Buy PC Online? Or Build

[richapplesauce]

I really want a good PC for gaming here's my specs right now

AMD Athlon(tm) Processor 2650e
1.61 GHz Performance Rated at 2.65 GHz
894 MB RAM
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition (Build Service Pack 32600)
NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430 (GeForce 6150SE nForce 430)


I would rather buy online, because im 13 and know nothing about building PC's, but would it be cheaper to build it? and can i with my current specs? :confused:

[Baron_Fel]

Building is nearly always preferable. You cant do much with your current build, but youll be able to keep the HDD and optical drive for sure.

If you want to build, try to get about $700 together. That will be enough for a really nice monitor and midrange PC.

building is easy. The manuals provide all the info you need and you can ask us anything and we'll try to help you.

[steveroger]

What games will you be playing, how big is or will be your monitor, and what is or will be the resolution? When do you think you will be buying or building this PC? You are old enough to build a PC. Just google "how to build a gaming PC" and read one of the many online tutorials. Or google that through Youtube or google video. You will find tons of how-to-build-a-PC on the net, plus you can get help right here, like Baron_Fel said. However, if you want to buy one online you can get lot's of help for that too.

So, figure out your budget. If you don't buy a PC and build it yourself will you be trying to upgrade that PC you mentioned. If so, what is the make, model, and describe the specifications of the power supply?

[renegadeafk]

Building a pc is easier than it looks, just read the manuals that come with the parts and read an online tutorial.

[Doc2142]

Do you know those lego games you get with really nice figures you get and when you look at it and say wow there is no way i can build that and you open it up and u see all those weird parts then when u read the manual and u put it together you are like wow that wasn't hard at all.

Well building a pc is nothing like that...


Jk its like that but a bit harder. The hardest part for me is when i sit on my knees and pray to god that nothing is DOA and when i press the power button i see a post screen. You get a huge smile on your face because you know the hard part is gone. Now its time to wire manage and look your pc all pretty.

If you have general idea what is a CPU or processor and where it goes you are fine. You build it nice and slow. There is no rush or anything.

I think what really freaks most people when they see inside the pc is all those wires. They are like omg thats soo much to remember. But in fact if you remove the power supply with all its wires and you look at the structure its very simple.

[NJuice]

Ground yourself.

[enggmaster]

Buy the parts online, pay $20 to have it assembled. Takes the liability from you if something goes wrong.

[richapplesauce]

What do i do first?, add more ram, or get a new gfx card

[Baron_Fel]

What do i do first?, add more ram, or get a new gfx card

upgrading what you have now is not the way to go. Youd be paying a premium for old crappy hardware.

[lhwj]

You need a whole new system. Buy everything together, motherboard, processor, RAM, graphics card, power supply. You probably need a new hard disk, you may recycle your old case if it's big enough, same for the DVD drive. Also, a copy of Windows.

What's your budget anyway?

Luke

[freeloader105]

Buy the parts online, pay $20 to have it assembled. Takes the liability from you if something goes wrong.

Where do they do such a service? I certainly don't need it, but does some company actually do it?

To the OP - it is almost guaranteed to be cheaper to build a PC yourself. The one except is getting a barebones kit and putting in the remaining internals.

If you get a gaming system like Alienware, Dell XPS, or Falcon Northwest, you will either be paying a huge markup, end up with a barely upgradeable pc, or both.

However, there are more affordable choices. ibuypower.com seems to be reasonable. But I've heard some bad rep about it (just forum chatter), so I'm not sure what to make of it.

Has anyone bought a pre-made gaming system and not felt cheated in some way?

Another thing OP should consider: building your own PC is fun! And once you do that, you will be much more able to fix it, should anything happen to it. You will be the boss of your computer, as opposed to just a user of some 'mysterious box'.

[sideways]

Also, look up some videos on youtube or something about building a computer. Those are very resourceful and that's what I did when I built my first computer a long time ago.

