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[blAAAm]

Building your first PC is such a great experience. Not only will you save a good chunk of change, being able to see how everything fits together and seeing it all work is such a great feeling.

If you are worried about not knowing what to do, there are lots of youtube videos and the GAF PC Build forum is full of really helpful people.

On a side note, im debating to upgrade my 3 year old rig right now!

 

[Chastten]

Bit offtopic, but is there no one in your family or circle of friends with knowledge to put a PC together? I'm an IT guy myself so obviously an above average of my friends have the know how to do it, but besides that, my brother and most of my cousins can do it no problem. Sure someone in your social circle can help you?

These days it's pretty simple and straightforward unless you have two left hands.

 

[The Lamonster]

Here's the thing - yes, you can pick your parts and pay a retail store to assemble it...but these are most likely going to be hourly paid workers who aren't going to put the same amount of love into it that you would.

If you really don't want to build it yourself, you should see if you have any friends that would be willing to do it for you, who are going to take extra care to get everything right.

 

[mrklaw]

You can buy a really good pre-built PC, but just realize you're paying for the time/labor put into building it, so you're not getting as good of a deal as if you just did it yourself.

I also find it's pretty satisfying to know what's in my PC, as opposed to just hoping someone used the type of quality brands/parts I would want to use myself.

Like I said before, most sites that let you buy prebuilt (not Best Buy etc), show you the specific components within their builds so you can have a quick check they are ok. You can usually also upgrade individual parts.

I enjoyed building my first PC, but you do have to factor in the time value of money - paying a $50 premium can easily be worth it if it saves you hours of time.

 

[Damaniel]

check out http://www.xoticpc.com/

dudes are fucking ballers, they really try to facilitate acquiring a pc from them. you can customize it directly from their page OR contract a seller through Amazon and ask what would you like to change if you prefer getting it from Amazon

as someone that had to import, i dont mind even shilling for them lol (got myself a MSI GS60 from them)

i fucking appreciate it

I like their flexibility in parts and large set of base configurations, but the prices are pretty high. I'm actually building a new PC this weekend (Haswell-E based), and so I tried making a PC there with identical specs to what I'm doing. I ended up at about $2850. Even including the cost of the recycled 980 Ti out of my current PC, I've ended up spending about $2200. If I hated building PCs then the extra $650 might be worth it, but if I were going to spend that much then I'd pick up a second GPU and go SLI.

 

[protomouse]

Is it possible to buy a pre-built PC?

Yes it is. You'll be able to walk into any respectable computer store and they'll build you a PC to specification. They'll also have pre-built ones. Expect to pay a bit more for the convenience. I highly discourage you from buying mass-produced gaming PCs that you'll find at places like MediaMarkt. I've come across cases where one of the side panels was bolted shut.

If you can find a good deal, go for it. PC building needn't be daunting, but it could become time consuming if you're unlucky enough to get a bad part. At one point I had a faulty DisplayPort cable backfeeding power into my video card, causing it to trip like there was a power supply problem inside the case. It took a while and quite a bit of troubleshooting before I unplugged the damn cable and it eventually dawned on me what was going on, haha.

 

[RealityCheque]

You dont have anywhere to build it?

OK, so wherever the PC is going to be kept (desk, I'm assuming) there's plenty of room to do it right there.

 

[Grizza]

From my experience, buying a pre-built system from Newegg for my first rig was a pretty good experience. I read a lot of reviews on different setups before pulling the trigger on what I eventually bought, and over the next few years made some necessary upgrades (video card, RAM, HD space, power supply). My understanding of PC architecture has improved considerably over those years, and now I am getting ready build a new system over the next 6 months.

People will tell you otherwise, but there is no shame in buying pre-built for your first gaming PC.

 

[VariantX]

Built my first PC from the info and links from the GAF's very own PC building thread in 2013. It was maybe 5,6 hours of research at the most. It's far easier than it looks and it's a pretty cool skill to have.

 

[LUXURY]

You should try to do it yourself. It's rewarding. I enjoy mine so much more knowing that I've built it. Of course you can always buy all the pieces and have someone build it for you but it means more to me if I do if myself. Only hard part really is the motherboard. Lining it up with the I/O is enough to make me throw it. But you can do it!!

