. I've built at least 3-4 dozen since then for myself & family. last one was last week (Rebuild for Nephew)
How old were you when you first built your PC?
- Thread starter fiveub
- Start date
Soldato
i never got into pcs/gaming untill i was in my late 30's ...so late lol....old 
Associate
Late teens was when I first built a comp from scratch. The one I had before that I had for 3/4 years and upgraded it here and there.
Soldato
- Joined
- 16 Aug 2009
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- 7,747
About 35 lol. I'd had a PC for a few years but they were prebuilt. Mostly it was because of the frustration of finding compatible upgrades, or any upgrade at all, and particularly the cost having them fitted "you want to charge me £25 to spend two minutes plugging a card into a slot?!"
Soldato
16 or 17 when me and my brother built our first PC. After that I had a laptop and couple of old PCs that were given to me.
I was 27 when I built my first complete PC on my own. Since then I tend to build new one every 3-4 years with a GPU upgrade in between. I hate installing/ replacing CPUs so when I feel I need better CPU I do a complete built, new case and everything.
I was 27 when I built my first complete PC on my own. Since then I tend to build new one every 3-4 years with a GPU upgrade in between. I hate installing/ replacing CPUs so when I feel I need better CPU I do a complete built, new case and everything.
Associate
I was pulling apart and playing with PC parts from the age of around 13? Good old black basic dell PC's my dad got for free when his work place upgraded.
I properly built my first PC from scratch about a year ago (20) when I got a decent job and saved up. My god it was an adrenaline filled ride seeing the huge computer part box when I got home, plugging everything in and setting up the customer loop. Would do it every day to be honest.
I properly built my first PC from scratch about a year ago (20) when I got a decent job and saved up. My god it was an adrenaline filled ride seeing the huge computer part box when I got home, plugging everything in and setting up the customer loop. Would do it every day to be honest.
Soldato
I got my first home made computer in 1981. My uncle Arthur gave it to me. It was incredibly powerful and back then, it was science fiction.
My own projects were things like extra RAM on a ZX80 and then an external keyboard. I think this was in the early 1980s so I was about 10-12 IIRC, but these were projects that other people had designed of course, not my own. Maplins used to do a load of things like that for the early computers.
I have done plenty of Atari projects with the ST, TT and Falcons, still working on a few for my Falcon even today.. Or rather even these days.
My first ever true PC that I built myself was not that long ago really... I had bought a knackered 386 SX and based on that, I bought a Mobo, CPU, and re-built it, but soon afterwards built another from scratch and that as a 486 DX25 that got upgraded up to a 586/DX100 and then ever since I have built them all.
My mozt upgraded system, is my Atari Falcon. It started life as a 16Mhz 68030 CPU with only 1MB RAM and a 65MBHD, and it is currently a 120MHZ 68060 with 16MB+512MB RAM running off a 30GB SATA SSD and its running MiNT and this allows it to run basic Unix Apps alongside proper Atari Apps ( Kind of like being able to run Linux Programs in windows without emulation, or more closer to wine really ) and the graphics are now ATI 9200 running from one of its 4 PCI slots ( Another add on ).
My own projects were things like extra RAM on a ZX80 and then an external keyboard. I think this was in the early 1980s so I was about 10-12 IIRC, but these were projects that other people had designed of course, not my own. Maplins used to do a load of things like that for the early computers.
I have done plenty of Atari projects with the ST, TT and Falcons, still working on a few for my Falcon even today.. Or rather even these days.
My first ever true PC that I built myself was not that long ago really... I had bought a knackered 386 SX and based on that, I bought a Mobo, CPU, and re-built it, but soon afterwards built another from scratch and that as a 486 DX25 that got upgraded up to a 586/DX100 and then ever since I have built them all.
My mozt upgraded system, is my Atari Falcon. It started life as a 16Mhz 68030 CPU with only 1MB RAM and a 65MBHD, and it is currently a 120MHZ 68060 with 16MB+512MB RAM running off a 30GB SATA SSD and its running MiNT and this allows it to run basic Unix Apps alongside proper Atari Apps ( Kind of like being able to run Linux Programs in windows without emulation, or more closer to wine really ) and the graphics are now ATI 9200 running from one of its 4 PCI slots ( Another add on ).
When I was 13 in 2007! Just in time for Crysis 
Had an x1950pro 512mb, 2GB RAM and an AMD Athlon X2 4200+. Was a proud moment and in the successive years I converted all my console gaming noob friends to the elite PC master race.
