What is the safest core component to cheap out?

[Ya_Mi]

As the title suggest, what is the safest to cheap out? I am talking about core component such as processor, PSU, GPU, and so on

 

A lot of people seems to suggest that Motherboard is the safest because you won't lose anything but features and slightly lower performance loss from that features, but is it really that's all? i mean motherboard is filled with capacitors, vrms, etc that maybe could lead to idk..component failure? i mean cheap mobo comes with cheap build quality right?

 

Sorry.

4 minutes ago, Ya_Mi said:

Hmm, reading the response i guess i need to be more specific.

What i am trying to say is, which component that i could spend less money on but won't affect performance that much and safety/reliability

[Spindel]

The case. 

 

The case does nothing except it might look ugly (but to be fair most cheap cases look better than tempered glass rainbow unicorn RGB cases does anyway).  

[Ya_Mi]

4 minutes ago, Spindel said:

The case. 

 

The case does nothing except it might look ugly (but to be fair most cheap cases look better than tempered glass rainbow unicorn RGB cases does anyway).  

While case is important i know, but its not..you know..a part that made a computer a computer.

For me core component is, if you're lacking in one of em say the Power Supply, then you cannot build a computer.

[MightyMishka]

Ok soory

[LpoolTech]

Well as you say yourself they are "core" components you shouldn't really cheap out on any of them but that doesn't mean you can't shop around and save some cash here and there MB is the first example as long as it has good vrm and features you look for you can go with value based option ex. b450/b550 as opposed to x570. Storage is another place you can get smaller boot drive and bigger HDD which would save you some cash. Ram can be also bought cheaper if you don't need RGB or willing to leave some performance on the table if the frequencies are lower. CPU, GPU, PSU are too important IMO. 

[gal-m]

2 minutes ago, MightyMishka said:

I'd say the mobo or the PSU.

 

2 minutes ago, MightyMishka said:

Also, if the components fail, you already bought a cheap motherboard, you could just buy another one but slightly better.

Ufff.. this, unfortunately is EXTREMELY BAD advice @MightyMishka.. sorry

[LpoolTech]

2 minutes ago, MightyMishka said:

I'd say the mobo or the PSU. The only way to cheap out on a PSU is to get a lower efficiency rating, you definitely can't reduce the wattage. If the motherboard can hold the parts without breaking, it should work fine. Depends on the rest of the hardware, though. Also, if the components fail, you already bought a cheap motherboard, you could just buy another one but slightly better.

Do not cheap out on PSU! The cheaper units introduce so many stability issues and are fire hazard 

[Ya_Mi]

1 minute ago, LpoolTech said:

Well as you say yourself they are "core" components you shouldn't really cheap out on any of them but that doesn't mean you can't shop around and save some cash here and there MB is the first example as long as it has good vrm and features you look for you can go with value based option ex. b450/b550 as opposed to x570. Storage is another place you can get smaller boot drive and bigger HDD which would save you some cash. Ram can be also bought cheaper if you don't need RGB or willing to leave some performance on the table if the frequencies are lower. CPU, GPU, PSU are too important IMO. 

Ok so between Motherboard, PSU, RAM, GPU, and CPU. Motherboard is the safest?

[LpoolTech]

Just now, Ya_Mi said:

Ok so between Motherboard, PSU, RAM, GPU, and CPU. Motherboard is the safest?

As long as you are still buying quality unit then yes. For example if you are buying b450 board do not go for the cheapest one on the market, research ask for opinions here on the forum on unit you choose and if the deal is good pull the trigger 

[OVER10RD]

23 minutes ago, Ya_Mi said:

As the title suggest, what is the safest to cheap out? I am talking about core component such as processor, PSU, GPU, and so on

 

A lot of people seems to suggest that Motherboard is the safest because you won't lose anything but features and slightly lower performance loss from that features, but is it really that's all? i mean motherboard is filled with capacitors, vrms, etc that maybe could lead to idk..component failure? i mean cheap mobo comes with cheap build quality right?

gpu seems like a good option if u aren't crazy about the finest details in graphics

[Beerzerker]

NEVER cheap out on the PSU.
If it goes it tends to take all else with it when it goes and then you'll find it just got expensive vs that small bit you saved on your budget PSU.

A cheaper board is one way, getting a lower model CPU is another or even a cheaper GPU/card but you can go too far and have something suitable for the office and that's it.

Think about what you'll be using the setup for and let that guide you in what to get.

[Sauron]

14 minutes ago, MightyMishka said:

The only way to cheap out on a PSU is to get a lower efficiency rating, you definitely can't reduce the wattage.

That's not true at all, low quality power supplies have a much higher chance of failing and/or breaking other parts in your system. In some cases they are even a fire hazard.

 

"Cheaping out" on the motherboard is also not recommended just because 1) it might die sooner and 2) the lack of support for certain features may hurt your upgrade options in the future.

 

@Ya_Miyou shouldn't think of it in terms of "cheaping out" on a given component to get better parts elsewhere; your build should be balanced, not the bare minimum you need to slot a graphics card in.

[Ya_Mi]

2 minutes ago, Sauron said:

 

@Ya_Miyou shouldn't think of it in terms of "cheaping out" on a given component to get better parts elsewhere; your build should be balanced, not the bare minimum you need to slot a graphics card in.

