Curse

X Shadow Reaper · Mar 01, 2009, 08:56 AM // 08:56

1. Is it hard to build a computer? I mean like you have to be a pro or something as this is what my dad keeps saying.

2. Are self-built computer always breaking down?

dark horni worm · Mar 01, 2009, 10:13 AM // 10:13

1. not at all! check out the guide featured here on gwg. you don't have to be a pro at all. It's actually pretty easy. Just be well-informed and be careful.

2. Where'd you get that idea? again, not at all!

building your own pc will save you (depending on what system you're building) up to $700(I saved that much by building it myself).

Evil Genius · Mar 01, 2009, 11:35 AM // 11:35

1) No.

2) By building a computer yourself you have direct control over the parts that go into it. Therefore you can choose higher quality components than in your typical prebuilt, for example a quality PSU.

Furthermore, by building a PC yourself you would learn a bit about the internals of a computer. Should you need to upgrade RAM, HDD etc in the future then it would not be too difficult.

X Shadow Reaper · Mar 01, 2009, 11:46 AM // 11:46

My dad keeps saying that the after you built a computer e.g. saving $300 you would spent all of it on repairs.

moriz · Mar 01, 2009, 01:21 PM // 13:21

that is one of the possible outcomes, if you didn't do your homework properly, or if you screw up somewhere in the building process.

however, you can easily rack up $300 in immediate repairs by buying a prebuilt system. in fact, this is more likely because prebuilt systems are generally of lower quality, assuming you know what you are doing.

riktw · Mar 01, 2009, 08:52 PM // 20:52

builing an PC is not that hard, and if something like you VGA card died you can send it back to the factory becouse of an factory error

i build my own PC and it is not that hard and until now i spend 0 on repairs.
with some help from guides and youtube video's its easy.
if you are not sure, go to some second had store, get an old PC for 10 of 20 dollars and be sure it works.
now get everything out of it and put it back together.
if it still works, you can build your own PC, if not, try harder.

Elder III · Mar 02, 2009, 01:03 AM // 01:03

If you have some simple mechanical skills or even the aptitude for them, then it is not all that hard. Get an anti static electricity wrist band (cost $5-10) and you will have eliminated your number one potential problem in building your own pc. Read up on it first, but if you have ever even taken the side panel off of a computer and snooped around inside before you are already on the road.

I have put together several for myself and or friends and it's not all that difficult if you are careful and if you do your homework well in advance.

As far as costing more in repairs, that's balderdash... do it right (which is not hard to do) and you will save money, get a better performing product and have better warranties straight from the manufacturer if an actual component does fail sometime in the future.

Revelations · Mar 02, 2009, 05:08 AM // 05:08

If you take the time to read up beforehand it is not hard to put together a PC at all. There are only two things that can really go wrong. Frying one of your components can be avoided by using an antistatic wristband. The other thing that can go wrong is your hardware being incompatible with one another, though this is minimized by doing some research beforehand. Once up and running you should not have to fork out for repairs at all unless you have defective hardware.

A second option if you are not terribly confident is to buy a cheap prebuilt with some capacity for upgrade (PCIEx16 slot in particular) and just mod that up yourself. This will still often save you money in the long run without really needing the knowledge of putting your own box together.

brbafkdnd · Mar 06, 2009, 01:33 AM // 01:33

1. Building a computer is like building legos, a very expensive lego that breaks if ur not careful :P

2. No, self-built computers are not always breaking down. Breaking down on computers depend on 3 things
1)quality
2)temperature of your system
3)how much stress you're putting on it

Quality means it'll have a much longer longevity vs an item with lower quality.
Temperature affects all. If you have high temperatures, your components won't cool off from all the work and may possibly melt. So that's why we like aftermarket coolers

Lastly, how much stress. Some people are crazy overclockers and would make the cpu work so amazingly hard, that it's like putting a 1000 pound man on a chair that could support only 300 pounds. Sure, the chair would support him for a while, but it will break down.

ssddghost · Mar 06, 2009, 03:15 AM // 03:15

I just built 2 new hardcore gaming rigs for myself and my wife. It's not at all hard, do your research and read about things to know what works good with what and what to do and not to do. I have been building systems for years, and it is a bit nerve racking your first time, but honestly you can't beat it with buying something off the shelf. If you do that you have to spend extra money upgrading it anyways so it costs you more in the long run.

I suggest looking at places like newegg or tigerdirect. they have high quality parts for very reasonable prices, and plenty of reviews by people who have purchased the components to judge for yourself how well they work and hold up. They also have excellent return policies if something should malfunction and besides that all components do have a manufacturer warranty as well.

In short, you save alot of money and get what you actually want when building your own PC.