Had an x1950pro 512mb, 2GB RAM and an AMD Athlon X2 4200+. Was a proud moment and in the successive years I converted all my console gaming noob friends to the elite PC master race.
Associate
12-13 years old
Intel core 2 duo e6300
Asus P5B VM DO
Asus 6600 GT
Intel core 2 duo e6300
Asus P5B VM DO
Asus 6600 GT
Soldato
My first build at 45.
Soldato
Actually after seeing all the other posts this has reminded me my first build was an AMD Duron 800MHz with a NVidea GF 2 MX (I forgot how much RAM I had in the system - 256MB?)
I also remember I upgraded it I think to a 1.4GHz AMD Thunder Bird which I eventually overclocked it too much and fried it
Associate
I was twelve, it was a i486 DX-50. I built this machine twice, blew the mobo on the first go as messed up the jumpers. My mum was very kind and helped me get a new one from the guy in the local PC shop, saying it had never worked... The guy new, but he took pity on a very close to tears boy who new how much these parts cost!
The build took me 7 weeks and once complete, Windows 3.0 freshly installed, I played monkey island for the first time and was blown away!
Later, that guy in the shop, taught me loads about PC building, as I did my work experience with him!
Cheers
Ben
EDIT: I built a 586 a year or so later for Doom and Tie Fighter and thats where the problem really began!
The build took me 7 weeks and once complete, Windows 3.0 freshly installed, I played monkey island for the first time and was blown away!
Later, that guy in the shop, taught me loads about PC building, as I did my work experience with him!
Cheers
Ben
EDIT: I built a 586 a year or so later for Doom and Tie Fighter and thats where the problem really began!
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Associate
I got into PC's pretty late.
I had no interest in them I was too busy tinkering with cars and spent most of my time working. it was around 2003 I had a few mates at me to get a computer but had no interest in them.
I was in a garage doing a diesel pump for a boy and got on the subject of PC's and he said he had one sitting in the office that needed a hard drive.. I took it as part payment for doing the job.
I walked into the local computer shop and asked him for a hard drive and he asked me what size. my response was I think its about 7 inches by 3.5 inches.. he just gave me a blank stare.. when he started talking gigabytes I said yea just give me the biggest you've got then..
I took it home put it in the machine then just tried to turn it on. called my mate Rick and told him what I had done and asked what I was doing wrong. He then says to me.. have you got windows?
I was like yea you've been in my house of course ive got windows!! he then told me just to switch it off and he would be up in a few hours to fix it..
so after learning a fair bit that first day Ive had numerous prebuilt machines that ive upgraded over the years
it was 2012 that I decided to do my first custom build I would have been 34.
I had lived with a high end laptop for a few years before this as again was spending a lot of time working.
our youngest son was born disabled and I took voluntary redundancy to be at home to look after him and used some of my redundancy money to build the pc and buy a car for myself as I had used a works van for years.
I find it funny as my mate Rick now gets me to sort out any computer problems for him and I recently built him his first custom gaming PC
I had no interest in them I was too busy tinkering with cars and spent most of my time working. it was around 2003 I had a few mates at me to get a computer but had no interest in them.
I was in a garage doing a diesel pump for a boy and got on the subject of PC's and he said he had one sitting in the office that needed a hard drive.. I took it as part payment for doing the job.
I walked into the local computer shop and asked him for a hard drive and he asked me what size. my response was I think its about 7 inches by 3.5 inches.. he just gave me a blank stare.. when he started talking gigabytes I said yea just give me the biggest you've got then..
I took it home put it in the machine then just tried to turn it on. called my mate Rick and told him what I had done and asked what I was doing wrong. He then says to me.. have you got windows?
I was like yea you've been in my house of course ive got windows!! he then told me just to switch it off and he would be up in a few hours to fix it..
so after learning a fair bit that first day Ive had numerous prebuilt machines that ive upgraded over the years
it was 2012 that I decided to do my first custom build I would have been 34.
I had lived with a high end laptop for a few years before this as again was spending a lot of time working.
our youngest son was born disabled and I took voluntary redundancy to be at home to look after him and used some of my redundancy money to build the pc and buy a car for myself as I had used a works van for years.
I find it funny as my mate Rick now gets me to sort out any computer problems for him and I recently built him his first custom gaming PC
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