Advantages of building yourself versus buying pre-built

[Sbud]

I just built my first system from scratch (with lots of help from this forum) and want to ask an honest question.

After I total up what I spent, it seems like I could have spent less by buying a pre-built (and avoided some of the hassles that self-building entails). I know that I couldn't have had customized a pre-built as much, but with all the rebates and price wars, is it still advantageous to do it ourselves. It's not that I regret the exercise, I guess I just was just wondering for next time. Why do you build your own systems?

 

[Adul]

You may ahve spent more, but you also got a better computer with room to upgrade has you need to. Plus the knowledge you gained by it is invaluable.


Why do I do it.
I get exactly what I want
I can do it for less then a prebuilt system(using simliar parts)
I can swap out stuff for better parts
I love doing it
I like to overclock
I love doing it
I don't trust OEMs built systems
I love doing it.

 

[lupin]

Actually, many times building your own system can cost just the same or more than pre-built.

So,


<< Why do you build your own systems? >>



You get components, better built quality, better softwares. Overall you'll get a better computer.

 

[Duvie]

Saying you could have spent less on a prebuilt system is a little deceiving...same part?...no internet rebate deals?...If done correctly with shopping around, you should never get beat by prebuilt system as they include techs building it plus profit and any tech support or warranties they may offer. Don't confuse msn or compuserve rebates as fair comparisons, unless you like locking yourself in a dialup contract for 2-3 years while paying more per month then if you shopped around for a local dialup. believe me they get there money back...you pay 6 bucks more per month then I do over two years that equals to 144 dollars...

reasons to build it yourself...my experience in now 4 rebuilds for myself and 6 for others...

1) save money
2) gain valuable experience
3) allow myself easier path for upgrades (avoid proprietary issues)
4) know exactly what you got, brand and models
5) pretty much other comments by adul as well...

If you build like to like machine, prebuilt vs you build, you should almost never pay more...hassles are a different ball-game but if again you do it right which means always researching before you buy that should be alleviated.

 

[s0ccergoof]

I would also have to say that by building it yourself yout get a clean machine without all that extra garbage that companies selling computers put on there (AOL anyone?).

 

[randomlinh]

i do it cause upgrading in the end usually fairs better. costwise its about the same prolly, or more. its just something i enjoy doing.. its a hobby. before it was a more cost effective and you could pick better parts.

 

[dolphins]

1.Satisfaction of building it yourself.
2.Knowledge that the components chosen were best at the time.
3.Learning something new along the way.
4.Headaches.
5.Nausea.
6.Frustration.
7.Premature aging.
8.Having a clue as to upgradeability of your system.

 

[bacillus]

for me one word, satisfaction!

 

[Jeff H]

Sbud, you may be right in that a prebuilt could come in costing less, but IMO you end up w/ a better machine when you build it yourself, plus you learn things about hardware and OS' that you wouldn't otherwise learn.

My current system is a good example. In Nov. 98 I bought an Abit BH6, some SDRAM, and a PII-300. I'm still running that board, currently w/ a P!!!-650. It's seen at least four hard drives, two video cards, two SCSI cards, a couple memory upgrades, addition of a CD-RW, a SCSI scanner (price was right - free), various cooling solutions, etc.

In contrast, a buddy bought a Dell PII-450, and had to give up his SCSI scanner (see the connection<g>!), and faced both slot limitations and case slots. He's recently seen the light and we last week put together an IWill KK266, TBird 1.2G C processor, 256MB Crucial PC133 CAS2, and an Enlight 7237 case. He now has plenty of room for upgrading, as well as a board w/ 3 phase power that should accept the upcoming .13m Athlons.

 

[Noriaki]

Becuase I know exactly what goes into the Rig then. I'm not paying for software I don't need or a warranty I won't use.

I decide what corners to cut if I need to save a few bucks.

But mostly I just like to do it, it's a hobby.
If you don't enjoy it then buy a pre-built. You can usually get decent ones, especially if you go through a mom&amp;pop shop or a good online shop like AlienWare.

 

[mackstann]

And, you know exactly what's in your system. You don't have to worry about &quot;Can I install this or that&quot; because you KNOW you don't have any proprietary crap in your system. And, You don't have 20 gigs of Bloatware that you did'nt even want (and 75 things that run on startup). And, you know EXACTLY what's in it. It's like makin your own bread, you know there's no preservatives, because YOU didn't put any in.

 

[Dufusyte]

When I was a newbie, I bought my first computer from some local reseller. It was an AMD 133 mhz. Quite spiffy at the time.

Since then it has been all Upgrades, component by component, throughout the years.

By now, none of the original components are actually in the system; I even had to upgrade the case and power supply to fit my latest motherboard.

The point is that I never really built a system from scratch; it's always a process of upgrading a component or two.

I've upgraded through three generations of HD, three or four generations of video card, several generations of motherboards/cpu, modems, keyboards, mice... Every component has been replaced two or three times except the trusty floppy drive.

Savvy computer owners will &quot;upgrade&quot; their computer far more often than they will buy/build a new computer for themselves from scratch. We upgrade because only a few of the components need replacing at any given point in time, and we do it ourselves because we can. Who would pay someone else to install a new video card?

It's not a question of &quot;should I build a new computer or should I buy one?&quot; It's simply an ongoing process of upgrading individual components throughout time.

Actually, I would kind of recommend that a newbie purchase his first system, since it can be daunting to build a computer totally from scratch if the person has not had the prior experience of doing many individual upgrades. But if someone buys a system, it should not be a funky proprietary system with cards glued into the pci slots, and a weird proprietary bios, since this might be difficult to upgrade in the future. Stay away from the giant OEM's (Dell, Compaq, Gateway, etc.) since they tend to do the proprietary stuff.

 

[dingdongdingdong]

help me learn what i don't know before .when Igot problem I don't need to call that got dam tech support let way everytime I call them. no need to pay that god dam window again or those software no need for me.

 

[Fugifighter]

about 4 years ago i got a prebuilt computer and my reasoning behind this was that i didnt want to go thru the hassle of putting one together cuz at that time i didnt not know too much about computers. My friends all tried to convince me to buy separte but i just didnt want to chance something not being compatible or some other unforeseen problem. My friends did help me find a company where i could choose most of my components so it wasnt as bad. Over the years i've added a new hard drive and a Plextor and SCSI card.. This passed spring i finally decided to do a full upgrade of my old computer. I bought all of my components seperately and you can look at my rig rite now if you want. I learned SOOOOO much from putting my computer together.... Now that i look back upon everything, i really wish i had put together my first computer instead of ordering prebuilt... now I know what kind of components are in my computer, I know how to trouble shoot it if i need to.. (i remember having to wait on the phone for tech support when i had a problem with my old computer.) I now know i love computers even more and i love tweaking and Overclocking everything that i can overclock...

My reasons to build from scratch?
1. Lot's of experience ( cant put a price tag on this! )
2. Lot's of Fun
3. That feeling of Satisfaction when you are using your computer to Frag and kill in your favorite FPS (Tribe2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
4. Pride in your hard work and your effort

The only problem i've found is that i cant stop tweaking everything in Bios and i cant stop from trying new drivers to see what will make my computer run faster.

Fugi