Looking at buying/making a new computer...

[Fenix]

Been thinking about saving money and buying/putting together a new computer. As I looked around newegg.ca I stumbled across THIS thing. Does anyone know if I could make something as good, if not better, for cheaper?

Only things that are a "must have" for my next computer is a lot of ram - I tend to do a lot at once and the more the merrier - and a Gefore 900-series GPU. Don't want a piece of shit rebrand card again, but I'm sure I'll get stuck with one again. lol

 

[BBK..]

I don't really know American prices but I'm sure if you're happy to build it yourself you could build a better machine for cheaper. That's often how things work out


TapaTalking from my Mind.

 

[podsaurus]

I think you could make something just as good for less. That is a very steep price, for me anyway. I would if I were you wait for the holidays to buy anything. That way you can buy things on sale.

Sent from 2000ft under the crust

 

[Varsh]

"High Expandability" - no it doesn't. That motherboard (ITX) is already decked out and it in a needlessly big case (ATX). Also for that price it's best to now for a DDR4 based system for future proofing. This is far better however even at this price we could piece one together for you for cheaper or the same price for better performance. The question is are you comfortable with building a PC?

 

[BBK..]

Everyone should be happy building a PC, Varsh. It's just expensive colour coded Lego! There's only 1 tip needed for building a PC, in my opinion.

If it doesn't fit, it doesn't belong.

 

[MATRIX 2]

THIS[/URL] thing. Does anyone know if I could make something as good, if not better, for cheaper?

Only things that are a "must have" for my next computer is a lot of ram - I tend to do a lot at once and the more the merrier - and a Gefore 900-series GPU. Don't want a piece of $#@! rebrand card again, but I'm sure I'll get stuck with one again. lol

I would avoid pre built computers. The cheap ones tends ot have various issues and the good ones tend to be rather expensive.

Better to wait till the holidays for sales on various PC components so you can build one for less.

 

[darky89]

I'm currently saving to build a pc.

Sometimes it can be a bit overwhelming and I think about just buying one for the ease of it, but every time I look at pre-built ones it makes one thing clear, doing it yourself is the way to go. You'd either be able to build a better computer for the same price - or build that particular one for less money.

 

[BBK..]

Building yourself also gives you the confidence to open up your computer and change bits in the future. I would never tell someone to buy an off the shelf PC. Unless they just want something small like a NUC.

By the time you finish your first build you are already planning on ways which will have better cable routing and airflow in your existing case then before you know it you're planning out builds you thought you'd never be able to do.

Next up for me is a 'hard line' watercooled build.

PC building is almost as addictive as gaming. The sense of pride you have when you take lots of individual boxes and build your own custom build is great.

 

[Fenix]

I put together my current one so if going the "build it yourself" route is cheaper I can do that. I just made a lot of fail decisions with my current PC without really thinking things through.


Right now I'm just trying to figure out more or less how much I need to save up. I don't really want to cheap out again. Is it safe to assume the 900-series cards as generally not rebrands of previous cards?


EDIT: Didn't even notice DDR4 was a thing. Lordy, I'm behind.. lol

 

[Fijiandoce]

A note for your GPU of choice: I would wait to see what Nvidia and AMD bring out next year (probably eye that time frame for a new build?) Much like DDR4 being a thing, GPU's are moving onto HBM, replacing the GDDR standard. AMD will probably refresh the Fiji core with a redesign of the memory system allowing more than 4GB VRAM. Nvidia's pascal core will launch with the second generation design of the HBM interface.

On top of this, Nvidia and AMD both have differing philosophies with their respective GPU designs. Nvidia are very much the more efficient design, but AMD are kind brute forcing it. It remains to be seen which is the better philosophy for DX12. With the single DX12 benchmark we have, AMD look better placed, but as always, their drivers aren't up to snuff.

On the subject of PC building, i got my PC built for me. It's not that im uncomfortable opening it up (i had IT classes in High school where we built PC's, diagnosed boot error codes and such) it's just that i was lazy, and the job quality from the company i bought my PC with was amazing

 

[Fenix]

I kind of wanted to go pre-built just cause I'm a lazy little bitch. But I'm down to putting one together, assuming I get you folks to figure out the parts so I don't regret it every day. Hell, in 2009 I cheaped out big time and went for a GTX 250 and a sound card over a better GPU.. I'm retarded. lol

Now, a few things:

-Wouldn't the newer cards next year be a lot pricier than a 970? That's probably the minimum I plan to go for in my next PC unless it's a rebrand. I don't want to cheap out but I don't wanna "break the bank" on a GPU either. I want something in the mid-high tier and that won't be barely min spec in 6 years. lol

-So I don't have to research a ton of crap, besides DDR4 what are some other things I need to look out for when searching parts? Learned my lesson: I should of got the earlier DDR3 instead of the DDR2 I got. *sigh* so many bad decisions..

-For that MSI you linked, with your best guesstimate, how much do you think it would cost to put something together myself?

 

[epoweredrc]

It seems prices are dropping, a co worker said he has about 550 in his gaming PC and hasnt since touched the game systems

 

[MacP]

Please do not forget an SSD drive. They can make a shit computer look the dog's nuts.

 

[SolidSnake]

Dont cheap out on the motherboard, but at the same time do nkt buy one that is more expensive than your CPU.

 

[subtenko]

Build it yourself, you will save money and get what you need!!! Dont make it complicated, just visit newegg or reddit follow a well rated tutorial, stick to the plan. I bought prebuilt from bestbuy, when i wanted to game i had to replace the puny PSU, add a GPU. Go with i5 or i7 if you do a lot of media work too.