 

[StoneFox]

I always build my own PCs yet my cable management never improves lol ah well, my current setup idles really cool in case so we good.

The only reason I'd get someone to build a PC for me would be if they are better at making it look nice haha

 

[EVA UNIT 01]

Build OP!
Im a first timer and my parts are currently being shipped to me.
Im pretty nervous to be honest but we gotta learn sometime.

 

[brawly]

Build OP!
Im a first timer and my parts are currently being shipped to me.
Im pretty nervous to be honest but we gotta learn sometime.

It's pretty straightforward. Unless you forget to connect something or mishandle a part badly there's not much you can do wrong.

 

[EVA UNIT 01]

It's pretty straightforward. Unless you forget to connect something or mishandle a part badly there's not much you can do wrong.

Only thing im left wondering about is the OS.
Is an OEM version of win 10 fine for should I be going retail?

 

[Yopis]

I know people who have bought ibuypower PC's and love them.

nothing wrong with buying a pre-built PC but i always suggest to people to call around and ask how much local PC shops charge to put together a computer and order the parts then pay them but sometimes places like cyberpower and ibuypower have deals to where you can get a PC for around the same price it would be to build it yourself. The only pre-built PC i ever bought was a X51 and for the price it was fantastic. I think i paid like $850 and it came with a 660, i7, 16gb ram. I actually stripped it a few months ago and used that i7 4770k and ram for a new PC build.

Sounds like a friend of mine. Had built a few PC's on his own but they died. He just went premade few months back. Sold his PS4 never looked back.

 

[dci260]

I'm debating on buying one pre-built, or having one built for me. I know the whole "it's so easy" but, that's coming from PC gamers with experience. I've built a PC before in school and managed to brick the entire thing (and fail the class) it's not that easy. Besides I don't have anywhere to build it. How expensive is it to get a tech-business to build one for you?

Is it possible to buy a pre-built PC?

Trust me, just learn to build it yourself. You'll save A LOT of money and it's a valuable skill to have for future PCs upgrades, not to mention it's not as hard as it looks. There are plenty of videos out there to guide you (I've heard the Newegg tutorial videos are pretty helpful). Just take your time, watch tutorials and read the motherboard's manual, then you shouldn't have any significant issues.

 

[dgrdsv]

Only thing im left wondering about is the OS.
Is an OEM version of win 10 fine for should I be going retail?

Depends on how often you plan to upgrade. If you don't plan to upgrade at all then OEM will be fine. If you plan to change the system drive and a videocard for example then retail may be a better option. OEM Win10 is tied to the h/w config it is installed on. You will need a new copy if you will change the mainboard, other components aren't that critical but changing a lot of them at once may result in deactivation as well.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Always build your own unless you have some very specific circumstances.

Not only is it a good skill to have, you can also always be sure that you're getting good parts and assembling them properly.

 

[eternalthree]

I'm debating on buying one pre-built, or having one built for me. I know the whole "it's so easy" but, that's coming from PC gamers with experience. I've built a PC before in school and managed to brick the entire thing (and fail the class) it's not that easy. Besides I don't have anywhere to build it. How expensive is it to get a tech-business to build one for you?

Is it possible to buy a pre-built PC?

where does OP live? i'm willing to help you build it. i've been building them for years now, and finished my new rig about 1 month ago. i'm in san francisco, CA.

 

[valeo]

Build OP!
Im a first timer and my parts are currently being shipped to me.
Im pretty nervous to be honest but we gotta learn sometime.

Just one pro tip - never try and force things in too hard. If it's not going in, double check you are putting it in the right way.

Bent motherboards suck.

Apart from that, it's all really easy these days. Used to be a lot more finnicky in pre-youtube days.

Just built my PC last Sunday. I would recommend the NewEgg videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIF43-0mDk4

Trust me, just learn to build it yourself. You'll save A LOT of money and it's a valuable skill to have for future PCs upgrades, not to mention it's not as hard as it looks. There are plenty of videos out there to guide you (I've heard the Newegg tutorial videos are pretty helpful). Just take your time, watch tutorials and read the motherboard's manual, then you shouldn't have any significant issues.

The biggest advantage is that in the future if you need to upgrade, you're not afraid to get in and install more RAM/upgrade the cpu/ take the GPU out etc.

