Do I dare take the plunge?

[swanky]

Hi there. I kind of need some input here. My dilemma is: I'm buying a new computer, and I really want to give it a go putting it together myself. But is it worthwhile? The shop I'm buying the parts from will do it for an extra $50.

The money's not an issue here, I guess I'm looking for the experience and satisfaction of actually having "made" it myself. But then again, I don't want to completely fu@@ it up.

I've read up on the "theory", and I've fiddled a bit with my computer (AMD K6-6), adding new cards, more RAM, a new fan - the usual. To put it this way - I know an ISA from a PCI from an AGP.

I guess what I'm really asking is:

Should I take the plunge?!?

P.S.: If there's an older thread on this subject (from another neurotic), please point me in that direction.


Thanks

 

[tasslex]

Damn right you should take the plunge!

Building my own machine was really satisfying, and you get the added bonus of knowing every little thing about every component that you have in your box. When I built mine I really micromanaged every little thing. I'm sure the shop that will do it for $50 will do a great job, but if you do it yourself you notice a lot of little things about the components (ie what PCI slots share IRQ's, etc).

 

[ST4RCUTTER]

Based on experience you have already, I'd say do it. Once you do, you'll probably never buy another pre-built system unless you need the software bundle.

Just be sure to ask plenty of questions and find a good reseller. You can usually get stuff cheaper online than if you were to buy them locally. This is especially true of RAM and CPU's. This board is a great place to ask questions.

 

[Flat]

its fun go for it. I love the feeling of a nice RAM/PCI/AGP unit sliding into place. oh baby!

 

[benjamit]

i was, am in your position
2 years ago i bought second to the top of the line from a small local builder and to this day i still feel i got a good price and good h/w from that buy (though the parts are in diff systems that i have since built myself)

my main point is that i never really built my own system from ground level, it was always an upgrade but after a while when your up grading the case and pcu then there's only the cpu and the mobo left

if you build or buy just be sure to have solid h/w otherwise you'll regret it
s/w, in my experience is reformating every 3 mos and i hate it, complete waste of time

 

[GregMal]

Do you still have your fingernails??? They'll be gone if you take
the plunge....
Just kidding. You'll get alot of satisfaction building your own and
you'll be surprised at the amount of knowledge gained for future
PC problems.............
Greg

 

[NelsonMuntz]

I did not know they made a K6-6. I thought there were just K6-2s and K6-3s. But seriously, I think yo should go for it to. The first one I built was a Pentium 133 and I haven't looked back since. If you do want to build it yourself, there s/b better prices available on the web then what that local computer guy is going to give you.

 

[jonMEGA]

Its not that hard to put together a PC anymore.... there is no/few jumpers to set ( If you get a SOFTset BOIS ). And I feel that its very satisfing to put it together yourself. You'll know your system and how it went together cuz you built it

 

[swanky]

Cool, getting excited!

How hard is it to put the fan onto a Thunderbird? You hear these stories about people burning their T-birds?

And static electricity? Do people really turn their $200 CPU's into key rings?

 

[swanky]

...sorry... K6-2

I'm sitting in Norway (11PM) - too much coffee and nicotine today

 

[agg123456789]

i would do it. that was about the amount of knowlede i had before i built my system....


my 2 cents....


agg123456789

 

[MichaelD]

There is no better feeling than the pride and accomplishment of putting together your own computer. No reason not to do it these days; the DIY market is huge and with a place like these here AT Forums, you have all the free tech support you'll ever need.

Once you've done it, you'll wonder why you waited so long. If something goes wrong, chances are you'll know where to look for the problem right off the bat. Anytime something has gone wrong with my rig that I couldn't fix (once or twice in the last 6 months) I got the answer right here in about 30 minutes. GO! GO! GO! GO!

 

[swanky]

thanks all of you - I'm going for it!

Guess you'll hear from me when I get stuck...

 

[stultus]

Static electricity? Overrated. I've built 3 computers on a plush carpeted floor and never had any problems.

Putting on the HS/F is the most difficult part of it the first time because you're not sure how much force you need. You'll need an extra person to help you do it. Most likely.

 

[Starvenger]

Swankey, about the keyrings... I have tried to make one and all I end up doing is shattering the cpu. They are hard as heck to drill through ;=]

 

[bjc112]

<plunging into the computer world now> !

go for it! you will be happy!

Bryan

 

[swanky]

<< Swankey, about the keyrings... I have tried to make one and all I end up doing is shattering the cpu. They are hard as heck to drill through ;=] >>



--too bad - I'd really like one.

Mind you, not made from my cpu

 

[bigbenv]

i know the decision has been made in this case but for others considering...
the real question is this:
will i miss having 24 hour free tech support?

building a computer is pretty easy, i made this one with no problems. but when something goes wrong (my bios fried) remember that Dell is a lot easier to get on the phone than most of the mother board manufacturers, and the call is free too.
I'm not regretting making my own, but it is a personal decision. Probably if you've found this forum, somebody will be able to help you troubleshoot most problems.

 

[Hullboy]

I made my fist PC about 5 months ago, and now I'm very happy I did it.

However, please use the buying power the net gives you to get good quality hardware. I made the mistake of getting generic ram for my A7V mobo, and it didn't wear it well. If you search the net, you can get quality products for pennies more than generic manufacturer's goods. Especially if you compare that price to the price at your local store.

When I made my pc I did have to read up on it. I got an A+ book and spent some time working through it. That knowledge is now being put into practice in my first IT job, and I love it

Now that prices have fallen so far and an AMD 700Mhz duron costs so little, I'm going to build a few more...

Forums such as this one will really help you out. I'm very happy I've found this one and now check it out every day.

Good luck

 

[swanky]

I've checked up on the prices, and it turns out that the shop I'm buying from is among the cheapest here in Norway (they're also a web shop).

Hullboy:

What book did you get? I've found a couple of web sites that are good, but I've really missed having a text book.

To all you other out there - big hand to you all, you've taken &quot;the neurotic&quot; seriously, and given me good advice. I'll keep coming back.

Swanky

 

[Hullboy]

Swanky

The book I have is simply called A+ Certification, by Michael Myers (not the canadian/brit comedian).

My copy is a little out of date (references to Win 95 mostly!) but the vast majority of it is up to speed when it comes to the underlying principles. I found this to be a great introduction and still refer to it now when I have a problem. I've got no intention of taking the A+ exam, and have this for reference alone.

I expect another edition will have been published by now that will include references to W98, and hopefully W2K - who knows, maybe even Linux :Q

If you are serious about computer hardware, get a reference like this. After all, if you only have one pc at home, when it won't start, how will you get advice on the web!

Ta

Hullboy

 

[MichaelD]

You have FREE 24-hour tech support right here at the AT Forums! A LOT of people on these forums work for Intel, MS, AMD, etc, and 99.9% of all of us have built their own systems and chances are you aren't going to run into a problem that someone here doesn't already know how to fix! Just do it!