[Tufelhunden]

Has anyone bought a pre-made gaming system and not felt cheated in some way?.

I have purchased one premade gaming rig, for the wife, and I felt it was worth it. But, it was on sale and I couldn't purchase the components and assemble a similar rig myself for less money than the cost of this rig, it was a great sale. However, I am one of the only people I know that feel this way. ;)


Another thing OP should consider: building your own PC is fun! And once you do that, you will be much more able to fix it, should anything happen to it. You will be the boss of your computer, as opposed to just a user of some 'mysterious box'.

Very true!! There is something to be said about using a machine you put together yourself. :cool:

[freeloader105]

I have purchased one premade gaming rig, for the wife, and I felt it was worth it. But, it was on sale and I couldn't purchase the components and assemble a similar rig myself for less money than the cost of this rig, it was a great sale. However, I am one of the only people I know that feel this way. ;)

May I ask where you got this gaming PC you felt happy about?

[Tufelhunden]

Newegg.com It is a Gateway FX542S, Q6600, 680i SLI mobo, 700 Watt PSU, Vista Home Premium 64 and a 9600 GT for `$500. The wife mainly plays Source games so it was pretty good for those and when I upgraded I placed my 8800GT's in SLI in her rig. Now we can play about anything on it at 1680 by 1050.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883113085&cm_re=FX542S-_-83-113-085-_-Product

[White_Wolf]

I think it depends on the individual whether to buy or build, but I've always preferred building my system to buying a pre-built one even though there are some pretty nice ones available and they cost less than building it yourself.

I think it's because by building it myself, I get to choose exactly what goes into it.

[steveroger]

It is kind of stressful doing it the first time due to the unknowns, like installing the CPU and BIOS settings or using thermal paste if necessary. But everything else is a snap.

[renegadeafk]

almost all CPUs come with thermal paste pre-applied, no need to apply thermal paste.

[steveroger]

almost all CPUs come with thermal paste pre-applied, no need to apply thermal paste.

Uh, right. Which is why I originally said:

It is kind of stressful doing it the first time due to the unknowns, like installing the CPU and BIOS settings or using thermal paste if necessary. But everything else is a snap.

I was just trying to list the things that potentially are difficult.

Such as an OEM CPU with a third party cooler and sometimes situations with crappy pre-applied thermal paste.

Anyway, here (http://www.build-your-own-computer.net/install-a-cpu.html) is a general tutorial of how to install a CPU. Just be careful.

[freeloader105]

Newegg.com It is a Gateway FX542S, Q6600, 680i SLI mobo, 700 Watt PSU, Vista Home Premium 64 and a 9600 GT for `$500. The wife mainly plays Source games so it was pretty good for those and when I upgraded I placed my 8800GT's in SLI in her rig. Now we can play about anything on it at 1680 by 1050.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883113085&cm_re=FX542S-_-83-113-085-_-Product

Heh, I guess that isn't a bad system. But you got it at Newegg and not one of the 'premium gaming outlets'.

[Tufelhunden]

Heh, I guess that isn't a bad system. But you got it at Newegg and not one of the 'premium gaming outlets'.

It was truly a fluke, as far as pricing and specs. I think it was after Acer or Asus bought (or whomever, I forget) Gateway and I'm guessing they were blowing out old stock.

[Samulus]

You should build a system imo. I actually haven't built a computer myself but I intend on doing so. What's your budget? Here is a 500$ newegg set up you could consider, it's the set up that I plan to use to build my first computer...

