Is it just me that hates modern computers?

[ToneStar]

Is it just me or were the way computers used to be made much easier.  How many people come over and look inside your computer to see all the pretty lights and glass window to look at all the cool components, no one gives a shit.

I feel like guys like Jays2cents caused this extra bs with their special PC builds.

1. Cases way too heavy, why are we putting glass on them.
2. Cable management is such a waste of time and makes the computer about 5x more annoying to work on, every cable must be hidden and run through the back, tied off etc.
3. RGB lighting just causes more hardware issues, maintenance, crashes etc to make the computer look pretty on the inside.
4. Custom water cooling systems, completely unnecessary and provide 0 real benefits just making a maintenance pain in the ass.
5. Nvidia GPUs especially are way too power hungry and run way too close to the edge, catching computers on fire, and just a real lack of stability that computers had 10 plus years ago.

[Levent]

1) there are cases that arent that heavy and dont have glasses.

2) 100% disagree there. If you think cable management is just bunching cables together and zip tying them, I would also hate working on that computer.

3) Again, optional feature.

4) optional.

5) And they are to significantly more efficient.

 

TLDR: Just you.

 

[tkitch]

yes it's you.

 

1) Buy a damned aluminum case, they do still exist.  Also, 25 years ago, I owned a 40+lb empty case.  It's not fuckin' new.

 

2) lolwut?  If you hate cable management, don't.  Just don't whine about looks if it's ugly and you're too lazy to manage it.

 

3) don't buy RGB.  Problem solved.

 

4) Don't buy a custom watercooling system.  problem solved.

 

5) BWAHAHAHAHA, you're hilarious.  And also completely wrong, but you do you.

 

To me it sounds like you're trying to be edgy and just doing a bad job of it.  Nothing you're upset about is actually a problem.  

[tkitch]

Actual problem?  There are several, but nothing you just mentioned.

 

Some would include:

Lack of standardization of RGB Software / Connectors / Etc.  Proprietary for the sake of proprietary is bad, and that's most of the industry now.

Poor case design, with even worse airflow is also a problem.  (Lookin' at you:  H510)

 

[Holmes108]

Yeah, it's mostly already been said here but...

 

Cases come in all flavors. Glass or metal, I appreciate that more modern cases are easier to get into than the old ones in general. They're more standardized and easier to build in by far too.

 

Proper cable management is about more than aesthestics, and make it easier to work on in many ways, imo.

 

I also hate RGB, but that's purely aesthestic and optional.

 

Water cooling is indeed a PIA, but again, optional, and the more complex water cooling is far from the norm (not talking about AIO's). 

 

The 30 series from Nvidia was pretty wild with their power, but that's already way better in the 40 series. We'll see what the 50 series brings.

[PDifolco]

I use PC since they've been created (well a bit later in the 80s), and really they are much more functional, cool, efficient and easy to build now!!

Cases in particular are waaaay better than they were

Things like RGB and watercooling are enthusiast stuff, like customized cars, noone forces you on that nor to use glass panels

Regarding power you certainly don't recall than a GT590 (2011) had more than 350W TDP, and a GT295 (2009) was 300W so nothing new !

And burning connectors are a unfortunate (and rather rare) accident due to weak/badly designed cables and connector on a couple of NVidia models, but the GPUs had no issue

 

[Dedayog]

28 minutes ago, ToneStar said:

Is it just me or were the way computers used to be made much easier.  How many people come over and look inside your computer to see all the pretty lights and glass window to look at all the cool components, no one gives a shit.

I feel like guys like Jays2cents caused this extra bs with their special PC builds.

1. Cases way too heavy, why are we putting glass on them.
2. Cable management is such a waste of time and makes the computer about 5x more annoying to work on, every cable must be hidden and run through the back, tied off etc.
3. RGB lighting just causes more hardware issues, maintenance, crashes etc to make the computer look pretty on the inside.
4. Custom water cooling systems, completely unnecessary and provide 0 real benefits just making a maintenance pain in the ass.
5. Nvidia GPUs especially are way too power hungry and run way too close to the edge, catching computers on fire, and just a real lack of stability that computers had 10 plus years ago.

I'm sure there are others that think as you do, and many that have issues with just 1 or 2 things on your list.

 

I love #2, since every car and home has wire management.  

 

How is #4 no benefit?

 

Sounds like you hate change.  Embrace that hate tho, it's healthy and will keep your party happy.

 

[NoneRain]

It's you, everything is optional and GPUs are more efficient than ever with the smaller nodes.

[jaslion]

You basically.