It's all very easy. The only bit I get nervous with is seating the CPU on the motherboard initially.

I always build my own PCs yet my cable management never improves lol ah well, my current setup idles really cool in case so we good.

The only reason I'd get someone to build a PC for me would be if they are better at making it look nice haha

I've always been horrible with cable management - but my latest build was with a Phanteks Pro M case. Holy crap - cable management is so easy in it! They even provide attached velcro strips at the back. I've never put together anything so tidy looking in my life.

 

[Blablurn]

i got an Alienware Alpha a month ago.
I've got over 200 Steam games and I haven't tried one that won't run at 1080p 60 fps with AA (MK X runs weird, but I read it was just a bad PC port?)
Project Cars, Alien Isolation, Portal 2, Resident Evil 5 off the top of my head

is it really that good?

Im debating between an Alpha and a Gaming PC with a GTX 970. I just like the form factor of the Alpha a lot.

 

[valeo]

is it really that good?

Im debating between an Alpha and a Gaming PC with a GTX 970. I just like the form factor of the Alpha a lot.

Unless something has changed, the general rule is that all Alienware systems are under-powered and overpriced.

 

[EpicBox]

Option 1: Buy a stock gaming PC.

Pros: The simplest method of buying. Place the order and wait for delivery.
Cons: More expensive, might not have the right balance of power in different areas, you might go over or under what you actually need. Sometimes they can be harder to upgrade because of parts unique to that make.

Option 2: Buy a custom PC with parts of your choice, have it built for you.

Pros: No worrying about building. The hardware is tailored to exactly what you need.
Cons: You have to research the parts still. The cost goes up for the service of putting it together.

Option 3: Build it yourself.

Pros: The hardware is tailored to exactly what you need. You spend less money. It can be fun to do. You will also learn about the inner workings of computers.
Cons: After all the hours spent researching parts, building can be a pain in the ass. Something could go wrong.

 

[Yarbskoo]

I built one for the first time about a year ago and it's still running fine. You can definitely do it with no prior experience if you're careful and consult the manuals.

 

[Gaogaogao]

I meant gaming, and a general am i going to be paying hundreds of dollars to get someone to build one for me?

just get something decent with a good power supply and get a separate video card

the video card is what makes any pc a gaming pc, all things considered.

 

[gdt]

I was right in the same position as you. I ordered the shit and built it myself. First time was a little scary and long, but I felt some real pride at the end. Did a GPU upgrade a few days ago and it was easy as pie. You can do it OP.

 

[Ultimadrago]

What are some of these trustworthy assembly sites people are talking about?

 

[ugh_the_boot]

When building a pc almost every single component will have a special slot for it e.g you cannot put the cpu anywhere except in the cpu slot. The hardest part would be connecting the reset, power and led light cabless, the rest of the components like ram, cpu and graphics cards are all plug and play components basically.

If anything you should do it to learn more about how pc's work which will increase your confidence in working with them and troubleshooting which is a hell of an important aspect in owning a PC. I honestly don't see how people can get buy when owning a PC and not knowing how to troubleshoot.

 

[Tovarisc]

I always build my own PCs yet my cable management never improves lol ah well, my current setup idles really cool in case so we good.

The only reason I'd get someone to build a PC for me would be if they are better at making it look nice haha

I have also been slacking with management in past, but put some effort into it with my current rig. Turned out rather well, even if I say so myself.

#managementbrag

 

[Fjordson]

This is what's kept me from doing it. I know I'd fuck up building it somehow. Will need to the bite bullet eventually and just buy a pre-built one, but it truly is a lot less bang for your buck from what I've seen.

 

[Hatty]

I remember when I built my first one two years ago. I did not install the standoff screws and fried my motherboard. Learn from my mistake and follow directions to the letter and you'll be fine

 

[Atraveller]

Only thing im left wondering about is the OS.
Is an OEM version of win 10 fine for should I be going retail?

OEM version is tied to your motherboard, if you want to change it or it broke down, you would have to buy Windows again.

 

[Jimrpg]

Building one is easy as long as you watch a youtube video and/or read a guide online and follow every step. The problem comes when something goes wrong and you have to trouble shoot the thing. After building a couple of PCs in the last year, I built my third one last week in no time, but the first two and had things that stumped me for a while.