Cpu: AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition Callisto 3.1GHz (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103680)

Mobo: JetWay JXBLUE-78GA3-LF AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813153149)

Graphics Card: POWERCOLOR AX4850 512MD3-PH Radeon HD 4850 512MB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131162)

Psu: CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139008)

Ram: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231253)

Harddrive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152181

Case: Rosewill R222-P-BK Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147095)

Dvd Drive: LITE-ON DVD-Drive (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106333)

Total: $500.93

[steveroger]

Originally Posted by Tufelhunden
Newegg.com It is a Gateway FX542S, Q6600, 680i SLI mobo, 700 Watt PSU, Vista Home Premium 64 and a 9600 GT for `$500. The wife mainly plays Source games so it was pretty good for those and when I upgraded I placed my 8800GT's in SLI in her rig. Now we can play about anything on it at 1680 by 1050.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-085-_-Product

Heh, I guess that isn't a bad system. But you got it at Newegg and not one of the 'premium gaming outlets'.

It was truly a fluke, as far as pricing and specs. I think it was after Acer or Asus bought (or whomever, I forget) Gateway and I'm guessing they were blowing out old stock.

Those are some really good specs in that gateway. Just update the graphics card and you have a near cutting edge machine.

What I like about the PC that often end up on Newegg.com by the builders is that they are discounted further already from the already deeply discounted prices found on their websites. For example, the systems on Newegg.com often have bigger drives, cheaper with OS rather than the website choice when added there, and sometimes the video card is better for less.

[Tufelhunden]

You should build a system imo. I actually haven't built a computer myself but I intend on doing so. What's your budget? Here is a 500$ newegg set up you could consider, it's the set up that I plan to use to build my first computer...

Cpu: AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition Callisto 3.1GHz (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103680)

Mobo: JetWay JXBLUE-78GA3-LF AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813153149)

Graphics Card: POWERCOLOR AX4850 512MD3-PH Radeon HD 4850 512MB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131162)

Psu: CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139008)

Ram: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231253)

Harddrive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152181

Case: Rosewill R222-P-BK Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147095)

Dvd Drive: LITE-ON DVD-Drive (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106333)

Total: $500.93

That's pretty solid build. Nice work!!

[steveroger]

You should build a system imo. I actually haven't built a computer myself but I intend on doing so. What's your budget? Here is a 500$ newegg set up you could consider, it's the set up that I plan to use to build my first computer...

Cpu: AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition Callisto 3.1GHz (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103680)

Mobo: JetWay JXBLUE-78GA3-LF AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813153149)

Graphics Card: POWERCOLOR AX4850 512MD3-PH Radeon HD 4850 512MB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131162)

Psu: CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139008)

Ram: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231253)

Harddrive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152181

Case: Rosewill R222-P-BK Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147095)

Dvd Drive: LITE-ON DVD-Drive (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106333)

Total: $500.93

How does your processor compare with this (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103649&cm_re=amd_triple_core-_-19-103-649-_-Product) triple core?

Without unlocking the cores. Since there is no guarantee that will work.

[Baron_Fel]

Yeah the X3 720 is definetly worth the extra $20.

Id go with this mobo (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813135241) (better/cheaper) and this 4850 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102824&cm_re=4850-_-14-102-824-_-Product) (cheaper) instead though. Ten bucks more can get you this RAM (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231274) with those nifty little heatsinks, but whether its worth it or not is up in the air lol.

other than that good build. Try to look for a case with free shipping, thatll save you like $20. Same with optical drive, only $10.

also, consider this 4870 1GB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150436&cm_re=4870-_-14-150-436-_-Product) for only $125 after rebate.

[Samulus]

Thanks for the info guys, when I build my system I'll change my processor and other parts to what you guys suggested.

[renegadeafk]

Yeah the X3 720 is definetly worth the extra $20.

Id go with this mobo (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813135241) (better/cheaper) and this 4850 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102824&cm_re=4850-_-14-102-824-_-Product) (cheaper) instead though. Ten bucks more can get you this RAM (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231274) with those nifty little heatsinks, but whether its worth it or not is up in the air lol.

other than that good build. Try to look for a case with free shipping, thatll save you like $20. Same with optical drive, only $10.

also, consider this 4870 1GB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150436&cm_re=4870-_-14-150-436-_-Product) for only $125 after rebate.
Dayum I just got a 4870 512 mb for 130 :(