 

1. Pick a light one then? Heavy cases have always been a think. Like ffs my 2004 pc I got from the Aldi was made from steel for some reason

 

2. Then dont? Nothing is stopping you.

 

3. Then dont?

 

4. Then dont?

 

5. I think your forgot like the last 20 years of gpu's :p. Just of the top of my head I know at least 15 that fall in this category

[LapsedMemory]

1.  If you think cases are heavy today, then you don't actually remember the old steel cases we used to work on.  Glass is nothing compared to the punched-steel construction and razor-sharp edges.  A box of band aides was a more important tool than a static wrist strap.  

 

2.  Cable management started back in the day because the cables were so bulky and case volume so tight that the cables actually SEVERELY restricted airflow if you didn't manage them properly.  Properly done today, they make components infinitely easier to work on and replace, and you'r not worries about severing one when trying to pull out a GPU.  

 

3.  RGB doesn't actually cause any issue.  Management software does.  If you don't install the software, and just buy a case without a window, then you never have to worry about it.  Personally, I don't care about RGB one way or another.

 

4.  Custom water cooling absolutely has its place, just not in your specific scenarios.  Overclocking a 13900k basically requires a custom water loop, as no AIO currently made will prevent it from thermal throttling.  That's just one example.  Again, if you don't like it, don't do it. 

 

5.  Again, if this is your argument, you really don't remember what it was like to work on older computers.    Yes, components are getting more power hungry, but the performance per watt has outpaced it in spades.  You can build a 500W system with an underclocked GPU and get MUCH better performance than the old systems would get pushing to the maximum.  As far as stability goes, 10 years ago we were 'blessed' with Windows 8 which was such a clusterfark, they had to release 8.1 a year later to make up for it.  Windows 10, for all its faults, is at least on par or better than Windows 7 was.  

 

I've been working on PC's since the mid-90's.  There has NEVER been a better time to build a computer.  What you can get today on even limited budgets is absolutely astounding.  A 1080 TI is nearly a decade old and it STILL puts out descent performance on new games in 1080p.  There was a time when a GPU life expectancy was measured in months, not years, and I can never remember a time when a card would be usable a decade later, and the latest cards are on par or better (with the exception of NVIDIA neutering the VRAM on it's latest round).

[Moonzy]

57 minutes ago, ToneStar said:

1. Cases way too heavy, why are we putting glass on them.

there's all sort of options out there, to cater to almost every needs

 

58 minutes ago, ToneStar said:

2. Cable management is such a waste of time and makes the computer about 5x more annoying to work on, every cable must be hidden and run through the back, tied off etc.

while i agree, i also tend to change my hardware every couple days, so cable management is just extra work

but for others, there may be benefit to it

 

59 minutes ago, ToneStar said:

3. RGB lighting just causes more hardware issues, maintenance, crashes etc to make the computer look pretty on the inside.

huh?

 

59 minutes ago, ToneStar said:

4. Custom water cooling systems, completely unnecessary and provide 0 real benefits just making a maintenance pain in the ass.

there's all sort of options out there, to cater to almost every needs

 

1 hour ago, ToneStar said:

5. Nvidia GPUs especially are way too power hungry and run way too close to the edge, catching computers on fire, and just a real lack of stability that computers had 10 plus years ago.

lets split this into multi parts

 

1 hour ago, ToneStar said:

Nvidia GPUs especially are way too power hungry

there's all sort of options out there, to cater to almost every needs

ie, get a lower end model

 

1 hour ago, ToneStar said:

run way too close to the edge

what edge?

 

1 hour ago, ToneStar said:

catching computers on fire

from what i understand, user error

but user error from kinda bad design, so i would blame both parties, maybe 80/20 (80 on the user side)

 

1 hour ago, ToneStar said:

just a real lack of stability that computers had 10 plus years ago.

huh?

if anything, those chonkers made my PC way more stable on my table than it ever has been

[Avocado Diaboli]

1 hour ago, ToneStar said:

How many people come over and look inside your computer to see all the pretty lights and glass window to look at all the cool components, no one gives a shit.

You apparently give a shit what other people do with their hardware. I'm not one for fancy aesthetics, function always comes first. But who am I to disagree with someone who likes their environment to look a certain way? All the other stuff has already been addressed, you're never forced to engage with the stuff you're complaining about unless you choose to do so, because there are plenty of alternatives.

[IkeaGnome]

1 hour ago, ToneStar said:

How many people come over and look inside your computer to see all the pretty lights and glass window to look at all the cool components, no one gives a shit.

That’s the cool part about computers. You can put as much or as little effort in as you want. 
 

I think people forget about the “personal” part of PC…..

[johnt]

1 hour ago, ToneStar said:

Is it just me or were the way computers used to be made much easier.  How many people come over and look inside your computer to see all the pretty lights and glass window to look at all the cool components, no one gives a shit.