Well i am well aware of that, the thing is i don't have enough budget to buy "decent" component and believe me, i've looked everywhere and the only option i can cheap out is the Memory or the Motherboard.

 

So i was just looking for some insights. Maybe there's something i miss/don't know.

[NineEyeRon]

None or all of them. Buy stuff that you need or change your expectations and move down a tier.

[Ya_Mi]

Hmm, reading the response i guess i need to be more specific.

What i am trying to say is, which component that i could spend less money on but won't affect performance that much and safety/reliability

[gloop]

3 minutes ago, Ya_Mi said:

Well i am well aware of that, the thing is i don't have enough budget to buy "decent" component and believe me, i've looked everywhere and the only option i can cheap out is the Memory or the Motherboard.

 

So i was just looking for some insights. Maybe there's something i miss/don't know.

Memory is then the ‘safest’ as you can manually overclock it to run at higher speeds and tighter latencies. 

[Ya_Mi]

Just now, gloop said:

Memory is then the ‘safest’ as you can manually overclock it to run at higher speeds and tighter latencies. 

What about the stability and reliability? does cheaper RAM Chip (i don't know the name/type of memory used in RAM perhaps you can tell me) could result in..as i said poor stability and reliability?

[whispous]

The CPU.

Having built hundreds of computers and fixed a thousand more, the CPU is BY FAR the component that dies the least.

Good luck finding a way to "cheap out" on it though!

[akio123008]

When it comes to the reliability, you can cheap out on anything you want except the PSU. Cheap mobo's, GPUs, CPUs, RAM, whatever usually don't tend to be less reliable.

 

When it comes to maintaining good performance, I would say either cheap out on the mobo or the graphics card.

 

A cheap mobo will not be a performance penalty so long as everything is running at stock speed, you'll just get fewer features and less I/O. If you can live with that, good, get yourself a cheap mobo.

 

A cheap graphics card will noticably reduce performance of course, but you can mitigate this effect by turning down the graphics or resolution, and the graphics card can be easily upgraded later on. Therefore from my experience cheaping out on a graphics card ruins your life just a bit less than cheaping out on a CPU.

 

 

[LogicalDrm]

RAM. As long as its correct speed, you don't need fancy heatsinks or lights.

 

Case. Doesn't matter to anything, you could run components on the table.

 

Cooler. While I wouldn't skimp myself if I was to spend over $300 to CPU, there are no actual differences between good budget cooler and higher end cooler.

 

SSD. Lets be honest. SATA3 SSD just for games and booting is not gonna hurt your overall happiness. For content creation and other stuff where getting faster loading speeds are actually beneficial, different thing.

 

GPU. In some sense, but mainly choosing between couple manufacturers rather than different models.

 

I wouldn't skimp on mobo or PSU. I have been on cheap mobo, and it sucked in so many ways. For enthusiast, not something I would skimp on.

[Ya_Mi]

2 minutes ago, LogicalDrm said:

I have been on cheap mobo, and it sucked in so many ways.

Please tell me more..what happened?

[LogicalDrm]

3 minutes ago, Ya_Mi said:

Please tell me more..what happened?

Too tight to work on was first. It was small ATX mobo from now-dead Abit. Overclocking was another. It just wouldn't OC Q6600, lost settings on boot. It also had some odd issue where from time to time it would just lose connection to HDD, forcing reboot and repair of files.

 

Also had one before that, AsRock from days when AsRock, MSI and Gigabyte were cheap brands. It has issues with RAM speeds, and with how IDE/SATA relationship worked. Now, that was some time before I got to understand stuff bit better, so I'm not sure if it was issue with board or just in general how IDE/SATA stuff worked together.

[Ya_Mi]

3 minutes ago, LogicalDrm said:

Too tight to work on was first. It was small ATX mobo from now-dead Abit. Overclocking was another. It just wouldn't OC Q6600, lost settings on boot. It also had some odd issue where from time to time it would just lose connection to HDD, forcing reboot and repair of files.

 

Also had one before that, AsRock from days when AsRock, MSI and Gigabyte were cheap brands. It has issues with RAM speeds, and with how IDE/SATA relationship worked. Now, that was some time before I got to understand stuff bit better, so I'm not sure if it was issue with board or just in general how IDE/SATA stuff worked together.

That's a long time ago, i am sure/not sure.. hell idk but i have a feeling that you'll be fine with cheap mobo nowadays although i won't be getting the cheapest let alone from chinese brand like MaxSun or any brand that i never heard of.

[LogicalDrm]

5 minutes ago, Ya_Mi said:

That's a long time ago, i am sure/not sure.. hell idk but i have a feeling that you'll be fine with cheap mobo nowadays although i won't be getting the cheapest let alone from chinese brand like MaxSun or any brand that i never heard of.

All depends. I'm enthusiast grade user. I can tell just from manual when mobo is too cheap/entry-level for me. For example MSIs PC Mate series. Also there are multiple things that I don't go back to even thought I made change several years ago. One is integrated audio. That Abit mobo was in main rig from 2008 to 2013, and after that several more years in my parents PC. So it wasn't bad, just something I decided not to skimp on in future.

[Sauron]

1 hour ago, Ya_Mi said:

the only option i can cheap out is the Memory or the Motherboard.

Out of the two, memory is easy to expand or replace and not that influential in the performance of a low end build (plus it doesn't risk damaging anything else if it breaks) so definitely save on that.