1. Plugging in cables into the wrong pins resulted in the PC not starting up and I had no idea which part was installed incorrectly. It turned out that I had plugged a cable into the sys_fan set of pins.

2. Not screwing in the standoffs for the motherboard meant the PC wouldn't turn on in the case, but did turn on when the motherboard was outside the case... that was real frustrating to work out what was going on there.

I can certainly see the reasons for going pre-built if you have little to no experience, but you do lose a bit of customisation. Best thing is to treat it as a learning experience. If you're worried about bricking it, its pretty unlikely as long as you take care of the parts.

I remember when I built my first one two years ago. I did not install the standoff screws and fried my motherboard. Learn from my mistake and follow directions to the letter and you'll be fine

Dang that sucks. I got real lucky then. I had some sparks from the bottom of the motherboard, and I got real nervous, had some nice help here in the GAF thread that saved my PC. Luckily motherboard is still fine.

 

[EVA UNIT 01]

OEM version is tied to your motherboard, if you want to change it or it broke down, you would have to buy Windows again.

Got it.
maybe retail is worth the possible future headache then.

 

[thoseAREmySHOES]

The first and only time I built my PC was in 2012. It took me a while, as I was inexperienced, but nothing went wrong. The only thing that I would change is that I should have purchased a modular PSU instead of non-modular... so my cable management is a total mess.

That being said, any future PCs I buy will be pre-built. For me it's easily worth the $50 to have someone else handle the build process and cable management. The experience of picking everything out, ordering everything, risking an issue during assembly, etc, just isn't one I feel the need to experience again.

 

[Mman235]

Depending on the state of things where you live building your own isn't always cheaper. In the UK for example I ended up getting my last main PC built by PC Specialist, because ~4 years ago hardware prices were sky high (like $50 more expensive minimum compared to American stuff) and the parts choice was frequently limited (so doing it myself I would have either had to buy bad underpowered stuff or overpowered stuff with terrible price-performance ratios). So even with labour costs choosing parts and having it be built ended up cheaper, and I even got a few extra things I wouldn't have if I made it myself. The computer worked out fine with no issues too; at this point I've replaced so much it's essentially a new PC but some base stuff is still there. Things are much better here in recent years so it probably wouldn't work out like that now (and learning to build one is valuable for later), but depending on where you live that might not be the case.

 

[Tanston]

I built my own in 2011 and it's still going strong. I've always been pretty handy and it was the only way I could get a decent rig with my very limited funds. I seem to recall it was very easy for me. Installing the software was a lot more pain in the ass then putting the hardware together. On the whole it was a lot easier to put together then 99% of the furniture i've ever bought and it took about 1/4 of the time to build the computer as it took to build the desk I put it on

That said I'm very tempted to get something prebuilt for my next computer just because life is a lot more stressful now and I'm not sure I need the added stress of worrying about screwing something up and I don't have hours and hours to pour over forums picking out the perfect parts.

 

[DesuNe]

Scan.co.uk are pretty good for anyone in the UK. Doubt they ship internationally.

I personally love the adventure of building it myself. I get the fear of damaging the goods but it's very hard to do and you're extremely unlucky or doing something very wrong to cause damage.

Built 4 since I was 12 and will undoubtedly continue as I throw more money at my PC.

 

[JBwB]

Build a PC yourself all the way, it's cheaper and more satisfying.

It's a lot easier these days to build your own PC as there are many online tutorials that can help you out.

 

[CivRab]

Buy the parts then stream yourself on Twitch with Twitch chat helping you to build it.
What can go wrong?

 

[Genio88]

When i started building my own gaming PC, like 6 years a go, i knew nothing at all about how to do that, i just learned that by myself trying and following instructions from tutorial videos on youtube(yes it is useful beyond watching kids yelling playing horror games), now i always upgrade and dismantle my PC by myself when i need, it's cheaper and you know that you're doing things right without having to worry about someone else mistakes, i'd never buy a pre-built PC...besides Microsoft Surface Pro 4 of course

 

[Acrylic7]

I'm debating on buying one pre-built, or having one built for me. I know the whole "it's so easy" but, that's coming from PC gamers with experience. I've built a PC before in school and managed to brick the entire thing (and fail the class) it's not that easy. Besides I don't have anywhere to build it. How expensive is it to get a tech-business to build one for you?