I feel like guys like Jays2cents caused this extra bs with their special PC builds.

1. Cases way too heavy, why are we putting glass on them.
2. Cable management is such a waste of time and makes the computer about 5x more annoying to work on, every cable must be hidden and run through the back, tied off etc.
3. RGB lighting just causes more hardware issues, maintenance, crashes etc to make the computer look pretty on the inside.
4. Custom water cooling systems, completely unnecessary and provide 0 real benefits just making a maintenance pain in the ass.
5. Nvidia GPUs especially are way too power hungry and run way too close to the edge, catching computers on fire, and just a real lack of stability that computers had 10 plus years ago.

I think you can build a computer to the way that you want, and that couldn't be anymore true about modern systems (especially compared to old ones). You don't have to install RGB or water cooling. You don't even need to install a "separate" hard drive that require wires anymore! You can get away with a main power and CPU cable for an entire modern setup. That was unheard of 20 years ago. You just do the things that you give a shit about. Cable management isn't required. RGB is not required.

 

Nvidia's GPUs are power hungry, but they can do so much more than used to. And so far it's one connector that's causing all the drama. Do you know how much of a gamble it was to alt+tab in Windows XP during a game? Look at all the overlays you can have on screen at one time now, plus the intense number of background processes, PLUS you can alt+tab confidently. NO WAY has stability gone down lol

 

Cable management is an interesting subject. It can be annoying when you have to swap out some components with several wires, but you could design those to be in a separate run so you don't have to impact the rest of your setup. I also remember the ribbon cables from IDE drives to be so thick and space consuming that you basically had no way to improve air flow back in the day. But maybe it wasn't important with a 266 MHz processor lol 

[freeagent]

It is like any other hobby. You can do as much, or as little as you want to your machine, and as usual, your wallet will dictate how far you take it.

[CrowTheRobot]

1 hour ago, ToneStar said:

Is it just me or were the way computers used to be made much easier.  How many people come over and look inside your computer to see all the pretty lights and glass window to look at all the cool components, no one gives a shit.

I feel like guys like Jays2cents caused this extra bs with their special PC builds.

1. Cases way too heavy, why are we putting glass on them.
2. Cable management is such a waste of time and makes the computer about 5x more annoying to work on, every cable must be hidden and run through the back, tied off etc.
3. RGB lighting just causes more hardware issues, maintenance, crashes etc to make the computer look pretty on the inside.
4. Custom water cooling systems, completely unnecessary and provide 0 real benefits just making a maintenance pain in the ass.
5. Nvidia GPUs especially are way too power hungry and run way too close to the edge, catching computers on fire, and just a real lack of stability that computers had 10 plus years ago.

1.  Uhhhhh...There are tons without glass?  My first case in 2020 was a solid panel, and many can be found on Newegg.

2. I wish I could show you a pic of the PC I worked on in May for a friend, upgrading from an AMD FX processor all the way up to a 7600X.  She was using a hulking beast of a case her father had bought her years ago (and she refuses to move from it to my old solid-sided first build case for sentimental reasons) that made my fully loaded current build feel like a feather in comparison (to also tie back to #1).  It had zero cable management space so cables were criss crossing around the whole inside, narrowly missing fans, and I had to skip one of the front panel cables because I needed the port for USB stuff and f**k the FireWire connector on that panel.  Trying to figure out how everything could fit without jamming a fan was a pain in the ass, compared to my Corsair case where 75% of the wires can be stuffed in the power supply basement and the rest are just sloppily run behind the motherboard panel.

3.  Shut off the RGB?  Before I bought a case with a glass panel, I just disabled the RGB in BIOS for the board and uninstalled the software for anything else that had it.

4. Then don't use one?  Get a simple AIO setup or a fan-based system instead?  I only have a single 120mm AIO setup for my 3700X.  It's given me no trouble, was just as easy to install as the original fan was, but is significantly quieter.

5. Then dial them back?

[da na]

I dislike modern computers, but there is a way around everything you have said here. 

I buy used workstation hardware and it seems you might want to as well. 

[Erioch]

12 hours ago, ToneStar said:

Is it just me or were the way computers used to be made much easier.

How far back are we going?  Did you really enjoy dicking around with jumpers and dealing with IRQ conflicts?

 

I love building computer but, honestly, a half-trained monkey can build one that's way more stable than what we used to build.

 

Built my first watercooled PC back in 2003.  It was like mad max out there.

[BrandonLatzig]

honestly the only thing I dislike about modern cases is how similar they are to one another.

