Is DIY really cheaper?

[Kirikoza]

Currently shopping for a new PC. Since my family has a best buy credit card, I will likely have to get my PC from Best Buy, so I decided to compare the prices between pre-built and DIY. I took the Dell Inspirion (and similar systems by manufacturers such as iBuyPower) and put the $1100 PCs up against a DIY with the exact same specs. There really isn't a huge difference, nothing that would incentivize building my own. I've built a few computers before and I know it isn't difficult but given the choice I feel like i'd rather have my system professionally wired.

 

Here's a system I made: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/nTfMZR

Here's the system I based it on: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/dell-inspiron-desktop-intel-core-i7-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1060-128gb-solid-state-drive-2tb-hard-drive-recon-blue/6189101.p?skuId=6189101

Here's an iBuyPower with similar specs but with a Kabylake processor: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/ibuypower-desktop-intel-core-i7-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1060-120gb-solid-state-drive-1tb-hard-drive-black-red/5727100.p?skuId=5727100

Also would like a separate opinion on this one, seems pretty good and i'm definitely down to use Ryzen and will probably upgrade the graphics card and give it an SSD later down the road: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/cyberpowerpc-gamer-ultra-vr-desktop-amd-ryzen-7-1700x-8gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1060-1tb-hard-drive-black/6128510.p?skuId=6128510

 

It just seems to me there's not much of a difference between buying pre-built and DIY price-wise, especially when you take off the mail-in rebates from part-picker and the fact that when I buy from Best Buy I get a warranty for the whole system instead of having to deal with individual part warranties. Am I missing something or am I correct that the only difference is what the consumer decides they want to do?

 

PS: please recommend anything that could save me money, and pre-builts or DIYs that have more bang for the buck in the same price range.

[Jaxzzzzz]

first off what is you main use case for this system 

[asus killer]

i guess the GPU crazy prices made the gap diminuish, but you still have to look to things like the PSU, case quality, memory speed, mobo quality... or will be in for a surprise later. 

[Wwadsworth]

DIYing it would warrant you some better parts (like PSU). Right now I don't see a financial difference in it though because of the price of GPU's and RAM being so darn high. There are some deals out there where you can get a 1080 graphics card in your PC for around $1200 (US).

[Kirikoza]

3 minutes ago, Jaxzzzzz said:

first off what is you main use case for this system 

gaming... that's why I listed gaming PCs...

[wojtepanik]

don't buy 3gb version, you will regret not getting 6gb, as games are getting more and more vram demanding....

 

[Kirikoza]

4 minutes ago, Wwadsworth said:

DIYing it would warrant you some better parts (like PSU). Right now I don't see a financial difference in it though because of the price of GPU's and RAM being so darn high. There are some deals out there where you can get a 1080 graphics card in your PC for around $1200 (US).

are PSU problems prevalent in pre-builts?

[Windows7ge]

Years ago DIY computers in general were just a touch cheaper but nowadays they're about the same and you might actually find yourself spending just a little bit more. The benefits of this are well worth it though. You can use brands you trust not brands Best Buy or other vendors pick for you and the ability to customize the build however you want not how it comes prepackaged.

[Kirikoza]

1 minute ago, wojtepanik said:

don't buy 3gb version, you will regret not getting 6gb, as games are getting more and more vram demanding....

 

Not seeing a whole lot of pre-built options for a 6gb, so good point.

[Kirikoza]

1 minute ago, Windows7ge said:

Years ago DIY computers in general were just a touch cheaper but nowadays they're about the same and you might actually find yourself spending just a little bit more. The benefits of this are well worth it though. You can use brands you trust not brands Best Buy or other vendors pick for you and the ability to customize the build however you want not how it comes prepackaged.

Well I still get to choose my PC brand through Best Buy, I trust iBuyPower already, they have a great reputation. Of course the Dell idea was just me playing with the specs, i'm likely not to go for any PCs by brands like Dell, especially since they own Alienware, they're not to be trusted.

[Kirikoza]

2 minutes ago, Pangea2017 said:

Don't build the DIY PC: swap the z370 low end mobo to a better H or b series mobo. The VRM are so bad that you could not use the overclocking on the z370.

Also with DIY you get better warranty. The Dell system has only one year.

Best Buy themselves offer better warranties so i'm not stressed about the manufacturer warranty. Good point on the mobo I didn't catch that.

[Wwadsworth]

7 minutes ago, Kirikoza said:

are PSU problems prevalent in pre-builts?

The only pre-built I bought the PSU died on me within 24 hours.

[Kirikoza]

1 minute ago, Wwadsworth said:

The only pre-built I bought the PSU died on me within 24 hours.

Anecdotal evidence isn't what i'm looking for, i'll google it.

[Windows7ge]

7 minutes ago, Kirikoza said:

Well I still get to choose my PC brand through Best Buy, I trust iBuyPower already, they have a great reputation. Of course the Dell idea was just me playing with the specs, i'm likely not to go for any PCs by brands like Dell, especially since they own Alienware, they're not to be trusted.

My last message was poorly worded, I meant building your own will cost a little more depending on what you want from it.

 

Now quoting you. It's more complicated than that. Just because they built it doesn't mean they're going to use trustworthy reliable brands. If you want to go with them, more power to you (I just looked at their website, their part selection isn't too bad). Companies like dell will use cheap parts in ways just to save a buck. On iBuyPower their website is listing brands I trust and actually this is pretty nice. I see why you said the have a good rep. If this is from a purely "what is cheaper" perspective I'd still build my own but if you can't be bothered then this isn't a bad option. I'd just avoid Toshiba HDDs if that's a purchase option. I've never heard good things about them.

[Kirikoza]

3 minutes ago, Windows7ge said:

My last message was poorly worded, I meant building your own will cost a little more depending on what you want from it.

 

Now quoting you. It's more complicated than that. Just because they built it doesn't mean they're going to use trustworthy reliable brands. If you want to go with them, more power to you (I just looked at their website, their part selection isn't too bad). Companies like dell will use cheap parts in ways just to save a buck. On iBuyPower their website is listing brands I trust and actually this is pretty nice. I see why you said the have a good rep. If this is from a purely "what is cheaper" perspective I'd still build my own but if you can't be bothered then this isn't a bad option. I'd just avoid Toshiba HDDs if that's a purchase option. I've never heard good things about them.

Oh of course it's based on quality of the individual parts, that's why Dell doesn't have a good rep in the gaming sphere. Alienwares were notorious for being low quality boasting what seemed to be great specs, I'm not too convinced that their inspiron line is much better. IBP is pretty known for being a dedicated, trustworthy brand, but there's certainly a premium especially if you buy off their website instead of retail.