Is it possible to buy a pre-built PC?

I built mines with absolutely zero experience. The internet makes everything easy as cake. Way too many tutorials and resources to fuck up. I YouTubed like 3 videos, read like 2 threads and everything made sense.

Iv had 2 pre-builds and both were bloated with software shit and non up-gradable.
After my First custom build its basically a night and day difference.
Plus its fun. It helps you understand stuff better.

Just use the Build you own PC thread. It was great help for me.

 

[Deaf Spacker]

I use Scan to build mine and I'd recommend them in a heartbeat.

 

[Helznicht]

Build your own, its been said repeatedly. I have a local Microcenter that price matches online (well reasonably) and their MB/CPU/Mem combo deals are top notch.

Anyways, I built mine and had my 12yo son watch and learn from me during the build as I used a few online tutorials. On his B-day, we went to Microcenter to get his. He did the assembly and OS loading as I supervised. You can do it I am confident.

One word of warning, don't skimp on the power supply. Cheap power supplies (regardless of wattage) and gaming video cards DO NOT MIX.

 

[MidgarBlowedUp]

I'm debating on buying one pre-built, or having one built for me. I know the whole "it's so easy" but, that's coming from PC gamers with experience. I've built a PC before in school and managed to brick the entire thing (and fail the class) it's not that easy. Besides I don't have anywhere to build it. How expensive is it to get a tech-business to build one for you?

Is it possible to buy a pre-built PC?

You could buy used or refurbished pre-built then add/swap some stuff.

Just upgraded my last PC that I built myself with a refurb dell precision for less than $350 that even came with a keyboard and mouse. Swapped in the old PSU, GPU, and a new $50 HDD. So in total I paid about $400, and was even able to OC the CPU to 4Ghz with the stock cooler. It's whisper quiet too.

Win 7 Pro
W3690 (i7-990x) Hexacore @ 4.00
12GB Ram
1TB HDD + 2x 250GB HDD
4GB 760
650?watt PSU
DVD Burner

If you build your own, get an easy to work with pc Case.

 

[Makoto-Yuki]

build it yourself. seriously. you might get lucky and find a really good deal on a pre built but most i've seen have been rip offs. you can buy the parts yourself and have someone do it for you but then you're most likely paying extra and it might not be done properly.

i was terrified of building my PC but i just went for it and found it really straight forward. everything basically just slides, screws or clips into place. If something doesn't fit then it doesn't go there. The only time you'll ever need to apply any kind of force is when you're clipping in your RAM/GPU or tightening the CPU retention bracket (have to admit i got a cold sweat when i did that). the hardest part i found was the cable management. if it's just a basic home computer then you can just connect everything and leave it at that but if you're building a gaming PC you'll want to route everything between the motherboard/side panel to keep it tidy and allow good air flow. overall, i can't wait to do it all over again. i've been thinking of building a cheap little PC just to mess about with.

TL;DR build it yourself. seriously.

 

[pislit]

If indeed you are afraid or totally new in building a PC, ask a friend to help you, and once you see how to build it, it's like a riding a bike, you will never forget it.

If you do not have a friend who knows how to build a PC, then, you need real friends.

 

[DesuNe]

In addition to my earlier post I think there's another positive to building yourself. You learn how each part fits together and how to dismantle. This definitely helps with diagnosing and fixing your PC should anything go wrong.

You can do all the repairs yourself without paying some rip off fee for a technician to do it.

 

[spannicus]

Its easy to build. I built my first over the past summer. Never built one before but it came out perfect. You can do it. There are great threads here to get you started. Its absolutely do-able.

 

[Speely]

Not to be one of those "it's so easy to build one" people, but I thought I would share my experience as a fairly recent first-timer.

I built my first rig last year. I knew jack shit about the process. Nothing. I knew what the parts sort of did. That's it. Went on PC Partpicker and Logical Increments to find components I knew would work together and had the specs I wanted, found deals on Newegg and Amazon, and watched like two tutorials on Youtube. Bam, I had a $1500 rig for just under 1k and it wasn't hard for me, and I am not tech-savvy at all. It was like being a shitty cook and following a recipe to make a great meal. Saved half a grand and learned a lot about PCs by doing it. Looking forward to building my next one down the road.