 

[Kisai]

16 hours ago, ToneStar said:

Is it just me or were the way computers used to be made much easier.  How many people come over and look inside your computer to see all the pretty lights and glass window to look at all the cool components, no one gives a shit.

I feel like guys like Jays2cents caused this extra bs with their special PC builds.

1. Cases way too heavy, why are we putting glass on them.

Cause it's easy to see the RGB stuff, and glass is cheaper than entirely metal. It also helps the retail sales by making sure you can see that's actually a ASUS RTX 3090 in there and it hasn't been swapped out with a 3070 by someone.

 

16 hours ago, ToneStar said:

2. Cable management is such a waste of time and makes the computer about 5x more annoying to work on, every cable must be hidden and run through the back, tied off etc.

Cable management matters, but it would matter less if physical parts were not designed with legacy positions. For example, cables should not be "pointing outward to the panel of the chassis" for airflow reasons, but they are done this way for access reasons. This leads to a problem with GPU's being too tall for chassis, and as we saw with the RTX 40 series high power connector fires, stupidity in part designs.

 

Cable management is a cooling and aesthetic choice.

 

16 hours ago, ToneStar said:

3. RGB lighting just causes more hardware issues, maintenance, crashes etc to make the computer look pretty on the inside.

I am not a fan of RGB nonsense. But some people like it. Aesthetic choice.

 

16 hours ago, ToneStar said:

 

4. Custom water cooling systems, completely unnecessary and provide 0 real benefits just making a maintenance pain in the ass.

 

 

True, most of those AIO's and water cooling systems are compensating for the manufacturer's incompetence elsewhere. Like how you need a AIO for Ryzen 9 and i9 systems in OEM's like Dell and HP, because their actual chassis designs suck for cooling.

 

16 hours ago, ToneStar said:

5. Nvidia GPUs especially are way too power hungry and run way too close to the edge, catching computers on fire, and just a real lack of stability that computers had 10 plus years ago.

 

Nvidia is not the only one. Intel too. There is a power limit we're going to hit, and that is a PSU of 1200w for any system intended to be used in your home/office.  2000w PSU's exist, but you need specialized wiring, and unless you want to use the same outlet that you'd use for charging your EV, or operating your Oven or Clothes dryer, that's probably not going be a thing.

 

I don't see the combined i9/Ryzen 9 + NVidia RTX xx90 part exceeding 1200w, and if Nvidia or Intel has the balls to do so, there's going to be a lot of negative reviews from people having their breakers blown when they turn on the computer screen.

 

 

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

Want a lightweight PC without the hassle of cable management, dealing with RGB, or watercooling? Congrats, you've bought yourself the Dell G5 5000.

[Edmond Dantes]

im sure there is alot of people that hate modern computers its not just you. personally i like them.

[ToneStar]

Some things are a lot better of course like NVME drives USB C.   Just not a fan of how important aesthetics are now, motherboards are another thing the prices are getting ridiculous.

And I do have RGB lighting, Cable management etc on my computer, I kind of hate working on it though cause all the cables being run through the back and tied off, have to take off both panels to do much, mess with both sides, getting the power supply out is about impossible even though its modular.

1 thing that had some logic to it back in the day was having a network card and sound card so that every motherboard you bought didn't have the cost of that added to it.   You could upgrade 1-2 motherboard / cpus before needing to change those out possibly saving some.

[ToneStar]

FYI just a little background my first computer was a 486 33mhz packard bell, then my 2nd computer I built from parts was a pentium 200, canopus voodoo 1, ati 8mb card, abit motherboard.

You could daisy chain my current computer all the way back to that one I never completely rebuilt it without keeping at least 1 or 2 parts from the previous build.

Currently have a 5900x, 3080 fe, fractal define s2, corsair aio, 64 gigs of ddr3700, 2 1tb nvme drives and a bunch of normal hard drives.

I think I liked the the core 2 duo and athlon x2 era the best, easiest to work on, lighter aluminum cases, still had easy stuff like no DOS to install windows and Sata and early stages of SSD.

[Monkey Dust]

The lack of choice if you want a case without a glass panel does annoy me. But they are out there, mostly from Fractal.

 

Disagree on cable management, though. It is easier than ever as there are fewer cables. Cases are easier to take apart than they used to be too, though the PSU shrouds are a step back in ease of maintenance. My last PC had a sata SSD, 2 sata HDDs and a sata optical drive, that's a lot of cables my current PC, with only 2 m.2 SSDs, does not have. You can add a load of cables in for RGB, but that's optional.

 

My big annoyance is the size of GPU coolers. Massive coolers are fair enough on 4090, but on the lower powered cards it is a giant FU to anyone wanting an SFF build.